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Mike Malaska
Scientist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Mike Malaska is a Scientist in the Planetary Ices Group at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. His planetary geology research program has focused on the interface of chemical and geological processes on Saturn's moon Titan based on data returned by the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft. These studies examine how liquid hydrocarbon rains and rivers on that world have eroded and dissolved a landscape made of organic materials layered upon rock-hard water ice.
Latest Articles
Here’s a fun, cheap, and only slightly messy demonstration activity for kids of all ages, even 46-year-old kids: creating and mapping an ancient volcano.
The surface of Mars is a tough place to survive, but researchers at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) found some lichens and cyanobacteria tough enough to handle those conditions.
Citizen Science projects let volunteers easily contribute to active science programs. They're useful when there is so much data it overwhelms computing algorithms (if they exist) or the scientific research team attempting to process it.
Latest Planetary Radio Appearances
Back to the annual meeting of the AAS Division for Planetary Sciences this week, where Mat Kaplan visited with experts on worlds of ice including Titan and Pluto, with a side trip to the dunes of Iran.
Drilling through many meters of ice to Europa’s ocean or to the pristine sub-surface layers of Mars will be hard. The Planetary Deep Drill prototype has shown that it may be a practical approach. Join Mat Kaplan and Planetary Society colleagues at the field test site deep in California’s desert.
Outside In is a spectacular IMAX movie being made out of nothing but actual photos of our solar system and beyond -- no computer-generated images. Hear how and why it's coming together from its creator, Stephen van Vuuren, and his associate Mike Malaska.