MARSBUGS: The Electronic Astrobiology Newsletter Volume 6, Number 24, 13 August 1999. Editors: Dr. David J. Thomas, Biology and Chemistry Division, Lyon College, Batesville, AR 72503-2317, USA. Marsbugs@aol.com or dthomas@lyon.edu Dr. Julian A. Hiscox, School of Animal and Microbial Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, RG6 6AJ, United Kingdom. J.A.Hiscox@reading.ac.uk Marsbugs is published on a weekly to quarterly basis as warranted by the number of articles and announcements. Copyright of this compilation exists with the editors, except for specific articles, in which instance copyright exists with the author/authors. While we cannot copyright our mailing list, our readers would appreciate it if others would not send unsolicited e-mail using the Marsbugs mailing list. The editors do not condone "spamming" of our subscribers. Persons who have information that may be of interest to subscribers of Marsbugs should send that information to the editors. E-mail subscriptions are free, and may be obtained by contacting either of the editors. Article 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. Back issues and Adobe Acrobat PDF files suitable for printing may be obtained from the official Marsbugs web page at http://www.lyon.edu/webdata/users/dthomas/marsbugs/marsbugs.html . The purpose of this newsletter is to provide a channel of information for scientists, educators and other persons interested in exobiology and related fields. This newsletter is not intended to replace peer-reviewed journals, but to supplement them. We, the editors, envision Marsbugs as a medium in which people can informally present ideas for investigation, questions about exobiology, and announcements of upcoming events. Astrobiology is still a relatively young field, and new ideas may come out of the most unexpected places. Subjects may include, but are not limited to: exobiology and astrobiology (life on other planets), the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI), ecopoeisis and terraformation, Earth from space, planetary biology, primordial evolution, space physiology, biological life support systems, and human habitation of space and other planets. ---------------------------------------------------------------- CONTENTS 1) FOSSILS BLOWING IN THE WIND: MORE CONTAMINATION OF ANTARCTIC METEORITES By G. Jeffrey Taylor 2) SOLAR ACTIVITY AND CLIMATIC CHANGE By Jacqueline Mitton 3) CASSINI MISSION TO SATURN AND TITAN SUBJECT OF JPL LECTURE JPL release 4) NASA ANNOUNCES RESEARCH GRANTS IN BIOLOGY-INSPIRED TECHNOLOGY NASA release 99-89 5) NASA BUDGET REMAINS CONTENTIOUS By Mark Whalen 6) NASA BUDGET WATCH: AN ONGOING CHALLENGE By Mark Whalen 7) A DETAILED 1/26 SCALE MODEL OF THE STARDUST SPACECRAFT THAT YOU CAN DOWNLOAD AND BUILD By Dave Doody 8) SHARPEST-EVER MARS IMAGES REVEAL ACTIVE RED PLANET NASA release 99-91 9) DRAMATIC PICTURES SHOWING EVIDENCE OF SHIFTING SANDS ON MARS PRESENTED BY CORNELL ASTRONOMER THOMAS AT NASA BRIEFING Cornell University release 10) GALILEO MISSION SUMMARY By Julian Hiscox 11) MARS SURVEYOR 98 MISSION STATUS JPL release 12) STARDUST STATUS REPORT JPL release 13) TODAY ON GALILEO JPL release ---------------------------------------------------------------- FOSSILS BLOWING IN THE WIND: MORE CONTAMINATION OF ANTARCTIC METEORITES By G. Jeffrey Taylor From Planetary Science Research Discoveries http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/ 30 July 1999 One of the difficulties in searching for fossil life in Martian meteorites is deciding whether the meteorites have been contaminated since arriving on Earth. Lloyd Burckle (Lamont- Doherty Earth Observatory) and Jeremy Delaney (Rutgers University) have found dramatic new evidence for contamination in Antarctic meteorites. They removed dust from cracks in metamorphosed ordinary chondrites, which are meteorites that were heated to several hundred degrees Celsius in asteroids and are completely devoid of life. The dust contained identifiable microorganisms 5 to 40 micrometers across, from both ocean and land environments. Burckle and Delaney suggest that the fossils were transported to Antarctica by wind, along with dust, and eventually deposited in small cracks in the meteorites. They conclude that contamination with micrometer-sized organisms might be a ubiquitous process in Antarctica. This presents a big problem for scientists searching for fossil extraterrestrial life in an Antarctic meteorite. Collecting the samples Burckle and Delaney wanted to be sure they did not contaminate their samples in the curatorial facility at the Johnson Space Center (JSC), where Antarctic meteorites are actively stored, sliced, and diced, or at Lamont-Doherty. To accomplish this, they chose samples that had remained in their sealed sample bags and removed them only under ultraclean conditions at Lamont. They removed dust from cracks by immersing the samples in double-distilled (hence dust-free) water and buzzed them in an ultrasonic vibrator. This loosened and freed the micrometer- sized material from cracks. They examined the extracted dust with a conventional light microscope. Numerous microfossils The extracted dust contained a menagerie of microfossils, almost all of which were identifiable to Burckle's experienced eye. Most are diatoms, which are microscopic algae with cell walls composed of silica (SiO2). These are abundant in the oceans and lakes, and form an important source of food for many kinds of marine life. Burckle and Delaney also found an opal phytolith. These are microscopic bodies of noncrystalline silica (opal) that are secreted by plants. When the plants die and decay or burn, the phytoliths are released into the atmosphere. With a few exceptions the species are not extinct, so these microfossils would also yield organic compounds, another line of evidence for the presence of fossils in a rock--but these organic compounds would be from the Earth, not another planet. Fossil diatoms have also been found in cracks in terrestrial rocks in Antarctica, further substantiating the role of wind in their deposition. Ubiquitous contamination This study shows that scientists cannot assume that Antarctica is the place to find pristine extraterrestrial samples free of terrestrial organic contamination. This has also been shown by studies of organic compounds in martian meteorites found in Antarctica [see PSRD articles, "Martian Organic Matter in ALH84001? " and "Organic Compounds in Martian Meteorites May be Terrestrial Contaminants"]. The study does not bear directly on the possible occurrence of nanofossils (fossils substantially smaller than 1 micrometer) in ALH 84001 (the meteorite claimed by a group at the Johnson Space Center to harbor fossil life [see PSRD article, "Life on Mars? "]. Nevertheless, it raises the possibility that even the tiniest microorganism can contaminate a sample after it has arrived on Earth. The issue of contamination continues to confuse the search for life in Martian meteorites [see PSRD article, "30th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference: Some Highlights"]. This study has an interesting side benefit to understanding global climate change on Earth. The presence of diatoms in glacial deposits has been used to argue that the West Antarctic ice sheet decreased in size and was then renewed during the past few hundred thousand years. However, the presence of microfossils in rocks, meteorites, and glacial deposits in Antarctica, some of which must be deposited by the wind, suggests that scientists should be cautious when trying to unravel the past history of ice sheets. Additional resources Burckle, L. H. and J. S. Delaney, 1999, Terrestrial microfossils in Antarctic ordinary chondrites. Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 34:475-478. Jull, A. J. T., Organic Compounds in Martian Meteorites May Be Terrestrial Contaminants. PSR Discoveries, February 1998. http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/Feb98/OrganicsALH8400 1.html McKay, David S., and others, 1996, Search for Past Life on Mars: Possible Relic Biogenic Activity in Martian Meteorite ALH84001. Science, 273:924-930. Pepin, R. O., 1985, Evidence of Martian Origins. Nature, 317:473-475. Taylor, G. Jeffrey, Life on Mars? PSR Discoveries, October 1996. http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/Oct96/LifeonMars.html Taylor, G. Jeffrey, 30th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference: Some Highlights. PSR Discoveries, April 1999. http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/April99/lpsc30.html Taylor, G. Jeffrey, Martian Organic Matter in ALH84001? PSR Discoveries, June 1999. http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/June99/organicsBecker .html The Antarctic Search for Meteorites. http://www.cwru.edu/affil/ansmet/ The Diatom Collection of the California Academy of Sciences: taxonomic information, images, records of collections, and references pertaining to diatoms. http://www.calacademy.org/research/diatoms/ This article is based on the research article by Burckle, L. H. and J. S. Delaney, 1999, Terrestrial microfossils in Antarctic ordinary chondrites. Meteoritics and Planetary Science, 34:475- 478. See the following link for the original PSR Discoveries article. http://www.soest.hawaii.edu/PSRdiscoveries/July99/contamination. html ---------------------------------------------------------------- SOLAR ACTIVITY AND CLIMATIC CHANGE By Jacqueline Mitton Royal Astronomical Society press notice 5 August 1999 On Wednesday August 11th, the awesome phenomenon of a total solar eclipse will briefly touch the lives of millions of people across Europe and Asia. But subtle changes in the Sun may have a much more long-term impact on our planet as Earth's climate responds to changing patterns of solar activity. The day before the eclipse, Professor Nigel Weiss of the University of Cambridge will tell astronomers at the UK National Astronomy and Solar Physics Meetings in Guernsey about growing awareness of the connection between solar activity and the controversial issue of climate change. Although greenhouse gases released by burning fossil fuel are almost certainly responsible for the rapid current rate of global warming, there have been many previous episodes of climatic change that cannot be explained by such human activity. "Variable behavior of the Sun is an obvious explanation" says Professor Weiss, "and there is increasing evidence that Earth's climate responds to changing patterns of solar magnetic activity." The most obvious magnetic features on the Sun are sunspots-- temporary dark blemishes on the Sun's yellow disc. They occur where there are strong magnetic fields and are dark because they are cooler than the normal surface of the Sun. When the Sun becomes more magnetically active, increasing numbers of sunspots form. It has long been known that the number of sunspots rises and falls over an average period of eleven years, though these cycles are not strictly regular. Comparison between the recorded incidence of sunspots and climatic records suggests that the Sun's magnetic activity has been a major influence on climate until recently, when greenhouse gases have taken over as the main agent of change. The "Maunder Minimum" in the seventeenth century, when sunspots almost completely disappeared for 70 years, coincided with the coldest interval of the Little Ice Age. By contrast, the Sun was very active during the Medieval Warm Period, when Norsemen colonized Greenland. "Grand minima," similar to the Maunder Minimum, have recurred over the past 10,000 years at least. The evidence for this is captured in the composition of Earth's polar ice caps. Cosmic ray particles striking the Earth create unstable isotopes such as carbon-14 (used for carbon dating) and beryllium-10, which accumulate in the polar ice. As solar activity waxes and wanes, there are also slight variations in the amount of energy radiated by the Sun and in the strength of the solar wind. That in turn affects the cosmic ray particles and the formation of the isotopes. The beryllium-10 and carbon-14 records show long-term changes superimposed on the basic solar cycle, typically taking place over a time scale of 200 years. Both the 11-year cycle and its long-term variability have an impact on Earth's climate, but the mechanism by which this influence works is not yet understood. So far, there is no compelling evidence that cause and effect are directly linked in a straightforward manner. The total amount of energy radiated by the Sun does not change enough to alter Earth's temperature significantly, and other possible factors, such as the effects of ultraviolet on ozone concentration, or the influence of cosmic rays on cloud formation, are hard to estimate. But scientists know that oscillations can take place in Earth's atmosphere and oceans with many different frequencies. These could be a powerful mechanism acting to amplify the effects of small changes in the Sun's radiation. Contact information Professor Nigel Weiss Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics University of Cambridge Phone: (0)1223 337910 Fax: (0)1223 337918 E-mail: now@damtp.cam.ac.uk ---------------------------------------------------------------- CASSINI MISSION TO SATURN AND TITAN SUBJECT OF JPL LECTURE JPL release 5 August 1999 Saturn, its rings, moons and the other wonders to be explored by the Cassini space mission are the topics of the next von Karman Lecture to be held at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena on Thursday, Aug. 19, and at Pasadena City College on Friday, Aug. 20. Both lectures are free of charge, open to the public and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Parking is free. "Voyage to the Ringed Giant: The Cassini Spacecraft Completes Two Years of Its Seven-Year Journey to Saturn," will be presented by Dr. Ellis Miner, the Cassini Program's science adviser at JPL. The international Cassini mission is managed by JPL for NASA. Launched two years ago, the Cassini spacecraft began a journey of many years to reach and explore Saturn, the most distant planet that can easily be seen by the unaided human eye. In addition to Saturn's interesting atmosphere and interior, its vast system contains the most spectacular ring system in the solar system, numerous icy satellites with a variety of unique surface features, a huge magnetic environment teeming with particles that interact with the rings and moons, and the large, intriguing moon Titan, which is slightly larger than the planet Mercury, and whose hazy atmosphere is denser Earth's. The lecture at JPL will be held in the von Karman Auditorium located at 4800 Oak Grove Drive, Pasadena, near the Oak Grove Drive exit of the 210 (Foothill) Freeway. On Friday, the lecture will be held in Pasadena City College's Forum at 1570 E. Colorado Blvd. For more information, call (818) 354-5011. