Currents Projects

8/8/2019 Currents Projects

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CURRENT

ASTROPHYSICSPROJECTS BY

NASA


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1. CLARREOy Climate Absolute

Radiance and Refractivity Observatory

y Phase: Under Study2. DESDynI

y Deformation, Ecosystem Structure and Dynamics of Icey Phase: Under Study

3. GPMy Global Precipitation Measurementy Phase: Under Study

4. ICESatIIy Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellitey Phase: Under Study

5. SMAPy Soil Moisture Active-Passivey Phase: Under Study

6. Aquariusy Phase:Development

7. GLORYy Gloryy Phase:Development

8. GOESN - Py Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellitey Phase:Development

9. GRIPy Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processesy Phase:Development

10. LDCM


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y Landsat Data Continuity Missiony Phase:Development

11. NPOESSy National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite Systemy Phase:Development

12. NPOESSPreparatoryProject (NPP)y NPOESS Preparatory Projecty Phase:Development

13. SolarOrbitery Phase: Under Study

14. SolarProbePlusy Phase: Under Study

15. BARRELy Balloon Array for Radiation-belt Relativistic Electron LossesPhase:Development

16. IRISy InterfaceRegionImaging Spectrography Phase: Development

17. MMSy Magnetospheric MultiScaley Phase:Development

18. RBSPy Radiation Belt Storm Probesy Phase:Development


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19. SpaceEnvironment Testbedsy Phase:Development

20. ILNy International LunarNetworky Phase: Under Study

21. ExoMars TraceGasOrbitery ExoMars Urey Instrumenty Phase:Development

22. GRAILy Gravity Recovery and InteriorLaboratoryy Phase:Development

23. Junoy Phase:Development

24. LADEEy Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorery Phase:Development

25. MarsScienceLaboratoryy Mars Science Laboratory 2009y Phase:Development

26. MAVENy Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolutiony Phase:Development


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CLARREO

Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory

Phase: Under Study

Program(s):Earth Systematic Missions

The Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory (CLARREO) Mission has been

recommended in the NRC Decadal Survey as a key component of the future climate observingsystem. NASA and NOAA share responsibility for CLARREO. The NOAA component involves

the continuity of measurements of incident solar irradiance and Earth energy budget by flying theTSIS and CERES sensors that were removed from NPOESS. The NASA portion involves the

measurement of spectrally resolved thermal IR and reflected solar radiation at high absolute

accuracy. Coupled with measurements from on-board GPS radio occultation receivers, thesemeasurements will provide a long-term benchmarking data record for the detection, projection,and attribution of changes in the climate system. In addition, the SI traceable radiances will

provide a source of absolute calibration for a wide range of visible and IR Earth observingsensors, greatly increasing their value for climate monitoring.

CLARREO is a Highly Leveraged Interdisciplinary Climate Change Mission

y Accurate decadal-length records are essential for climate change detection, attribution,and for testing climate prediction accuracy. They represent the most critical test ofuncertainty in future climate change prediction.

yWhile process study missions (e.g. CALIPSO/CloudSat) are critical to improveunderlying climate model physics (e.g. clouds), decadal change observations are critical

to determine the impact of those climate model improvements on the accuracy ofpredicting future climate change. Both elements are critical, and CLARREO is the major

Decadal Study mission addressing serious accuracy issues in decadal climate changeobservation.

y The CLARREO mission is unique in its broad interdisciplinary impact on climate changescience: the otherNRC Decadal Survey missions are primarily focused on one climate

process or discipline.y CLARREO provides new solar reflected and infrared emitted high spectral resolution

benchmark radiance climate data records that can be used to test climate model

predictions, improve climate change fingerprinting, and attribution.y CLARREO provides an orbiting calibration observatory that can be used to calibrate

other solar and infrared space-borne sensors (e.g. VIIRS, CrIS, Landsat, Geostationary,

CERES) and thereby improve to climate accuracy a wide range of sensors across theGEO observing system. It also improves the scientific value of all of these instruments.

y Key climate variable decadal records impacted by CLARREO include: atmospherictemperature and water vapor profiles, land and sea surface temperatures, cloud properties,


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radiation budget including Earths albedo, vegetation, surface snow and ice properties,ocean color, and aerosols. The data is also relevant to greenhouse gas monitoring.

y The absolute accuracy of CLARREO, when used to calibrate other sensors in orbit candramatically reduce the impact of data gaps on decadal change data records across many

climate variables.y

CL

ARREO provides the first spectrally resolved climate observation of the Far-Infraredspectrum from 15 to 50 micron wavelengths, where half of the thermal infrared emissionof the earth to space occurs, and the source of almost all of the Earth's water vapor

greenhouse effect.y CLARREOs ability to calibrate other instruments across the full solar and infrared

spectrum can change the future prioritization of different elements of instrument pre-launch characterization (e.g. spectral response), stability, and calibration, thereby

resulting in increased programmatic flexibility and savings.

DESDynI

Deformation, Ecosystem Structure and Dynamics of Ice

Phase: Under Study

MissionProject HomePage:http://desdyni.jpl.nasa.gov/


Surface deformation is linked directly to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and landslides.

