Clive Neal
Civil and Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences
Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences
- Lunar petrology (rocks)
- Geochemistry
- Planetary geology
- The moon
Audio
Neal’s Latest News
Neal in the News
Science
NASA opens door to cooperation with China on Moon rock research
December 08, 2023
The NASA move “is huge,” says Clive Neal, a lunar scientist at the University of Notre Dame.
Space
China's Chang'e 5 moon samples, beyond NASA's reach for years, are finally available to US scientists
December 04, 2023
"This is excellent news as it allows U.S.-based scientists to bring their expertise to investigating these unique lunar samples," said Clive Neal, a leading expert on the moon at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.
NBC News
Paper and bamboo straws contain PFAS chemicals more often than plastic straws do, study finds
August 25, 2023
Graham Peaslee, who studies PFAS at the University of Notre Dame and was not involved in the new research, said it's possible manufacturers aren't testing for the chemicals in their own products.
Boston Herald
India moon landing near south pole is ‘fantastic achievement’: A possible spot for moon bases
August 23, 2023
“It’s a fantastic achievement for India,” University of Notre Dame Professor Clive Neal told the Herald. “It’s an exciting accomplishment not only for them but for the international community."
BBC News
Chandrayaan-3, Luna-25: The race to unravel the mysteries of Moon's south pole
August 21, 2023
"It is yet to be proven that the water ice is accessible or mineable. In other words, are there reserves of water that can be extracted economically?" Clive Neal, a professor of planetary geology at the US University of Notre Dame, told me.
The Washington Post
The moon beckons once again, and this time NASA wants to stay
January 09, 2023
“The time is now right to take a giant leap by using the moon to learn how to live off the land, thus enabling sustained human presence on Earth while stimulating a new sector of our economy,” Clive Neal, a professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Notre Dame, told the National Space Council in 2019.
Space.com
Surviving the lunar night can be a challenge for astronauts on the moon
November 13, 2022
Looking back on the 20th century Apollo era, there are lessons to be re-learned, said Clive Neal, a lunar exploration expert in the department of civil and environmental engineering at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.
The New York Times
China’s Discovery of Lunar Mineral Could Add to Fuller View of the Moon
September 16, 2022
New minerals discovered on the moon are not abundant, said Clive Neal, a professor of planetary geology at the University of Notre Dame.
NPR
NASA is set to return to the moon. Here are 4 reasons to go back
August 28, 2022
Artemis could change that, says Clive Neal, a professor of civil and environmental engineering and Earth sciences at the University of Notre Dame.
National Geographic
How NASA’s Artemis program plans to return astronauts to the moon
August 23, 2022
For University of Notre Dame lunar scientist Clive Neal, whether Artemis can be considered a success or not depends on the technological benefits that it yields.
Nature
China’s first Moon rocks ignite research bonanza
March 15, 2022
“There are a lot of young Chinese researchers getting involved,” says Clive Neal, a geoscientist at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, who has worked on Chang’e-5 samples with collaborators in China.
Vanity Fair
The “Real” Conspiracy Theories Behind Roland Emmerich’s Moonfall
October 28, 2021
Clive R. Neal, professor of civil engineering and geological sciences at the University of Notre Dame, describes it this way on NASA’s website: “The moon was ringing like a bell.”
The Daily Beast
China’s New Moon Rocks Hint at a Violent, Wet History
October 19, 2021
But Clive Neal, a planetary geologist at the University of Notre Dame, told The Daily Beast it’s all about properly interpreting the new findings.
Space News
NASA looking for earlier launch of lunar orbiter smallsat mission
March 26, 2021
Clive Neal, a committee member from the University of Notre Dame, asked if it would be possible to launch Lunar Trailblazer as a co-manifested payload on one of the series of Commercial Lunar Payload Service (CLPS) missions that will be launching to the moon starting late this year.
Space.com
China's Yutu 2 rover finds 'milestone' on far side of the moon
February 13, 2021
Clive Neal, a leading lunar expert at the University of Notre Dame, agrees that, based on the images, the specimens are impact ejecta rather than exposed bedrocks.
Nature
Will increasing traffic to the Moon contaminate its precious ice?
January 05, 2021
“Right now, we’ve got some scientists saying we can’t go anywhere near it because we’re going to ruin it,” says Clive Neal, a geoscientist at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.
The New York Times
China Brings Moon Rocks to Earth, and a New Era of Competition to Space
December 16, 2020
“They represent a completely different era of lunar history and will definitely help in our quest to understand the evolution of our moon,” wrote Clive R. Neal, a professor of civil engineering and geological sciences at the University of Notre Dame who said he would love a chance to examine the new samples.
CNN
NASA is paying startups for moon rocks. It's not what you think
December 04, 2020
"It's important that we balance, moving forward together in a way that will enable this [lunar] economy as well as the science," said Clive Neal, an engineering professor at the University of Notre Dame.
The Guardian
Chang’e-5: why has China sent a probe to the moon?
December 02, 2020
Clive Neal, a geoscientist at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, told Nature the lander could crash, topple over, or the samples could fall out as it moves.
Nature
China Moon mission and a scholar on death row
December 02, 2020
If the mission achieves its goals, it will mark the beginning of a new era of robotic sample returns from the Moon, which will undoubtedly change scientists’ understanding of the planetary body, says Clive Neal, a geoscientist at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.
Business Insider
China just landed its Chang'e-5 spacecraft on the moon. The mission could bring moon rocks to Earth for the first time in 40-plus years.
December 01, 2020
"The moon is small, so its heat engine should have run out a long time ago," Clive Neal, a geoscientist at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, told Nature.
Business Insider
China just launched a mission to the moon to collect rock samples — the first time a country will have done so in more than 40 years
November 23, 2020
"The moon is small, so its heat engine should have run out a long time ago," Clive Neal, a geoscientist at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, told Nature.
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