Astrochemistry Laboratory
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Dr. Ann Parsons
Astrophysicist, Astrochemistry Laboratory
NASA/GSFC, Code 691 Greenbelt, MD 20771 Phone: (301) 286-1107 Email: Dr. Ann Parsons |
Current Position
- Astrophysicist, Astrochemistry Laboratory
Education
1993 - PhD, Physics, University of California, Berkeley
1986 - BS with High Distinction and Highest Honors, Physics, University of Michigan
Research Areas
Planetary Science Instrumentation: Active neutron and gamma ray instruments for in situ bulk planetary astrobiology and geochemistry measurements
Astrophysics Instrumentation: CdZnTe strip and pixel gamma ray detector arrays
Biographical Sketch
I have had great experience applying new instrumentation technology to real space science missions. From my involvement in the extremely successful Swift Gamma Ray Burst Explorer launched in 2004, I have had the opportunity to participate in the full life cycle of a space science mission. I began the Cadmium Zinc Telluride gamma ray detector technology development at Goddard in 1993 that eventually led to the successful Swift mission proposal in 1998. I fully participated in the design, fabrication and calibration of the Burst Alert Explorer (BAT) as well as its integration with the Swift spacecraft and the following environmental testing. I have also been involved in the science operation of the satellite since its launch. My scientific interests have since broadened to include the study of the origin and evolution of the planets. My new direction in developing novel detector systems for planetary science applications came when Dr. Jack Trombka invited me to lead the technical R&D aspect of his venerable planetary science research group in the Solar System Exploration Division at Goddard. My knowledge of gamma ray and x-ray detectors used for astrophysics transferred straightforwardly to the gamma ray neutron technology described in this proposal. Upon Dr. Trombka's retirement I became the group's new leader and am currently building a new nuclear planetary science instrumentation program at Goddard to build new scientific instruments to make measurements in space that are critical to our understanding how our universe and solar system work.
It takes more than scientific and technical acumen and experience to successfully execute a research program: one must also have good communication, management, and leadership skills to get the most out of team personnel. I have demonstrated these abilities as the leader of our Planetary Nuclear Instrumentation Group, where I bring together a large number of very talented people with diverse skills and experience to form an efficient team. Throughout my career, I have acquired many kinds of leadership skills. My experience taking a detector technology from low TRL levels to the point where it becomes the core technology of an extremely successful Medium Explorer Mission is extremely relevant to this proposal. My additional leadership experiences come from my supervision of 2 high school students, 9 undergraduate research students and 3 graduate students, formal leadership training courses and participation in center-wide committees such as my role as Co-Chair of the Goddard Women†˘s Advisory Committee. My balance of technical acumen and excellent leadership skills makes me uniquely qualified to lead this program.
Selected Publications
2008 Sakamoto, T.; Hullinger, D.; Sato, G.; Yamazaki, R.; Barbier, L.; Barthelmy, S. D.; Cummings, J. R.; Fenimore, E. E.; Gehrels, N.; Krimm, H. A.; Lamb, D. Q.; Markwardt, C. B.; Osborne, J. P.; Palmer, D. M.; Parsons, A. M.; Stamatikos, M.; Tueller, J., "Global Properties of X-ray Flashes and X-ray-Rich Gamma-Ray Bursts Observed by Swift", Astrophysical Journal, 679, 570-586.
2007 Starr, R. D.; Evans, L. G.; Parsons, A. M.; Trombka, J. I.; Groves, J.; Akkurt, H.; Floyd, S. R.; Namkung, M.; Perkins, L.; Wraight, P.; Ziegler, W.; Schweitzer, J., "Combined Gamma-Ray Spectrometer and Pulsed Neutron Generator System for In-Situ Planetary Geochemical Analysis," 38th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference, #1338, 1919.
2005 J. I. Trombka, R.D. Starr, J. Groves, H. Akkurt, L. G. Evans, T. J. McCoy, A. M, Parsons, et al., "A Pulsed Neutron Gamma-Ray System for Mars Rover Missions," Aerospace, 2005 IEEE Conference, 1-10.
2004 A. Parsons, S. Barthelmy, J. Cummings, N. Gehrels, D. Hullinger, H. Krimm, C. Markwardt, J. Tueller, E. Fenimore, D. Palmer, G. Sato, T. Takahashi, K. Nakazawa, Y. Okada, H. Takahashi, M. Suzuki, M. Tashiro, "Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT) Instrument Response," Gamma-Ray Bursts: 30 Years of Discovery, AIP Conf. Proc., 727, 671-676.
2004 A. M. Parsons, J. Tueller, H. Krimm, S. D. Barthelmy, J. Cummings, C. Markwardt, D. Hullinger, N. Gehrels, E. Fenimore, D. Palmer, G. Sato, K. Nakazawa, T. Takahashi, S. Watanabe, Y. Okada, H. Takahashi, M. Suzuki and M. Tashiro, "Swift/BAT Calibration and the Estimated BAT Hard X-Ray Survey Sensitivity," X-Ray and Gamma-Ray Instrumentation for Astronomy XIII, SPIE Proceedings 5165, 190-200.
2004 A. Parsons, S. Barthelmy, L. Bartlett, N. Gehrels, J. Naya, C. M. Stahle, J. Tueller and B. Teegarden,"CdZnTe background measurements at balloon altitudes with PoRTIA," Nucl. Instr. and Meth. A, 516, 80-95.
