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- 26 Aug 08 TPS: Support The Planetary Society Phobos LIFE Project - urgent request for donations to send microbes on a round trip to the Martian moon to test the transpermia hypothesis.
- 26 May 08 NASA: Phoenix due to land on Mars this morning. First signal should be received just before 10am, Sydney time. NASA TV coverage starts at 8.30am (Sydney)
- 3 May 08: [Australian] Senate
Economics Committee Inquiry into The Current State of Australia's Space
Science & Industry Sector - submissions sought
- 22 Apr 08 Astrobiology
Science Conference 2008, Santa Clara, California April
14–17, 2008 - papers available
- 2 Feb 08 Universe Today: “Across
the Universe” Day for NASA and Beatles Fans
- NASA will use its Deep Space Network to transmit a song across the
universe. And fittingly, the song is “Across the
Universe”
by the Beatles. On Feb. 4 at 7 pm EST, the song will be beamed towards
the North Star, Polaris, located 431 light years away from Earth. As
part of the celebration, the public around the world has been invited
to participate in the event by simultaneously playing the song at the
same time as the transmission by NASA. That is Tuesday,
February 5, 2008 at 11:00 AM in SE Australia.
- 20 Jan 07 Partial solar eclipse on 7 Feb 08. Starts at
14:52 in Sydney, peaks at 15:44 - see Paul Floyd's Fact
Sheet. Tips for
safe observing.
- 18 Jan 08 UT: Has a
Signal from ET Really Been Detected? Bad
Astronomy: No alien signal
- 14 Nov 07 Space.com: Wow!
Moon Probe Captures 'Earth-rise' in High Definition - see
also these other pictures of Earth
from deep space. Australia is the most prominent
Earth feature in this image, with the Moon's South Pole at the top.
- 25 Sep 07 SpaceDaily: NASA
aims to put man on Mars by 2037.
- 9 Jun 07 The Australian: ACA
closure 'short-sighted' -
NASA's Australian-born astronaut Andy Thomas has joined international
condemnation of the decision to shut down the Australian Centre for
Astrobiology at Macquarie University in Sydney.
- 18 Apr 07 TPS: Life
Experiment: Phobos
- In an ambitious new initiative, the Society is studying the
possibility of sending a collection of living organisms on a three-year
trip to the Martian moon Phobos and back to Earth. This will be
test of the Transpermia
Hypothesis. Donations are sought.
- 25 Mar 07 TPS: Reports
from the 2007 Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.
- 20 Jan 07 Science: Astrobiology
Fights for Its Life - A
decade after NASA pledged to create a robust program to find and
understand life in the universe, researchers face a debilitating budget
crunch and skepticism within their own agency.
- 28 Dec 06 Planetary Society: Visions
of Mars: A Message to the Future - funds being sought to
support this innovative project. TPS members should receive a letter
about this project. They can fax
their donation to +1 626 793 5528.
- 24 Dec 06 Planetary Society: Where
Would We Be With Carl? by Ann Druyan + NASA: Pale
Blue Orb - view of Earth from Saturn. More images
of Earth from deep space.
- 23 Dec 06 SciAm:
What Is a Planet? + Astronomical Journal What is a
planet? by Steve Soter - see also Microplanets
- 7 Dec 06 BBC: Water
flowed 'recently' on Mars + New Scientist: Water
flows on Mars, before our very eyes + NASA
multi-media.
- 9 Nov 06: For Eastern Australian residents the Transit of Mercury
will be visible from just after dawn on Thursday 9th of November to
late morning. See Paul
Floyd's webcast. ASA
Factsheet. Tips for
safe observing. Thanks for the tips Ian
Musgrave. SOHO
live coverage.
- 7 May 06 Free Planetary
Society Podcasts at Apple iTunes Store - search for
"Planetary Radio".
- 26 May 06 Planetary Society: Don't
Trash Space Science - please support this crucial
campaign.
- 5 May 06 NASA: NASA
and Partners Release New Movies of Titan (touchdown)
- 28 Mar 06 SpaceDaily: Eclipse
of the Sun on 29 March - see these precautions
about viewing the Sun.
- 10 Mar 06 Space.com: Commentary:
Destroying Astrobiology Would be a 'Disaster'.
- 16 Feb 05 Planetary Society Charges Administration with
Blurring
its Vision for Space Exploration - It seriously damages the
hugely
productive and successful robotic exploration of our solar system and
beyond.
