Welcome to our faculty research section. Below you will find links to our faculty's published research and abstract papers. If you would like to know more about research being done at UND's Space Studies department, contact Hardersen@space.edu.

Dr. Paul S. Hardersen

Dr. Paul S. Hardersen is an assistant professor in the Department of Space Studies at the University of North Dakota in Grand Forks. Dr. Hardersen has been a faculty member of the department since August 2003 and has focused his research primarily on near-infrared observations and interpretations of main-belt asteroids. Specifically, Dr. Hardersen is conducting detailed observations of the M-asteroid population and is working to constrain the surface mineralogies and compositions of these asteroids. This is a funded research project through the NASA Planetary Astronomy Program that began in 2005 and will continue into 2008.

This research begs some obvious questions: Why is the study of asteroids scientifically important? What do we hope to learn from this work? How will this work advance knowledge of the early solar system and its formation environment? For starters, relatively few (~100?) main-belt asteroids have high-quality near-infrared reflectance spectra (~0.7 to ~2.5-microns) that are amenable to interpretations that significantly constrain their surface mafic mineral abundances. Much work, across the entire asteroid belt, is necessary to gain a much fuller understanding of the chemical, mineralogical, and thermal diversity of the inner solar system's oldest objects.

Constraining asteroid surface mineralogies and the geologic evolution of these objects can also help us understand an early, short-lived solar system heating event that significantly altered the original asteroid parent bodies. Evidence from the terrestrial meteorite collection suggests that many asteroids were heated and either metamorphosed (thermally or aqueously) or melted to varying degrees. A key goal in asteroid research is to understand the extent and pattern of this heating event - as superimposed on the minerals present on asteroid surfaces - and attempt to constrain the heating source (26Al radionuclide heating, T Tauri induction heating, both, neither, or ????). This information informs us about the physical and chemical conditions in the early solar system, which ultimately led to terrestrial planetary formation and the evolution of life on Earth.

As a result of work to constrain the early solar system heating event, Dr. Hardersen has developed additional research interests in solar astronomy and stellar spectroscopy. Specifically, Dr. Hardersen is interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the Sun and its behavior. This knowledge may be able to provide insight into the likelihood of induction heating as a viable heating mechanism, and allow investigation of other potential solar heating mechanisms such as intense solar flare/CME activity.

Other developing research projects include the photometry and visible-wavelength spectroscopy of T Tauri stars. These stars, which are thought to be similar to our Sun before it entered the main sequence, are very active. Projects will attempt to better constrain T Tauri photometric variability and magnetic activity. This information may provide important insight into the dynamic solar nebula environment where planets are potentially born.

Feel free to contact Dr. Hardersen at Hardersen@space.edu with any questions or comments.

Research papers:

Hardersen, P.S., Cloutis, E.A., Reddy, V., Mothe’-Diniz, T., Emery, J.P., 2011. The M-/X-asteroid menagerie: Results of an NIR spectral survey of 45 main-belt asteroids. Meteoritics & Planetary Science 46, 1910-1938.

Hardersen, P.S., Balasubramaniam, K., Shkolyar, S., Zak, B., 2011. Intrinsic sunspot rotations and energetic events. American Astronomical Society, SPD meeting #42, #17.16; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Volume 43.

Hardersen, P.S., 2009. From North Dakota to infinity: A global astronomy research and education intiative. In Galileo’s Legacy, Small Telescopes, and Astronomical Research, edited by R. Genet, J. Johnson, and V. Wallen. Collins Foundation Press.

Hardersen, P.S., Gaffey, M.J., Cloutis, E.A., Abell, P.A., Reddy, V., 2006. Near-infrared spectral observations and interpretations for S-asteroids 138 Tolosa, 306 Unitas, 346 Hermentaria, and 480 Hansa . Icarus 181, 94-106.

Hardersen, P.S., Gaffey, M.J., Abell, P.A., 2005. Near-IR spectral evidence for the presence of low-Fe orthopyroxenes on the surfaces of six M-type asteroids. Icarus 175, 141-158. Download the paper here.

