Space & Astronomy/Space and Astronomy (October 1993).iso/mac/TEXT/SPACEDIG/V12_6/V12_715.TXT

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Subject: SPACE Digest V12 #715

SPACE Digest                                     Volume 12 : Issue 715

Today's Topics:
     1991 Princeton Space Forum - Moon, Mars, and Beyond
              Magellan Update - 12/18/90
         NASA Headline News for 12/18/90 (Forwarded)
        Re: Why didn't I think of that!?@#$%!
                Venus article

Administrivia:

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  [e-mail].  Other mail, esp. [un]subscription notices,
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Date: 18 Dec 90 15:54:41 GMT
From: phoenix![e-mail]  (Marc Wayne Mcconley)
Organization: Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey
Subject: 1991 Princeton Space Forum - Moon, Mars, and Beyond
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                        MOON, MARS, AND BEYOND
Top Space Experts to Explore America's Future in Space at Public Forum

Princeton, NJ - On February 11, 1991, seven of the nation's leading
authorities on space will participate in an innovative public forum
entitled "Moon, Mars, and Beyond" to discuss the policy options now
being considered by the Bush administration for America's space program.
The forum will foster interaction among these experts and the public and
will provide a non-technical perspective on strategies for the
exploration and settlement of the solar system.

Participants include the current Deputy Administrator of NASA, the
visionary creator of "Star Trek," and an entrepreneur whose private
company launches commercial payloads into orbit.  (A complete list of
speakers appears below.)

"Moon, Mars, and Beyond" begins at 7:30 pm on Monday, February 11, 1991,
in Richardson Auditorium in Alexander Hall, Princeton University.
Admission is $6 to individuals not affiliated with Princeton University.
To order tickets send a check or money order, payable to Princeton
Planetary Society, for $6 per ticket to:  Princeton Planetary Society,
315 West College, Princeton University, Princeton  NJ  08544.  Ticket
orders MUST BE RECEIVED BY JANUARY 31, 1991.  For more information,
contact Audrey Robinson at 609-258-7947.

AFTER JANUARY 31, tickets may be purchased through the Richardson
Auditorium Box Office by phone [phone]) with VISA or MasterCard
only.  The Box Office adds a $1 service charge to the price of each
ticket for phone orders.  Tickets may also be purchased in person at the
Box Office with cash, check, or credit card.  The Box Office is open
from 4 to 6 pm, Monday through Friday, and beginning at 4 pm on the day
of the forum.

The forum is sponsored by the Princeton Planetary Society, a student-run
chapter of the National Space Society.  "Moon, Mars, and Beyond" is the
Third Annual Princeton Space Forum.  The first two forums each attracted
500 people and widespread media coverage.

--
Marc W. McConley
Vice President, Princeton Planetary Society
Reply-To:  [e-mail]  ||  [phone]

=====================================================================
The following is a complete list of speakers:

JOHN BAHCALL is Professor of Natural Science at the Institute for
Advanced Study in Princeton and President of the American Astronomical
Society.  Bahcall works on galaxy models, dark matter, neutron stars,
quasars, and solar neutrinos, and he published a book on "Solar
Neutrinos" in 1989.

JAMES C BENNETT is currently the Corporate Vice President of American
Rocket Company, a private launch company, which developed the unique,
non-explosive hybrid rocket engine.  Bennett co-founded the company with
the late George Koopman in 1985.  He was also a co-founder of Space
Enterprise Consultants, the first consulting firm devoted entirely to
commercial space development, and of Arc Technologies, Inc., an early
private space-launch venture.  He is a member of the Legislative
Committee of the National Space Society.

GREGG EASTERBROOK is a Contributing Editor for "Newsweek."  In an
exclusive report in "Newsweek's" August 17, 1987, issue, Easterbrook
explained how interagency rivalries, aerospace-industry lobbying, and
domestic political considerations continue to plague America's space
program.  He had earlier predicted in a 1980 article that the space
shuttle program was fraught with dangers.  Easterbrook also seves as a
Contributing Editor at both "The Atlantic" and "The Washington Monthly"
magazines.

STEPHANIE LEE-MILLER is the director of the Office of Commercial Space
Transportation in the US Department of Transportation.  In this
capacity, she serves as the Secretary's Representative to the National
Space Council and the chief federal regulatory official for the growing
commercial space transportation industry.  Lee-Miler is a member of
Women in Aerospace, a professional organization created to honor
outstanding women in the space field.

ROBERT J MRAZEK has been a Democratic member of the US House of
Representatives since 1983, representing the Third District of New York.
Mrazek serves on the Appropriations Committee and is a Whip at Large.
As a member of the Congressional Space Caucus, he has authored
international satellite usage legislation and has been actively
exploring ways in which space-based remote-sensing satellites can help
promote information-based security strategies.

GENE RODDENBERRY, a member of the National Space Society Board of
Governors, has been a long-term supporter of the peaceful expansion of
mankind into space.  He is the creator and executive producer of "Star
Trek" and "Star Trek:  The Next Generation."  He also produced "Star
Trek:  The Motion Picture" and served as executive consultant for
several other "Star Trek" movies.  Roddenberry will moderate the panel
discussion during the forum.