- 27 Jun 05 TPS: The
Story
of Cosmos 1 is Not Over: A Personal Report - There seems to be some
indication that the
spacecraft was injected into a low orbit, one that would quickly decay
and cause the spacecraft to fall back to Earth and burn up in the
atmosphere...I do know that we are committed to trying again, for The
Planetary Society exists to make space exploration happen. Dec
05; Solar
Sail Update: Getting Started
- 17 May 05: PDF of talk given at Australian Centre for
Astrobiology in 2003: Asteroids
- now for the good news.
- 6 May 05 Nature: Fear
and rambling at NASA
(PDF) - Only a confused space agency would consider shutting down the
Voyager spacecraft as they approach the uncharted edge ofthe Solar
System...
- 10 Mar 05
Nature (Subs!): NASA's
funding shortfall means journey's
end
for Voyager probes
- Mission to the edge
of the Solar System may shut down
in October to save cash
- 10 Feb 05 Starry
Night
software now available for Mac
OS X.
- 16 Jan 05 ESA: First
Results from Huygens - first picture from the surface of
another
moon. Panoramic
picture during descent.
- 3 Dec 04 Science: Special
Issue: Opportunity at Meridiani Planum
- 22 Oct 04: Astronomy
Online has opened a store in Brookvale
(map) - Northern Sydney. Carl
Sagan's Cosmos
DVD is on special.
- 7 Oct 04 Abstracts
for the proceedings of Bioastronomy 2002: Life Among the Stars
now
available at
NASA
Astrophysics Data
System (ADS)
- The Planetary Society Aim for Mars!
website
- 13 Aug 04 ABC: Site
chosen for Mars training lab - The Mars Society of
Australia is
to
begin searching for
investors
to help fund a proposed Mars research station
at Arkaroola in northern South Australia.
- Reports on Progress in Physics: Astrophysical
and astrochemical insights into the origin of life (Abstract
+ full
article is free!) - this is a
milestone study
+ Quantum
fluctuations
and life by Paul Davies
- Astrobiology Magazine: Interview
with Ann Druyan and Steven Soter [coauthors of Cosmos and
numerous
other Carl Sagan books] - life, the Universe and everything! Plus the
book Cosmic Connections, written by Carl Sagan in 1973 has been
re-released with updates by Ann Druyan, Freeman Dyson and David
Morrison - recommended reading.
- Carl
Sagan's brilliant Cosmos TV series is now available on DVD
- still highly relevant after 20 years. Australian
supplier.
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- 5 Sep 08 NewSci: Interstellar 'slowball' could have carried seeds of life - see also Transpermia
- 31 Aug 08 UT: Mars Rover On the Road Again (Gallery).
- 26 Aug 08 Space.com: Melting Glaciers Sculpted Mars Gullies (more on Mars glaciers)
- 26 Aug 08 Space Review: TEMPO3: the Mars Society’s newest project + Hitching a ride to the Oort Cloud
- 24 Aug 08 Icarus ($): Volume 197, Issue 1
- 24 Aug 08 HiRISE (NASA): Gullies and Bedrock Exposures in Impact Crater Wall.
- 19 Aug 08 HiRISE (NASA): Mid-Latitude Gullies in Crater.
- 19 Aug 08 Space.com: Titan's Ice Volcanoes Might Produce Stuff of Life .
- 13 Aug 08 UT: Cassini "Skeet Shoot" of Enceladus a Success.
- 12 Aug 08 Space.com: [hypothetical] Microbes Could Travel from Venus to Earth (via solar wind). See also Transpermia.
- 9 Aug 08 UT: Evidence for Widespread Water on Early Mars.
- 8 Aug 08 NewSci: Solar systems like ours may be rare + UT: Our Solar System: An Island of Calm in a Violent Universe (and it's special, too)
- 2 Aug 08 UT: John Glenn Speaks Out Against Future Moon Base.
- 1 Aug 08 SMH: Water found [confirmed] on Mars.
- 31 Jul 08 ESA: Mars Express acquires sharpest images of martian moon Phobos.
- 4 Jul 08 Science: Special issue - Mercury, Up-Close Again
- 3 Jul 08 NewSci: Did newborn Earth harbour life?
Researchers have found unusually light isotopes of carbon, a common
indicator of life, in the Earth's oldest mineral deposit, found in the
Jack Hills in Western Australia.
- 27 Jun 08 Space.com: Scientists Hunt for Astrobiology at Carl Sagan Center .
- 26 Jun 08 BBC: Mars' two-faced riddle 'solved' - Scientists think a giant asteroid impact can explain why the northern and southern hemispheres of Mars look so different.
- 22 Jun 08 Nature: Yes, there's ice on Mars - "Ice!" screams NASA's Phoenix lander + When water gushed on Mars - maybe as recently as 20,000 years ago!
