Applied Physics Laboratory
Dr. Charles “Karl” Hibbitts is a planetary scientist working to understand the compositions of the surfaces our Moon, the Jovian satellite Europa and other airless bodies in our solar system. Using a combination of laboratory research and theoretical modeling to interpret the results from spacecraft data he attempts to understand the processes that affect their surfaces, such as how water forms on the Moon and if Europa is potentially habitable. He is also the system integration lead for the lunar In-Situ Resource Utilization focus group within the NASA-funded Lunar Surface Innovation Initiative where role is to enable the development of technology for the extraction oxygen and water on the Moon for supporting a sustained presence on the Moon.
Dr. Hibbitts is the deputy principal investigator (PI) of the recently launched Europa Clipper MISE infrared mapping spectrometer destined for Jupiter’s moon Europa and was deputy PI on the NASA BRRISON and BOPPS stratospheric balloon missions. He conducts his laboratory work at a facility he developed at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory that is uniquely capable of determining how materials respond when exposed to the vacuum, temperature, radiation, and micrometeoroid environments similar to surfaces of the Moon and Europa.
Dr. Hibbitts earned a B.A. in Physics from Cornell University, a B.S. in Geology from the University of New Mexico, and both an M.S. and Ph.D. in Geology and Geophysics from the University of Hawaii.