Dr. Paul S. Hardersen
Paul S. Hardersen currently serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Space Studies at the University of North Dakota. He is the newest member of the Department's faculty. Hardersen received his PhD in geology in May 2003 (specialization: asteroid near-IR spectroscopy) from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. Before earning his doctorate, Hardersen received a Master's degree in geology from Rensselaer in December 2001 and dual degrees (BS in geology; BA in political science) from Iowa State University in 1997.
Born and raised in Davenport, Iowa, Hardersen enlisted in the US Navy following high school and served honorably for almost five years. During his undergraduate years at Iowa State, he led a local chapter of the National Space Society and coordinated activities such as field trips to NASA centers, sponsored notable speakers for campus lectures and organized Iowa's first-ever space development conference. In 1997, The Case for Space became Hardersen's first published work.
Research activities focus on main-belt asteroids, their near-infrared spectra and the surface compositions of the asteroids. Specific research areas include a detailed survey of the M-type asteroids and a detailed study of the mineralogy of asteroid 1459 Magnya. Hardersen is interested in asteroid surface mineralogies as well as the information asteroids can provide about the conditions in the early, inner solar system. This type of information can provide important clues about the conditions prevalent during the formation of terrestrial planets ~4.6 billion years ago. Other areas of interest include solar physics, stellar processes, young stars, variable stars and meteoritics.
In the Department, Hardersen teaches a course on observational astronomy and will be teaching future courses in astrobiology, general space exploration rationales and solar physics. Hardersen is also spearheading an effort to redesign and renovate UND's astronomical observatory, which is located ~12 miles west of the university near Emerado. Plans call for the construction of a 1-meter class observatory that will be used as a research and educational resource for the entire state of North Dakota.
Hardersen is married to Cristina Calin, a medical doctor, and they live in Grand Forks. In his miniscule free time, Hardersen enjoys cooking, reading, politics, science fiction, sleeping - and dreaming of the day he can get off the planet.