- 22 Jun 08 NewSci: Planet Pluto fans rebel against 'plutoid' designation. The Great Planet Debate: Science as Process
A Scientific Conference and Educator Workshop, August 14-16, 2008, The Johns Hopkins University
- 20 Jun 08 BBC: Phoenix makes 'perfect' discovery - evidence of ice on Mars
- 16 Jun 08 SpaceDaily: We may all be space aliens: study (see also Fossilized Bacteria Found in Ancient Meteorite) + EPSL (PDF): Extraterrestrial nucleobases in the Murchison meteorite (thanks Cosmic Ancestry)
- 15 Jun 08 Space.com: Study: Life's Raw Material Came from Space (see also Rocks from Space) + Astronomers Argue Pluto is a Planet + Mars Microbes Could Survive with Natural Antifreeze.
- 12 Jun 08 Space.com: Pluto Now Called a Plutoid - see also Microplanet essay.
- 31 May 08 NASA: NASA's Phoenix Lander Robotic Arm Camera Sees Possible Ice - but possible "intermittent short circuit in the spectrometer".
- 30 May 08 SMH: Earlier start to Life on Earth (Uni NSW's new Australian Centre for Astrobiology - making up for the loss of the Centre at Maquarie Uni last year)
- 28 May 08 UT: Another HiRISE Stunner: The Full Descent Image - there was a crater in the background of the HiRISE snapshot of the descending Phoenix.
- 28 May 08 TPS: Phoenix Rises from Ashes in Style - comprehensive report on the landing.
- 26 May 08 SpaceDaily: Secrets Of Martain Suitability For Life May Be Down In The Dirt +
- 26 May 08 Nature: How low can life go? Microbes thrive more than a kilometre beneath the sea floor [see Nanobes - 4km down!]
- 26 May 08 NewSci: Earth canyon hints at ancient megafloods on Mars [see also Tsunami book gives a better understanding of ancient floods on Mars]
- 26 Space.com: 100 [meteorite] Explosions Recorded on the Moon + Hydrothermal Vents on Mars Could Have Supported Life [see also Asteroids
- now for the good news] + Ancient Flash Floods Sculpted Earth, Mars.
- 26 May 08 UT: Exoplanet Count Rises With New Discoveries + Spirit Unearths Former Yellowstone on Mars + Channels, Craters and Phoenix's Landing Site From MRO.
- 9 May 08 Space.com:
Alien Life-Searching Techniques Tested ( see also these
references) + Why
Don't They Do SETI?
- 9 May 08 UT: Legendary
Astronaut John Glenn Speaks Out On Shuttle Decommissioning
- 8 May 08 UT: NASA
Considers Manned Asteroid Mission
- 3 May 08 Space.com: Astrobiology
Is Alive and Well [but is shaky in Australia!]
- 3 May 08 NewSci: Interview: The man who found Mars on Earth
- Chris McKay "It's fashionable these days for astrobiologists
to talk about how
rugged and hardy life is, and how it can survive in all the most
amazing places. In fact, I have formed the opposite impression. Life is
dangling on a fragile thread, and that thread is liquid water. We have
searched for organisms that could do without it. No joy..."
- 29 Apr 08 Military.com: Dissent
Grows Over NASA's Moon Mission (see also the article
by Robert Farquhar in the Mar/Apr 08 issue of Planetary
Report) + (2006) JHU:
The Next Steps in Human Space Exploration: What are the Alternatives?
- 26 Apr 08 Space.com: Mars
Features Resemble Hydrothermal Springs + Strange
Scars on Mars Suggest Recent Glaciers.
- 24 Apr 08 ABC: Time's
running out for ET to evolve.
- 24 Apr 08 UT: Mars
Was Recently Blanketed By Glaciers - more
links on this topic.
- 22 Apr 08 NewSci: Stephen
Hawking calls for Moon and Mars colonies.
- 22 Apr 08 BBC:
ET contact odds 'extremely low' + Plants
'thrive' on Moon rock diet + Nasa
extends Saturn probe mission + 'Cruise
control' for spacecraft + 'Black
hole' scientist [John Wheeler] dies at 96
- 22 Apr 08 Space Review: The
wisdom of NASA’s elders.
- 21 Mar 08 BBC:
Methane found on distant world + Mars
is 'covered in table salt' +
Saturn moon may have hidden ocean
- 21 Mar 08 Space.com: Looking
for Water on Mars
- 19 Mar 08 ABC: Sci-fi
guru Arthur C Clarke dies - there are many references to
Sir Arthur on these pages. IEEE Oct07: Remembering
Sputnik: Sir Arthur C. Clarke.: If I had three wishes, I
would ask for these: 1. A method to generate limitless quantities of clean
energy. 2. Affordable and reliable means of space transport.
