Christina "Chrissy" Richey is an American

planetary scientist Planetary science (or more rarely, planetology) is the scientific study of planets (including Earth), celestial bodies (such as moons, asteroids, comets) and planetary systems (in particular those of the Solar System) and the processes of their ...

and astrophysicist working at

Jet Propulsion Laboratory The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a Federally funded research and development centers, federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) in La Cañada Flintridge, California, Crescenta Valley, United States. Founded in 1936 by Cali ...

La Cañada Flintridge, California La Cañada Flintridge, commonly known as just , is a city in the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located in the Crescenta Valley, in the western edge of the San Gabriel Valley, it is the l ...

. Richey is a project staff scientist for the

Europa Clipper Europa Clipper (previously known as Europa Multiple Flyby Mission) is a space probe developed by NASA to study Europa (moon), Europa, a Galilean moon of Jupiter. It was launched on October 14, 2024. The spacecraft used a gravity assist from Mar ...

mission and is a research technologist in the Astrophysics and Space Sciences Section. Prior to working at

JPL The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) in La Cañada Flintridge, California, Crescenta Valley, United States. Founded in 1936 by California Institute of Technology (Caltech) researche ...

, Richey worked as contractor for

Arctic Slope Regional Corporation Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, or ASRC, is one of 13 Alaska Native Regional Corporations created under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971 (ANCSA) in settlement of aboriginal land claims. ASRC was incorporated in Alaska on June 22, ...

NASA Headquarters The Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building at 300 E Street SW in Washington, D.C. houses NASA leadership who provide overall guidance and direction to the US government executive branch agency NASA, under the leadership of the NASA administ ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

They were a program officer in NASA's

Planetary Science Division The Science Mission Directorate (SMD) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is one of the six directorates that constitute NASA. Its responsibility is to define and direct research into scientific questions of interest, shari ...

, the deputy program scientist for the

OSIRIS-REx OSIRIS-REx was a NASA asteroid-study and sample-return mission that visited and collected samples from 101955 Bennu, a C-type asteroid, carbonaceous near-Earth object, near-Earth asteroid. The material, returned in September 2023, is expected ...

mission, and the deputy science advisor for research and analysis for the

Science Mission Directorate The Science Mission Directorate (SMD) of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is one of the six directorates that constitute NASA. Its responsibility is to define and direct research into scientific questions of interest, shari ...

. Richey is known for their education about the effects of

harassment Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of an offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior that demeans, humiliates, and intimidates a person, and it is characteristically identified by its unlikelihood in terms of social and ...

in the workplace and within the planetary and astronomical sciences. They were the chair of the

American Astronomical Society The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...

's Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy from 2015 to 2017, was the co-chair of the

Division for Planetary Sciences The Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) is a division within the American Astronomical Society (AAS) devoted to Solar System research. It was founded in 1968. The first organizing committee members were: Edward Anders, Lewis Branscomb, Josep ...

' Subcommittee on Professional Climate and Culture, from 2015 to 2017, and are an active blogger for the Women in Astronomy blog.

Early life and education

Richey received their undergraduate degree in physics at

Wheeling Jesuit University Wheeling University (WU, formerly Wheeling Jesuit University) is a private Catholic university in Wheeling, West Virginia, United States. It was founded as "Wheeling College" in 1954 by the Society of Jesus (also known as the Jesuits) and was a ...

in 2004. They completed their master's (2007) and PhD (2011) in physics from the

University of Alabama at Birmingham The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) is a public research university in Birmingham, Alabama, United States. Founded in 1969 and part of the University of Alabama System, UAB has grown to be the state's largest employer, with more than ...

, where they did laboratory investigations related to both the icy moons of the outer solar system and the interstellar medium. They were a

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agencies of the United States government, independent agency of the federal government of the United States, US federal government responsible for the United States ...

postdoctoral fellow A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary academ ...

at NASA

Goddard Space Flight Center The Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) is a major NASA space research laboratory located approximately northeast of Washington, D.C., in Greenbelt, Maryland, United States. Established on May 1, 1959, as NASA's first space flight center, GSFC ...

, where they studied the optical properties of dust grain analogs to better understand early stellar system formation.

Career and research

Richey currently works at

as project staff scientist for the

Mission.

will conduct detailed reconnaissance of Jupiter's moon Europa and investigate whether the icy moon could harbor conditions suitable for life. Richey was the deputy science advisor for the

(SMD), where they compiled and distributed information about the Research and Analysis (R&A) awards from the SMD Divisions, and focused on communication with the greater communities working directly with the SMD. Additionally, they were the deputy program scientist in the Planetary Science Division for the

Mission (the Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security- Regolith Mission).

launched in 2016 and will travel to a near-Earth asteroid, called

Bennu Bennu () is an ancient Egyptian deity linked with the Sun, creation, and rebirth. He may have been the original inspiration for the phoenix legends that developed in Greek mythology. Roles According to Egyptian mythology, Bennu was a self-crea ...

and bring back a returned sample to Earth for study. The mission will help scientists investigate how planets formed and how life began, as well as improve our understanding of asteroids that could impact Earth. In addition to their work, they have worked to promote inclusion within their field. They have spent much of their career speaking at conferences about harassment, efforts to overcome the problems within the field, and educating peers about the impact harassment has on their colleagues. They say women in vulnerable positions within the field—women of color, young women, and those who need to advance their careers—are more likely to face harassment in the workplace. Richey was the chair of the

's Committee on the Status of Women in Astronomy from 2015 to 2017 and was the co-chair of the

' Subcommittee on Professional Climate and Culture.

Awards and honors

*2014: Recognized with a

Honor Award. *2015: Received WJU James O'Brien Award from

*2015: Named the Alumni Scholar in Residence by

*2015: Received

Harold Masursky Award The Harold Masursky Award for Meritorious Service to Planetary Science, usually called the Masursky Award, is awarded annually by the Division for Planetary Sciences (DPS) of the American Astronomical Society. The award for Meritorious Service to Pl ...

from the

for outstanding service to planetary science and exploration *2016: Received the Trailblazing Alumni Award in the College of Arts and Sciences by The University of Alabama at Birmingham *2020: Elected a Legacy Fellow of the

in 2020.

References

External links

* Richey'
2015 presentation
reporting results of a survey about harassment in astronomy {{DEFAULTSORT:Richey, Christina Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American women scientists American women astrophysicists American astrophysicists American women planetary scientists American planetary scientists Wheeling University alumni University of Alabama at Birmingham alumni Fellows of the American Astronomical Society 21st-century American women