PLANETARY EXPLORATION NEWSLETTER Volume 1, Number 2 (May 30, 2007) PEN Website: http://planetarynews.org Editor: Mark V. Sykes Co-Editors: Matt Balme, Nic Richmond Email: pen_editor at psi.edu o-------------------------TABLE OF CONTENTS----------------------------o NASA ANNOUNCEMENTS 1. PLANETARY SCIENCE SUBCOMMITTEE AGENDA (JUNE 7-8, 2007) 2. DISCOVERY MISSION PROGRAM: ITS PAST AND ITS FUTURE 3. JOB OPENING: DISCOVERY PROGRAM SCIENTIST AT NASA HQ 4. SATELLITES OF THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM WORKSHOP: 1ST PEN ANNOUNCEMENT ----------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. EUROPA: A PROPOSED NEW VOLUME IN THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA PRESS SPACE SCIENCE SERIES 6. CALL FOR PAPERS: 7th IAA CONFERENCE ON LOW-COST PLANETARY MISSIONS (LCPM7) 7. METEOROIDS 2007 (BARCELONA, SPAIN, JUNE 11-15, 2007): AN INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON SOLAR SYSTEM MINOR BODIES o---------------------------------------------------------------------o 1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1-1 NASA ANNOUNCEMENT PLANETARY SCIENCE SUBCOMMITTEE AGENDA (JUNE 7-8, 2007) [Editor Note: PSS is a subcommittee of the NASA Advisory Council] Location: Program Review Center (9H40), NASA Headquarters, 300 E St. SW, Washington, DC 20546 7 June (8:30 AM - 5:00 PM) 8:30 Welcome & Administrative Matters (Sean Solomon, Michael New) 8:45 Evaluation of GPRA Metrics (Phil Crane) 10:15 Break (Sean Solomon) 10:30 Analysis Group Reports o VExAG (Janet Luhmann) o LEAG (Clive Neal) o MEPAG (Ray Arvidson) o OPAG (Fran Bagenal) o CAPTEM (inc. recent lunar report) (Chip Shearer) o FEAT (Art Snake) 11:00 New PI requirements in Explorer AO (Paul Hertz) 11:30 Discussion (Sean Solomon) 12:00 Lunch 12:30 Science Talk: New Horizons at Jupiter (Hal Weaver) 1:30 State of COMPLEX planning for New Frontiers Program (Joe Veverka) 2:30 Overview of NRC Review of Planetary Science Division (Wes Huntress) 3:30 Discussion of NRC activities (Sean Solomon) 4:00 Overview of new R&A Initiatives (Yvonne Pendleton) 5:00 Recess 8 June (8:30 AM - 3:00 PM) 8:30 Planetary Science Division Update (James Green) o Status of Arecibo discussions o Future plans for PI-led mission lines o Mars Update 9:45 Discussion (Sean Solomon) 10:15 Break 10:30 Lunar Science Workshop Recommendations (Kelly Snook) 12:00 Lunch 12:30 Overview of Dawn Mission (David Lindstrom) 1:00 Overview of Phoenix Mission (Bobby Fogel) 1:30 Status of outer planet flagship mission studies (Curt Niebur) 2:00 Formulation of Recommendations (Sean Solomon) 3:00 Adjourn 2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2-2 NASA ANNOUNCEMENT DISCOVERY MISSION PROGRAM: ITS PAST AND ITS FUTURE James L. Green Michael H. New Late in 1991, Congress directed NASA to prepare "a plan to stimulate and develop small planetary or other space science projects, emphasizing those that could be accomplished by the academic or research communities." NASA's response, in April 1992, was the Discovery Program. This is the first announcement of "Discovery at 15: Looking Back, Moving Forward" to the PEN. The conference will be held on September 19-20 in Huntsville, Alabama. All former Discovery Principal Investigators, Project Managers, and Education/Public Outreach Leads will be invited to participate in the conference. The conference will also be open to the scientific community and a session of contributed posters on mission concepts and new technologies is planned. Please consult the conference website below for more information: http://discovery.nasa.gov/Discovery15 If you're in the small planetary mission game, this is a conference you don't want to miss. 3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3-3 NASA ANNOUNCEMENT JOB OPENING: DISCOVERY PROGRAM SCIENTIST AT NASA HQ James L. Green A Program Scientist position has just opened up in the Planetary Science Division of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. This position is open to US citizens in the Planetary Science community and not just to existing civil servants. With the upcoming selection of the new Discovery Mission(s) and Discovery Mission of Opportunity a new Discovery Program Scientist will be needed. The individual chosen for this position must be able to, for example, conduct scientific assessments to assure that the mission goals will be accomplished during the development and operations phases and serves as the main advocate for the mission's scientific analysis phase to include funding, operations, science planning and science data analysis. A Discovery Program Scientist plays a critical role in mission success. If your looking for an exciting change that will bring you enormous experience in how Planetary Science Division programs at NASA Headquarters are conceived and executed this is the position for you. Its also your chance to come to NASA Headquarters at a very exciting time and work with Alan Stern, Jim Green, and the rest of the Planetary Division and be a vital part of shaping its future. This job is open for applications from May 30, 2007 through June 28, 2007 and has been posted on the USAJobs web site. For more information on this exciting positions please see the website: http://jobsearch.usajobs.opm.gov/ftva.asp?opmcontrol=919268 4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4-4 NASA ANNOUNCEMENT SATELLITES OF THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM WORKSHOP: 1ST PEN ANNOUNCEMENT James L. Green Curt Niebur_ curt.niebur@nasa.gov Mary Cloud The Workshop on Ices, Oceans, and Fire: Satellites of the Outer Solar System will be held August 13-15, 2007, at the Hotel Boulderado, 2115 Thirteenth Street, Boulder, Colorado. Exploration of the outer solar system has revealed that these planetary satellites are quite varied. Each of these moon has experienced key processes to a different extent. The combination of their individual physical properties and chemical compositions