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA. ---------------------------------------------------------------- NASA ANNOUNCES RESEARCH GRANTS IN BIOLOGY-INSPIRED TECHNOLOGY NASA release 99-89 6 August 1999 NASA has selected 14 researchers to receive grants totaling approximately $6.5 million over four years to conduct research in biology-inspired technologies as part of a $12 million program. These grants represent new research efforts. Sponsored by NASA's Office of Life and Microgravity Science and Applications, this research opens a new area of technological development that could have tremendous impact on the future of NASA's human exploration program. Also, the technologies could have a beneficial effect on the quality of life on Earth through development of noninvasive medical monitoring, safer automobiles and aircraft, and other uses only imagined today. The results of this work will enable more efficient exploration of the near Earth environment in which the International Space Station operates. The research will develop these technologies so they can be used to explore other parts of the solar system. Biologically inspired research involves smaller systems or machines with lower power requirements and much greater capability. NASA will issue a cooperative agreement notice for a virtual center in advanced biotechnology that will tie together "ongoing" results and research and provide broader distribution of results from this research. Ten grants are for innovative technologies in early conceptual stages and based on biological materials or concepts inspired by biological functions found in nature. Four grants look at extending the capabilities of human interactions with machines through enhanced computational capabilities or improved sensor and data-handling capabilities. NASA received 123 proposals in response to this research announcement. The proposals were peer-reviewed by scientific and technical experts from academia, government and industry. In addition to technical and scientific merit, relevancy to NASA programs also was one of the selection criteria. A list of awardees (by state), their institutions, and research titles can be found on the internet at ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/99-089a.txt. ---------------------------------------------------------------- NASA BUDGET REMAINS CONTENTIOUS By Mark Whalen From the JPL Universe 6 August 1999 The "ways and means" of congressional budgets became big news at JPL last week when a House Appropriations Subcommittee voted to slash $1.3 billion from NASA's budget for fiscal year 2000, including cuts that would have devastated JPL planetary, Earth sciences and Origins Program missions. These actions led NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin to raise the possibility of having to shut down one to three NASA centers. A few days later, the full House Appropriations Committee voted to restore $400 million to the NASA budget, saving the Space Infrared Telescope Facility (SIRTF), Europa Orbiter and Mars missions. However, Goldin is continuing to appeal to Congress to restore the entire budget request, and has warned that other impacts to centers, including JPL, are not off the table if the agency must absorb a significant budget cut. As Universe went to press, there were reports that the full House vote would not take place until September. This bill would authorize FY 2000 funding for the Veterans Administration, Department of Housing and Urban Development and independent agencies, which includes funding for NASA. The Senate, meanwhile, is scheduled to take up its own budget bills in September, after which the House and Senate will negotiate a final budget to send to the White House for President Clinton's signature. In an all-staff communique to JPL, Director Dr. Ed Stone stressed the importance of Congressional context. "It is important to stress that the appropriations committee vote is one phase of a long legislative process that requires both the full House and Senate approval," Stone told the Lab. "It is just as important to emphasize that these discussions are part of a larger ongoing political dialogue in Washington-and around the country-that are far from resolved. Undoubtedly, you will hear speculation in the media and elsewhere in the days to come. That, too, is part of this process." The NASA budget issue has received much attention in both the local and national news media in the last two weeks, including a Los Angeles Times editorial titled "NASA Deserves Better." Other stories have been featured on ABC TV's "Good Morning America," ABC News and MSNBC. In addition, Los Angeles PBS affiliate KCET channel 28 is planning a segment on the JPL budget on its "Life and Times" program. Stone also issued to the press a thankful acknowledgement to U.S. Rep. James Rogan (R-Glendale) "for his efforts on JPL's behalf in restoring funding for SIRTF, the Mars program and advanced technology. These are critical components of the Laboratory's program of space exploration." Rogan persuaded the House Appropriations Subcommittee chairman to restore $400 million for space science programs. Last Friday's vote by the House Appropriations Committee did not, however, restore the White House's full budget request for NASA. The House budget as currently marked up would cancel the following projects. ? The Discovery Program received a $60 million reduction in funding, which would cancel the JPL-teamed Deep Impact mission. ? JPL Earth sciences programs that would be cancelled include CloudSat, LightSAR and the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), as well as secondary impacts on the Laboratory's Earth science programs as Goddard Space Flight Center assesses its budget reductions. ? Three missions under the budget heading of "focused technology"--Pluto/Kuiper Express, Solar Probe and FIRST-- would also be cancelled. "Year after year, NASA is touted for doing more and more with smaller budgets and held up as a model of good government," Goldin said in response to the original $1.3 billion budget proposed cut. "NASA employees get up every day to achieve what most think is impossible. They have risen to the challenge of smaller budgets. And this is the reward the NASA team gets? Not only is this cut devastating to NASA's programs, it is a knife in the heart of employee morale." Among other implications for the agency's reduced budget, the administrator noted that for the past seven years, the NASA budget has declined and, because