PLANETARY EXPLORATION NEWSLETTER Volume 3, Number 6 (February 1, 2009) PEN Website: http://planetarynews.org Editor: Mark V. Sykes Co-Editors: Nic Richmond, Matt Balme Email: pen_editor at psi.edu o-------------------------TABLE OF CONTENTS---------------------------o 1. Polar Processes on Earth and Mars: Comparative Studies 2. Lunar Secular Evolution 3. Next Meeting of the Venus Exploration Analysis Group 4. Venus Geochemistry: Progress, Prospects, and New Missions 5. International Conference on Comparative Planetology: Venus - Earth - Mars 6. February Mars Exploration Science Monthly Newsletter Now Available 7. [NASA] PDS Publishes New Guidelines for Cartographic Data Products 8. Planetary Meeting Calendar Additions 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 POLAR PROCESSES ON EARTH AND MARS: COMPARATIVE STUDIES Session GA22 at the 2009 Joint Assembly, 24-27 May 2009 Abstracts due: March 4, 2009 Go to http://www.agu.org/meetings/ja09/ Convenors: Gordon Osinski (U Western Ontario) gosinski@uwo.ca James Head (Brown University) James_Head@brown.edu Polygonal terrain, scalloped depressions, and lineated valley fill are seen on Mars. On Earth, these form through glacial and periglacial processes. The Phoenix mission has even trenched into the Martian subsurface, discovering water ice at only a few centimetres depth. Together, these results suggest that the polar and high-altitude equatorial terrains of Mars preserve large amounts of ground-ice and potentially debris covered surface ice (glaciers), which periodically may melt to provide transient water sources. But how can we be certain of this? A fundamental paradigm is that interpretations of Mars - and other planetary bodies - must begin by understanding and using the Earth as a reference. Terrestrial analogues are settings on Earth that may approximate, in some respect, the geological features and/or environmental conditions on Mars or other planetary bodies, either at present or sometime in the past. The goal of this session is to bring together a wide range of Earth and planetary scientists interested in cold-climate geomorphological processes. 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 LUNAR SECULAR EVOLUTION Session CG11 at the 2009 Joint Assembly, 24-27 May, 2009. Toronto, Canada Abstracts due: March 4, 2009 Go to http://www.agu.org/meetings/ja09/ Convenors: Surdas Mohit (UBC) smohit@eos.ubc.ca John Spray (UNB) jgs@unb.ca Catherine Johnson (UBC) cjohnson@eos.ubc.ca Phil McCausland (U Western Ontario) pmccausl@uwo.ca In recognition of renewed interest in the Moon and the fleet of new missions from a variety of countries that will soon usher in a new era of lunar exploration, this session is intended to summarize our current state of knowledge regarding the evolution of the Moon and look forward to the future of lunar science. Research on all aspects of the geologic, thermal, chemical, mechanical, and magnetic evolution of the Moon is welcome, drawn from remote-sensing data as well as studies of meteorites, returned samples and lunar analogue materials. Papers that integrate multiple suites of observations into a coherent framework and discuss the observations needed to advance our state of knowledge in a given area are particularly encouraged. Co-sponsored by AGU Planetary Sciences, GAC Geophysics Division 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 NEXT MEETING OF THE VENUS EXPLORATION ANALYSIS GROUP The next meeting of the Venus Exploration Analysis Group (VEXAG) will be February 25, 2009 at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston, Texas. Please visit the VEXAG website to register for the meeting: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/vexag/ The results of the Venus Flagship Science and Technology Definition Team will be presented, and the exploration goals, objectives, and critical measurement requirements for Venus exploration will be updated in preparation for the upcoming NRC Decadal Survey. VEXAG is NASA's community-based forum designed to provide scientific input and technology development plans for planning and prioritizing the exploration of Venus over the next several decades. The Venus Geochemistry workshop will follow VEXAG on Feb 26-27, 2009 at the Gilruth Center at NASA-JSC. 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 VENUS GEOCHEMISTRY: PROGRESS, PROSPECTS, AND NEW MISSIONS February 26-27, 2009, NASA-JSC, Houston, Texas Please visit the workshop website to examine abstracts, register for the meeting, etc at: http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/venus2009/ 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 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON COMPARATIVE PLANETOLOGY: VENUS - EARTH - MARS May 11-15, 2009, ESTEC, Noordwijk, the Netherlands Please visit the conference website to learn more (registration to be available soon): http://www.rssd.esa.int/index.php?project=MARSEXPLORATION&page=eslab_09 or: Just Google on "Planetology ESTEC" to locate the site. Abstracts are due March 2, 2009. 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 FEBRUARY MARS EXPLORATION SCIENCE MONTHLY NEWSLETTER NOW AVAILABLE Go to http://mepag.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 [NASA] PDS PUBLISHES NEW GUIDELINES FOR CARTOGRAPHIC DATA PRODUCTS NASA Planetary Data System cartographic standards have not been updated in over a decade, although both U.S. and international bodies have expanded and refined the underlying sets of reference frames and coordinate systems. Chapter 2 in the PDS Standards Reference, which covers this topic, has recently been rewritten. The new version provides information on how cartographic standards are established and PDS recommendations on how they should be applied to create data products for planets and satellites, small bodies, rings and planetary plasmas. Examples of PDS keywords for appropriate planetary coordinate systems and reference frames are also provided. There is no need to change existing data pipelines; but anyone planning new products or designing a new archive should review the updated material, now available online at http://pds.nasa.gov/tools/standards-reference.shtml. 8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8-8 PLANETARY MEETING CALENDAR ADDITIONS Posted at http://planetarynews.org/meetings.html March 16-19, 2009 From Disks to Planets: Learning from Starlight 2009 EARA workshop http://www.lorentzcenter.nl/lc/web/2009/341/info.php3?wsid=341 Leiden, The Netherlands March 22, 2009 MRO/CRISM Data Users' Workshop http://crism.jhuapl.edu/CRISM_workshop_2009/ The Woodlands, TX May 18-21, 2009 Joint Subaru/Gemini Science Conference http://www.kusastro.kyoto-u.ac.jp/kyoto2009/index.html Kyoto, Japan June 1-5, 2009 The 2nd Chaotic Modeling and Simulation International Conference (Chaos 2009) http://www.chaos2009.net/ Chania, Greece July 13-24, 2009 Computational Astrophysics http://www.ias.edu/pitp Princeton, NJ July 20-24, 2009 2009 Sagan Summer Workshop on Exoplanetary Atmospheres http://nexsci.caltech.edu/workshop/2009/index.shtml Pasadena, CA July 21-24, 2009 3rd International Workshop on Mars Polar Energy Balance and the CO2 Cycle http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/mpeg2009/ Seattle, Washington October 4-9, 2009 41st Annual Meeting of the Division for Planetary Sciences of the American Astronomical Society http://dps09.naic.edu/ Fajardo, Puerto Rico March 29 - April 2, 2010 Exoplanets Rising: Astronomy and Planetary Science at the Crossroads http://www.kitp.ucsb.edu/activities/auto/?id=983 Santa Barbara, CA [Editor Note: If there is a planetary-related meeting, conference or workshop that you think your colleagues should be aware of, please send the date, title, URL and location to pen_editor at psi.edu.] *********************************************************************** * * 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. 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