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Space News Update — March 8, 2013 —

Contents

In the News

Story 1:

A Window into Europa's Ocean Right at the Surface

Story 2:

Comet PANSTARRS Rises to the Occasion Mid-March

Story 3:

Soyuz Crew Approved for Fast Approach to Space Station

Departments

The Night Sky

ISS Sighting Opportunities

Space Calendar

NASA-TV Highlights

Food for Thought

Space Image of the Week

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1. A Window into Europa's Ocean Right at the Surface

If you could lick the surface of Jupiter's icy moon Europa, you would actually be sampling a bit of the ocean

beneath. A new paper by Mike Brown, an astronomer at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena,

Calif., and Kevin Hand from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, also in Pasadena, details the strongest

evidence yet that salty water from the vast liquid ocean beneath Europa's frozen exterior actually makes its way

to the surface.

The finding, based on some of the best data of its kind since NASA's Galileo mission (1989 to 2003) to study

Jupiter and its moons, suggests there is a chemical exchange between the ocean and surface, making the ocean a

richer chemical environment. The work is described in a paper that has been accepted for publication in the

Astronomical Journal.

The exchange between the ocean and the surface, Brown said, "means that energy might be going into the

ocean, which is important in terms of the possibilities for life there. It also means that if you'd like to know

what's in the ocean, you can just go to the surface and scrape some off."

Europa's ocean is thought to cover the moon's whole globe and is about 60 miles (100 kilometers) thick under a

thin ice shell. Since the days of NASA's Voyager and Galileo missions, scientists have debated the composition

of Europa's surface. The infrared spectrometer aboard Galileo was not capable of providing the detail needed to

identify definitively some of the materials present on the surface. Now, using the Keck II Telescope on Mauna

Kea, Hawaii, and its OSIRIS spectrometer, Brown and Hand have identified a spectroscopic feature on Europa's

surface that indicates the presence of a magnesium sulfate salt, a mineral called epsomite, that could have

formed by oxidation of a mineral likely originating from the ocean below.

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Brown and Hand started by mapping the distribution of pure water ice versus anything else. The spectra showed

that even Europa's leading hemisphere contains significant amounts of non-water ice. Then, at low latitudes on

the trailing hemisphere—the area with the greatest concentration of the non-water ice material—they found a

tiny, never-before-detected dip in the spectrum.

The two researchers tested everything from sodium chloride to Drano in Hand's lab at JPL, where he tries to

simulate the environments found on various icy worlds. At the end of the day, the signature of magnesium

sulfate persisted.

The magnesium sulfate appears to be generated by the irradiation of sulfur ejected from the Jovian moon Io and,

the authors deduce, magnesium chloride salt originating from Europa's ocean. Chlorides such as sodium and

potassium chlorides, which are expected to be on the Europa surface, are in general not detectable because they

have no clear infrared spectral features. But magnesium sulfate is detectable. The authors believe the

composition of Europa's ocean may closely resemble the salty ocean of Earth.

Europa is considered a premier target in the search for life beyond Earth, Hand said. A NASA-funded study

team led by JPL and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., has been working

with the scientific community to identify options to explore Europa further. "If we've learned anything about

life on Earth, it's that where there's liquid water, there's generally life," Hand said. "And of course our ocean is a

nice, salty ocean. Perhaps Europa's salty ocean is also a wonderful place for life."

The work was supported, in part, by the NASA Astrobiology Institute through the Icy Worlds team based at

JPL, a division of Caltech. The NASA Astrobiology Institute, based at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett

Field, Calif., is a partnership among NASA, 15 U.S. teams, and 13 international consortia. The NAI is part of

NASA's Astrobiology program, which supports research into the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life

on Earth and the potential for life elsewhere.

Source: NASA Return to Contents

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2. Comet PANSTARRS Rises to the Occasion Mid-March

Comets visible to the naked eye are a rare delicacy in the celestial smorgasbord of objects in the nighttime sky.

Scientists estimate that the opportunity to see one of these icy dirtballs advertising their cosmic presence so

brilliantly they can be seen without the aid of a telescope or binoculars happens only once every five to 10

years. That said, there may be two naked-eye comets available for your viewing pleasure this year.

