Miner, Ellis D(evere, Jr.) 1937-

views updated

MINER, Ellis D(evere, Jr.) 1937-

PERSONAL:

Born April 16, 1937, in Los Angeles, CA; son of Ellis Devere (an inventory clerk) and Myrle (a homemaker; maiden name, Fletcher) Miner; married Beverly Allen (a piano teacher), June 19, 1961; children: Steven Boyd, Marjorie Miner Williams, David Eric, Jeffrey Allen, Christine Miner Blake, Rebecca, Laura. Education: Utah State University, B.A., 1961; Brigham Young University, Ph.D., 1965. Politics: Republican. Religion: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons).

ADDRESSES:

Home—11335 Sunburst St., Lake View Terrace, CA 91342. Office—Jet Propulsion Laboratory, M/S 264-441, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena, CA 91109; fax: 818-393-4495. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Mormon missionary in Berlin, Germany, 1957-60; Sperry Utah Co., Salt Lake City, quality control analyst, 1961; Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, senior scientist, 1965-77, Voyager assistant project scientist, 1977-90, Cassini science manager, 1990-98, Cassini scientific advisor, beginning 1998, and member of Speakers Bureau. Consultant to Teled Corp. and Digital Techniques. Military service: U.S. Army Reserve, 1954-65. U.S. Army, Signal Corps, 1965-69; became captain.

MEMBER:

American Astronomical Society (Division for Planetary Sciences), Planetary Society.

AWARDS, HONORS:

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, medals for exceptional scientific achievement, 1981, 1986, medal for outstanding leadership, 1990.

WRITINGS:

Uranus: The Planet, Rings, and Satellites, Ellis Horwood (New York, NY), 1990, 2nd edition, John Wiley and Sons (New York, NY), 1998.

(Editor, with Jay T. Bergstralh and Mildred Shapley Matthews) Uranus, University of Arizona Press (Tucson, AZ), 1991.

(With Randii R. Wessen) Neptune: The Planet, Rings, and Satellites, Springer (New York, NY), 2002.

SIDELIGHTS:

Ellis D. Miner once told CA: "I have spent my entire working career at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and have found the work here both productive and exhilarating. My research goals were initially oriented toward multi-band photoelectric photometry. At first that photometry was directed toward determination of the rotation states of Saturn's satellites. I then turned my attention to near-Earth asteroids, where Icarus, Geographos, and Eros proved to have the most spectacular light curves. With Brian O'Leary, I observed the only post-eclipse brightening of Io recorded simultaneously at two observatories, Table Mountain and Kitt Peak. I also worked with Ray New-burn and Hyron Spinrad in obtaining spectral images of Comet Ikeya-Seki at Kitt Peak.

"About a year after coming to JPL, I was given the opportunity to work with Gerry Neugebauer and others on the Infrared Radiometer Team for Mariners 6 and 7 to Mars. I subsequently worked on Vikings 1 and 2 and worked with Rudy Hanel on the Voyager 1 and 2 infrared interferometer spectrometer during the prelaunch period. During that early time on Voyager, I was also heavily involved in my own research, using the Viking data to make bolometric albedo maps of the surface of Mars. About that time (1978) I was asked to take on a full-time assignment as the Voyager assistant project scientist. I stayed in that assignment until April, 1990, having by that time vicariously visited all of the planets in the solar system except Pluto. I thoroughly enjoyed my association with and contributions to the Voyager successes.

"In connection with my Voyager responsibilities, I had the opportunity to organize a number of workshops and conferences, to take the lead in science conflict resolutions, to be a spokesperson to print and broadcast media personnel, to give numerous talks to interested scientific and non-scientific audiences, and to write.

"In 1990 I became the science manager for the Cassini mission. Cassini offers exciting possibilities for continued intimate involvement in space exploration, and I anticipate that I will, if allowed to do so, stay in my present responsibility until my retirement. If time and responsibilities permit, I also intend to continue public talks on the space program, perhaps write one or two more books, and possibly involve myself in additional data analysis of Viking and Voyager visual and infrared data. I am also presently involved in Project ASTRO, a California pilot program to bring professional astronomers into contact with interested elementary and secondary teachers and their students."