American Geophysical Union (AGU) | Southwest Research Institute

Dec 15, 2025 to Dec 19, 2025

New Orleans, LA
United States

SwRI will be exhibiting at the American Geophysical Union (AGU), booth no. 1429.

With more than 50 years in space mission design, management, hardware, and operations, SwRI is at the forefront of space science and engineering.

Monday, Dec. 15

2:15 p.m. – 5:45 p.m.
Hall EFG (Poster Hall)

“NASA Experiments on the Blue Ghost 1 Lunar Lander Mission,” Robert Grimm

Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 (BGM1) delivered ten NASA science and technology instruments to Mare Crisium on March 2, 2025 as part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign. BGM1 extended through one lunar day and hours into the lunar night, observing a total solar eclipse and a sunset. To date it is the longest surface duration commercial mission on the Moon.

4:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Room 288-290

“QuickPUNCH Data for Space Weather Operations,” Derek Lamb

The QuickPUNCH project focuses on developing and demonstrating the capability to quickly deliver PUNCH data on the solar corona and heliosphere to the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center.

Tuesday, Dec. 16

8:54 a.m. – 9:04 a.m.
Room 288-290

“Initial Results from the PUNCH Mission,” Craig DeForest

PUNCH is a constellation mission with four orbiting cameras that observe the solar corona and solar wind together in visible light, acting as a single very-wide-field instrument. PUNCH has been collecting science data since June of this year. We'll present an overview of our first scientific results, along with how you can access the data and analyze it yourself.

9:04 a.m. – 9:14 a.m.
Room 288-290

“Background Subtraction in PUNCH Images,” Samuel Van Kooten

In this presentation we describe the process by which we estimate and subtract stray light (including very dynamic earthshine), the F corona, and the starfield.

9:34 a.m. – 9:44 a.m.
Room 288-290

“CATE 2024: Novel one-hour continuous observations of polarized structure and dynamics of the inner and middle corona during the 2024 total solar eclipse,” Daniel Seaton

We present current results from the Citizen CATE 2024, community participation mission to observe the total solar eclipse of April 2024 in polarized light, highlighting data acquisition, calibration, lessons learned, and plans for the future.

9:40 a.m. – 9:50 a.m.
Room 348-349

“The shaping of the terrestrial planet’s interiors by late accretions,” Simone Marchi

This presentation examines the disproportionate role of the last approximately 1% of Earth’s growth, or late accretion, in controlling its long-term interior evolution, including mantle mixing and bulk volatile budget. We will also discuss here how differences in the late accretion of a planet may provide a rationale for interpreting the distinct properties of Venus and Earth (for example, tectonism), the surface dichotomy of Mars and the high core-to-silicate mass ratio of Mercury.

2:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Room 293

“Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder: Design, Operations, and Preliminary Results,” Robert Grimm

The Lunar Magnetotelluric Sounder (LMS) operated on the lunar surface March 3-16, 2025, as one of ten NASA payloads on Blue Ghost Mission 1 (BGM1). The objective of LMS is to determine the electrical conductivity of the interior at depths up to 1000 km, in order to better constrain the Moon’s internal temperature, composition, and evolution. Initial results, to be verified by the annual AGU meeting, are encouraging.

Wednesday, Dec. 17

8:30 a.m. – Noon
Hall EFG (Poster Hall)

“High-Energy Heliophysics Science and the Engineering Realities to Make it Possible I,” Amir Caspi

Next-generation heliophysics missions demand bold innovations to explore energetic solar phenomena like flares, CMEs, and coronal heating. Achieving these goals requires overcoming significant engineering challenges—from pioneering instrument design to managing mission constraints. This session aims to foster dialogue that translates engineering experience into actionable guidance for scientists, paving the way for transformative discoveries in heliophysics.

9:30 a.m. – 9:40 a.m.
Room 293

“Lineament Azimuths and Europa’s Tidal Stress Field - A Correlation Study,” Caroline Haslebacher

Europa’s surface shows an intricate network of linear surface features. We are extracting the azimuths of these features and smoothing the output with a dedicated statistical model to see which tidal-orbital stress models match observations best.

10:50 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
Room 292

“The Lucy mission encounters main belt asteroid (52246) Donaldjohanson - First results,” Simone Marchi

We will present imaging data from L’LORRI (high-resolution panchromatic camera) and composition data from L'Ralph (a color camera and a near-infrared spectroscopic mapper), and discuss their implications for Donaldjohanson origin and evolution.

