PLANETARY EXPLORATION NEWSLETTER Volume 8, Number 11 (March 2, 2014) PEN Website: http://planetarynews.org Editor: Melissa Lane Co-Editors: Susan Benecchi, Mark V. Sykes Email: pen_editor at psi.edu o-------------------------TABLE OF CONTENTS---------------------------o 1. Thomas Pierson, 1950-2014 2. [NASA] ROSES-14: Planetary Science and Technology Through Analog Research 3. [NASA] ROSES-14: Discovery Data Analysis Program 4. [NASA] ROSES-14: Origins of Solar Systems Now Exoplanets Research 5. [NASA] ROSES-14: Non-Discovery Data Analysis Proposals 6. [NASA] ROSES-14: Numerous Changes 7. ISC Session 38: Extraterrestrial Sedimentology 8. Workshop on the Study of the Ice Giant Planets 9. Mars Exploration Program Analysis Group (MEPAG) Face-to-Face Meeting 10. 2014 YSS Undergraduate Research Conference Meeting Mentors 11. NASA Postdoctoral Fellowships 12. Student Travel Grants Available for Upcoming Mars Meetings 13. Archived Presentations Available: Workshop on the Habitability of Icy Worlds 14. Extended Submission Deadline: Venus Science and Exploration Special Issue of Planetary and Space Sciences 15. Mars Critical Data Products Program (Round IX) 16. Planetary Geomorphology Image of the Month 17. LPSC: Planetary Science Undergraduate Faculty Workshop 18. LPSC: Education and Public Outreach Help Desk 19. LPSC Town Hall: Observations in the Solar System with HST and JWST 20. LPSC: User Workshop for Mars ChemCam/LIBS Data 21. 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 THOMAS PIERSON, 1950-2014 Tom Pierson, who founded the SETI Institute and went on to become its Chief Executive Officer for most of the organization's first thirty years, died on February 20 of cancer. He had been on medical leave since 2012. Under Pierson's guidance, the Institute grew from a tiny, narrowly focused research center with a handful of employees to its current status: an internationally known organization that is home to more than 130 scientists, educators, and support staff. While founded to conduct SETI searches, the Institute soon broadened its mandate to encompass all aspects of understanding the nature and prevalence of life beyond Earth. For more about Tom, go to: http://www.seti.org/thomas-pierson-1950-2014 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] ROSES-14: PLANETARY SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY THROUGH ANALOG RESEARCH Future planetary research associated with solar system exploration requires the development of relevant, miniaturized instrumentation capable of extensive operations on lunar, asteroid, and planetary surfaces throughout the Solar System. To this end, this Planetary Science and Technology Through Analog Research (PSTAR) program solicits proposals for investigations focused on exploring the relevant environments on Earth in order to develop a sound technical and scientific basis to conduct planetary research on other solar system bodies. The PSTAR program is a science-driven exploration program that is expected to result in new science and operational/technological capabilities to enable the next generation of planetary exploration. Proposals to this program will be taken by a two-step process, in which the Notice of Intent is replaced by a required Step-1 proposal submitted by an organization Authorized Organizational Representative. Only proposers who submit a Step-1 proposal are eligible to submit a Step-2 (full) proposal. See Section 2.8 for details. Step-1 proposals are due July 25, 2014, and Step-2 proposals are due September 26, 2014. For more information see: http://nspires.nasaprs.com/ Questions may be addressed to: Sarah Noble or Mary Voytek sarah.noble-1@nasa.gov mary.voytek-1@nasa.gov [Edited for length] 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] ROSES-14: DISCOVERY DATA ANALYSIS PROGRAM The objective of the Discovery Data Analysis Program (DDAP) is to enhance the scientific return of Discovery Program missions by broadening the scientific participation in the analysis of data, both recent and archived, collected by Discovery missions. This amendment changes the name of C.11 to the Discovery Data Analysis Program and presents the final text, which replaces the placeholder text in its entirety. Proposals to this program will be taken by a two- step process, in which the Notice of Intent is replaced by a required Step-1 proposal submitted by an Authorized Organizational Representative. Only proposers who submit a Step-1 proposal are eligible to submit a Step-2 (full) proposal. See Section 2 for details. Step-1 proposals are due July 21, 2014, and Step-2 proposals are due September 19, 2014. "Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Sciences (ROSES) 2014" (NNH14ZDA001N) is posted on the NASA research opportunity homepage at: http://nspires.nasaprs.com/ and will appear on the RSS feed at: http://nasascience.nasa.gov/researchers/sara/grant-solicitations/ roses-2014 Questions concerning C.11, DDAP, may be addressed to: Christina Richey christina.r.richey@nasa.gov 