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Planetary Report Report The PLANETARYPLANETARY REPORT REPORT Volume XXIV Number 4 July/August 2004 Saturn’s Allure Volume XXIV Table of Number 4 Contents July/August 2004 A PUBLICATION OF Features From Planetary Protection—Can’t Leave Home Without It The 6 When thinking about sending humans to Mars, it is in our nature to question: Editor could these organic explorers contaminate the Martian environment? Conversely, when they return to Earth, could astronauts inadvertently expose terrestrial life to very day, those who follow the adven- extraterrestrial biohazards? Margaret Race, an ecologist specializing in planetary tures of our robotic explorers among protection, ponders these questions and works to ensure that the environments of E both Mars and the Earth are protected. the planets have something new to see and learn. On the Internet, images from Mars, Cassini-Huygens’ New Home— Saturn, and other strange new worlds are 12 The First Days in Saturn’s Orbit posted regularly. At scientific conferences, Cassini-Huygens has begun its four-year tour of the spectacular ringed planet and its scientists jostle each other to give papers dozens of moons. Just hours after passing between two Saturnian rings and settling on their latest work, and journals are filled into orbit around the planet, Cassini began returning the best images ever taken of with papers announcing new results. Seldom the magnificent system. Here we showcase some of these first postcards from its have Earthly explorers seen such a trove of new home, some 934 million miles away. discoveries. When bringing these discoveries to Plan- The 2004 Shoemaker NEO Grants— etary Society members, it’s often hard to 18 Send in Those Applications! decide what is most important to include in It’s time for a new round of Shoemaker NEO Grants, funded entirely by donations this magazine. Do we bring you breaking from Planetary Society members. So far, 17 grants totaling more than $120,000 have news at the expense of thoughtful historical helped observers discover and track countless near-Earth objects. Planetary scientist pieces? Do we focus on the politics behind Dan Durda, who administers the program for the Society, explains how the field of planetary missions or concentrate on hard NEO research is changing and calls for the next round of applicants. science? The answer to our questions is “all of the above,” just spread out among many issues. We also have another matter to consider: Departments at The Planetary Society, we are always Members’ Dialogue looking to the future. So in this issue, along 3 with a report on Cassini’s initial discoveries We Make It Happen! at Saturn, we bring you considerations for 4 future Mars exploration, when humans join 5 Society News robots on the Red Planet. It’s always a juggling act when there’s 19 World Watch so much to cover. That’s the downside of today’s rich state of planetary exploration. 20 Questions and Answers It’s one we’re glad to deal with, and one we will fight to keep us busy for the next 25 years. —Charlene M. Anderson Contact Us Mailing Address: The Planetary Society, 65 North Catalina Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91106-2301 On the Cover: General Calls: 626-793-5100 Sales Calls Only: 626-793-1675 This color rendition of Saturn’s rings was constructed from data re- E-mail: [email protected] World Wide Web: http://planetary.org turned by Cassini’s Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph just after the spacecraft went into orbit on July 1, 2004. The Cassini division The Planetary Report (ISSN 0736-3680) is published bimonthly at the editorial offices of The Planetary Society, 65 North Catalina Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91106-2301, 626-793-5100. It is available to members of The Planetary Society. Annual dues in the US are $30 (US dollars); in Canada, $40 (Canadian dollars). Dues in in faint red at left is followed by the A ring, which begins with an in- other countries are $45 (US dollars). Printed in USA. Third-class postage at Pasadena, California, and at an additional mailing office. Canada Post Agreement Number 87424. terior of red followed by more turquoise as it spreads away from the Editor, CHARLENE M. ANDERSON Copy Editor, A. J. SOBCZAK planet. Turquoise represents denser material made up of ice. The Associate Editor, DONNA ESCANDON STEVENS Proofreader, LOIS SMITH Managing Editor, JENNIFER VAUGHN Art Director, BARBARA S. SMITH red band at right is the Encke gap. Technical Editor, JAMES D. BURKE Science Editor, BRUCE BETTS Image: Larry Esposito, University of Colorado/JPL/NASA Viewpoints expressed in columns and editorials are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent positions of The Planetary Society, its officers, or its advisers. ©2004 by The Planetary Society. Cofounder CARL SAGAN 1934–1996 Board of Directors Chairman of the Board BRUCE MURRAY Members’ Professor of Planetary Science and Geology, California Institute of