MARSBUGS: The Electronic Exobiology Newsletter Volume 3, Number 5, 1 July, 1996. Co-editors: David Thomas, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, 83844-3051, USA, thoma457@uidaho.edu. Julian Hiscox, Microbiology Department, BBRB 17, Room 361, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL 35294-2170, USA, Julian_hiscox@micro.microbio.uab.edu. MARSBUGS is published on a weekly to quarterly basis as warranted by the number of articles and announcements. Copyright exists with the co-editors, except for specific articles, in which instance copyright exists with the author/authors. E-mail subscriptions are free, and may be obtained by contacting either of the editors. Contributions are welcome, and should be submitted to either of the two editors. Contributions should include a short biographical statement about the author(s) along with the author(s)' correspondence address. Subscribers are advised to make appropriate inquiries before joining societies, ordering goods etc. INDEX 1) ON LINE NASA LIFE SCIENCES RESEARCH DATABASE UPGRADED Edwin V. Bell, II 2) THE CASE FOR MARS VI Program Schedule (Preliminary) 3) ATMOSPHERIC CONFERENCE WILL EXPLORE GLOBAL WATER ISSUES JPL press release ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ON LINE NASA LIFE SCIENCES RESEARCH DATABASE UPGRADED by Edwin V. Bell, II, Goddard Space Flight Center Internet users can now access the Master Catalog of the NASA Life Sciences Data Archive (LSDA) on the World Wide Web. The archive, which represents the first detailed and easily accessible database of research results of the NASA Life Sciences Division, provides a wealth of scientific knowledge developed from 30 years of space-based research into the effects of microgravity on living systems, including the human body. NASA developed the LSDA, following a detailed evaluation process, to provide better access to data, general information and results of NASA-sponsored life sciences investigations. The archive was first introduced in June, 1995 and initially contained overview information on recent life sciences shuttle missions. With today's move, the archive has now been upgraded to include the Master Catalog, containing detailed descriptions of experiments, missions, hardware, and personnel. This information will allow researchers to plan future experiments and conduct retrospective data analysis. It will be equally valuable to students and educators in preparing research papers or class lessons, and in proposing student experiments to NASA. The LSDA is located on the World Wide Web at the National Space Science Data Center (NSSDC) and includes links to a number of other related Life Sciences Web sites. Internet users can access the LSDA at: http://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/life The Life Sciences Data Archive is a joint effort involving the Office of Life and Microgravity Sciences and Applications at NASA Headquarters; Johnson Space Center; Ames Research Center; Goddard Space Flight Center; Kennedy Space Center; with support from Lockheed Martin, Houston, TX and Moffett Field, CA; Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD; Hughes STX, Greenbelt, MD; Mains Associates, Berkeley, CA. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ THE CASE FOR MARS VI Program Schedule (Preliminary) The main objective of Case for Mars VI will be to demonstrate the feasibility of inaugurating a program of human exploration of Mars at a reasonable cost, and to allow its continuation at a sustainable level of funding. Workshops at the Conference will focus on ways to mount an initial mission to be assembled over an 8-year period for a total cost of $32B (U.S.). Of this, $16B would be the U.S. contribution with an additional $16B being provided by other countries and sources. Strong international participation in this workshop will be encouraged. The morning of each day July 17-19 (Wed-Fri) will be devoted to plenary presentations of invited talks on major topics related to costs. The afternoons will have two tracks, one for topical working groups for the workshop, and the other for presentation of contributed papers. Working groups may also meet in the evenings. Saturday July 20th is the 20th Anniversary of the landing of NASA's Viking spacecraft on Mars. The day will begin with a session titled, Life on Mars: Past, Present and Terraforming. This will be followed by a report on the Conference Workshop results detailing how human exploration of Mars can commence at a reasonable cost. The concluding session will be a review of the legacy of Viking and a look at the future of Mars exploration presented to a joint session of the Case for Mars and the Challenger Center EdVenture educator program. A live report to the Conference from US Astronaut Dr. Shannon Lucid currently aboard the Russian space station MIR is also planned. Workshop Plenary Session Topics 1. Mars Reference Mission Design 2. Cost of Mars Missions, re Mars Reference Mission 3. Mars Sample Return on the cheap. 4. Mars Surface Mission - being there. 5. medical and Life Support low cost solutions (without 20 years of research). 6. Does ISRU, automation and robotics lower costs? 7. Reducing the cost of Earth launch. 8. Management approach to low cost. 9. Radiation is not a show-stopper: low cost solutions to shielding. 10. SDI Technology used for low cost missions. 11. Robotic Precursors: Do we need them? 12. Human Precursors: What do we need (or want) from Station? 