Jim Bell

Jim Bell is an astronomer, planetary scientist, Professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University, and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Astronomy at Cornell University. Jim's research covers the geology and composition of planets, moons, asteroids, and comets, especially focusing on Mars, and he has first-authored or co-authored nearly 200 peer-reviewed papers in leading scientific journals. Jim is also an author of space-related photography books, including "Postcards from Mars" (Dutton, 2006), "Mars 3-D" (Sterling, 2008), "Moon 3-D" (Sterling, 2009), and "The Space Book" (Sterling, 2012). As President of The Planetary Society, Jim is also actively engaged in public speaking, writing, and political advocacy for astronomy and space exploration. Jim has an asteroid named after him (8146 Jimbell) and was awarded the 2011 Carl Sagan Medal from the American Astronomical Society, for excellence in public communication in planetary sciences.