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Wednesday the 8th of August
7:25pm @ Science House (Royal Society Buildings), Turnbull Street
http://www.was.org.nz/
NASA�s next Mars mission, due for launch on 3 August, will look beneath a frigid arctic landscape for conditions favourable to past or present life.
Instead of roving to hills or craters, NASA�s Phoenix Mars Lander will claw down into the icy soil of the Red Planet�s northern plains. The robot will investigate whether frozen water near the Martian surface might periodically melt enough to sustain a liveable environment for microbes. To accomplish that and other key goals, Phoenix will carry a set of advanced research tools never before used on Mars.
A robotic arm will dig to the icy surface layer, which is expected to lie within a few inches of the surface. A camera and conductivity probe on the arm will examine soil and any ice there. The arm will lift samples to two instruments on the lander�s deck. One will use heating to check for volatile substances, such as water and carbon-based chemicals that are essential building blocks for life. The other will analyse the chemistry of the soil.
The presentation will also summarise recent discoveries by the five spacecraft currently on or around Mars, as well as previewing future robotic missions.
See you there
Subway @ 7pm
Any Hungry Astronomers are welcome to join Murray and myself at the Thornden subway, just down the road from Science House.
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