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> June 5, 1998:
Hour Two: NASA's New Millenium
| In a little over four months, the New Millenium is scheduled to begin. NASA's New Millenium, that is - the first launches of a breed of space probes built to test new technology and to try out NASA's "faster, better, cheaper" philosophy of space exploration.
Deep Space 1, scheduled for launch in October of this year, will make a close flyby of both a comet and an asteroid. Deep Space 2 is set to establish weather stations on the surface of Mars. And Deep Space 4 is planned to actually land on the surface of a comet in transit and sample its icy surface. | 
Artist's rendition of the DS 1 mission,
scheduled for launch in October. (JPL image) | The missions, like the recent Pathfinder Mars mission, are more about trying out new technologies than about acquiring scientific data -- though of course, scientists will eagerly study all the information that comes back. Lessons learned from the New Millenium program will help scientists and engineers plan future missions - and may someday pave the way for a fleet of "reporter probes" scattered throughout the solar system sending back scientific data.
The program is also interesting for reasons beyond technology and science. New Millenium works more closely with industry than previous NASA missions, using off-the-shelf technology whenever possible. On this hour of Science Friday, join host Ira Flatow for a look at the New Millenium program - and about the science and engineering necessary to explore the solar system in the years ahead.
Guests:
Marc Rayman
Chief Engineer and Deputy Manager
Deep Space 1 Mission
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Pasedena, CA
Jacklyn Green
Comet Simulation Lead Scientist, Deep Space 4 Mission
Principal Investigator, Extra-Terrestrial Materials Simulations Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Pasedena, CA
Books/Articles Discussed:
Related Links:
NASA's New Millenium Program
Deep Space 1
Deep Space 2
Deep Space 3
Listen to Science Friday, May 2, 1997: NASA's Discovery Program in RealAudio |