Observations of surface deformation are used to forecast the likelihood of earthquakes occurringas a function of location, as well as predicting both the place and time that volcanic eruptions andlandslides are likely. Advances in earthquake science leading to improved time-dependent

probabilities would be significantly facilitated by global observations of surface deformation,and could result in significant increases in the health and safety of the public due to decreased

exposure to tectonic hazards. Monitoring surface deformation is also important for improving thesafety and efficiency of extraction of hydrocarbons, for managing our ground water resources,

and, in the future, providing information for managing CO2 sequestration.

MissionObjectives

y Determine the likelihood of earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and landslides.

y Predict the response of ice sheets to climate change and impact on the sea level.y Characterize the effects of changing climate and land use on species habitats and carbon

budget.

y Monitor the migration of fluids associated with hydrocarbon production and groundwaterresources.


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This mission combines two sensors that, taken together, provide observations important for

solid-Earth (surface deformation), ecosystems (terrestrial biomass structure) and climate (icedynamics). The sensors are: 1) an L-band Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR)

system with multiple polarization, and 2) a multiple beam lidar operating in the infrared (~ 1064

nm) with ~ 25 m spatial resolution and 1 m vertical accuracy. The mission using InSAR to meetthe science measurement objectives for surface deformation, ice sheet dynamics, and ecosystemstructure has been extensively studied. It requires a satellite in 700-800 km sun-synchronous

orbit in order to maximize available power from the solar arrays. An eight day revisit frequencybalances temporal de-correlation with required coverage. Onboard GPS achieves cm-level orbit

and baseline knowledge to improve calibration. The mission should have a 5 year life time tocapture time-variable processes and achieve measurement accuracy.

GPM

Global Precipitation Measurement

Phase: Under Study

LaunchDate: July 01, 2013

MissionProject HomePage:http://gpm.gsfc.nasa.gov/


GPM Constellation is a joint mission with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) andother international partners. Building upon the success of the Tropical Rainfall MeasuringMission (TRMM), it will initiate the measurement of global precipitation, a key climate factor.

Its science objectives are: to improve ongoing efforts to predict climate by providing near-globalmeasurement of precipitation, its distribution, and physical processes; to improve the accuracy of

weather and precipitation forecasts through more accurate measurement of rain rates and latentheating; and to provide more frequent and complete sampling of the Earth's precipitation. GPM

Constellation is envisioned to consist of a core spacecraft to measure precipitation structure andto provide a calibration standard for the constellation spacecraft, an international constellation of

NASA and contributed spacecraft to provide frequent precipitation measurements on a globalbasis, calibration/validation sites distributed globally with a broad array of precipitation-

measuring instrumentation, and a global precipitation data system to produce and distributeglobal rain maps and climate research products.


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ICESatII

Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite

Phase: Under Study

MissionProject HomePage:http://icesat.gsfc.nasa.gov/index.php


ICESat (Ice, Cloud,and land Elevation Satellite) is the benchmark Earth Observing System

mission for measuring ice sheet mass balance, cloud and aerosol heights, as well as landtopography and vegetation characteristics. The ICESat mission is providing multi-year elevation

data needed to determine ice sheet mass balance as well as cloud property information,

especially for stratospheric clouds which are common over polar areas. It will also providetopography and vegetation data around the globe, in addition to the polar-specific coverage overthe Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets.

As envisioned by the Decadal Study, the ICESat-II mission is to deploy an ICESat follow-onsatellite to continue the assessment of polar ice changes. ICESat-II is also expected to measure

vegetation canopy heights, allowing estimates of biomass and carbon in aboveground vegetationin conjunction with related missions, and allow measurements of solid earth properties. ICESat-

II is expected to launch in 2015.

SMAP

Soil Moisture Active-Passive

Phase: Under Study

LaunchDate: May 01, 2015

MissionProject HomePage:http://smap.jpl.nasa.gov/


The Soil Moisture Active-Passive (SMAP) mission has been recommended by the NRC Earth

Science Decadal Survey Panel for launch in the 2010-2013 time frame. SMAP will use a

combined radiometer and high-resolution radar to measure surface soil moisture and freeze-thawstate, providing for scientific advances and societal benefits. Direct measurements of soil

moisture and freeze/thaw state are needed to improve our understanding of regional water cycles,ecosystem productivity, and processes that link the water, energy, and carbon cycles. Soil


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moisture information at high resolution enables improvements in weather forecasts, flood anddrought forecasts, and predictions of agricultural productivity and climate change.

The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Integrated

Program Office (IPO) has developed a tri-agency set of requirements for the next generation of

polar-orbiting operational environmental satellites. A novel approach combining radar-radiometer and L-band mapping of global soil moisture will allow SMAP to far exceed the

NPOESS soil moisture threshold (minimum performance) requirements for sensing depth and

spatial resolution. With "fast-track" development, it is possible that SMAP could provide criticalgap-filling soil moisture measurements forNPOESS, which were lost when the Conical

Microwave Imager/Sounder was cancelled from the first NPOESS platform.

