Jay Dickson
jdickson@umn.edu
I am a polar and planetary scientist and remote sensing imaging specialist who has studied the evolution of planetary surfaces from orbit and from the ground for over two decades. I invent novel techniques of planetary image processing/analysis, develop GIS-based planetary data integration and visualization tools, and perform and assist with polar field operations in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica and the arctic. I am currently the director of the Polar Geospatial Center at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. |
Professional Experience |
| 2023 - Present | University of Minnesota: Research Director |
| Director of the Polar Geospatial Center |
| 2023 - Present | California Institute of Technology: Visiting Researcher |
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| 2016 - 2023 | California Institute of Technology: Research Scientist in Image Processing |
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| Manager of The Bruce Murray Laboratory for Analysis and Visualization of Planetary Data |
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Manager of The Caltech Geographic Information Systems Laboratory| |
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| Research: | Arctic time-lapse imaging. |
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| Generation of massive image mosaics using novel techniques of non-destructive, information-preserving geospatial image processing techniques. |
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| Co-I on Lunar Trailblazer, a NASA SiMPLEX mission to the Moon. |
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| Reconstruction of the Amazonian climate of Mars using GCMs. |
| 2016 - 2024 | Brown University: Visiting Researcher |
| 2002 - 2016 | Brown University: Science Data Analyst |
| Field Work: 8 austral summers in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica (21 cumulative months) |
| Research: | Evolution and fate of ice on Amazonian Mars. |
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| Time-lapse photography and climate monitoring in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. |
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| Development of active stereo visualization methods for planetary imaging data sets. |
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| Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques for planetary spatial analysis, including quantitative integration of Global Climate Models (GCMs) and geospatial datasets. |
| 2004 - 2005 | Roger Williams University: Digital Resources Specialist |
Education |
| 2014 | M.S. (Geographic Information Science & Technology) University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA |
| Thesis: GIS-Based Quantitative Integration of Global Climate Model Simulations and Geodatabases of Gullies on Mars | |
| 2002 | B.A., Hampshire College, Amherst, MA |