Roger J. Phillips

Summary

Roger Jay Phillips (June 9, 1940 – November 19, 2020) was an American geophysicist, planetary scientist, and professor emeritus[2][3] at the Washington University in St. Louis. His research interests included the geophysical structure of planets, and the use of radar and gravity to investigate the surfaces and interiors of the planets.

Roger J. Phillips
Born
Roger Jay Phillips

(1940-06-09)June 9, 1940
DiedNovember 19, 2020(2020-11-19) (aged 80)[1]
CitizenshipUnited States
Alma materColorado School of Mines University of California, Berkeley
AwardsFellow American Geophysical Union, G K Gilbert Award (2003), Whipple Award (2008)
Scientific career
FieldsGeophysics, planetary science
InstitutionsJet Propulsion Laboratory, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Southern Methodist University, Washington University in St. Louis, Southwest Research Institute
ThesisAn Investigation of Dipole Radiation in the Lunar Environment. (1968)
Doctoral advisorStanley Harry Ward
Doctoral studentsSuzanne Smrekar, Steve Mueller, Robert Herrick, Jennifer Kidder, Mark Wieczorek, Richard Albert, Rebecca Williams, Steven A. Hauck, II, Daniel Nunes, Brian Hynek, Mindi Searls, Surdas Mohit, Jeff Andrews-Hanna

Career edit

Roger J. Phillips received his Ph.D. in 1968 from the University of California, Berkeley[2][3] where he studied with Stan Ward. Following graduate school he worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.[3] His work at JPL included being the team leader for the Apollo 17 Lunar Sounder Experiment (ALSE).[4] Phillips then served as the Director[5][6] of the Lunar and Planetary Institute before moving to Southern Methodist University, and later to Washington University in St. Louis where he served as a Professor and as Director of the McDonnell Center for the Space Sciences at the university.[3]

Phillips worked on several spacecraft missions such as Magellan,[3] Mars Global Surveyor,[7] Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter,[8] and MESSENGER.[9]

Phillips served as the editor[10] of Geophysical Research Letters and co-edited the books the Origin of the Moon[11] and Venus II.[12]

Phillips was a fellow[13] of the American Geophysical Union, received the G. K. Gilbert Award from the Geological Society of America in 2003[14] and the Whipple Award from the American Geophysical Union in 2008[15]

Scientific contributions edit

Phillips' early work determined that the mascons on the Moon that perturbed the trajectory of early lunar orbiters was the result of near surface structure of impact basins[16] and made some of the early estimates of the thickness of the crust of Mars[17] prior to the Viking orbiters.

Using the Apollo 17 Lunar Sounder Experiment data Phillips and his team collected they made the first observations of near surface variations in rock layers on the Moon.[4][18]

Phillips is well-known for his contributions to understanding the tectonics,[19] impact craters and resurfacing history[20][21] and the interior and crustal evolution[22] of Venus.

Phillips is also known for explaining how the growth of the massive Tharsis volcanic province on Mars shaped the entire planet and influenced the pattern of precipitation runoff on early Mars[23] and demonstrating how the lithosphere of Mars under the north pole of the planet is not deflected by the massive polar caps.[24] He also demonstrated that there are CO2 ice deposits within the southern polar cap of Mars.[25]

