Statement from Sara Russell (NHM London, UK), nominated to become Vice-President of the Meteoritical Society in January 2027.
Brief Biography
I attended my first Meteoritical Society meeting, in Vienna in 1989, as a first-year PhD student. Hearing some of the extraordinary stories that meteorites can tell about the evolution of the early Solar System was a transformative experience. In this community united by fascination for these messengers from space, I felt I had found my tribe.
My path to meteoritics was not direct. As an undergraduate, I joined the University of Cambridge to study Natural Sciences where I found myself drawn to Geology, but at the end of my studies was uncertain what to do next. That uncertainty was dissolved by a lecture on presolar grains by Colin Pillinger. That we could study grains that originated in ancestor stars was mind-blowing, and after the talk, I eagerly approached Colin to learn more. That conversation led me to join his dynamic team at the Open University for doctoral studies on nitrogen and carbon isotopes in chondritic diamond and silicon carbide.
After completing my doctorate, I spent several formative years in the US, firstly at Caltech, where I worked on CAIs in CO3 chondrites with the legendary Jerry Wasserburg. I then moved across the country to the Smithsonian Institution in Washingon DC, working with Glenn MacPherson investigating Al-rich objects in ordinary chondrites, focusing particularly on their Al-Mg and oxygen-isotope systematics. The US became home, and the collaborations and friendships I developed over those years endure to this day.
In 1998, Robert Hutchison retired from the Natural History Museum in London and his position became available. To a native of Manchester in the north of England, London was at least as foreign as anywhere in the US. However, the Museum’s world-class collection of meteorites and rich history of curation, classification and analysis were strong inducements, and I made my way back across the Atlantic to work with Monica Grady.
Since joining the Museum, my research has encompassed virtually every aspect of meteoritics, from chondrule formation, to the formation of the lunar crust, to the history of meteoritics. Recently, my team has focused on water-bearing meteorites and their extraordinary diversity— work that proved invaluable preparation for the Winchcombe (CM2) fall in 2021, the first UK meteorite recovery in thirty years and our first carbonaceous chondrite. I have also been privileged to participate in the Hayabusa2 and OSIRIS-REx sample analysis teams, experiences that have pushed the frontiers of our field while demonstrating how meteorite knowledge informs space mission success. Recognition I am grateful for includes asteroid (5497) Sararussell, election as a 2025 Geochemistry Fellow (GS/EAG), and chairing the 2009 Gordon Research Conference (Origins of Solar Systems). My proudest career moments, however, are in seeing the early career scientists I have mentored thrive in our community.
The field component of meteoritics has always thrilled me. I have been fortunate to join three ANSMET expeditions to Antarctica, as well as expeditions to hot deserts including Chile, Australia, Mauritania, Namibia, and Western Sahara. In addition to being adventures of discovery, and a source of exciting new samples, these field trips have facilitated and deepened the friendships and collaborations that make our community so special.
The Meteoritical Society has been a bedrock of my career. I served as Councillor in 2000-2004, have sat on the Publications, Leonard Medal, and Jessberger Award Committees, and from 2002 to 2005 was Principal Editor of the Meteoritical Bulletin. Few roles show as clearly how the work of amateur collectors, meteorite hunters and curators, comes together with the sterling efforts of the Nomenclature Committee to make new samples available to enable us to learn more about the worlds beyond ours. In 2006, I was honoured to be elected Fellow of the Society.
To serve as President of the Society that has been such a cornerstone of my career would be an extraordinary privilege.
Priorities for the Meteoritical Society
A MetSoc meeting is the highlight of my professional year: a place to reunite with old friends and welcome newcomers—amateur and early career scientists alike—who share our passion for these remarkable messengers from space. Maintaining this welcoming, inclusive atmosphere while adapting to our rapidly changing scientific landscape represents both our greatest opportunity and our most important responsibility.
During my career lifetime it has been brilliant to see more women participating in meteoritics and ultimately taking leadership roles in our field. Our work in broadening access is not complete, however. Too many talented women still drop out of science due to the challenges of juggling family and personal lives. We must do more to ensure that a work-life balance is within reach of everyone. The underrepresentation of members of a range of racial and ethnic groups is even more stark, and we need a better understanding of the reasons. Part of the solution may lie in further strengthening our outreach work, in finding new ways to excite the public in our field, and in providing robust support for those in the earliest stages of their career.
Meteoritics is by its nature an international endeavour. Many of the best meteorite search areas are in the Global South. We have an ethical imperative to support meteorite scientists around the world. And we must do all we can to ensure that meteorites are traded legally and fairly. And while we are and must remain apolitical, we should continue to seek ways to support those of our members who live and work in places beset by political upheaval.
The subject of meteoritics is increasing in importance and relevance as space science expands. Our knowledge of well over 100 different parent bodies of space rocks will play an essential role in future exploration, as we plan future sample return missions to the Moon, Mars, Phobos, and beyond. We must position meteoriticists at the forefront of this new era of exploration to ensure the continuing impact of our work.
Finally, I have my eye on 2033, the year of the centenary of our great Society. Its essence remains unchanged: we are united by the wonder of being able to touch pieces of other worlds, to study, learn from, and teach about them. Over my tenure, I hope to work to ensure we properly celebrate a hundred years of this shared endeavour, of discussion, spirited debate, gossip, and sharing meteorites and their stories together.