of inflation, the agency's buying power is already down by one-third; also, over the past five years, NASA's streamlining efforts have saved the taxpayers $35 billion. "This cut destroys the technology base built by NASA," Goldin said. "Our ability to further reduce costs and increase scientific productivity would end. NASA is one of only a few investments our nation makes to ensure a bright future, a strong economy and the technology base to achieve it. I won't feel better until every nickel is restored," he said. ---------------------------------------------------------------- NASA BUDGET WATCH: AN ONGOING CHALLENGE By Mark Whalen From the JPL Universe 6 August 1999 Keeping on top of the breaking news from Capitol Hill about proposed budget cuts is Dr. Richard O'Toole, manager of the Laboratory's Legislative and International Affairs Office. In the Q&A below, O'Toole shares some of his insights into the complex workings of congressional budgets, and how they might affect NASA and JPL. Whalen: What's the latest news from Washington on the budget? O'Toole: Well, first of all, what you need to realize is that the budget is a fast-moving target. The status of things can change daily, so what I have to say here in Universe may be old news by the time this is published. But here's where we are as we talk today, Aug. 4. As everybody must know by now, on July 26 a subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee voted to take $1.3 billion out of NASA's budget. About half of those cuts were made in the space science area, which meant we could have taken a big hit - as much as a quarter or a third of our funding for next year was at risk. On July 30, the full committee voted to restore $400 million of the $1.3 billion budget cut. That helped JPL a lot, because most of the restored programs were JPL programs. Fully restored are SIRTF, with $100.8 million, and Mars program future planning--for the '03, '05 missions and beyond, at $75 million. Also, $225 million was added back to cover what was taken out of technology and research, but still leaves a $95 million shortfall in those two programs--$60 million in technology and $35 million in research. That's pretty good for JPL. But NASA is still facing a $900 million reduction, which is of great concern to Dan Goldin--and to us. The thing to stress is that this is a process, and it's not over until it's over. A lot can still happen. Whalen: In other words, the budget is far from final, isn't it? O'Toole: Yes, and that is very important to remember. This is simply where we are in the process, but we're a lot better off than we were July 26. Whalen: If all of those programs named in the current budget remain either deferred or cancelled, what would be the net impact on JPL's overall budget? O'Toole: A rough estimate is that the Laboratory would lose about $105 million for FY 2000, about 10 percent of our budget. If we do lose that $105 million, that means a loss of between $20 million and $25 million in the burden budget. Some cutbacks would have to occur there as well. So it's still very significant. Whalen: Which JPL programs are still threatened? O'Toole: In the focused technology area of space science, Pluto/Kuiper Express, Solar Probe and Far Infrared and Submillimeter Space Telescope (FIRST) have not been restored at this time. Future planning for the Discovery Program has not yet been restored to its original funding level, so Deep Impact could be canceled if the current budget holds. In Earth science, the Gravity Recovery and Science Experiment (GRACE), CloudSAT and LiteSAR have not yet been restored. In addition, there is a secondary effect--which we have not yet calculated--of cuts at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in the Earth Observing System leading to reductions in our Earth science instrument program. Whalen: How can a single year's budget affect projects that are still years away? O'Toole: For example, the language of the subcommittee was to cancel the Discovery program. When you have a program like Discovery, that's a line item that carries an ongoing annual cost. It's not legally binding, however, because Congress has to approve the program year after year. The $60 million reduction in future planning for Discovery doesn't necessarily cancel the program, but it reduces the wedge that goes to Discovery every year, indefinitely. Whalen: OK, now that we've discussed the specific impact on JPL, can you step back and give us some background on how these Washington budgets come to be? O'Toole: Sure. First the White House, with assistance from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), puts together its budget. It typically starts in the summer of the year before that budget takes effect. For example, the fiscal 2001 budget is being worked right now by the White House. The president presents the budget to Congress the following February. NASA and OMB then negotiate over the summer and fall, prior to the time the president issues the budget the next February. NASA tries to explain the impacts of what OMB has given them and what programs would fit into the budget. There is a lot of trading off, with consideration to explicit constraints as set by Congress. NASA is guided by its strategic plan, and science advisory groups help to determine priorities. Whalen: What happens next? O'Toole: The White House comes up with its budget. Of course, Congress has its own ideas about budgets. Hammering out the differences is, of course, where we are now. What complicates matters is what's called budget caps. These cap constraints, established in 1997, specify that Congress can't spend more than a certain amount of money. The only way the caps can be exceeded is if Congress changes the law. Whalen: Why were the budget caps were put in place? What is the budget limit now? O'Toole: The reason for the caps was to eliminate the nation's budget deficit. We've eliminated the deficit already; the trouble is that they didn't know that back in '97, so the strict spending caps were put in place to lead to a balanced budget in 2002. The spending cap for FY 2000 on domestic discretionary programs was $538 billion. The actual spending level in FY '99 was $544 billion. So there is about $6 billion less available for FY 2000. On top of that, both Congress and the White House have agreed to increase defense spending by nearly $18 billion. This means the impact on the rest of the programs is a shortfall of up to $24 billion. That's why NASA and other federal agencies are facing budget cuts. Whalen: Where does NASA's budget fit in? O'Toole: NASA's budget is allocated by a subcommittee that also provides funds for the Veterans Administration, Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other independent agencies. This subcommittee was allocated $66 billion for all of the programs under its jurisdiction for FY 2000, compared to $72 billion for FY '99. So they are facing a $6 billion shortfall. That's why they're asking NASA to take a cut of about 10 percent compared to FY '99. It's important to point out that no one singled out or targeted NASA in this whole process. Whalen: