Linda A. Morabito
Encyclopedia
Linda A. Morabito also known as Linda Kelly, Linda Hyder, and Linda Morabito-Meyer, is the astronomer who made the discovery of volcanic activity on Io, a moon of Jupiter, on March 9, 1979, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
. At the time of her discovery, she was serving as Cognizant Engineer over the Optical Navigation Image Processing System (ONIPS) on the Voyager
deep space mission Navigation Team. While performing image processing analysis of a Voyager 1
picture taken for spacecraft navigation, she detected a 270 kilometres (167.8 mi) tall cloud off the limb of Io. The cloud was of volcanic origin. This was the first time in history that active volcanism
was detected outside Earth. Her discovery is considered by some planetary scientists as the largest discovery of the planetary exploration program that has come out of Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Morabito is currently an Associate Professor of Astronomy
at Victor Valley College
.
, Canada
, she immigrated with her family to the United States in 1961. As a child, she believed that she had always known she would be an astronomer and benefited greatly from an accelerated program of learning in the Pasadena, CA Unified School District, skipping an entire year of elementary school because of her demonstrated knowledge. By her 9th year of school, she wrote a paper for school entitled "My Job in the World Astronomer".
Linda Morabito married Major David Meyer (U.S. Air Force
, Retired), an Associate Professor of Astronomy, in 2008. She has one son, Ryan Hyder, an electronics expert married to culinary artist Michelle Wooten, and two grandchildren.
with a B.S. in Astronomy
in 1974 and did graduate work in Computer Science at USC. Before receiving her Astronomy
degree, she joined Jet Propulsion Laboratory
for temporary summer employment, and accepted a position after receiving her degree in the Outer Planet Satellite Ephemeris Development Group at Jet Propulsion Laboratory
as a senior engineer (1974–1981). In March 1979, she discovered the anomalous "crescent" off the limb of Jupiter’s moon Io in a picture of Io taken by Voyager 1
for navigation, after the Voyager 1
close encounter with Jupiter. She proposed a series of hypotheses and conducted investigations to prove or disprove them, to identify the "crescent". Morabito was able to deduce that the observation was a plume erupting from the surface of Io, and volcanic in origin. Her discovery was announced to the world on March 12, 1979.
She joined The Planetary Society as Manager of Education and Program Development (1997–2004), where she conducted educational outreach for the Mars Global Surveyor
mission to Mars
leading to the involvement of students in the Mars Exploration Rover
mission with the Spirit
and Opportunity
rovers on Mars
. She became an Associate Professor of Astronomy
at Victor Valley College
in 2007, where she currently teaches. She also served as a Guest Investigator on the Viking
Extended Mission to Mars
(1977), conducting an experiment on the surface of Mars
, utilizing data collected by the two Viking
landers and orbiters. She served as Global Curriculum Developer at the Lewis Center for Educational Research
(2007–2009), in which she participated in the instruction of students worldwide in the use of a radio telescope for astronomical research in cooperation with several NASA
missions, including NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope
, the Juno mission to Jupiter
, and the LCROSS
mission to the Moon
. She has served as an astronomer lecturer for more than 30 years, and has appeared in numerous science documentaries, and was the regular guest science commentator on two nationally televised talk shows in Vancouver, Canada (1979–1981).
. She is a champion of what is currently one of the foremost treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing
, discovered by Dr. Francine Shapiro
. From her experiences and recovery from childhood abuse, Linda Morabito has developed a strong Christian perspective. Her memoir Parallel Universes, a Memoir from the Edges of Space and Time
is a Christian book and a personal and science memoir. The book documents several near death experiences at the hands of her parents and William Franklin Wolsey of the Temple of the More Abundant Life in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada between 1954 and 1956; her quest to uncover a hidden past from 2003 to 2011; and the events of her major NASA science discovery in 1979.
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
. At the time of her discovery, she was serving as Cognizant Engineer over the Optical Navigation Image Processing System (ONIPS) on the Voyager
Voyager program
The Voyager program is a U.S program that launched two unmanned space missions, scientific probes Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment of the late 1970s...
deep space mission Navigation Team. While performing image processing analysis of a Voyager 1
Voyager 1
The Voyager 1 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA in 1977, to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space. Operating for as of today , the spacecraft receives routine commands and transmits data back to the Deep Space Network. At a distance of as of...
picture taken for spacecraft navigation, she detected a 270 kilometres (167.8 mi) tall cloud off the limb of Io. The cloud was of volcanic origin. This was the first time in history that active volcanism
Volcanism
Volcanism is the phenomenon connected with volcanoes and volcanic activity. It includes all phenomena resulting from and causing magma within the crust or mantle of a planet to rise through the crust and form volcanic rocks on the surface....
was detected outside Earth. Her discovery is considered by some planetary scientists as the largest discovery of the planetary exploration program that has come out of Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Morabito is currently an Associate Professor of Astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
at Victor Valley College
Victor Valley College
Victor Valley College is a community college in the southeast corner of Victorville, California. The Victor Valley Community College District includes Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Valley, Phelan, and Adelanto.-History:...
