John S. Lewis
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John S. Lewis (born June 27, 1941) is a
Professor Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...
of
planetary science Planetary science (or more rarely, planetology) is the scientific study of planets (including Earth), celestial bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetary systems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of their f ...
at the
University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...
’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. His interests in the chemistry and formation of the
Solar System The Solar SystemCapitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar S ...
and the economic development of
space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider ...
have made him a leading proponent of turning potentially hazardous
near-Earth object A near-Earth object (NEO) is any small Solar System body whose orbit brings it into proximity with Earth. By convention, a Solar System body is a NEO if its closest approach to the Sun (perihelion) is less than 1.3 astronomical units (AU). ...
s into attractive space resources.


Career

The son of John Simpson Lewis, a
YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...
professional, and Elsie Dinsmore Vandenbergh, a school teacher. Lewis received his
B.S. A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...
in
chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...
from
Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...
in 1962 as a
National Merit Scholar The National Merit Scholarship Program is a United States academic scholarship competition for recognition and university scholarships administered by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC), a privately funded, not-for-profit organizati ...
. He then continued his education at
Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native A ...
receiving his
M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
in
inorganic chemistry Inorganic chemistry deals with synthesis and behavior of inorganic and organometallic compounds. This field covers chemical compounds that are not carbon-based, which are the subjects of organic chemistry. The distinction between the two disci ...
in 1964. He received his
Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...
in
geochemistry Geochemistry is the science that uses the tools and principles of chemistry to explain the mechanisms behind major geological systems such as the Earth's crust and its oceans. The realm of geochemistry extends beyond the Earth, encompassing the e ...
and
cosmochemistry Cosmochemistry (from Greek κόσμος ''kósmos'', "universe" and χημεία ''khemeía'') or chemical cosmology is the study of the chemical composition of matter in the universe and the processes that led to those compositions. This is done ...
from
University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Insti ...
in 1968, where he studied under
Harold Urey Harold Clayton Urey ( ; April 29, 1893 – January 5, 1981) was an American physical chemist whose pioneering work on isotopes earned him the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1934 for the discovery of deuterium. He played a significant role in the d ...
. Prior to joining the University of Arizona, Lewis taught
space sciences The following outline is provided as an overview and topical guide to space science: Space science encompasses all of the scientific disciplines that involve space exploration and study natural phenomena and physical bodies occurring in outer s ...
and
cosmochemistry Cosmochemistry (from Greek κόσμος ''kósmos'', "universe" and χημεία ''khemeía'') or chemical cosmology is the study of the chemical composition of matter in the universe and the processes that led to those compositions. This is done ...
at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
. An expert on the composition and chemistry of
asteroid An asteroid is a minor planet of the inner Solar System. Sizes and shapes of asteroids vary significantly, ranging from 1-meter rocks to a dwarf planet almost 1000 km in diameter; they are rocky, metallic or icy bodies with no atmosphere. ...
s and
comet A comet is an icy, small Solar System body that, when passing close to the Sun, warms and begins to release gases, a process that is called outgassing. This produces a visible atmosphere or coma, and sometimes also a tail. These phenomena ar ...
s, Lewis has written such popular science books as ''Rain of Iron and Ice'' and '' Mining the Sky: Untold Riches from the Asteroids, Comets, and Planets''. Lewis is a frequent commentator on the Chinese network
CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...
when China broadcasts its major missions live. He was a member of the Board of Directors of American Rocket Company and is currently Chief Scientist at Deep Space Industries. Raised a Presbyterian, Lewis became a
Mormon Mormons are a religious and cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's death in 1844, the movement split into several ...
, in 1980. In February 2013, Lewis assumed the role of Chief Scientist for the firm
Deep Space Industries Deep Space Industries, or DSI, was an American private ly-held company operating in the space technology and space exploration sectors. It was acquired on January 1, 2019 by Bradford Space. The company is developing and building spacecraft tech ...
. Lewis focuses on strategic planning, mission development and processing concepts for Deep Space.


Publications

* * * * * * * * *


See also

*
Marshall Savage Marshall T. Savage is an entrepreneur, business executive, energy innovator and futurist from Rifle, Colorado. Marshall Thomas Savage, is an advocate of space travel who wrote '' The Millennial Project: Colonizing the Galaxy in Eight Easy Steps' ...
- author of '' The Millennial Project: Colonizing the Galaxy in Eight Easy Steps'' *
Gerard O'Neill Gerard Michael O'Neill (September 1, 1942 – August 22, 2019) was an American journalist, newspaper editor, and writer. A long time investigative reporter for ''The Boston Globe'', he was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reportin ...
- author of '' The High Frontier: Human Colonies in Space'' * James Benson - founder of the
SpaceDev SpaceDev, a part of the "Space Systems Business" of Sierra Nevada Corporation, is prominent for its spaceflight and microsatellite work. It designed and built components for the hybrid rocket motors for Paul Allen's Tier One suborbital SpaceS ...
company *'' The Case for Mars: The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why We Must'' by
Robert Zubrin Robert Zubrin (; born April 9, 1952) is an American aerospace engineer, author, and advocate for human exploration of Mars. He and his colleague at Martin Marietta, David Baker, were the driving force behind Mars Direct, a proposal in a 1990 res ...
*''
Engines of Creation ''Engines of Creation: The Coming Era of Nanotechnology'' is a 1986 molecular nanotechnology book written by K. Eric Drexler with a foreword by Marvin Minsky. An updated version was released in 2007. The book has been translated into Japanese, F ...
'' by
K. Eric Drexler Kim Eric Drexler (born April 25, 1955) is an American engineer best known for studies of the potential of molecular nanotechnology (MNT), from the 1970s and 1980s. His 1991 doctoral thesis at Massachusetts Institute of Technology was revised and ...
* Asteroid 3554 Amun


References


External links


John Lewis's web page
at the University of Arizona.
Personal blog

The Extraterrestrial Commodities Market
airspacemag.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, John S. 1941 births Living people American planetary scientists Princeton University alumni Dartmouth College alumni University of California, San Diego alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science faculty Space colonization University of Arizona faculty