J R THOMPSON, JR became Deputy Administrator of NASA in 1989, following
33 months as head of the Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL.
Druing that period, the Marshall Center oversaw the redesign and testing
of the Space Shuttle's critical solid rocket boosters.  Before becoming
director at Marshall, Thompson served 3 years as deputy director for
technical operations at Princeton's Plasma Physics Laboratory.  In 1986
he served as the vice chairman of the NASA task force inquiring into the
cause of the Space Shuttle Challenger accident.  Previously, Thompson
spent 20 years with NASA at Marshall in various positions, where he was
responsible for the development and operation of the most advanced
liquid propulsion rocket engine ever created.  Thompson will deliver the
keynote address at the forum.

------------------------------

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Date: 18 Dec 90 18:47:17 GMT
From: swrinde!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
Subject: Magellan Update - 12/18/90
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                       MAGELLAN STATUS REPORT
                         December 18, 1990

     The Magellan spacecraft continues to be in good health and is performing
nominally.  All STARCALS (star calibrations) and DESATS (desaturations)
during the past 24 hours were successful.

     The Project is currently in the Occulted Mapping Phase of the mission.
Each mapping pass is shortened by 6.5 to 9 minutes in order to accommodate
Earth occultation during the playback.  The period of earth occultation varies
from 46 to 58.5 minutes.  The area missed because of the shorter mapping pass
is split between the north and south ends of the image swath.

     The radar sensor health continues to operate normally.  Fifteen full
resolution image swaths were processed by the SAR (Synthetic Aperture Radar)
Data Processor since the morning of December 14, including 11 standard swaths,
3 special products and one temporary image from orbit #1032.

     Analysis of image swaths from orbit #1023 and after revealed some small
gores (spaces between adjacent swaths) near the periapsis (lowest point in the
orbit).  It has been determined that this was a result of a slight error in
the mapping quaterions, and will be corrected on an upcoming update of the
mapping quaternion file.
      ___    _____     ___
     /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|
     | | | |  __ \ /| | | |      Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
  ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |___   Jet Propulsion Lab | [e-mail]
 /___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /|  M/S 301-355        |
 |_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/   Pasadena, CA 91109 |

------------------------------

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Date: 18 Dec 90 20:36:22 GMT
From: trident.arc.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Subject: NASA Headline News for 12/18/90 (Forwarded)
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             Headline News
Internal Communications Branch (P-2) NASA Headquarters

  Tuesday, December 18, 1990    Audio Service: 202 / 755-1788

This is NASA Headline News for Tuesday, December 18, 1990

NASA Administrator Richard H. Truly has named Donald R. Puddy to head a
small team to assist in determining the best methods for implementing
the Augustine Committee recommendations which fall under NASA's
purview.  Puddy is JSC's director of flight crew operations.    Truly
noted that "Many of the report's recommendations are consistent with
initiatives already underway at NASA.  their very nature, will take
longer.  Many of the most important ... will depend on the strong
support of not only NASA, but also the White House and Congress."  The
Administrators' holiday message to NASA employees today at noon Eastern
time on NASA Select television includes a report on the weekend meeting
of top NASA management and members of the Augustine group.

* * * * * * * * * * *

With "wheels up" at 10:03 am EST, the Space Shuttle Columbia, carried
atop the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, departed California today on its
ferry flight to Kennedy Space Center, Florida.  Yesterday's scheduled
departure from NASA's Mojave Desert flight test facility was cancelled
due to enroute weather considerations.  Flight plans call for the
Orbiter/747 combination to fly to Biggs Army Airfield, El Paso, Texas,
and then on to Barksdale AFB, Louisiana or Kelly AFB, Texas following a
weather check at El Paso.  Barring weather problems, Columbia would
return to KSC by noon tomorrow, after an overnight stay at Barksdale or
Kelly, and with a possible refueling stop at Eglin AFB, Florida.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

In Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building, soft-mating of the
STS-39 missions External Tank to the Solid Rocket Boosters is expected
to be completed this afternoon.  STS-39 is an unclassified Department
of Defense shuttle mission targeted for launch in late February. Work
continues on Discovery and Atlantis, in preparation for power down on
Friday.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

The "first-look" results from the Jupiter-bound Galileo spacecraft's
December 8th flyby of Earth will be presented by scientists at JPL
tomorrow afternoon at 1:00 Eastern time on NASA Select television.  The
Earth flyby was successfully undertaken to provide a gravitational
assist to Galileo, increasing its flight velocity on its journey to
Jupiter.


Here's the broadcast schedule for Public Affairs events on NASA Select
TV.  All times are Eastern.  **indicates a live program.

