The Planetary Report Volume 29 Issue 4

2009·1.6 MB·English

The
PLANETARY REPORT
Volume XXIX Number 4 July/August 2009
What’s Our Next Step?
From The Editor
Andnowforsomethingcompletelydifferent...
T
hePlanetaryReportistheflagshipof On the Cover:
PlanetarySocietycommunications,the Fortyyearshavepassedsincehumanbeingsfirstwalkedonthesurface
primarychannelthroughwhichwecommuni- oftheMoon.ThisisastronautBuzzAldrin’sboot,creatingwhatwould
catewithMembers.I’vebeeneditorforlonger becomeoneofthemosticonicimagesofthe20thcentury—ahuman
thanIcaretoadmit,butasidefromthat,I’m footprintinthegrainysoilofanotherworld.Onpage4,Buzzand
proudofourmagazineandthepassionate executivedirectorLouisD.Friedmanoffertheiropinionsaboutour
loyaltyyou’veshownitoverthelastmumble- nextstepsoffEarth. Image:NASA
mumbleyears.
TheInternethasrevolutionizedtheways Background:
peoplecommunicate,and,formany,printed
ThisisasmallportionofanewlyreleasedimageoftheOmega
publicationsarenolongerthemediumof
nebulatakenattheEuropeanSouthernObservatoryinLaSilla,Chile.
choice.We’veadaptedbycreatingalively,
TheOmeganebula,sometimescalledtheSwannebula,isadazzling
yetmassive,website(planetary.org,incase
stellarnurserylocatedabout5,500light-yearsawaytowardthe
youdon’thaveitbookmarked),withatimely
constellationSagittarius.Inrecentyears,scientistshavediscovered
andinformativeblog,andI’mproudofthose
thatthisisoneoftheyoungestandmostmassivestar-forming
effortsaswell.
regionsintheMilkyWay.Forafullviewofthisimage,goto
ButIwanttodirectyoutoanewerandeven
http://www.eso.org/public/outreach/press-rel/pr-2009/pr-25-09.html.
liveliercommunicationschannel:ThePlanetary
Society’s“fan”pageonFacebook.
Thereyoucangetimmediateupdatesonspace
happeningsandPlanetarySocietydoings.It’s
aninteractivespacewhereMembersshare
thoughtswithoneanotherandcommentonthe
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exasperatedatmysluggishnessinadaptingto
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moreinvolvedasweworktogethertoadvance MailingAddress:ThePlanetarySociety,
spaceexploration. 65NorthCatalinaAvenue,Pasadena,CA91106-2301
—CharleneM.Anderson GeneralCalls:626-793-5100
SalesCallsOnly:626-793-1675
E-mail:[email protected]
WorldWideWeb:http://planetary.org
2
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
Cofounder
CARLSAGAN
1934–1996
BoardofDirectors
ChairmanoftheBoard
DANGERACI
ChairmanandCEO,
ClubAchilles—TheIronAge
President
JAMESBELL
ProfessorofAstronomy,CornellUniversity
VicePresident
BILLNYE
scienceeducator
ExecutiveDirector
LOUISD.FRIEDMAN
HEIDIHAMMEL
SeniorResearchScientistandCo-Director,
Research,SpaceScienceInstitute
Contents
G.SCOTTHUBBARD
professor,StanfordUniversity
WESLEYT.HUNTRESSJR.
DirectorEmeritus,GeophysicalLaboratory,
4 Beyond Apollo: CarnegieInstitutionofWashington
LONLEVIN
SkySevenVentures
Where Next in Space?
ALEXISLIVANOS
CorporateVicePresidentandChiefTechnologyOfficer,
NorthropGrumman
by Buzz Aldrin and Louis D. Friedman AdvisoryCouncilChair
CHRISTOPHERP.McKAY
planetaryscientist
BRUCEMURRAY
ProfessorofPlanetaryScienceandGeology,
6 We Make It Happen! CaliforniaInstituteofTechnology
ELONMUSK
ChairmanandCEO,SpaceX
LIFE Biomodule Ready for Launch!
