Dr. Jim Rice

Dr. Rice received his PhD in Geological Sciences in 1997 from Arizona State University where he studied aqueous sedimentary basins on Mars. He then became a Research Associate at the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory of the University of Arizona where he was a Science Imaging Team Member of the Surface Stereo Imager (SSI) and Robotic Arm Camera (RAC) systems onboard the Mars Polar Lander. When Mars Polar Lander was lost, he returned to Arizona State University where he was responsible for the selection, prioritization, planning and targeting of observations for the Mars Global Surveyor Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) and Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) experiments. He is a Mars Rover Co-Investigator, serving on the Geology and Strategic Long Term Planning Groups, and he is the Associate Project Scientist for the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission. He has also served on numerous NASA Science Analysis Groups for manned missions back to the Moon and Mars. He was a NASA Astronaut Candidate Finalist in 2000 and 2009. Dr. Rice joined the permanent science staff of PSI In 2013.