JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2010 THE MAGAZINE OF THE AMERICAN ASTRONAUTICAL SOCIETY ISSUE 1 VOLUME 49 SPACE TIMES • January/February 2010 1 AAS OFFICERS PRESIDENT Frank A. Slazer, Northrop Grumman EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT Lyn D. Wigbels, RWI International Consulting Services JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2010 VICE PRESIDENT–TECHNICAL Srinivas R. Vadali, Texas A&M University VICE PRESIDENT–PROGRAMS Kathy J. Nado ISSUE 1–VOLUME 49 VICE PRESIDENT–PUBLICATIONS David B. Spencer, Penn State University VICE PRESIDENT–STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS AND OUTREACH Mary Lynne Dittmar, Dittmar Associates VICE PRESIDENT–MEMBERSHIP Patrick McKenzie, Ball Aerospace T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E A M E R I C A N A S T R O N A U T I C A L S O C I E T Y VICE PRESIDENT–EDUCATION Angela Phillips Diaz VICE PRESIDENT–FINANCE Carol S. Lane, Ball Aerospace VICE PRESIDENT–INTERNATIONAL Clayton Mowry, Arianespace, Inc. VICE PRESIDENT–PUBLIC POLICY Peggy Finarelli, George Mason University/CAPR LEGAL COUNSEL Franceska O. Schroeder, Fish & Richardson P.C. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR James R. Kirkpatrick, AAS PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE 3 AAS BOARD OF DIRECTORS FEATURES TERM EXPIRES 2010 Linda Billings, George Washington University Martian Caves May Enable Sustainable Human Ronald J. Birk, Northrop Grumman Rebecca L. Griffin, GriffinSpace LLC Exploration of the Red Planet 4 Hal E. Hagemeier, National Security Space Office The ACCESS Mars report, written by a group of young space professionals Dennis Lowrey, General Dynamics Molly Kenna Macauley, Resources for the Future from the International Space University, tells the tale. Erin Neal, ATK by ACCESS Mars Team (ISU SSP09) Lesa B. Roe Rosanna Sattler, Posternak Blankstein & Lund LLP Robert H. Schingler, Jr. Woodrow Whitlow, Jr. Putting the Excitement Back into Science Education 9 TERM EXPIRES 2011 Without inspiring students to learn and pursue careers in science, Peter M. Bainum, Howard University technology, engineering, and math, our nation is at serious risk Robert H. Bishop, University of Texas at Austin Mark K. Craig, SAIC over the next decade and beyond. J. Walter Faulconer, Applied Physics Laboratory by Daniel Barstow Jonathan T. Malay, Lockheed Martin Christopher Nelson, Oceaneering Space Systems Arnauld E. Nicogossian, George Mason University Suneel Sheikh, ASTER Labs, Inc. AAS NEWS Patricia Grace Smith, Patti Grace Smith Consulting Gregg Vane, Jet Propulsion Laboratory Report on AAS Imagine ‘09: Ideas at Work 11 TERM EXPIRES 2012 by Rick W. Sturdevant A. William Beckman, The Boeing Company Steven Brody, International Space University Lance Bush, Paragon Space Development Corporation UPCOMING EVENTS Jürgen Drescher, German Aerospace Center 19 Paul Eckert, The Boeing Company Steven D. Harrison, BAE Systems Felix Hoots, The Aerospace Corporation 48th ROBERT H. GODDARD MEMORIAL SYMPOSIUM 21 Kim Luu, Air Force Research Laboratory Nicole Jordan Martinez, X PRIZE Foundation Brooke Owens, Federal Aviation Administration NOTES ON A NEW BOOK SPACE TIMES EDITORIAL STAFF Paving the way for Apollo 11 22 EDITOR, Jeffrey P. Elbel Reviewed by James M. Busby PHOTO & GRAPHICS EDITOR, Dustin Doud PRODUCTION MANAGER, Diane L. Thompson BUSINESS MANAGER, James R. Kirkpatrick SPACE TIMES is published bimonthly by the American Astronautical Society, a professional non-profit society. SPACE TIMES is free to members of the AAS. Individual subscriptions may be ordered from the AAS Business Office. © Copyright 2010 by the American Astronautical Society, Inc. Printed in the United States of America. ISSN 1933-2793. PERIODICALS SPACE TIMES, magazine of the AAS, bimonthly, volume 49, 2010—$80 domestic, $95 foreign The Journal of the Astronautical Sciences, quarterly, volume 58, 2010—$180 domestic, $200 foreign 6352 Rolling Mill Place, Suite 102 To order these publications, contact the AAS Business Office. Springfield, VA 22152-2370 USA REPRINTS Tel: 703-866-0020 Fax: 703-866-3526 Reprints are available for all articles in SPACE TIMES and all pa- [email protected] www.astronautical.org pers published in The Journal of the Astronautical Sciences. 