There seems no generation gap in the Indian American community. On one hand, the younger generation of Indian Americans is vying for the United States’ top young scientist title 2018, and some got listed among the ‘Innovators under 35’ by MIT Technology Review. On the other hand, the gray-haired generation of Indian Americans knows no full stop in achieving new milestones.
Dr. Hanwant B Singh, an Indian American chemical engineer has been selected for the NASA Distinguished Service Medal, one of the highest recognitions in the USA. NASA (The National Aeronautics and Space Administration) bestows this exclusive honor upon those who have contributed towards the progress of various NASA missions to the best of their ability and skills.
A NASA Distinguished Service Medal recipient, Dr. Hanwant B Singh heads a group of scientists in the Earth Science Division of the NASA Ames Research Center in California. A former Director of the Atmospheric Chemistry Laboratory at Stanford Research Institute, Dr. Singh has extensively studied the chemistry and composition of the atmosphere in the past 30 years. He himself has written and published over 220 papers on his studies.
An IIT-Delhi graduate in chemical engineering and a PhD holder from the University of Pittsburgh, Indian American Dr. Hanwant B Singh is on a mission to decode the impact of human activities on chemistry of the earth’s atmosphere and consequent future of climate in different hemispheres of the planet.
The details about Dr. Singh having been selected for the NASA Distinguished Service Medal on the NASA website read, “His contribution is so immense and extraordinary that other forms of recognition by NAA would be inadequate.”
His contributions to NASA include new instrumentation that he designed and developed to accomplish his mission. He helmed several major international field campaigns to demonstrate the role of human activities in the chemistry of ozonosphere. He was the leading figure behind many firsts, including detection of phosgene in the earth’s atmosphere and a demonstration on human origin of atmospheric carbon tetrachloride.
A Fellow of the American Geophysical Union and the World Innovative Foundation, Dr. Hanwant B Singh was awarded the NASA Exceptional Leadership/Scientific Achievement Medals in 1998, 2005 and 2009. He received also the Frank A. Chambers Award for “outstanding achievement in the art and science of air pollution”. He also serves as the Executive Editor of Atmospheric Environment, a renowned international journal.
Dr. Hanwant B Singh will be felicitated on August 2 at NASA’s 2018 Agency Honor Awards ceremony in Houston, Texas.
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