JOSEPHRYAN
RyanInvestments,LLP
by Bruce Betts STEVENSPIELBERG
directorandproducer
BIJAL“BEE”THAKORE
RegionalCoordinatorforAsiaPacific,
SpaceGenerationAdvisoryCouncil
12 Searching for New Worlds: NEILdeGRASSETYSON
AstrophysicistandDirector,
HaydenPlanetarium,
AmericanMuseumofNaturalHistory
The Power of Many
GEORGEYANCOPOULOS
PresidentandChiefScientificOfficer,
RegeneronResearchLaborabories
by Debra Fischer
InternationalCouncil
ROGER-MAURICEBONNET
ExecutiveDirector,
InternationalSpaceScienceInstitute
18 Members’ Dialogue
YASUNORIMATOGAWA
AssociateExecutiveDirector,
JapanAerospaceExplorationAgency
19 World Watch
MAMORUMOHRI
Director,NationalMuseum
ofEmergingScienceandInnovation
20 Questions and Answers
RISTOPELLINEN
DirectorofScienceinSpaceResearch,
FinnishMeteorologicalInstitute
22 Society News
AdvisoryCouncil
22 Planetary Sales BUZZALDRIN
RICHARDBERENDZEN
JACQUESBLAMONT
RAYBRADBURY
DAVIDBRIN
JAMESCANTRELL
FRANKLINCHANG-DIAZ
FRANKDRAKE
OWENGARRIOTT
GARRYE.HUNT
BRUCEJAKOSKY
ThePlanetaryReport(ISSN0736-3680)ispublishedbimonthlyattheeditorialofficesofThePlanetarySociety,65North
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PostAgreementNumber87424. CHARLESE.KOHLHASEJR.
Editor,CHARLENEM.ANDERSON CopyEditor,A.J.SOBCZAK LAURIELESHIN
AssociateEditor,DONNAESCANDONSTEVENS Proofreader,LOISSMITH JOHNM.LOGSDON
ManagingEditor,JENNIFERVAUGHN ArtDirector,BARBARAS.SMITH
TechnicalEditor,JAMESD.BURKE ScienceEditor,BRUCEBETTS JONLOMBERG
Viewpointsexpressedincolumnsandeditorialsarethoseoftheauthorsanddonotnecessarilyrepresentpositionsof ROSALYLOPES
ThePlanetarySociety,itsofficers,oritsadvisers.©2009byThePlanetarySociety. HANSMARK
JOHNMINOGUE
ROBERTPICARDO
JOHNRHYS-DAVIES
KIMSTANLEYROBINSON
DONNAL.SHIRLEY
KEVINSTUBE
A
PUBLICATION
OF 3
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
Beyond Apollo:
Where Next in Space?
byBuzzAldrinandLouisD.Friedman
Aboveleft:Intimefor
Apollo11’sfortiethan- Fortyyearsago,humankindvisitedanother anenvironmentthatmayhavegivenrisetolifein
niversary,LunarRecon- worldforthefirsttime.Itwasanincredible theplanet’sdistanthistory.
naissanceOrbiter(LRO)
momentforoneofus—steppingoffalad- Butweshouldnotmakethejourneyinasingle
hasreturnedthefirstof
severalplannedimages derontotheMoonwithNeilArmstrong,wetwo step.
oftheApollolanding frailhumanstakingthefirststepsonthatdistant LandingmenontheMoonwasoneofthemost
sites.ThisisApollo11’s shore.Itwasalsoanamazingexperiencefor complexandambitiousendeavorseverundertaken,
Eaglelanderasviewed
commandmodulepilotMichaelCollins—who andittookthreebigsteps:Mercury,Gemini,and,
fromlunarorbit.Future
LROimagesofthesesites watched,breathlessly,alongwithabouthalfa finally,Apollo.LandinghumansonMarswillbe
willhavetwotothree billionotherpeopleonhomeplanetEarth. moredifficultstill,andtakingusbeyondtheMoon
timesgreaterresolution.