"You might have heard of a comet ISON, which may become a spectacular naked-eye comet later this fall," said

Amy Mainzer, the principal investigator of NASA's NEOWISE mission at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in

Pasadena, Calif., and self-described cosmic icy dirtball fan. "But if you have the right conditions you don't have

to wait for ISON. Within a few days, comet PANSTARRS will be making its appearance in the skies of the

Northern Hemisphere just after twilight."

Discovered in June 2011, comet 2011 L4 (PANSTARRS) bears the name of the telescopic survey that

discovered it -- the less than mellifluous sounding "Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System"

which sits atop the Haleakala volcano in Hawaii.

Since its discovery a year-and-a-half ago, observing comet PANSTARRS has been the exclusive dominion of

comet aficionados in the Southern Hemisphere, but that is about to change. As the comet continues its well-

understood and safe passage through the inner-solar system, its celestial splendor will be lost to those in the

Southern Hemisphere, but found by those up north.

"There is a catch to viewing comet PANSTARRS," said Mainzer. "This one is not that bright and is going to be

low on the western horizon, so you'll need a relatively unobstructed view to the southwest at twilight and, of

course, some good comet-watching weather."

Well, there is one more issue -- the time of day, or night, to view it.

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"Look too early and the sky will be too bright," said Rachel Stevenson, a NASA Postdoctoral Fellow at JPL.

"Look too late, the comet will be too low and obstructed by the horizon. This comet has a relatively small

window."

By March 8, comet PANSTARRS may be viewable for those with a totally unobstructed view of the western

horizon for about 15 minutes after twilight. On March 10, it will make its closest approach to the sun about 28

million miles (45 million kilometers) away. As it continues its nightly trek across the sky, the comet may get

lost in the sun's glare but should return and be visible to the naked eye by March 12. As time marches on in the

month of March, the comet will begin to fade away slowly, becoming difficult to view (even with binoculars or

small telescopes) by month's end. The comet will appear as a bright point of light with its diffuse tail pointing

nearly straight up from the horizon like an exclamation point.

What, if any, attraction does seeing a relatively dim naked-eye comet with the naked eye hold for someone who

works with them every day, with file after file of high-resolution imagery spilling out on her computer

workstation?

"You bet I'm going to go look at it!" said Mainzer. "Comet PANSTARRS may be a little bit of a challenge to

find without a pair of binoculars, but there is something intimately satisfying to see it with your own two eyes.

If you have a good viewing spot and good weather, it will be like the Sword of Gryffindor, it should present

itself to anyone who is worthy."

NASA detects, tracks and characterizes asteroids and comets passing relatively close to Earth using both

ground- and space-based telescopes. The Near-Earth Object Observations Program, commonly called

"Spaceguard," discovers these objects, characterizes a subset of them, and predicts their paths to determine if

any could be potentially hazardous to our planet.

JPL manages the Near-Earth Object Program Office for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington,

DC. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena.

More information about asteroids and near-Earth objects is at: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/asteroidwatch , and on

Twitter: @asteroidwatch .

Source: NASA Return to Contents

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3. Soyuz Crew Approved for Fast Approach to Space Station

The next three residents launched to the International Space Station will reach their new home six hours after

blastoff, flying an express rendezvous with the complex and reducing the crew's time in the cramped confines of

the Soyuz capsule. The quick approach will occur March 28 after launch of the next Soyuz spacecraft, cutting

the flight time from nearly two days to less than six hours.

Liftoff of the Soyuz TMA-08M spacecraft is scheduled for 4:43 p.m. EDT (2043 GMT) March 28 from the

Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Docking is set for 10:31 p.m. EDT (0231 GMT) after four orbits around

Earth.

The six-hour rendezvous will replicate demonstrations done by Russia's Progress resupply freighters, which

accomplished the first same-day rendezvous with the International Space Station in August. "We tried this

approach on the cargo vehicles, and now we're trying to do it on the manned vehicles," said Sergei Krikalev, a

veteran cosmonaut and administrator of the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center near Moscow.

Russian cosmonauts Pavel Vinogradov and Alexander Misurkin, along with NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy,

will be aboard the Soyuz.

Engineers did not make any changes to the Soyuz capsule for the mission, but the quick flight to the space

station will be a test for the crew and ground controllers. "All the systems of the vehicle are the same, but the

work is more intense," Vinogradov said Monday through a translator. "There are no new systems or modes in

the vehicle, but the coordination work of the crew should be better."