3. Eliminating the design faults in the human body. TPS
tribute including "In Praise of Arthur C. Clarke" by Carl
Sagan, from a 1983 Panetary Report.
- 18 Mar 08 Space Review: The end
of the golden age of Mars exploration? + British
space policy on life, the universe, and everything + Review:
Human Missions to Mars
- 14 Mar 08 BBC: Huge
ice deposits 'seen' on Mars - Water
ice has probably been detected below Mars' surface, far from
the planet's polar ice caps, say scientists.
- 13 Mar 08 ESA: Icy
Promethei Planum [on Mars]
- 7 Mar 08 Space.com: Once-Habitable
Lake Found on Mars.
- 5 Mar 08 UT: A
One-Way, One-Person Mission to Mars - also raised
by Dr Nick Hoffman in 2001
- 4 Mar 08 SMH:
Violent rock slides snapped on red planet + SpaceDaily: NASA
Spacecraft Photographs Avalanches On Mars + New Tool Enlisted In The Search For Life
On Mars
- 1 Mar 08 Space.com: Recent
Water on Mars? Not So Fast - not spurts of water, but rather
avalanches of dust.
- 26 Feb 08 Space Review: Seven
generations: a re-evaluation of the Paine Report [on the
future of US space exploration]
- 25 Feb 08 NewSci: Martian
crater records aftermath of Amazon-like flood.
- 17 Feb 08 Caltech: Many,
Perhaps Most, Nearby Sun-Like Stars May Form Rocky Planets
- 16 Feb 08 Space.com: Mars
Water Was Very Salty + See
Mars in 3-D.
- 15 Feb 08 NewSci: First
multiple planet system found by microlensing.
- 15 Feb 08 UT: Another
Solar System Found with Saturn and Jupiter-Sized Planets
- 12 Feb 08 NewSci ($): Organic molecules found on alien world for
first time + Stepping up the search for ET
- 11 Feb 08 Nature ($): The
Moon: destination or distraction?
- 11 Feb 08 NewSci ($): Stepping
up the search for ET.
- 5 Feb 08 JPL: Possible
Salt Deposits in Noachis Terra (Mars)
- 5 Feb 08 Space Review: Not-so-rare
Earth?
- 1 Feb 08 NewSci: Bizarre
spider scar found on Mercury's surface.
- 27 Jan 08 ESA: Traces
of the martian past in the Terby crater + THEMIS: Numerous gullies
dissect the northeastern rim of this unnamed crater in Noachis Terra
+ Multiple
gullies are located on the northwestern rim of this unnamed crater in
Terra Cimmeria.
- 24 Jan 08 UT: Mercury in Living Color
- 20 Jan 08 NewSci: Probe
returns first image of Mercury's unseen side
- 18 Jan 08 UT: Has a
Signal from ET Really Been Detected? Bad
Astronomy: No alien signal
- 3 Jan 08 NewSci: First
planet discovered around a youthful star
- 3 Jan 08 SpaceDaily: Unveiling
The Mountains Of Titan.
- 28 Dec 07 SpaceDaily:
Dawn Of The Ion Age
- the probe will spend most of its time doing what it is doing today:
patiently reshaping its orbit around the Sun with its amazingly
efficient ion propulsion system.
- 24 Dec 07 Spaceviz:
New video Planetary
Defense
- 24 Dec 07 SpaceDaily: In
Search For Water On Mars Via Clues From Antarctica + Global
Map Reveals Mineral Distribution On Mars + How
Mars Could Have Been Warm And Wet But Limestone-Free + NASA
Delays Mars Scout Mission To 2013 + Messenger
Zeros In On Mercury + Astronomers
Monitor Asteroid To Pass Near Mars + Asteroid
nears Mars at 8 miles per second
- 21 Dec 07 BBC: Greenhouse
clue to water on Mars - sulphur dioxide?
- 20 Dec 07 BBC: Funds
boost Europe Mars mission + 'Active
glacier found' on Mars (more on Mars
glaciers)
- 18 Dec 07 SpaceDaily: Hot
Spot On Enceladus Causes Plumes.
- 14 Dec 07 ABC Radio: Interview
with Ann Druyan.
- 12 Dec 07 NewSci: Global
group aims to return Martian soil to Earth.