AQUARIOUS

Phase:Development


MissionProject HomePage:http://aquarius.gsfc.nasa.gov/

Program(s):Earth System Science Pathfinder

Aquarius is a focused satellite mission to measure global sea surface salinity (SSS) and

scheduled to launch in 2009. Its instruments will measure changes in SSS equivalent to about a

"pinch" (i.e., 1/6 of a teaspoon) of salt in 1 gallon of water. By measuring SSS over the globe

with such unprecedented precision, Aquarius will answer long-standing questions about how ouroceans respond to climate change and the water cycle. For example, monthly SSS maps will giveclues about changes in freshwater input and output to the ocean associated with precipitation,

evaporation, ice melting, and river runoff. Aquarius data will also be used to track the formationand movement of huge water masses that regulate ocean circulation and Earth's climate.

The mission will be led by principal investigatorDr. Gary Lagerloef of Earth & Space Research.

Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) will build and calibrate the highly accurate radiometersthat are crucial for the detection of ocean salinity. Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) will design

and build the scatterometer that helps to minimize measurement errors due to sea surfaceroughness. JPL will manage the mission until launch when GSFC assumes this duty. Data

processing, dissemination, and archiving tasks will be shared betweenG

SFC and JPL

.

NASA will partner with the Argentine space program CONAE on the Aquarius mission, building

on a successful long- standing relationship between NASA and Argentina. Multiple universitiesand corporate and international partners will be involved in the Aquarius mission.

Aquarius is named after the WaterBearer constellation because of its objective to explore the

role of the water cycle in ocean circulation and climate. Aquarius will launch in May of 2010 and


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will orbit the Earth for at least three years, repeating its global pattern every 7 days. Within twomonths, Aquarius will collect as many sea surface salinity measurements as the entire 125-year

historical record from ships and buoys, and provide measurements over the 25 percent of theocean where no previous observations have been made.

GLORY

Phase:Development

LaunchDate:November 22, 2010

MissionProject HomePage:http://glory.gsfc.nasa.gov/


Understanding the Earths energy balance and the effect on climate requires measuring blackcarbon soot and other aerosols, and the total solar irradiance. Glory is a low Earth orbit (LEO)scientific research satellite designed to collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon

in the Earth's atmosphere. Glory will also collect data on solar irradiance for the long-termeffects on the Earth climate record.

The Glory mission's scientific objectives are met by implementing two separate science

instruments, one with the ability to collect polarimetric measurements along the satellite groundtrack within the solar reflective spectral region (0.4 to 2.4 micrometers) and one with the ability

to monitor changes in sunlight incident on the Earth's atmosphere by collecting high accuracy,high precision measurements of total solar irradiance. Glory accomplishes these objectives by

deploying two instruments aboard a low Earth orbit satellite, the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor(APS) and the Total Irradiance Monitor (TIM). Additionally, a cloud camera system will provide

images that allow the APS scans along the spacecraft ground track to be put into spatial contextand to facilitate determination of cloud occurrence within the APS instantaneous field of view.

The Glory mission will respond to the U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) by

continuing and improving upon NASA's research of the forcings influencing climate change inthe atmosphere. As summarized below, measurements produced by this mission and the

scientific knowledge such observations will provide are essential to predicting future climatechange, and to making sound, scientifically based economic and policy decisions related to

environmental change.

The science objectives of theG

lory mission include:

1. The determination of the global distribution, microphysical properties, and chemicalcomposition of natural and anthropogenic aerosols and clouds with accuracy and

coverage sufficient for a reliable quantification of the aerosol direct and indirect effectson climate;

2. The continued measurement of the total solar irradiance to determine the Sun's direct andindirect effect on the Earth's climate.


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y A digital Low Rate Information Transmission (LRIT) formatted Weather Facsimile(WEFAX) service

y Expanded measurements for the Space Environment Monitor (SEM) instrumentsy A new dedicated channel for the Emergency Managers Weather Information Network

(EMWIN) servicey

A more stable platform for supporting improved Imager, Sounder, and SXI instruments

GRIP

y Genesis and Rapid Intensification Processesy Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate: August 15, 2010y MissionProject HomePage:

http://grip.jpl.nasa.gov/grip/index.jsp

yy The GRIP deployment is planned for 15 August

30 September 2010 with bases in Ft.L

auderdale,FL for the DC-8, at Houston, TX for the WB-57,and at NASADryden Flight Research Facility, CA for the Global Hawk. This campaign

will be conducted to capitalize on a number of ground networks, airborne scienceplatforms (both manned and unmanned), and space-based assets. The field campaign will

be executed according to a prioritized set of scientific objectives.

y NASA's Global Hawk, an unmanned aircraft, will be a key asset to the GRIP fieldcampaign. OtherGRIP platforms include the DC-8 and the WB-57 aircraft.

y The spaceborne and airborne observational capabilities ofNASA put it in a uniqueposition to assist the hurricane research community in addressing shortcomings in the

current state of the science. The relatively recent launch of several new satellites, the

prospect of using a high-altitude UAS for hurricane surveillance, and the emergence ofnew remote sensing technologies offer new research tools that need to be explored andvalidated. Of great importance are new remote sensing instruments for wind and

temperature that can lead to improved characterization of storm structure andenvironment.

y The GRIP hurricane field campaign and research project are managed by Dr. RameshKakar, Weather Focus Area Leader within the Earth Science Division, NASA

Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Dr. Kakar is primarily responsible for assembling thescience team and the instrument payload for the NASA aircraft participating in this field

experiment.


