SETI bioastro: Fw: Newsletter -Cosmos 1, Carl Sagan, Huygens -November 2004

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----- Original Message -----
From: The Planetary Society<mailto:tps.mbl_at_planetary.org>
To: Planetary Society<mailto:planetarysociety_at_lists.planetary.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 24, 2004 1:14 PM
Subject: Newsletter -Cosmos 1, Carl Sagan, Huygens -November 2004

THE PLANETARY SOCIETY NEWSLETTER
NOVEMBER 2004
____________________________________

IN THIS ISSUE:
- Cosmos 1 Launch Date Set
- Bill Nye - On the 70th Anniversary of Carl Sagan's Birth
- Huygens Art Contest Deadline Nov. 28
- Spirit's 50,000th Image of Mars
- A Conversation with Charles Elachi
- News! Cassini-Huygens, Mars, Genesis, Venus Express
- You Make it Happen! Shop Online
______________________________________

COSMOS 1 LAUNCH DATE SET

The countdown has officially begun! November 9, On the
70th anniversary of Carl Sagan's birth, we announced
that Cosmos 1, the world's first solar sail spacecraft,
is set for launch on March 1, 2005. Thank all of our
supporters for helping to make this happen!

Find out more at:
http://planetary.org/solarsail/latest_update.html>

______________________________________

ON THE 70TH ANNIVERSARY OF CARL SAGAN'S BIRTH

In the 1970s, two soon-to-be-world-renowned popularizers
of science crossed paths at Cornell University - where
Carl Sagan was a professor of astronomy and Bill Nye was
an engineering student. From his class with Carl, Bill
came away with an abiding passion for planetary exploration.
Two decades later, that passion led him to join the Board
of Directors of The Planetary Society.

Read on as Bill remembers Carl and his influence:
http://planetary.org/news/2004/nye_sagan.html>

______________________________________

HUYGENS ART CONTEST ENTRY DEADLINE SOON!
WIN A TRIP TO MISSION CONTROL IN DARMSTADT GERMANY

We invite you to imagine what the Huygens probe will
reveal by entering The Planetary Society's Art Contest:
"Imagining Titan: Artists Peer Beneath the Veil".
The Grand Prize will be a trip to Huygens mission
control in Darmstadt, Germany, where the winner is to be
present at the spacecraft's encounter with Titan.

CONTEST ENTRY DEADLINE: NOVEMBER 28, 2004

Find out more about the contest and enter online at:
http://planetary.org/saturn/artcontest.html>

______________________________________

NOT A MEMBER YET?
Be a part of exploration.
Join The Planetary Society today.
https://planetary.org/JoinUs.html>

______________________________________

A MARSDIAL COVERED IN DUST:
THE MARS EXPLORATION ROVERS' 50,000TH IMAGE

Since the landing of Spirit, the Mars Exploration
Rover mission has swiftly racked up impressive numbers
of images returned from the surface of Mars. The 50,000th
image, captured on September 25, happens to be of
Spirit's Panoramic Camera (Pancam) Calibration Target,
otherwise known as the "MarsDial."

The MarsDial resulted from a brainstorm of Planetary Society
Board Member Bill Nye the Science Guy, who noticed the
Calibration target would function as a sundial.
Throughout the first two months of the Mars Exploration
Rover mission, The Planetary Society's Student Astronauts
processed the images to impose hour markings on the face
of the MarsDials and thus tell time.

Viewed now after 9 months on the surface, you can
see the "MarsDial" covered in Martian dust and read
more facts about the Mars Exploration Rovers'
imaging activities at:
http://planetary.org/news/2004/spirit_image-milestone_1105.html>

______________________________________

A CONVERSATION WITH CHARLES ELACHI
Director of JPL and NASA Advanced Planning,
Principal investigator Cassini Radar

Part of our series of interviews exploring the people
of Cassini-Huygens and the work they do behind the
scenes to get these missions out there, safely,
in space.

"...when Sputnik was launched I was listening to it on
the radio in Lebanon . . . and when I was 12 or 13, I
used to read a magazine that the American Embassy
distributed, called something like 'Science in America.'
I remember reading about the first satellite launch --
Explorer I -- by a place called JPL. I remember that page
very clearly, because I thought, 'Gee, that would a
great place to work.' Of course, I never imagined then
that I would be connected with JPL in any way -- it was
so far away."

Read the entire interview at:
http://planetary.org/news/2004/conversation_elachi_cassini_1022.html>

______________________________________

RECENT PLANETARY HEADLINES:
CASSINI-HUYGENS, MARS EXPLORATION ROVERS,
GENESIS, VENUS EXPRESS

Keep up with Planetary News at
The Planetary Society website.

Cassini's First Close Flyby of Titan:
So Much Information, So Few Answers (Yet)
http://planetary.org/news/2004/cassini_titan00a_results1_1028.html>

Mars Exploration Rovers Update:
Spirit Climbs toward Uchben,
Opportunity Picks up Power while at Wopmay
http://planetary.org/news/2004/mer-update_1022.html>

Genesis: Investigation Uncovers Likely Cause of Mishap;
Stardust Team Confident of Safe Return
http://planetary.org/news/2004/genesis_stardust_1015.html>

Venus Express:
Europe on Track to Send First Mission to Venus in 15 Years
http://www.planetary.org/news/2004/vex_assembly_1014.html>

'Right Stuff' Astronaut Gordon Cooper Dies at 77
http://planetary.org/news/2004/cooper-gordon_obituary_1005.html>

____________________________________

YOU MAKE IT HAPPEN!
VISIT THE PLANETARY SOCIETY STORE

Looking for great ideas this holiday season. Shop at
The Planetary Society Store and support the Society at
the same time. T-shirts, posters, models, and more.

Thank you.

Check in regularly at our website,
http://store.yahoo.com/planetarysociety/index.html>

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• Previous message: LARRY KLAES: "SETI bioastro: Photo of meteorite hitting Earth?"

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