- 11 Dec 07 BBC: Mars
robot unearths [tenuous] microbe clue
- 11 Dec 07 Space.com: Aliens
Apart - SETI
- 5 Dec 07 UT: Future
Mars Explorers Might Only See the Planet from Orbit
- 5 Dec 07 SpaceDaily: The
Venusian Climate And Its Evolution - some time in the past,
Venus was probably much more Earth-like and contained large quantities
of water...(more Venus
transpermia links)
- 5 Dec 07 SciAm
($): Are Aliens Among Us? - In
pursuit of evidence that life arose on Earth more than once, scientists
are searching for microbes that are radically different from all known
organisms - by Paul Davies
- 1 Dec 07 NewSci: Orion: NASA returns to the rocket + Arthur C Clarke: Still looking at the stars
- As a high-school student in the early 1950s, Sagan decided to become
an astronomer after reading Interplanetary Flight, Clarke's first book.
- 1 Dec 07 Acta Astronautic ($): Control
of Lagrange point orbits using solar sail propulsion.
- 30 Nov 07 UT: Voyager
2 is About to Cross the Termination Shock (see also the Nature item about Voyager
funding)
- 19 Nov 07 EPSL: Implications
from sulfur isotopes of the Nakhla meteorite for the origin of sulfate
on Mars - produced by photochemical smog (a Martian Los
Angles?) rather than hydrothermal action.
- 17 Nov 07 TPS: Report
on the First International Conference on the Exploration of Phobos and
Deimos
- 17 Nov 07 ESA: The European Mars Science &
Exploration Conference: Mars Express and ExoMars has just concluded. We
present interviews
with selected experts on some hot topics.
- 16 Nov 07 BBC: Europe
eyes Mars landing sites.
- 16 Nov 07 ABC: Time
[for Australia] to rejoin space race, say scientists
- 14 Nov 07 Space.com: Wow!
Moon Probe Captures 'Earth-rise' in High Definition - see
also these other pictures of Earth
from deep space.
- 14 Nov 07 SciAm ($): Are
Aliens among Us?
- 12 Nov 07 NewSci: Mars's
tiny moons – one small step for mankind? - see
further links on Phobos
missions
- 9 Nov 07 Space.com: SETI:
Is It Worth It?
- 7 Nov 07 Space.com: Mars
Rovers: Scientific Staying Power + Planet
System Similar to Ours Revealed
- 3 Nov 07 NewSci: Prime
landing sites chosen for biggest Martian rover.
- 2 Nov 07 NASA: Mars
Express Probes Red Planet's Unusual Deposits - They
could be ice-rich deposits, somewhat similar to the layered ice
deposits at the poles of the planet, but formed when the spin axis of
Mars tilts over, making the equatorial region colder... although the
electrical properties are consistent with water-ice layers, there is no
other strong evidence for the presence of ice today in the equatorial
regions of Mars. "If there is water ice at the equator of Mars, it must
be buried at least several meters below the surface"
- 24 Oct 07 BBC: Life
from Mars theory put to test (transpermia)
- 20 Oct 07 UT: Mars
Rovers' Mission Extended Yet Again + Maunder
Crater on Mars
- 20 Oct 07 Space.com: Martian
Volcanoes May Not be Extinct + Want
to Go to Mars? Crews Wanted for Mock Missions
- 13 Oct 07 New Scientist: Did
Venus's ancient oceans incubate life?
- 13 Oct 07 BBC: Skies
to be swept for alien life (Allen Telescope Array)
- 8 Oct 07 SpaceDaily: Russia
to help NASA explore Moon, Mars.
- 8 Oct 07 TPS: Scientists
Spy Likely Birth of a New "Earth".
- 8 Oct 07 BBC: Japanese
probe enters lunar orbit.
- 4 Oct 07 NewSci: Sun's
'twin' an ideal hunting ground for alien life.
- 2 Oct 07 NASA (staff page): The
Space Station in Empty Space
"An object orbiting the Earth as in Figure 54 behaves as if it would
form the pinnacle of a enormously giant tower (naturally, only
imaginary) 35,900,000 meters high..." from The
Problem of Space Travel,
attributed to "Hermann Noordung" (possibly Austrian Hermann
Potocnik) and published in 1929. If accurate, this predates Arthur C
Clarke's 1945 proposal for geosynchronous communication satellites.
(credit New Scientist letters)
- 1 Oct 07 New Scientist: Mars
Society seeks to rescue crewed mission + ($) Weird
worlds: Planets that defy convention + 'Self-aware'
space rovers would be speedy explorers.
- 28 Sep 07 Space.com: Huygens
Data Paint Turbulent Picture of Titan.
- 28 Sep 07 UT: Opportunity
is Now Working Inside Victoria Crater.
- 25 Sep 07 SpaceDaily: NASA
aims to put man on Mars by 2037.
