Filter Total Items: 874
Assessment of lunar resource exploration in 2022
The idea of mining the Moon, once purely science-fiction, is now on the verge of becoming reality. Taking advantage of the resources on the Moon is part of the plans of many nations and some enterprising commercial entities; demonstrating in-situ (in place) resource utilization near the lunar south pole is an explicit goal of the United States’ Artemis program. Economic extraction and sustainable
Authors
Laszlo P. Keszthelyi, Joshua A. Coyan, Kristen A. Bennett, Lillian R. Ostrach, Lisa R. Gaddis, Travis S.J. Gabriel, Justin Hagerty
National preparedness strategy & action plan for potentially hazardous near-Earth objects and planetary defense
Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are asteroids and comets that orbit the Sun, but have orbits that can bring them into Earth’s neighborhood—within 30 million miles of Earth’s orbit. Planetary defense is “applied planetary science” to address the NEO impact risks on Earth. This National Preparedness Strategy and Action Plan for Near-Earth Objects and Planetary Defense (2023 Planetary Defense Strategy) upd
Authors
Matthew Daniels, Lindley Johnson, Renata Kommel, Patrick Besha, Perry Brody, Kevin Conole, Kelly Fast, Angelo Fernandez, Ralph Gaume, Kevin Greenaugh, Ryan Guglietta, Diane Howard, Grace Hu, Christine Joseph, Brig Gen Traci Keuker-Murphy, L.A. Lewis, Lindsay Millard, Joel Mozer, Dianne Poster, Timothy N. Titus, Ashley Vanderley
User’s Guide to planetary image analysis and geologic mapping in ArcGIS Pro
Geologic maps are valuable tools in planetary science. Though planetary geologic maps are similar to terrestrial (Earthbased) geologic maps, the nature of planetary exploration introduces unique challenges for geologic mappers. Terrestrial geologic mappers prepare products from field-based observation, often comparing or refining those with aerial and (or) orbital images. Planetary geologic mappin
Authors
Sarah R. Black
An examination of soil crusts on the floor of Jezero crater, Mars
Martian soils are critically important for understanding the history of Mars, past potentially habitable environments, returned samples, and future human exploration. This paper examines soil crusts on the floor of Jezero crater encountered during initial phases of the Mars 2020 mission. Soil surface crusts have been observed on Mars at other locations, starting with the two Viking Lander missions
Authors
E.M. Hausrath, C.T. Adcock, A. Bechtold, P. S. A. Beck, K. Benison, A. Brown, E.L. Cardarelli, N.A. Carman, B. Chide, J. Christian, B.C. Clark, E. Cloutis, A. Cousin, O. Forni, Travis S.J. Gabriel, O. Gasnault, M. P. Golombek, F. Gomez, M.H. Hecht, T.L.J. Henley, J. Huidobro, J. C. Johnson, M.W.M. Jones, P.B. Kelemen, A. Knight, J.A. Lasue, S. Le Mouelic, J.M. Madariaga, J. N. Maki, L. Mandon, G. Martinez, J. Martinez-Frias, T.H. McConnochie, P.-Y. Meslin, M.-P. Zorzano, H. Newsom, G. Paar, N. Randazzo, C. Royer, S. Siljestroem, M.E. Schmidt, S. Schroeder, M.A. Sephton, R. Sullivan, N. Turenne, A. Udry, S. VanBommel, A. Vaughan, R.C. Wiens, N. Williams
A review of common natural disasters as analogs for asteroid impact effects and cascading hazards
Modern civilization has no collective experience with possible wide-ranging effects from a medium-sized asteroid impactor. Currently, modeling efforts that predict initial effects from a meteor impact or airburst provide needed information for initial preparation and evacuation plans, but longer-term cascading hazards are not typically considered. However, more common natural disasters, such as vo
Authors
Timothy N. Titus, D. G. Robertson, Joel B. Sankey, Larry G. Mastin, Francis K. Rengers
Regolith of the crater floor units, Jezero crater, Mars: Textures, composition and implications for provenance
A multi-instrument study of the regolith of Jezero crater floor units by the Perseverance rover has identified three types of regolith: fine-grained, coarse-grained, and mixed-type. Mastcam-Z, WATSON, and SuperCam RMI were used to characterize regolith texture, particle size, and roundedness where possible. Mastcam-Z multispectral and SuperCam LIBS data were used to constrain the composition of th
Authors
