Projects: Space Information
The Planetary Report
Volume XXI, Number 2, March/April 2001
On the Cover
When Mir launched in February 1986, it was a showcase
of Russian technology. But after 15 years of hard work, the aged space station
has ended its run. This view of Mir over Earth's blue skies was imaged during
a fly-around by the space shuttle Atlantis following the joint docking activities
between the two crews.
From The Editor
The Planetary Society is preparing to
launch its first space mission: the
Cosmos 1 solar sail. For years we've been
hearing from our members that what you'd
really like the Society to do is to fly our own
spacecraft mission. And so that's what we’re
going to do.
A remarkable confluence of people and
events is making this mission possible. The
Russians we've worked with for 15 years on
our Mars Balloon, Rover, and Microphone
projects saw applications for solar sails in
the inflatable spacecraft technologies being
developed in their now-scaled-back space
program. They brought their ideas to us.
Meanwhile our cofounder Carl Sagan's wife and collaborator, Ann Druyan, was
starting a science media and entertainment company, Cosmos Studios, with Internet
entrepreneur Joe Firmage. Seeing the solar sail as a perfect fit with their
projects, they enthusiastically agreed to sponsor it.
Planetary Society members have steadfastly supported our efforts to develop
innovative technologies that can be leveraged into major advances in planetary
exploration. We found a project of such great potential, and such manageable
cost, that we could do it ourselves. We will do what our members really want
us to do: fly our own mission.
So this fall, as you look up and watch our solar sail tack across the sky,
you'll know that you and your fellow members made it happen. Be proud.
— Charlene M. Anderson
Features
Farewell to a Cold Warrior: Mir Station Obituary
As head of the Space Research
Institute of the Soviet Academy of Sciences, Roald
Sagdeev was there at the birth of the Mir space station. As an adviser
to Soviet leader Mikhail
Gorbachev, he watched Mir's changing role in international space policy.
Then, after marrying
Susan Eisenhower, the American president's granddaughter, he moved to
the United States
and saw Mir from a different perspective. A member of The Planetary Society's
Board of
Directors, he shares with Society members his memories of the long-lived
space station.
A Bold New Voyage: The Planetary Society Prepares to Fly a Solar Sail
It's the first time a membership organization has undertaken an actual
space mission, and
only The Planetary Society is audacious enough to do it. This is the story
of how we plan to
launch the first solar sail, what it will mean to the future of space exploration,
and how you
helped make it happen.
The 2001 Shoemaker NEO Grant Awardees: A World of Observing Experience
The Planetary Society's Gene Shoemaker NEO (Near-Earth Object) Grant
program may
not be as high-profile a project as either our SETI or Mars efforts, but
it has the potential to
be one of our most significant. Since 1980, when Luis and Walter Alvarez
and colleagues
startled the world with their discovery that an asteroid impact had wiped
out the dinosaurs,
the small rocky and icy bodies that swing by our planet have been shown
increased respect.
The Planetary Society grants, whose winners are announced here, may prove
crucial in
someday avoiding a catastrophe for us or our descendants.
Odd Planet Out: What's Up With Pluto Exploration?
Just as I was writing
this Table of Contents, the Bush Administration released its
fiscal year 2002 budget. The apparent lack of funds for the Pluto mission
prompted NASA to
ask Congress for permission to cancel the Pluto mission, but Congress refused
to halt the competition
among mission proposals. Now the budget goes to Congress for deliberation,
and the
mission's fate will be decided there. In this article you'll read
details of The Planetary Society's
campaign to save the mission. Check our website, planetary.org, for updates.
DEPARTMENTS
Members’ Dialogue
Questions and Answers
Society News
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