Projects: Space Information
The Planetary Report
Volume XXII, Number 2, March/April 2002
On the Cover
This Galileo mosaic may resemble an abstract painting
but is actually a high-resolution image of the longest known active lava
flow in the solar system. Found in the Amirani region of Jupiter's moon
Io, this flow extends roughly 350 kilometers (220 miles). Approximately
half the length of the flow is shown here. Dark areas indicate recent, fresh
lava; these areas are too hot to be covered by sulfur dioxide, which appears
lighter. Scientists think the main Amirani plume emanates from the fuzzy
purplish area near the bottom of the image.
From The Editor
We're gearing up for a surge of
activity at The Planetary Society.
For a start, Mars Odyssey has reached its
mapping orbit and is returning detailed
data about the surface of Mars. As we go
to press, NASA has released initial results
based on the data -- and all indications are
that Mars Odyssey is going to be a doozy
of a mission. Scientists are already seeing
strong evidence of hydrogen, probably
from water-ice, on or near the planet's
surface. You can count on many more
announcements about the mission in
future issues of The Planetary Report.
On the political front, we're preparing once again to engage Washington policy
makers over restoring the mission to Pluto. Also this year, the Europa orbiter
mission has been canceled. NASA now has no program to explore the outer planets
of our solar system. You can read the details of the Bush administration's
fiscal year 2003 budget, from which both missions are eliminated, in World
Watch (page 18).
That's how it is at The Planetary Society. Sometimes, we revel in the astounding
discoveries of planetary missions; other times, we fight to keep those missions
alive. If you have Internet access, you can regularly check our website, planetary.org,
for updates. In the coming weeks, we will be planning how best to return outer
planet exploration to the NASA agenda. We should all be ready to act.
— Charlene M. Anderson
Features
Mars Odyssey: Let the Mapping Begin
Mars Odyssey is now returning data, and
initial results are producing a rare state of excitement in the planetary
science community. A member of that community is Bruce
Betts, The Planetary
Society’s director of projects. Bruce's Ph.D. dissertation
focused on infrared data collected by the Soviet Phobos 2 spacecraft in 1988–89.
So, Bruce just loves the infrared data coming from Mars Odyssey and is closely
following the mission. Here, he shares a preliminary look with our readers.
The
Rampant Volcanoes of Io
Rosaly Lopes is a volcanologist whose career has
focused on otherworldy eruptions. She’s also a member of the Near-Infrared
Mapping Spectrometer team on the Galileo mission, which has been observing
Jupiter since 1995. The orbiting spacecraft has revealed such a substantial
array of volcanic features as to keep any volcanologist excited and busy
for a long time. Now that Galileo has completed its final pass of Io, Rosaly
recounts many discoveries about the most volcanically active body in our
solar system.
Deep Space 1: The New Millennium in Spaceflight
Deep Space
1 (DS1) was one of the New Millennium missions designed to test technologies
to substantially advance our exploration of other worlds. Science writer
Robert Burnham has taken a long look at DS1 -- its accomplishments
and problems, as well as the lessons this experimental spacecraft has
taught us.
Cosmos 1 Update: Schedule Slips, Confidence Grows
Planetary Society Executive
Director Louis Friedman recently returned from Russia, where he reviewed
progress on Cosmos 1, the Society's solar sail project.
He's
got both good and bad news to report.
DEPARTMENTS
Members’ Dialogue
World Watch
Questions and Answers
Society News
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