11:00 a.m. – 11:10 a.m.
Room 292

“First Compositional Results from Lucy’s Flyby of the C-Type Asteroid (52246) Donaldjohanson,” Silvia Protopapa

On April 20, 2025, NASA’s Lucy spacecraft (Levison et al. 2021, PSJ 2, 171) performed a close flyby of the C-type asteroid (52246) Donaldjohanson (DJ), a member of the primitive Erigone collisional family in the inner main belt (Marchi et al. 2025, PSJ 6, 59). Here we present initial results from the Lucy observations, focusing on DJ’s average spectral properties, potential surface heterogeneity, and its relationships to other primitive inner-belt families. These findings place DJ in context with Bennu and Ryugu and provide new insights into the diversity and evolution of C-type asteroids.

2:34 p.m. – 2:42 p.m.
Room 293

“Morphology of Antarctic Polygons and Implications for Polygon Evolution and Subsurface Ice Dynamics,” Rachael Hoover

This study analyzes polygon morphology in Beacon Valley, Antarctica to test model predictions linking polygon size to ice table depth. Results show polygons over massive ice are smaller than expected, suggesting sediment in glacial ice limits viscous deformation and supports a revised framework for polygon evolution with implications for identifying subsurface ice.

Thursday, Dec. 18

8:33 a.m. – 8:43 a.m.
Room 294

“Rapidly Accreting the Moon from an Extended Post-Impact Debris Disk,” Brynna Grace Downey, Robin Canup

In the giant impact theory for the origin of the Moon, a protoplanet collided with the Earth, producing a disk of melt-vapor debris from which the Moon accreted. In new simulations, the Moon accretes in ~days from in an outer disk, which we argue implies that the isotopic similarities between the Earth and Moon were inherited from similarities between Earth and the impactor Theia, rather than through disk-planet equilibration.

10:50 a.m. – 11:00
Room 350-351

“Limited angular momentum removal via evection resonance in the early Earth-Moon system due to Earth’s magma ocean solidification,” Robin Canup, Raluca Rufu

We explore whether a gravitational resonance between the Earth, Moon, and Sun can reduce the angular momentum of the early Earth-Moon system. This provides new constraints on the nature of a Moon-forming giant impact.

11:30 a.m. – 11:40 a.m.
Room 291

“Modeling Titan's Planetary Boundary Layer at the Huygens Landing Site: Evidence for the Role of Subsurface Methane Evaporation in Limiting Convective Growth,” Victoria Hartwick

We discuss the role of subsurface methane evaporation on the diurnal amplitude and evolution of the planetary boundary layer on Titan.

2:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.
Room 286-287

“High-Energy Heliophysics Science and the Engineering Realities to Make It Possible II (Oral),” Amir Caspi

4:15 p.m. – 5:45 p.m.

“High-Energy Heliophysics Science and the Engineering Realities to Make It Possible III (Oral),” Amir Caspi

Friday, Dec. 19

8:30 a.m. – 8:48 a.m.
Room 292

“A GCM Assessment of Wind Energy Potential for Future Human Missions to Mars,” Victoria Hartwick

Using a global climate model for present-day Mars, we assess the potential for surface wind turbines as a primary or complementary energy source for future human missions.

8:30 a.m. – Noon
Hall EFG (Poster Hall)

“Field Validation of Planetary Geophysical Methods in Mars-Analog Environments,” David Stillman

Across multiple field campaigns, we collected Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), Capacitive Coupled Resistivity (CCR), traditional Resistivity (Res), and Spectral Induced Polarization (SIP) data. This work presents results from repeated expeditions to Mars analog sites of Kobuk Valley National Park (KOVA), Alaska and Beacon Valley (BV), Antarctica, a McMurdo Dry Valley that rarely rises above freezing. At KOVA, GPR, CCR, Res, and SIP were used to investigate liquid water within frozen sand dunes. At BV, CCR and SIP were used to assess variations in subsurface ice content across debris-covered glaciers.

9:48 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Room 286-287

“CubIXSS: a new mission to probe coronal plasma heating in solar flares and active regions,” Amir Caspi

We present the motivation and current status for CubIXSS, a 16U CubeSat, to measure X-rays from solar flares and active regions to understand how plasma is heated on the Sun.

11:20 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Room 297

“Very Low Solar Elongation Observations of Asteroids and Comets with NASA's PUNCH Spacecraft,” Simon Porter

We show how we are using PUNCH, NASA's newest spacecraft for studying the Sun, to also look at asteroids and comets close to the Sun, including the recently discovered interstellar object 3I/ATLAS.

11:30 a.m. – 11:40 a.m.
Room 286-287

“Unprecedented Fine Structures in Coronal Flare Ribbons Revealed by Solar Orbiter’s High-Resolution Imager,” Ritesh Patel

We present unprecedented observations of fine downflowing substructures within a flare ribbon in the solar corona using measurements from Solar Orbiter's suite of instruments at a distance of only 0.29 AU from the Sun.

For more information, please contact Jayme Baucham or Robin Mihran

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