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LDCM

y Landsat Data Continuity Missiony Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate:December 01, 2012y MissionProject HomePage:http://ldcm.nasa.gov/y Program(s):Earth Systematic MissionsyFor more than 30 years, Landsat satellites have collected data of the Earth's continental

surfaces to support global change research and applications. This data constitutes the longest

continuous record of the Earth's surface as seen from space. By imaging Earth's landenvironment at a resolution sufficient to record the impacts of human activities, Landsat

provides an important complement to U.S. global imagers such as MODIS, MISR, andAVHRR. The first satellite in the Landsat family, Landsat 1, was launched in 1972. The most

recent, Landsat 7, was launched in April 1999 and continues to collect data. Because its

design lifetime is five years, the nextL

andsat satellite system needs to launched as soon aspossible in order to minimize risks to data continuity.

y The Land Remote Sensing Policy Act of 1992 directs the National Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration (NASA) and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) to assess

various system development and management options for a satellite system to succeedLandsat 7. NASA and USGS are working together on the Landsat Data Continuity

Mission (LDCM) to meet this goal, and to ensure continued collection ofLandsat data. Inaddition to the primary goal of maintaining "data continuity with the Landsat system," theLand Remote Sensing Policy Act of 1992 set two additional goals forLDCM. They are to

serve "the civilian, national security, commercial, and foreign policy interests of theUnited States," and to "incorporate system enhancements... which may potentially yield a

system that is less expensive to build and operate and more responsive to users."y The 1992 Act expressed a preference for "private-sector funding and management". To

that end, NASA and USGS pursued a private-public partnership for procuring LDCMdata, and awarded study phase contracts to two commercial companies (DigitalGlobe and

Resource21) during 2002. NASA cancelled the final Request for Proposal (RFP) onSeptember 26, 2003, following an evaluation of the responses to the solicitation. NASA

decided that awarding a contract was not in the best interest of the U.S. Government onthe basis of proposal evaluations. Since that time, other options for implementing LDCM

have been under consideration.y On August 5, 2004, a Request for Information (RFI) was issued to solicit information on

innovative approaches for the development and incorporation of a new Operational LandImager and also for a potential stand-alone mission. All the RFI documents can be found

at this web site under procurement or at the NASA Acquisition Internet Service.y Oneofthe keyobjectivesofLDCM istomakeall Landsat-typedataavailableataffordablecost.

This willenablethemanydifferentsectorsofthe population-farmers,schoolchildren,business

leaders,scientists,stateandfederalgovernmentsandmanyotherstocontinueto utilizethis

datafor high qualityresearch andapplications.


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NPOESS

y National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental SatelliteSystem

y Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate: March 31, 2014y MissionProject HomePage:http://www.ipo.noaa.gov/y Program(s):GOES / POESyy The National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental

Satellite System (NPOESS) is a satellite system used to

monitor global environmental conditions, and collect anddisseminate data related to weather, atmosphere, oceans, land and near-space

environment. In 1994, it was recognized that converging the existing polar systems fromthe Department of Commerce (DoC) and Department ofDefense (DoD) would result in a

higher performance integrated system. NPOESS will gather those existing polar-orbiting

satellite systems into a single national program.y Polar-orbiting satellites observe Earth from space and collect and disseminate data on

Earth's weather, atmosphere, oceans, land, and near-space environment and are able to

monitor the entire planet and provide data for long-range weather and climate forecasts.y The program is managed by the tri-agency Integrated Program Office (IPO) utilizing

personnel from the Department of Commerce, Department ofDefense and NASA. Thecurrent NPOESS mandate extends to the year 2018.

yNPOESSPreparatoryProject (NPP)

y NPOESS Preparatory Project

y Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate: September 23, 2011y MissionProject HomePage:http://jointmission.gsfc.nasa.gov/y Program(s):Earth Systematic Missionsyy The NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) is a joint mission to extend key measurements in

support of long-term monitoring of climate trends and of global biological productivity. Itextends the measurement series being initiated with EOS Terra and AQUA by providing

a bridge between NASA's EOS missions and the National Polar-orbiting OperationalEnvironmental Satellite System (NPOESS) of the Integrated Program Office (IPO). The

NPP mission will provide operational agencies early access to the next generation ofoperational sensors, thereby greatly reducing the risks incurred during the transition. This

will permit testing of the advanced ground operations facilities and validation of sensorsand algorithms while the current operational systems are still in place. This new system

will provide nearly an order of magnitude more data than the current operational system.y NPOESS will provide long-term systematic measurements of key environmental

variables beginning about 2009. In preparation for this system, NPP will provide risk

reduction for this future operational system and it will maintain continuity of certain


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environmental data sets that were initiated with NASA's Terra and Aqua satellites. Thesemeasurements will be taken by three different sensors; Visible Infrared Imaging

spectroRadiometer Suite (VIIRS), Crosstrack Infrared Sounder (CrIS), and AdvancedTechnology Microwave Sounder (ATMS). These sensors will collect data on atmospheric

and sea surface temperatures, humidity soundings, land and ocean biological

productivity, and cloud and aerosol properties. This data will be used for long-termclimate and global change studies.