Apollo11washeraldedasthebeginningof andintothesolarsystemwillrequireasystematic,
Image:NASA/GoddardSpace
anewSpaceAge.Horizonsappearedlimitless, step-by-stepapproach.Fortunately,wearepoised
FlightCenter/ArizonaState
University andthosefirstcrispfootprintsinMoondust totakethenextsteps.
weretobeaprecursorofjourneystoother,more TheimpetusbehindtheApolloprogramwasnot
Aboveright:BuzzAldrin
distantworlds.Sotheywere—forourrobotic onlyaquestfornewhorizonsbutalsoadesirefor
descendsthestepsof
emissaries. nationalprestige.TheMoonwasthefinishlinein
theApollo11lunarmod-
uleladdertobecomethe But40yearslater,theMoonisstillthefar- aspaceracebetweentheUnitedStatesandthe
secondpersontowalk thestoutwarddestinationtowhichhumanshave SovietUnion.Americawonthatraceandshould
onthesurfaceofthe
ventured.Whenwillwegofarther?Andwho nottrytore-runitagainstothernations.
Moon.NeilArmstrong
snappedthisphotowith willgo—Americans,Russians,Europeans,or Ourworldhaschanged.Peacefulinternational
a70-millimeterlunar astronautsfromnewspacefaringnationssuch cooperationnowpervadesspaceexploration,from
surfacecameraonJuly asChina,India,andJapan? theoperationoftheInternationalSpaceStation
20,1969. Photo:NASA
Itisnowtimeforhumanstogobeyondthe totheexplorationofthesolarsystem,withsuch
Moon.Marsisthenextcompellinggoalfor organizationsasNASAandtheEuropeanSpace
humanexploration.Itistheonlyplanetinour Agency(ESA)teamingfortheCassini-Huygens
solarsystemwherehumanscouldlandandper- missiontoSaturnanditsmoonTitan.America
hapssomedaysettle.Marshasoxygenandwater canreturntotheMoonwithothernationswhile
accessibletofutureexplorers,anditssurface atthesametimesettingsightsonnewgoals.
showssignsofancientliquidwater,suggesting AstheUnitedStatesretiresthespaceshuttle,
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THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
itneedstodevelopnewrocketcapability,notonlyto
replacetheshuttlebutalsototakehumansintointer-
planetaryspace.TherearemilestonesbeyondtheMoon,
justastheMercuryandGeminiprogramsrepresented
milestonesonthewaythere.Thosemilestonesmight
includereachingaSun-Earth“Lagrangian”point(of
gravitationalstability)forstartingourventuretointer-
planetaryspace,near-Earthasteroids,ortheMartian
moonsPhobosandDeimos.Finally,thereisMarsitself.
EuropeanandAsiannationsarenowdevelopingtheir TheInternationalSpaceStationwasphotographedonMarch25,2009
fromthespaceshuttleDiscoveryjustafterthetwocrafthadundocked.
capabilitiestoreachtheMoon.Americacanhelpmake
Earlierintheday,theSTS-119andinternationalExpedition18crews
thatendeavoranintegratedinternationalventure.Itcan finishednearly10daysofworktogetherontheshuttleandstation.
leadthewayinbuildinganinternationalspaceexplo- Image:NASA
rationteam,apeacefultechnologicalchallengethatwill
captivatetheentireworld.Thepoliticalinterestandsup-
portwillbefargreaterforsuchaworldwideprogram coordinatedandexecutedaspartofanintegratedpro-
ofroboticandhumanmissionstakingustotheMoon gram,designedtoachievetheultimategoalofsettling
andontoMarsthanitwouldbeforsuchanendeavor humansthere.Canweevolvethatfar—fromspacerace
undertakenbyonenationalone. tospacepartners—inlessthantwogenerations?
