Assistant Professor of Earth & Planetary Science Penny Wieser has been named AGU’s 2024 Hisashi Kuno Award recipient. This award is presented annually to an early career scientist for outstanding contributions to the fields of volcanology, geochemistry, and petrology. It is named to honor the life and work of Hishashi Kuno, an exceptional volcanologist and petrologist of the mid-twentieth century.
AGU, the world's largest Earth and space science association, celebrates individuals and teams through it’s annual Honors and Recognition program for their accomplishments in research, education, science communication, and outreach. These honorees have transformed our understanding of the world, impacted our everyday lives, improved our communities and contributed to solutions for a sustainable future.
Penny Wieser is an igneous petrologist and volcanologist using erupted melts, crystals, gases and volcanic aerosols to understand volcanic systems. Her main research focus is evaluating and developing methods to calculate magma storage depths beneath active volcanoes like Mauna Loa, Kilauea, and Cascades. She does this by integrating analytical methods such as raman spectroscopy and e-beam techniques with open-source python codes allowing full error propagation.
"It is an absolute honor to receive this award, and join a list of volcanologists I have great respect and admiration for,” says Wieser. “I'm super grateful for all my mentors, trainees, collaborators and of course nominees who got me here.”
Wieser joins a distinguished group of scientists, leaders and communicators recognized by AGU for advancing science. Each honoree reflects AGU's vision for a thriving, sustainable and equitable future supported by scientific discovery, innovation and action.
AGU - American Geophysical Union
