CSES Mission Statement

Our Mission

The Center for Space and Earth Science (CSES) will focus on attracting and retaining a quality workforce through student, postdoc and university collaborations; support summer schools, seminars, workshops and conferences, while remaining strategically relevant to a breadth of scientific challenges and objectives that support the Science Pillars. CSES will act as an integrating partner for LANL program development efforts.

The five CSES science disciplines (Astrophysics/Cosmology, Geophysics, Earth Systems,  Planetary Science and Space Physics) are aligned with the Laboratory Strategic Plan. CSES focuses on the scientific understanding of fundamental physical processes that are critical to the understanding of the structure and evolution of the earth, the solar system and the universe in which habitat earth resides.

CSES is committed to:

• Identifying and supporting innovative ideas in the CSES science areas that have the potential to develop new programs on longer timescales, fostering top-quality research at LANL in the more "basic" or "fundamental" aspects of fields that map into existing and/or emerging mission thrust areas of the Laboratory;
• Developing long-term collaborative relationships with university faculty and departments and other scientific institutions that extend beyond the lifetime of any given project;
• Establishing relationships with students, post-bacs,  post-masters and postdocs working in CSES-relevant research areas and assisting in identifying career opportunities at Los Alamos National Laboratory;
• Supporting educational programs on topics relevant to CSES and desired by Los Alamos National Laboratory programs, particularly in subject areas where there are gaps and inadequacies in the current LANL portfolio;
• Providing Los Alamos National Laboratory programs with systematic infusion of new ideas, people, and contact with the larger scientific community.
• Supporting the development of emerging ideas in the Center’s science discipline areas through small Rapid Response Institutional Program Development and R&D projects