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] ROSES-14: ORIGINS OF SOLAR SYSTEMS NOW EXOPLANETS RESEARCH The Origins of Solar Systems (OSS) program element does not appear in Research Opportunities in Space and Earth Science (ROSES) - 2014. Appendix E.3 is now the Exoplanets Research Program. Proposals with scientific objectives that previously were included in the OSS program element may now be submitted to Exoplanets Research (E.3), Emerging Worlds (C.2), and Habitable Worlds (C.4). For more information see Section 2.2 of Exoplanets Research (E.3). For details on the limitations and requirements for these new program elements, please refer to the text of these calls and the Planetary Science Research Program Overview (Appendix C.1). Proposals to all of these programs must be submitted by a two-step process, in which the Notice of Intent is now a required Step-1 proposal submitted by an organization Authorized Organizational Representative. Only proposers who submit a Step-1 proposal are eligible to submit a Step-2 (full) proposal. Step-1 due dates can be found in Tables 2 and 3 of ROSES 2014 that may be found at: http://solicitation.nasaprs.com/ROSES2014table2 and http://solicitation.nasaprs.com/ROSES2014table3 Questions concerning these changes may be directed to: Christina Richey or Larry Petro christina.r.richey@nasa.gov larry.d.petro@nasa.gov 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 [NASA] ROSES-14: NON-DISCOVERY DATA ANALYSIS PROPOSALS With the announcement of Amendment 3, that released final text for C.11 and changed the name to the Discovery Data Analysis Program, questions have arisen as to where to submit proposals that do not fit within the constraints of the Data Analysis Programs (such as non-Discovery Mission data). PSD solicits proposals for work that is primarily analysis of planetary mission data through the Data Analysis Programs. If a proposal is not appropriate for one of the Data Analysis programs but does fit within the bounds of a Core Research Program (i.e. Solar System Workings or Emerging Worlds), it should be submitted to that Core Program. If a proposal would analyze data within the scope of more than one of the data analysis programs, in order to perform comparative studies across the Solar System, but is not appropriate to any one data analysis program, then submission to a Core Research Program is encouraged. Questions concerning C.11, DDAP, may be addressed to: Christina Richey christina.r.richey@nasa.gov 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 [NASA] ROSES-14: NUMEROUS CHANGES A number of clarifications and corrections were made to calls in Appendix C of ROSES 2014. These include: All references to name of C.11 have been changed from the "Planetary Mission Data Analysis" program to the "Discovery Data Analysis" program, consistent with the name change from Amendment 3. Information on the two-step proposal submission process was updated in all calls. A new sub section on data archiving and map publications has been added to the many calls. Finally, in many (but not all) calls the start date for projects given in the summary table of key information has been set to "~6 months after Step-2 proposal due date." If a call has been updated there will be a number of indications that this is the case: First, the text of the call will have a dated bold notice at the top summarizing what changes have been made. Second, the PDF version of the file will have "as clarified" at the end of the name. Third, on the web page for each of the program elements under "Notices" it will note that a change was made to that call. Calls that are currently still TBD (e.g., C.4, C.7, C.8, C.19, & C.20) have not yet been changed. As TBD calls are replaced with final text SMD will issue Amendments to ROSES 2014. 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 ISC SESSION 38: EXTRATERRESTRIAL SEDIMENTOLOGY 19th International Sedimentological Conference, Geneva, Switzerland, August 2014 http://www.sedimentologists.org/meetings/isc Gian Gabriele Ori, Clara Mangili Data and images from recent planetary missions show that sedimentary processes shaped the surface of many planetary bodies. The rovers on the surface of Mars observed sedimentary structures; orbiters around Mars show palaeolakes, rivers and deltas. Chemical conditions could have sustained the origin of life on the planet. While Mars’ rivers and lakes belong to the past, on Titan, its hydrocarbon lakes, rivers and seas, sedimentary processes are presently at work. Sedimentology appears to be a key in interpreting the geological history of planetary bodies. Even on the Moon, many surficial processes can be discussed in sedimentological terms. The interpretation of these sedimentary deposits gives us indications for reconstructing past climate conditions on Mars and Titan and a better key to understand also Earth’s past and future. This session invites contribution on extraterrestrial sedimentology, in particular, based on Mars and Titan observations. Earth analogues, a key in understanding