[meteorite-list] NASA Selects Proposals For Future Mars Missions and Studies

[Ron Baalke]

Jan. 8, 2007

Dwayne Brown
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1726

RELEASE: 07-03

NASA SELECTS PROPOSALS FOR FUTURE MARS MISSIONS AND STUDIES

WASHINGTON - On Monday, NASA selected for concept study development 
two proposals for future robotic missions to Mars. These missions 
would increase understanding of Mars' atmosphere, climate and 
potential habitability in greater detail than ever before. 

In addition, NASA also will fund a U.S. scientist to participate in a 
proposed European Mars mission as well as fund instrument technology 
studies that could lead to further contributions to future Mars 
missions. 

"These mission selections represent unprecedented future research that 
will lead to further advancing our knowledge and understanding of the 
Red Planet's climate, and atmospheric composition," said Mary Cleave, 
associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, NASA 
Headquarters, Washington. 

Each Mars mission proposal will receive initial funding of 
approximately $2 million to conduct a nine-month implementation 
feasibility study. Following these detailed mission concept studies, 
NASA intends to select one of the two proposals by late 2007 for full 
development as a Mars Scout mission. The mission developed for flight 
would have a launch opportunity in 2011 and cost no more than $475 
million. 

The selected Mars mission proposals are: 

* Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission, or MAVEN: The 
mission would provide first-of-its-kind measurements and address key 
questions about Mars climate and habitability and improve 
understanding of dynamic processes in the upper Martian atmosphere 
and ionosphere. The principal investigator is Bruce Jakosky, 
University of Colorado, Boulder. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, 
Greenbelt, Md., will provide project management. 

* The Great Escape mission: The mission would directly determine the 
basic processes in Martian atmospheric evolution by measuring the 
structure and dynamics of the upper atmosphere. In addition, 
potentially biogenic atmospheric constituents such as methane would 
be measured. The principal investigator is Alan Stern, Southwest 
Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado. Southwest Research Institute, 
San Antonio, will provide project management. 

NASA has selected Alian Wang of Washington University, St. Louis, to 
participate as a member of the science team for the European Space 
Agency's ExoMars mission. Wang will receive approximately $800,000 to 
study the chemistry, mineralogy and astrobiology of Mars using 
instrumentation on the ExoMars mission, scheduled for launch in 2013. 

NASA also has selected two proposals for technology development 
studies that may lead to further NASA contributions to ExoMars or 
other Mars missions. The two technology development studies, funded 
for a total of $1.5 million, are: 

* Urey Mars Organic and Oxidant Detector: The Urey instrument would 
investigate organics and oxidant materials on Mars using three 
complementary detection systems. The principal investigator is 
Jeffrey Bada, University of California at San Diego. 

* Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer, or MOMA: The instrument would 
investigate organic molecular signatures and the environment in which 
they exist using a mass spectrometer and gas chromatograph. The 
principal investigator is Luann Becker, University of California at 
Santa Barbara. 

These selections were judged to have the best science value among 26 
proposals submitted to NASA in August 2006 in response to an open 
announcement of opportunity. 

NASA's Mars Exploration Program seeks to characterize and understand 
Mars as a dynamic system, including its present and past environment, 
climate cycles, geology and biological potential. The Mars 
Exploration Program Office is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion 
Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., for the Mars Exploration Program, 
Science Mission Directorate, Washington. 

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov
	
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