UNH Professor Named American Association for Advancement of Science Fellow

Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Harlan Spence

Harlan Spence, director of the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space and professor of physics at the University of New Hampshire has been named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). 

DURHAM, N.H. - Space plasma physicist Harlan Spence has been named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Spence, director of the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space and professor of physics at the University of New Hampshire, is among the 396 new fellows.

Election as a AAAS fellow is an honor bestowed upon AAAS members by their peers for scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. New fellows will be formally announced in the journal Science Nov. 24, 2017.

“This recognition is a wonderful honor for Harlan,” said UNH Provost Nancy Targett. “He sets a very high standard of scientific excellence and it is very satisfying to see his peers acknowledge the breadth, depth and quality of his work.”

Spence is being recognized for distinguished contributions to space exploration, the development of instruments to characterize the radiation intensity in space and for continued leadership in the heliophysics community, according to AAAS. He leads a research group that develops and uses physics-based, numerical models to understand the dynamics of interacting solar and planetary plasmas, “space weather,” and the resulting effects on space technologies and astronauts. Spence complements these modeling efforts with the development of instruments on NASA and NSF spacecraft and the analysis of the new observations needed to fuel understanding.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is the world's largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal Science as well as Science Translational Medicine; Science Signaling, a digital, open-access journal; Science Advances; Science Immunology; and Science Robotics. AAAS was founded in 1848 and includes nearly 250 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. 

The University of New Hampshire is a flagship research university that inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top ranked programs in business, engineering, law, health and human services, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. UNH’s research portfolio includes partnerships with NASA, NOAA, NSF and NIH, receiving more than $100 million in competitive external funding every year to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space. 

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Caption: Harlan Spence, director of the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans and Space and professor of physics at the University of New Hampshire, 
has been named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).