This award, which is jointly sponsored by the Meteoritical Society and the Planetary Geology Division of the Geological Society of America, is awarded to an undergraduate or graduate student who is first author of the best planetary science paper published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal during the year prior to the award. Potential topics are listed on the cover of Meteoritics & Planetary Science, and include: Asteroids, Comets, Craters, Interplanetary Dust, Interstellar Medium, Lunar Samples, Meteors, Meteorites, Natural Satellites, Planets, Tektites, Origin and History of the Solar System. The award has been given since 2001, and honors the memories of meteoriticist Paul Pellas and lunar scientist Graham Ryder.