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Mars Scientists Push for 'Mega-Mission'

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Mars Scientists Push for 'Mega-Mission' NEWS IN FOCUS that we must insure against the future.” BREXIT'S HIGH STAKES Oxford and Berlin will both benefit from the Many UK universities stand to lose tens of millions of euros in research funding from EU framework partnership, says Steffen Krach, state secretary programmes. These are the top ve UK universities in terms of income from the Horizon 2020 programme. for higher education and research in the Berlin University of Oxford Number of projects 427 state government. “Obviously, future access to EU funding for joint research is part of the University of Cambridge 450 motivation for Oxford to set up shop here, and quite legitimately so,” he says. “But we can also University College London 408 SOURCE: EUROPEAN COMMISSION learn a lot from Oxford and their success in Imperial College London 317 scouting international talent. Science in Berlin will doubtless benefit in terms of research out- University of Edinburgh 265 put and reputation from lively exchange with 0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350 one of the best universities in the world.” Funding (€ million) ACADEMIC ALLIANCES A host of other similar partnerships are at recipients of grants from the European proposals and made €10,000–30,000 available various stages of development. Institutions Research Council must spend at least 50% of in seed grants, with the intention of raising involved include the University of Warwick their time at a host institute in the EU or asso- additional third-party funding. Any faculty and Northumbria University in Newcastle, ciated country. So, continental outposts could members of the five institutes can apply. A sec- as well as the University of Glasgow. Last help UK researchers to continue to access ond call is to be announced next month. Cru- month, Imperial College London announced those grants, even if their country ceases to cially, the partnership will serve as Oxford’s an expansion of its long-standing research- officially receive them. legal entity in Germany, and will provide an and-education partnership with the Techni- Palmowski says that stable alliances administrative office at the university clinic cal University of Munich in Germany. “We’re with continental partners might also help Charité in Berlin for visiting researchers. That naturally interested in any mechanism that UK universities to safeguard EU-funded means, at least in theory, that some Oxford- allows us to continue fruitful collaborations research collaborations and student exchanges. based researchers might be able to access we have established with European partners The idea that fruitful research relations built EU funding. Berlin has also promised to pro- over the decades,” says Maggie Dallman, over decades might go to pieces is “dismay- vide space for visiting Oxford scholars in its vice-president of Imperial College. ing and heartbreaking”, says James Conroy, Natural History Museum. EU funding is one way of easing collabora- vice-principal for internationalization at The likely cost of running the partnership tion, but any mechanism to keep doors open the University of Glasgow, which hopes to will be around €800,000 a year, says Alastair in science must be transparent, says Dallman. establish such partnerships. Buchan, a pro-vice-chancellor and head of “We are not seeking to find opaque backdoor Brexit strategy at Oxford and director of the routes to getting European funding,” she says. OXFORD AND BERLIN university’s Berlin office. And he estimates “It’s ultimately all about doing more research of Of several alliances launched in recent that this will further enable many millions a higher quality with an outstanding partner.” months, a partnership between the University of euros of research projects and activity. Conroy says: “Brexit will not leave of Oxford and four institutions in Berlin is so “We’re finally doing what we should have UK universities unaffected, but we managed far the most comprehensive. Established at done since the day the UK joined the EU to live through turmoil before.” He adds: “No the end of 2017, the Oxford–Berlin Research in 1973,” says Buchan. “We took the free- matter how difficult the political crisis is, we Partner ship is mainly financed by the Berlin dom to collaborate without restrictions for will see to it that our faculty and students, state government and private sponsors. This granted. It was only when the Brexit refer- and society at large, continue to get the best year, the alliance launched a pilot call for endum came along that we began to realize possible scholarship and science.” ■ PLANETARY SCIENCE says Bethany Ehlmann, a planetary scientist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasa- dena. “If we’re going