Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005

Editor/Publisher: David J. Thomas, Ph.D., Science Division, Lyon College, Batesville, Arkansas 72503-2317, USA. [email protected]

Marsbugs is published on a weekly to monthly basis as warranted by the number of articles and announcements. Copyright of this compilation exists with the editor, but individual authors retain the copyright of specific articles. Opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the authors, and are not necessarily endorsed by the editor or by Lyon College. E-mail subscriptions are free, and may be obtained by contacting the editor. Information concerning the scope of this newsletter, subscription formats and availability of back-issues is available at http://www.lyon.edu/projects/marsbugs. The editor does not condone "spamming" of subscribers. Readers would appreciate it if others would not send unsolicited e-mail using the Marsbugs mailing lists. Persons who have information that may be of interest to subscribers of Marsbugs should send that information to the editor.

Articles and News Announcements

Page 1 EUROPE GOES BACK TO MARS Page 8 WASHINGTON DC THINK TANK PUBLISHES ZUBRIN ESA release 19-2005 ANALYSIS OF SPACE PROGRAM Mars Society release Page 2 WAYWARD PLANET KNOCKS EXTRASOLAR PLANETS FOR A LOOP Page 8 NSBRI POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM By Robert Sanders SOLICITING APPLICATIONS National Space Biomedical Research Institute release Page 3 THE CASSINI MISSION AND ASTROBIOLOGY By Christopher Chyba Page 8 ESP2 ABSTRACT DEADLINE APPROACHING By Lee Kump Page 4 MICHAEL GRIFFIN TAKES THE HELM AS NASA ADMINISTRATOR Mission Reports NASA release 05-096 Page 8 CASSINI SIGNIFICANT EVENTS FOR 7-13 APRIL 2005 Page 4 MOON WATER NASA/JPL release By David H. Levy and Tony Phillips Page 11 DART UPDATES Page 5 LOW OXYGEN LIKELY MADE "GREAT DYING" NASA releases WORSE, GREATLY DELAYED RECOVERY University of Washington release Page 11 DEEP IMPACT MISSION UPDATE By Maura Rountree-Brown Page 6 "ALIEN" LIFE FORMS MAY EXIST ON EARTH STATES REPORT IN ASTROBIOLOGY JOURNAL Page 12 MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR IMAGES Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. release NASA/JPL/MSSS release

Page 6 CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS Page 12 MARS ODYSSEY THEMIS IMAGES By Maggie Turnbull NASA/JPL/ASU release

Page 7 NASA SCIENTIST: "MARS COULD BE BIOLOGICALLY ALIVE" By Leonard David

EUROPE GOES BACK TO MARS Three candidate missions were considered: BeagleNet, ExoMars and its ESA release 19-2005 variant ExoMars-Lite. Consideration was also given to the preparatory 8 April 2005 activities needed to develop a sustainable, long-term Mars Exploration program and how efforts to 2011 address the requirements of a Mars Sample European space scientists have strongly recommended a mission equipped Return (MSR) mission within an overall Aurora roadmap. with a Rover as the next scientific mission to Mars as part of the European Space Agency’s Aurora program of planetary exploration. The mission would Following scientific and technology presentations of each candidate mission conduct a detailed analysis of the martian environment and search for traces of an evaluation process was undertaken by the scientists measured against key past or present life. A launch in June 2011, followed by a two year journey, criteria. The outcome and consensus of the workshop recommended a would arrive on the Red Planet in June 2013. A detailed proposal will be mission which blended key technologies and objectives from each of the prepared for consideration by ESA member states at the Agency’s Council candidate missions as the first robotic mission in the Aurora program. This Meeting at Ministerial Level in December 2005. recommendation will form the basis of a detailed proposal by the scientific community to be considered at the ESA’s Council Meeting at Ministerial The recommendation was made by European scientists at an international Level in December 2005. space workshop held at Aston University, Birmingham, England on the 6th and 7th April 2005. The ESA workshop, hosted by the UK’s Particle Physics The recommended mission will consist of a Soyuz launcher to deliver a probe and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC), brought together space scientists which includes at least one Rover for scientific exploration of the martian and agency officials from Europe, Canada, North America and the environment. Telecommunications (data relay) between the probe and Earth international space community in order to debate robotic mission options up will be achieved via NASA orbiting spacecraft. The Rover would be to 2013 in the first phase of the Aurora program. equipped with a suite of scientific instruments designed to search for traces of past or present life on Mars; to characterize the shallow subsurface Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 2 water/geochemical composition and its vertical distribution profile; and to conclusion is based on computer extrapolations from 13 years of observations identify surface and environmental hazards to future human missions. of planet motions around the star Upsilon Andromedae. It suggests that the non-circular and often highly elliptical orbits of many of the extrasolar planets Taking into account the exciting and scientifically intriguing results from discovered to date may be the result of planets scattering off one another. In ESA’s Mars Express orbiter the recommended mission will also incorporate such a scenario, the perturbing planet could be shot out of the system entirely instruments to specifically measure seismic phenomena which could be or could be kicked into a far-off orbit, leaving the inner planets with eccentric caused by volcanoes, hydrothermal activity or Marsquakes. The Rover will orbits. also contain a drill capable of penetrating the surface to a depth of 2m and a Beagle 2 type life marker experiment such as a Gas Analysis Package (GAP) capable of studying stable isotopes in the atmosphere, rocks, and soil. The entry, descent and landing system (EDLS) will utilize key technologies involving airbags and possibly retrorockets.

To be launched by a Soyuz Fregat 2b vehicle in June 2011 from ESA’s spaceport at Kourou in French Guiana the probe and Rover would arrive on the surface of Mars in June 2013 after a two year voyage. Looking beyond 2011 the scientists confirmed their commitment to collaborating in an international Sample Return Mission in 2016 (which would include sample acquisition and handling, mobility and planetary protection), as a logical sequence to the recommended mission in the future roll out of ESA’s Aurora program.

