New Gene Shoemaker NEO Grants Planetary Geologist Gene Shoemaker dedicated his research to terrestrial impacts, increasing scientific and public awareness about NEOs, their role in Earth's history, and their potential threat to our planet. Three researchers have been selected to receive Planetary Society Gene Shoemaker Near Earth Object Grants.
Special emphasis is given to international and amateur observers.
Even though various astronomical groups and NASA advisory committees have recommended that discovery of NEOs be accelerated, government support for searches and follow-up programs remains modest. Gajdos is a professional astronomer with the Institute of Astronomy in Bratislava in the Slovak Republic. His grant monies will be used to upgrade his program's equipment and software, to fund needed computer services, and to create a public outreach program. Holvorcem, a teacher at the Universidade Estadual de Campinas in Brazil, will use his Gene Shoemaker NEO Grant to upgrade automation of equipment at his observatory, freeing a number of volunteer observers to spend more time conducting data analysis and taking more exposures during each observation session. Zoltowski is an amateur astronomer who conducts NEO searches in the small town of Woomera in the South Australian outback.