Technology President Dialogue WESLEY T. HUNTRESS JR. Director, Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington Vice President NEIL DE GRASSE TYSON Astrophysicist and Director, Hayden Planetarium, American Museum of Natural History Executive Director LOUIS D. FRIEDMAN ANN DRUYAN Make It Robotic this picture. industry and would certainly author and producer DANIEL GERACI As a child in the 1960s, my fa- I do not accept the view that enrich all of our lives. Pride Executive Vice President, Phoenix Companies vorite fantasy was to be one of the inspiration, excitement, and aside, I doubt the same could JOHN M. LOGSDON Director, Space Policy Institute, the first explorers on Mars. To sense of unified purpose that be said for a human mission. I George Washington University Advisory Council Chair be one of those explorers our species so desperately need wonder how many other Society CHRISTOPHER P. McKAY planetary scientist, NASA Ames Research Center would be the ultimate thrill. can only be had through the vi- members feel the same way? ELON MUSK I came pretty close to expe- carious thrill of watching astro- —DIETER LOEWRIGKEIT, Chairman, CEO, SpaceX BILL NYE riencing that thrill in the early nauts walking on other planets. Hackettstown, New Jersey science educator JOSEPH RYAN morning of July 20, 1976 in Robotic spacecraft Executive Vice President and General Counsel, Marriott International Beckman auditorium at the are better-suited even for these Shoemaker ROALD Z. SAGDEEV former Director, Institute for Space Research, California Institute of Technol- nonscientific goals because NEO Grants Russian Academy of Sciences STEVEN SPIELBERG ogy. Along with a few hundred they at least have a chance of The Planetary Society is right director and producer MARIA T. ZUBER other people, I had spent the being built and flown with the for funding this worldwide Professor, Massachusetts Institute of Technology night there, listening to updates limited funds available. endeavor which is ultimately Advisory Council from the Jet Propulsion Labo- There may be some sensible important for all of human- JIHEI AKITA Executive Director, The Planetary Society, Japan ratory waiting for the landing need for humans in space. But kind. What is the use of pre- BUZZ ALDRIN of Viking 1. The first image to for The Planetary Society to serving our historical past, of Apollo 11 astronaut NORTON BELLKNAP arrive was a close-up of one of support human exploration of developing Third World coun- President, Paul Taylor Dance Company RICHARD BERENDZEN the lander’s feet and the sur- Mars could ultimately be self- tries, of doing scientific research educator and astrophysicist JACQUES BLAMONT rounding soil, slowly painted defeating. As with the Super- such as controlling diseases, Chief Scientist, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales, France RAY BRADBURY onto the screen in vertical conducting Supercollider, we going into space, and making poet and author stripes as the data came in risk getting the worst of both our environment safe to live in, DAVID BRIN author from the spacecraft. When worlds—huge expenditures if we ignore what is so obvious FRANKLIN CHANG-DIAZ enough stripes revealed the un- that suck the funding from a danger—a danger that could NASA, Astronaut Office ARTHUR C. CLARKE mistakable image of a small robotic exploration, followed wipe out all of what we’ve author FRANK DRAKE pebble, the audience burst into by abandonment of the whole worked for and saved, for President, SETI Institute; Professor of Astronomy and As- trophysics, University of California,Santa Cruz cheers. The second image was thing when cost overruns erode ourselves and for the world, OWEN GARRIOTT former astronaut; Professor, a stunning panorama of a glo- political support. in an instant? University of Alabama, Huntsville GARRY E. HUNT rious afternoon on Mars. It Many thanks for The Plane- It would be like making your space scientist, United Kingdom BRUCE JAKOSKY brought tears to my eyes. I ary Report. It’s one of the house all pretty and expensive planetary scientist staggered out into a glorious things I most enjoy getting and then forgetting to buy fire THOMAS D. JONES planetary scientist; former astronaut and author Pasadena sunrise, sleep de- in the mail. or flood insurance—or at least SERGEI KAPITSA Institute for Physical Problems, prived and euphoric. —JOHN C. WATHEY, to put in devices that could Russian Academy of Sciences CHARLES E. KOHLHASE JR. Most of what we know about San Diego, California warn the household. Develop- mission designer, author, digital artist our solar system has come ing measures to counteract a LAURIE LESHIN planetary scientist from robotic explorers. Spirit I am a long time member of possible hit by a sizable near- JON LOMBERG and Opportunity are making The Planetary Society and con- Earth object would be the artist HANS MARK more great discoveries even as sider myself a strong advocate same as a form of insurance.
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