Author Archives: Michael Purucker

We are pleased to announce that John Mather will present the annual Bradley Lecture of the Geological Society of Washington (GSW) this year, titled ‘Opening the Infrared Treasure Chest with JWST (James Webb Space Telescope)’. Please join us for this hybrid event (Zoom and in-person) at the AGU Headquarters at 2000 Florida Av NW, DC.  If you are joining us in-person, please bring your Covid vaccination card and corresponding ID. It will be checked before admission to the building.

The JWST, a great golden eye in the sky, is seeing farther back in time, farther out in space, and deeper into the dusty clouds where stars are being born today. Launched on Dec. 25, 2021, the observatory is performing beautifully, thanks to 20,000 technicians, engineers, scientists and computer scientists who built it, tested it, launched it, commissioned it, and are now using it. The JWST takes images and spectra over the wavelength range from 0.6 µm (red) to 28 µm (thermal infrared). We have stunning photos and already some startling discoveries: the first galaxies grew much more quickly than astronomers expected. Soon we hope to know if small planets around small red stars (M dwarf class) have atmospheres and perhaps water. Dr. Mather will describe what it took to build and launch the telescope, show the latest images, and talk about what comes next.

Dr. Mather is the Senior Project Scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). The JWST will extend the discoveries of the great Hubble space telescope, reaching farther back in time, farther out into space, to show us how the expanding universe led to galaxies, stars, planets and the possibility for life on our tiny Earth. As a 28-year old postdoc Dr. Mather led the effort to propose the Cosmic Background Explorer satellite (COBE), and then served as its Project Scientist, leading the COBE team to success and to the Nobel Prize in Physics (2006). The COBE measurements started the era of precision cosmology, confirming the expanding universe theory to extraordinary accuracy. Dr. Mather speaks widely on the history of the universe and the astonishing possibilities of our shared future.

The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 28 Sept 2022, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Beth Doyle, at edoyle[at]nvcc.edu.

The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 14 Sept 2022, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Beth Doyle, at edoyle[at]nvcc.edu.

We will have a full slate of three talks. Join us to learn about climate change & air pollution, solar geoengineering, and the role of the US Geological Survey from its new director. Abstracts for the talks are here. Non members are always welcome, and there is no formal dress code for the audience. Details of the talk, including the Zoom link, will be sent to members shortly. Contact Michael Ackerson (ackersonm[at]si.edu) for the Zoom link if you do not have it.

The University of Maryland Department of Geology cordially invites you to the ‘George and Rosalind Helz Distinguished Lecture in Geology’ on ‘How Fracking affects our Water’ given by Susan L. Brantley on Thursday, October 6, 2022 at 6 PM at the Edward St. John Learning and Teaching Center (ESJ) Room 0202. If you have a question about this event, please contact Wenlu Zhu at wzhu@umd.edu or 301.405.1831. A pdf more fully describing the event is located here.

We will have a full slate of three talks. Join us to learn about some of the oldest dated objects in the Solar System (refractory inclusions), biotic responses to climate change, and the role of the James Webb space telescope in planetary science. If you join us at the Cosmos Club, please remember to bring your Covid vaccination card. It will be checked. Non members are welcome. Details of the talk, including the Zoom link, will be sent to members shortly. Contact Michael Ackerson (ackersonm[at]si.edu] for the Zoom link if you do not have it.

Dr. David Applegate was confirmed by the US Senate via a voice vote on 4 Aug 2022 to serve as the next Director of the United States Geological Survey (USGS). Dr. Applegate’s appointment as Director builds upon his decades of experience in Earth Science policy and administration.

After receiving degrees in geology from Yale and MIT, including a PhD thesis focused on metamorphic rocks and the geologic evolution of Death Valley, Dr. Applegate switched tracks to a career in Washington DC, with a stint on the Energy and Natural Resources committee, initially as an AGU Congressional Science Fellow. He then worked as the director of government affairs for the American Geosciences Institute before joining the USGS in 2004 as the first Senior Science Advisor for Earthquakes and Geologic Hazards. He next served as Associate Director for Natural Hazards where he led the Coastal & Marine Geology, Earthquake Hazards, Global Seismographic Network, Geomagnetism, Landslide Hazards, and the Volcano Hazards Program. He has served as the interim director of the USGS since January of 2021. Dr. Applegate is also an adjunct professor at the University of Utah where he still occasionally teaches field courses to undergraduates.

Dr. Applegate was the president of the GSW in 2003, and he continues to be engaged in its mission of providing a forum for geological interchange through a program of regularly scheduled formal talks, informal communications, opportunities to meet colleagues, field trips, and public service. The GSW members represent a wide cross-section of the local geologic community.

We would like to extend our congratulations to Dr. Applegate!

The draft minutes of our last meeting, on 11 May 2022, are attached for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Beth Doyle, at edoyle[at]nvcc.edu.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are looking for nominations for an ad hoc steering committee. The workshop will bring together experts to consider tipping points, cascading impacts, and interacting risks in the Earth system. Nominations from all fields are welcome with expertise in natural, physical, and social and behavioral sciences, including such disciplines as climate science, oceanography, environmental science, economics, engineering, computer modeling and data science, decision support, sociology, and anthropology.

We invite you to submit nominations for this committee by June 3, 2022.

Please find attached here the draft minutes of the April 27th meeting for members to evaluate. If you have any additions or corrections please email them to our meeting secretary, Beth Doyle, at edoyle[at]nvcc.edu.