Commenting on the workshop, Professor Jean Pierre Swings, Chair of ESA's Artist's rendering of the Upsilon Andromedae planetary Exploration Program Advisory Committee, said, "This workshop has brought system, where new research suggests the circular orbit of an extremely wide range of scientists together from a diverse range of planets was disrupted by an unseen planet caroming disciplines to recommend what will be a tremendously exciting mission for through the solar system. Image credit: Sylwia Walerys/ European space. It builds upon the success of ESA’s Mars Express whilst Northwestern University. driving new technologies that will form the foundation for the future development of the Aurora program". "This is probably one of the two or three extrasolar systems that have the best observations and tightest constraints, and it tells a unique story," said Eric In terms of UK involvement Dr. Mark Sims, University of Leicester and Chair Ford, a Miller postdoctoral fellow at UC Berkeley. "Our explanation is that of PPARC’s Aurora Advisory Committee was buoyant, "This is a great result the outer planet's original orbit was circular, but it got this sudden kick that for European planetary exploration with significant involvement for the UK. permanently changed its orbit to being highly eccentric. To provide that kick, The UK community has worked hard to ensure that the Aurora program we've hypothesized that there was an additional planet that we don't see now. reflects the scientific and industrial expertise we have in the UK and the We believe we now understand how this system works." recommended mission builds upon the heritage of Beagle 2 and Huygens. We look forward to making major contributions to this scientific mission of If such a planet had caromed through our solar system early in its history, the discovery to the Red Planet". researchers noted, the inner planets might not now have such nicely circular orbits, and, based on current assumptions about the origins of life, Earth's Contacts: climate might have fluctuated too much for life to have arisen. Peter Barratt PPARC Head of Communications "While the planets in our solar system remain stable for billions of years, that Phone: +44 [0] 1793 442025 wasn't the case for the planets orbiting Upsilon Andromedae," Ford said. Mobile: + 44 [0]7879 602899 "While those planets might have formed similarly to Jupiter and Saturn, their E-mail: [email protected] current orbits were sculpted by a late phase of chaotic and violent interactions." Franco Bonacina European Space Agency According to Ford's colleague, Frederic A. Rasio, associate professor of Spokesman and Head of Media Relations Division physics and astronomy at Northwestern, "Our results show that a simple Phone: +33 1 5369 7713 mechanism, often called 'planet-planet scattering'—a sort of slingshot effect Fax: + 33 1 5369 7690 due to the sudden gravitational pull between two planets when they come very E-mail: [email protected] near each other—must be responsible for the highly eccentric orbits observed in the Upsilon Andromedae system. We believe planet-planet scattering Piero Messina occurred frequently in extrasolar planetary systems, not just this one, resulting European Space Agency from strong instabilities. So, while planetary systems around other stars may Aurora Program Communication be common, the kinds of systems that could support life, which, like our solar Phone: +33 1 5369 7410 system, presumably must remain stable over very long time scales, may not be Fax: +33 1 5369 7601 so common." Mobile: +33 6 8771 5126 The computer simulations are reported in the April 14 issue of the journal Read the original news release at Nature by Ford, Rasio and Verene Lystad, an undergraduate student majoring http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMOBUV797E_index_2.html. in physics at Northwestern. Ford was a student of Rasio's at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology before pursuing graduate studies at Additional articles on this subject are available at: Princeton University and arriving at UC Berkeley in 2004. http://www.astrobio.net/news/article1522.html The planetary system around Upsilon Andromedae is one of the most studied WAYWARD PLANET KNOCKS EXTRASOLAR PLANETS FOR A of the 160-some systems with planets discovered so far outside our own solar LOOP system. The inner planet, a "hot Jupiter" so close to the star that its orbit is By Robert Sanders only a few days, was discovered in 1996 by UC Berkeley's Geoff Marcy and University of California, Berkeley release his planet-hunting team. The two outer planets, with elongated orbits that 13 April 2005 perturb each other strongly, were discovered in 1999. These three, huge, Jupiter-like planets around Upsilon Andromedae comprised the first extrasolar The peculiar orbits of three planets looping around a faraway star can be multi-planet system discovered by Doppler spectroscopy. explained only if an unseen fourth planet blundered through and knocked them out of their circular orbits, according to a new study by researchers at the Because of the unusual nature of the planetary orbits around Upsilon University of California, Berkeley, and Northwestern University. The Andromedae, Marcy and his team have studied it intensely, making nearly Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 3

500 observations—10 times more than for most other extrasolar planets that said Lystad, who started working with Rasio when she was a sophomore and have been found. These observations, the wobbles in the star's motion did many of the computer integrations as part of her senior thesis. "We were induced by the orbiting planets, allow a very precise charting of the planets' surprised to find that, for many of our simulations, it was difficult to tell motions around the star. whether the planets were in the same plane due to the fact that the middle planet's orbit periodically became so very nearly circular. Once we noticed "The observations are so precise that we can watch and predict what will this strange behavior was present in all of our simulations, we recognized it as happen for tens of thousands of years in the future," Ford said. an earmark of a system that had undergone planet-planet scattering. We realized there was something much more interesting going on than anyone had found before."

Understanding what happened during the formation and evolution of Upsilon Andromedae and other extrasolar planetary systems has major implications for our own solar system.

"Once you realize that most of the known extrasolar planets have highly eccentric orbits (like the planets in Upsilon Andromedae), you begin to

Left: The Terestrial Planet Finder will search for wonder if there might be something special about our solar system," Ford Earth-like planets orbiting 250 of the closest stars. said. "Could violent planet-planet scattering be so common that few planetary Image credit: NASA. Right: Artist concept of star systems remain calm and habitable? Fortunately, astronomers—led by Geoff system, HD70642. Image credit: John Rowe Marcy, a professor of astronomy at UC Berkeley—are diligently making the animation. observations that will eventually answer this exciting question."

Today, while the innermost planet huddles close to the star, the two outer The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and UC planets orbit in egg-shaped orbits. Computer simulations of past and future Berkeley's Miller Institute for Basic Research. orbital changes showed, however, that the outer planets are engaged in a repetitive dance that, once every 7,000 years, brings the orbit of the middle Read the original news release at planet to a circle. http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2005/04/13_planet.shtml.

"That property of returning to a very circular orbit is quite remarkable and An additional article on this subject is available at generally doesn't happen," Ford said. "The natural explanation is that they http://www.astrobio.net/news/article1523.html. were once both in circular orbits, and one got a big kick that caused it to become eccentric. Then, the subsequent evolution caused the other planet to THE CASSINI MISSION AND ASTROBIOLOGY grow its eccentricity, but because of the conservation of energy and angular By Christopher Chyba momentum, it returns periodically to a very nearly circular orbit." From Space.com 14 April 2005 Previously, astronomers had proposed two possible scenarios for the formation of Upsilon Andromedae's planet system, but the observational data For the past year, the SETI Institute has been one of the lead teams in NASA’s was not yet sufficient to distinguish the two models. Another astronomer, Astrobiology Institute (NAI), and this week many members of the SETI Renu Malhotra at the University of Arizona, had previously suggested that Institute have been in Boulder, CO for the biennial meeting of the NAI. The planet-planet scattering might have excited the eccentricities in Upsilon SETI Institute’s team pulls together a dozen of our scientists and educators in Andromedae. But an alternative explanation claimed that interactions among Life in the Universe research, SETI research, and Education and Public the planets and a gas disk surrounding the star could also have produced such Outreach to address some of the most important questions in astrobiology. eccentric orbits. By combining additional observational data with new Chief among these is to understand how the origin and evolution of life computer models, Ford and his colleagues were able to show that interactions depends upon particular planetary environments, and how, in turn, planetary with a gas disk would not have produced the observed orbits, but that environments may themselves be shaped by biology. We are pursuing these interactions with another planet would naturally produce them. questions by investigating a number of worlds in our own solar system, and by asking similar questions about worlds orbiting other stars. "The key distinguishing feature between those theories was that interactions with an outer disk would cause the orbits to change very slowly, and a strong interaction with a passing planet would cause the orbits to change very quickly compared to the 7,000-year time scale for the orbits to evolve," Ford said. "Because the two hypotheses make different predictions for the evolution of the system, we can constrain the history of the system based on the current planetary orbits."

Ford said that as the planets formed inside a disk of gas and dust, the drag on the planets would have kept their orbits circular. Once the dust and gas dissipated, however, only an interaction with a passing planet could have created the particular orbits of the two outer planets observed today. Perhaps, he noted, the perturbing planet was knocked into the inner planets by interactions with other planets far from the central star. However it started, the resulting chaotic interactions would have created a very eccentric orbit for the third planet, which then also gradually perturbed the second planet's orbit. Because the outer planet dominates the system, over time it perturbed the middle planet's orbit enough to deform it slowly into an eccentric orbit as well, which is what is seen today, although every 7,000 years or so, the middle planet returns gradually to a circular orbit. Although Titan is unlikely to harbor life as we know it, this large moon of Saturn may resemble primordial Earth in many ways. Image credit: "This is what makes the system so peculiar," said Rasio. "Ordinarily, the NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute. gravitational coupling between two elliptic orbits would never make one go back to a nearly perfect circle. A circle is very special." ...Besides Earth, we are paying a great deal of attention to three other worlds in the solar system. (1) Mars, which once clearly had liquid water on its "Originally the main objective of our research was to simulate the Upsilon surface, and may still have for at least brief periods. The Red Planet may or Andromedae planetary system, essentially in order to determine whether the may not harbor a subsurface biosphere. (2) Jupiter’s moon Europa, which outer two planets lie in the same plane like the planets in the solar system do," almost certainly is host to the solar system’s second ocean, with the possibility Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 4 that that ocean hosts at least microbial life, and (3) Saturn’s moon Titan, the master's degree in Applied Physics from Johns Hopkins University; a master's most mysterious of all, and a body that has recently been explored in detail by degree in Business Administration from Loyola College; and a master's the Cassini spacecraft and the Huygens probe. degree in Civil Engineering from George Washington University.

