Christina Richey

Dr. Christina "Chrissy" Richey is an American planetary scientist and astrophysicist working at Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge, California. Dr. Richey is a Project Staff Scientist for the Europa Clipper mission and is a Research Technologist in the Astrophysics and Space Sciences Section. [1] Prior to working at JPL, Dr. Richey worked as contractor for Arctic Slope Regional Corporation at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. They were a Program Officer in NASA's Planetary Science Division,[2] the Deputy Program Scientist for the OSIRIS-REx mission,[3] and the Deputy Science Advisor for Research and Analysis for the Science Mission Directorate.[4]

Christina Rae Richey
Born
East Liverpool, Ohio
Alma materWheeling Jesuit University
The University of Alabama at Birmingham
Known foranti-harassment efforts
Awards2014 NASA Headquarters Special Service Award,
2015 WJU James O'Brien Award from Wheeling Jesuit University,
2015 Harold Masursky Award from the Division for Planetary Sciences,
2016 UAB Trailblazing Alumni Award
Scientific career
FieldsPlanetary Science and Astrophysics
InstitutionsGoddard Space Flight Center
NASA Headquarters
Doctoral advisorPerry A. Gerakines

Richey is known for their education about the effects of harassment in the workplace and within the planetary and astronomical sciences.[5][6][7] They were the Chair of the American Astronomical Society's Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy[8] from 2015-2017, was the co-Chair of the Division for Planetary Sciences' Subcommittee on Professional Climate and Culture,[9] from 2015-2017, and are an active blogger for the Women in Astronomy blog[10]

Early life and education

Richey received their undergraduate degree in Physics at Wheeling Jesuit University in 2004.[11] They completed their Masters (2007) and PhD (2011) in Physics from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where they did laboratory investigations related to both the icy moons of the outer solar system and the interstellar medium. They were a NASA postdoctoral fellow at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, where they studied the optical properties of dust grain analogs to better understand early stellar system formation.[4]

Career and research

Richey currently works at JPL as Project Staff Scientist for the Europa Clipper Mission. NASA's Europa Clipper will conduct detailed reconnaissance of Jupiter's moon Europa and investigate whether the icy moon could harbor conditions suitable for life.

Richey was the Deputy Science Advisor for the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD),[4] where they compiled and distributed information about the Research and Analysis (R&A) awards from the SMD Divisions, and focused on communication with the greater communities working directly with the SMD. Additionally, they were the Deputy Program Scientist in the Planetary Science Division for the OSIRIS-REx Mission (the Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security- Regolith Mission).[3] OSIRIS-REx launched in 2016 and will travel to a near-Earth Asteroid, called Bennu and bring back a returned sample to Earth for study. The mission will help scientists investigate how planets formed and how life began, as well as improve our understanding of asteroids that could impact Earth.

In addition to their work, they have worked to promote inclusion within their field. They have spent much of their career speaking at conferences about harassment, efforts to overcome the problems within the field, and educating peers about the impact harassment has on their colleagues.[12] They say women in vulnerable positions within the field—women of color, young women, and those who need to advance their careers—are more likely to face harassment in the workplace.[5][6] Richey was the Chair of the American Astronomical Society's Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy[8] from 2015-2017 and was the co-Chair of the Division for Planetary Sciences' Subcommittee on Professional Climate and Culture.[9]

Awards and honors

2014:

2015:

2016:

  • Received the Trailblazing Alumni Award in the College of Arts and Sciences by The University of Alabama at Birmingham

References
  1. "Christina Richey's JPL Page".
  2. "NASA Science Program Officers List".
  3. "Team- OSIRIS-REx Mission".
  4. "Christina Richey's Homepage".
  5. Kramer, Miriam. "Survey paints troubling picture of harassment in space science". Mashable. Retrieved 2016-06-18.
  6. Hinckley, Story (2015-10-14). "Was UC Berkeley too easy on professor accused of sexual harassment? (+video)". Christian Science Monitor. ISSN 0882-7729. Retrieved 2016-06-18.
  7. Scoles, Sarah (2016-01-06). "Astronomers Are Finally Doing Something About Sexual Harassment". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2016-06-18.
  8. "American Astronomical Society Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy".
  9. "DPS Subcommittees".
  10. "Women in Astronomy Blog".
  11. "Alumni Spotlight, Christina Richey".
  12. "A Conversation With Dr. Christina Richey, Recipient of the Harold Masursky Award | News - NASA Solar System Exploration". NASA Solar System Exploration. Retrieved 2016-06-18. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  • Richey's 2015 presentation reporting results of a survey about harassment in astronomy
  • Talk on communications crises, from the 2016 International Astronomical Union's "Communicating Astronomy with the Public" Conference
  • The Women in Astronomy blog , to which they are an active contributor
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