SOLARORBITRAR

y Phase: Under Studyy MissionProject HomePage:http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/area...y Program(s):Living With a Staryy

Solar Orbiter is a European Space Agency (ESA) mission to study the Sun from adistance closer than any spacecraft previously has, and will provide images andmeasurements in unprecedented resolution and detail.

Early in 2007, ESA and NASA combined ESAs Solar Orbiter and NASAs SolarSentinels into a single joint collaboration or program named Heliophysical Explorers

(HELEX).

Solar Orbiter will provide close-up views of the Sun's polar regions and its back-side andwill tune its orbit to the direction of the Suns rotation as to allow the spacecraft to

observe one specific area for much longer than currently possible. This will providebetter insight on the evolution of sunspots, active regions, coronal holes and other solar

features and phenomenon.

Solar Orbiter is a three-axis stabilized spacecraft equipped with instruments for both in-situ measurements and remote-sensing observations. It will be placed into an elliptical

orbit about the Sun with perihelia ranging from 0.23 to 0.38 AU and aphelia from 0.73 to0.88 AU. After an in-ecliptic phase of perihelion passes where it is nearly corotating with

the Sun, Solar Orbiter will use multiple Venus gravity assist maneuvers to move theinclination of its orbit to progressively higher heliolatitudes, reaching ~34.2 by the end

of its extended mission.

HELEX combines the capabilities of ESAs Solar Orbiter (near-Sun in-situ plus remote-

sensing observations from a partially co-rotating platform whose orbital inclinationgradually rises from nearecliptic to heliographic midlatitudes) with those ofNASAsSentinels (in-situ observations from multiple platforms arrayed at varying radial distances

and azimuthal locations in the near-ecliptic plane) to investigate, characterize, andunderstand the Suns influence on the environment of the inner solar system.


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SOLARPROBEPLUS

y Phase: Under Studyy MissionProject HomePage:

http://solarprobe.gsfc.nasa.gov/

y Program(s):Living With a Staryy Solar Probe+ will be an extraordinary and historic mission, exploring what is arguably

the last region of the solar system to be visited by a spacecraft, the Suns outer

atmosphere or corona as it extends out into space. Approaching as close as 9.5 solarradii* (8.5 solar radii above the Suns surface), Solar Probe+ will repeatedly sample the

near-Sun environment, revolutionizing our knowledge and understanding of coronalheating and of the origin and evolution of the solar wind and answering critical questions

in heliophysics that have been ranked as top priorities for decades. Moreover, by makingdirect, in-situ measurements of the region where some of the most hazardous solar

energetic particles are energized, Solar Probe+ will make a fundamental contribution to

our ability to characterize and forecast the radiation environment in which future spaceexplorers will work and live.

BARREL

Balloon Array for Radiation-belt Relativistic Electron Losses

y Phase:Developmenty MissionProject HomePage:http://www.dartmouth.edu/~rmillan/bar...y Program(s):Living With a Staryy BARREL is a balloon-based Mission of Opportunity to augment the measurements of

NASA's RBSP spacecraft. BARREL seeks to measure the precipitation of relativistic

electrons from the radiation belts during 2 multi-balloon campaigns, operated in thesouthern hemispheres (option for 3rd northern hemisphere campaign). During each

campaign, 5-8 long-duration balloons would be aloft simultaneously over a one-monthperiod to provide measurements of the spatial extent of the relativistic electron

precipitation and to allow an estimate of the total electron loss from the radiation belts.Observations are planned for when the balloon-array will be conjugate with the RBSP

spacecraft, such that direct comparison is possible between one another.


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IRIS

Interface RegionImaging Spectrograph

Phase: Development

Launch Date: December 01,2012

MissionProject HomePage:http://iris.lmsal.com/#ov

Program(s):Explorers,Heliophysics Explorers

Understandingtheinterfacebetweenthe photosphereandcoronaremainsafundamental

challengeinsolarand heliosphericscience. TheInterface RegionImaging Spectrograph (IRIS)

missionopensa window ofdiscoveryintothiscrucialregionbytracingtheflow ofenergyand

plasmathrough thechromosphereandtransitionregionintothecorona usingspectrometry

andimaging.IRIS isdesignedto providesignificantnew informationtoincreaseour

understandingofenergytransportintothecoronaandsolar windand provideanarchetypefor

allstellaratmospheres. The uniqueinstrumentcapabilities,coupled with stateoftheart3-D

modeling, willfillalargegap inour knowledgeofthisdynamicregionofthesolaratmosphere.

Themission willextendthescientificoutputofexisting heliophysicsspacecraftthatfollow the

effectsofenergyrelease processesfromthesunto Earth.