Read the full article at For more information about NASA and agency programs on the Internet, visit http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_cassini_050414.html. http://www.nasa.gov.

MICHAEL GRIFFIN TAKES THE HELM AS NASA Contact: ADMINISTRATOR Dean Acosta/Bob Jacobs NASA release 05-096 NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC 14 April 2005 Phone: 202-358-1898/1600

Michael D. Griffin reported to work today as NASA's 11th Administrator. Additional articles on this subject are available at: Administrator Griffin becomes the leader of the agency on the day the http://www.space.com/news/050414_meet_mike.html Expedition 11 crew is set to launch to the International Space Station. The http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish/mike_griffin_takes_helm.html Administrator was confirmed late Wednesday night by the U.S. Senate. An official swearing-in ceremony will be scheduled later. MOON WATER By David H. Levy and Tony Phillips "I have great confidence in the team that will carry out our nation's exciting, From NASA Science News outward-focused, destination-oriented program," said Griffin. "In the coming 14 April 2005 days, I'll be spending a good deal of my time reviewing our progress toward returning the Space Shuttle safely to flight. I will also be reviewing the The first object in the night sky most of us ever saw, the Moon remains a activities of our mission directorates and our various supporting functions. I mystery. Haunted by poets, looked upon by youngsters in love, studied share with the agency a great sense of privilege that we have been given the intensely by astronomers for four centuries, examined by geologists for the wonderful opportunity to extend humanity's reach throughout the solar last 50 years, walked upon by twelve humans, this is Earth's satellite. And as system." we look towards the Moon with thoughts of setting up a permanent home there, one new question is paramount: does the Moon have water? Although During his confirmation hearing Tuesday before the U.S. Senate, the none has been definitely detected, recent evidence suggests that it's there. Administrator stated his priorities, consistent with the President's Vision for Space Exploration will be:  Fly the Space Shuttle as safely as possible until its retirement, not later than 2010;  Bring a new Crew Exploration Vehicle into service as soon as possible after the Space Shuttle is retired;  Develop a balanced overall program of science, exploration and aeronautics at NASA, consistent with the redirection of the human spaceflight program to focus on exploration;  Complete the International Space Station in a manner consistent with our international partner commitments and the needs of human exploration;  Encourage the pursuit of appropriate partnerships with the emerging commercial space sector;  Establish a lunar return program having the maximum possible utility for later missions to Mars and other destinations.

President George W. Bush nominated Griffin as NASA Administrator in March, while he was serving as the Space Department Head at Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory in Baltimore. Griffin was President and Chief Operating Officer of In-Q-Tel, Inc., before joining Johns Hopkins in April 2004. He also served in several positions within Orbital Sciences Corporation, Dulles, VA, including Chief Executive Officer of Magellan Systems, Inc.

Earlier in his career, Administrator Griffin served as Chief Engineer at NASA and as Deputy for Technology at the Strategic Defense Initiative Organization. He has served as an adjunct professor at the University of Maryland, Johns Hopkins University and George Washington University. He The Moon, photographed by amateur astronomer Sylvain Weiller. taught courses in spacecraft design, applied mathematics, guidance and navigation, compressible flow, computational fluid dynamics, spacecraft Why should there be water on the Moon? Simply for the same reason that attitude control, astrodynamcis and introductory aerospace engineering. He is there's water on Earth. A favorite theory is that water, either as water by itself the lead author of more than two dozen technical papers, as well as the or as its components of hydrogen and oxygen, was deposited on Earth during textbook, Space Vehicle Design. its early history—mostly during a period of "late heavy bombardment" 3.9 billion years ago—by the impacts of comets and asteroids. Because the Moon A registered professional engineer in Maryland and California, the shares the same area of space as Earth, it should have received its share of Administrator is a fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and water as well. However, since it has only a tiny fraction of Earth's gravity, Astronautics (AIAA). He is a recipient of the NASA Exceptional most of the Moon's water supply should have evaporated and drifted off into Achievement Medal, the AIAA Space Systems Medal and the Department of space long ago. Most, but perhaps not all. Defense Distinguished Public Service Medal, the highest award given to a non-government employee. He is a certified flight instructor with instrument In ancient times, observers commonly thought the Moon had abundant water and multiengine ratings —in fact, the great lava plains like Mare Imbrium were called maria, or seas. But when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed on the Moon in 1969, they He received a bachelor's degree in Physics from Johns Hopkins University; a stepped out not into the water of the Sea of Tranquillity, but onto basaltic master's degree in Aerospace Science from Catholic University of America; a rock. No one was surprised by that—the idea of lunar maria had been Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Maryland; a master's replaced by lava plains decades earlier. degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Southern California; a Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 5

As preparations were underway in the mid 1960s for the Apollo program, questions about water on the Moon were barely on the radar screen. Geologists and astronomers were divided at the time as to whether the lunar surface was a result of volcanic forces from beneath, or cosmic forces from above. Grove Carl Gilbert in 1893 already had the answer. That famous geologist suggested that large asteroidal objects hit the Moon, forming its craters. Ralph Baldwin articulated the same idea in 1949, and Gene Shoemaker revived the idea again around 1960. Shoemaker, almost alone among geologists of his day, saw the Moon as a fertile subject for field geology. He saw the craters on the Moon as logical impact sites that were formed not gradually in eons, but explosively in seconds.

The Apollo flights confirmed that the dominant geological process on the Moon is impact-related. That discovery, in turn, ushered in a new question. Since Earth's water was probably delivered largely by comets and asteroids, could this process have done the same for the Moon? And could some of that water still be there?

Hydrogen deposits measured by Lunar Prospector.

In 1994, the SDI-NASA Clementine spacecraft orbited the Moon and mapped its surface. In one experiment, Clementine beamed radio signals into shadowed craters near the Moon's south pole. The reflections, received by antennas on Earth, seemed to come from icy material. That makes sense. If there is water on the Moon, it's probably hiding in the permanent shadows of deep, cold craters, safe from vaporizing sunlight, frozen solid. So far so good, but... the Clementine data were not conclusive, and when astronomers tried to find ice in the same craters using the giant Arecibo radar in Puerto Rico, they couldn't. Maybe Clementine was somehow wrong.

In 1998, NASA sent another spacecraft, Lunar Prospector, to check. Using a device called a neutron spectrometer, Lunar Prospector scanned the Moon's surface for hydrogen-rich minerals. Once again, polar craters yielded an intriguing signal: neutron ratios indicated hydrogen. Could it be the "H" in

H2O? Many researchers think so. Lunar Prospector eventually sacrificed itself to the search. When the spacecraft's primary mission was finished, NASA decided to crash Prospector near the Moon's south pole, hoping to liberate a bit of its meager layer of water. Earth's satellite might briefly become a comet as amounts of water vapor were released.

Lunar Prospector crashed, as planned, and several teams of researchers tried to detect that cloud, but without success. Either there was no water, or there was not enough water to be detected by Earth-based telescopes, or the telescopes were not looking in precisely the right place. In any event, no water was found from Prospector's impact.

In 2008, NASA plans to send a new spacecraft to the Moon: the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), bristling with advanced sensors that can sense water in at least four different ways. Scientists are hopeful that LRO can decide the question of Moon water once and for all. Our interest is not just scientific. If we are indeed to build a base on the Moon, the presence of water already there would offer a tremendous advantage in building and running it. It's been 35 years since we first set foot on the Moon. Now ambitious eyes once again look toward our satellite not just as a place to visit, but as a place to live.

