[meteorite-list] NASA Selects Investigations for Future Key Planetary Mission (Discovery Program)

[Ron Baalke]

http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?feature=4727

NASA Selects Investigations for Future Key Planetary Mission
Jet Propulsioni Laboratory
September 30, 2015

NASA has selected five science investigations for refinement during the 
next year as a first step in choosing one or two missions for flight opportunities 
as early as 2020. Three of those chosen have ties to NASA's Jet Propulsion 
Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The submitted proposals would study 
Venus, near-Earth objects and a variety of asteroids.

Each investigation team will receive $3 million to conduct concept design 
studies and analyses. After a detailed review and evaluation of the concept 
studies, NASA will make the final selections by September 2016 for continued 
development leading up to launch. Any selected mission will cost approximately 
$500 million, not including launch vehicle funding or the cost of post-launch 
operations.

"The selected investigations have the potential to reveal much about the 
formation of our solar system and its dynamic processes," said John Grunsfeld, 
astronaut and associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate 
in Washington. "Dynamic and exciting missions like these hold promise 
to unravel the mysteries of our solar system and inspire future generations 
of explorers. It's an incredible time for science, and NASA is leading 
the way."

NASA's Discovery Program requested proposals for spaceflight investigations 
in November 2014. A panel of NASA and other scientists and engineers reviewed 
27 submissions.

The planetary missions associated with JPL that were selected to pursue 
concept design studies are:

The Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy 
mission (VERITAS)

VERITAS would produce global, high-resolution topography and imaging of 
Venus' surface and produce the first maps of deformation and global surface 
composition. Suzanne Smrekar of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, 
California, is the principal investigator. JPL would manage the project.

Psyche

Psyche would explore the origin of planetary cores by studying the metallic 
asteroid Psyche. This asteroid is likely the survivor of a violent hit-and-run 
with another object that stripped off the outer, rocky layers of a protoplanet. 
Linda Elkins-Tanton of Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, is 
the principal investigator. JPL would manage the project.

Near Earth Object Camera (NEOCam)

NEOCAM would discover 10 times more near-Earth objects than all NEOs discovered 
to date. It would also begin to characterize them. Amy Mainzer of JPL 
is the principal investigator, and JPL would manage the project.

The two other selections are:

Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging 
(DAVINCI)

DAVINCI would study the chemical composition of Venus' atmosphere during 
a 63-minute descent. It would answer scientific questions that have been 
considered high priorities for many years, such as whether there are volcanoes 
active today on the surface of Venus and how the surface interacts with 
the atmosphere of the planet. Lori Glaze of NASA's Goddard Space Flight 
Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is the principal investigator. Goddard 
would manage the project.

Lucy

Lucy would perform the first reconnaissance of the Jupiter Trojan asteroids, 
objects thought to hold vital clues to deciphering the history of the 
solar system. Harold Levison of the Southwest Research  Institute in Boulder, 
Colorado is the principal investigator. Goddard would manage the project.

Created in 1992, the Discovery Program sponsors frequent, cost-capped 
solar system exploration missions with highly focused scientific goals. 
The program has funded and developed 12 missions to date, including MESSENGER, 
Dawn, Stardust, Deep Impact, Genesis and GRAIL, and is currently completing 
development of InSight. The Planetary Missions Program Office at NASA's 
Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama manages the program 
for the agency's Science Mission Directorate.

For more information about NASA's Discovery Program, visit:

http://discovery.nasa.gov


Media Contact

DC Agle 818-393-9011
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
agle at jpl.nasa.gov 

2015-306