the planetary processes, are also addressed. The session accepts all contributions dealing with different depositional environments, sedimentary sequences, facies models, as well as technological and operational aspects of the planetary exploration. [Edited for length] 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 WORKSHOP ON THE STUDY OF THE ICE GIANT PLANETS July 28–30, 2014 Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Lab, Laurel, Maryland The goal of this 2.5-day workshop is to raise awareness of the uniqueness/importance of ice giants in our solar system and others and lay out key science goals and a potential suite of investigations for New Frontiers-Flagship mission concepts. We will review the current state of knowledge of all aspects of the ice giant planetary systems (planets, satellites, rings, etc.), and how it relates to our knowledge of the gas giants, planetary formation models, and the study of exoplanets, incorporating outcomes of the 2013 Paris Uranus meeting. We will initiate a major effort to prioritize the science goals of future Uranus and Neptune missions and review studied architectures for these mission concepts. Contributed talks/posters are welcome, particularly those that focus on the state of knowledge and mission studies. Abstract submission will open in early May 2014. To subscribe to a mailing list to receive future announcements and updates, please complete the indication of interest form: www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/icegiants2014/ 9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9-9 MARS EXPLORATION PROGRAM ANALYSIS GROUP (MEPAG) FACE-TO-FACE MEETING 1.5 days, May 13-14, 2014, Crystal City Marriott in the Washington, DC area There have been many developments in Mars exploration over the past year: Discoveries by Curiosity and other operating Mars missions, the release of the AO and the receipt of instrument proposals for the 2020 Mars Rover, the launches of NASA’s MAVEN and ISRO’s MOM missions to Mars, the implications for Mars and Planetary Science of the passage of the FY14 budget and release of the President’s proposed FY15 budget, and the developing vision of human exploration at Mars. This meeting will report on the implications of these events as well as the overall status of Mars exploration. Further, there will be a report from the ongoing MEPAG Special Regions Science Analysis Group. This meeting will be followed by the First Landing Site Workshop for the 2020 Mars Rover mission. The meeting is open to all members of the Mars science community and our international colleagues. We will also broadcast the meeting via Adobe Connect for those who cannot attend in person. Professor Lisa Pratt MEPAG Chair [Edited for length] 10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10-10 2014 YSS UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH CONFERENCE MEETING MENTORS LPI is recruiting Meeting Mentors for the 2014 LPSC! A Meeting Mentor is someone that an undergraduate student can 'shadow' through the Monday morning sessions - listening to talks, networking, etc. Responsibilities include: * Meeting your student at 8:00 am at the Convention Center and spending 10-15 minutes to get to know each other, * Attending the morning sessions with the student, talking about the sessions, and introducing them to colleagues at the coffee break, * Encouraging the student to attend the Masursky Lecture and Dwornik Award Presentations at 1:30 pm, * Your official "Mentor" duties would be completed by the close of the morning session. Any time beyond that is not expected, but can be beneficial to students. If you can find the time to participate in the program this year, please contact Andy Shaner at shaner@lpi.usra.edu, noting your area(s) of expertise and which sessions you plan to attend on Monday morning. Once we know that we have enough Mentors, we will send out more info, including a virtual introduction to your student, as we get closer to LPSC. Thank you for considering participating in this important program! Andy Shaner 11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11-11 NASA POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIPS The NASA Postdoctoral Program (NPP) provides opportunities for scientists and engineers to conduct research largely of their own choosing, yet compatible with the research opportunities posted on the NPP Web site. Selected by a competitive peer-review process, NPP Fellows complete one- to three-year Fellowship appointments that advance NASA's missions in earth science, heliophysics, planetary science, astrophysics, space bioscience, aeronautics and engineering, human exploration and space operations, and astrobiology. An example of one of the research opportunities in planetary science is: https://www3.orau.gov/NPDoc/Catalog/18715 Applicants must have a Ph.D. or equivalent degree in hand before beginning the fellowship, but may apply while completing the degree requirements. U. S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, and foreign