Inaway,wehavealreadystarted.BoththeJapanese Yes,wecan.Iftheworldlaunchesacooperativeeffort,
andtheChineserecentlycompletedsuccessfulorbiter humansmightsetfootonMartiansoilwithin25years,
missionsattheMoonandareplanningtheirfirstlanders. insteadofhavingtowaitanother40yearsormore.In
Indiaalsohasanorbiterthereandisplanningfuture fact,ifwestartnow,humanscouldtaketheirfirstnew
missions.AttheRedPlanet,NASA’sSpiritandOppor- stepsbeyondEarthorbitwithinadecade.
tunityroversstillexploretheMartiansurfacewhileMars America’slunarprogramwasoriginallyundertakento
ReconnaissanceOrbiterobservesfromspace.ESA’s showcaseonecountry’sengineeringachievements,but
MarsExpressspacecrafthasbeensendingdatafrom theApollo11Moonlandinghascometorepresentthe
Marssince2003.RussiaandChinaarelaunchingajoint spiritofexplorationinallofus.Marsbeckons.Let’san-
Marsmissioninfall2009withaChineseYinghuo-1 sweritscalltogether.
satelliteandtheRussianPhobos-Gruntlander.
Inshort,thenationsofEartharealreadyatworkon OnJuly20,1969,Apollo11astronautBuzzAldrinbe-
thenecessaryprecursorsteps—buildingtheirnational cameoneofthefirsthumanstowalkontheMoon.Since
capabilitiesandworkingtogetheronmoreambitious thatday,Aldrinhasremainedattheforefrontofefforts
ventures.NASAandESAhavealreadyannouncedthat toensureacontinuedleadingrolefortheUnitedStates
futurelandersonMarsmustbeinternational.Imagine inhumanspaceexploration.LouisD.Friedmanisexec-
whatwecoulddoifallmissionsleadingtoMarswere utivedirectorofThePlanetarySociety.
Earlymorningclouds
arevisibleonthefloor
ofNoctisLabyrinthus
inMars’giantValles
Marinerissystemof
canyons.Here,the
firsthumanexplorers
prepareforadayof
weathermonitoring
androcksamplegath-
ering. Illustration:Pat
RawlingsforNASA
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THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
We Make It Happen!
LIFE Biomodule Ready for Launch!
by Bruce Betts
Couldcosmichitchhikershaveplayedarole LIFE(LivingInterplanetaryFlightExperiment)
intheoriginsoflifeonEarth?Forlifeto module,settolaunchonboardRussia’sPhobos-
travelbetweentheplanets,certainorgan- Grunt(“soil”)missionlaterthisyear.
ismsmustbeabletosurviveforyearsinthepun- TheLIFEbiomodule—abouthalfthesizeofa
ishingenvironmentofspaceandstillthrivewhen hockeypuck—willcontain10distinctorganisms
theyreachtheirdestination.ThePlanetarySociety andasoilsample,anditwillbeabletowithstandan
istestingwhethermicroorganismscouldsurvive impactofatleast4,000timestheforceofgravity.
6 suchalongjourneyininterplanetaryspacewiththe Asthelaunchdateapproaches,thePhobosLIFE
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
Above:OursealedLIFEbiomodule.
Allphotos:BruceBetts,ThePlanetarySociety OrganismsatAmericanType
CultureCollection(ATCC)are
oftenstoredinevacuated
sodaglassvialswithanaddi-
tionalcontainerinside.This
isafreeze-driedsampleof
Bacillussafensispriorto
beingopenedandloadedinto
Left:Ourexperiment,LIFE, theLIFEmodulecapsules.
willgotoMars’moon
Phobosandreturnto
Earth.Thiscolorimageof
Phobos,takenbyMars
ReconnaissanceOrbiter’s
HiRISEcamera,hasbeen
Hereagainistheloadingof
stretchedtoexaggerate
freeze-driedorganisms(the
colorvariationswithin
white,powderysubstance
andaroundtheprominent
includestheorganismsand
craterStickney.
dried,sterilizednutrientmate-
Image:NASA/JPL/Universityof rialfromtheoriginalsolution
Arizona fromwhichtheywerefreeze
dried).SomeLIFEsamples
wereairdriedinthecapsules,
butmostwerefreezedried,
likethisBacillussafensis.
teamhasbeenextremelybusy,negotiatingbureau-
cratichurdlesandaccomplishingtheloadingofthe
organismsandsealingofthemodules.
