Astrobiology (Volume 7, Number 5, October 2007)

There are several good papers in the latest issue of Astrobiology (Volume 7, Number 5, October 2007). Non-subscribers note that the publishers are offering free access to two of the papers.

MSL science payload intact...for now

Good news. It looks as if both MARDI and ChemCam may be saved, so the Mars Science Laboratory science payload is intact, for now:

Announcement from Alan Stern & Jim Green, NASA Headquarters
November 8, 2007

Dear Colleagues:

We are very happy to announce that MARDI and ChemCam's cost issues have been solved and both instruments are going forward to launch on MSL.

Malin Space Science Systems has agreed that there will be no additional costs to NASA for the completion of the Mars Descent Imager (MARDI). Furthermore, funds returned to the Mars Exploration Program from the unfortunate elimination of MARDI operations on Phoenix will be used to support MARDI integration on MSL.

In the case of ChemCam, LANL, the French Space Agency (CNES), and even other MSL instrument team members have developed a series of descopes and support arrangements to allow instrument completion, reducing the development cost-to-go by a little over 80%--i.e., from $2.5M to about $400K. As a result, ChemCam will be funded another $400K by the Mars Exploration Program, allowing them to complete development.

This outcome is even better than we had imagined possible in September, when MARDI was descoped and ChemCam was cost capped to save money so that MSL itself could complete development without raiding other missions or R&A.

We thank MSSS, LANL, and JPL for their diligence and hard work in finding solutions to these payload issues. We also thank the community for their support of the Mars Exploration Program, the MSL mission, and for the concept of containing costs on one mission so as not to jeopardize others. The support of the NAC in commending our cost control efforts in SMD is also very much appreciated.

MSL's launch is now just 21 months away! Though there remain many challenges ahead, the mission remains as exciting as ever, and we can celebrate that that highly anticipated return will not come at the expense of other SMD projects or R&A grants.

Sincerely,
Alan Stern and Jim Green

In related news, there are two excellent articles in Science and Nature regarding the recent Second Mars Science Laboratory Landing Site Workshop (click here to access the workshop program and presentations).

Hey, whatever happened to ALH 84001?

For those keeping score, it looks as if the there's-no-evidence-of-life-in-ALH 84001 team (comprising a wide spectrum of scientists) is running up the score against McKay et al. A discussion of the former's latest touchdown (or field goal, at least) can be found here.

SMART-1 Impact on the Moon – Moon Science, Orbit Reboosts and Impact Observations

There's a fairly decent article on the end of the SMART-1 mission in the August 2007 issue of ESA Bulletin:

SMART-1 Impact on the Moon – Moon Science, Orbit Reboosts and Impact Observations
Octavio Camino et al.
ESA Bulletin 31, 38-45 (2007).
4 Mb PDF

Workshop on Martian Gullies: Theories and Tests

For those of you who, like me, keep track of these things, here's an upcoming Mars-related science conference that I recommend keeping in mind:

Workshop on Martian Gullies: Theories and Tests
February 4-5, 2008
Houston, Texas

Second Announcement

Widespread Morning Drizzle on Titan

Ádámkovics et al. have an interesting paper ("Widespread Morning Drizzle on Titan") in the November 9, 2007, issue of Science. There is also Supporting Online Material for the paper, which, I believe, is freely available to non-subscribers.

Since this paper also was published online on October 11, 2007, in Science Express, there was some related press coverage at the time:

See also:

Methane drizzle on Saturn's moon Titan
By Robert Sanders, Media Relations
UC Berkeley News
11 October 2007

Drizzly Mornings on Xanadu
ESO 47/07 - Science Release
October 11, 2007

On Titan, A Dreary Drizzle
By Jeanna Bryner
Staff Writer, Space.com
posted: 11 October 2007
02:01 pm ET

November 8, 2007, HiRISE release

Today's HiRISE release includes some interesting imagery but Gullies and Concentric Fill in an Unnamed Rampart Crater in Noachis Terra (PSP_003708_1335) really stands out, in my opinion.

Saturn's true rotation affected by the solar wind?

There is an interesting paper by Zarka et al. ("Modulation of Saturn's radio clock by solar wind speed") in the November 8, 2007, issue of Nature, as well as an accompanying News and Views piece by Margaret Kivelson. See the Editor's Summary for links and a synopsis.