Read the original article at http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2005/14apr_moonwater.htm. Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 6

LOW OXYGEN LIKELY MADE "GREAT DYING" WORSE, It would be like forcing athletes to exercise more but giving them less food. GREATLY DELAYED RECOVERY They'd be in trouble." University of Washington release 14 April 2005 Ward was lead author of a paper published in Science earlier this year presenting evidence that extinction rates of land vertebrates were elevated The biggest mass extinction in Earth history some 251 million years ago was throughout the late Permian, likely because of climate change, and culminated preceded by elevated extinction rates before the main event and was followed in a mass extinction at the end of the Permian. The event, often called "the by a delayed recovery that lasted for millions of years. New research by two Great Dying," was the greatest mass extinction in Earth's history, killing 90 University of Washington scientists suggests that a sharp decline in percent of all marine life and nearly three-quarters of land plants and animals. atmospheric oxygen levels was likely a major reason for both the elevated extinction rates and the very slow recovery. Ward said paleontologists had previously assumed that Pangea was not just a supercontinent but also a "superhighway" on which species would have Earth's land at the time was still massed in a supercontinent called Pangea, encountered few roadblocks while moving from one place to another. and most of the land above sea level became uninhabitable because low However, it appears the greatly reduced oxygen actually created impassable oxygen made breathing too difficult for most organisms to survive, said barriers that affected the ability of animals to move and survive, he said. Raymond Huey, a UW biology professor. What's more, in many cases nearby populations of the same species were cut off from each other because even "If this is true, then I think we have to go back and look at oxygen and its role low-altitude passes had insufficient oxygen to allow animals to cross from one in evolution and how different species developed," Ward said. "You can go valley to the next. That population fragmentation likely increased the without food for a couple of weeks. You can go without water for a few days. extinction rate and slowed recovery following the mass extinction, Huey said. How long can you go without oxygen, a couple of minutes? There's nothing with a greater evolutionary effect than oxygen." "Biologists have previously thought about the physiological consequences of low oxygen levels during the late Permian period, but not about these Contacts: biogeographical ones," he said. Vince Stricherz Phone: 206-543-2580 E-mail: [email protected]

Raymond Huey Phone: 206-543-1505 E-mail: [email protected]

Peter Ward Phone: 206-543-2962 E-mail: [email protected]

Read the original news release at http://www.uwnews.org/article.asp? A depiction of present-day Earth overlaid with simulated atmospheric articleID=9592. oxygen of the early Triassic period. Because oxygen was low, even at sea level, animals would have been restricted to very low altitudes, Additional articles on this subject are available at: shown in green. Areas shaded red are higher elevations where many http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/050414_mass_extinction.html animals could not have found sufficient oxygen and so could not have http://www.spacedaily.com/news/life-05z.html lived or even traversed, leaving lowland populations fragmented and http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish/low_oxygen_great_dying.html isolated. Image credit: George Wang, UW. "ALIEN" LIFE FORMS MAY EXIST ON EARTH STATES REPORT Atmospheric oxygen content, about 21 percent today, was a very rich 30 IN ASTROBIOLOGY JOURNAL percent in the early Permian period. However, previous carbon-cycle Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. release modeling by Robert Berner at Yale University has calculated that atmospheric 18 April 2005 oxygen began plummeting soon after, reaching about 16 percent at the end of the Permian and bottoming out at less than 12 percent about 10 million years "If life readily emerged on Earth shortly after conditions became favorable, into the Triassic period. isn't it likely that other genesis events also occurred, creating additional 'alien' life forms that co-exist with known life?" asks a groundbreaking hypothesis "Oxygen dropped from its highest level to its lowest level ever in only 20 paper in the April 2005 (Volume 5, Number 2) issue of Astrobiology, a peer- million years, which is quite rapid, and animals that once were able to cross reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The paper is available mountain passes quite easily suddenly had their movements severely free online at www.liebertpub.com/ast. restricted," Huey said. In "Finding a Second Sample of Life on Earth," authors P. C. W. Davies and He calculated that when the oxygen level hit 16 percent, breathing at sea level Charles Lineweaver propose multiple scenarios for how a second genesis of would have been like trying to breathe at the summit of a 9,200-foot mountain life could have occurred. Given that existing life formed under early Earth- today. By the early Triassic period, sea-level oxygen content of less than 12 like conditions, then logically it would seem possible for alternative life to percent would have been the same as it is today in the thin air at 17,400 feet, have formed on Earth in a similar manner and to have survived to the present higher than any permanent human habitation. That means even animals at sea day. level would have been oxygen challenged. How then to detect a "second sample", and is there evidence for "alien life" on Huey and UW paleontologist Peter Ward are authors of a paper detailing the Earth? Davies, from the Australian Centre for Astrobiology at Macquarie work, published in the April 15 edition of the journal Science. The work was University (New South Wales), and Lineweaver, from the Planetary Science supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and the National Institute at the Australian National University, conclude that life is likely to Aeronautics and Space Administration's Astrobiology Institute. have emerged on Earth more than once and, although there are ways to obtain Not only was atmospheric oxygen content dropping at the end of the Permian, evidence of alien life, these microorganisms could exist on Earth today and the scientists said, but carbon dioxide levels were rising, leading to global remain undetected. climate warming. "Davies and Lineweaver consider a way to cut the anthropic knot," says "Declining oxygen and warming temperatures would have been doubly journal Hypothesis Papers editor, Norman H. Sleep, Ph.D., Professor in the stressful for late Permian animals," Huey said. "As the climate warms, body Departments of Geophysics and Geological and Environmental Sciences, temperatures and metabolic rates go up. That means oxygen demand is going Stanford University. "If the origin of life is easy, a second example of life up, so animals would face an increased oxygen demand and a reduced supply. may lurk beneath our noses. We have the technology to commence our search." Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 7

Astrobiology is an authoritative peer-reviewed journal published bimonthly in print and online. The Journal provides a forum for scientists seeking to advance our understanding of life's origins, evolution, distribution and destiny in the universe. A complete table of contents and a full sample issue may be viewed online at http://www.liebertpub.com/ast.

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's 60 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available at http://www.liebertpub.com/.

