SUSAN MCKENNA-LAWLOR
Director, Space Technology Ireland
Susan McKenna-Lawlor was born in Dublin and educated at University College Dublin, the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies and the University of Michigan. She conferred with a Ph.D. in Space Physics by the National University of Ireland in 1976 and with an Honorary. D.Sc. for published work by the University of Ulster in 2005. She is a Director of Space Technology Ireland Ltd. which she founded in 1985. She has acted as guest professor at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and is currently Professor Emerita at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth.
Over the years she has participated as principal investigator/ co-investigator in experiments launched by the European, American, Chinese, Indian and Russian Space Agencies. These experiments have covered asteroids, comets, the Moon, Venus, Earth and Mars. At the present time, experiments are under preparation for trips to Mercury and Jupiter.
Susan is a full member of the International Academy of Astronautics and leads a Cosmic Study group within the Academy which investigates the potential effect on human space crews of energetic particle radiation. She is a member of the steering board of the Europenance an Space Agency’s Space Weather working team as well as chair and spokesperson of its topical team ‘Spacecraft, Aircraft and Launcher Experiments’.
She has received many awards, including the Irish laureate Woman of Europe Award; the Slovak Academy of Sciences International Prize; the Russian Tsiokovsy Gold Medal for ‘Outstanding contributions to cosmonautics and, most recently, participation in the prestigious ‘Laurels for Team Achievement Award’ of the International Academy of Astronautics. She is the Author/Co-author of over 250 refereed scientific/technical publications and of several books.