- 22 Sep 07 UT: More
Martian Cave Entrances Discovered.
- 21 Sep 07 Science ($10): Is
Mars Looking Drier and Drier for Longer and Longer? + A
Closer Look at Water-Related Geologic Activity on Mars. +
Space.com: Hope
for Water on Mars Dims with Sharp New Images.
- 21 Sep 07 NASA: NASA
Orbiter Provides Insights About Mars Water and Climate.
Mixed news about water on the planet: "...the [fresh] deposit
is
not frost, ice or a mineral left behind by evaporation of salty
water...Other gullies, however, offer strong evidence of
liquid water flowing on Mars within the last few million
years...Another new finding from that camera may help undermine
arguments that very ancient Mars had a wet climate
on a sustained basis....images from the high-resolution camera [to]
show lava flows completely draping a young Martian channel network
called Athabasca Valles. This creates ponded lava over an expanse that
other researchers had interpreted in 2005 as a frozen sea...."
- 17 Sep 07 SpaceDaily: New
Theory Explains Ice On Mars
- 10 Sep 07 Washington Post: [Arecibo] Radio
Telescope And Its Budget Hang in the Balance.
- 26 Aug 07 Spacedaily: Shuttle
Brings Space-Grown Strep Bacteria Back For Study - a cause
for concern for long-duration space travelers
- 23 August 07 NASA NEO News: Two
new papers make extraordinary claims about comets and life
(see 16 Aug)
- 23 Aug 07 ESA: Google
brings the cosmos down to Earth.
- 16 Aug 07 SpaceDaily: China
reveals deadly threat to first flight [4 years ago]
- 16 Aug 07 Space.com: Scientist:
Calculations Prove Life Began in Comet + How
I Spent My SETI Summer.
- 5 Aug 07 New Scientist: Phoenix
lander blasts off to Mars + ($) Helping
NASA back to the moon
- NASA called in a group of retired Apollo programme engineers. They
were asked to share their experience, gained in the 1960s and 70s, with
the team now working at NASA to return Americans to the moon by 2020.
The veterans had worked as testers for the Grumman Corporation, which
built the module that took astronauts down to the lunar surface.
- 31 Jul 07 Space.com: NASA
Insiders Propose Stepping Stone Path to Deep Space - human
missions to NEOs
- 10 Jun 07 NewSci: Mars
rover finds "puddles" on the planet's surface - the blue
colour is an artifact of the processing. Note that "bulldust"
behaves like a fluid and will form "ponds".
- 9 Jun 07 The Australian: ACA
closure 'short-sighted' -
NASA's Australian-born astronaut Andy Thomas has joined international
condemnation of the decision to shut down the Australian Centre for
Astrobiology at Macquarie University in Sydney.
- 8 Jun 07 New Scientist ($): Life
- but not as we know it + Still
no aliens + Landslides
old and new found on Mars.
- 3 Jun 07 TPS: Spirit
Finds "Explosive" Evidence of Past Water, Opportunity Revs Up, Revisits
Cape of Good Hope - comprehensive update on the rovers
- 30 May 07 SpaceDaily: Forecasting
Earth-Like Worlds.
- 30 May 07 BBC: Planet
hunters spy distant haul - The finds increase the total
number of known exoplanets to 236...
- 27 May 07 CSA: Canadians
Teaming Up to Develop Mars Mission Concepts - Australian
Michael West is on the Phobos mission team: Canadian
Mission Concept to Mysterious Mars moon Phobos to Feature Unique
Rock-Dock Maneuver . Thanks MSA.
- 22 May 07 NASA: Mars
Rover Spirit Unearths Surprise Evidence of Wetter Past.
- 18 May 07 New Scientist: Strange
alien world made of 'hot ice' + Grinding
ice generates Saturn moon's icy plumes
- 18 May 07 Space.com:
Planet of Promise: Small, Rocky World Could Harbor Life
- 18 May 07 Acta Astronautica Volume
61: Sir
Hermann Bondi: A journey through his life and the early endeavours of
Europe into space + Robotic
lunar exploration: Architectures, issues and options
+ Recent
advances in solar sail propulsion systems at NASA + SMART-1
operations experience and lessons learnt + A
high-energy sample return Earth re-entry demonstrator to address
planetary protection issues + The
crew exploration vehicle (CEV) and the next generation of human
spaceflight + Mars
sample return: The critical next step + Initial
results from Harvard all-sky optical SETI + The
SIM PlanetQuest science program + Status
of Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission + The
Cassini Mission at Saturn
- 9 May 07 Space.com: Old
Rockets Carry Bacteria to the Stars.
