Dr. Thomas Prettyman
Senior Scientist
Currently resides in NM
Targets of Interest: Asteroids, Ceres, Comets, Dwarf planets, Earth, Mars, Meteorites, Moon, Small satellites, Vesta
Disciplines/Techniques: 3D Printing, Education/Public Outreach (EPO), Analog Field Studies, Gamma-ray spectroscopy, Geochemistry, Geology, Mapping, Neutron detectors, Neutron spectroscopy, Numerical modeling, Remote sensing, Shape modeling
Missions: Dawn, Lunar Prospector, Mars Odyssey, Psyche, LunaH-Map, Lunar-VISE
Mission Roles: Calibration/Test planning, Data archive, Data validation, Electronics design, Flight Software, Instrument operations, Instrument PI, Mission Co-Investigator, Mission operations, Mission science team, Requirements generation and flow down
Instruments: Gamma Ray and Neutron Spectrometers, Nuclear Instrumentation
My research focuses on the application of nuclear instrumentation and methods to planetary geology. Mission experience includes Lunar Prospector, 2001 Mars Odyssey, and Dawn. As a Dawn Co-I, I was the lead for the Dawn Gamma Ray and Neutron Detector investigation. I'm currently a Co-I on several missions, including Psyche, LunaH-Map, and Lunar-VISE. I'm the PI of a DDAP project investigating Ceres' hydrothermal evolution and crustal processes. Additional areas of interest include applications of radiation measurement technology to terrestrial geology, medicine, and national security. Many of these applications use sensor technology and analytical methods similar those developed for space and planetary science.
