2 November 2023
David Haack: Exploring cosmic mysteries
We welcome David Haack to Luleå University of Technology. For 24 months David Haack, a recognised Humboldt fellow, will assist us in Kiruna with our atmospheric science. Born in Germany 1982 and hailing from a village in northwestern Brandenburg, Haack is a geologist and did his doctorate at the German Aerospace Center (DLR).
Tell me about yourself.
“I have always been very interested in everything in nature and pretty much all natural sciences. I collected fossils, watched the night sky, and did smelly chemical experiments, much to the displeasure of my parents. That's how I ended up in geology because it needs all the other sciences to be explainable.”
You are a Humboldt fellow, what does that mean?
“It is a very prestigious fellowship which addresses researchers with above-average qualifications from Germany regardless of their research discipline. It is granted by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and it has helped me, as well as researchers all over the world, to conduct research and cooperate with other members around the world.”
Why did you choose Luleå University of Technology as an academic host?
“Luleå University of Technology has great research facilities and instruments. The laboratories at Space Campus Kiruna enable experiments on sublimation processes on various celestial bodies.”
What will you be doing at Luleå University of Technology?
“I am currently trying to find out under which conditions liquid water can exist on celestial bodies over longer periods of time. The background is a series of minerals found on the surface of Ceres that cannot form without the influence of liquid water.”
“Ceres is the largest body[AH1] in the asteroid belt, but it is far too cold and has no atmosphere to sustain liquid water. So, Physics clearly says NO! to liquid water near its surface, but chemistry clearly says YES!”
“So, there must be plausible conditions that resolve this contradiction. To do this, I conduct experiments in which I reproduce surface materials and conditions on Ceres or even Mars and vary them so that water can interact with the surrounding rock. If this succeeds, other questions will also be easier to answer, such as how the many organic compounds in the solar system do form and thus indirectly how life can arise in the first place.”
Speaking about asteroids, you recently got one named after you?
“Yes, it was a surprise from my former group leader at DLR. You cannot submit such an application for yourself but must be submitted by some other scientist. I can only assume that she was satisfied with our collaboration. At some point she sent me a link showing that a committee of the International Astronomical Union had agreed to a proposed name change of a minor planet.”
“It is quite the going away present.”
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