Loading and Sealing the timevisitingitsfacilitiesandworkingwithits
Biomodules researchers.
EarlyinJune2009,IwenttoATCC(American IwasjoinedatATCCbytheleaddesignerfor
TypeCultureCollection)inManassas,Virginiafor PhobosLIFE,BudFraze,ofVectorDesign,LLC,
thefinalloadingoforganismsandsealingofall workingwithStellarExploration,Inc.Hewas
partsofthePhobosLIFEbiomodules.ATCCisa therenotonlyforoversightbutalsotoperformthe
crucialpartnerinourexperiment,providingmany finalsealingofthebiomodulesonceATCCbiolo-
oftheLIFEorganismsfromitscollectionsand gistAmySmithwasdonepreparingtheorganisms
lendingexpertiseinhandling,characterizing,dry- andloadingandsealingindividualsampletubes.
ing,andstoringthemicroorganisms.Anonprofit WewerealsojoinedbyATCCResearchScientist
organization,ATCCischargedwithstoringand TimLilburn,whohasbeenguidingmostofthe
characterizingmicroorganismsforscientificuses detailsoftheATCCactivities,andATCCDirector
intheUnitedStates,anditiswhereresearchersgo ofMicrobiologyCollectionsMarianMcKee,who
toobtainmicroorganismsforstudy.Ihadagreat hasbeenguidingATCC’soverallinvolvementwith 7
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
Insideagloveboxfilledwiththeinertgasargon,eachvialisheatsealed
usingaspeciallydesignedmachine.Priortosealing,eachvialisopened
andexposedtotheargon,thenclosedforsealing.
BiologistAmySmithandResearchScientistTim
LilburnofATCCloadthedesertsoilsampleinto
oneoftheLIFEbiomodulesoilsamplecontainers.
theproject.LIFE’sScientificPrincipalInvestigator
DavidWarmflash,fromtheUniversityofPennsylva-
nia,alsojoinedusforthesealingofthebiomodules.
Weloadedfourcomplete,identicalbiomodules:
oneflightmodel,oneflightsparethatwillbecome
ascientificcontrol,andtwoadditionalscientific
controlstostayonEarthandbecomparedwiththe
sampleintheflightmodelafteritreturnsfromspace.
Asplanned,10differentsetsoforganisms(intripli-
cate)andonesoilsamplewereloadedintoeachof
thebiomodules.
InadditiontosamplesfromATCC,radiation-
resistantbacteriasampleswereprovidedbyPetra
Rettberg’sgroupfromtheInstituteforAerospace
MedicineoftheGermanspaceagencyDLR.Tough,
tinyanimalscalledtardigradeswereprovidedby
IngemarJönssonofKristianstadUniversityinSweden.
Finally,weobtainedadesertsoilsamplefromElena
VorobyovaofMoscowStateUniversity.Formoreon
theorganismsthemselves,seetheMarch/April2009
issueofThePlanetaryReportorcheckoutourweb-
AmySmithloadsLIFEvialsintoaLIFEbiomodule.Twosetsofvials
siteatplanetary.org/programs/projects/life/. containingorganismssitinspeciallydesignedholdingtraysonthe
Weshowherethestoryoftheloadingandsealing labbenchwaitingtobeloadedintotheirappropriatebiomodules.
ofthebiomodules,toldinpictures.Youcanseemore
picturesandvideoonlineatplanetary.org/programs/
8 projects/life/.