References edit

  1. ^ Ogliore, Talia (25 November 2020). "Obituary: Roger Phillips, professor emeritus in Arts & Sciences, 80". source.wustl.edu. Retrieved 2020-11-26.
  2. ^ a b "Roger J. Phillips | Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences". eps.wustl.edu. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Climate change on Mars topic of 2015 McDonnell Distinguished Lecture | The Source | Washington University in St. Louis". The Source. 2015-04-08. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  4. ^ a b Phillips, R. J.; Adams, G. F.; Brown, W. E.; Eggleton, R. E.; Jackson, P.; Jordan, R.; Peeples, W. J.; Porcello, L. J.; Ryu, J.; Schaber, G.; Sill, W. R.; Thompson, T. W.; Ward, S. H.; Zelenka, J. S. (1973). "1973LPSC....4.2821P Page 2821". Lunar and Planetary Science Conference Proceedings. 4: 2821. Bibcode:1973LPSC....4.2821P.
  5. ^ "LPI 50th Anniversary". www.lpi.usra.edu. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  6. ^ "LPI Celebrates 40 Years". www.lpi.usra.edu. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  7. ^ "Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter Science Team". tharsis.gsfc.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  8. ^ NASA, JPL. "SHARAD - Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter". mars.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  9. ^ "MESSENGER Science Team". messenger.jhuapl.edu. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  10. ^ "Previous Editors of Geophysical Research Letters". agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com. doi:10.1002/(ISSN)1944-8007. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  11. ^ Origin of the moon. Hartmann, William K., Phillips, R. J. (Roger J.), 1940-, Taylor, G. Jeffrey, 1944-, Conference on the Origin of the Moon (1984 : Kailua Kona, Hawaii). Houston: Lunar & Planetary Institute. 1986. ISBN 978-0942862034. OCLC 13525460.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  12. ^ Venus II--geology, geophysics, atmosphere, and solar wind environment. Bougher, S. W. (Stephen Wesley), 1955-, Hunten, Donald M., Phillips, R. J. (Roger J.), 1940-. Tucson, Ariz.: University of Arizona Press. 1997. ISBN 978-0816518302. OCLC 37315367.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  13. ^ "AGU Honors - Roger Phillips". Honors Program. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  14. ^ "Geological Society of America - 2003 G.K. Gilbert Award - Citation & Response". www.geosociety.org. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  15. ^ "Phillips Receives 2008 Whipple Award - Honors Program". Honors Program. Retrieved 2018-10-18.
  16. ^ Phillips, R. J.; Conel, J. E.; Abbott, E. A.; Sjogren, W. L.; Morton, J. B. (1972-12-10). "Mascons: Progress toward a unique solution for mass distribution". Journal of Geophysical Research. 77 (35): 7106–7114. Bibcode:1972JGR....77.7106P. doi:10.1029/jb077i035p07106. ISSN 0148-0227.
  17. ^ Phillips, R. J.; Saunders, R. S.; Conel, J. E. (1973-08-10). "Mars: Crustal structure inferred from Bouguer gravity anomalies". Journal of Geophysical Research. 78 (23): 4815–4820. Bibcode:1973JGR....78.4815P. doi:10.1029/jb078i023p04815. ISSN 0148-0227.
  18. ^ Maxwell, Ted A.; Phillips, R. J. (1978-09-03). "Stratigraphic correlation of the radar-detected subsurface interface in Mare Crisium". Geophysical Research Letters. 5 (9): 811–814. Bibcode:1978GeoRL...5..811M. doi:10.1029/gl005i009p00811. ISSN 0094-8276.
  19. ^ Phillips, R. J.; Kaula, W. M.; McGill, G. E.; Malin, M. C. (1981-05-22). "Tectonics and Evolution of Venus". Science. 212 (4497): 879–887. Bibcode:1981Sci...212..879P. doi:10.1126/science.212.4497.879. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 17830175.
  20. ^ Phillips, Roger J.; Arvidson, Raymond E.; Boyce, Joseph M.; Campbell, Donald B.; Guest, John E.; Schaber, Gerald G.; Soderblom, Laurence A. (1991-04-12). "Impact Craters on Venus: Initial Analysis from Magellan". Science. 252 (5003): 288–297. Bibcode:1991Sci...252..288P. doi:10.1126/science.252.5003.288. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 17769276. S2CID 3027097.
  21. ^ Phillips, Roger J.; Raubertas, Richard F.; Arvidson, Raymond E.; Sarkar, Ila C.; Herrick, Robert R.; Izenberg, Noam; Grimm, Robert E. (1992). "Impact craters and Venus resurfacing history". Journal of Geophysical Research. 97 (E10): 15923. Bibcode:1992JGR....9715923P. doi:10.1029/92je01696. ISSN 0148-0227.
  22. ^ Phillips, Roger J.; Hansen, Vicki L. (1998-03-06). "Geological Evolution of Venus: Rises, Plains, Plumes, and Plateaus". Science. 279 (5356): 1492–1497. Bibcode:1998Sci...279.1492P. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.129.6513. doi:10.1126/science.279.5356.1492. ISSN 0036-8075.
  23. ^ Phillips, Roger J.; Zuber, Maria T.; Solomon, Sean C.; Golombek, Matthew P.; Jakosky, Bruce M.; Banerdt, W. Bruce; Smith, David E.; Williams, Rebecca M. E.; Hynek, Brian M. (2001-03-30). "Ancient Geodynamics and Global-Scale Hydrology on Mars". Science. 291 (5513): 2587–2591. Bibcode:2001Sci...291.2587P. doi:10.1126/science.1058701. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 11283367. S2CID 36779757.
  24. ^ Phillips, Roger J.; Zuber, Maria T.; Smrekar, Suzanne E.; Mellon, Michael T.; Head, James W.; Tanaka, Kenneth L.; Putzig, Nathaniel E.; Milkovich, Sarah M.; Campbell, Bruce A. (2008-05-30). "Mars North Polar Deposits: Stratigraphy, Age, and Geodynamical Response". Science. 320 (5880): 1182–1185. Bibcode:2008Sci...320.1182P. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.654.3236. doi:10.1126/science.1157546. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 18483402. S2CID 6670376.
  25. ^ Phillips, Roger J.; Davis, Brian J.; Tanaka, Kenneth L.; Byrne, Shane; Mellon, Michael T.; Putzig, Nathaniel E.; Haberle, Robert M.; Kahre, Melinda A.; Campbell, Bruce A. (2011-05-13). "Massive CO2 Ice Deposits Sequestered in the South Polar Layered Deposits of Mars". Science. 332 (6031): 838–841. Bibcode:2011Sci...332..838P. doi:10.1126/science.1203091. hdl:11573/496472. ISSN 0036-8075. PMID 21512003. S2CID 1300107.