Hardersen, P.S., Gaffey, M.J., Abell, P.A., 2004. Mineralogy of Asteroid 1459 Magnya and implications for its origin. Icarus 167, 170-177.

Abstracts:

Hardersen, P.S., Gaffey, M.J., Cloutis, E.A., Abell, P.A., Reddy, V., 2006. Discovering the spectral and mineralogical diversity among the M-asteroid population. In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVII, Abstract #1106, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston (CD-ROM).

Hardersen, P.S., de Silva, S., Reddy, V., Cui, P., Kumar, S., Gaffey, M.J., 2006. An Internet observatory for solar system astronomy at the University of North Dakota. In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVII, Abstract #1074, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston (CD-ROM).

Hardersen, P.S., Gaffey, M.J., Abell, P.A., 2005. Detailed mineralogical characterizations of four S-asteroids: 138 Tolosa, 306 Unitas, 346 Hermentaria, and 480 Hansa . In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXVI, Abstract #1240, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston (CD-ROM).

Hardersen, P.S., de Silva, S., 2004. Plans for a 1-meter-class professional astronomical observatory for the State of North Dakota. In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXV, Abstract #1597, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston (CD-ROM).

Hardersen, P.S., Gaffey, M.J., Abell, P.A., 2003. M-Asteroids II: The search for weak spectral features on 16 Psyche, 125 Liberatrix and 136 Austria. Bull. Am. Astron. Soc. 35(4), 956.

Hardersen, P.S. and M.J. Gaffey 2001. Unraveling the thermal structure of the asteroid belt from meteoritic and asteroidal evidence. In Lunar and Planetary Science XXXII, Abstract #1103, Lunar and Planetary Institute, Houston (CD-ROM).

Dr. Mike Gaffey

My main research interest involves asteroids and meteorites. Asteroids are bodies preserved from the earliest period of solar system history. They are the surviving fragments of the population of small bodies which once filled the inner solar system and from which the Earth and other terrestrial planets formed about 4.5 bilion years ago. The study of asteroid compositions allows us to better understand the origin and early evolution of the solar system, the Earth and the terrestrial planets. Asteroids are a major part of the bodies which impact the Earth. Impacts have played an important role in the history of life on Earth (for example the extinction of the dinosaurs and 75% of all the species on Earth due to an impact 65 million years ago). And near-Earth asteroids constitute a threat of future impacts. Study of such near Earth asteroids provides information that could allow us to identify and prevent a future impact hazard. Near-Earth asteroids also represent potential sources of raw materials for future large scale space activities.

Visible and near-infrared (VNIR) reflectance spectroscopy provides a powerful means of remotely characterizing the mineralogy, mineral chemistry and mineral abundance on the surface of a planetary object or a region of the earth. For the foreseeable future, remote sensing studies will provide the only characterization of most small solar system bodies. My research in this area is concentrated in (a) developing and improving the interpretive techniques for the analysis of VNIR spectra of geological materials, especially the meteorites, (b) characterizing the mineralogic and petrologic properties of asteroid surface materials from telescopic spectral observations and (c) investigating the implications of these asteroidal data for the early evolution of the inner solar system and the terrestrial planets, for the source of the meteorites and for possible utilization of extraterrestrial resources.

I am also involved in a collaborative effort to investigate the role of extraterrestrial organic compounds in the origin of life on Earth. This group (The New York Center for the Study of the Origin of Life) is a NASA Specialized Center for Research and Training based at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and involves faculty from four universities. The Center's faculty are from a variety of disciplines including physics, astronomy, geology, biology, chemistry and environmental science. We are investigating the formation of organic molecules in interstellar clouds, in the solar nebula and in asteroids; the delivery of such organics to the early Earth in meteorites, asteroids, and comets; and the role such extraterrestrial organic compounds might have played in the origin of life.

I received my PhD in Earth and Planetary Sciences from MIT in 1974, and my BA and MS degrees in Geology from the University of Iowa in 1968 and 1970, respectively.

Research papers.