- 6 May 07 Space.com: Surprise
Slosh! Mercury's Core is Liquid
- 6 May 07 SpaceDaily: Mars
Rover Spirit Finds Evidence Of Ancient Volcanic Explosion.
- 6 May 07 TPS: New
Horizons’ Close Encounter Provides Rare Views of the Jovian
System + Spirit
Finds Past Water at Home, Opportunity Takes in Tierra del Fuego
- 6 May 07 BBC: 'Up
to half' of Mars may have ice + UT: Ice
Depth Varies Across the Surface of Mars + NS: 'Bumpy'
ice on Mars points to active water cycle.
- 6 May 07 NS: Jupiter
moon [Io] spews volcanic plumes in new images.
- 30 Apr 07 Space.com: Search
for Life Gets Serious.
- 25 Apr 07 Space.com: Major
Discovery: New Planet Could Harbor Water and Life [Goldilocks
planet]
- 18 Apr 07 TPS: Life
Experiment: Phobos
- In an ambitious new initiative, the Society is studying the
possibility of sending a collection of living organisms on a three-year
trip to the Martian moon Phobos and back to Earth. This will be
test
of the Transpermia Hypothesis.
Donations are sought.
- 18 Apr 07 ABC: Buzz
Aldrin plans space travel lottery - Former
astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, has
announced plans for a lottery that will send its winner into space in a
bid to spread the dream of extraterrestrial travel beyond the
super-wealthy. ShareSpace
Foundation (under construction!)
- 12 Apr 07 NASA Shows
Future Space Telescopes Could Detect Earth Twin.
- 12 Apr 07 BBC: Water
detected on distant planet + New Scientist: First
sign of water found on an alien world (but 1000 C
temperatures!)
- 31 Mar 07 BBC: Many
planets may have double suns.
- 31 Mar 07 Space.com: New
X-ray Image Shows Jupiter's Powerful Sky Lights.
- 20 Mar 07 TPS: The
Empire Strikes Back - Europe’s First Trip to Mars Brings Home
"The Gold"
- 17 Mar 07 BBC: Icy
map to probe Europa's secrets.
- 16 Mar 07 NASA: Mars'
South Pole Ice Deep and Wide.
- 15 Mar 07 EPSL: Transient
mantle convection on Venus: The paradoxical coexistence of highlands
and coronae in the BAT region
- 15 Mar 07 Icarus: Infrared
transmission spectroscopy of carbonate samples of biotic origin
relevant to Mars exobiological studies + Mars'
water isotope (D/H) history in the strata of the North Polar Cap:
Inferences about the water cycle + Comparison
of small lunar landslides and martian gullies
- 15 Mar 07 BBC: Movies
provide new view of Mars.
- 15 Mar 07 NASA: Mars
Rover Churns Up Questions With Sulfur-Rich Soil.
- 14 Mar 07 NASA: Cassini
Spacecraft Images Seas on Saturn's Moon Titan.
- 14 Mar 07 Acta Astronautica : Materials
refining on the Moon. See also Riches
in the Rubble.
- 13 Mar 07 BBC:
Major space missions move ahead-
[NASA] is considering four targets: the Jupiter system, Jupiter's
moon Europa, and Saturn's moons Enceladus and Titan...Europa, Titan and
Enceladus are also among the
destinations expected to be proposed [to ESA]...Other proposals likely
to be submitted include a mission to return soil from a near-Earth
asteroid.
- 13 Mar 07 NASA: A
Hot Start Might Explain Geysers on Enceladus.
- 13 Mar 07 Space Review: New
directions in the search for life in our solar system
- 8 Mar 07 SpaceDaily: Early
Mars Had Underground Water System + Nature: Not
a sea, but a seep, on Mars.
- 2 Mar 07 ESA: Rosetta
delivers Phobos transit animation and 'sees' Mars in stereo.
- 2 Mar 07 NASA: Cassini
Returns Never-Before-Seen Views of the Ringed Planet.
- 2 Mar 07 BBC: Probe
spies moon's volcanic plume [on Io].
- 1 Mar 07 ABC Science Show: Mars
- were there ever habitable environments for life?
- 1 Mar 07 Space.com: New
Instrument Designed to Sift for Life on Mars.
- 1 Mar 07 BBC:
Nasa [Pluto] probe makes flyby of Jupiter.
- 24 Feb 07 Acta Astronautica ($): Optimal
heliostationary missions of high-performance sailcraft +
Optimal control of the deployment process of solar wings on spacecraft
+ Propulsion
tradeoffs for a mission to Alpha Centauri.
