Alabama’s NSF Track 1 PI Will Address NSF as Distinguished Speaker

Dr. Gary Zank will speak on three current space missions of scientific discovery as a distinguished speaker at the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Distinguished Lecture Series in Mathematical and Physical Sciences. Dr. Zank is Alabama’s NSF EPSCoR Director, Director of the Center for Space and Plasma (CSPAR) and chair of the Department of Space Science at the University of Alabama Huntsville. Dr. Zank’s speech is titled “From the Sun’s Atmosphere to the Galactic Edge: Exploring Exotic Plasmas."

"My presentation is quite general since the audience will not be specialists in plasma physics, other than a few, and I thought that people might like to hear a little about two or three of the most exciting missions of discovery that we have happening today.”

The Distinguished Lecture Series in Mathematical and Physical Sciences is part of NSF’s Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences. The lecture series not only brings together scientists and engineers from across NSF, it brings together media and members of the public to discuss issues that scientists expect to shape their research in the coming years. In previous years, Nobel Prize winners have been featured among the distinguished speakers.

Dr. Zank is also a recipient of the AOGS Axford Medal, the highest honor given by the Asia Oceania Geosciences Society (AOGS), an organization equivalent to the American Geophysical Union (AGU). The medal acknowledges an individual for outstanding achievements in geosciences, including planetary and solar system science, as well as unselfish cooperation and leadership in Asia and Oceania. Oceania refers to the broader Pacific Ocean region excluding the Asian region.

Read the full story from UAH here.