to do sample return, it has to be a sample cache for the ages.” Mars scientists push The Columbia Hills region, which NASA’s Spirit rover explored between 2004 and 2011, ranked much lower in the scientists’ for ‘mega-mission’ poll despite having silica deposits similar to those formed by hot springs. “Everybody sort of thought we should go to a new place,” Experts want NASA’s next rover to harvest rock at two sites. says Matthew Golombek, a Mars scientist at BY ALEXANDRA WITZE which contains some of the most ancient NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in rocks on Mars; and Midway, a compromise Pasadena. ASA’s next Mars rover — the first to option located between the two (see ‘Road The decision about where to send the 2020 gather rock samples meant to come Trip’). Project scientists have proposed visiting rover ultimately rests with NASA’s science back to Earth — should dream big both Jezero, for the river and lake sediments chief, Thomas Zurbuchen, who will choose in Nand visit as many places on the red planet as that might retain signs of past life, and Mid- the coming months. “I would be excited about possible, scientists concluded on 18 October. way, for the ancient rocks. The two are about any sample back,” says Meenakshi Wadhwa, a The rover’s stops would probably include 28 kilometres apart — so visiting both would planetary scientist at Arizona State University some combination of Jezero crater, once home be ambitious but achievable. in Tempe. “But we have the luxury of being to river deltas and a lake; Northeast Syrtis, “The community prefers a mega-mission,” able to choose between good sites.” 468 | NATURE | VOL 562 | 25 OCTOBER 2018©2018 Spri nger Nature Li mited. All ri ghts reserved. ©2018 Spri nger Nature Li mited. All ri ghts reserved. IN FOCUS NEWS Slated to launch in July 2020, the PHOENIX US$2.4-billion rover will be the first from any Jezero crater nation to collect Mars rocks and stash them for Midway Northeast Syrtis a future mission that would bring them back SOURCE: NASA/JPL to Earth. The geology of the landing site has to be intriguing enough — and the potential for VIKING 2 scientific discoveries there great enough — to make the mission worth the investment. VIKING PATHFINDE NASA has not planned how it would retrieve INSIGHT the rocks collected by the 2020 rover. But the OPPOTUNITY agency gathered Mars experts in Glendale, CUIOSITY SPIIT California, from 16 to 18 October to hash out the merits of four finalists for the landing site. Jezero, Northeast Syrtis and Midway came OAD TIP remarkably close to one another in votes by Mars researchers want NASA to send its next rover to two sites on 169 scientists at the workshop. The researchers the red planet to collect rocks for return to Earth. The agency is ranked the sites using several criteria, such as now considering three potential areas for the rover to visit, shown the potential of samples collected at each site to here (inset) surrounded by the landing sites of previous missions. answer crucial scientific questions about Mars. The idea of visiting Jezero and then Mid- way — or the other way around — emerged expect it to be able to travel faster than Curi- to navigate the 28 kilometres of dune fields in the past year as mission scientists debated osity, in part because of new technology that between Jezero and Midway. Driving that dis- how to get the most out of the rover’s journey. improves its ability to navigate on its own. tance would take an estimated 401 Martian “It is ambitious as heck,” says John Mustard, One major question is how many rock sam- days, says deputy project scientist Katie Stack a planetary scientist at Brown University in ples the rover will collect, and from where. Morgan at JPL. Providence, Rhode Island. Midway’s ancient The 2020 rover is equipped with 42 sample Still unknown is where the rover might rocks are similar to those at Northeast Syrtis tubes, 5 of which will be reserved as spares. stash its precious samples. One possibility is and near the rivers-and-lake system at Jezero. That leaves 37 tubes to be filled with the most that it could collect two similar sets of samples Sending a rover to Jezero and Midway would precious extraterrestrial rocks ever collected. at Jezero, depositing one there and carrying mean gambling that the vehicle would last long “Sooner or later, somebody is going to have the other on to Midway, Farley told the meet- enough to reach both sites. Its primary mis- to decide whether these samples are worth ing. That would leave open the possibility of sion is 1.25 Mars years (2.35 Earth years); dur- bringing back,” project scientist Ken Farley, retrieving the samples at Jezero if something ing that time, it is expected to travel roughly of JPL, told the meeting. “I don’t want to fail went wrong with the rover on its way to Mid- 15 kilometres.
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