Contact: Paula Masi Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. Phone: 914-740-2100 x2163 The number of HabCat stars, as a function of distance for M-type stars E-mail: [email protected] (solid red histogram), K stars (dark-hatched green histogram), G stars (light-hatched violet histogram), F stars (horizontal-lined yellow CRUNCHING THE NUMBERS histogram), and all stars (open blue histogram). Inset, Allen Telescope By Maggie Turnbull Array. Image credit: M. Turnbull, J. Tarter. From Astrobiology Magazine 18 April 2005 My definition of a Habstar is a star that has a habitable zone, first of all. That habitable zone is dynamically stable, meaning that it's not perturbed by giant Maggie Turnbull, an astronomer with the Carnegie Institution, has spent planets on eccentric orbits swooping in and out of the habitable zone. many years thinking about what kind of stars could harbor Earth-like planets. Her database of potentially habitable star systems could be used as a target We know now that many stars have giant planet companions. In many of list for NASA's upcoming Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF) mission. Turnbull these systems, the giant planets do not enter the habitable zone. There are a presented a talk, "Remote Sensing of Life and Habitable Worlds: Habstars, few giant planet systems where the known planet is in the habitable zone Earthshine and TPF," at a NASA Forum for Astrobiology Research on March throughout its entire orbit, and those actually should be top TPF targets. Not 14, 2005. This edited transcript of the lecture is part two of a four-part because we'll be able to image any habitable moons those planets might have, series. but because the planet itself should be a "can't-miss-it" target. For something like TPF that's designed to see Earths, we should certainly be able to see giant There are 400 billion stars in the galaxy, and obviously we're not going to planets. point the Terrestrial Planet Finder at all of them. The TPF science working group has defined a successful mission as a search for planets around 35 stars A dynamically stable habitable zone is also not perturbed by any other stellar —these stars will be our best targets. Then, once that is completed, we'll look companions. Most stars are not single like the sun. Instead, they exist in at 130 more stars. So we'll have 165 stars to work with during the TPF binary, triple, or quadruple stellar systems. Could the orbits of those stars mission lifetime. interfere with planets orbiting within the habitable zone? To figure this out, we have to look at the mass ratio of the various components, the location of It's going to take a lot of observing time to discover a planet in the first place, the habitable zone, and the orbit of the second star. I've mapped all that out and it's going to take even longer to do spectroscopy on a planet once it's been for about 15,000 binaries. It turns out that the vast majority of binaries are discovered. So 165 stars is a large task, even though it doesn't sound like perfectly safe places to live for habitable planets. much. But it's not many stars compared to the number of possible targets in the Galaxy, so we want to choose very wisely, especially considering the A Habstar will need to be dynamically stable on a timescale that's comparable amount of money this mission is going to cost. to the timescale of global biosignature production. The Earth didn't have continents covered with plants and a strong oxygen signature from day one; it I hesitate to mention money, because I want everybody to focus on how TPF took at least a couple billion years to build up. It wasn't until about 2 billion is this fantastic mission. But we're going to be spending somewhere between years ago that a strong and detectable oxygen signature would have existed on 12 and 30 million dollars per star that we look at. I personally think it's worth this planet. If we use a minimum age of 2 billion years, that means we can it, even if we only find an Earth-like planet around just one of those stars. But eliminate some of the stars in the solar neighborhood from our TPF target list. given the sheer price tag of each target in this mission, we owe it to the taxpayers and to ourselves to think very carefully about which stars we look A star should have a habitable zone that is spatially static on that same 2 at. billion year time scale. All stars are variable to some extent, and as they evolve over time, their luminosity changes. Main sequence stars burn We should design the core target list of 35 stars so that, when the TPF-C hydrogen, and as they evolve they get brighter and cooler, and eventually end mission is done, in case we haven't found anything, we can still make a up as red giants. The speed at which stars evolve depends on their mass. meaningful scientific statement. We don't want to just look at a smattering of Very massive stars evolve quickly into red giants, whereas less massive stars every different kind of star that's out there, because there really are a lot of will remain a main sequence star for a long time, not changing much in different kinds of stars. brightness.

Instead, we should design a core target list to hone in on a particular kind of To see how this long term evolution of a star affects habitability, let's look at star, or at least a small range of stars, that are similar to our own star. Places the sun. When the sun was young, it was fainter, so the habitable zone was where, if there were a planet in the habitable zone, we could live. So, in the closer to the sun. As the sun has aged, up to today at almost 5 billion years, case of not finding anything, we can make a statement that, "X percent of G2- the habitable zone has slowly moved outwards. At somewhere between 6 and V stars of solar metallicity that are thin disk members don't have planets," or 7 billion years in age, Earth will no longer be in the habitable zone. We will "No more than X percent has an Earth-like planet around it." be interior to the habitable zone, because the sun will have increased in luminosity. At that point, the oceans will evaporate into space and we won't But on the other hand, we may not be able to be that picky. We're going to be want to live here anymore. up against engineering constraints. But if I put on my scientist hat and say, "Engineers, you're just going to have to build what I want for this mission," In between 7 and 8 billion years, however, Mars will enter the outer habitable then as a scientist I would want to look at Habstars. zone. This doesn't mean that we can just move from Earth to Mars, because there's a 1 billion year gap where nothing is habitable. Mars will be in the Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 8 habitable zone for about 2 billion years, until the sun becomes a red giant. At result of volcanic or hydrothermal activity on the red planet. Many types of that point, nowhere in the solar system is habitable. The sun spends only microbes here on Earth produce a signature of methane. Indeed, the tiny another 1 billion years as a red giant before it starts to lose its outer envelope fraction of atmospheric carbon found as methane on our planet is churned out and become a planetary nebula. almost entirely biologically with only a very small contribution from abiotic processes, scientists say.

Read the full article at http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/050419_mars_methane.html.

WASHINGTON DC THINK TANK PUBLISHES ZUBRIN ANALYSIS OF SPACE PROGRAM Mars Society release 18 April 2005

An in-depth critique of the space program and a prescription of the radical steps necessary to make the new Bush administration "Vision for Space Exploration" real written by Mars Society president Dr. Robert Zubrin has been published in the Spring 2005 edition of "The New Atlantis," the journal of the Ethics and Public Policy Center (EPPC). The EPPC is a Washington, DC science policy think tank with very close links to the Bush administration, and several EPPC fellows serve the White House as high level advisors.

The Zubrin article, entitled "Getting Space Exploration Right," includes fierce and systematic criticism of former NASA administrator's non-destination driven approach of (not) implementing the president's new human space exploration policy. It also diagnoses the source of the many debacles of the O'Keefe administration, including the Hubble fiasco, the Orbital Space Plane and JIMO program failures, and the Columbia disaster. Finally, the article lays out the technical approach needed for successful implementation of a human Moon-Mars exploration program.

Together with the appointment of the highly competent, aggressive, and The Sun, a typical G2V dwarf. G stars are characterized by the results oriented Dr. Mike Griffin as new NASA administrator, the publication presence of metallic lines and weak hydrogen. Image credit: Harvard by the EPPC of the Zubrin article furnishes strong evidence that the Bush University. White House has made a decisive turn towards actually implementing the new space exploration vision. The New Atlantis article can be read in html online Since higher mass stars evolve more quickly then lower mass stars, then if we at http://www.thenewatlantis.com/archive/8/zubrin.htm, or downloaded as a want our targets to have been habitable for 2 billion years or longer, we don't PDF from http://www.marssociety.org/docs/TNA08-Zubrin.pdf. want stars that are so massive that they evolve all the way to red giants in less then 2 billion years. So stars that are more massive than about a solar mass An in depth strategy planning session to map plans to win the political and and a half are not good TPF targets. That really limits the mass range for this technical fight for human Moon-Mars exploration will be held at the 8th mission. International Mars Society Convention, August 11-14, 2005, University of Colorado, Boulder. Those wishing to present papers on any subject relating to Related to this is the concept of short-term variability. The sun is variable the exploration or settlement of Mars should submit abstracts of no more than over days, decades and millennia, in addition to this longer term trend over 300 words by May 31, 2005 to [email protected]. Registration is now billions of years. Those shorter period variability cycles don't seem to impact open at www.marssociety.org biology much. The sun is exceptionally stable, but for other stars with levels of variability 10 or even 30 times as much as the sun, I don't think that's really For further information about the Mars Society, visit our web site at going to make too much of a difference for biology. www.marssociety.org. Metallicity is a concern. We have seen that, at least for giant planets in very short period orbits, the likelihood of a planet being present is related to the NSBRI POSTDOCTORAL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM SOLICITING metallicity of the star—the heavy metal content of the star itself. Since stars APPLICATIONS and planets form out of the same original material, that makes sense. The National Space Biomedical Research Institute release Earth is made out of heavy elements—for example, iron—so a star that has 18 April 2005 zero metallicity is probably not a good target. The National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI) is soliciting So after we apply all of these cuts, we end up with about 500 scientifically applications for its Postdoctoral Fellowship Program. Two-year fellowships interesting stars within 30 parsecs. You could go further out in distance if you are available in any U.S. laboratory carrying out space-related biomedical or wanted to find more stars, but I think 500 is plenty. biotechnological research that supports the NSBRI's goals. NSBRI research addresses and seeks solutions to the various health concerns associated with Read the original article at http://www.astrobio.net/news/article1526.html. long-duration human space exploration.

