docsoc.com
Reflections on ASTRONOMY
by Joel Marks
Professor Emeritus of Philosophy
University of New Haven
Bioethics Center Scholar
Yale University
Professional publications
Goals and Objectives for the Exploration and Investigation of the Solar System’s Small Bodies (ver. 3.1.2024). Goal 2 update team member, NASA Small Bodies Assessment Group, August 2024
"The Worst Case: Planetary Defense against a Doomsday Impactor." Space Policy, vol. 61, article no. 101493, August, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spacepol.2022.101493
"What Is Planetary Defense? From Research to Implementation" (poster) 7th IAA Planetary Defense Conference, Vienna (virtual), April 26-30, 2021.
"Mixed Messages: Misleading Communication in Planetary Defense" (poster) 7th IAA Planetary Defense Conference, Vienna (virtual), April 26-30, 2021.
Goals and Objectives for the Exploration and Investigation of the Solar System’s Small Bodies (ver. 2.0.2020). Goal 2 update team member, NASA Small Bodies Assessment Group, February 2020.
"Ready to Launch: A'Hearn on Planetary Defense" (poster). Mike A'Hearn Symposium. University of Maryland, College Park, MD, August 6-8, 2019.
Review of Planetary Defense: Global Collaboration for Defending Earth from Asteroids and Comets, Nikola Schmidt, ed. (Springer, 2019). Space Policy, vol. 49, article no. 101327, August, 2019.
"Heaven Can't Wait: A Critique of Current Planetary Defence Policy" in Commercial Space Exploration: Ethics, Policy and Governance, edited by Jai Galliott (Farnham UK: Ashgate, 2015), Ch. 7, pp. 71-90.
"What about Comets?"(poster and paper) 4th IAA Planetary Defense Conference, Frascati, Roma, Italy, April 13-17, 2015.
"Our Whirling World." Mercury, vol. 36, no. 4, Fall 2007, pp. 28-31.
"A Planet by any other Name: an exercise in astrometaphysics." Think, winter 2007, pp. 101-104.
Speaker
"Planetary Defense: The Nature of the Threat."
Planetary Defense and Asteroid/Comet
Exploration mini-Conference 2023
American Institute of Aeronautics and
Astronautics LA/LV section meeting
Lawndale CA, June 24, 2023.
"A Philosopher Looks at Planetary Defense."
Led Webinar for Planetary Defense Reseach Group.
Goddard Space Flight Center.
October 29, 2021.
"It Can't Happen Now: Fallacious Complacence about Planetary Defense."
Guest speaker in graduate engineering course ENAE603 Near-Earth Object
Exploration.
University of Maryland.
October 5, 2021.
"It Can't Happen Now: Fallacious Complacence about Planetary Defense."
Mathematics and Physics department colloquium.
University of New Haven.
October 15, 2015.
"Is the Sky Falling? Collisions with Asteroids and Comets."
Mathematics and Physics club meeting.
University of New Haven.
October 15, 2015.
“Stones and Fish Falling from the Sky."
Provost's lecture series.
University of New Haven.
October 25, 2005.
Media
"Planetary Defense: The Nature of the Threat": video
"My 'Don't Look Up' Moment": video
"Wake-up Calls from Asteroids and Comets": video
"First Look at Saturn": sample episode of radio program "Star Sounds" (broadcast monthly during academc year 2000/2001 on WNHU West Haven 88.7 FM)
Columns
"What Is a Philosopher Doing in Planetary Defense?" AIAA LA-LV Newsletter, July 31, 2023, pp. 17-20.
"Do Watch Don't Look Up." New Haven Register, December 14, 2021, p. A13.
"The Next Big One." (a.k.a. "Comet Covid") Sky and Telescope, vol. 141, no. 3, March 2021, p. 84.
"Comet Day, Anyone?" Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies blog, July 1, 2015.
"A Special Moment in Astronomy." New Haven Register, June 30, 2015, p. A6.
"Finding Them Early Is Not Enough." Reverse Blog Tour for Ben H. Winters' Last Policeman trilogy, July 20, 2014.
"A Comet with Our Name on It?" Connecticut Post, November 25, 2013.
"Defense against Asteroids, Comets Must Be Taken Seriously." New Haven Register, August 24, 2013, p. A8.
"Heaven Can Wait, But We Shouldn't." Connecticut Post, March 16, 2013, p. A8.
"Group Keeping an Eye on Asteroid Threats." New Haven Register, February 1, 2013, p. A10.
"Earth Is Better Place after Armstrong Walked on It." New Haven Register, August 29, 2012, p. A7.
"Absolute Vulnerability." Philosophy Now, issue no. 86, September/October 2011, p. 52.