.
Background and family
Born in VancouverVancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, she immigrated with her family to the United States in 1961. As a child, she believed that she had always known she would be an astronomer and benefited greatly from an accelerated program of learning in the Pasadena, CA Unified School District, skipping an entire year of elementary school because of her demonstrated knowledge. By her 9th year of school, she wrote a paper for school entitled "My Job in the World Astronomer".
Linda Morabito married Major David Meyer (U.S. Air Force
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
, Retired), an Associate Professor of Astronomy, in 2008. She has one son, Ryan Hyder, an electronics expert married to culinary artist Michelle Wooten, and two grandchildren.
Academic career
Linda Morabito graduated from the University of Southern CaliforniaUniversity of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
with a B.S. in Astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
in 1974 and did graduate work in Computer Science at USC. Before receiving her Astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
degree, she joined Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
for temporary summer employment, and accepted a position after receiving her degree in the Outer Planet Satellite Ephemeris Development Group at Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
as a senior engineer (1974–1981). In March 1979, she discovered the anomalous "crescent" off the limb of Jupiter’s moon Io in a picture of Io taken by Voyager 1
Voyager 1
The Voyager 1 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA in 1977, to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space. Operating for as of today , the spacecraft receives routine commands and transmits data back to the Deep Space Network. At a distance of as of...
for navigation, after the Voyager 1
Voyager 1
The Voyager 1 spacecraft is a 722-kilogram space probe launched by NASA in 1977, to study the outer Solar System and eventually interstellar space. Operating for as of today , the spacecraft receives routine commands and transmits data back to the Deep Space Network. At a distance of as of...
close encounter with Jupiter. She proposed a series of hypotheses and conducted investigations to prove or disprove them, to identify the "crescent". Morabito was able to deduce that the observation was a plume erupting from the surface of Io, and volcanic in origin. Her discovery was announced to the world on March 12, 1979.
She joined The Planetary Society as Manager of Education and Program Development (1997–2004), where she conducted educational outreach for the Mars Global Surveyor
Mars Global Surveyor
The Mars Global Surveyor was a US spacecraft developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and launched November 1996. It began the United States's return to Mars after a 10-year absence. It completed its primary mission in January 2001 and was in its third extended mission phase when, on 2...
mission to Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
leading to the involvement of students in the Mars Exploration Rover
Mars Exploration Rover
NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Mission is an ongoing robotic space mission involving two rovers, Spirit and Opportunity, exploring the planet Mars...
mission with the Spirit
Spirit rover
Spirit, MER-A , is a robotic rover on Mars, active from 2004 to 2010. It was one of two rovers of NASA's ongoing Mars Exploration Rover Mission. It landed successfully on Mars at 04:35 Ground UTC on January 4, 2004, three weeks before its twin, Opportunity , landed on the other side of the planet...
and Opportunity
Opportunity rover
Opportunity, MER-B , is a robotic rover on the planet Mars, active since 2004. It is the remaining rover in NASA's ongoing Mars Exploration Rover Mission...
rovers on Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
. She became an Associate Professor of Astronomy
Astronomy
Astronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
at Victor Valley College
Victor Valley College
Victor Valley College is a community college in the southeast corner of Victorville, California. The Victor Valley Community College District includes Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Valley, Phelan, and Adelanto.-History:...
in 2007, where she currently teaches. She also served as a Guest Investigator on the Viking
Viking program
The Viking program consisted of a pair of American space probes sent to Mars, Viking 1 and Viking 2. Each spacecraft was composed of two main parts, an orbiter designed to photograph the surface of Mars from orbit, and a lander designed to study the planet from the surface...
Extended Mission to Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
(1977), conducting an experiment on the surface of Mars
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the Solar System. The planet is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. It is often described as the "Red Planet", as the iron oxide prevalent on its surface gives it a reddish appearance...