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
Thisimageshowsa
filledLIFEbiomodule
carrier,lid,andtitanium
outercases.Individual
vialsarelabeledand
colorcodeddifferently
foreachbiomodule.The
reddish-coloreditemis
asiliconeO-ring.Itis
oneofmanydifferent
sealsusedinthebio-
moduleforredundancy.
Rightandbelow:This
setofthreepictures
showstheprocessof
attachingtitanium
cleats,fourofwhich
holdthecarrierandits
lidtogether.Sucha
brute-forcetechnique
isuseddeliberately.
Thecleatsactually
embedintheDelrin
(blackplastic)when
theyarehammered
down,increasing
theirgrip.
9
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009
Fromlefttoright:LIFEbiomodule
titaniumbottomwithtwotemperature
stickers,eachofwhichwillcovera
differentrangeoftemperaturesand
willshowmaximumtemperatures
experienced;aporonshockpad;a
loadedcarrierseenfromthebottom
(radiationdetectorsarethesmall
whitesquarescoveredinyellow
Kaptontape);aporonshockpad;
andatitaniumlid.
Cuttingtheindiumwirethat
formsyetanotherredundantseal
intheLIFEbiomodule.Itislaid
intoagrooveinthelowerpartof
thetitaniumcase,andit“flows”
tofillthegrooveandthecontact
withtheupperpieceofthecase
onceitisattached.Theindium
actuallychemicallybondswith
thetitaniumovertime,increasing
thestrengthoftheseal.
Feeding the Bureaucracies betweenthemanyRussianagenciesinvolved.Wealso
Muchnontechnicalpreparationhasbeennecessaryfor putmucheffortintocompletingallthelayersofpaper-
thePhobosLIFEproject.Itcertainlyisnotasmuch worknecessaryforRussiancustomsandintofinding
funandnotasinterestingasthetechnicalchallenges, andarrangingthebestshippingmethodsforthe
butitisjustasimportantand,sometimes,justascom- biomodule.
plex.Oneofthefirstchallengesinvolvedgettingan
exportcontrollicensefromtheU.S.StateDepartment Loaded and Ready to Go
fortheLIFEbiomodule.Thisisnecessarybecause WehavebeeninformedthatthePhobosLIFEbiomod-
anythingthatfliesonaforeignspacecraft,nomatter ulehasbeensuccessfullyintegratedintothePhobos-
howbenign,issubjecttoInternationalTraffickingin Gruntsamplereturncapsule.Theproductofourhard
ArmsRegulations(ITAR).ThePlanetarySociety workandyoursupportisreadyforlaunch.Aswego
thereforeregisteredas“armstraffickers”andgota topress,Phobos-Gruntisstillscheduledtolaunchin
TechnicalAssistanceAgreementfortheprojectand OctoberforatriptoMars’moonPhobosandback—
anexportcontrollicenseforthehardware. takingourexperimentona34-monthjourneythrough
Earlierintheproject,wealsocarriedouttechnical deepspace.Wereallydidmakeithappen.
studiestomakesurewewerewellwithinplanetary Now,whatwillhappentotheorganisms?Wetruly
protectionguidelinessetbyCOSPAR(theCommittee don’tknow.Ifanyoftheorganismssurvivesthetrip
onSpaceResearchoftheInternationalCouncilfor intospaceandback,thatwillprovidestrongevidence
Science).Asweanticipated,ourexperimentisindeed favoringthetranspermiahypothesis.
wellinsideCOSPARguidelines. Whatevertheresult,wedoknowthatthismission
Wealsohadaninitialsetofagreementswiththe willbeoneverytinystepformicrobesandonegiant
SpaceResearchInstitute(withwhomwearecollabo- leapforThePlanetarySociety.
ratingonthisproject),whichwerefollowedbyother
agreementswithvariousgroups,alongwithour Bruce Betts is director of projects for The Planetary
10 contributionstomoreformalagreementswithinand Society.
THEPLANETARYREPORT JULY/AUGUST2009