Monday 26 August 2013

MAVEN » Instruments

MAVEN » Instruments



Instruments

Annotated MAVEN instrument panel
This illustration of the MAVEN spacecraft displays the instruments that will provide the measurements essential to understanding the evolution of the Martian atmosphere. (Courtesy GSFC/NASA)
MAVEN’s three instrument packages provide the comprehensive measurements essential to understanding the evolution of the Martian atmosphere. Escape rates will be derived for neutral escape (via Jeans escape and photochemical loss) and ion escape (pickup-ion loss, atmospheric sputtering, solar energetic particle atmospheric stripping, ion bulk escape, and ion outflow). They provide multiple independent and complementary determinations of the escape rate through time–directly, when the Sun is most active; calculated from the thorough understanding of the upper-atmospheric processes that drive escape; and derived from the measured isotopic fractionation.
The three instrument suites will include:
The Particles and Fields Package, built by the University of California, Berkeley/Space Sciences Laboratory (SSL) with support from the University of Colorado Boulder/Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), contains six instruments that will characterize the solar wind and the ionosphere of the planet:
  • Solar Wind Electron Analyzer (SWEA)
  • Solar Wind Ion Analyzer (SWIA)
  • Suprathermal and Thermal Ion Composition (STATIC)
  • Solar Energetic Particle (SEP)
  • Langmuir Probe and Waves (LPW)
  • Magnetometer (MAG)
The Remote Sensing Package, built by LASP, will determine global characteristics of the upper atmosphere and ionosphere via remote sensing.
  • Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph (IUVS)
The Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS), provided by GFSC, will measure the composition and isotopes of neutral ions.
Instrument leads:

NASA Mars Rover Opportunity Update: August 15-21, 2013 | SpaceRef - Your Space Reference

NASA Mars Rover Opportunity Update: August 15-21, 2013 | SpaceRef - Your Space Reference



NASA Mars Rover Opportunity Update: August 15-21, 2013



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OPPORTUNITY UPDATE: Scouting a Boulder Field - sols 3398-3404, Aug. 15, 2013-Aug. 21, 2013:
Opportunity is at the base of 'Solander Point' on the rim of Endeavour Crater. The rover is scouting a large boulder field.
On Sol 3398 (Aug. 15, 2013), Opportunity drove 75 feet (22.8 meters) into the boulder field to approach a potential surface target. On Sol 3399 (Aug. 16, 2013), an Alpha Particle X-ray Spectrometer (APXS) measurement of atmospheric argon was performed. On Sol 3400 (Aug. 17, 2013), Opportunity bumped only 1.3 feet (0.4 meters) to place a surface target within reach of the robotic arm.
After remote sensing observations over the weekend, on Sol 3403 (Aug. 20, 2013), the rover used the Rock Abrasion Tool (RAT) to brush the surface of the target now called 'Platypus.' This was followed by a Microscopic Imager (MI) mosaic and a placement of the APXS for a multi-sol integration.
As of Sol 3404 (Aug. 21, 2013), the solar array energy production was 367 watt-hours with an atmospheric opacity (Tau) of 0.660 and a solar array dust factor of 0.522.
Total odometry is 23.74 miles (38.21 kilometers).
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Why Nikola Tesla was the greatest geek who ever lived - The Oatmeal

Why Nikola Tesla was the greatest geek who ever lived - The Oatmeal


Wednesday 14 August 2013

U.S. Department of Justice Says California Shark Fin Ban is Unconstitutional | AsianWeek

U.S. Department of Justice Says California Shark Fin Ban is Unconstitutional | AsianWeek

