K. S. Edgett
Papers
9
Total Citations
1,386
H-Index
6
About
K. S. Edgett is a planetary scientist whose career has been defined by pioneering contributions to Mars surface exploration, particularly through the development and operation of advanced imaging and spectroscopic instrumentation aboard NASA's flagship rovers. Most prominently, Edgett served as a key figure in the Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) investigation aboard the Curiosity rover — part of the landmark Mars Science Laboratory mission (2012, 816 citations) — designing a close-focus camera capable of resolving grain-scale textures, mineralogy, and stratigraphy at unprecedented detail from a robotic arm. His dedicated work characterizing and calibrating MAHLI across more than 1,150 Martian sols demonstrated the instrument's enduring reliability in a harsh extraterrestrial environment. Edgett extended this expertise to NASA's Perseverance rover, contributing to the SHERLOC investigation (2021, 237 citations), which combines Raman and fluorescence spectroscopy to search for organics and biosignatures in Jezero crater. His work on calibration targets and robotic arm operations reflects a rare blend of engineering rigor and scientific vision. With hundreds of citations across multiple missions, Edgett's contributions have fundamentally shaped humanity's ability to characterize the habitability of ancient and modern Martian environments.
Research Focus
Key Achievements
Top Papers
- 1Mars Science Laboratory Mission and Science Investigation816 citations · 2012
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- 3Curiosity’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI) Investigation229 citations · 2012
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