So where did the full Appropriations Committee find the $400 million it has already restored to NASA's budget? O'Toole: The full committee, which met on Friday, July 30, did not have any additional funds beyond those offered to the subcommittee. It added $400 million back into NASA's budget by taking $400 million back out of another program within its jurisdiction, the Americorps, which is the president's youth service program. Whalen: But we keep hearing about budget surpluses. Why can't Congress allocate more money to NASA or other federal programs? O'Toole: We're back to the question of the spending caps. There's money, yes, but there's also the spending cap law. That has to be worked through to some resolution. What is done with that money is very much up to the discretion of Congress and the White House, but it would technically break the spending caps if it was spent on federal programs as the law now stands. Whalen: So what happens next? O'Toole: Now that we're out of full House committee, the full House votes next. Then attention is turned to the Senate. The Senate has yet to start its FY 2000 NASA budget process; they have decided to defer their budget work until after the Labor Day recess. The Senate will come up with its own budget number for NASA. Then both Houses of Congress will have to get together and agree upon a final number before the bill goes to the White House. The President, of course, has the option of signing or vetoing. Whalen: What would happen if the bill were vetoed, but not overridden, by October 1, the beginning of the fiscal year? O'Toole: There would be a short-term continuing resolution for a period of weeks while Congress and the White House negotiate a compromise on spending and tax policy. This would allow the government to continue to operate at the lower of the fiscal '99 or fiscal 2000 level. Whalen: How might that affect JPL's work? O'Toole: We've been through this before, and it's not a problem for projects whose budgets are flat or declining. For example, SIRTF would be OK, because the lower of the two budgets fully funds them on what they planned. But projects such as Mars '03/'05 and Europa would only be allowed to spend at last year's level. So a short-term resolution wouldn't hurt that much, but if it went on for months, that could mean problems for some of our projects in meeting their development milestones. Whalen: Any prediction on how it's going to turn out? O'Toole: None at all. The thing is to understand--and to take comfort in--is that this is a process. It would be easy to let headlines distract people away from their work. But we're already in a lot better shape than we were just a week ago. People should know that NASA is doing all it can to defend its budget. Dan Goldin has said he won't rest until every nickel is restored. What we here at JPL can do to support him is to concentrate on our work and our missions, and share NASA's concern that the whole program needs to be restored to preserve balance in NASA between the human, space science and Earth science programs. We're all committed to that overall goal. ---------------------------------------------------------------- A DETAILED 1/26 SCALE MODEL OF THE STARDUST SPACECRAFT THAT YOU CAN DOWNLOAD AND BUILD By Dave Doody http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/model 8 August 1999 You've read all about Stardust on the web pages. Now, here's a really good way to learn all about the spacecraft. Build one! This free model is designed for anyone who wishes to learn more about the Stardust Spacecraft, although it is probably not appropriate for children less than about ten years of age to build unassisted. It has all of Stardust's major components, and shows both its scientific instruments. You'll see first hand how the spacecraft shields itself from fast-flying comet debris. That's an assembled one in the photograph on the right [not shown in the text-only version of Marsbugs]. Stardust, like all interplanetary spacecraft, was designed for high structural strength, minimizing mass. That makes it possible to reproduce its mechanical design with remarkably good fidelity, using only paper! The image at right shows the paper model assembled from pages that you can download. Its scale is about 1/26. You can go ahead and download the Stardust Scale Model right now. The parts are contained in a "portable document format" (PDF) file, which you can read using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. If you don't have it, you can download the Acrobat Reader software now from Adobe, free of charge. Here's how it works. First browse the illustrated Assembly Instructions. Read through them to see if this project is going to be right for you. Next, print the parts file onto card stock using your black and white printer. Cut out the parts, fold and glue according to the instructions, and you'll have an accurate scale model of the Stardust Spacecraft. Most of the parts can be cut out using scissors, but in some places for best results, a sharp art knife should be used. This, of course, requires close adult supervision if a child is working on it. Regular white glue is recommended. The pages are designed to be printed on 8.5 x 11-inch sheets, or A4 size sheets. This model not by any means a quick and easy assembly job; it's serious model building. It offers an opportunity to spend a good amount of quiet time learning all about Stardust. Probably four hours would be a minimum assembly time. We invite you to build and enjoy your own educational Stardust model! Here's everything you need. ? Assembly Instructions (http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/model/instructions.html) ? Parts.pdf--All the parts are contained in this 3-page file. (http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov/model/Part.pdf) ? Acrobat Reader--The software for reading all ".pdf" files (http://www.adobe.com/prodindex/acrobat/readstep.html) [The complete set is included in the PDF version of this issue of Marsbugs.] Copyright (C) 1999 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology. All rights reserved. Permission for commercial reproduction other than for single-school in- classroom use must be obtained from JPL Commercial Programs Office. ---------------------------------------------------------------- SHARPEST-EVER MARS IMAGES REVEAL ACTIVE RED PLANET NASA release 99-91 10 August 1999 Newly released images from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor show that the red planet is a different place today than it was two years ago when the spacecraft arrived--a world constantly reshaped by forces of nature including shifting sand dunes, monster dust devils, wind storms, frosts and polar ice caps that grow and retreat with the seasons. "Mars is a cold, dry desert, but our camera has shown it is far from being a stagnant place," said Dr. Michael Malin, principal investigator for the Mars Global Surveyor camera at Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, CA. "Over the past few months, we have captured a unique record of seasonal and meteorological events, which demonstrates that Mars is