[SPA] SPA SECTION NEWSLETTER Volume XXXI, Issue 28

[Newsletter Editor]

AMERICAN GEOPHYSICAL UNION
SPA SECTION NEWSLETTER
Volume XXXI, Issue 28
May.08,2024

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Table of Contents

1. Passing of Jennifer Gannon

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Announcement Submission Website: http://goo.gl/forms/qjcm4dDr4g


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Passing of Jennifer Gannon

From: Antti Pulkkinen, Steve Morley, Delores Knipp, Mark Olson and Bob Robinson (antti.a.pulkkinen at nasa.gov)

It is with a heavy heart that we inform the community about the passing of Dr Jennifer Gannon. She passed away suddenly May 2 in Greenbelt, Maryland.

Dr Gannon’s scientific endeavors spanned radiation belt electron dynamics, geomagnetic storms, geomagnetically induced currents, and ground-based magnetic field disturbance instrumentation. Her extensive contributions covered fundamental scientific research, applied sciences and operational applications for the benefit of a range of end-users. Later in her career she was also active in space physics and space weather policy, and in leadership roles helping to shape the national space weather enterprise.

Dr Gannon received her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Virginia and PhD in physics from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Her positions over the years included Research Physicist at NOAA, Research Physicist at US Geological Survey, Principal Scientist at GeoSynergy, LLC, and various roles at Computational Physics, Inc (CPI). At CPI she rose to the roles of Vice President of R&D and Vice President of Strategy. She also served in the role of Executive Committee Chair of American Commercial Space Weather Association and was a member of the National Academies’ Space Weather Roundtable and Space Weather Advisory Group (SWAG), which was established as part of Promoting Research and Observations of Space Weather to Improve the Forecasting of Tomorrow Act of 2020, also known as the PROSWIFT Act.

Dr Gannon encouraged young women to enter and lead the physics and space weather communities. She was a mentor and leader at the NSF-sponsored Geospace Environmental Modeling (GEM) and Coupling Energetics and Dynamics of Atmospheric Regions (CEDAR) workshops. Dr Gannon recently participated in the National Conference for Undergraduate Women in Physics at the US Military Academy at West Point. During her too-short career she worked continuously to advance workplaces that were inclusive and free of bias.

Dr Gannon was a long-time supporter of the electric power industry’s efforts to investigate the effects of space weather on the power grid. She worked shoulder to shoulder with industry to bridge scientific and engineering disciplines and strengthen the technical underpinnings of reliability standards that protect the North American power grid from severe space weather. She advised the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) in establishing a first of its kind public database of geomagnetically induced currents and was actively supporting industry and the scientific community in applying this data to further understand the effects of space weather on power transmission systems. While at CPI, she worked with individual utilities to install magnetic field measurement stations and perform validation studies necessary for accurately assessing risks to power grid performance and critical equipment. Dr Gannon helped organize annual space weather workshops for electric power industry engineers, operators, and stakeholders and engaged other world leading researchers to participate alongside her in these forums.

As a long-time editor of the American Geophysical Union’s Space Weather Journal, Dr Gannon shepherded dozens of space weather manuscripts through the review and revision process, ensuring the final published work met the highest standards. She co-authored several editorials advancing the state of the space weather discipline. As an editor she had an international reach.

Her latest endeavor was her role as the Senior Space Weather Liaison at NOAA National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service’s Office of Space Weather Observations. In her liaison role she was working to establish a unified NOAA Space Weather Strategy for the benefit of the nation, and the world.

Dr Gannon worked tirelessly to build bridges connecting stakeholders in the space weather community spanning government, academia, and the private sector. Her steady leadership and superb communication skills made her an asset to every organization she contributed to.

Dr Gannon is survived by her husband Mr Mike Henderson, stepchildren Cade and Mieko Henderson, and puppies Maeve and Taffy. She will be missed by her family, friends, and the scientific community. She left us far too early and with a major hole in our hearts. We are committed to continue working toward her vision for the national and international space weather enterprise.

There will be a service in Colorado. More information will be shared as it becomes available.


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