EPSC/DPS 2011 in Nantes

[simonbp]

The joint European Planetry Science Congress and (American) Division of Planetry Sciences Meeting is under way in Nantes, France.  There are about 1500 planetry s ientists here, and lots of good talks. I'll have some notes later about the more intetesting (to me) later.

In the mean time, they have pretty large public exhibit, including full scale models of MSL and Huygens. If you're in the area, I encourage you to come see it.

[simonbp]

@ NASA/ESA Night

Planetary budget really killed in Obama's FY2012 request

Jim Green really yelling people for blaming JWST, someone else's flagship. Threatened to step down if there is not more support for the Decadal Survey.

Do not yet have authorization for joint 2016/2018 Mars mission.

Don't react with anger, react with vision (to political obstacles).

ESA refocused the 3   L-class studies to not need NASA collaboration; selection of 1 or 2 in Feb 2012.

Mars sample return is still the long term goal for ESA.

Potentially cuts in existing missions, really scaring some in the community.

NASA wants instruments on ESA Jupiter and asteroid sample return missions.

Jim Green blasting ULA price increases, launch costs major threat to Mars 2016/2018.

Plutonium slowly moving forward, NF4 will have Pu as an option.

[simonbp]

A few other spacecraft notes from memory:

The old JEO is dead as doornail. JPL is now pushing a split mission with a separate Europa orbiter and (Juipter-orbiting) Europa-flyby spacecraft. The flyby vehicle has imagers and radar with much less rad-hardening than for an orbiter. Because of this, the split mission is, in theory, much cheaper than a full-up JEO. Also, it gives the option of just flying the flyby vehicle, which could be attempted for a New Frontiers proposal.

There were several posters about the complex orbital dynamics of missions to NEOs; suffice to say, it's really tricky. The co-rotation synchronous orbital distances are typically right above the surface, so it may be simpler to "hover" there with a spacecraft, and then slowly move along lines of gravitational equipotential.

There is a considerable amount of disagreement about the spectra of Phobos, which fits either chondritic asteroid or Martian phylosllicates. Phobos-Grunt (AKA Phobos-Soil, it depends who you ask) will launch soon and should help answer this.

There were three posters for Electric Solar Wind Sails ( http://www.electric-sailing.fi ). Sounds like a neat idea, and deserves more attention.

[ugordan]

The old JEO is dead as doornail.

Sigh. Good thing I wasn't getting too excited about it, expecting this turn of events all along.

JPL is now pushing a split mission with a separate Europa orbiter and (Juipter-orbiting) Europa-flyby spacecraft. The flyby vehicle has imagers and radar with much less rad-hardening than for an orbiter.

Wasn't the idea to fly the orbiter with "radar", laser altimeter and gravity science. What's the point of flying the radio sounder on the flyby spacecraft? No global ocean characterization possible.