The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr, today announced the appointment of Professor Penny Sackett as Australia’s new, full-time, Chief Scientist.
"Professor Sackett will provide high-level advice to Government, foster relationships with science organisations and industry groups and stimulate community thinking on the big scientific issues of our time.
"Boosting the role from part-time to full-time demonstrates the store the Rudd Government places in high-calibre, independent, scientific advice.
"Professor Sackett comes to the position with a long list of professional achievements and credibility in the innovation, science, engineering and technology communities."
Professor Sackett was Director of the ANU Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics and Mount Stromlo and Siding Spring Observatories (2002 – 2007) and remains a Professor in the School. She is a member of the Australian and American Astronomical Societies, the International Astronomical Union and the Association for Women in Science.
She is an Elected International Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and is involved in governance of the Gemini Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope Science Institute. She is also currently a director of the Giant Magellan Telescope, a project to build the world's most powerful optical telescope.
"Professor Sackett will have a vital role in raising awareness of emerging issues in science, engineering and innovation. She will encourage young Australians to see science as an exciting career option," Senator Carr said.
"Professor Sackett is an outstanding scientist. I congratulate her on her appointment and look forward to working with her.
"I would also like to acknowledge our outgoing Chief Scientist, Dr Jim Peacock, and thank him for his contribution over the past two and a half years," he said.
Professor Sackett's CV is attached, photograph of Professor Sackett and Senator Carr is available.
Media contact: Catriona Jackson, Minister's Office, 0417 142 238
Susan Charles, Professor Sackett, 0434 077 594
Professor Penny D Sackett
Professor Penny D Sackett has been appointed Chief Scientist for Australia and will take up her post in November 2008. Professor Sackett is an accomplished cross-disciplinary scientist with a record of academic excellence on three continents. She is highly respected in the national and international communities of science and technology, both for her research and her proven experience in research management.
She is a member of the Australian and American Astronomical Societies, the International Astronomical Union, and the Association for Women in Science. In 2003, Professor Sackett was elected an International Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society for her leadership and enabling activities. She serves on the AURA Board of Directors, which governs several international facilities including the Gemini Observatory and the Hubble Space Telescope Institute.
A physicist by training and an astronomer by profession, Professor Sackett considers herself an educator by inclination. She holds a PhD in theoretical physics and has received certification to teach science and mathematics at primary and secondary school levels. In addition to research on three continents, her career includes science journalism and service on Australian, Dutch, European, and US science advisory panels.
Professor Sackett has extensive experience in managing large and complex science projects involving broad international partnerships. Her work was some of the first to observationally demonstrate that dark matter in galaxies is aligned with, though more broadly distributed than, the visible stars in galaxies. Dark matter is believed to make up most of gravitational mass of the cosmos. Professor Sackett was also instrumental in the innovative use of microlensing, a phenomenon predicted by Albert Einstein, to search for planets orbiting distant stars in our Galaxy. This led to the discovery of some of the lowest-mass extrasolar planets known, and the first indication that small planets such as Earth may be much more common than large, massive Jupiter-like planets.
Professor Sackett’s previous appointments include the J. Seward Johnson Fellow at the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton (USA), Program Director at the US National Science Foundation, and Chaired Professor at the University of Groningen (NL). Professor Sackett was the Director of the ANU Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, and the Mount Stromlo and Siding Spring Observatories from 2002, serving a five-year term. During this tenure she co-founded the cross-disciplinary Planetary Science Institute at the ANU, and strengthened the bonds between astronomy, astro-engineering, and Australian industrial sector, as well as raising the international profile of Australian astronomy.
Mentoring excellent young researchers has formed an integral part of Sackett’s work, and she is a strong advocate for increasing the number of young people contributing to the future health and wealth of Australia through science, engineering, technology and innovation. A winner of teaching awards, Sackett was recognised as a national role model by the Australian Government Office of the Status of Women, who selected her as one of seven Australian women in science to highlight science as a career to secondary school students