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Statement issued on future of UK planetary sciences ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY NEWS RELEASE Posted: September 5, 2005 The Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) has issued a statement calling for continued growth in funding of planetary sciences in the UK and for more universities to consider establishing planetary science departments. The statement, which has been put together by leading Fellows of the RAS, draws attention to the multidisciplinary nature of Solar System studies in the 21st Century and highlights the need to support a broad range of expertise, if the UK is to maintain its world leading status in the field. Dr Mike Hapgood, of Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, who has led the study said, "This is an important time in the worldwide development of planetary science. Our ability to study the Solar System is advancing rapidly - in particular through a greater ability to fly scientific instruments to other planets. The UK can make a leading contribution to the international development of planetary science, as demonstrated by the expertise developed in planetary landers, based on experience gained from Beagle 2 and, more recently, the highly successful Huygens mission." The RAS statement identifies ground-based telescopes as an area where the UK planetary science community has not exploited opportunities to the full and suggests that ground-based studies of the Solar System should be given a higher priority and profile. The potential of planetary missions to engage the public with science is also highlighted in the statement. In view of the difficulties in encouraging young people into science and engineering disciplines, Vice-Chancellors and Provosts are encouraged to recognise both the attractiveness of this area to students and the ability of UK researchers to attract funding. The statement acknowledges that extra government spending in astronomical research in recent years has been necessary and welcome. However, the report warns that funding must continue to increase if the government wishes to capitalise on the interest generated by recent missions such as Cassini Huygens, and highlights the importance of independent scientific review in allocating extra spend. The statement praises recent growth in the open debate of present and future scientific paths and emphasises that this must continue if the planetary science community is to maintain a focussed direction and make the most efficient use of resources available. |
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The Mars Exploration Rover Spirit has reached the summit of Husband Hill, returning a spectacular panorama from the hilltop in the vast Gusev Crater. Scientists held a news conference Sept. 1 to reveal the panorama and give an update on the twin rover mission.
To gain a new perspective on space shuttle Discovery's ascent and gather additional imagery for the return to flight mission, NASA dispatched a pair of high-flying WB-57 aircraft equipped with sharp video cameras in their noses.
When space shuttle Discovery launched its two solid-fuel booster rockets were equipped with video cameras, providing dazzling footage of separation from the external fuel tank, their free fall and splashdown in the sea.
Mounted atop a modified Boeing 747, space shuttle Discovery was ferried across the country from Edwards Air Force Base, California, to Kennedy Space Center, Florida.
Shuttle fuel tank ET-119 is loaded onto a barge at Kennedy Space Center for the trip back to Lockheed Martin's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The tank will be used in the investigation to determine why foam peeled away from Discovery's tank on STS-114 in July.
Launch of the GOES-N weather observatory aboard a Boeing Delta 4 rocket is postponed at Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter lifts off aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral's Complex 41.
Explosives topple the abandoned Complex 13 mobile service tower at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. This video was shot from the blockhouse roof at neighboring Complex 14 where John Glenn was launched in 1962.