The crew's activation of the Soyuz and docking preparations, typically spread out in a two-day period, must be

completed in less than six hours. "We'll scrunch that whole timeline down into about a six-hour period,"

Cassidy said.

Soyuz cosmonauts and astronauts sit in specially-fitted couches inside the capsule's descent module for launch

and docking. The accelerated rendezvous means the crew will wear their Sokol spacesuits and be seated for up

to 10 hours, from the time they are strapped in on the launch pad until after docking.

"The interesting thing from a human point-of-view is we don't have the time to take off our spacesuits, so we'll

be strapped in our seats in our spacesuits for the whole duration of that six-hour period plus the pre-launch

activities. So it will be a long day and a lot of time in the suits," Cassidy said. The quick approach leaves no

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time for the crew to enter the Soyuz habitation module at the forward end of the spacecraft, which contains

food, drinking water and a toilet. "It's going to be a long workday for the crew," Vinogradov said. "We will

have to stay up for a very long time before - getting ready for the launch - but I think it's much more efficient."

On the plus side, the crew will reach the expansive space station sooner. Larger than a three-bedroom house, the

complex includes a kitchen, bathrooms and lots of open space. "The Soyuz is a very small vehicle," Cassidy

said. "It's designed with a specific purpose and that's to get crews up and down ... and it does a fantastic job. It's

not the most comfortable vehicle to be in for an extended period of time. The toilet is right next to where you

sleep, which is right next to your buddy and eating and all. It's like living for a day in a Smart car or a

Volkswagen Beetle. It's very scrunched."

The six-hour rendezvous is a first-time experience for an International Space Station crew, but astronauts and

cosmonauts have accomplished quick rendezvous profiles before. Two-man crews flying in NASA's Gemini

program docked with target vehicles a few hours after launch in the 1960s, and early Soviet-era Soyuz missions

launched and rendezvoused in orbit on the same day.

Officials switched to longer two-day rendezvous profiles to give crews extra time to adapt to microgravity and

conserve propellant. "Now we have on-board new machinery and new software, so the vehicle is more

autonomous," Krikalev said. "So it's possible to do a lot on-board the vehicle and to calculate the burns so they

don't consume a lot of fuel."

The fast-track rendezvous reduces the workforce required to operate the Soyuz spacecraft. Instead of staffing

the Soyuz control center in Russia for more than two days, a full complement Soyuz controllers will only be

needed for a day.

The space station's managers in February formally approved the six-hour rendezvous plan for the March 28

launch, but the international partners have not signed off on using the template on future flights, according to

Mike Suffredini, NASA's space station program manager. Russia has requested to use the quick rendezvous on

all Soyuz missions, but NASA has raised concerns over the crew's comfort and workload, along with the

technical difficulty and precise orbital mechanics necessary to launch and dock on the same day.

A formal decision on whether to use the quick rendezvous scheme on the following Soyuz mission in May will

come in April, according to NASA officials.

Source: Spaceflight Now

Return to Contents

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The Night Sky

Friday, March 8

Jupiter is 5° from Aldebaran high in the west after dark. But it's now passing only 2° from fainter (3.5-

magnitude) Epsilon Tauri, the other tip of the Hyades V pattern, located almost between them.

Saturday, March 9

The Big Dipper glitters high in the northeast these evenings, standing on its handle. You probably know that

the two stars forming the front of the Dipper's bowl (currently on top) are the Pointers; they point to Polaris,

currently to their left.

And, you may know that if you follow the curve of the Dipper's handle out and around by a little more than a

Dipper length, you'll arc to Arcturus, now rising in the east.

But did you know that if you follow the Pointers backward the opposite way, you'll land in Leo?

Draw a line diagonally across the Dipper's bowl from where the handle is attached, continue far on, and you'll

go to Gemini.

And look at the two stars forming the open top of the Dipper's bowl. Follow this line past the bowl's lip far

across the sky, and you crash into Capella.

Daylight-saving time begins at 2 a.m. Sunday morning in most of North America. Clocks spring ahead an

hour.

Where to find comet PanSTARRs

Sky & Telescope Return to Contents

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ISS Sighting Opportunities For Denver: No sightings until March 12.