, utilizing data collected by the two Viking
Viking program
The Viking program consisted of a pair of American space probes sent to Mars, Viking 1 and Viking 2. Each spacecraft was composed of two main parts, an orbiter designed to photograph the surface of Mars from orbit, and a lander designed to study the planet from the surface...
landers and orbiters. She served as Global Curriculum Developer at the Lewis Center for Educational Research
Lewis Center for Educational Research
The Lewis Center for Educational Research also known as The Academy for Academic Excellence is an educational organization located in Apple Valley, California, U.S.A.It is the only research charter school in the state of California. This institution is known for its relationship with NASA and...
(2007–2009), in which she participated in the instruction of students worldwide in the use of a radio telescope for astronomical research in cooperation with several NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
missions, including NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope
Spitzer Space Telescope
The Spitzer Space Telescope , formerly the Space Infrared Telescope Facility is an infrared space observatory launched in 2003...
, the Juno mission to Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
, and the LCROSS
LCROSS
The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite was a robotic spacecraft operated by NASA. The mission was conceived as a low-cost means of determining the nature of hydrogen detected at the polar regions of the moon. The main LCROSS mission objective was to explore the presence of water ice...
mission to the Moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
. She has served as an astronomer lecturer for more than 30 years, and has appeared in numerous science documentaries, and was the regular guest science commentator on two nationally televised talk shows in Vancouver, Canada (1979–1981).
Non-academic life
In 2004, Linda Morabito realized that she was a victim of severe childhood abuse and suffered from post-traumatic stress disorderPost-traumatic stress disorder
Posttraumaticstress disorder is a severe anxiety disorder that can develop after exposure to any event that results in psychological trauma. This event may involve the threat of death to oneself or to someone else, or to one's own or someone else's physical, sexual, or psychological integrity,...
. She is a champion of what is currently one of the foremost treatments for post-traumatic stress disorder, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing is a form of psychotherapy that was developed by Francine Shapiro to resolve the development of trauma-related disorders caused by exposure to distressing events such as rape or military combat...
, discovered by Dr. Francine Shapiro
Francine Shapiro
Francine Shapiro, PhD, is an American psychologist who is the originator and developer of EMDR , a form of psychotherapy that was developed to resolve symptoms resulting from traumatic life experiences.In 1987 she observed, during a walk in a park, that moving her eyes seemed to reduce the stress...
. From her experiences and recovery from childhood abuse, Linda Morabito has developed a strong Christian perspective. Her memoir Parallel Universes, a Memoir from the Edges of Space and Time
Parallel Universes, a Memoir from the Edges of Space and Time
Parallel Universes, A Memoir from the Edges of Space and Time is a non-fiction Christian book and a personal and science memoir written by Linda Morabito Meyer, the NASA discoverer of the volcanic activity on Jupiter's Io...
is a Christian book and a personal and science memoir. The book documents several near death experiences at the hands of her parents and William Franklin Wolsey of the Temple of the More Abundant Life in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada between 1954 and 1956; her quest to uncover a hidden past from 2003 to 2011; and the events of her major NASA science discovery in 1979.
Honors
Morabito has been awarded the following honors during her career:- NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Group Achievement Award for VoyagerVoyager programThe Voyager program is a U.S program that launched two unmanned space missions, scientific probes Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment of the late 1970s...
Flight Operations, Navigation Team - NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Group Achievement Award for Voyager MissionVoyager programThe Voyager program is a U.S program that launched two unmanned space missions, scientific probes Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment of the late 1970s...
Operations System Design, Ground Data Systems Development - NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Group Achievement Award for Voyager MissionVoyager programThe Voyager program is a U.S program that launched two unmanned space missions, scientific probes Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment of the late 1970s...
Design, Ephemeris Development - Individual Certificate of Appreciation from NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
for contributing substantially to the mission of NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
by advancing image processing techniques and make the discovery of the volcanic activity on Io - Named by Aviation Week & Space TechnologyAviation Week & Space TechnologyAviation Week & Space Technology, often abbreviated Aviation Week or AW&ST, is a weekly magazine owned and published by McGraw-Hill...
as on the individuals deserving special recognition for the advancement of aerospace - Honored by the International Astronomical UnionInternational Astronomical UnionThe International Astronomical Union IAU is a collection of professional astronomers, at the Ph.D. level and beyond, active in professional research and education in astronomy...
by the designation of Asteroid 3106 Morabito3106 Morabito3106 Morabito is Main-belt asteroid discovered on March 9, 1981 by Edward L. G. Bowell at Flagstaff. It was named after the US-American technician Linda A. Morabito.- External links :*...
for her discovery of volcanic activity on Io