Applicants must submit proposals with the support of a mentor and institution, NASA SCIENTIST: "MARS COULD BE BIOLOGICALLY ALIVE" and all proposals will be evaluated by a peer-review panel. By Leonard David The program is open to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, or persons with From Space.com pre-existing visas obtained through their sponsoring institutions. Detailed 19 April 2005 program and application submission information is available on the NSBRI Web site at http://www.nsbri.org/Announcements/rfp05-01.html. Letters of Evidence for intense local enhancements in methane on Mars has been intent and applications must be submitted through the NSBRI's electronic bolstered by ground-based observations. The methane, as well as water on proposal submission system. Letters of intent are due May 11, 2005, and the Mars, was detected using state-of-the-art infrared spectrometers stationed atop application deadline is June 28, 2005. Mauna Kea, Hawaii and in Cerro Pachón, Chile. Questions may be directed to: Scientific teams around the globe are on the trail of methane seeping out of Gerald Sonnenfeld, Ph.D. Mars. And for good reason: the methane could be the result of biological Program Director processes. It could also be an "abiotic" geochemical process, however, or the Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 9

NSBRI Postdoctoral Fellowship Program E-mail: [email protected] Phone: 607-777-4818

ESP2 ABSTRACT DEADLINE APPROACHING By Lee Kump Geological Society of America release 19 April 2005

The abstract submission deadline is quickly approaching for the Earth System Processes 2 meeting in Calgary this coming 8-11 August 2005. The participation of a diverse array of scientists, like you, who are investigating how the Earth system works today, how it functioned in the past, and how it will function in the future, promises to make this one of the best scientific meetings of its kind to date. Abstracts are due 11:59 PM, Mountain Time, April 26, 2005. You must submit your abstract electronically at http://gsa.confex.com/gsa/2005ESP/index.epl.

To learn more about the meeting, visit our web site at http://www.geosociety.org/esp2. You'll see that there is an exciting line-up of plenary speakers including Fred Mackenzie, Dianne Newman, Jerry Mitrovica, and Stefan Bengtson, as well as theme sessions highlighting the cutting edge of our science. You can contribute a poster or oral presentation to any of a number of approved theme sessions, or make a general submission. We'll work with the accepted abstracts to create additional theme sessions as needed.

We strongly recommend that you take advantage of your trip to the gateway Saturn's bright moon Enceladus hovers here, in front of a rings of the Canadian Rockies and sign up for one of the many specially designed darkened by Saturn's shadow. Enceladus is 505 kilometers (314 field trips offered. Evening activities include two workshops on Earth miles) across. This view is from less than one degree beneath the ring systems education K-16 and an out-of-the ordinary conference banquet. Other plane. If seen from directly beneath the rings, the planet's giant social activities, including activities for friends and family members shadow would appear as an elongated half-ellipse; the acute viewing accompanying you, are being arranged as well. angle makes the shadow look more like a strip here. The dark shadow first takes a bite out of the rings at the right, where the distant, The discounted Standard Registration deadline is 27 June, 2005. outermost ring material appears to taper and fade. Ring features After this date On-site/Late prices apply. The cancellation/refund deadline is visible in this image from the outer ring edge inward include: the A ring, 5 July, 2005. Chris Beaumont, Don Canfield and I are looking forward to the Cassini Division and the B ring. The C ring is the darker region seeing you in Calgary in August! that dominates the rings here. The two gaps visible near the center and below the left of the center are the Titan Gap, about 77,800 CASSINI SIGNIFICANT EVENTS FOR 7-13 APRIL 2005 kilometers (48,300 miles) from Saturn, and an unnamed gap about NASA/JPL release 75,800 kilometers (47,100 miles) from the planet. The image was 15 April 2005 taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on March 7, 2005, at a distance of approximately 1.1 million kilometers The most recent spacecraft telemetry was acquired Wednesday from the (650,000 miles) from Enceladus and at a Sun-Enceladus-spacecraft, or Goldstone tracking station. The Cassini spacecraft is in an excellent state of phase, angle of 30 degrees. The pixel scale is 6 kilometers (4 miles) health and is operating normally. Information on the present position and per pixel. Image credit: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute. speed of the Cassini spacecraft may be found on the "Present Position" web page located at http://saturn.jpl.nasa.gov/operations/present-position.cfm. Cassini Outreach participated in the National Council for the Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) Conference in Anaheim, CA April 6-9, 2005. The final science activities in S09 included several magnetospheric boundary Outreach staffed the JPL booth, interacting with math teachers at the and solar wind campaigns performed by the Magnetospheric and Plasma conference. Outreach also attended a variety of professional sessions on Science (MAPS) instruments. In addition the Composite InfraRed teaching different aspects of mathematics as well as current trends in Spectrometer (CIRS) and Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) mathematics education. took data for the joint creation of far-IR maps of Saturn. Friday, April 8: At the start of this first week of S10 execution, Magnetospheric Imaging Instrument performed a Solar Wind Magnetospheric Boundary Campaign, The keys to the spacecraft were officially handed over today by the S09 Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) obtained an ansa movie of the F ring at sequence leads to those leading S10. S10 contains the first multi-day, multi- high resolution/low phase, Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph observed a vector IVP update, the second live moveable block performed during tour, the Saturn occultation of Delta Orionis, and RADAR performed three separate first being for Phoebe in June 2004, four OTMs, one targeted encounter— polarization measurements of the rings and Saturn. Other atmospheric Titan 5—and 5 non-targeted encounters of Epimetheus, Mimas, Calypso, observations included VIMS observations of the occultation of Alp CMi by Tethys, and Titan. Saturn and of the high phase limb. Navigation delivered the final Orbit Determination solution for OTM-21. The Thursday, April 7: command approval meeting, uplink, and execution will occur tomorrow. Delivery Coordination Meetings were held for the Inertial Vector Propagator This is very much a bits-and-pieces kind of day with many events occurring (IVP) V10.6, and E-Kernel Generation software v2. both in development and operations. It gives a good idea of what a day in the life of a flight project is like. All teams and offices supported the Cassini The Science Operations Plan Update process has concluded for sequence S12. Monthly Management review. Uplink Operations completed radiation of all Output products have been handed off to the sequence developers for next files in preparation for the start of S10 execution tomorrow evening. RADAR week's start of the Science and Sequence Update process. performed an engineering test on-board the spacecraft. The files for the S10 Live Inertial Vector Propagator (IVP) update that will execute on April 14 Saturday, April 9: were successfully tested in the Integrated Test Laboratory and the output products published in the project file repository. Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 10

Orbit trim maneuver #21 (OTM-21) was completed this evening. The main new version of FSW was used routinely and no unexpected resets of the engine burn began at 8:15 PM PST. A "quick look" immediately after the instrument occurred. maneuver showed the burn duration was 37.35 sec long, giving a delta-V of 5.82 m/s. All subsystems reported nominal performance. It had been decided previously that INMS would only declare the unexpected reboot problem resolved if the instrument ran without incident for more than 40 days. It was not until March 2005 during S09 that INMS was able to acquire a period of time of more than 40 days to be able to perform this test. This period was selected as it was a time where an unexpected INMS science loss due to another reset was deemed an acceptable risk. Today, April 9, upon the conclusion of S09, INMS has successfully run without a reset for over 41 days.

One year and eight months after the initial occurrence of the problem in C39, the INMS engineering, operations, and science teams have declared victory! The reboot problem was well documented and publicized. The resolution was a huge effort by a small and extremely talented group from the University of Michigan where the INMS Operations Team makes its home. INMS personnel wish to thank all those at JPL and on the Cassini Flight Team who assisted along the way with resolving this problem.

