Audrie started work on the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter as a University of Arizona student worker, and became a permanent, full-time staff member in 2005. She has contributed to almost all aspects of the experiment, from science planning and “uplink” commanding to downlink data processing.
She is primarily responsible for the health and safety monitoring of HiRISE. She also assists in managing processing pipeline and has developed several processing pipelines that are producing the great science products being released by the project. She has also developed processing pipelines for the Colour and Stereo Surface Imaging System (CaSSIS) on the European Trace Gas Orbiter. Audrie often volunteers to give presentations and give tours for HiRISE education and public outreach. Audrie’s co-workers consider her to be an essential staff member who performs exceptionally well in every aspect of her job. When an emergency comes up (which happens increasingly often), Audrie will come in or work from home at all hours of the day or night, weekdays or weekends, and provide problem investigation and reporting and observational problem resolution.
Audrie has stepped in to learn how to monitor the instrument engineering data and spot trends. This work has become increasingly important as the instrument ages and develops new or worsening problems. As the spacecraft gets older, there are changes to its operations, which alters the temperature of the environment that HiRISE sees, presenting constant challenges. Through constant monitoring and temperature management, HiRISE is still producing spectacular images after 20 years orbiting Mars, thanks in part to the dedication of Audrie Fennema.
