Athéna COUSTENIS

Chair, Astrophysicist,      Research Director-CNRS, at LESIA, Paris Observatory, Meudon, FR      Research Interests:  astrophysics, planetology, space missions, exobiology

Athena Coustenis is an astrophysicist, Director of Research Exceptional Class with the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) of France, based at Paris Observatory in Meudon. Her specialty is space exploration and planetary sciences. Her research is devoted to the investigation of planetary atmospheres and surfaces, their origins and evolution, with emphasis on the habitable conditions in the Solar System and exoplanets. She is involved in the definition, development and exploitation of space missions to bodies with high astrobiological potential, in particular icy moons of the giant planets with the ESA JUICE mission, but also Mars with the MMX Japanese mission and exoplanets with ESA’s ARIEL mission. She has also led many observational campaigns from the ground using large telescopes. She analyses and interprets the acquired space and ground-based spectro-imaging data using radiative transfer codes and other analysis tools.
Beyond her scientific work, A. Coustenis is actively involved in or leading several advisory groups within ESA and NASA and other international bodies, helping establish space programs and optimize their scientific return. She is currently the Chair of the Le Studium Council, of the COSPAR Panel on Planetary Protection and of the Science Evaluation committee (CERES) of CNES. She is the Vice-Chair of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society, and member of many Boards of Unions and Associations (IAU, IUGG, IAA, etc). She was formerly Chair of ESA’s Human Exploration and Science Advisory Committee, of the European Science Foundation’s Space Sciences Committee and of the International Association of Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences (IAMAS) of the IUGG. She has been recognized with many NASA and ESA Group Achievement Awards, the French Legion of Honor, and other Unions and Academies medals. She has written more than 300 scientific papers, 3 books and several chapters of Encyclopaedias and has participated in many E/PO activities.