Speaker Database

This speaker database contains the names of individuals who work in the space sciences area and are willing to speak with students about their research.  Please feel free to contact any of the individuals below if you are looking for scientists to speak with your students in person or via video-conferencing.  Consider adding yourself to our database if you would like to share your science with students!

Dr. Richard Barker

• Postdoctoral Research Scientist

• University of Wisconsin - Madison

• dr (dot) richard (dot) barker (at) gmail (dot) com

• https://drrichardbarker.wordpress.com/

• Keywords:  astrobotany; plants in space; education outreach; undergraduate education; biology in space; international space station; bioinformatics

Dr. Colleen Doherty

• Assistant Professor, Biochemistry Department

• North Carolina State University

• cjdohert (at) ncsu (dot) edu

• https://cjdohert.wordpress.ncsu.edu/

• Keywords:  plants, circadian rhythms

Dr. Kate Flickinger

• Lab manager, research specialist, post-doctorate fellow

• University of Pittsburgh, Emergency Medicine

• holquistkl (at) upmc (dot) edu

• Exercise physiology, cold sleep for long duration space flight, temperature manipulation, metabolic manipulation, forecasting / prediction of physiologic events.

• phone 412 523 7557

Dr. Simon Gilroy

• Professor of Botany

• University of Wisconsin - Madison

• sgilroy (at) wisc (dot) edu

• http://www.botany.wisc.edu/gilroy/

• Keywords:  Marigolds on Mars - growing plants in space; Plants on the International Space Station; Biology in Space

Dr. Andrea Henle

• Assistant Professor of Biology

• Carthage College, Kenosha, Wisconsin

• ahenle (at) carthage (dot) edu

• https://www.carthage.edu/live/profiles/1491-andrea-henle

• Keywords:  space biology education; undergraduate space biology research; timelapse microscopy; gravitropism assays; arabidopsis; zebrafish; cancer research; project-based learning; bacteriophage; bacteriophage on the ISS

Dr. Rafael Loureiro

• Assistant Professor of Botany And Plant Physiology

• Department of Biological Sciences, Winston Salem State University

• loureirorr (at) wssu (dot) edu

• Keywords: regolith-based agriculture; space plant physiology

Dr. Paul F. Martino

• Associate Professor of Biology, Chair of Biology

• Carthage College, Kenosha, Wisconsin

• pmartino (at) carthage (dot) edu

• Keywords:  We study the psychological and physiological effects of anxiety, and behavioral inhibition in the presence of enhanced carbon dioxide; much like what is experienced on the International Space Station and what will be experienced on travel to Mars.

Dr. Gioia Massa

• Life Sciences Project Scientist, Space Crop Production

• NASA - Kennedy Space Center

• gioia (dot) massa (at) nasa (dot) gov

• Keywords:  veggie, space crops

Jordan McKaig

• University of Michigan and NASA Ames Research Center

• Student/Intern, Biology Department

• jmckaig (at) umich (dot) edu

• Twitter: @jordanmckaig

• Keywords:  How to get involved in space biology; astrobiology; space policy; planetary protection; aerobiology; life detection in planetary analogs

Dr. Ralf Moeller

• German Aerospace Center (DLR)

• Research Group Leader/Scientist

• ralf (dot) moeller (at) dlr (dot) de

• https://www.dlr.de/me/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-1943/2742_read-7123/sortby-lastname/

• Keywords:  space microbiology, space radiation, biofilms, planetary protection, human microbiome, decontamination

Dr. Tasneem P. Sharma

• Assistant Professor

• Indiana University School of Medicine

• Opthalmology

• tpsharma (at) iu (dot) edu

• https://medicine.iu.edu/faculty/52014/sharma-tasneem

• Keywords: stem cells and human ocular model systems

Dr. Camilla Urbaniak

• Research Scientist

• Jet Propulsion Laboratory - NASA

• Biotechnology and Planetary Protection Group

• camilla (dot) urbaniak (at) jpl (dot) nasa (dot) gov

• Keywords: Bioinformatics for space applications; ISS research projects; Research and concept ideas for future missions to the moon; Mars adaptation of microbes and humans to space conditions

Dr. Kasthuri Venkateswaran 

• Senior Research Scientist

• Jet Propulsion Laboratory - NASA

• Biotechnology and Planetary Protection Group

• kjvenkat (at) jpl (dot) nasa (dot) gov

• https://scienceandtechnology.jpl.nasa.gov/people/k_venkateswaran

• Keywords:  Microbiome; Space Flight; Planetary Protection; Astrobiology; Space Biology

Dr. Martha Vitaterna

• Research Professor

• Northwestern University

• Center for Sleep and Circadian Biology

• M-Vitaterna (at) northwestern (dot) edu

• https://cscb.northwestern.edu

• Keywords:  Sleep and circadian rhythms; mouse genetics; microbiome

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