Sue Smrekar (NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory) is a highly visible and respected leader in planetary exploration and is very deserving of the AGU Fred Whipple Award. Sue has been deeply involved in all aspects of planetary mission development, including instrument (heat probes) and technology (penetrators, high-temperature-compatible sensors) development and serving in leadership roles on missions to Mars and Venus. Her high influence in the community and incredible determination and poise have been most recently demonstrated in her work as the principal investigator (PI) for the NASA-selected Venusian mission VERITAS, for which she has had to do much within NASA and international science community discussions to bring the mission back from the brink of cancelation to a 2031 launch date. Within her planetary science research over the past 3 decades, she has focused on the modeling of mantle upwelling and tectonic processes to understand the different evolutionary paths of Venus, Mars, and Earth, using numerical and analytic models of deformation. She has conducted extensive analyses of gravity and topography data to constrain the thermal evolution and history of the lithosphere. Through this research, Sue has expanded our knowledge on the interior structure and evolution of terrestrial planets. But even more, she has demonstrated the power and necessity of combining surface observations closely to models in a field where modelers and geomorphologists tend not to work closely together. For example, her work to closely tie surface morphology, topography, and gravity data to rigorous models has been groundbreaking in determining how a terrestrial planet without plate tectonics operates. She also has applied a multidisciplinary approach toward volcanology via comparative studies of volcanoes and volcanic features on Mars, Venus, and Earth, including extensive fieldwork at volcanoes in Hawaii, Iceland, and Italy. In her work, she collaborates with other specialists who have expertise in chemistry, petrology, mineralogy, and analog experimentation, fostering integrative approaches to understanding planetary evolution. She has also contributed to the community in a number of service and advocacy roles, including chairing the Venus Exploration and Analysis Group (VEXAG). In addition, Sue has provided critical support for many early-career and student scientists, playing a fundamental role in the inception and growth of their careers in planetary science. In total, Sue is an exemplary member of the planetary science and geology communities and a wonderful role model.

—Serina Diniega, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena

Wow! This is truly an incredible honor! I am so grateful to be recognized by the AGU Planetary community. AGU has been such an important asset to my career as a planetary scientist, allowing me to learn from and interact with scientists across a range of disciplines. From my perspective, Earth is the starting place for all comparative planetology. Thus AGU has long been a favorite conference. To begin at the beginning: My mother always encouraged me to pursue a career. Although I’m pretty sure she didn’t have planetary geophysics in mind, I was able to name an asteroid after her (McGarvey) though an early research opportunity with the Shoemakers, Gene and Carolyn. It was Carle Pieters, my undergrad advisor, who really showed me that I could be a researcher. Marc Parmentier’s class led me to become a geophysicist – equations to describe mountain building – who could resist! Roger Phillips, my PhD advisor, was, in fact, an enormous influence via his deep passion for research and discovery. Sean Solomon showed me how to dive into a mountain of new data (Magellan!) and find the gems with far reaching implications. Maria Zuber is inspiration to all, and especially to me in my field. Paul Morgan introduced me to the world of heat flow instrumentation, which led me to Deep Space 2 and InSight. I’ve been so fortunate to work with fantastic collaborators such as Ellen Stofan, who introduced me to field work, and with numerous amazing early career scientists and students. All have been an inspiration and joy. Since arriving at JPL, NASA missions have become a driving force in my career. Missions are the vehicle for planetary discoveries and require huge and dedicated communities. I am the Principal Investigator for the VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio science, InSAR, and Spectroscopy) mission, yet I am only the tip of the iceberg of exceptional scientists, engineers, and managers across the US and Europe that are needed to keep this endeavor afloat and on course to Venus. This mission fills a gapping whole in our understanding of comparative planetology. I believe it will elucidate a complex, beautiful, active geodynamic system that is an alternative to the plate tectonics of our home planet and key to understanding the plethora of earth-like exoplanets. There is literally a cast of thousands from my family (Ellen, Elias!) to prior mission teams (Magellan, Deep Space 2, InSight!) to the incredible VERITAS team, who have propelled me to this point. Thank you to all of you, and to the AGU planetary scientists out there who choose to recognize me. - Suzanne Smrekar