Ralph Lorenz

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Ralph D. Lorenz is a planetary scientist and engineer at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab.[1] whose research focuses on understanding surfaces, atmospheres, and their interactions on planetary bodies, especially Titan, Venus, Mars, and Earth.[2] He currently serves as Mission Architect of Dragonfly, NASA's fourth selected New Frontiers mission,[3][4] and as participating scientist on Akatsuki [5] and InSight.[6] He is a Co-Investigator on the SuperCam instrument on the Perseverance rover, responsible for interpreting data from its microphone. He leads the Venus Atmospheric Structure Investigation on the DAVINCI Discovery mission to Venus. He is the recipient of the 2020 International Planetary Probe Workshop (IPPW) Al Seiff memorial award, and the 2022 American Geophysical Union's Fred Whipple Award for contributions to planetary science.[7]

Education

Lorenz earned a B.Eng. in Aerospace Systems Engineering from the University of Southampton (UK) Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics in 1990. For his thesis "Exploring the Surface of Titan", Lorenz was awarded a PhD in Space Sciences from the University of Kent at Canterbury in 1994. Lorenz spent 1994-2006 at the University of Arizona as a postdoctoral fellow and research scientist. In 2006, he joined the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab.[8][9]

Research

Lorenz has published over 200 papers on spacecraft exploration of several bodies of the solar system, using scientific instruments and housekeeping data from engineering systems (such as observing the Mars environment and a transit of Deimos [10] via the solar array currents on the InSight lander [11] or measuring the dust and gas in the plumes of Enceladus using Cassini's attitude control system [12]). He has conducted field research on dust devils,[13] sand dunes and volcanos, exploiting techniques such as kite-borne,[14] timelapse and near-infrared photography. He has also published on the dynamics of Frisbees,[15] the thermodynamics of the drinking bird toy,[16] and the moving rocks ("Sailing Stones") of Racetrack Playa in Death Valley.[17] He documented the migration of sand dunes at the Mos Espa film set in Tunisia, seen on the Star Wars movies.[18] His contributions in scientific history include noting the calculations of Edmond Halley on the size of wings needed for human flight ,

Edward Maunder
.

Lorenz has participated in several NASA and ESA missions. He was a Young Graduate Trainee for ESA's Huygens from 1990-1991 and continued on as a member of the Huygens Science Team, designing and building its penetrometer instrument.[8][9] As a member of the Cassini RADAR team,[21] Lorenz led the planning of Titan radar observations during Cassini's 13 year mission in the Saturn system. Lorenz was selected as a participating scientist on the Japanese mission Akatsuki in 2010[5] and NASA's InSight mission at Mars in 2017[6]

He has also been involved in numerous mission concepts, including the Titan Mare Explorer (TiME),[22] the "Billion Dollar Box" Saturnian system study,[23] Titan Airship Explorer,[24] AVIATR,[25] a Mars meteorology and seismology concept,[26] and a Titan submarine [27]

Books

Title Authors Publisher Date ISBN
Planetary Exploration with Ingenuity and Dragonfly : Rotary-Wing Flight on Mars and Titan Ralph Lorenz American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics 2022 978-1624106366
Saturn's Moon Titan Owners' Workshop Manual Ralph Lorenz Haynes 2020 978-1785216435
Exploring Planetary Climate R.D. Lorenz Cambridge University Press 2019 978-1108471541
Dust Devils D. Reiss, R. D. Lorenz, M. Balme, L. Neakrase, A. Pio Rossi, A. Spiga, and J. Zarnecki (Editors) Springer 978-9402411331
Planetary Climate before the Space Age R.D. Lorenz Amazon Digital Services LLC 2017
NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini-Huygens: 1997 onwards (Cassini orbiter, Huygens probe and future exploration concepts) (Owners' Workshop Manual) R.D. Lorenz Haynes Publishing UK 2017 978-1785211119
Dune Worlds: How Windblown Sand Shapes Planetary Landscapes R.D. Lorenz and J. R. Zimbelman Springer 2014 978-3540897248
Non-equilibrium Thermodynamics and the Production of Entropy: Life, Earth, and Beyond (Understanding Complex Systems) Axel Kleidon, Ralph D. Lorenz (Editors) Springer 2005 978-3-540-22495-2 and 3-540-22495-5
Spinning Flight: Dynamics of Frisbees, Boomerangs, Samaras, and Skipping Stones R.D. Lorenz Springer 2006 978-0387307794
Titan Unveiled: Saturn's Mysterious Moon Explored R.D. Lorenz and J. Mitton Princeton University Press 2010 978-0691146331
Planetary Landers and Entry Probes A. Ball, J. Garry, R.D. Lorenz, V. Kerzhanovich Cambridge University Press 2007 978-0521820028
Space Systems Failures: Disasters and Rescues of Satellites, Rocket and Space Probes (Springer Praxis Books) D.M. Harland, R.D. Lorenz Praxis 2005 978-0387215198
Lifting Titan's Veil: Exploring the Giant Moon of Saturn R.D. Lorenz and J. Mitton Cambridge University Press 2002 978-0521793483

Filmography

Lorenz has appeared in numerous science documentaries and series, including NOVA, NASA's Unexplained Files, Horizon, and Wonders of the Solar System.[28]

References

  1. ^ "JHUAPL - , Ralph, Lorenz - Science Research Portal". secwww.jhuapl.edu. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
  2. S2CID 195222645
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  3. S2CID 195807081
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  4. ^ JHU APL. "Dragonfly Team". Dragonfly. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  5. ^ a b "NASA - Scientists Chosen to Help on Venus Climate Orbiter". www.nasa.gov. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  6. ^ a b "InSight Participating Scientist Program (INSTPSP) Abstracts of selected proposals" (PDF). NSPIRES.
  7. ^ "Lectures". agu.org. Archived from the original on December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 28, 2022.
  8. ^ a b "Ralph D Lorenz - Curriculum Vitae". arizona.edu. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Spring 2020, Dale Keiger / Published (March 19, 2020). "Destination Titan". The Hub. Retrieved March 25, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. S2CID 219008928
    .
  11. PMID 32715027
    .
  12. PMID 30524143
    .
  13. ^ "A Roundup of Dust Devil Research". The Planetary Society. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  14. doi:10.1016/j.grj.2014.06.001
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  15. S2CID 16105503
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  16. doi:10.1119/1.2190688
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  17. doi:10.5194/esurfd-2-1005-2014
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  18. ^ "Dunes on Tatooine". The Planetary Society. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
  19. ^ "Edmond Halley's Aeronautical Calculations on the Feasibility of Manned Flight in 1691". Journal of Aeronautical History. 2012 (2). 2012.
  20. S2CID 219930646
    .
  21. ^ "The Team | Cassini Mission". NASA Solar System Exploration. Retrieved October 23, 2019.
  22. S2CID 17290531
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  23. S2CID 23343537
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  24. S2CID 110089994
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  25. ISSN 1572-9508
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  26. S2CID 46223014
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  27. ^ Oleson, Steve (July 2015). "Phase I Final Report: Titan Submarine" (PDF). Retrieved August 13, 2023.
  28. ^ "Ralph Lorenz". IMDb.
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