Stephen Lowry works in the field of observational astronomy, with particular emphasis on optical and infrared observations of small solar system bodies, from ground and space-based telescope facilities.

• B.S. in Astronomy and Astrophysics, First Class Honours (1997)
• PhD in Astrophysics and Planetary Science (2001)

• The European Space Agency's Rosetta OSIRIS Project
• Pre-encounter characterization of the targets of NASA and international spacecraft missions
• Probing the physical and surface properties of the nuclei of Jupiter-family and long period comets
• Detections of the asteroidal YORP effect
• Optical and infra-red observations of near-Earth asteroids in comet-like orbits

• NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory:
  • Scientist (2007-Present)
  • National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellow (2001-2003)
• Queen's University Belfast, United Kingdom (2003-2007)
  • Leverhulme Fellow (2006-2007)
  • Research Fellow (2003-2006)
  • Lecturer in solar system astronomy (2003-2004)

• Leverhulme Research Fellowship (2006-2008, held from 2006-2007)
• Research Fellow (2003-2006)
• National Research Council Postdoctoral Fellowship (2001-2003)
• Awarded asteroid naming for work in the field of cometary nuclei (2005). Asteroid 12984 Lowry (1979 QF2) resides in the Main Asteroid Belt and orbits the sun every 4.79 years.
• Fellow of the American Astronomical Society, USA
• Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, UK

1. Lowry, S.C., Fitzsimmons, A., Lamy, P. and Weissman, P.R. (2007) Kuiper-Belt Objects in the Planetary Region: The Jupiter Family Comets. In The Solar System Beyond Neptune book (Eds., Barucci, A., Boehnhardt, H., Cruikshank, D. and Morbidelli, A.). University of Arizona Space Science Series. p397-410.
2. Weissman, P.R., Asphaug, E. and Lowry, S.C. (2005). Structure and density of cometary nuclei, Comets II book (Eds., M.C. Festou, M.C., Keller H.U., and Weaver H.A.), University of Arizona Space Science Series. p337-357.

