Geoffrey Alan Landis (; born May 28, 1955) is an American aerospace engineer and author, working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on planetary exploration, interstellar propulsion, solar power and photovoltaics. He holds nine patents, primarily in the field of improvements to solar cells and photovoltaic devices and has given presentations and commentary on the possibilities for interstellar travel and construction of bases on the Moon, Mars, and Venus. Supported by his scientific background Landis also writes hard science fiction. For these writings he has won a Nebula Award, two Hugo Awards, and a Locus Award, as well as three Rhysling Awards for his poetry. He contributes science articles to various academic publications.
Biography Landis was born in Detroit, Michigan, and lived in Virginia, Maryland, Philadelphia, and Illinois during his childhood. His senior education was at New Trier High School, Winnetka, Illinois. He holds undergraduate degrees in physics and electrical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He also holds masters degrees in physics and engineering and a PhD in solid-state physics from Brown University. He is married to science fiction writer Mary A. Turzillo and lives in Berea, Ohio.
Career After receiving his doctorate at Brown University, Landis worked at the NASA Lewis Research Center (now NASA Glenn) and the Ohio Aerospace Institute before accepting a permanent position at the NASA John Glenn Research Center, where he does research on Mars missions, solar energy, and technology development for future space missions. He holds nine patents, and has authored or co-authored more than 300 published scientific papers in the fields of astronautics and photovoltaics. Landis has commented on the practicalities of generating oxygen and creating building materials for a future Moon base in New Scientist, and on the possibilities of using readily available metallic iron to manufacture steel on Mars. He is the recipient of numerous professional honors, including the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics Aerospace Power Systems Award, the NASA Space Flight Awareness award and the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Stellar Award in 2016.
Photovoltaic power systems Much of Landis' technical work has been in the field of developing solar cells and arrays, both for terrestrial use and for spacecraft.
Mars Landis has worked on a number of projects related to developing technology of human and robotic exploration of Mars and scientific analysis of the Martian surface, including studies of the performance of photovoltaic cells in the Mars environment, the effect of Martian dust on performance, and technologies for dust removal from the arrays. He was a member of the Rover team on the Mars Pathfinder mission, and named the Mars rock, "Yogi". He is a member of the science team on the 2003 Mars Exploration Rovers mission, where his work includes observations of Martian dust devils, atmospheric science measurements, and observation of frost on the equator of Mars. He was also a member of the Mars ISPP Propellant Precursor experiment team for the Mars Surveyor 2001 Lander mission, an experiment package to demonstrate manufacture of oxygen from the Martian atmosphere (which was cancelled after the failure of the Mars Polar Lander). He has also done work on analyzing concepts for future robotic and human mission to Mars. These include the Mars Geyser Hopper spacecraft, a Discovery-class mission concept that would investigate the springtime carbon dioxide Martian geysers found in regions around the south pole of Mars, the Human Exploration using Real-time Robotic Operations ("HERRO") concept for telerobotic Mars exploration, and concepts for use of In-situ resource utilization for a Mars sample-return mission. In a 1993 paper, he suggested the use of a phased program of Mars exploration, with a series of incremental achievements leading up to human landings on Mars.
NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts
Landis was a fellow of the NASA Institute for Advanced Concepts ("NIAC"), where he worked on a project investigating the use of laser- and particle-beam pushed sails for propulsion for interstellar flight. In 2002 Landis addressed the annual convention of the American Association for the Advancement of Science on the possibilities and challenges of interstellar travel in what was described as the "first serious discussion of how mankind will one day set sail to the nearest star". Dr. Landis said, "This is the first meeting to really consider interstellar travel by humans. It is historic. We're going to the stars. There really isn't a choice in the long term." He went on to describe a star ship with a diamond sail, a few nanometres thick, powered by solar energy, which could achieve "10 per cent of the speed of light". He was selected again as a NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts fellow in 2012, with feasibility concept of a landsailing rover for Venus exploration, called Venus Landsailing Rover, in 2015 was the science lead on a NIAC study to design a mission to Neptune's moon Triton. In 2024, he was selected the principle investigator for another NIAC project to explore Venus, "Venus Sample Return Using In-situ Propellant", which proposed using an aircraft to fetch a sample from the Venus surface, taking it to a balloon station in the upper atmosphere, which will produce chemical propellant to ruel a rocket launch the sample into orbit. In 2017, Landis's work was the subject of the book Land-Sailing Venus Rover With NASA Inventor Geoffrey Landis, published by World Book as part of their "Out of This World" book series for ages 10–14+.
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