IRIS will provide keyinsightsintoallthese processes,andtherebyadvanceour understandingof

thesolardriversofspace weatherfromthecoronatothefar heliosphere,bycombining high-resolutionimagingandspectroscopyfortheentirechromosphereandadjacentregions.IRIS

willresolveinspace,time,and wavelength thedynamicgeometryfromthechromosphereto

thelow-temperaturecoronatoshedmuch-neededlightonthe physicsofthismagnetic

interfaceregion.

Science Objectives

TheIRIS instrumentisamulti-channelimagingspectrograph with a20 cm UV telescope.IRIS willobtain

spectraalongaslit (1/3arcsec wide),andslit-jaw images


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TheIRIS scienceinvestigationiscenteredonthreethemesofbroadsignificancetosolarand

plasma physics,space weather,andastrophysics,aimingto understand how internalconvective

flows poweratmosphericactivity:

1.Which typesofnon-thermalenergydominateinthechromosphereandbeyond?

2.How doesthechromosphereregulatemassandenergysupplytocoronaand heliosphere?

3.How domagneticflux andmatterrisethrough theloweratmosphere,and whatroledoesflux

emergence playinflaresandmassejections?

Thecomplex processesandenormouscontrastsofdensity,temperatureandmagneticfield

withinthisinterfaceregionrequireinstrumentandmodelingcapabilitiesthatareonlynow

withinreach. TheIRIS team will useadvancesininstrumentalandcomputationaltechnology,its

extensiveexperience,anditsbroadtechnological heritagetobuildastate-of-the-artinstrument

to provide unprecedentedaccesstothe plasma-physical processesintheinterfaceregion.

MMS

Magnetospheric MultiScale

Phase:Development

LaunchDate: August 14, 2014

MissionProject HomePage:http://mms.space.swri.edu/

Program(s):Solar Terrestrial Probes

The Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission is a Solar-Terrestrial Probe mission comprising

four identically instrumented spacecraft that will use Earth's magnetosphere as a laboratory tostudy the microphysics of three fundamental plasma processes: magnetic reconnection, energetic

particle acceleration, and turbulence. These processes occur in all astrophysical plasma systemsbut can be studied in situ only in our solar system and most efficiently only in Earth's

magnetosphere, where they control the dynamics of the geospace environment and play animportant role in the processes known as "space weather."

On May 3, 2005, NASA selected the Magnetospheric MultiScale (MMS) Instrument Suite team

led by Dr. James L. Burch of Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), San Antonio, TX, to workwith the MMS Project in the mission formulation phase. Mission formulation activities will

include refined mission definition, spacecraft accommodation studies and detailed planningnecessary for developing the mission. The Project will prepare for an Initial Confirmation


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Review in the first quarter of 2006 where a determination will be made that the Project is readyto proceed to the Preliminary Design Phase.

The MMS Project is currently planning for a launch in 2014.

RBSP

Radiation Belt Storm Probes

Phase:Development


MissionProject HomePage:http://rbsp.jhuapl.edu

Program(s):Living With a Star

RBSP is being designed to help us understand the Suns influence on Earth and Near-Earth space

by studying the Earths radiation belts on various scales of space and time.

The instruments on NASAs Living With a Star Programs (LWS) Radiation Belt Storm Probes

(RBSP) mission will provide the measurements needed to characterize and quantify the plasmaprocesses that produce very energetic ions and relativistic electrons. The RBSP mission is part of

the broaderLWS program whose missions were conceived to explore fundamental processes thatoperate throughout the solar system and in particular those that generate hazardous space

weather effects in the vicinity of Earth and phenomena that could impact solar systemexploration. RBSP instruments will measure the properties of charged particles that comprise the

Earths radiation belts, the plasma waves that interact with them, the large-scale electric fieldsthat transport them, and the particle-guiding magnetic field.

The two RBSP spacecraft will have nearly identical eccentric orbits. The orbits cover the entire

radiation belt region and the two spacecraft lap each other several times over the course of themission. The RBSP in situ measurements discriminate between spatial and temporal effects, and

compare the effects of various proposed mechanisms for charged particle acceleration and loss.

SPACEENVIORMENT TESTBEDS

Phase:Development


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LaunchDate: October 01, 2012

MissionProject HomePage:http://lws.gsfc.nasa.gov/lws_elements...

Program(s):Living With a Star

The Space Environment Testbeds (SET) Project performs flight and ground investigations to

address the Living With a Star (LWS) Program goal of understanding how the Sun/Earthinteractions affect humanity. The SET Project is the element of the LWS Program that

characterizes the space environment and its impact on hardware performance in space.

The project goal for SET is to improve the engineering approach to accommodation and/ormitigation of the effects of solar variability on spacecraft design and operations.

Science Objectives:

y Define the mechanisms for induced space environment and effectsy Reduce uncertainties in the definitions of the induced environment and effects on

spacecraft and their payloads

y Improve design and operations guidelines and test protocols so that spacecraft anomaliesand failures due to environmental effects during operations are reduced.

