[meteorite-list] Instrumental Precision In Robotic Studies On The Martian Surface

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Thu Apr 22 09:41:10 2004
Message-ID: <200102131642.IAA00356_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/martiansurface2001/

             INSTRUMENTAL PRECISION IN ROBOTIC STUDIES OF THE MARTIAN SURFACE

                             May 14-16, 2001 - Houston, Texas

                                       Sponsored by
                              Lunar and Planetary Institute
                              NASA Mars Exploration Program
                     Mars Exploration Payload Analysis Group (MEPAG)
            Curation and Analysis Planning Team for Extraterrestrial Materials
                                         (CAPTEM)
                                Jet Propulsion Laboratory

                            FIRST ANNOUNCEMENT - FEBRUARY 2001

_______________________________________________________________________________

     The Mars Exploration Payload Analysis Group (MEPAG) and the
     Curation and Analysis Planning Team for Extraterrestrial Materials
     (CAPTEM) - two scientific working groups chartered by NASA - are
     convening a workshop to assess the capabilities of
     state-of-the-art instruments used in the robotic in situ analysis
     of martian rocks, soil, atmosphere, and organic matter and in the
     geological and geophysical exploration of the martian surface. The
     workshop will be held at the Lunar and Planetary Institute, which
     is housed in the Center for Advanced Space Studies, 3600 Bay Area
     Boulevard, Houston, Texas.

     Over the past two years, the MEPAG has formulated a comprehensive
     long-term set of scientific goals, objectives, and investigations
     for NASA's Mars Exploration Program. The MEPAG deliberations
     showed that successful implementation of this scientific plan
     requires a combination of orbital, robotic in situ, and sample
     return missions. However, particularly in the case of
     instrumentation for robotic surface studies, the capabilities of
     the current and next generation of spacecraft instruments are not
     well documented. As a result it is unclear how well these
     instruments can achieve the program's scientific goals. This
     workshop will endeavor to document the capabilities of robotic
     instrumentation, in part to determine which measurements can and
     should be made by robotic techniques and which ultimately must be
     made in Earth laboratories subsequent to sample return. It will do
     this by organizing small breakout groups for the purpose of
     independently evaluating measurement performance. Most
     importantly, the workshop will identify critical areas where
     technology must be advanced in order to achieve program goals.

     The workshop will bring together leading members of the robotic
     and laboratory analysis communities to assess the capabilities of
     diverse robotic instrumentation (including relevant HEDS science
     experiments) in the context of the Mars Program science plan. The
     workshop will utilize a small number of presented papers together
     with breakout discussion groups. The breakout groups will be
     formulated along disciplinary lines (e.g., geochemistry,
     mineralogy, geophysics). All participants must submit an abstract
     describing their related work by March 27, 2001. Abstracts are
     limited to two pages, and should be prepared in standard LPSC
     format (detailed instructions will be posted later). These
     abstracts are not about current individual research. Rather, they
     should address specific analytical techniques and instruments that
     can be applied (robotically or in the lab) to answer priority Mars
     science questions, as defined by the MEPAG document cited above.
     The analytical precision and state of readiness of particular
     techniques/instruments should be addressed in detail. Because this
     is a workshop rather than a conference, the majority of submitted
     abstracts will not be presented orally but instead will serve as
     input to the breakout groups.

     The timing of the workshop is controlled in part by the need to
     begin planning a 2007 Mars lander mission, which in turn is a
     prelude to subsequent landers and Mars sample return missions.

     There will be a registration fee of $50. Registration forms will
     be available at this Web site by March 1, 2001.

     To assist the meeting organizers in formalizing plans for the
     workshop, interested members of the community should complete the
     Indication of Interest Form no later than February 23, 2001.

     LOCAL ACCOMMODATIONS AND MAPS
     We have provided a list of local area hotels with their current
     room rates. A map of the local area that indicates the location of
     these hotels in relationship to the Lunar and Planetary Institute
     is also provided to assist you with your travel plans.
     Participants are responsible for making their own hotel
     reservations.

                                     SCHEDULE

      February 23 Indication of Interest Form due to LPI

      March 27 Abstract submission deadline, 5:00 p.m. U.S. Central
                  Standard Time

      April 26 Accepted abstracts and discussion group assignments
                  posted on this Web site

      May 7 Preregistration deadline

      May 14-16 Workshop at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in
                  Houston, Texas

     CONTACT INFORMATION
     For further information on the scientific aspects of the meeting,
     contact either of the organizers:

          Ron Greeley (Chair, MEPAG)
          Department of Geological Sciences
          Box 871404
          Arizona State University
          Tempe AZ 85287-1404
          ph: 480.965.7045
          greeley_at_asu.edu

          Glenn J. MacPherson (Chair, CAPTEM)
          Department of Mineral Sciences
          U.S. National Museum of Natural History
          Smithsonian Institution
          Washington DC 20560-0119
          ph: 202.357.2260
          glenn_at_volcano.si.edu

     For further information regarding logistics contact:

          Mary Cloud
          ph: 281.486.2143
          fax: 281.486.2160
          cloud_at_lpi.usra.edu

     For information regarding preparing or submitting an abstract,
     contact:

          Renee Dotson
          ph: 281.486.2188
          fax: 281.486.2125
          dotson_at_lpi.usra.edu
Received on Tue 13 Feb 2001 11:42:44 AM PST