Louis J. Lanzerotti

Louis LanzerottiLouis J. Lanzerotti, PhD, distinguished research professor of physics at New Jersey Institute of Technology, has spent four and one-half decades contributing to research that includes studies of space plasmas and geophysics, and engineering problems related to the impact of atmospheric and space processes on terrestrial technologies, and those in space. Prior to joining NJIT in 2003, Lanzerotti spent more than three decades at Bell Laboratories-Lucent Technologies, Murray Hill, NJ. He received a B.S. in Engineering Physics from the University of Illinois, and A.M. and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard. 



Lanzerotti was selected as the 2011 William Bowie Medalist of the American Geophysical Union (AGU). The Bowie Medal, which is AGU’s highest honor, was established in 1939 in honor of William Bowie for his "spirit of helpfulness and friendliness in unselfish cooperative research." 



U.S. President George W. Bush nominated Lanzerotti in 2004 to a six-year term on the National Science Board, the 24-member governing body of the National Science Foundation. Lanzerotti has served as the chair of many committees for the National Academies, including the blue-ribbon panel to study whether to prolong the mission of the Hubble Space Telescope, the committee on the safety and security of spent nuclear fuel, and the Space Studies Board. He currently serves as the chair of the Governing Board of the American Institute of Physics.



Lanzerotti is an elected member of the National Academy of Engineering and the International Academy of Astronautics, and a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union, the American Physical Society, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.