SATELLITE LOCAL DURATION MAX ELEV APPROACH DEPARTURE

DATE/TIME (MIN) (DEG) (DEG-DIR) (DEG-DIR)

Sighting information for other cities can be found at NASA’s Satellite Sighting Information

NASA-TV Highlights (all times Eastern Daylight Time)

March 11, Monday

11:30 a.m. - NASA Exploration Design Challenge Kickoff Event - JSC (All Channels)

1:25 p.m. - ISS Expedition 34 “Let’s Talk Science” In-Flight Educational Event for the Canadian Space

Agency with Airdie, Alberta - JSC (All Channels)

Watch NASA TV on the Net by going to the NASA website.

Return to Contents

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Space Calendar

Mar 08 - Asteroid 4319 Jackierobinson Closest Approach To Earth (1.713 AU)

Mar 09 - [Mar 07] Cassini, Rhea Flyby

Mar 09 - Comet 280P/Larsen At Opposition (2.217 AU)

Mar 09 - [Mar 06] Asteroid 2013 ET Near-Earth Flyby (0.006 AU)

Mar 09 - Asteroid 4125 Lew Allen Closest Approach To Earth (1.200 AU)

Mar 09 - Asteroid 15907 Robot Closest Approach To Earth (1.490 AU)

Mar 09 - Asteroid 4342 Freud Closest Approach To Earth (1.988 AU)

Mar 09 - Asteroid 11998 Fermilab Closest Approach To Earth (2.829 AU)

Mar 10 - Daylight Saving - Set Clock Ahead 1 Hour (United States)

Mar 10 - [Mar 08] Comet C/2011 L4 (PANSTARRS) Perihelion (0.302 AU)

Mar 10 - Comet P/2007 T2 (Kowalski) Closest Approach To Earth (1.621 AU)

Mar 10 - [Mar 03] Comet 223P/Skiff At Opposition (4.224 AU)

Mar 10 - Asteroid 7359 Messier Closest Approach To Earth (2.440 AU)

Mar 11 - Cassini, Orbital Trim Maneuver #344 (OTM-344)

Mar 11 - Asteroid 4690 Strasbourg Closest Approach To Earth (1.137 AU)

Mar 11 - Asteroid 426 Hippo Closest Approach To Earth (1.639 AU)

Close-up of comet C/2011 L4 PANSTARRS as seen from Mount Dale, Western Australia. Image credit:

Astronomy Education Services/Gingin Observatory

Source: JPL Space Calendar

Return to Contents

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Food for Thought

CuriousMars: Rover's SAM organic and CheMin Labs Outrun Computer Snafu For Extra Rock Analysis

Scientists with the $2.5 billion Mars rover Curiosity will reveal potentially historic discoveries about Mars next

week in Washington D. C.

There are indications that the planned March 12 NASA Headquarters briefing could reveal the finding of

organic carbon on Mars - "key ingredients" for life on Mars, as the space agency reinforced this week.

In what may - or may not - be a coincidence, the day prior to announcing the rover science briefing that will be

broadcast on NASA Television, the agency's Curiosity web site posted a new video titled: "Why is Curiosity

Looking for Organics?"

The video opens with the narrator saying, "Organics are carbon-based molecules-key ingredients to life".

After an organics related geology discussion, the video concludes by saying, "If Curiosity finds organics, it

wouldn't prove life existed, but it sure would improve the odds that Mars once had the right ingredients for life".

Previous Curiosity rover science briefings have simply been telecons based at JPL. But 9 years ago when the

rover Opportunity made the historic finding that water had flowed on Mars - that announcement was also made

during a televised briefing in Washington.

Source: Spaceref.com Return to Contents

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Space Image of the Week

Staring at the Sun with SAGE III

Explanation: NASA engineer Chip Holloway waits for the sun to align with the Stratospheric Aerosol and Gas

Experiment (SAGE III) during a clean room "sun-look" test on March 4, 2013, at NASA's Langley Research

Center in Hampton, Va. SAGE III passed this test, successfully locking onto the sun and completing a series of

measurements.

Scientists are checking SAGE III in preparation for its trip to the International Space Station, set for late 2014 or

early 2015. Like its predecessors SAGE I and II, which collected aerosol data from 1979 to 2005, SAGE III will

measure aerosols, ozone, water vapor and other gases to help scientists better understand Earth's atmosphere.

Credit: NASA Langley/Sean Smith

Source: NASA Image of the Day Return to Contents