1. Groussin, O., Lamy, P., Toth, I., Kelley, M., Fernandez, Y., Lowry, S.C., Meech, K., Licandro, J., Campins, H., and Snodgrass, C. (2008). The Size and Thermal Properties of the Nucleus of Comet 22P/Kopff. Icarus Notes, in-press.
2. Meech, K.J., Pittichova, J., Bar-Nun, A., Notesco, G., Laufer, D., Hainaut, O.R., Lowry, S.C., Yeomans D.C., and Pitts M. (2008). Activity of Comets at Large Heliocentric Distances Pre-perihelion. Icarus, in-press.
3. Weissman, P., and Lowry, S.C. (2008). Structure and Density of Cometary Nuclei. Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 43, p1033–1047.
4. Lamy, P.L., Kaasalainen, M., Lowry, S.C., P. Weissman, Barucci, M.A., Carvano, J., Choi, Y.-J., Colas, F., Faury, G., Fornasier, S., Groussin, O., Hicks, M.D., Jorda, L., Larson, S., Toth, I., and B. Warner. (2008). Asteroid 2867 Steins: II. Multi-telescope visible observations, shape reconstruction and rotational state. Astronomy and Astrophysics, 487, p1179–1185.
5. Jorda, L., Lamy, P.L., Faury, G., Weissman, P., Barucci, M.A., Fornasier, S., Lowry, S.C., Toth, I., and M. Kuppers. (2008). Asteroid 2867 Steins: I. Photometric properties from OSIRIS/Rosetta and ground-based visible observations. Astronomy and Astrophysics, 487, p1171–1178.
6. Küppers, M., and the Triple-F proposal Team. (2008). Triple F – A Comet Nucleus Sample Return Mission. Experimental Astronomy, DOI 10.1007/s10686-008-9115-8.
7. Durech, J., Vokrouhlicky, D., Kaasalainen, M., Weissman, P., Lowry, S.C., Beshore, E., Higgins, D., Krugly, Y.N., Shevchenko, V.G., Gaftonyuk, N.M., Choi, Y.J., Kowalski, R.A., Larson, S., Warner, B.D., Marshalkina, A.L., Ibrahimov, M.A, Molotov, I.E., Michałowski, T., and Kitazato, K. (2008). New photometric observations of asteroids (1862) Apollo and (25143) Itokawa – analysis of YORP effect. Astronomy and Astrophysics, 488, p345–350.
8. Weissman, P., Hicks, M., Abell, P., Choi, Y-J, and Lowry, S.C. (2008). Rosetta Target Asteroid 2867 Steins: A Very Unusual E-type Asteroid, Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 43, p905-914.
9. Kaasalainen, M., Abe, M., Byron, J., Delbo, M., di Martino, M., Higgins, D., Kitazato, K., Lowry, S., Masi, G., Mueller, M., Naranen, J., Vokrouhlicky, D., Warner, B.D., Weissman, P., Young, J. (2008). Photometric observations 2001–2004 and modeling of (25143) Itokawa. ASPC Series, in press.
10. Meech, K.J., Lowry, S.C., Hainaut, O.R., A'Hearn, M.F., Chesley, S., Yeomans, D.K., Ferrin, I. and Pittichova, J. (2008). Recovery Plans and Characteristics of 85P/Boethin - the Target of a Deep Impact Extended Mission. Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, submitted.
11. Snodgrass, C., Lowry, S.C., , Fitzsimmons, A., and Hainaut, O. (2008). Optical observations of 23 distant Jupiter Family Comets, including 36P/Whipple at multiple phase angles. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, 385, p737-756.
12. Carvano, J.M., Barucci, M.A., Fornasier, S., Delbo, M., Lowry, S.C., and Fitzsimmons, A. (2007). Surface properties of Rosetta's targets (21) Lutetia and (2867) Steins from ESO observations. Astronomy and Astrophysics, 479, p241-248.
13. Lowry, S.C., Fitzsimmons, A., Pravec, P., Vokrouhlicky D., Boehnhardt, H., Taylor, P. Margot, J-L., Galad, A., Irwin, M., Irwin, J., and Kushnirak, P. (2007). Direct Detection of the Asteroidal YORP Effect. Science, 316, p272-274.
14. Taylor, P. Margot, J-L., Vokrouhlicky, D., Scheeres, D., Pravec, P., Lowry, S.C., Fitzsimmons, A., Nolan, M., Ostro, S., Benner, L. Giorgini, J., and Magri, C. (2007). The Increasing Spin Rate of 54509 (2000 PH5) - A Result of the YORP Effect. Science, 316, p274-277.
15. Weissman, P.R., Lowry, S.C. and Choi, Y.-J. (2007). Photometric observations of Rosetta target asteroid 2867 Steins, Astronomy and Astrophysics, 466, p737-742.
16. Lowry, S.C. and Weissman, P.R. (2007). Rotation and colour properties of the nucleus of comet 2P/Encke, Icarus, 188, 212-223.
17. Lamy, P., Toth, I., Davidsson, B., Grousin, O., Guiterrez, P., Kaasalainen, M. and Lowry, S.C. (2007). Portrait of the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko: Target of the Rosetta mission, Space Science Reviews, 128, p23-66.
18. Kuppers, M., Mottola, S., Lowry, S.C., A'Hearn, M., Barbieri, C., Barucci, A., Fornasier, S., Groussin, O., Gutierrez, P., Hvidd, S., Keller, H., and Lamy, P. (2007). Determination of the light curve of the Rosetta target Asteroid (2867) Steins by the OSIRIS cameras onboard Rosetta. Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters, 462, pp.L13-L16.
19. Keller, H.U., Kuppers, M., Fornasier, S., Gutierrez, P., Hviid, S., Jorda, L., Knollenberg, J. Lowry, S.C., Rengel, M., Bertini, I., Cremonese, G., Ip, W-H., Koschny, D., and the OSIRIS Science Team. (2007). Observations of Comet 9P/Tempel 1 around the Deep Impact event by the OSIRIS cameras onboard Rosetta. Icarus (Deep Impact special issue), 187, p.87-103.
20. Snodgrass, C., Lowry, S.C., and Fitzsimmons, A. (2006). Cometary Photomtery of cometary nuclei: rotation rates, colours and a comparison with Kuiper Belt Objects. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 373, p1590-1602.
21. Lowry, S.C. and Williams, I.P. (2006). Comets from Antiquity to the Present Day. Astronomy and Geophysics, Volume 47, p2.38-41.
22. Lowry, S.C. and Fitzsimmons, A. (2005). WHT observations of distant comets, Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society 358, p641-650.
23. Meech, K., and the Deep Impact Observing Collaborators Team. (2005). Deep Impact: Observations from a Worldwide Earth-Based Campaign, Science 310, Volume 5746, p265-269.
24. Lowry, S.C., Weissman, P.R., Hicks, M.D., Whiteley, R. and Larson, S. (2005). Physical properties of asteroid 25143 Itokawa - Target of the Hayabusa sample return mission, Icarus 176, p408-417.
25. Fernandez, Y.R., Lowry, S.C., Weissman, P.R., Mueller, B.E.A., Samarasinha, N.H., Belton, M.J.S. and Meech, K.J. (2005), New near-aphelion light curves of comet 2P/Encke, Icarus 175, p194-214.
26. Lederer, S.M., Domingue, D., Vilas, F., Abe, M., Farnham, T., Jarvis, K.S., Lowry, S.C., Ohba, Y., Weissman, P.R., French, L.M., Fukai, H., Hasegawa, S., Ishiguro, M., Larson, S.M. and Takagi, Y. (2005). Physical characteristics of MUSES-C target asteroid 1998 SF36 (25143), Icarus 173, p153-165.
27. Lowry, S.C., Coates, A.J., Fitzsimmons, A., Jones, G.H. and Lisse, C.M. (2005). Deep Impact Observing at the Isaac Newtown Telescope, The Newsletter of the Isaac Newtown Group, No. 10, p6-7.
28. Snodgrass, C., Fitzsimmons, A. and Lowry, S.C. (2005). The nuclei of comets 7P/Pons-Winnecke, 14P/Wolf and 92P/Sanguin, Astronomy and Astrophysics 444, p287-295.
29. Lowry, S.C. and Weissman, P.R. (2003). CCD observations of distant comets from Palomar and Steward Observatories, Icarus 164, p492-503.
30. Lowry, S.C., Fitzsimmons, A., and Collander-Brown, S. (2003). CCD photometry of distant comets III: Ensemble properties of Jupiter-family comets, Astronomy and Astrophysics 397, p329-343.
31. Kaasalainen, M., Kwiatkowski, T., Abe, M., Piironen, J., Nakamura, T., Ohba, Y., Dermawan, B., Farnham, T., Colas, F., Lowry, S.C., Weissman, P., Whiteley, R.J., Tholen, D.J., Larson, S.M., Yoshikawa, M., Toth, I. and Velichko, F.P. (2003). CCD photometry and model of MUSES-C target (25143) 1998 SF36, Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters 405, L29-L32.
32. Lowry, S.C. and Fitzsimmons, A. (2001). CCD photometry of distant comets II, Astronomy and Astrophysics 365, p201-213.
33. Lowry, S.C., Fitzsimmons, A., Cartwright, I.M. and Williams, I.P. (1999). CCD photometry of distant comets, Astronomy and Astrophysics 349, p649-659.