active and dynamic today." The spacecraft's camera monitors the planet's weather on a daily basis from orbit, just like weather satellites on Earth. Today, Mars is a much more dynamic place than the planet the Viking spacecraft saw in the late 1970s. The weather has been particularly active during the past two months, as spring arrived in the southern hemisphere and autumn approached in the north. "Storm clouds have been brewing over the north polar ice cap all through the month of July, and soon, ever-increasing portions of the north polar cap will be plunged into wintertime darkness," Malin said. "As the season changes rapidly, clouds will cover much of the northern plains and it might begin to snow as the polar cap expands." In other regions of Mars, dust devils are the prevailing weather story. Dust devils result from spinning vortices of air that arise when the ground is heated and general wind flow is light. On Earth they are relatively small features, but on Mars, dust devils are thought by some to be a major transporter of the fine, pinkish dust that gives the sky its unearthly brownish color, as seen by the Mars Pathfinder and Viking landers. Dust devils may also help initiate the seasonal raising of dust over wide areas of Mars. In mid-May, swirling columns of dust as high as five miles (eight kilometers) were observed in northern Amazonis Planitia. Dust devils in this area, northwest of the large Tharsis volcanoes, appear to be common; they were also seen by the Viking missions of the 1970s. The average dust devil is slow- moving and may carry several tons of dust within its height of 1.2 miles (two kilometers). Each lasts for a few hours at most during the hottest part of the Martian day in the late afternoon, Malin said. Although the winds in these vortices are sufficient to raise dust, they have much less power than tornadoes on Earth, which develop under very different meteorological circumstances. Global Surveyor's camera has also returned tantalizing evidence of recent shifting sands in dune fields first seen in Mariner 9 pictures of Mars from the early 1970s. Scientists are interested in dune fields isolated within large impact craters because their dark color suggests that the dust that covers much of the rest of the planet does not accumulate on their sandy surfaces. "This indicates that the dunes must be moving and that over time we may be able to see changes that will allow us to measure the rates of wind erosion on Mars," Malin explained. Sand dunes also are giving Mars scientists some new insights as to how Mars' seasonal polar ice caps retreat at the end of each winter as seasonal warming occurs. The most dramatic views show patches of dark sand poking through fields of carbon dioxide frost. First seen in 1998 in the north polar region, the same features have been seen this year on dunes near the south pole. "These pictures look like aerial photographs of dunes on Earth," Malin said. "They are so unusual in this context that we thought for a while that we were looking at a process that involves small 'explosions,' but the new images showed that wind was responsible for the streaks we were seeing." The dark spots on frost-covered dunes continue to grow and spread as spring approaches until, eventually, the entire dune field is frost-free. A variety of new images of Mars is available on the internet at http://www.msss.com/ Mars Global Surveyor is the first mission in a long-term program of Mars exploration, known as the Mars Surveyor Program, managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, DC. JPL's industrial partner is Lockheed Martin Astronautics, Denver, CO, which developed and operates the spacecraft. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA. ---------------------------------------------------------------- DRAMATIC PICTURES SHOWING EVIDENCE OF SHIFTING SANDS ON MARS PRESENTED BY CORNELL ASTRONOMER THOMAS AT NASA BRIEFING Cornell University release 10 August 1999 Does Mars have shifting sands? Over the past few months the camera on board the Mars Global Surveyor has provided tantalizing evidence of surface changes on the planet as sand dunes that cover large areas show signs of being moved by the Martian wind. The latest photographic evidence--the sharpest Mars images to date--says Cornell University astronomer Peter Thomas, indicates that the surface of Mars is "dynamic" and that the dunes have indeed been active in the few months since frost was deposited on the surface. "This is a major finding, and through the use of this very high- resolution camera we now see real action of the geological features. This has tied current wind conditions to geological features," Thomas said. Thomas, a member of the Mars Global Surveyor camera team and a senior researcher in the Cornell astronomy department, commented at a NASA Space Science Update today (Aug. 10, 1999) at NASA headquarters in Washington, DC. Other presenters in the briefing, which was broadcast via satellite on NASA television, included Michael Malin of Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, principal investigator for the Mars Orbiter Camera instrument on the Surveyor; Jim Zimbelman, planetary geologist in the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies at the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum, Washington, DC; and Michael Meyer, Mars Surveyor 2001 program scientist in NASA's Office of Space Science. The Mars researchers released pictures that will enable further study of these dynamic features in greater detail than ever before. Since they were first seen in Mariner 9 images of Mars from the early 1970s, the dune fields have been of great interest to researchers because of the indication that the sand is moving. Evidence of such changes would make it possible to measure the effectiveness of wind erosion on Mars. Mars is a sufficiently different place today than it was two years ago when the Global Surveyor first arrived, and the new images show that the planet's weather and dust play a major role in changing the way it looks. The spacecraft's wide-angle cameras monitor the planet's weather on a daily basis, just like weather satellites above the Earth. The Martian weather has been particularly active during the past two months as spring arrived in the southern hemisphere and autumn approached in the north. Thomas noted that researchers do know that frost itself can be blown around by wind, "but we would like to find evidence that landforms beneath are active." Now, he said, the camera has shown at a few meters' resolution "that things do move as soon as you get frost off the dunes." One image of sand dunes just three kilometers across showed streamers of dark sand moving over the frost, Thomas said, "proof positive that sand is moving at present. This isn't just fossil landforms sitting there, having frost come and go, but there are real active dunes on the surface of Mars." He characterized this finding as "an important question for putting all of Mars geology in context in relation to the present climate." Summing up, he said the new images show that for researchers Mars "has become