Cassini offers this lovely comparison between two of Saturn's satellites, Dione and Tethys, which are similar in size but have very different surfaces. Extensive systems of bright fractures carve the surface of Dione (1,118 kilometers, or 695 miles across). The double- pronged feature Carthage Linea points toward the crater Turnus at the nine o'clock position near the terminator, and Palatine Linea runs toward the moon's bottom limb near the five o'clock position. In contrast, the surface of Tethys (1,071 kilometers, or 665 miles across) appears brighter and more heavily cratered. The large crater Penelope is near the eastern limb. The huge rift zone Ithaca Chasma, which is 3 to 5 kilometers (2 to 3 miles) deep and extends for about 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) from north to south across Tethys, is hidden in shadow just beyond the terminator. For comparison, the Grand Canyon in Arizona is about 1.5 kilometers (1 mile) deep, and about 450 kilometers (280 miles) long. The image was taken in visible light with the Cassini spacecraft narrow-angle camera on March 7, 2005, at a distance of approximately 1.5 million kilometers (908,000 miles) from Tethys and 1.6 million kilometers (994,000 miles) from Dione. The image scale is 9 kilometers (6 miles) per pixel on Tethys, The ancient and battered surface of Saturn's moon Rhea shows a and 10 kilometers (6 miles) per pixel on Dione. Image credit: notable dark swath of territory near the eastern limb in this image from NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute. Cassini. This view shows principally the Saturn-facing hemisphere on Rhea (1,528 kilometers, or 949 miles across). North is up and tilted 40 April 9 was an extremely happy day for the Ion and Neutral Mass degrees to the right. The image was taken with the Cassini spacecraft Spectrometer (INMS) instrument team as they declared their "unexpected narrow-angle camera on March 7, 2005, through a filter sensitive to reboot" problem officially solved. In August of 2003, INMS powered on wavelengths of ultraviolet light centered at 338 nanometers. The view during the C39 sequence for the first time since launch in October 1997. Near was acquired at a distance of approximately 1.8 million kilometers (1.1 the end of this sequence they experienced an unexpected reboot of the million miles) from Rhea and at a Sun-Rhea-spacecraft, or phase, instrument. During the course of the following sequences—C40 and C42— angle of 30 degrees. Resolution in the original image was 10 they again experienced unexpected reboots. In an attempt to debug and gather kilometers (7 miles) per pixel. The image has been contrast-enhanced information about the problem, three special flight software loads were built and magnified by a factor of two to aid visibility. Image credit: and uplinked between January and March of 2004 during the execution of the NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute. C42 and C43 sequences. As a result of these special flight software "builds", the INMS engineers were able to determine that the source of the problem had Monday, April 11: to do with the interaction with the Bus Interface Unit (BIU). A few patches to change the way INMS interacts with the BIU were uplinked following this A kick-off meeting was held today for the Science Operations Plan Update discovery. Unfortunately, the patches were not successful in fixing the (SOPU) process for S13. The S13 process marks the return of SOPU to a 5- problem. week activity. S09 through S12 were the first sequences that underwent advance development in the SOP Implementation (SOPI) process back in May It was then decided that adding an ability to interact with the BIU using a 2002. As SOPI was exercised by the sequence developers, a number of double buffering approach instead of the single buffer approach was the next changes were identified as necessary during SOPU. The S09-S13 products option to examine. Within a short period of time this was determined to be a were archived, and plans were made to extend the S09 through S12 SOPU viable solution. Double buffering could not be built as a patch to flight process durations to 10 weeks to allow for these additional changes. software (FSW), so version 9.1 was built, uplinked, and tested during the S04 sequence in September 2004. During the S05 through S08 sequences, this Uplink Operations radiated Live Update commands to the spacecraft. The commands will execute next week on April 14. In addition, memory readouts Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 11

(MRO) were obtained for all partitions, the actions log, non-interfering, and DART UPDATES interfering error logs. Updated SPICE Rocks SPK & PCK Kernel files have NASA releases been released for Science Planning use. NASA Launches DART Spacecraft to Demonstrate Automated Tuesday, April 12: Rendezvous Capability NASA release 05-049, 15 April 2005 The Software Requirements and Certification Review for Cassini Plasma Spectrometer (CAPS) version 4.1.0 flight software (FSW) was held today. NASA's Demonstration of Autonomous Rendezvous Technology (DART) The FSW was approved with no pending action items. Uplink is currently spacecraft successfully launched today at 1:25 PM EDT (10:25 AM PDT) scheduled for the May 22/23 time frame. S11 sequence leads and members of from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA, beginning a 24-hour mission to the Spacecraft Operations Office are currently working final uplink dates. demonstrate technologies required to locate and autonomously rendezvous FSW checkout is tentatively planned for May 26/27. with another craft in space using only computers and sensors. The automated rendezvous spacecraft was launched on a Pegasus vehicle from the Orbital S12 began final sequence development today. In addition, the Live Update Science Corporation's Stargazer L-1011 aircraft. At approximately 40,000 Working group met this morning and decided that a local update was no feet over the Pacific Ocean, the Pegasus vehicle was released, boosting the longer a feasible option for S12. The current reference trajectory is the best DART spacecraft into an approximately 472-by-479-mile polar orbit. available baseline for developing the sequence. The team will proceed with Approximately 11 minutes after launch, the spacecraft was delivered to its the Live IVP Update strategy as identified in the summary table produced by initial orbit and successfully completed the on-orbit checkout. DART's the working group. The S12 leads have accepted the proposed live update rendezvous target during the 24-hour mission is the Multiple Paths, Beyond- schedule. Line-of-Sight Communications (MUBLCOM) satellite, an experimental communications satellite launched in 1999. Wednesday, April 13:

Remember how I said last week that the flight team would be pulling off three OTMs in 10 days? Well, here is number two. OTM-22 was successfully completed tonight. This maneuver, also called the "T5 minus 3 day maneuver," further refines Cassini's trajectory for the 1,025 km flyby of Titan on April 16. This will be the closest Titan flyby to date.

The reaction control system burn began at 8:55 PM PST. The "quick look" immediately after the maneuver showed the burn duration was 67.6 sec, giving a delta-V of approximately 63.5 mm/s. All subsystems are nominal.

Cassini Outreach participated in an astronomy night for disabled students at Cal State University-Northridge this week. A Braille trail scale model of the solar system was set up and Cassini outreach led the "solar system walk" accompanied by an American Sign Language interpreter. A Braille planisphere, moon and solar system tactiles, and even a tactile Cassini Spacecraft model were available for the sight impaired. The moon, Saturn The launch of the Pegasus rocket from the L-1011 aircraft. and Jupiter were viewed through wheelchair accessible telescopes provided by Image credit: NASA. Cassini outreach and the University's observatory. All participants also saw a planetarium show about the spring night sky. DART provides a key step in establishing autonomous rendezvous capabilities for the U.S. space program and will help lay groundwork for future manned The Cassini web site has received a Webby nomination for best science web and unmanned launch vehicle missions that use computers to do the "driving" site! The Webby Awards is the leading international award event honoring in space. Future technology applications may aid in cargo delivery, servicing excellence in Web design, functionality and creativity. Established in 1996 missions to the International Space Station and other space activities in during the web's infancy, the Webbys are presented by The International support of the Vision for Space Exploration. The DART project, managed by Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a 500-member body of leading web NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, is the first demonstration program experts, business figures, luminaries, visionaries and creative celebrities. The selected by NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate to develop Ninth Annual Webby Awards Nominees were announced on April 12 and technologies for tomorrow's exploration of the Solar System. The prime winners will be unveiled in May 3. contractor for the mission is Orbital Sciences Corp., of Dulles VA, which also developed the Pegasus launch vehicle and the MUBLCOM satellite. NASA's Saturn Observation Campaign and the Old Town Sidewalk Astronomers will Kennedy Space Center has oversight responsibility for launch integration and show Saturn, the first quarter moon and Jupiter in Pasadena on Colorado launch services. Blvd. between Fair Oaks and Pasadena Avenue Friday April 15 8:00 - 10:00 PM, and in Monrovia at Myrtle and Lime streets Saturday night April 16 from A second status report will be issued on Saturday April 16, following 8:00 - 10:00 PM. completion of DART's rendezvous and proximity operations phase. For information about NASA and Agency missions, please visit The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European http://www.nasa.gov/. For more information about the DART mission, please Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dart/main/index.html or a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the http://www.msfc.nasa.gov/news/dart/. Live information updates during the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, DART mission are available through the KSC Virtual Launch Control Center Washington, DC. JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter. at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dart/launch/vlcc.html.

