Dear colleagues in the EPSP and Planetary Sciences communities,
As we look toward the Artemis II launch this March, I am launching a short interview series within my Geoscientists' Voices project to explore how our understanding of Earth-based surface processes serves as a fundamental blueprint for planetary exploration.
In our latest episode, I speak with Maria Kefa, a planetary scientist and former Erasmus Mundus scholar who has transitioned from mapping seismic data in Germany to analyzing impact ejecta on Mercury at the European Space Agency (ESA).
🎥 Watch Episode 8 here: <response-element class="" ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER"></response-element>https://youtu.be/1ogudLcZV-I?si=l1Efr2nmPtgvOcZ2<response-element class="" ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER"></response-element>
💫 Subscribe for the full series: <response-element class="" ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER"></response-element>https://www.youtube.com/@Geoscientists_Voices<response-element class="" ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER"></response-element>
In this episode, we discuss several key themes relevant to our research communities:
The "Detective" Mindset: Maria explains how her foundation in geology helps her decipher cratering patterns and surface conditions on Mercury and Ganymede-treating distant planetary surfaces like "crime scenes" viewed from afar.
<sources-carousel-inline ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER" _nghost-ng-c3471753569=""></sources-carousel-inline>AI vs. Geoscientific Intuition: We dive into her work at ESA assessing deep-learning model performance against manual mapping. We discuss whether AI will eventually replace the "human eye" or if geoscientific intuition remains the essential validator for complex geological mapping.<sources-carousel-inline ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER" _nghost-ng-c3471753569=""></sources-carousel-inline>
The Artemis Perspective: With humans returning to the Moon's vicinity, we discuss how direct human observation might shift the questions we ask about planetary evolution.<sources-carousel-inline ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER" _nghost-ng-c3471753569=""></sources-carousel-inline>
I hope this conversation sparks some interesting reflections on the "zoom out" philosophy of our field-how studying distant bodies ultimately deepens our connection to the processes shaping our own home.<sources-carousel-inline ng-version="0.0.0-PLACEHOLDER" _nghost-ng-c3471753569=""></sources-carousel-inline>
Call for Guests: I am actively seeking geoscientists and planetary scientists with a passion for science communication to share their stories. If you or a colleague would like to be featured, please reach out to me via DM!
Best regards,
Aleksei Nelaev
https://www.linkedin.com/in/alekseinelaev/
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Aleksei Nelaev
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