nationals eligible for J-1 status as a Research Scholar may apply. Stipends start at $53,500 per year, with supplements for high cost-of- living areas and for certain academic specialties. Financial assistance is available for relocation and health insurance, and $8,000 per year is provided for professional travel. Applications are accepted three times each year: March 1, July 1, and November 1. The latest NPP Newsletter: http://bit.ly/1fuCwZG For further information and to apply, visit: http://nasa.orau.org/postdoc/description/index.htm Questions: nasapostdoc@orau.org 12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12-12 STUDENT TRAVEL GRANTS AVAILABLE FOR UPCOMING MARS MEETINGS Student travel grants are available for (1) the First Landing Site Workshop for the 2020 Mars Rover Mission (May 14-16 in the Washington, DC area; due March 19) and (2) the 8th International Mars Conference (July 14-18, Pasadena, CA; due April 11). These opportunities are open to undergraduate and graduate students with Mars-related research interests, who are US citizens or legal residents. Information and the applications are posted on the MEPAG site: http://mepag.nasa.gov/student.cfm?expand=student Questions should be directed to Serina Diniega. serina.diniega@jpl.nasa.gov 13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13-13 ARCHIVED PRESENTATIONS AVAILABLE: WORKSHOP ON THE HABITABILITY OF ICY WORLDS Held on February 5–7, 2014, Pasadena, California The Workshop on the Habitability of Icy Worlds was a great success with ~140 attendees and over 40 people on line. The primary objective of this workshop was to focus on the astrobiological potential of icy worlds in the outer solar system–including Europa, Ganymede, Enceladus, Titan and beyond–with discussion on future research directions and spacecraft missions that can best assess that potential. Overview presentations were given on the first morning, while the remainder of the workshop was focused on thematic sessions: water and exotic solvents; chemical energy for life; organics and their detection; ocean physics and chemistry; icy world activity and habitability over time; and continuing and future outer solar system exploration. The link to the archived presentations (hosted on the NAI site) is on the meeting webpage: http://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/icyworlds2014/ and can also be found directly on the NAI site: http://astrobiology.nasa.gov/seminars/featured-seminar-channels/ conferences-and-workshops/2014/02/05/habitability-of-icy-worlds- workshop/ 14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14-14 EXTENDED SUBMISSION DEADLINE: VENUS SCIENCE AND EXPLORATION SPECIAL ISSUE OF PLANETARY AND SPACE SCIENCE The submission deadline for the Special Issue of Planetary and Space Science devoted to Venus Science and Exploration has been extended; the new submission deadline is now *Friday 14 March*. As a reminder, for this Special Issue we invite papers related to all aspects of Venus science and exploration. We particularly solicit papers arising from the International Venus Conference held in Catania in June 2013, but further papers not presented at that conference are very welcome. Submission for this journal is via: http://ees.elsevier.com/pss/default.asp To ensure that all manuscripts are correctly identified for inclusion into the special issue, please select "SI: Exploration of Venus" when you reach the "Article Type" step in the submission process. Best regards, Hakan Svedhem, Colin Wilson, Giuseppe Piccioni Guest Editors 15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15-15 MARS CRITICAL DATA PRODUCTS PROGRAM (ROUND IX) Initial Landing Site Characterization for the Mars 2020 Rover Mission The Mars Exploration Program has issued, in January 2014, a Request for Proposal for round IX of the Mars Critical Data Products program. This RFP provides support for initial landing site surface, atmosphere, and gravity characterization for the Mars 2020 rover mission. The intent is to convert mission data and numerical simulations into products focused on specific landing site targets (to be provided by the program) that will be useful for reducing the risk to the Mars 2020 rover mission. Proposals are due on Wednesday, March 5, 2014. Details of the RFPs are posted at: https://acquisition.jpl.nasa.gov/rfp/WH-2691-120313/default.htm or https://acquisition.jpl.nasa.gov/bizops/ 16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16-16 PLANETARY GEOMORPHOLOGY IMAGE OF THE MONTH The March 'Image of the Month' is now available at the IAG's Planetary Geomorphology web page: http://planetarygeomorphology.wordpress.com/ This month's topic is on "Slope streaks on Mars". Post contributed by Dr. Norbert Schörghofer, University of Hawaii, Honolulu. Mary Bourke IAG Working Group on Planetary Geomorphology 17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17-17 LPSC: PLANETARY SCIENCE UNDERGRADUATE FACULTY WORKSHOP Sunday, March 16, 1-5 p.m. Spring Room, The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center