University of Arizona LPL

The Lunar and Planetary Laboratory (LPL) at the University of Arizona in Tucson is one of the world's leading planetary science research institutions, founded in 1960 by Gerard Kuiper — discoverer of the Kuiper Belt — with a mission to understand the formation and evolution of planetary systems. LPL's faculty lead some of NASA's highest-profile planetary science missions: Dante Lauretta served as PI for OSIRIS-REx, the asteroid sample return mission that collected material from near-Earth asteroid Bennu in 2020 and delivered its sample capsule to Earth in September 2023, providing the largest-ever asteroid sample (~121 grams) for Earth laboratory analysis. Alfred McEwen leads the HiRISE (High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment) camera aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter — the most powerful camera ever sent to another planet, resolving features as small as 25 cm from orbit and generating over 100 terabytes of Mars imagery used by planetary scientists worldwide for landing site selection, geomorphology research, and seasonal change detection. Caitlin Griffith leads Cassini VIMS atmospheric research on Titan's hydrocarbon lakes, and LPL has contributed instruments and science team leadership to missions including Voyager, Galileo, Mars Observer, Mars Polar Lander, Deep Impact, and New Horizons. Tucson's dark-sky environment, proximity to Kitt Peak National Observatory and the Multiple Mirror Telescope atop Mt. Hopkins, and the university's Steward Observatory give LPL faculty natural access to ground-based follow-up telescope time complementing their space mission leadership. LPL trains dozens of planetary science PhDs annually who populate NASA centers, other research universities, and the growing commercial space science sector.