U.S. Department of Justice Says California Shark Fin Ban is Unconstitutional

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shark fin ban
San Francisco– Representatives and advocates for the Chinese community today announced some optimism that a new California law which bans the possession and sale of shark fins will be struck down as unconstitutional after the U.S. Department of Justice filed an amicus brief in support of their position.
The Justice Department filed an amicus brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in late July. In its brief, the Justice Department took the position that California’s law violates the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution. The brief stated that, on a number of levels, California’s new law was preempted by existing federal law.
“The United States has a strong interest in the proper application of preemption principles,” according to the Justice Department’s brief. “California’s law obstructs the use of fishery resources lawfully obtained in federal waters,” and “the District Court failed to appreciate the conflict presented by California’s ban on possession and sale of shark fins from sharks caught in federal waters.”
“Here, California’s law goes too far by banning all possession and sale of shark fins from sharks caught in federal waters, when federal law allows for possession and sale so long as the shark is landed in compliance with federal law,” the Justice Department stated. “Consequently, the court below erred in finding that the California Shark Fin Ban was not preempted.”
“We are very pleased that the U.S. Justice Department has expressed its view and supports the Chinese community’s position that California’s ban on the possession of shark fins in unconstitutional,” said Pius Lee, advocate for the Chinese community. “We are hopeful that we will soon be able to resume our humane tradition that our culture has practiced for centuries since the Ming Dynasty.”
Chinatown Neighborhood Association and Asian Americans for Political Advancement filed a lawsuit against the State of California after it enacted a law banning the possession and sale of shark fins. It is an ancient Chinese cultural tradition to eat shark fin soup as a ceremonial centerpiece of traditional banquets as well as celebrations of weddings and birthdays of one’s elders.
The Chinatown Neighborhood Association and Asian Americans for Political Advancement appeal of the District Court’s denial of the preliminary injunction will be heard before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday Aug. 14 at 95 Seventh St., San Francisco, Courtroom 1, 3rd Floor. Chinatown Neighborhood Association et al. v. Edmund G. Brown, Jr., et al., Case Number 13-15188
“California’s law is not only culturally offensive, but according to the Justice Department, it is unconstitutional and should be struck down,” added Mr. Lee. “The Chinese community agrees that finning a shark is inhumane and wrong. But under federal law, sharks are caught legally and humanely and there is no reason to discard the fin. In fact, dumping the fin constitutes environmental waste. That is why we use the entire shark, and stand with the environmental community in strong support of the existing federal legislation that bans the inhumane treatment of sharks.”
President Clinton signed the federal Shark Finning Prohibition Act in 2000, and President Obama strengthened the finning ban in 2010 by signing the Shark Conservation Act. California’s law, which took effect on July 1, 2013, goes further by banning the possession and sale of a shark fins, including fins from legally and humanely fished sharks. Both the Chinese communities and the Justice Department believe California’s law to be unconstitutional.

Tuesday 6 August 2013

Tweets

  1. Planet Four Blog | A Zooniverse Project Blog
  2. Got questions for team members ? Submit Qs for my event airing Aug 6 7:45am PT.
  3. I got mooned by Phobos and Deimos. Here's a pic I took last weekend of the Red Planet's two moons overhead
  4. NASA's Curiosity Rover Celebrates One Year on Mars via
  5. This beautiful region is not just a fascinating part of the world! It is essential for our survival!
  6. Good morning! Niagara Falls - beautiful from any angle.
  7. Poll shows majority want gov. support for solar, wind & tidal power, and not for shale gas -
  8. . SeaWorld, Georgia Aquarium & other parks are waiting 4 permits for 18 wild caught belugas in Russia
  9. Our ocean conservation campaigns are gathering momentum internationally. Join the growing supporter community at
  10. Zubrin: Mars One plan less risky because large risks of return are removed. Instead there are risks of staying on Mars
  11. Global travel advisory plus closing of embassies around M. East and N. Africa. Tipped off about impending action in Egypt and poss reaction?
  12. Honor the Dive in! - Ocean Adventures:Call of the Killer Whale  
  13. I'm still not sure if my life is Photoshopped or not.
  14. Identification Tables -  Identify 43 of the most common rock types: igneous, sedimentary and...
  15. Planet Four July 31 2013 on , Year 31 turns into New 32 A Martian year, (a complete 668 days around the Sun)
  16. Incredible Technology: How to Explore the Microscopic World via
  17. Tropical Storm Flossie: Winds 65mph gusting to 74mph. TS Warning for Hawaii & Maui Counties. TS Watch for Oahu
  18. Opportunity rover Days Away from Mars Mountain Quest
  19. OpEd: Mars Curiosity Disproves Notion Space is Interesting Only When Humans are On Site. via
  20. NASA Rover Begins Driving at Landing - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
  21. Best Space Photos of the Week - July 27, 2013 via
  22. Corny, but it just feels amazing to be part of something that helps so many different causes. to all of you that take time to vote!
  23. I’m counting down 12 days till my Aug 6 land-iversary. Where were you when I touched down?