Tuesday 12/18/90

      12:00 noon   **Holiday Message from NASA
             Administrator Richard H. Truly

Wednesday 12/19/90

        1:00 pm     **Galileo Press
              Conference from JPL

Thursday 12/20/90

       2:00 pm      **STS-35 Crew Post
              Flight Press Conference from JSC

Friday 12/21/90                     (no scheduled events)


All events and times may change without notice.  This report is filed
daily, Monday through Friday, at 12:00 pm, EST.  It is a service of
Internal Communications Branch at NASA Headquarters.  Contact:
CREDMOND on NASAmail or at 202/453-8425.


NASA Select TV:  Satcom F2R, Transponder 13, C-Band, 72 degrees West
Longitude, Audio 6.8, Frequency 3960 MHz.

------------------------------

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Date: 18 Dec 90 22:04:32 GMT
From: usc!samsung!noose.ecn.purdue.edu!mentor.cc.purdue.edu!mace.cc.purdue.edu![e-mail]  (Perry G Ramsey)
Organization: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Subject: Re: Why didn't I think of that!?@#$%!
References: <[e-mail]>
Sender: [e-mail]
To: [e-mail]

In article <[e-mail]>, [e-mail] writes:
> a sweepstakes to hitch a ride on the MIR at $2.99 a call.

Does this look like a complete scam to anybody but me?  How chummy are the
operators with their Carribean real estate agent?  Their Swiss banker?

--
Perry G. Ramsey           Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
[e-mail]   Purdue University, W. Lafayette, IN USA
[e-mail]
 Why waste time learning when ignorance is instantaneous?  -- Hobbes

------------------------------

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Date: 19 Dec 90 04:10:01 GMT
From: usc!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!jato!mars.jpl.nasa.gov![e-mail]  (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
Subject: Venus article
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Science News -- December 15, 1990

"Blob Tectonics on Venus"

     Planetary scientists have debated for more than a decade where some form
of the plate tectonics that shaped Earth also molded the surface of Venus.
Now two researchers suggest that some of the most dramatic features on Venus
result not from plate tectonics, but from a process they call "blob
tectonics".

     On Earth, the Hawaiin Islands and some other island chains represent one
classic manifestation of plate tectonics.  Such island chains apparently
formed when a "hot spot" -- a plume of hot rock rising from the planet's
interior -- broke through the crustal plate overhead.  Over millions of years,
towering volcanic peaks arose, which got carried away by the moving plate.
As proposed by Robert R. Herrick and Roger J. Phillips of Southern Methodist
University in Dallas, blob tectonics would involve gigantic, single "blobs"
of hot materials rising like bubbles.  These deformed and sometimes punched
through a stationary Venusian surface, the Dallas scientists suggest.

     Four examples of such blobs may underlie Aphrodite Terra, a hilly region
that stretches at least 10,000 kilometers along Venus' equator, Herrick and
Phillips say.  Beta Regio, one of the first features on the planet identified
as volcanic in origin, may offer another candidate site for blob tectonics.

     "A basic tenet of this model is that tectonism and magmatism (the
formation of molten material) at Beta Regio and western Aphrodite are
dominated by the evolution of plume heads or blobs as they rise to the base of
the lithosphere and spread laterally," the authors write in the November
Geophysical Research Letters.  The lithosphere contains the planet's crust
and the uppermost mantle.

     One clue to the presence of four separate blobs at Aphrodite Terra
comes from variations in the planet's gravity, which indicates regions of
lower-density materials in the mantle at different depths.  The density
measurements -- made by tracking the rises and dips in altitude of the
orbiting U.S. satellite Pioneer Venus (which reached Venus in 1978) and
Magellen (which arrived last August) -- show one less-dense area about 15 km
down in a circular area roughly 2,500 km across.  A second area lies 70 km
down in an elliptical shape some 3,500 km long; a third appears as a 2,500
km circle at a depth of 80 km, and a fourth lies about 100 km below the
surface, forming a circular feature 3000 km across.

     If the theory is correct, Magellan's sharp radar images will reveal
specific surface features resulting from rising, individual blobs, Phillips
says.  He and other Magellan scientists are looking for elevated regions
cracked by faults in more than one direction and areas that lack meteorite
impact craters, as if existing craters have been covered by massive volcanic
flows.

     Phillips says processing of Magellan's radar images of western
Aphrodite Terra should begin later this month at NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.  Magellan will not image Beta Regio until
next spring.

[Magellan started imaging Aphrodite Terra around November 16, and as mentioned
 in the article, this region stretches 10,000 km, and Magellan will continue
 to image this region until March 1, 1991.  When Magellan went into orbit
 around Venus last August 10, it was already over Beta Regio.  Since radar
 mapping did not start until September 15, Magellan will have to wait until
 the next go around until it obtains images of Beta Regio, which will be on
 April 7, 1991.
                                      Ron Baalke                         ]
      ___    _____     ___
     /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|
     | | | |  __ \ /| | | |      Ron Baalke         | [e-mail]
  ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |___   Jet Propulsion Lab | [e-mail]
 /___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /|  M/S 301-355        |
 |_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/   Pasadena, CA 91109 |

------------------------------

End of SPACE Digest V12 #715
*******************