Past Residencies - Dr. Adeene Denton

A woman with a yellow jacket and blue backpacking pack smiles in front of colorful canyon walls and cliffs of the Grand Canyon.

Dr. Adeene Denton is a geologist and planetary scientist interested in giant impacts and their influence on the history, evolution and tectonic activity of icy satellites, ocean worlds, and Kuiper Belt Objects. Adeene is trained as a scientist, historian, and dancer, which informs her scientific and artistic research process. She is an avid astrohumanist focused on approaching future planetary exploration from a scientific and humanistic perspective.

During her residency, Adeene focused on providing public programs about her research from the South Rim to Phantom Ranch, including subjects like "Canyons Across the Solar System," "Investigating an Ice Giant," and "The Geology of Star Wars Planets." She capped her residency with a modern dance performance, which explored the connections between the geology of the Grand Canyon, canyons found on Mars, and how humans are driven to explore both.

Dr. Adeene Denton was Grand Canyon's ninth Astronomer in Residence.

A woman in a blue shirt sits on a wood table under a sycamore tree in the winter. Dozens of people sit in front of her on benches, as she gives a talk. — Dr. Denton providing an astro-geology talk at the bottom of the Grand Canyon at the historic Phantom Ranch.
NPS Photo

Residency Accomplishments

Provided 9 public programs to over 1,000 visitors.
Provided 2 Astronomy on Tap Programs and 2 astro-geology talks at Phantom Ranch.
Special guest speaker at the I HEART Pluto Festival in Flagstaff, Arizona.
Provided a special talk for the students at Grand Canyon School.
Presented a capstone dance at the Shrine of the Ages Auditorium for two evenings. The dance focused on the geology of Grand Canyon, canyons on Mars, and human beings' drive to explore both worlds.
Starred in a Minute Out In It about her residency.

Astronomer in Residence - Dr. Adeene Denton

Dr. Adeene Denton is a planetary scientist interested in giant impacts on Trans-Neptunian Objects. She is also a professional dancer. As Grand Canyon's 9th Astronomer in Residence, Adeene presented several programs on her research and created a dance piece, titled, "Chasing Canyons," which explores the connections between the geology of the Grand Canyon, canyons found on Mars, and how humans are driven to explore both. Spend a Minute Out In It experiencing canyon formation through the lens of modern dance.

Duration:
2 minutes, 34 seconds

Chasing Canyons

"Chasing Canyons" is a dance piece created as a capstone project by Grand Canyon Astronomer in Residence Dr. Adeene Denton in February 2024. The piece explores the connections between the geology of the Grand Canyon, canyons found on Mars, and how humans are driven to explore both. What lessons can we learn from the history of national parks to apply to our exploration of outer space? How ought we approach landscapes across the solar system as we verge closer to stepping foot on them in the years to come?

Duration:
5 minutes, 44 seconds