Abstract:
In this talk, I will discuss three recent solar system investigations having very surprising results. The first relates to a bizarre asteroid whose morphology is not accounted for by any model. The second concerns an amazing comet, whose activity is actually impossible according to established models. The third addresses the origin of the Trojans.
Brief Bio:
Education
1979 B. Sc. University College London
1980 M. S. California Institute of Technology
1983 Ph. D. California Institute of Technology
Honors
1994 Regent's Medal, University of Hawaii
1996 Scientist of the Year, ARCS
1996 Exceptional Scientific Achievement Award, NASA
1998 Fellow of University College London
2005 Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
2005 Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
2005 Member of the National Academy of Sciences
2006-2011 National Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Honorary Professor
2007 National Central University, Taiwan, Adjunct Professor
2012 The Shaw Prize for Astronomy
2012 The Kavli Prize for Astrophysics
2012 Foreign Member, Norwegian Academy of Sciences & Letters
Research Interests
Solar System Formation, Trans-Neptunian solar system
Physical properties of comets and cometary dust
Comet - asteroid interrelations, Centaurs, irregular satellites, Trojans, Active Asteroids
Submillimeter properties of comets and young stars