"The research contributions of the Geophysical Institute are world renowned," Reichardt said. "But an equally important component of our mission is to provide learning opportunities for our graduate and undergraduate students that they simply can't get anywhere else. Under Dr. Smith's leadership, we will continue the momentum of excellence which has firmly established UAF as an world leader in the study of geophysical phenomenon at high latitudes."

Smith envisions growth in all areas of research at the Geophysical Institute. A new NASA satellite program known as the "Earth Science Enterprise" will greatly increase the amount of data available to researchers studying volcanoes, earthquakes and other processes on Earth's surface, he said.

New and upgraded instruments at Poker Flat Research Range will expand space weather studies, including monitoring the ozone layer and global weather assessment. Global climate research will advance as Geophysical Institute professors performing atmospheric sciences, snow, ice, and permafrost research form partnerships with scientists at the International Arctic Research Center.

Smith's current research centers on solar-terrestrial physics. He specializes in the study of upper atmospheric and auroral dynamics at high latitudes by optical methods. He has conducted wind and temperature studies of the thermosphere in both the Arctic and Antarctic.

Smith earned his Bachelor of Science degree in 1963 and his Ph.D. in physics in 1967 from the University of Exeter in England. In 1971, he accepted a faculty position at the Ulster Polytechnic (now called Ulster University) in Ireland. There, he led a team of researchers who obtained the first 24-hour records of upper atmospheric winds. Permanent stations for this purpose were established in 1978 at Svalbard, in the Barents Sea, and in 1982 at Halley Bay, Antarctica.

Smith has been with UAF since 1984, when he accepted a position as associate professor of physics at the Geophysical Institute. He became a full professor of physics in 1989. From 1996 to 1999, Smith served as the associate director of the institute.

"I have been overwhelmed with the amount of support I have received from faculty and staff," Smith said.

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