Additional articles on this subject are available at: Read the original news release at http://www.astrobio.net/news/article1524.html http://www.nasa.gov/centers/marshall/news/news/releases/2005/05-049.html. http://www.spacedaily.com/news/saturn-titan-05v.html http://www.spacedaily.com/news/cassini-05zl.html Contact: http://www.spacedaily.com/news/cassini-05zm.html Kim Newton http://spaceflightnow.com/cassini/050417enceladus.html NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish/cassini_titan_flyby_april16.html Phone: 805-605-3051 http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish/enceladus_hovers_rings.html Cell phone: 256-961-8510 Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 12

On Orbit Anomaly Ends DART Mission Early NASA release 05-051, 16 April 2005

The Demonstration of Autonomous Rendezvous Technology (DART) spacecraft that was successfully launched Friday at 10:25 AM PDT from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA, experienced an on orbit anomaly late Friday. After a successful rendezvous, acquisition of the target spacecraft, and approach to within approximately 300 feet, DART placed itself in the retirement phase before completing all planned proximity operations, ending the mission prematurely.

NASA is convening a mishap investigation board to determine the reason for the DART spacecraft anomaly. A teleconference with DART project managers is scheduled for 11:00 AM PDT. Media who want to participate This image shows the first light images taken by the MRI and HRI must register by calling the DART Newsroom at 805-605-3051. instruments on the Deep Impact spacecraft on its way to impact with Comet Tempel 1 on July 4, 2005. The two telescopes were pointed at The DART spacecraft was a flight experiment attempting to establish the open star cluster, NGC3532. The left shows the middle portion of autonomous rendezvous capabilities for the U.S. space program. While an MRI image. The right is the full HRI image scaled to the field of previous rendezvous and docking efforts have been piloted by astronauts, the view of the MRI (reduced by a factor of 5). The star patterns match DART spacecraft completed the rendezvous and acquisition with no human quite well (see Digitized Sky Survey image below) telling us that the intervention, relying on a variety of sensors and analyses to complete these telescopes are operating as expected and are pointed in the same functions. direction (boresighted). For the technophiles, the boresite alignment is 98 micro-radians, and the rotation around the boresites is about 0.12 For more information about DART on the Internet, visit degrees. Stars in the MRI image are as faint as mv=12.5 in the 6 http://www.nasa.gov/. second exposure. The HRI is, as expected, out of focus. It was designed to come into focus after the bakeout heaters are run for Contacts: several weeks. Image credit: NASA/Deep Impact. Michael Braukus/Kim Newton Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA Read the original mission update at Phone: 805-605-3051 http://deepimpact.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/update.html. Read the original news release at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/dart/media/05-051.html. MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR IMAGES NASA/JPL/MSSS release Additional articles on this subject are available at: 7-13 April 2005 http://www.spacedaily.com/news/robot-05za.html http://spaceflightnow.com/pegasus/dart/ The following new images taken by the Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) on the http://www.universetoday.com/am/publish/dart_mission_failure.html Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft are now available. Olympus Flows (Released 07 April 2005) DEEP IMPACT MISSION UPDATE http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/07/ By Maura Rountree-Brown NASA/JPL release Craters and Winds (Released 08 April 2005) http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/08/ The Deep Impact mission team closed the Commission Phase of flight with the completion of the impactor projectile's checkout activities. During that Martian Fingerprints (Released 09 April 2005) phase, the team verified the basic health of all subsystems and tested the http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/09/ operation of the science instruments. The mission now moves to Cruise Phase. During the coming months, the team will work toward updating the North Polar Dunes (Released 10 April 2005) attitude control system tables that control the alignment of the spacecraft http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/10/ instruments, which refines the ability of the spacecraft to accurately point the onboard instruments at Comet Tempel 1. Dark-Rimmed Crater (Released 11 April 2005) http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/11/ The High and Medium Resolution (HRI and MRI) instruments on the flyby spacecraft are fixed in position so a period of testing and rehearsing takes place as the team asks the spacecraft to focus on a star and center it. By updating the software that commands the spacecraft's attitude control, the team finds the best X and Y axis position for the spacecraft to center on Comet Tempel 1. It's a little like buying a new camera and then learning how to take the best pictures by learning the actual parameters of that instrument. The science team will conduct instrument calibration tests using a set of stars, further verifying imaging procedures for encounter.

The High Resolution Instrument has not reached perfect focus and the team is investigating how to bring it to its best performance level. The HRI's current performance, combined with that of the Medium Resolution imaging and IR spectrometer on the flyby spacecraft and the Impactor Targeting Sensor on the projectile, still gives the mission's PI, Dr. Mike A'Hearn the confidence that images taken of Comet Tempel 1 will be the most detailed of a comet nucleus ever taken. Marsbugs: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter, Volume 12, Number 14, 19 April 2005 13

Mars at Ls 193 Degrees (Released 12 April 2005) http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/12/ North Polar Erg (Released 5 April 2005) http://themis.la.asu.edu/zoom-20050405a.html Frosty Crater (Released 13 April 2005) http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/2005/04/13/ Northern Sand Sea (Released 6 April 2005) http://themis.la.asu.edu/zoom-20050406a.html All of the Mars Global Surveyor images are archived at http://www.msss.com/mars_images/moc/index.html. North Polar Erg (Released 7 April 2005) http://themis.la.asu.edu/zoom-20050407a.html Mars Global Surveyor was launched in November 1996 and has been in Mars orbit since September 1997. It began its primary mapping mission on March Dune Variety (Released 8 April 2005) 8, 1999. Mars Global Surveyor is the first mission in a long-term program of http://themis.la.asu.edu/zoom-20050408a.html Mars exploration known as the Mars Surveyor Program that is managed by JPL for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, DC. Malin Space All of the THEMIS images are archived at http://themis.la.asu.edu/latest.html. Science Systems (MSSS) and the California Institute of Technology built the MOC using spare hardware from the Mars Observer mission. MSSS operates NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the 2001 Mars Odyssey mission the camera from its facilities in San Diego, CA. The Jet Propulsion for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, DC. The Thermal Laboratory's Mars Surveyor Operations Project operates the Mars Global Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) was developed by Arizona State Surveyor spacecraft with its industrial partner, Lockheed Martin Astronautics, University, Tempe, in collaboration with Raytheon Santa Barbara Remote from facilities in Pasadena, CA and Denver, CO. Sensing. The THEMIS investigation is led by Dr. Philip Christensen at Arizona State University. Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, is the MARS ODYSSEY THEMIS IMAGES prime contractor for the Odyssey project, and developed and built the orbiter. NASA/JPL/ASU release Mission operations are conducted jointly from Lockheed Martin and from 4-8 April 2005 JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

Isolated Northern Dunes (Released 4 April 2005) End Marsbugs, Volume 12, Number 14. http://themis.la.asu.edu/zoom-20050404a.html