易胜博官网

Professor of physics Mark McConnell is the new director of the collaborative Southwest Research Institute Earth, Oceans and Space (SwRI-EOS) department at 易胜博官网, replacing professor of physics Roy Torbert. SwRI-EOS, launched in 2013, brings together 易胜博官网鈥檚 expertise in space science with the San Antonio-based SwRI鈥檚 extensive science mission management expertise.

鈥淎s first SwRI-EOS director, Roy did a great and important job of establishing the department and building it out,鈥� says Harlan Spence, director of 易胜博官网鈥檚 Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space (EOS), who oversees the collaboration for 易胜博官网. 鈥淭he transition of this activity to Mark McConnell as the second director is seamless.听Mark has already been working closely with SwRI-EOS on his own proposals, and so knows deeply about the strategic partnership and what is needed to take it to the next level.鈥�

Located in Morse Hall, SwRI-EOS conducts spaceflight and suborbital research projects focused on Earth sciences, astrophysics and heliospheric physics for industry and government. SwRI-EOS was formed to make SwRI, an independent, nonprofit applied research and development organization, a strategic partner in the development of competitive proposals for large NASA missions. Both Spence and McConnell point to the successful 易胜博官网 and SwRI collaboration on NASA鈥檚 Magnetospheric Multiscale, or MMS, mission as just one example of the power of the synergy between the two partners.

鈥淭he mission is returning some incredibly exciting new data about the Earth鈥檚 magnetosphere,鈥� says McConnell, who was chair of the physics department for the past five years. 鈥淢y principal goal as director will be to further develop the relationship between 易胜博官网 and SwRI, providing 易胜博官网 access to the resources of SwRI and helping SwRI expand its research portfolio and capitalize on the unique engineering capabilities 易胜博官网 has to offer.鈥