a full-fledged, fully respectable planet in terms of the great variety of geologic features all over the surface. " Mars Global Surveyor carries five science instruments designed to generate a complete global portrait of Mars and its seasonal changes during a full Martian year, the equivalent of two Earth years. The spacecraft entered its primary circular mapping orbit in February, and is just beginning its second full Martian year in orbit around the red planet. Global Surveyor is the first mission in a long-term series of Martian explorations known as the Mars Surveyor Program, which is managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory for NASA. Related World Wide Web sites The following sites provide additional information on this news release. Some might not be part of the Cornell University community, and Cornell has no control over their content or availability. ? Mars images: http://www.msss.com ? JPL: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov ---------------------------------------------------------------- GALILEO MISSION SUMMARY By Julian Hiscox 10 August 1999 Launched in 1989, the Galileo spacecraft arrived at Jupiter on the 7 December 1995, the purpose to map the Jovian system in detail and examine the atmosphere of Jupiter. The spacecraft orbiter spent the next two years orbiting the giant planet, studying Jupiter and its moons (encountering one moon during each orbit), and returning a many images and scientific data. The primary mission ended in December 1997 and an exciting and ambitious two-year extended mission was approved in which Galileo concentrated on Europa and will end with two close flybys of Io. Galileo's orbital tour during the Galileo Europa Mission (GEM) consists of 14 different elliptical orbits around Jupiter. The next satellite flyby will occur on the 14 August 1999 when Galileo will fly by Callisto. This encounter was referred to as Callisto 22 since it occurred on the 22nd orbit since Galileo entered orbit around Jupiter. Careful targeting allows each flyby to direct the spacecraft on to its next satellite encounter and the spacecraft's next orbit around Jupiter. During the GEM mission, Galileo will have flown by Europa eight times, Callisto four times, and Io twice, if the spacecraft is still functional. Callisto 22 is the 11th encounter of the GEM mission. Several recent scientific discoveries by Galileo include the detection of a cloud of microscopic dust grains surrounding Ganymede. This dust cloud may have been created when interplanetary meteoroids impact into Ganymede's surface. Not only has Galileo found evidence to support the hypothesis that Europa possesses a liquid water interior (formulated after the Voyager flybys), but data from the photopolarimeter radiometer, which measures temperature, revealed that while Europa's daytime temperatures are as expected, its night-time temperatures are not as predicted. At night, it appears the temperatures vary considerably from place to place, in patterns not related to geology or reflectivity of the surface. Callisto 22 is the third of four consecutive Callisto flybys. Images have been returned of a cratered terrain that will help calculate the age of Callisto's surface. Other observations include images of the young Bran crater, which offers a good view of Callisto's crust. Whilst valuable science information is being gathered during the Callisto flybys, the primary purpose is to lower Galileo's orbit to prepare it for two close flybys of Jupiter's moon Io in the fall. During this series of Callisto flybys, Galileo's instruments monitor Io to gather as much information as possible. The Io encounters will provide the closest-ever look at the most volcanic body in the Solar System. Because of the intense radiation in the area of Io's orbit, there is considerable risk to the functionality of the spacecraft. ---------------------------------------------------------------- MARS SURVEYOR 98 MISSION STATUS JPL release 4 August 1999 Mars Climate Orbiter (MCO) Mars Climate Orbiter experienced an uneventful week in cruise this past week. The flight team is still evaluating telemetry data recorded during Trajectory Correction Maneuver #3 (TCM-3) on July 25, attempting to better understand the unexpected behavior of the solar array two-axis gimbal drive and electronics following completion of the TCM-3 course correction. The team will firm up its plans for an in-flight diagnostic checkout of the gimbal drive by the end of this week. Last Friday (July 30) the flight team reviewed the results of a set of 20 "stress test" cases of the Mars Orbit Insertion (MOI) burn. The test results, covering a variety of conditions ranging from nominal spacecraft performance to near-pathological circumstances, indicated that the spacecraft could complete the burn successfully in all cases. All of the potential anomalies that the spacecraft's automated flight control and fault protection systems can recognize and respond to were simulated, with the spacecraft correctly recognizing and reacting to each one. The team unanimously agreed that the MOI test program is complete and that we are ready to proceed with flight team MOI test and training. Mars climate orbiter is 50 days from mars orbit insertion. Mars Polar Lander (MPL) The MPL Landing Site Certification Review was conducted today, Wednesday August 4. The review board, consisting of experts in different scientific and engineering fields from outside the flight team, unanimously endorsed the team's recommendation for a target landing area. With the endorsement of the SCR review board, the flight team will now take its recommendation forward and request NASA approval of the recommended target area and flight plan. For more information on the Mars Surveyor 98 mission, please visit our web site at http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msp98. ---------------------------------------------------------------- STARDUST STATUS REPORT JPL release 6 August 1999 During the scheduled STARDUST Deep Space Network (DSN) pass on Wednesday, August 4, it was discovered that the spacecraft was in safe mode. After approximately an hour of waiting for a signal, commands were transmitted to the spacecraft to power on the Exciter and Solid State Power Amplifier (SSPA). This resulted in a weak signal and carrier lock being detected from the spacecraft at the DSN tracking station. Following this, commands were then sent to deadband walk the spacecraft to Medium Gain Antenna (MGA) Earth point with a resulting increase in signal strength. Further commands were transmitted to start telemetry download from the spacecraft, and it was then confirmed that a reboot had occurred on July 30, approximately 2 hours after the last DSN pass. Event Reports (EVRs) were obtained from the spacecraft and the apparent cause is very similar to the last safe mode entry about 2 weeks ago. Commands were sent to exit safe mode and restore the spacecraft to its normal configuration. Presently, the spacecraft configuration is Nominal Mode, with uplink using the Low Gain Antenna #2 (LGA2), downlink using the MGA, SSPA1 powered on, and Earth