Ok, ok, not really my own, but rather space.com’s top ten list of landings on Mars.

To summarize:

• 10. Mars 2 – death
• 9. Mars 3 – 20 seconds, then death
• 8. Beagle 2 – death
• 7. Mars Polar Lander – death
• 6. Viking 1 – hey, it worked!
• 5. Viking 2 – success
• 4. Pathfinder – success
• 3. Spirit – success
• 2. Opportunity – a hole in one
• 1. Phoenix, which, oddly, hasn’t actually landed yet.

I guess it’s kind of hard to have a top ten list of Mars landings when only five of them have succeeded. For me and space enthusiasts of my generation, Mars landings serve as those iconic “I remember where I was when…” moments. Just as most people who were alive in 1969 remember where they were when the moon landing occurred, I vividly remember watching coverage of Pathfinder rolling off its platform. For some reason, I was in a Holliday Inn in Fargo, North Dakota, making that moment the only memorable part of the trip.

Not too long ago, I was at a lunch with an author, a screenwriter, a couple of administrators from my university, and a few fellow students. The conversation turned to those defining moments, the ones that crystalized a mood, an era, or a generation – the ones that were felt broadly across society and will remain in the public consciousness forever. Between the 7 or 8 of us, we agreed on a pretty short list: JFK’s assassination, MLK’s assassination, Neil Armstrong walking on the Moon, Princess Diana’s death, and the 9/11 attacks. (Needless to say, answers will vary by geography.)

One of those events is not like the others: four mark tragedies, one marks triumph.

It occurred to me between bites of undercooked salmon that space exploration is almost unique among scientific/technological pursuits. It has the power to inspire the entire human race, to bring people together to marvel at our universe and appreciate what humanity can do. The Moon landing had the paradoxical effect of bringing us together through our smallness yet also generating enormous pride at our collective accomplishment, allowing ourselves to feel “big”. Sure, other lines of research may have more practical applications, but few can inspire and invigorate like our travels through the cosmos.

The universe is at your fingertips. As of today, Microsoft’s WorldWide Telescope has gone live, allowing anyone to experience our universe in all its stunning grandiosity and vivid detail. Think Google Earth but for the sky, with the best images from a number of telescopes pieced together seamlessly. From what I’ve heard/read, it looks gorgeous, but being a Mac user, I’m currently shut out.

The WorldWide Telescope joins Google Sky in the quest to represent the night sky. Google Sky has been around for two months and unlike its Earth-looking counterpart, requires no downloads to operate. It might just take some getting used to, but I found Google Sky to be a bit awkward. Google Earth has the curvature of the planet built in, which helps provide a frame of reference and a better sense of spatial relationships. Google Sky is a flat representation of the sky, so it’s like looking at a 2-D map rather than the inner side of a sphere, which is how those of us who are stuck on the Earth experience the night sky. Nonetheless, it’s a pretty impressive data compilation, and worth a look.

Products like Google Sky and WorldWide Telescope seem to highlight a new component of corporate philanthropy. It used to be that a company trying to do good (or trying to appear to be doing good) would donate money to charities, or, more recently, turn “green” in one way or another. But now there seems to be a new focus on education – science education in this case. These companies aren’t just donating money to underprivileged schools or giving out school supplies; rather, they are generating world-leading scientific products that are accessible to all. In this way, they hope, previously under-represented demographics might be inspired to pursue a scientific career. At the same time, the reach an enormous audience – and the web-based nature of the products ensures that their audience is the same group that would buy their products. It’s a advertising / philanthropic hybrid of sorts, and it seems pretty effective.

Eta Carinae

This has got to be the best article I’ve read in recent memory. Now, I manage to get in a fair amount of web-surfing as I wait for centrifuges to spin and reactions to run, so that’s saying something.

It’s a piece by Fareed Zakaria, the editor of Newsweek, about the state of the World and, more specifically, America’s place in it. It’s pretty impressive in its comprehensibility, scope, and depth – definitely a good read.

A few things in particular jumped out at me. Zakaria compares America in modern times to Britain of the late 19th century: on top of the world, but (possibly) on the verge of a downward slope. But he notes that America’s slide is not inevitable:

“Consider the industries of the future. Nanotechnology (applied science dealing with the control of matter at the atomic or molecular scale) is likely to lead to fundamental breakthroughs over the next 50 years, and the United States dominates the field. It has more dedicated “nanocenters” than the next three nations (Germany, Britain, and China) combined and has issued more patents for nanotechnology than the rest of the world combined, highlighting its unusual strength in turning abstract theory into practical products. Biotechnology (a broad category that describes the use of biological systems to create medical, agricultural, and industrial products) is also dominated by the United States. Biotech revenues in the United States approached $50 billion in 2005, five times as large as the amount in Europe and representing 76 percent of global biotech revenues.”