Join us to explore a suite of teaching resources for the undergraduate classroom including EarthSpace (an online repository for higher education materials in earth and space science), strategies for using social media to connect and share with your community, and techniques for assessment that will support and help you share the story of your education efforts. Register for this workshop at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LPSC2014_undergrad_teaching_workshop 18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18-18 LPSC: EDUCATION AND PUBLIC OUTREACH HELP DESK Scientists are invited to work one-on-one with E/PO professionals to (1) determine ways to get involved in E/PO that match their time and resources, and (2) achieve maximum impact with their E/PO efforts. Come join us to talk about E/PO! Tuesday, March 18, 1:30-5 p.m. Indian Springs Room, The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center Wednesday, March 19, 12-1:15 p.m. Panther Creek Room, The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center Thursday, March 20, 8:30-11:30 a.m. Panther Creek Room, The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center Contact Sanlyn Buxner (buxner@psi.edu) with questions. 19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19-19 LPSC TOWN HALL: OBSERVATIONS IN THE SOLAR SYSTEM WITH HST AND JWST Thursday, March 20, 12:00 p.m. to 1:15 p.m., Waterway 1 Remote participation and other details can be found here: http://www.stsci.edu/jwst/science/solar-system This Town Hall meeting is proposed to give the community an opportunity to provide input to the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) solar system committee and a chance to hear the current status of the committee's activities. Additionally, we will present the accomplishments and status of the recommendations provided to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) team last year regarding solar system observations and solicits the community for further input. It is envisaged that there would be a half hour of brief presentations from both projects followed by a science talk by Britney Schmidt (Georgia Tech) and discussion. Our goal is to fully engage the solar system community to provide them with the tools they need to propose for time on HST and begin planning their observations with JWST. A key output of the workshop will be capability objectives for the JWST team to consider for further pre-launch operational studies, so that a broad suite of solar system observations will be enabled. 20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20-20 LPSC: USER WORKSHOP FOR MARS CHEMCAM/LIBS DATA 3 p.m., March 16, The Woodlands, TX ChemCam on Curiosity provides a large and varied geochemical dataset available for the planetary community including laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), passive VIS reflectance spectra, and the highest resolution remote micro-images (RMI) from the rover. More than 8 GB of data are available at the Planetary Data System (PDS) node including compositions from > 2500 locations along the rover traverse and > 1500 RMI images. Already > 25 submitted papers have included results from this data. A 3-hour workshop will be held for those interested in using this dataset at 3 pm on Sunday, March 16, in the Alden Bridge Room of The Woodlands conference center, in conjunction with the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. We will describe the LIBS technique as used on ChemCam and data processing for the levels 1 and 2 provided in the PDS. We also will provide tools to help understand and use the spectra. Attendees are strongly encouraged to RSVP at: http://msl-chemcam.com The contact is Roger Wiens (rwiens@lanl.gov). The ChemCam data can be found at: http://pds-geosciences.wustl.edu/missions/msl/chemcam.htm Presentation materials will also be posted on the PDS at the time of the meeting. 21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21-21 PLANETARY MEETING CALENDAR ADDITIONS June 23-26, 2014 Science Results from Pan-STARRS1 http://www.stsci.edu/institute/conference/panstarrs1 Baltimore, MD July 28-30, 2014 Workshop on the Study of the Ice Giant Planets http://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/icegiants2014/ Laurel, MD August 18-22, 2014 19th International Sedimentological Congress of the International Association of Sedimentologists http://www.sedimentologists.org/meetings/isc Geneva, Switzerland September 24-26, 2014 Joint Workshop on High Pressure, Planetary, and Plasma Physics http://indico.desy.de/conferenceDisplay.py?confId=9404 Rostock, Germany [Editor Note: If there is a planetary-related meeting, conference or workshop of which you think your colleagues should be aware, 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.php, or * send a request to pen_editor at psi.edu * * To unsubscribe, send an email to pen_editor at psi.edu * * 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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