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2014 GSA PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS
physical forms. Robotic explorers increasingly carry instruments
capable of identifying the organic or isotopic tracers of life, while
at the same time examining rocks for microscopic indications of
fossilized material.
And what of the newly recognized additions to the solar
system’s retinue of planets, now being found in the frigid regions
beyond Pluto, and the bonanza of extrasolar planets (~1800 at last
count) that have been discovered orbiting other stars? At present,
any information about these bodies is extremely limited, but as
more data accrue, geological reasoning will be needed for mean-
ingful interpretation.
This is an opportunistic time for geoscientists—astronomy has
basically abdicated much of the solar system to geology. Planets
and smaller bodies are no longer astronomical points of light, but
are increasingly recognized as worlds shaped by more or less
familiar geologic processes. This shift of a substantial quantity of
scientific real estate has literally redefined the reach of our disci-
pline. Geology has staked its claim on the planets and must play
the central role in exploring this frontier.
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New Publication
Calendar for
GSA Today
GSA Today is published 11 times
per year, and this won’t change. What
will change is that the March issue
will now be combined with April, and
we will have an independent May issue
(instead of March). So look for your first
dedicated Annual Meeting issue in May.
As always, GSA Today is open-access online at
www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/.
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GSA TODAY | www.geosociety.org/gsatoday/
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