In other words, much of his argument about the United States’ continued potential derives from science, or, more precisely, the transfer of science (through business) to products that benefit society. He also praises the American system of higher education:

A picture, as they say, is worth a thousand words, and it may be worth even more in the case of space exploration. Images are succinct, tangible results that suggest the potential of a place while retaining much of the mystery. Here’s a pretty inspiring photo gallery of some of the best images of the space age

Related to the previous post, Britons harboring dreams of space flight need not worry: despite a UK governmental policy of not funding human spaceflight, the ESA astronaut selection process will fully consider UK applicants. See the BBC story and a video of a few likely applicants here

Also, bookmark this page – it’s the official application, which goes live on the 19th. Anyone planning on applying?

Over the past several months, the United Kingdom has been engaged in a fascinating debate over the costs and benefits of manned space travel. (Check out thought-provoking articles both for and against the notion.) Ever since the 1980s, the UK has restricted its space-faring activities only to those projects with an immediate benefit to British industry. This policy has restricted the UK to launching communication satellites and participating tentatively in ESA missions. As of 2006, France contributed almost 4 times as much to the 11-member ESA as the UK, and Germany roughly 3 times as much.

But slightly more dramatic events halfway around the world likely provoked this latest hard look at UK space policy. China recently became the third nation to send humans into space, and their ambitions match or surpass those of established space powers such as Russia and the US. Other nations such as Japan, India, Turkey, Iran, and multinational organizations like the EU all plan to follow suit within the next 10 to 15 years. Is the UK being left behind?

At some point, we all wanted to be astronauts when we grew up, only to be re-directed by equally exciting opportunities as accountants or taxidermists. (If you’re having a tough day, you’re going to want to check out that website.) But for four very lucky people, those childhood dreams might just become a reality in the not-so-far future. Sound the alarm – the European Space Agency is hiring astronauts. They’re expecting 50,000 applications for 4 spots…so I’d recommend you keep your day job just in case.

ExoMars may be more than 5 years away from Mars, but another mission will be landing in less than 3 weeks! The Phoenix Mars Lander is NASA’s latest attempt to “follow the water”, targeting the northern plains of Mars in search of H2O. In 2001, the Mars Odyssey spacecraft detected hydrogen (which is interpreted as water…what else would it be?), and it’s concentrated at high latitudes. Here’s a color-coordinated water map: red means little, blue means lots.

First off, hello! Welcome to the second incarnation of my blogging adventures – a look into space exploration and the search for life beyond Earth. If you’re at all interested, previous entries can be found here. Needless to say, I’d love to hear your thoughts / views / complaints about anything I discuss, so feel free to let loose!

When people ask me what I do, I generally mention the scientific questions I’m trying to answer and the related applications. It goes a little something like this: “well, I’m looking at how to best extract organic molecules from soil in order to develop the protocol for a life-detection instrument that’s going to Mars.” It’s a fine line between the ever-dangerous “science-speak” and the equally dangerous oversimplification and sensationalization. But after a few moments of explanation and/or confused looks, my questioner usually gets quite excited: “you’re looking for life on Mars!?”

It’s true – that is the goal, but needless to say it’s never quite that simple. For example, our lab is just one of several working on this particular instrument (named Urey). Also, launch date isn’t until 2013! Space missions take more than a decade to plan, build, test, and fly, and a lot can happen during that time. Funding can be pulled or re-allocated. Politics can change. Components can fail. It’s a very “fluid situation” (one of my favorite euphemisms) and very rarely does the spacecraft design going in resemble the finished product. Interplanetary missions are risky enough as it is, and it’s always frustrating when “artificial” factors like political changes of heart and unforseen budget cuts rear their ugly heads.

Last week, NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) committed more money to Urey, and the project is still on schedule. This is surprisingly rare; in fact, ESA is running short on money for this mission (called ExoMars) becuase they had assumed one or two potential instruments would be hopelessly behind schedule by this point. A brief summary of the funding decision and Urey’s goals can be found here.

(Side note: my office is conveniently next door to London’s Royal College of Music, meaning I get some nice impromptu concerts through the window. Right now a rehersal of the 2001 Space Odyssey theme is going on. Rather fitting.)

Anyway, Urey is looking good, and we are well-poised to continue our leading role in the instrument’s development and testing. We’ve survived this far on the bumpy road to Mars, but the next five years will undoubtedly bring many potholes.