Dr. Thronson has published more than 120 research papers and edited 11 books.
ALEXANDRIA, VA, June 09, 2018 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Marquis Who's Who, the world's premier publisher of biographical profiles, is proud to present Harley A. Thronson, Ph.D., with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. An accomplished listee Dr. Thronson celebrates many years' experience in his professional network, and has been noted for achievements, leadership qualities, and the credentials and successes he has accrued in his field. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Astronomer and senior scientist for Advanced Astrophysics Mission Concepts with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) since 2011, Dr. Thronson first began his career as a staff astronomer with the University of Arizona in 1978. Entering academia soon thereafter, he taught as an assistant and associate professor at the University of Wyoming for 10 years, earning the title of full professor in 1991, and held an appointment with the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, in Scotland.
Today, Dr. Thronson leads several small teams that develop, assess and advocate advanced astrophysics mission designs with the goal of beginning early technology investments so that these mission concepts will have the key technologies necessary to make them possible. These teams attempt to look 20 to 30 years into the future to identify scientific astrophysics goals and begin the development of mission designs to achieve those scientific goals. Dr. Thronson has also been coordinating additional teams to develop concept scenarios for much lower cost human missions to Mars. He hopes to soon have one or more of his team's telescope designs that they are currently developing to be selected by the National Academies in its Decadal Surveys of astrophysics for NASA to initiate in subsequent years.
Responsible for the selection of advanced technologies to enable future science missions, Dr. Thronson also spent time as the Program Scientist for the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, the SOFIA Airborne Observatory and the NASA Astrobiology Program. He has been the senior scientist on several long-range planning teams, was co-chair of the Future In-Space Operations telecon colloquia and chaired the planning team for more a dozen professional conferences and symposia.
During his tenure, Dr. Thronson has published more than 120 research papers and edited 11 books. A longstanding member of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific and the Royal Astronomy Society, Dr. Thronson is also a board member of Explore Mars, Inc., vice president for programs with the American Astronautical Society, and member of the International Astronomical Union, where he formerly served in numerous capacities. Locally, he continues to serve as the head of volunteer docents at George Washington's home church, Christ Church Alexandria, since 2012 and formerly served on the board of directors for the Wyoming Children's Museum in Laramie, WY. Married to wife Laura Giza sine 2010 with two children, Dr. Thronson earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of California, Berkeley in 1971 and a Doctor of Philosophy in astrophysics from the University of Chicago in 1978. He was highlighted in the first edition of Who's Who in Science and Engineering.
In recognition of outstanding contributions to his profession and the Marquis Who's Who community, Harley A. Thronson, Ph.D., has been featured on the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement website. Please visit www.ltachievers.com for more information about this honor.
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