University of Arizona and NASA set to make history today!
Posted by The Word Demon
The University of Arizona Goes to Mars
The University of Arizona is honored to be the first public university to lead a mission to Mars. The Phoenix Mars Mission, scheduled to land May 25, 2008, is the first in NASA's "Scout Program." Scouts are designed to be highly innovative and relatively low-cost complements to major missions being planned as part of the agency's Mars Exploration Program. As the Phoenix spacecraft closes the final million miles to Mars, team leaders from NASA headquarters, the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory and The University of Arizona anxiously await the seven minutes of truth that will cap five years of preparation. In a dramatic sequence, Phoenix will enter Mars' atmosphere, reach a scorching 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit in descent, and finally, in the last 18 seconds, fire its thrusters to land. With mission manager Joe Guinn reporting that Phoenix is functioning "great," researchers have high hopes that Sunday, the mission will be known for two firsts: the first NASA mission led by a public university and the first to touch Martian water ice.
Links to follow:
http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu/
http://mars.arizona.edu/
http://www.arizona.edu/stories/discover/achieve-mars-20080524.php
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/videos/phoenix/phx20070924/
Things to See and Do on the UofA Campus
Sunday, May 25 – Landing Day
Come join your fellow Tucsonans on campus for the final countdown to the Phoenix Lander’s touchdown at
4:38 p.m. Tucson time.
When & Where: 3-8 p.m. on the UA Mall in front of Flandrau Science Center
- Watch the Jet Propulsion Laboratory live as engineers confirm the safe landing of Phoenix
- Hear scientists give live presentations
- Visit exhibits in the Sonett Space Science Building, the Flandrau Science Center, and the Kuiper Space Sciences Building.
After Launch
- UA Visitor Center | This will serve as the UA’s the welcome center for members of the public wanting to see and do things on campus related to the Phoenix Mission. It will feature daily mission updates, maps to campus attractions and live pictures and video of the NASA mission in progress.
- Flandrau: The UA Science Center | See the Mars wall! The curved wall in the lobby of the science center will replicate a portion of the surface of Mars in three dimensions. While there, watch “Mars Quest” under the planetarium dome.
- Student Union Memorial Center | The “Mars Lounge,” located on the main level of the Union, will features an overview of the mission, from launch to the envisioned landing and science operations, plus updated photos and images from the mission. Collectors can pick up mission T-shirts, caps and other logo products at the bookstore.
- Kuiper Space Sciences Building | Come see the “HiWALL,” a floor-to-ceiling computer display of the giant and dramatic images of the surface of Mars, taken from the UA’s HiRISE camera that now orbits the red planet.
- Sonett Space Sciences Building | View the latest HiRISE images in large print displays, and see a full-scale model of the famed camera itself.
- Robert McCall at the UA Museum of Art | The entire work and archives of famed space artist Robert McCall were recently donated to the UA, and an exhibit of his work is on display at the museum.
Stay Updated
- E-mail | Get UANow, the daily UA news email update, which will feature Phoenix mission updates daily. Sign up at http://uanews.org/signupfornews.
- Web | Visit the mission Web site at http://phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu for news, images and podcasts of the mission as it unfolds.
- TV | Watch daily media briefings live on NASA TV, which Cox Communications will carry between May 23 and June 26.
Mars Campus Map (pdf)
