Now that we have completed a #YearInSpace the crew of TMRO asks: What is our Path to Mars from here?
Space news topics covered:
* SpaceX Finally launches SES-9 * #YearInSpace * Methane snow has been found on Pluto * China to launch new space lab later this year * Asteroid 2013TX68 to make close pass on March 8th * NASA slips schedule of Asteroid Redirect Mission
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Here is the complete 74 minute high-definition version of the film, The Mars Underground, released in 2007. The documentary tells the multi-faceted story of how humans might reach and settle the Red Planet and of the studies, proposals, and advocacy of those who are dedicated to making this happen. The focus is on aerospace engineer and Mars Society founder Robert Zubrin, whose 1996 book, The Case for Mars, convinced many people that an affordable, practical way to put people on Mars is feasible. Many other participants in this long struggle besides Zubrin are seen and heard as well.
This view of the downwind face of “Namib Dune” on Mars covers 360 degrees, including a portion of Mount Sharp on the horizon. The site is part of the dark-sand “Bagnold Dunes” field along the northwestern flank of Mount Sharp. Images taken from orbit indicate that dunes in the Bagnold field move as much as about 3 feet (1 meter) per Earth year.
The component images of this scene were taken on Dec. 18, 2015, by the Mast Camera (Mastcam) on NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover during the 1,197th Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s work on Mars.
The bottom of the dune nearest the rover is about 23 feet (7 meters) from the camera. This downwind face of the dune rises at an inclination of about 28 degrees to a height of about 16 feet (5 meters) above the base. The center of the scene is toward the east; both ends are toward the west.
A color adjustment has been made approximating a white balance, so that rocks and sand appear approximately as they would appear under Earth’s sunlit sky. A brightness adjustment accommodates including rover hardware in the scene.
The mission’s examination of dunes in the Bagnold field, along the rover’s route up the lower slope of Mount Sharp, is the first close look at active sand dunes anywhere other than Earth.
Malin Space Science Systems, San Diego, built and operates the rover’s Mastcam. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, manages the Mars Science Laboratory Project for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, Washington. JPL designed and built the project’s Curiosity rover.
Photojournal Note: Also available is the full resolution TIFF file PIA20284_full.tif. This file may be too large to view from a browser; it can be downloaded onto your desktop by right-clicking on the previous link and viewed with image viewing software.
The latest report from NASA JPL on what’s happening with the Curiosity rover on Mars:
Curiosity performs the first investigation of active sand dunes on another planet. Studying the Bagnold Dunes on Mars will help scientists understand the physics of Martian dunes and how they move.
Melissa Balan and colleagues at Senior Post are creating a series of short documentary videos called Life on Mars, which “chronicles mankind’s initiatives to put humans on Mars”.
The latest video in the series is shown below. It is about Michael Morris, the team leader of the winning team in NASA’s 3D Printed Habitat Challenge. The video explores the vision behind their design, which is called the Mars Ice House (see my September post here about the Ice House.)
, convinced many people that an affordable, practical way to put people on Mars is feasible. Many other participants in this long struggle besides Zubrin are seen and heard as well.