2026 David E. Smith: Environmental Sciences Researcher – H-Index, Publications & Awards

Discipline name	D-Index	World Ranking	Current World Ranking	National Ranking	Current National Ranking	Publications	Citations
Environmental Sciences	96	461	436	211	195	361	32315

Overview

David E. Smith is affiliated with MIT in the United States and has a research focus primarily on Physics and Astronomy, with a significant concentration in Astronomy and Astrophysics. Their work intersects several specialized fields including Aerospace Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Management Science and Operations Research, and Atmospheric Science.

The scientist's research extensively covers topics related to planetary science and exploration, contributing to the understanding of planetary surfaces and environmental conditions. Their main topics of work include:

Planetary Science and Exploration
Astro and Planetary Science
Space Exploration and Technology
Space Science and Extraterrestrial Life
Spacecraft and Cryogenic Technologies
Data Quality and Management
Semantic Web and Ontologies

David E. Smith has authored multiple papers with a notable presence in key scientific venues. The frequent publication venues include:

The Planetary Science Journal
Planetary and Space Science
arXiv (Cornell University)
AI Magazine
Geophysical Research Letters

Among recent papers, their research includes the following publications:

"Improved LOLA elevation maps for south pole landing sites: Error estimates and their impact on illumination conditions" (2020), Planetary and Space Science
"Science Goals and Mission Architecture of the Europa Lander Mission Concept" (2022), The Planetary Science Journal
"Know, Know Where, KnowWhereGraph: A densely connected, cross-domain knowledge graph and geo-enrichment service stack for applications in environmental intelligence" (2022), AI Magazine
"A New View of the Lunar South Pole from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA)" (2023), The Planetary Science Journal
"The South Pole-Aitken Basin: Constraints on Impact Excavation, Melt, and Ejecta" (2024), Geophysical Research Letters

The scientist collaborates frequently with other researchers, including:

E. Mazarico
M. T. Zuber
G. A. Neumann
Xiaoli Sun
J. W. Head

David E. Smith's publications reflect contributions to understanding the lunar surface and planetary environments, with several articles addressing elevation mapping and mission concepts related to lunar and planetary exploration.

Best Publications

Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter: Experiment summary after the first year of global mapping of Mars

David E. Smith;Maria T. Zuber;Herbert V. Frey;James B. Garvin

1718
Citations
Fast Plasma Investigation for Magnetospheric Multiscale

C. Pollock;T. Moore;A. Jacques;J. Burch

1320
Citations
The Global Topography of Mars and Implications for Surface Evolution

David E. Smith;Maria T. Zuber;Maria T. Zuber;Sean C. Solomon;Roger J. Phillips

1013
Citations
The Crust of the Moon as Seen by GRAIL

Mark A. Wieczorek;Gregory A. Neumann;Francis Nimmo;Walter S. Kiefer

989
Citations
Internal Structure and Early Thermal Evolution of Mars from Mars Global Surveyor Topography and Gravity

Maria T. Zuber;Maria T. Zuber;Sean C. Solomon;Roger J. Phillips;David E. Smith

638
Citations
The Mars Observer laser altimeter investigation

M. T. Zuber;D. E. Smith;S. C. Solomon;D. O. Muhleman

637
Citations
Dawn at Vesta: Testing the Protoplanetary Paradigm

C. T. Russell;C. A. Raymond;A. Coradini;H. Y. McSween

578
Citations
Gravity field of the Moon from the Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission.

Maria T. Zuber;David E. Smith;Michael M. Watkins;Sami W. Asmar

570
Citations
The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter Investigation on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission

David E. Smith;Maria T. Zuber;Glenn B. Jackson;John F. Cavanaugh

561
Citations
Ancient Geodynamics and Global-Scale Hydrology on Mars

Roger J. Phillips;Maria T. Zuber;Maria T. Zuber;Sean C. Solomon;Matthew P. Golombek

560
Citations
Initial observations from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA)

David Edmund Smith;David Edmund Smith;Maria Zuber;Gregory A. Neumann;Frank G. Lemoine

556
Citations
A New Lunar Digital Elevation Model from the Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter and SELENE Terrain Camera

M.K. Barker;E. Mazarico;G.A. Neumann;M.T. Zuber

544
Citations
The Clementine Mission to the Moon: Scientific Overview

Stewart Nozette;P. Rustan;L. P. Pleasance;D. M. Horan

528
Citations
The Development of the NASA GSFC and NIMA Joint Geopotential Model

F. G. Lemoine;D. E. Smith;L. Kunz;R. Smith

528
Citations
The Shape and Internal Structure of the Moon from the Clementine Mission

Maria T. Zuber;David E. Smith;Frank G. Lemoine;Gregory A. Neumann

499
Citations
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Overview: The Instrument Suite and Mission

Gordon Chin;Scott Brylow;Marc Foote;James Garvin

491
Citations
Hydrogen mapping of the lunar south pole using the LRO neutron detector experiment LEND.

I. G. Mitrofanov;A. B. Sanin;W. V. Boynton;G. Chin

432
Citations
Crustal structure of Mars from gravity and topography

G. A. Neumann;G. A. Neumann;M. T. Zuber;M. T. Zuber;M. A. Wieczorek;P. J. McGovern

427
Citations
The MESSENGER mission to Mercury: Scientific objectives and implementation

Sean C. Solomon;Ralph L. McNutt;Robert E. Gold;Mario H. Acuña

426
Citations
Topography of the Moon from the Clementine lidar

David E. Smith;Maria T. Zuber;Gregory A. Neumann;Frank G. Lemoine

366
Citations
Localized gravity/topography admittance and correlation spectra on Mars: Implications for regional and global evolution

Patrick J. McGovern;Sean C. Solomon;David E. Smith;Maria T. Zuber

363
Citations
The lunar crust: Global structure and signature of major basins

Gregory A. Neumann;Maria T. Zuber;David E. Smith;Frank G. Lemoine

315
Citations
Topography of the northern hemisphere of Mars from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter

D. E. Smith;M. T. Zuber;H. V. Frey;J. B. Garvin

308
Citations

Frequent Co-Authors

Maria T. Zuber MIT

Gregory A. Neumann Goddard Space Flight Center

Frank G. Lemoine Goddard Space Flight Center

Sean C. Solomon Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory

Roger J. Phillips Washington University in St. Louis

William V. Boynton University of Arizona

James W. Head Brown University

Erwan Mazarico Goddard Space Flight Center

Andrew F. Cheng Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory

James B. Garvin Goddard Space Flight Center

External Links

Personal website of David E. Smith

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