13. International Cooperation: Does it reduce cost? 14. Innovative ways of funding a Mars mission. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Jul 17 | Jul 18 | Jul 19 | Jul 20 | | Wed | Thur | Fri | Sat | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 8:00 | Registration | | | | | | . | | | | | 8:30 | Welcome | Workshop | Workshop | Life on Mars: | | | . | Plenary Talks | Plenary Talks | Past, Present | | 9:00 | Keynote | . | . | and | | | Viking Legacy | . | . | Terraforming | | 9:30 | . | . | . | . | | | Workshop | . | . | . | |10:00 | Plenary Talks | . | . | . | | | . | . | . | . | |10:30 | . | . | . | . | | | . | . | . | . | |11:00 | . | . | . |Workshop Reports| | | . | . | . | . | |11:30 | . | . | . | . | | | . | . | . | . | |12:00 | Lunch | Lunch | Lunch | CC Luncheon | | | . | . | . | . | |12:30 | . | . | . | Lucid Live | | | . | . | . | from MIR | | 1:00 | . | . | . | . | | | . | . | . | Viking Commem. | | 1:30 |Wrk| Exploration|Wrk| The Next |Wrk| Spacecraft |Mars: The Future| | |Shp| Plans |Shp| Frontier |Shp| Design | . | | 2:00 | W | . | W | . | W | . | | | | o | . | o | . | o | . | Party | | 2:30 | r | Surface | r | Public | r | Mission | . | | | k | Science | k | Support | k | Strategy | . | | 3:00 | i | . | i | . | i | . | . | | | n | . | n | . | n | . | . | | 3:30 | g | . | g | . | g | . | . | | | | Resources | | Education | | Technology | . | | 4:00 | G | . | G | . | G | . | . | | | r | . | r | . | r | . | . | | 4:30 | o | . | o | . | o | . | | | | u | . | u | . | u | . | | | 5:00 | p | . | p | . | p | . | | | | s | . | s | . | s | . | | | 5:30 | | | | | | | Reception & | | | | | 6:00 | CC Art Show | | | | | | Fiske | | | | | 6:30 | Planetarium | | | | | | . | | | | | 7:00 | . |Wrk| |Wrk| | | | | . | | Chall.Ctr. | | | | | 7:30 | . | G | Space Art | G | | | | |Wrk| | r | Auction | r | | | | 8:00 | G | | o | | o | | | | | r | | u | | u | | | | 8:30 | o | | p | | p | | | | | u | | s | | s | | | | | | 8:30 | o | | p | | p | | | | | u | | s | | s | | | | 9:00 | p | | | | | | | | | s | | | | | | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ ATMOSPHERIC CONFERENCE WILL EXPLORE GLOBAL WATER ISSUES JPL press release More than 300 scientists representing 30 countries, including members of government, scientific and international organizations, are expected to attend the "Second International Scientific Conference on the Global Energy and Water Cycle" at the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC., on June 17-21. Under the auspices of the National Research Council's Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) Panel and the World Climate Research Programme, the conference will bring together scientists involved in the study of measurements, modeling and theory of processes affecting Earth's energy and water cycle from small to global scales. "The key to all climate problems is the redistribution of the Sun's energy over the Earth and its loss into space," said Dr. Moustafa T. Chahine, chief scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and chair of the GEWEX Scientific Steering Group. "Energy cannot be separated from water in Earth's climate system." While major uncertainties in scientists' understanding of Earth's hydrological cycle still remain, progress is being made. "The prediction of precipitation and fresh water resources is of the utmost importance in terms of its impact on human beings," Chahine emphasized. "This is a major goal of the Global Energy and Water Cycle Experiment effort." Topics to be covered during the conference include: -- Flood and Drought Prediction: Global modeling of the coupled land-atmosphere system. Impact on regional precipitation and the water cycle. -- Regional Water Resources and Climate: Use of climate information for managing water resources. Determining continental-scale water budgets, runoff, precipitation and land surface characteristics. -- Cloud, Water Vapor, Aerosol and Precipitation Interactions: Measurement and modeling of the cloud and radiative elements contributing to climate variation. -- The Water and Carbon Cycle Connection: Influence of precipitation and radiation on the biogeochemical processes affecting climate. -- Ocean-Atmosphere-Ice Exchanges: Measurement and incorporation of ocean, snow and sea ice characteristics into energy and water budget studies. Results from field experiments, new developments in theory, modeling and observational capability are expected to be reported. Particular emphasis will be given to linking disciplines such as coupled atmospheric and land-surface models or cross disciplinary studies connecting the water and carbon cycle. Advances in scientific knowledge will provide scientists with new information to assess the impact of these processes on water resource management. The conference will focus on GEWEX scientific interests involving the climate feedback associated with cloud, radiation and hydrological processes. The conference will conclude with a panel discussion entitled "Direction of Research on the Global Energy and Water Cycle, and the Impact of Space Systems/Measurements." Panelists will include agency heads from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NASA, the U.S. Department of Energy, the American Meteorological Society, the World Climate Research Program and Japan. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ End Marsbugs Vol. 3, No. 5