with the varying magnitudes of the processes experienced by them is largely responsible for their evolution to their currently diverse states. The purpose of this workshop is to bring together researchers to share their current research in the broader context of common processes and unique properties shaping the satellites of the outer solar system. Research characterizing the current state of these satellites is fundamental to our understanding of their origin and evolution. The three-day meeting will be comprised of sessions devoted to processes common to the satellites rather than organized around specific satellites. The meeting will also provide an opportunity to convey research results in more detail than is possible at larger conferences with wider audiences. Extended time will be provided for presentations, questions, and discussion. For more information on this exciting workshop please go to workshop website at: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/icysat2007/ 5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5 EUROPA: A PROPOSED NEW VOLUME IN THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA PRESS SPACE SCIENCE SERIES The time is right for an edited book on Europa. After a decade of interpretation and modeling of the Galileo data, our understanding of Europa has reached a high level of maturity. We have the opportunity to bring forward within the University of Arizona Press Space Science Series a volume on Europa that describes: "What we know. How do we know it. Where do we go from here." The purpose of this message, sent on behalf of the Editors and the currently forming Scientific Organizing Committee (SOC), is to invite you to volunteer to participate in the EUROPA project. You may volunteer to participate in the SOC, propose to write a chapter, or recommend chapters and topics for the book. CALL FOR CHAPTER PROPOSALS. For details, see: http://www.igpp.ucla.edu/europa To capitalize on our current state of knowledge, and to take advantage of an immediate available opening in the production schedule for the Space Science Series, we wish to bring this book together in a very timely fashion. Responses must by received by June 1, 2007, with chapter selection by June 15, and chapters due no later than October 15, 2007. Reply to: robert.pappalardo@jpl.nasa.gov, mckinnon@wustl.edu, kkhurana@igpp.ucla.edu -Bob Pappalardo, Bill McKinnon, and Krishan Khurana 6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6-6 CALL FOR PAPERS: 7th IAA CONFERENCE ON LOW-COST PLANETARY MISSIONS (LCPM7) The International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) announces the first call for papers for the 7th IAA International Conference on Low-Cost Planetary Missions (LCPM7). The 7th conference will be held on the campus of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, September 12-14, 2007. The deadline for abstracts is June 29, 2007. This IAA-sponsored series of conferences has become the premier venue for the international community to meet on the topic of low-cost robotic solar system exploration conducted by missions whose total cost fits within the cost caps of the NASA Discovery and Mars Scout programs, or less than $0.5B US. LCPM7 will have seven plenary sessions conducted in series, comprised of invited papers, and poster sessions comprised of contributed papers. The topic areas for the conference are: (1) overviews of national and international programs, (2) recent science discoveries, (3) missions in operation, (4) missions in definition or development, (5) learning from the past - lessons for the future, a panel discussion, (6) science instruments for the future, and (7) advanced concepts for future low-cost planetary missions. Details can be found at the conference web site: http://lcpm7.jpl.nasa.gov/ 7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7-7 METEOROIDS 2007: AN INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON SOLAR SYSTEM MINOR BODIES BARCELONA (Spain), June 11 - June 15 2007 http://www.spmn.uji.es/meteoroids-2007/ Aims: This conference will be the sixth in a series of meteoroid meetings that have been held every few years since 1993, the last being in the University of Western Ontario, Canada in 2004. It will accommodate a broad range of meteoroid research: orbital dynamics, sources and distribution of these bodies, the physics and chemistry of their interaction process with the atmosphere as well as their origin and link with minor bodies: asteroids and comets. Due to the exciting new results of interplanetary missions to study asteroids and comets, special sessions will be devoted to these bodies with emphasis on meteoroid origin and chemical composition. The Final Scientific Program of the Conference is now available at: http://www.spmn.uji.es/meteoroids-2007/MET07prog.pdf SOC: Peter Brown, Valeri Dikarev, Robert Hawkes, Diego Janches, Peter Jenniskens, Jordi Llorca, Ingrid Mann, Asta Pellinen-Wannberg, Olga Popova, Doug O. ReVelle, Frans J.M. Rietmeijer, Pavel Spurny, Josep M. Trigo-Rodriguez, Junichi Watanabe and Iwan Williams. LOC: Jordi Isern, Josep M. Trigo-Rodriguez (chair), Jordi Llorca (co-chair), Jose M. Madiedo, Jose L. Ortiz, Alberto J. Castro-Tirado y Jose A. Docobo. ************************************************************************** * * The Planetary Exploration Newsletter is issued approximately weekly. * Current and back issues are available at * * http://planetarynews.org * * To subscribe, go to http://planetarynews.org/pen_subscribe.html * * To unsubscribe, go to http://planetarynews.org/pen_unsubscribe.html * * Please send all replies and submissions to pen_editor at psi.edu. * Announcements and other messages should be brief with links to URLs * for extended information, including detailed descriptions for job * announcements. Go to the PEN website for submission directions. * **************************************************************************