ILN

y International LunarNetworky Phase: Under Studyy Program(s):Robotic Lunar Exploration

y NASA will undertake landed lunar missions and is architecting a conceptual globallunar network as a backbone of its envisioned robotic surface activities. This concept,

called the International LunarNet-work (ILN), aims to provide an organizing theme forall landed science missions in the 2010s by involving each landed station as a node in ageophysical network. Ultimately, this network could be comprised of 8-10 or more

nodes. Because some are desired to be located on the lunar far side, NASA will study alunar communications relay satellite capability as part of its contribution to this potential

endeavor.

In the ILN concept, each node would include some number of core capabilities (e.g.,


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seismic, heat flow, laser retro-reflectors) that would be extant on each station, reflectingprioritized lunar science goals articulated in the National Research Councils study, The

Scientific Context for Exploration of the Moon. Individual nodes could and likely wouldcarry additional, unique experiments to study local or global lunar science. Such

experiments might include atmospheric and dust instruments, plasma physics

investigations, astronomical instruments, electromagnetic profiling of lunar regolith andcrust, local geochemistry, and in situ resource utilization demonstrations.

ExoMARS TRACEGASORBITRAR

y ExoMars Urey Instrumenty Phase:Developmenty MissionProject HomePage:http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mar...

y NASA-funded researchers are refining a tool that could not only check for the faintesttraces of life's molecular building blocks on Mars, but could also determine whether theyhave been produced by anything alive.

y The Urey instrument: Mars Organic and Oxidant Detector, has already shown itscapabilities in one of the most barren climes on Earth, the Atacama Desert in Chile. The

European Space Agency has chosen this tool from the United States as part of the sciencepayload for the ExoMars rover planned for launch in 2013. The European Space Agency

plans for the ExoMars rover to grind samples of Martian soil to fine powder and deliverthem to a suite of analytical instruments, including Urey that will search for signs of life.

y Each sample will be a spoonful of material dug from underground by a robotic drill. Theinstrument will determine if it is possible for life to survive on Mars today or if chemicals

present on the surface of Mars destroy life and any evidence of past life. The potentialhabitability of Mars has been bolstered by recent discoveries of subterranean life deep

below Earth's surface.

GRAIL

y Gravity Recovery and InteriorLaboratoryy Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate: September 08, 2011y MissionProject HomePage:http://moon.mit.edu/y Program(s):Discoveryy


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y GRAIL's Twin Spacecraft fly in Tandem Around the Moon (Artist's Concept)y The Gravity Recovery and InteriorLaboratory (GRAIL) mission was competitively

selected through the Discovery Program. GRAIL will launch on a Delta II launch vehicle

and use high-quality gravity field mapping of the moon to determine the moon's interiorstructure.

GRAILs primary science objectives will be to determine the structure of the lunar

interior, from crust to core and to advance understanding of the thermal evolution of theMoon. As a secondary objective, GRAIL will extend knowledge gained from the Moon

to the other terrestrial planets.

Science investigations will include: Map the structure of the crust and lithosphere

Understand the Moons asymmetric thermal evolution Determine the subsurface structure of impact basins and the origin of mascons

Ascertain the temporal evolution of crustal brecciation and magmatism Constrain deep interior structure from tides

Place limits on the size of a possible solid inner core

Maria Zuber of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Mass., isGRAIL's principal investigator. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.,

manages the pro

JUNO

y Phase:Developmenty

LaunchDate: August 05, 2011y MissionProject HomePage:

http://www.nasa.gov/juno

y Program(s):New Frontiers


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y The primary scientific goal of the Juno mission is to significantly improve ourunderstanding of the formation, evolution and structure of Jupiter. Concealed beneath a

dense cover of clouds, Jupiter, the archetypical "Giant Planet," safeguards secrets to thefundamental processes underlying the early formation of our solar system. Present

theories of the origin and early evolution of our solar system are currently at an impasse.

Juno will provide answers to critical science questions about Jupiter, as well as keyinformation that will dramatically enhance present theories about the early formation ofour own solar system.

Juno will carry a color camera to give the public its first detailed look at Jupiterspoles. This distant image was captured by NASAs Cassini spacecraft, which

visited the giant planet in 2000 on its way to Saturn.Credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona

y In 2016, the spinning, solar-powered Juno spacecraft will reach Jupiter and enter into ahighly elliptical polar orbit that skims only 5000 kilometers above the planet'satmosphere. Building on the results of previous missions, Juno will provide newinformation to help us determine how, when and where this giant planet formed.