- 24 Feb 07 EPSL ($): Production
of hydrogen peroxide in Martian and lunar soils -
Reactive, pulverized minerals are important on planetary bodies where
impact processes have generated fine-grained basaltic dusts, and may
pose a significant health risk to astronauts visiting planetary
surfaces where impacts have generated such materials.
- 24 Feb 07 SpaceDaily:
Absence Of Water In Distant Exo Planet Atmosphere Surprises Astronomers.
- 17 Feb 07 SpaceDaily: Orbiter
Provides New Hints Of Past Groundwater Flows On Mars +
Science ($): Fracture-Controlled
Paleo-Fluid Flow in Candor Chasma, Mars.
- 17 Feb 07 BBC: Antarctic
water world uncovered - analogue for Mars glaciers?
- 16 Feb 07 NewSci: Underground
pipes channelled water on Mars.
- 10 Feb 07 BBC: Martian
moon 'could be key test' - see also the proposals
for a human mission to Phobos.
- 6 Feb 07 Spacedaily: Looking
For Microbial Martians.
- 6 Feb 07 Space.com: Finding
New Worlds: Theoretical Conjecture Versus Hands-on Astronomy
(no mention of extra-solar
impacts)
- 2 Feb 07 NewSci: 'Oceans'
of water may hide on Mars.
- 2 Feb 07 NASA: Cassini
Images Mammoth Cloud Engulfing Titan's North Pole.
- 1 Feb 07 ESA: How
SMART-1 has made European space exploration smarter.
- 31 Jan 07 Space.com:
Study: Surface of Mars Devoid of Life
- 30 Jan 07 PSRD: Did
Martian Meteorites Come From These Sources?
- 30 Jan 07 Geophys. Res. Lett ($): Role
of photoionization in the formation of complex organic molecules in
Titan's upper atmosphere + Shock-induced
compaction, melting, and entrapment of atmospheric gases in Martian
meteorites + Sublimation
rate of ice under simulated Mars conditions and the effect of layers of
mock regolith JSC Mars-1.
- 30 Jan 07 BBC: Frozen
sea may harbour Mars life - see also Glaciers
on Mars - a safe landing for hitchhiking microbes from Earth
- 29 Jan 07 New Scientist ($): 'Life
came from Mars' theory survives pressure test (see also 30
Dec & transpermia)
+ The
search for ET must go on.
- 20 Jan 07 Icarus ($): Hydrocarbon
lakes on Titan + Arecibo
radar observations of Phobos and Deimos (see Spaceguard alert 30 Dec
06 - Arecibo is scheduled for closure!) + Experimental
evidence for the potential impact ejection of viable microorganisms
from Mars and Mars-like planets (see also Transpermia)
- 20 Jan 07 Science ($): WILLIAM
K. HARTMANN:Renaissance Man of the Solar System + ASTROBIOLOGY:
Pete Worden 'Ames' for the Moon and Beyond + ASTROBIOLOGY:
It Rains in Spain and Wilts in Australia
- Dozens of Spanish researchers are enthusiastically probing the hows,
wheres, and whys of life in the universe at Spain's Centro de
Astrobiología. The
mood is much more somber at the Australian Centre for Astrobiology
+ Astrobiology
Fights for Its Life - A
decade after NASA pledged to create a robust program to find and
understand life in the universe, researchers face a debilitating budget
crunch and skepticism within their own agency.
- 19 Jan 07 Space.com: When
Does SETI Throw in the Towel? + New Scientist: Aliens
need a lot more time to find us.
- 12 Jan 07 NewSci: Europe
targets its own Moon and Mars missions.
- 4 Jan 07 SciAm: Moon
River: Titan's Polar Surface Dotted with Lakes of Methane.
- 3 Jan 07 Science ($): Lineages
of Acidophilic Archaea Revealed by Community Genomic Analysis
- "it may be necessary to reconsider existing paradigms for
the minimum requirements for life..." - see also Transpermia/Nanobes.
See also Mars News
Top of page
Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan in Ithaca 1995.
Carl Sagan is one of the founders of TPS. He died on Dec.20,
1996
after 62 revolutions around our star. Carl and Ann's main works include
Top of page
Founders of The Planetary Society
The founders of the Planetary Society: Bruce Murray, Carl
Sagan
and Louis
Friedman in front of the TPS home in Pasadena, California.
Top of page
About TPS Australian Volunteer Coordinators
The Australian Volunteer Coordinators are members of The Planetary Society
(an
international non-profit organisation based in the USA). They help with
planetary-science related events in Australia. There are several such
groups around the world (see web links).
TPSAVC
Seminars
SETI from Australia, Canberra, Oct
![[Click for virtual reality image of Australia from space]](oz2space.gif)
click to
animate