I was pleased with the progress of the Orion/Constellation program, now just a little extra push........B
February 2007
THE PLANETARY SOCIETY
NEWSLETTER
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IN THIS ISSUE:
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WHAT WE DO - S.O.S. Petition Delivered,
Digital Time Capsule, International Lunar Decade
EXPLORE - New Horizons at Jupiter,
Mars Exploration Rovers
PARTICIPATE - Phoenix DVD
FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
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WHAT WE DO
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* S.O.S. Update
Petition Delivered!
The Planetary Society delivered our petition with more
than 5,000 signatures to the White House calling on
President Bush to restore funding for space science
and exploration in his 2008 budget proposal to
the U.S. Congress.
Read more >>
http://planetary.org/programs/projects/sos/20070122.html
* 10 Science Organizations Support NASA Space Science
The Planetary Society organized a letter from 10 science
organizations in support of NASA Space Science. This
letter was sent to the Chairs of the House and Senate
Appropriation Subcommittees dealing with the NASA budget.
Read more >>
http://planetary.org/programs/projects/sos/20070126.html
* New Horizon's Digital Time Capsule
See the Images Before the Capsule is Sealed
To mark New Horizons' close approach to Jupiter on
February 28, The Planetary Society is previewing the
Digital Time Capsule images that will soon be
sealed until 2015.
When New Horizons arrives at Pluto eight years from
now, we will open the time capsule to remember the
world as it was when the mission launched. Fifty
images submitted by people in 17 countries have
been selected, and the encounter with Jupiter begins
a countdown to closing the capsule until the
spacecraft arrives at Pluto.
The images can be viewed until March 31, 2007.
See the images >>
http://planetary.org/explore/topics/time_c...selections.html
* International Lunar Decade
To India and Hawaii to Present the
International Lunar Decade
The Planetary Society is committed to involving our
members on every mission going to another world --
and, in the last month, we have traveled to two
ends of the Earth in pursuit of that goal.
During the first week of December, we went to
Bangalore, India and presented the International
Lunar Decade (ILD) to the Indian Space Research
Organization -- India's space agency. We also
presented ideas for public involvement in their
upcoming Chandrayaan-1 lunar mission and for
international cooperation among all lunar
missions.
At quite a different end of the Earth, our Director
of Projects, Bruce Betts attended the NASA Lunar
Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) planning meeting in
Hawaii at the end of November. There, Bruce presented
several ideas for public participation in upcoming
lunar missions. He also gave a presentation about
the International Lunar Decade and discussed our
international cooperation goals with representatives
of various lunar missions.
Read more >>
http://planetary.org/programs/projects/lun...e/20061221.html
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EXPLORE
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* New Horizons Encounters Jupiter
Special Mission Coverage
Blazing through the Jovian system twenty times faster
than a speeding bullet, New Horizons had it's closest
approach to the planet Jupiter, passing within 2.3
million kilometers (1.4 million miles) of Jupiter
before continuing on its long journey to Pluto and
the Kuiper belt.
See the latest images and
get the latest news on the encounter >>
http://www.planetary.org/explore/topics/new_horizons/
* Keeping an Ear to the Center of the Galaxy,
Southern SETI Prepares for Great Leap Forward
Lemarchand is proposing to replace the aging META II
system with a brand new electronic back-end, based on
SERENDIP V. Designed and built by Dan Werthimer's U.C.
Berkeley team of SETI@home fame, SERENDIP V is the
latest generation SETI receiver installed at Arecibo.
It is the most advanced system available.
* Mars Exploration Rovers Update:
Spirit Survives Dust Storm and Studies Troll,
Opportunity "Sails" from Bay of Toil to Cape Desire
The Mars Exploration Rovers (MERs) celebrated their
3rd anniversary in January and are now roving into
their fourth year of exploration on the Red Planet.
Spirit, which passed the milestone on January 3 in
Gusev crater, and Opportunity, which hit the mark on
January 24 in Meridiani Planum, are healthy and defying
all odds with every passing day. This month the
solar-powered robot field geologists are scheduled
to move to several new locations to dig up more
clues to add to the continually evolving story of
past water on Mars.
Read these exciting space exploration stories
and more news at:
http://www.planetary.org/news/index.html
or read our daily blog updates at:
http://planetary.org/blog
Did you miss our "Year in Pictures" special feature?
If so, take a look at 22 fantastic pictures from 2006
selected by Emily Lakdawalla, our Science and
Technology Coordinator.
http://planetary.org/news/2007/0102_The_Ye...tures_2006.html
If you like what you see, we have a beautiful calendar
with the images available at:
http://www.cafepress.com/planetaryshop
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Do you want to...?
• Unravel the mysteries of space?
• Search for life on other worlds?
• Find new planets outside our solar system?
• Make missions of exploration happen?
Membership in The Planetary Society is your ticket
to space exploration.
Not a Member yet?
Join together with our International membership
and help shape the future of space exploration.
https://planetary.org/join/membership/index.html
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PARTICIPATE
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* Messages from Earth - Phoenix DVD and SELENE
Thank you! With your help, we collected over a quarter
million names to fly to Mars. If you haven't done so
already, visit our website and download your Official
Participation Certificate.
Get your certificate at:
http://planetary.org/special/fromearth/phoenix
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FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
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* From the United Nations' Committee on
Peaceful Uses of Outer Space
by Louis Friedman
"This week I'm in Vienna, attending the Science and
Technical Subcommittee Meeting of the United Nations'
Committee on Peaceful Uses of Outer Space (COPUOS)
to present The Planetary Society's proposal to
establish an International Lunar Decade (ILD).
Representatives of approximately 60 nations, plus
about 10 non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
are here. The Planetary Society is one of those
NGOs, having been a consultative organization to
COPUOS for some 20 years."
Read more >>
http://planetary.org/about/executive_director/20070216.html
* From Vienna to the Moon
In February the International Lunar Decade was presented to
the UN COPUOS Science and Technical Subcommittee .
Read more >>
http://planetary.org/about/executive_director/20070222.html
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SUPPORT SPACE EXPLORATION
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support radio and optical searches for extraterrestrial
life, and ensure the future of space exploration by
continuing to influence decision makers around the world.
Donate online at:
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