The University of Arizona Press

Karen J. Meech is an astronomer at the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawai‘i. She received her PhD in planetary astronomy from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1987. As an astrobiologist, Meech’s research is focused on how the ingredients that make a world habitable are delivered to terrestrial planets in their host star’s habitable zone; in particular, she is interested in understanding the distribution of volatiles in the early solar system, and how water was delivered to Earth. She is an expert comet observer, has developed ice sublimation models, and is experienced at managing large-scale science projects. In addition, Meech has served as co-investigator on the Deep Impact, Stardust-NeXT, and EPOXI missions, leading the Earth-based observing campaigns for all three. Her more than 150 refereed papers have appeared in Icarus, Astronomy & Astrophysics, and elsewhere. Meech’s honors include the American Astronomical (AAS) Society Harold C. Urey Prize, the University of Hawai‘i Regent’s Medal for Research Excellence, the Arcs Scientist of the Year award, and the Dannie Heineman Prize for Astrophysics from the American Institute of Physics and the AAS; she most recently was named as a fellow of the AAS.