November 2, 2004
Charles C. Dyer, Chair,
Department of Physical and Environmental
Sciences,
University of Toronto at Scarborough,
1265 Military Trail,
Toronto, Ontario, M1C1A4,
Canada.
Dear Committee Chair:
In response to your recent advertisement on the University of Toronto Academic Employment
Opportunities webpage, I am writing to express my interest in the tenure-stream Assistant
Professor faculty position in the Physics and Astrophysics group as outlined in the job posting.
From what I have learned about your department, I believe that my scientific background and
academic ambitions will complement your interdisciplinary focus and leadership in both solar
and extrasolar planetary science research, as well as student training extremely well.
I am presently a postdoctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and the
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) where I am exploring a range of research topics. At Caltech I
am working with Prof. Yuk Yung where my main emphasis is on solar and extrasolar planetary
atmosphere evolution (viz., Jupiter, Saturn and Titan, 13C in the Martian atmosphere, and
HD209458b). As an astrobiologist with the Virtual Planet Laboratory (VPL) at JPL, I work with
Prof. Mark Richardson, Dr. Mark Allen, Dr. David Crisp, Dr. Vikki Meadows, and Prof. Jim
Kasting in a variety of capacities. My primary research is the building of a hydrodynamic escape
model with application to the evolution of the early Earth’s biosphere, early Venus and Martian
atmospheres, and Extrasolar Giant Planets (EGP’s). Additionally, I have assembled a cloud
model as part of a climate model (again with application to the Early Earth, Venus and Mars
atmospheres) as well as co-ordinating the large task of assembling and integrating the core
component modules for the VPL with the end goal of investigating planetary habitability and life
detection.
While my graduate courses at York University provided a rigorous background for past and
current research, it was working with the Voyager UVS team during the Voyager 2 flyby of
Neptune that I was first able to engage in cutting edge scientific research. Employing
photochemical and radiative transfer models for aeronomical computational simulations of
planetary atmospheres, I was able to better quantify earlier analyses and make new predictions
regarding planetary atmospheric emissions. This has continued with my investigations of other
planets by my involvement with other research groups to model Voyager data, Galileo data,
Cassini data, as well as being a co-investigator on Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and Far
Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) missions and research projects. Being a member of
the FUSE team during the tenure of my Bourse Postdoctorale Chateaubriand award at the Institut
d’Astrophysique de Paris before I came to Caltech/JPL, as well as my work with Prof. Yung so
far during the Cassini Mission has proven stimulating and productive. The numerous resulting
publications over time demonstrate my ability to work both independently and in a scientific
team setting to get quality results.
My areas of expertise are atmospheric science, astrobiology, planetary science as well as the core
areas of mathematics, physics and chemistry. I have experience with teaching introductory-level
science and math courses, which would be directly transferable to teaching undergraduate
courses. I have taught all high school level maths, physics and chemistry at Danforth College in
Toronto. As a graduate student I had teaching assistantships that included general Earth science,
mathematics, physics, and numerical modelling. I have also had experience in Education and
Public Outreach, having given several astrobiology lectures to local schools and amateur
astronomy clubs while a postdoctoral scholar at Caltech/JPL. Additionally, I have had the
opportunity to contribute lectures in atmospheric dynamics, radiative transfer and physics to
graduate courses in atmospheric science while at York University and Caltech. Moreover, I have
mentored new graduate students as a senior graduate student and more recently as a postdoctoral
scholar.
I also have experience working in the private sector that has been obtained running my own
computer consulting company for several years. While private sector experience may seem
somewhat orthogonal to academic pursuits, I gained valuable corporate experience with the
product development cycle “business case to roll out” that is not dissimilar to the academic
“proposal to publication” cycle. I demonstrated a strong track record of performing high quality
work in a timely fashion, requiring the ability to work well both independently and as a member
of a team environment, skills which have served me well in my academic career to date.
I intend to pursue my present research as described in the attached “Research Interests”
document. With a strong background in planetary science, atmospheric chemistry and
astrobiology, and a demonstrated excellence in research and teaching, I feel that I am the ideal
candidate for your position. I have enclosed a copy of my curriculum vitae, a statement of
research interests, and the names and contact details of several colleagues from whom I have
requested letters of recommendation.
Sincerely,
Christopher Parkinson