Alicia Vaughan, Michelle E. Minitti, Emily L. Cardarelli, Jeffrey R. Johnson, Linda C. Kah, Paolo Pilleri, Mellisa S. Rice, Mark Sephton, Briony H. N. Horgan, Roger C. Wiens, R. Aileen Yingst, Maria-Paz Zorzano Mier, Ryan Anderson, James F. III Bell, Adrian J. Brown, Edward A. Cloutis, Agnes Cousin, Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, Elisabeth M. Housrath, Alexander G. Hayes, Kjartan M. Kinch, Marco Merusi, Chase C. Million, Robert Sullivan, Sandra M. Siljestrom, Michael St. Clair
Comparison of ventifact orientations and recent wind direction indicators on the floor of Jezero crater, Mars
Wind-abraded rocks and aeolian bedforms have been observed at the Mars 2020 Perseverance landing site, providing evidence for recent and older wind directions. This study reports orientations of aeolian features measured in Perseverance images to infer formative wind directions. It compares these measurements with orbital observations, climate model predictions, and wind data acquired by the Mars
Authors
Kenneth E. Herkenhoff, Rob Sullivan, Claire E Newman, Gerhard Paar, Mariah Baker, Daniel Viudez-Moreiras, James W. Ashley, Andreas Bechtold, Jorge I Nunez
Optimizing satellite resources for the global assessment and mitigation of volcanic hazards—Suggestions from the USGS Powell Center Volcano Remote Sensing Working Group
A significant number of the world’s approximately 1,400 subaerial volcanoes with Holocene eruptions are unmonitored by ground-based sensors yet constitute a potential hazard to nearby residents and infrastructure, as well as air travel and global commerce. Data from an international constellation of more than 60 current satellite instruments provide a cost-effective means of tracking activity and
Authors
M. E. Pritchard, M. Poland, K. Reath, B. Andrews, M. Bagnardi, J. Biggs, S. Carn, D. Coppola, S.K. Ebmeier, M.A. Furtney, T. Girona, J. Griswold, T. Lopez, P. Lundgren, S. Ogburn, M. Pavolonis, E. Rumpf, G. Vaughan, C. Wauthier, R. Wessels, R. Wright, K.R. Anderson, M.G. Bato, A. Roman
Spatial and temporal distribution of sinuous ridges in southeastern Terra Sabaea and the northern region of Hellas Planitia, Mars
Sinuous ridges are an important yet understudied component of Mars' hydrologic history. We have produced a map of sinuous ridges, valleys and channels, and tectonic ridges across southeastern Terra Sabaea and into northern Hellas Planitia (10°-45° S, 35°-80° E) using a CTX mosaic. Although we mapped different types of ridges and negative relief features, the focus of this paper are the sinuous rid
Authors
Amber Gullikson, Ryan Anderson, Rebecca M.E. Williams
A large new crater exposes the limits of water ice on Mars
Water ice in the Martian mid-latitudes has advanced and retreated in response to variations in the planet's orbit, obliquity, and climate. A 150 m-diameter new impact crater near 35°N provides the lowest-latitude impact exposure of subsurface ice on Mars. This is the largest known ice-exposing crater and provides key constraints on Martian climate history. This crater indicates a regional, relativ
Authors
Colin M. Dundas, Michael T. Mellon, Liliya V Posiolova, Katarina Miljkovic, Gareth S Collins, Livio L. Tornabene, Vidhya Ganesh Rangarajan, Matthew P. Golombek, Nicholas H. Warner, Ingrid J. Daubar, Shane Byrne, Alfred S. McEwen, Kimberly D. Seelos, Donna Viola, Ali M Bramson, Gunnar Speth
Giant planet observations in NASA's Planetary Data System
While there have been far fewer missions to the outer Solar System than to the inner Solar System, spacecraft destined for the giant planets have conducted a wide range of fundamental investigations, returning data that continues to reshape our understanding of these complex systems, sometimes decades after the data were acquired. These data are preserved and accessible from national and internati
Authors
Nancy J. Chanover, James M. Bauer, John Joe Jeremiah Blalock, Mitchell K. Gordon, Lyle F. Huber, Mia J. T. Mace, Lynn D. V. Neakrase, Matthew S. Tiscareno, Raymond J. Walker
Apophis specific action team report
This report about Asteroid (99942) Apophis's Earth close approach on April 13, 2029 was generated by a Specific Action Team (SAT) formed by the Small Body Assessment Group (SBAG) at the request of NASAs Planetary Science Division (PSD). The SAT assessed the current predictions for the effects that may occur due to the close encounter, evaluated observing capabilities, and identified possible inves
Authors
J. L. Dotson, M. Brozovic, S. Chesley, S. Jarmak, N. Moskovitz, A. Rivkin, P. Sanchez, D. Souami, Timothy N. Titus