LPI Seminar Series

Effective January 1, 2011, LPI seminars will be held on Fridays.

LPI seminars are held from 3:30–4:30 p.m. in the Lecture Hall at USRA, 3600 Bay Area Boulevard, Houston, Texas. Refreshments are served at 4:30 p.m. For more information, please contact Takafumi Niihara (phone: 281-486-2169; e-mail:niihara@lpi.usra.edu) or Ross Potter (phone: 281-486-2144; e-mail: potter@lpi.usra.edu). A map of the Clear Lake area (PDF format) is available here. The Acrobat Reader 8.0 is available from Adobe. This schedule is subject to revision.

See also the Rice University Department of Physics and Astronomy Colloquia and the Department of Earth Science Colloquia pages for other space science talks in the Houston area.

April 2013

Friday, April 12, 2013 - Lecture Hall, 3:30 PM

Doug Hemingway, University of California, Santa Cruz
Lunar crustal magnetism -- origins and influence on space weathering

Although the Moon does not now possess a global magnetic field, its surface is dotted with strong crustal magnetic anomalies, often hundreds of kilometers across. These enigmatic magnetic features may be the signatures of a now extinct dynamo but could also be the result of exotic processes related to basin-forming impact events. In any case, the magnetic anomalies are important clues to the Moon's early history and evolution. Curiously, many of the magnetic anomalies are accompanied by complex, sinuous patterns of bright surface markings, known as "swirls". A strong candidate explanation for the appearance of swirls is that they form where locally strong magnetic fields disturb space weathering patterns, effectively shielding portions of the surface from the darkening effects of solar wind ion bombardment. In this talk, I will show that an analysis of the local magnetic field geometry supports the solar wind shielding hypothesis and I will discuss how the modeling results give insights into the underlying magnetic sources and the nature of the magnetizing field. I will also discuss the possibility of a low-cost spacecraft mission that could collect the extremely low altitude measurements needed to test our predictions.

Friday, April 26, 2013 - Lecture Hall, 12:00 AM

Andrew Dombard, University of Illinois at Chicago
Icy MoonThe Great (and Perplexing) Equatorial Ridge on Saturn's Moon Iapetus

The equatorial ridge on Iapetus is one of the most peculiar features in the solar system. A mountain range up to 20 km high, it runs perfectly along the moon's equator for most of its circumference. The formation of this ridge has baffled scientists since its discovery almost a decade ago. Here, I review models that have been proposed to explain the ridge and argue that it is the end product of a sub-satellite formed by a giant impact during the formation of the solar system.

May 2013

Friday, May 3, 2013 - Lecture Hall, 3:30 PM

Veronica Bray, University of Arizona
Craters

Friday, May 31, 2013 - Lecture Hall, 3:30 PM

Tom Zega, University of Arizona

June 2013

Friday, June 14, 2013 - Lecture Hall, 3:30 PM

Kelsi Singer, Washington University, St. Louis