MEET THE MARS SPECTROSCOPISTS
SCIENTISTS BEHIND THE MARS ROVER – S.A.S. SPECTROSCOPISTS
Hundreds of engineers and scientists with a wide diversity of expertise work together in hopes of discovering more information about Mars and unlocking any secrets that may be hidden beneath its surface. Challenges in design, building and implementation of the instruments must be overcome to ensure that every part of the equipment functions the way they should in a vastly different and hostile environment. Once the data returns, scientists must work under strict time constraints to decipher and comprehend what they have found to determine their next move.
Featured here are some scientists involved with the spectrometers on the Perseverance rover, ranging in expertise and career levels. Learn about their professional paths, their roles on the Mars mission, their preferences when it comes to food and movies, and much more.
Dr. Vivian Z. Sun
Systems Engineer, Co-Campaign Science Lead
Dr. Sun helps put together the rover’s daily plans and acts as a liaison between the engineering team at JPL and science teams from around the world. READ MORE >
Dr. Roger Wiens
Leader of the SuperCam Team
Roger Wiens is the Principal Investigator of both ChemCam on the Curiosity rover and SuperCam on the Perseverance rover. READ MORE >
Dr. S. Michael Angel
Trustee Professor
Professor Angel published the first practical remote Raman spectroscopy paper using a small telescope and a charge-coupled device (CCD) detector.” READ MORE >
Dr. Shiv Sharma
Tenured Research Professor
Shiv demonstrated that a pulsed laser coupled with time-gating could be used to take Raman measurements in the daylight, which was revolutionary in more than one way. READ MORE >
Dr. Joseph Razzell Hollis
Postdoctoral Fellow At NASA’s JPL
Dr. Sanford Asher
Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
Sanford Asher, a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Pittsburgh, is involved with the development of the Raman spectrometer and the ultraviolet laser in the SHERLOC. READ MORE >
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