slideshow 1 slideshow 2 slideshow 3 slideshow 4 slideshow 5 slideshow 6

You are here

Dr. Deborah Domingue Lorin

domingue's picture

Senior Scientist

Currently resides in MD
domingue [at] psi.edu
Areas of Expertise
Targets: Asteroids, Icy satellites, Mercury, Moon
Disciplines/Techniques: Photometry, Spectroscopy
Missions: MER, MESSENGER
Instruments: Cameras, Spectrometers

Research Interests

Dr. Deborah Domingue is an expert in the spectrophotometric properties of planetary regoliths. She has studied such diverse objects as icy satellites, asteroids, Mercury, and the Moon and has worked on the critical analysis of photometric modeling. She has experience working mission planning and in-flight instrument calibration on NEAR and MESSENGER (where she served as Deputy Project Scientist until 2009). She has lead studies examining the space weathering processes on Mercury combining information from the suite of instruments onboard the MESSENGER spacecraft. She is currently a member of the Hayabusa2 Science Team participating with both the camera and spectrometry teams. In addition to here mission work she currently conducts her own research projects regarding the lunar surface and those of near Earth asteroids.

Professional History

Dr. Domingue’s first role on a planetary mission was as the liason between the science team and mission operations on the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) mission, insuring that instrument operations met science needs. She was also a member of the NEAR science team, working on the camera and spectrometer joint instrument team. She was also a member of the MESSENGER science team, working in the Geology Discipline Group. She also served as MESSENGER’s Deputy Project Scientist until 2009, responsible for science operations within both the science team and mission operations. Currently Dr. Domingue is a participating scientist on the Japanese mission Hayabusa2. Hayabusa2 will rendezvous with the C-type asteroid Ryugu in the summer of 2018 and return samples back to Earth. Her role on the Science Team is to facilitate studies of Ryugu's regolith using both imaging and spectrometer observations. 

In addition to mission work, Dr. Domingue is a member of the NASA's Solar System Exporation and Research Vertual Institute's Toolbox for Research and Exploration (TREX) node. She works as the lead for the small bodies studies theme within TREX. 

Honors and Awards

Minor Planet 20897 Deborahdomingue

NASA Group Achievement Award: NEAR Earth Asteroid Rendezvous Shoemaker Mission Team (July 9, 2002)

NASA Group Achievement Award: MESSENGER Mission Team (May2, 2008)

PSI is a Nonprofit 501(c)(3) Corporation, and an Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer
Corporate Headquarters: 1700 East Fort Lowell, Suite 106 * Tucson, AZ 85719-2395 * 520-622-6300 * FAX: 520-622-8060
Copyright © 2022 . All Rights Reserved.