Answering these questions for Jupiter is essential for an understanding of the origin of thesolar system itself because Jupiter contains more mass than all the other planets

combined. Juno will seek these answers with instruments that can sense the hidden worldbeneath Jupiter's colorful clouds while other experiments investigate the external effects

that world produces.y Jupiter has no solid surface. Instead its hydrogen and helium dominated atmosphere

grows steadily denser with depth. Ultimately, but we don't know exactly where, theatmosphere must become a fluid in which hydrogen acts like an electrically conducting

metal. Still deeper there may be a core of heavy elements and somewhere, somehow, anintense magnetic field is generated. The invisible external tendrils of that field guide

charged particles that crash into the polar ionospheres, producing the most intenseauroras (the northern and southern "lights") in the solar system. Juno will study these and

other characteristics that make Jupiter one of the most fascinating planets in the solarsystem.

y To answer our fundamental questions about origins we especially need to know Jupiter'sinternal structure and global water abundance. Juno will map the internal structure by

studying its influence on the planet's gravitational field with unprecedented accuracy. Thewater abundance will be determined by microwave radiometers that will detect thermal

radiation from deep atmospheric layers, a completely new approach. Water ice brought

most of the heavy elements to Jupiter. Knowing the water abundance will tell us theoriginal form of that ice and hence help define the conditions and processes in theoriginal cloud of dust and gas that led to the origin of Jupiter. Those same conditions and

processes were forming other planets too. Because this enormous planet contains most ofthe water in the solar system we can expect this investigation to help us understand the

origin of the life-giving water on Earth.


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y The launch of the Juno mission in August 2011 begins a five-year journey back toJupiter, to investigate the remaining unanswered questions beneath the surface of the

mysterious gas giant.

LADEE

y Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorery Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate: January 15, 2013y Program(s):Robotic Lunar Explorationy

o Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is a NASA missionthat will orbit the Moon and its main objective is to characterize the atmosphere

and lunar dust environment.y LADEE implements an early priority of the National Resarch Councils report, The

Scientific Context for the Exploration of the Moon (NRC, 2007), namely to determinethe global density, composition, and time variability of the fragile lunar atmosphere

before it is perturbed by further human activity."y LADEE will have a mass about 130 kg. It will launched on a Minotaur V launch vehicle.y In addition to the science objectives, the mission will be testing a new spacecraft

architecture called the Modular Common Bus -- which is being developed by NASA as

a flexible, low cost, rapid turn around spacecraft for both orbiting and landing on theMoon and other deep space targets. It is hoped that such a capability will enable the

Agency to perform future science goals for reduced cost.

MARSSCIENCELABORATORY

y Mars Science Laboratory 2009y Phase:Developmenty LaunchDate: October 22, 2011y MissionProject HomePage:

http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/fut...y Program(s):Mars Explorationy


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y Next NASAMarsMissionRescheduled For2011NASA's Mars Science Laboratory will launch two years later than previously planned, in

the fall of 2011. The mission will send a next-generation rover with unprecedented

research tools to study the early environmental history of Mars.

NASA is developing a 2011 Mars mission to set down a sophisticated, large, mobile laboratory

using a precision landing that will make many of Mars' most intriguing regions viabledestinations for the first time. Once on the ground, the Mars Science Laboratory would analyze

dozens of samples scooped from the soil and cored from rocks as it explores with greater rangethan any previous Marsrover. As planned, the robotic laboratory will carry the most advanced

payload of scientific gear ever used on Mars' surface, a payload more than 10 times as massive asthose of earlier Mars rovers. Its mission: investigate the past or present potential of Mars to

support microbial life.

The Mars ScienceL

aboratory is planned to launch in 2011 and to arrive at Mars in 2012.NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, builder of the Mars Science Laboratory, is engineering the

rover to roll over obstacles up to 65 centimeters (25 inches) high and to travel up to about 200meters (660 feet) per day on martian terrain.

The overarching science goal of the mission is to assess whether the landing area ever had or still

has environmental conditions favorable to microbial life. The investigations to support thatassessment include:

y Detecting and identifying any organic carbon compounds.y Making an inventory of the key building blocks of life.y

Identifying features that may represent effects of biological processes.y Examining rocks and soils at and near the surface to interpret the processes that formed

and modified them.y Assessing how Mars' atmosphere has changed over billions of years.y Determining current distribution and cycles of water and carbon dioxide, whether frozen,

liquid or gaseous.

This mission is part of the Mars Exploration Program.

MAVEN

Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution

Phase:Development

LaunchDate:November 18, 2013


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MissionProject HomePage:http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mar...

The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission (MAVEN), set to launch in 2013, will

explore the planets upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind.Scientists will use MAVEN data to determine the role that loss of volatile compoundssuch ascarbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and waterfrom the Mars atmosphere to space has played

through time, giving insight into the history of Mars atmosphere and climate, liquid water, andplanetary habitability. The MAVEN Principal Investigator is Dr. Bruce Jakosky of the University

of Colorados Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (CU/LASP), and the project ismanaged by NASAsGoddard Space Flight Center.

MAVEN will carry three instrument suites. The Particles and Fields Package, built by theUniversity of California at Berkeley with support from CU/LASP and Goddard Space Flight

Center, contains six instruments that will characterize the solar wind and the ionosphere of the

planet. The Remote Sensing Package, built by CU/L

ASP, will determine global characteristics ofthe upper atmosphere and ionosphere. The Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer, provided by

Goddard Space Flight Center, will measure the composition and isotopes of neutral ions.

Lockheed Martin, based in Littleton, Colorado, will provide the MAVEN spacecraft, as well asmission operations for the mission. NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory will navigate the

spacecraft. CU/LASP will provide science operations and data packaging.

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