Every five years or so, the American Astronomical Society (AAS) Division of Planetary Science (DPS) carries out a survey of the Planetary Science Workforce to learn about the demographics, educational background and employment experience of the planetary science workforce. The next survey will be led by Cornell Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science (CCAPS) senior research associate Julie Rathbun.
Rathbun and colleagues launched the 2026 survey Oct. 27 at the AAS-DPS annual meeting in Spokane, Washington.
"Science is driven by the people who do science, so to put our science into context, we need to know who is doing the science, what they are trained in and what their background is," Rathbun said.
Results from the last survey, conducted in 2020, show that members of minoritized groups, including non-white scientists, scientists who are disabled, members of the LGBTQ+ community, or women, are underrepresented as principal investigators or co-Investigators in planetary science spacecraft mission teams, Rathbun said, and illuminate the critical need of greater diversity among planetary scientists.
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