pointed with 4 degree deadbands. In both safe modes, the problem appears to be the same: the lack of Star Camera image transfer through the Payload and Attitude Control Interface (PACI) board. Both problems occurred within a day after normal communications. This tends to rule out a Single Event Upset (SEU) of the PACI board. Also, the problems seems to be unrelated to specific flight software patches for going to All-Stellar attitude control and also task priority swapping, which are in their final phases of Spacecraft Test Laboratory (STL) testing. Since the Cometary Interstellar Dust Analyzer (CIDA) instrument was not powered on during the second safing event, CIDA appears not to be a factor. For more information on the Stardust mission--the first ever comet sample return mission--please visit the Stardust home page at http://stardust.jpl.nasa.gov. ---------------------------------------------------------------- TODAY ON GALILEO JPL release 12 August 1999 On the second day of Galileo's eleventh encounter of the Galileo Europa Mission, the spacecraft flies past Jupiter, Europa and Ganymede. During the day, the Fields and Particles instruments measure the Io torus, the Solid-State Imaging camera captures images of Io and Amalthea, the Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer looks at Jupiter and Europa, the Ultraviolet Spectrometer looks for aurora on Io, and the Plasma Wave instrument looks for signs of accelerating plasma. Closest approach to Jupiter is first on the flyby schedule. The spacecraft flies within 7.3 Jupiter radii (523,000 kilometers, 325,000 miles) of the planet's center at 03:39 am PDT [see Note 1]. Next on the schedule is closest approach to Europa, occuring at 12:53 pm PDT at a distance of 212,000 kilometers (132,000 miles). Finally, closest approach to Ganymede occurs at 7:53 pm PDT at a distance of 835,000 kilometers (530,000 miles). Today's observation schedule starts with a six hour recording performed by the Fields and Particles instruments. The recording is one in a series of four being performed during each encounter of the Perijove Reduction Campaign (Galileo's previous two encounters, this encounter, and Galileo's next encounter). During these encounters, the spacecraft's Perijove distance, or closest distance to Jupiter for a given orbit, is reduced from orbit to orbit. These recordings will provide valuable high resolution data describing the inner magnetosphere and Io torus environment. The instruments will make measurements of the magnetic fields and particles interactions wiithin these regions, including measurements of radio signals and electromagnetic waves. These measurements will contribute to the study of the dynamic processes within the Jupiter magnetosphere and Io torus. The Io torus is a region of intense plasma and radiation activity, in which there are strong magnetic and electric fields. Constantly replenished by the volcanic activity on Io, it is a vital part of the Jovian magnetosphere. In a related observation, the Plasma Wave instrument performs an observation dedicated to the detection of Chorus emissions. The Chorus signal is seen in the electromagnetic fields measured by the Plasma Wave instrument when plasmas are being accelerated due to a particularly efficient type of wave-particle interaction. In detecting and analyzing Chorus emissions, scientists hope to understand a significant process by which energy is transferred from Jupiter's magnetic field into plasmas within the Io torus and from there into outer portions of the magnetosphere. The Solid-State Imaging camera performs the first few remote sensing observation of today's schedule. The camera peforms a total of eight observations during the day, six focusing on Io, and two on Amalthea, one of Jupiter's inner moons. Five of the camera's observations of Io are part of a campaign of ten observations designed to monitor volcanic plume activity on the moon. Volcanic activity seen in these images will be compared to measurements of the Io torus taken by the Fields and Particles instruments to determine if there is any relationship. The camera's remaining observation of Io is performed around noon PDT and is designed to provide additional data on the size and shape of the volcanic moon. During the day, the camera makes two observations of Amalthea. The observations will provide the best spatial resolution ever obtained of Amalthea for the portions imaged (up to 8.5 kilometers, 5.3 miles, per picture element). The images will enhance studies of the shape of this inner moon. The Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer makes six observations today, four of features in Jupiter's atmosphere and two of Europa. Two of the Jupiter observations capture data describing a white oval. White ovals are long-lived storms that form between two adjacent zonal jet streams. The other two observations take a look at a spot that is unusually darker than other spots in Jupiter's atmosphere. The spot appears to be more devoid of clouds and warmer than neighboring spots, suggesting to scientists that winds around this feature are travelling in a clockwise direction, unlike the colder Great Red Spot and white ovals that have counter-clockwise winds. The Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer observations will describe this winds near this spot and allow scientists to verify the models that explain this interesting behavior. Of the Europa observations, the first captures a region known as Belus Linea. The region is characterized by large concentrations of dark surface materials. The second observation captures a global view of one of Europa's hemispheres. In both of these observations, the Near-Infrared Mapping Spectrometer obtains spectral and spatial measurements of Europa's surface. The spectral data contains information describing the light reflected from the different materials on the surface. Each material reflects a unique spectra which allows scientists to identify the given material. In conjunction, the spatial data will allow scientists to determine how these materials are distributed on Europa's surface. The Ultraviolet Spectrometer instrument completes today's observing schedule. In one observation, the instrument takes a look a Io while it is eclipsed from the sun by Jupiter. The observation is designed to capture auroral activity on Io, which is more easily observed while the moon is in darkness. Note 1. All times listed correspond to the Pacific Time zone (currently daylight time) and spacecraft event time. Radio signals indicating that an event has occurred on the spacecraft reach the Earth 33 to 50 minutes later, depending on the time of year. Currently, Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) is 7 hours behind Greenwich Meridian Time (GMT), and it takes radio signals 38 minutes to travel between the spacecraft and Earth. For more information on the Galileo spacecraft and its mission to Jupiter, please visit the Galileo home page at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/galileo. ---------------------------------------------------------------- End Marsbugs Vol. 6, No. 24