2 SPACE TIMES • January/February 2010 PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE As we begin a new year, I want take this opportunity to give the broader Society visibility into two technical committees which are an important part of the Society’s mission to advance astronautics: the AAS Space Flight Mechanics Committee (SFMC); and the Rocky Mountain Section Guidance & Control Technical Committee (RMTC). Both have winter meetings. The SFMC is co-sponsoring Space Flight Mechanics Meeting with AIAA in San Diego February 14-17, 2010, and the RMTC is hosting the annual AAS Guidance and Control Conference February 5-10, 2010, at the Beaver Run Resort and Conference Center in Breckenridge, Colorado. The Space Flight Mechanics Committee is composed of thirty elected members of the AAS who generally come from industry, academia, or government. Nominations for new committee members are made prior to the summer meetings. Those who are elected serve five year terms. The primary purposes of the Committee are to: · organize and conduct two conferences per year, the AAS/AIAA Astrodynamics Specialist Conference (summer), and the AAS/AIAA Space Flight Mechanics Meeting (winter); · nominate deserving AAS members for professional awards (e.g., the Dirk Brouwer Award); · administer other awards (e.g., the John V. Breakwell Student Travel Award); and · provide advice to the AAS Board of Directors. A secondary purpose is to advise and consult regarding AAS-sponsored ad hoc symposia related to astrodynamics and space flight mechanics. There are also several active standing subcommittees that have primary responsibility for recurring Committee activities. In addition to its regular winter and summer meetings, there are two ad hoc SFMC symposia back to back this May honoring George Born and Terry Alfriend, two long term space flight mechanics community members. For more committee information, please see http://www.space-flight.org/. The Rocky Mountain Section originated in 1977 as a joint effort between Martin Marietta, Ball Aerospace, and the University of Colorado. The charter is to advance the technology and provide forums for exchange of information related to research, development, production, and performance of techniques, devices, and systems concerning the guidance, control, navigation, and dynamics of space vehicles, missiles, and other aerospace products of interest to members of the Society. To accomplish its charter, the RMTC sponsors an annual conference dedicated solely to G&C technologies the first week of February. Conference sessions include an annual review of Recent Experiences, Advances in G&C, and one-on-one Technical Exhibits. The remaining sessions are designed to introduce new and innovative technologies through a wide range of topics. The section benefits from the continued support by NASA and DOD Labs, which provide a significant contribution to the technical content and participation in the conference. An emphasis on the theoretical aspects of G&C is provided by internationally recognized academia. Since its formation, the Rocky Mountain Section has maintained an annual scholarship of $1000 awarded to the top student from the University of Colorado Aerospace and Electrical Engineering departments. For more details, please see http://www.aas-rocky-mountain-section.org/. Participation at these committees’ conferences over the years has included attendees from academia, government labs, NASA, and DOD. The meetings sponsored by the SFMC and the RMTC involve the participation of a substantial number of engineers and scientists from many countries. Both committees, with assistance from Univelt, Incorporated, and the AAS Business Office, produce bound and CDR-ROM proceedings of each meeting and encourage the submission of papers for the AAS Journal, substantially contributing to the advancement of astronautics. Frank A. Slazer [email protected] ON THE COVER FRONT: An image of central Port-au-Prince, Haiti showing extensive damage, debris-covered roads, and streets crowded with victims due to the recent magnitude 7 earthquake. This image was taken by the GeoEye 1 satellite from an altitude of 423 miles at 10:27 a.m. EST on January 13, 2010. The heavily-damaged Presidential Palace is on the center-right of this picture. (Courtesy of GeoEye satellite photo) BACK: Dunes of sand-sized materials from a crater in Noachis Terra, west of the giant Hellas impact basin on Mars. This image was taken by the MRO HiRISE camera. (Courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona) SPACE TIMES • January/February 2010 3 Martian Caves May Enable Sustainable Human Exploration of the Red Planet by ACCESS Mars team (ISU SSP09), G. de Carufel, J. Apeldoorn, K.M. Bennell, O. Haider, T. Hirmer, I.E. Jivãnescu, A. Shaghaghi Varzeghani, T. Mar Vaquero Escribano, Y. Winetraub, B. Gallardo, A. Fernández-Dávila, J. Zavaleta, and R. Laufer Recent remote sensing observations missions. The use of caves could for human exploration in our solar have demonstrated the presence of ultimately make long duration human system. Evidence of methane, ice and underground caves near the Martian missions on Mars both technically carbonates are only a few clues which surface, and most promisingly lava tubes feasible and politically sustainable, raise the question of the current or past in ancient volcanic regions. These natural enabling the next giant leap for mankind: presence of life on the red planet. Only caverns may offer shelter against hazards a long-term human presence on Mars. through