"First, Do No Harm." Sky and Telescope, vol. 120, no. 6, December 2010, p. 86.
"Not with a Whimper, but a Bang." Philosophy Now, issue no. 79, June/July 2010, p. 47.
"Forget Global Warming, Be Afraid of Giant Space Rocks." Norwich Bulletin, December 20, 2009, p. A8.
"What's the Big Hoopla about Seeing a UFO?" New Haven Register, November 29, 2007.
"Philosophical Astronomy." Philosophy Now, issue no. 58, November/December 2006, p 48.
"Reckoning Might Come from Sky." New Haven Register, April 13, 2006.
"Discovery of 10th Planet May Mean There Really Are Only Eight." New Haven Register, August 3, 2005.
"The Ultimate Sky." Sky and Telescope 104:5 (10), November 2002.
"STAR NOTES." New Haven Register, monthly, September 1999 -- June 2001. (See below.)
"Convert Titans to Protect Earth from Asteroids." New Haven Register, May 28, 1998.
"Career of Brilliant Geologist Cut Short." New Haven Register, July 28, 1997.
"City's Lights Can Confound Comet Lovers." New Haven Register, March 4, 1997.
"Despite Relative Safety of Earth, Jupiter Makes You Stop and Think." New Haven Register, July 29, 1994.
"Astronomer Spreads Pearls of Wisdom." New Haven Register, May 4, 1994.
"Common Sense Sometimes at Odds with Reason." New Haven Register, April 11, 1991.
"Smudge in Sky Shows How Far the Eye Can See." New Haven Register, November 15, 1990.
Miscellany
Traitors to Their Kind. North Charleston, SC: CreateSpace, 2017. (Science fiction novel involving planetary defense.)
"Highly Informative but Requires Careful Reading." Review of Donald K. Yeomans' Near-Earth Objects: Finding Them Before They Find Us. Amazon.com, May 28, 2013.
Petition submitted to the White House, February 15, 2013.
Proposal for a new kind of planetarium show. Planetarian 31: 4 (4), December 2002.
"Going Lightly." Natural History, Letters, November 2001.
Letters in Sky and Telescope
"Solar System Shortcut?" September 2019.
"Catch a Speeding Star." April 2019.
"Back to Venus?" February 2019.
"Another Approach to LPCs." October 2018.
"Constant Pressure." September 2018.
"So Far and Yet So Near." July 2018.
"Asteroid Deflection and NEO Threats." February 2011.
"To Boldly Go ... Or Not." December 2009.
"Magical Monsters." June 2004.
“I Saw the Great Pumpkin!” November 2001.
"The Mind of the Beholder." June 1999.
"Planetary Alignments: Breathtaking Spectacles." November 1997.
The following appeared as "Star Notes" columns in the New Haven Register.
"Make contact with Vega; watch the scorpion for Antares and his rival." September 2, 1999.
"Use stars, planets as a heavenly compass." October 7, 1999.
"Leonid shower blasts through with as many as 1,000 meteors an hour." November 4, 1999.
"December's a month for dippers; Diana's shine lights up the solstice." December 2, 1999.
"Moon slips into Earth's shadow and wears mask of Mars." January 6, 2000.
"Star light, star bright: There's a bunch of them in the sky tonight." February 3, 2000.
"3 planets dance with the moon, while the Lion and Bear soar." April 6, 2000.
"7 'planets' in rare conjunction; arc your way to spring stars." May 4, 2000.
"Summer twilights ahead; big planets make a morning comeback." June 1, 2000.
"Reach out and catch a view of distant Uranus and a close-up asteroid." July 6, 2000.
"Milky Way galaxy is candy for the eyes this month, if weather behaves." August 3, 2000.
"Fly by night with star birds Cygnus and Aquila this month." September 7, 2000.
"Earlier nightfalls mean more celestial fun for stargazers." October 5, 2000.
"Venus, Jupiter and Saturn offer a planetary triple play this month." November 2, 2000.
"Moon will take a bite out of the sun on Christmas Day." December 7, 2000.
"Space station shines bright in nighttime sky." January 4, 2001.
"Orion stands tall in the middle of the evening sky this month." February 1, 2001.
"Venus sets behind the sun, but comes up ahead." March 1, 2001.
"Jupiter and Saturn are moving, but not going anywhere." April 5, 2001.
"Big Dipper dominates the spring skies." May 3, 2001.
"Nothing can rival Mars' brilliance now." June 7, 2001.
Helping to update planetary defense recommendations for NASA, 2018.
Sistine Chapel meets K-T Boundary: The closest this atheist has come to touching his creator. Joel Marks in Gubbio, Italy, April 18, 2015. Photo credit: Melanie Stengel