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 Chemistry and Astrobiology: People
Michael Russell's Picture
Address:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
M/S 183-601
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena, CA 91109
Phone:
818 354-4985
Fax:
818 393-3037
Email:
Curriculum Vitae:

Michael Russell

Education
  • B.Sc. Honours, Geology with Chemistry, University of London (1963)
  • Ph.D. Mineral Deposit Geochemistry, University of Durham (1974)
Research Interests
  • The emergence of life and oxygenic photosynthesis in the context of hydrothermal systems on wet, rocky, sunlit planets
Professional Experience
  • Jet Propulsion Laboratory (2006 - present)
    • Research Scientist, Planetary Chemistry and Astrobiology Group, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (2011 - present)
    • Distinguished Visiting Scientist (2005 - 2011)
    • NASA Senior Research Fellow (2005 - 2010)
  • CNRS Professor, University of Grenoble, (2004-2005)
  • Dixon Research Professor, Glasgow University, Scotland (1989-2004)
Selected Awards
  • William Smith Medal, 2009, Geological Society of London
  • Nature 2009, feature in 459, 316-319 (Whitfield; Nascence Man)
Selected Publications
  1. Russell, M.J. (editor) (2011). Origins, Abiogenesis and the Search for Life. Cosmology Science Publishers, Cambridge, MA, pp. 487.
  2. Russell, M.J. (2011). The origin of life. In Encyclopaedia of Geobiology, Reitner, J and Thiel, V. Singer, Dordrecht, The Netherlands, 701-716.
  3. Mielke, R.E., Russell, M.J., Wilson, P.R., McGlynn, S., Coleman, M., Kidd, R., and Kanik, I. (2010). Design, Fabrication and Test of a Hydrothermal Reactor for Origin-Of-Life Experiments, Astrobiology, 10, 799-810.
  4. Russell, M.J., Hall, A.J. and Martin, W. (2010). Serpentinization and its contribution to the energy for the emergence of life. Geobiology, 8, 355-371.
  5. Milner-White, E.J. and Russell, M.J. (2010). Polyphosphate-Peptide Synergy and the Organic Takeover at the Emergence of Life. Journal of Cosmology, 10, 3217-3229
  6. Nitschke, W. and Russell, M.J. (2010). Just Like the Universe the Emergence of Life had High Enthalpy and Low Entropy Beginnings. Journal of Cosmology, 10, 3200-3216.<./li>
  7. Yung, Y.L., Russell M.J., Parkinson, C.D. (2010). The search for life on Mars. Journal of Cosmology 5, 1121-1130.
  8. Russell, M.J., Kanik, I. (2010). Why Does Life Start, What Does It Do, Where Will It Be, And How Might We Find It? Journal of Cosmology, 5, 1008-1039.
  9. Russell, M.J. and Hall, A.J. 2009, A hydrothermal source of energy and materials at the origin of life. In "Chemical Evolution II: From Origins of Life to Modern Society". American Chemical Society, pp. 45-62.
  10. Nitschke, W. and Russell, M.J. 2009 Hydrothermal focusing of chemical and chemiosmotic energy, supported by delivery of catalytic Fe, Ni, Mo/W, Co, S and Se, forced life to emerge. Journal of Molecular Evolution, 69, 481-96.
  11. Ducluzeau, A-L, van Lis R., Duval S., Schoepp-Cothenet B., Russell, M.J., Nitschke W. 2009, Was nitric oxide the first strongly oxidizing terminal electron sink. Trends in Biochemical Sciences 34, 9-15.
  12. Martin, W., Baross, J., Kelley, D., Russell M.J. 2008, Hydrothermal vents and the origin of life. Nature Reviews, Microbiology 6, 806-814.
  13. Russell, M.J. 2008, On the emergence and early evolution of life. In Life strategies of microorganisms in the environment and in host organisms. Nova Acta Leopoldina, 96, 45-52.
  14. Russell, M.J., Allen, J.F., Milner-White, E.J. 2008, Inorganic complexes enabled the onset of life and oxygenic photosynthesis. In Energy from the Sun: 14th International Congress on Photosynthesis, J.F. Allen, E.Gantt, J.H. Golbeck, B. Osmond (editors). Springer. 1193-1198.
  15. Milner-White, E.J., Russell, M.J. 2008, Predicting peptide and protein conformations in early evolution. Biology Direct 3, 3: doi:10.1186/1745-6150-3-3.
  16. Russell, M.J. 2007, The alkaline solution to the emergence of life: Energy, entropy and early evolution. Acta Biotheoretica, 55, 133-179, Erratum at: DOI 10.1007/s10441-007-9018-5.
  17. Martin, W., Russell M.J. 2007, On the origin of biochemistry at an alkaline hydrothermal vent. Philosophical Transactions, Royal Society of London (Ser.B) 362, 1887-1925.
  18. Baaske, P., Weinert, F., Duhr, S., Lemke, K., Russell, M.J. & Braun, D. 2007, Extreme accumulation of nucleotides in simulated hydrothermal pore systems. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science, USA, 104, 9346-9351.

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