Dr. Rick Fienberg
Press Officer and Education and Outreach Coordinator
Tel: 202-328-2010 x116
Email
Dr. Inge Heyer
Deputy Press Officer
Email
Dr. Larry Marschall
Deputy Press Officer
Email
Relations with the news media on science topics are handled by the AAS Press Officer assisted by Deputy Press Officers. The Press Officers respond to media inquiries by providing referrals to suitable experts, suggesting story topics and illustration sources, and recommending scientists who are effective communicators on radio and television.
The Press Officer is responsible for all media arrangements at meetings and all AAS public-information activities concerning the science of astronomy, as distinct from issues of public policy. AAS Divisions, including DPS, HEAD, and SPD, also appoint press officers who facilitate media coverage of their respective Divisional meetings and awards.
The AAS has issued a statement addressing the potential elimination of the EPO activities in NASA's Science Mission Directorate, as called for in President Obama’s fiscal year 2014 budget proposal. The statement says that the suggested cuts “would dismantle some of the nation’s most inspiring and successful STEM education assets.”
The AAS has issued a statement acknowledging President Obama’s strong support of science as embodied in his proposed budget for fiscal year FY 2014 but encouraging him and the Congress to maintain a balance of small, medium, and large space missions in astronomy, planetary science, and solar physics.
The American Astronomical Society (AAS) today expressed deep concern about the U.S. government’s new restrictions on travel and conference attendance for federally funded scientists. Enacted in response to the budget sequestration that went into effect on March 1st, the policies severely limit the ability of many researchers to meet with collaborators and to present their latest results at professional meetings.
Fifteen members of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) traveled to Washington, DC to express the need for sustained and predictable federal funding of research and development (R&D) programs — including NASA, NSF, and the Department of Energy — which are critically important to American economic growth.
The American Astronomical Society (AAS) supports President Barack Obama’s new policy on “open access,” the idea that published results of taxpayer-funded research should be made freely available on the Internet rather than permanently restricted to journal subscribers or other paying customers.