Solar System Exploration: Spacecraft Observances and Encounters this Week

Dawn orbiting 975-km diameter dwarf planet Ceres for 2 full years in Main Asteroid Belt may become a perpetual satellite of Ceres due to its highly stable orbit. In its extended mission phase (after visiting 525-km diameter Vesta) it is heading into its 7th science orbit at 7,200-km altitude to refine previously collected measurements, take thousands of images from different angles, and continue to look for organic compounds, past cryovolcanoes, salts and surface ice. Exoplanet hunter Kepler in K2 mission begins its 9th year in space on March 7. Adding to the number of confirmed exoplanets (3,453), exoplanet candidates (4,696) and those within ‘goldilocks’ habitable zone (297), Kepler is funded through Oct 2017. The craft has enough fuel to continue operations until summer 2018. Cassini is edging closer and closer to the 120,526-km diameter gas giant Saturn for detailed science observations before its planned atmosphere impact Sep 2017. On Mar 7 it will fly by the innermost moon Pan. One of 62 known Saturnian moons, Pan is located in Encke Gap of 10-30 meter thick A-ring, and considered a ring shepherd responsible for keeping Encke Gap free of ring particles. Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is set to enter its 12th year at Mars on Mar 10 while traveling in a 300-km near-polar orbit. The craft is providing a basis for 8 candidate landing sites for NASA Mars 2020 rover mission and ~45 sites that could support human landing zones, each with a 96-km exploration radius. (Image Credit: NASA, JPL, Caltech, ESA, ASI)

MONDAY

American Astronautical Society 55th Goddard Memorial Symposium: Future Space – Trends, Technologies and Missions

The 55th annual AAS Robert H. Goddard Memorial Symposium is being held March 7-9 in Greenbelt MD. It will address how the 2017 U.S. Administration and Congress may impact the current space program, and give updates on plans from participating private companies, national committees and mission scientists. The session “Cislunar Space: The Next Frontier for Human Exploration” moderated by Harley Thronson of GSFC will feature Matt Duggan (Boeing), Rob Chambers (Lockheed), Steve Overton (Aerojet Rocketdyne), Michael Fuller (Orbital ATK) and Michael Johnson (NanoRacks). Technical Advisor for Secure World Foundation Brian Weeden will speak on “China’s Plans for Space.” Other speakers include Astronaut John Grunsfeld, ISS Director Sam Scimemi, CSF President Eric Stallmer, Canadian Space Agency Director General Gilles Leclerc and NASA acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot. Future missions being highlighted are Mars 2020 rover, Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope, Solar Probe Plus and PACE (Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem). The 60th annual National Space Club Goddard Memorial Dinner in Washington DC Mar 10 with nearly 2,000 industry, educational space community and government members, will present awards to outstanding individuals in spaceflight and STEM education. (Image Credit: AAS, NSC, National Research Council, National Academies, NASA, SWF, CSA)

Mar 6 — Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson AZ: Lecture: Domesticating the Quantum; Pierre Meystre of American Physical Society.

Mar 6-9 — Airbus, Boeing Co., Via Satellite, SES, Orbital ATK, Intelsat, et al, Washington DC: Satellite 2017 Conference; at Walter E. Washington Convention Center.

Mar 6-9 — AIAA, Xiamen, China: 21st AIAA International Space Planes and Hypersonic Systems and Technology Conference (Hypersonics 2017); University of Xiamen – Science and Arts Center.

Mar 6-9 — European Southern Observatory, Santiago, Chile: Conference: Star Formation from Cores to Clusters.

Mar 6 — Mercury: At superior conjunction, 14:00.

Continued from…

Oct 15, 2016 – Sep 4 — Peabody Essex Museum, Salem MA: Lunar Attraction Exhibit; featuring 60 Apollo memorabilia, paintings, sculptures, photographs, books, movies, jewelry that illustrate our profound connection to the Moon.

Mar 3-8 — Federal University of Espírito Santo, Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics, Anchieta, Espirito Santo, Brazil: Quantum Summer 2017.

Mar 5-8 — Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, NASA, Schloss Ringberg, Germany: Conference: Spectroscopy with SOFIA – New Results & Future Opportunities.

Mar 5-10 — Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel: Conference: Planetary Systems Beyond the Main Sequence II.

TUESDAY

Mar 7 — Kepler / K2, Heliocentric Orbit: Craft searching for exoplanets begins 9th year in space today; operating in K2 extension mission after two reaction wheels failed altering original mission goals; launched 2009.