2 October 2022 (Materials updated 17 Oct 2022)

Contacts:
Dr. Shantanu Naidu
DPS Press Officer
+1 917-373-8840

Dr. Susanna Kohler
AAS Communications Manager & Press Officer
+1 202-328-2010 x127

Virtual Press Conferences at 54th Meeting of the AAS Division for Planetary Sciences

The 54th annual meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) is being held in London, Ontario and virtually Sunday, 2 October, through Friday, 7 October 2022. The AAS/DPS offers complimentary press registration to bona fide working journalists and public information officers (PIOs); see details below. We will hold press conferences via Zoom on Tuesday, 4 October, and Thursday, 6 October, to showcase some of the most exciting discoveries being presented at the meeting.

In addition to the briefings, the meeting features a rich science program including plenary sessions with live panel discussions, oral presentations, digital interactive iPosters, and Q&A/discussions with presenters and fellow attendees via Slack.

More than 500 planetary scientists, journalists, and others are already registered for the conference. The meeting hashtag is #DPS2022; you may also wish to follow @DPSMeeting and @AAS_Press on Twitter.

DPS 54 Meeting Links

• Home Page
• Plenary Speakers
• Block Schedule (must be signed in to view)
• Press Information

Press Registration

To request complimentary press registration, first check our eligibility criteria, then send an email message to DPS Press Officer Dr. Shantanu Naidu with your name and media affiliation (or “freelance” if applicable). Upon confirming your eligibility, he’ll email you a special promotional code that you can use to register for the meeting the same way regular attendees do, i.e., via the DPS 54 registration page. For step-by-step instructions on what to do next, see the DPS 54 press information page.

Please register as soon as possible. Note that if you are attempting to register after the meeting is under way, we may not be able to process your registration in time for you to attend that day’s events.

Thanks to the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) for generously sponsoring the DPS 54 virtual press office!

Press Conference Schedule, Topics & Speakers

Press conferences will be conducted via Zoom for press registrants and any other meeting registrants wishing to attend. They’ll also be live-streamed on the AAS Press Office YouTube channel for other interested people who have not registered for the meeting. You will not be able to ask questions via YouTube — to do that, you need to register for the meeting and join the briefings via Zoom. The briefings will be archived on the AAS Press Office YouTube channel afterward.

Following is the press-conference program, which remains subject to change. Corresponding abstract numbers are shown in [square brackets]. Briefings are scheduled as follows (all times are EDT = UTC – 4 hours); each briefing will last 1 hour, including time for Q&A:

• Tuesday, 4 October, 12:15 pm EDT
• Thursday, 6 October, 12:15 pm EDT

All findings are embargoed until the time of presentation at the meeting. “Time of presentation” means the start time of the session in which the paper will be given, or the start time of the corresponding press conference (if any), whichever comes first. See the complete AAS/DPS embargo policy for more information.

Note: All new discoveries are subject to confirmation by independent teams of scientists. Inclusion here does not imply endorsement by the American Astronomical Society or the Division for Planetary Sciences. The AAS and DPS do not endorse individual scientific results.

Tuesday, 4 October, 12:15 pm EDT (Briefing Video)

Carbon Monoxide, Carbon Dioxide, and Water in Comets and Centaurs
Olga Harrington-Pinto (University of Central Florida)
[101.08]

Shape and Duplicity of Lucy Mission Target Polymele from Occultation Observations
Marc Buie (Southwest Research Institute)
[512.03]

Evidence for Shock Darkening/Impact Melt on a Near-Earth Asteroid
Adam Battle (University of Arizona)
[505.03] | Press Release

Thursday, 6 October, 12:15 pm EDT (Briefing Video)

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in Planetary Spacecraft Mission Science Teams
Julie Rathbun (Planetary Science Institute)
[111.01] | Press Release

The Changing Rotation Period of Asteroid 3200 Phaethon
Sean Marshall (Arecibo Observatory & University of Central Florida)
[514.08] | Press Release

Join the AAS Press List

If you don't already receive press releases by email from the AAS Press Office, you should sign up now to guarantee that you receive future meeting advisories as well as other important announcements. To sign up at no charge, please fill out and submit the form you'll find linked from our Join the AAS Press List page. With few exceptions, only accredited journalists and PIOs are eligible to receive press releases from the AAS, as described on our press-credentials page.