We all look forward to the historic first footstep on Mars - but where will that foot touch down?
NASA Considers Landing Sites for Human Mars Missions
Artemis Westenberg of Explore Mars presented her organization's research at the Oct. 29 First Landing Site/Exploration Zone Workshop for Human Missions to the Surface of Mars, held at the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston:
 Selecting a landing site is more than geological features, biological possibilities, resources and safety for the astronauts. Landing humans on Mars for the first time will be a pivotal moment in our history as it will make us a two-planet species, which without a doubt will lead to another way of viewing ourselves. I want the selected landing site reflect that fact and reflect that we understand that without the scientists before us we would not have come this far.
Giving honour to them should involve picking a landing site with an historic name that we can be proud of, but also the landing site should make sense to generations to come after us...
Based on these considerations, Explore Mars selected Copernicus Crater, which has interesting geological features and water in its soil to extract for use by the humans landing and living there. Nicolaus Copernicus changed the way we view ourselves as humans with his book on the "Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres," taking us from an Earth-centric view to a Sun-centric view - an apt scientist to honour as landing on Mars will take us further on our path of exploration of the known universe with a footprint, and hopefully longterm presence, on more than one planet. |
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FRIENDS OF MADAME MARS IN THE MEDIA
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From Rogers State University Public Television:
DONNA SHIRLEY
Perspectives
Video interview by Sam Jones
ARE YOU MAKING NEWS ABOUT MARS, SPACE EXPLORATION OR STEM EDUCATION? SEND US YOUR NEWS SO WE CAN INCLUDE IT IN FUTURE ISSUES OF THIS NEWSLETTER!
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In our last newsletter, Johnson Space Center was misspelled - Madame Mars apologizes for the mistake and thanks Janet Stewart for noting it.
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MEANWHILE, ON MARS:
Dust Devil Makeovers on Mars
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In a November 11 article on the Discovery News site, Ian O'Neill writes that dust devils on Mars - and the tracks they leave behind - may be affecting the planet's climate. When the whirlwinds form - sometimes several miles high - they pick up surface dust and deposit it elsewhere, exposing the darker rock underneath, thereby changing the reflectiveness of the planet's surface and potentially altering atmospheric temperatures on Mars.
Martian dust devil captured by HiRISE camera in 2012
The same wind events have proven beneficial to Mars rover Opportunity: its dust-clogged solar panels have been periodically cleaned by a passing dust devil.
"These cleaning events," writes O'Neill, "are one of the contributing factors to the veteran rover’s astonishing longevity."
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THOUGHTS ON EXPLORING MARS:
NASA's Grace Douglas
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 As holiday meals are prepared and consumed on Earth, we can rest assured that astronauts currently on the ISS - and those headed to Mars in the future - will enjoy equally tasty and nutritious spreads, thanks to food scientist Grace Douglas, Advanced Food Technology Scientist at Johnson Space Center.
Douglas's job as a food scientist creating menu items for space demands much more than planning and preparing meals on Earth. Meals destined for the ISS must retain taste and nutrition for two years; currently she's working on meals for Mars with a projected shelf life of five years.
How are holiday meals enjoyed in space?
"They have a galley area on the International Space Station that has a table and they can strap around the table and eat together," Grace told the Madame Mars team in an interview earlier this year. "They have Velcro on the food and they can stick it on the table."
If that doesn't sound festive enough...
"We do send coffee and we do send chocolate into flight."
Learn much more about Grace Douglas and how she is developing meals for Mars in our documentary Madame Mars: Women and the Quest for Worlds Beyond.
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The Madame Mars team wishes you a happy holiday season!
Look for our next newsletter in January.
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Please let me know if you have any questions or if you need additional information about contributing to the Madame Mars project via the DocFilm Institute at San Francisco State University.
The SETI Institute in Mountain View, CA, has been chosen by NASA's Science Mission Directorate to lead a new STEM project, 
Bay Area girls in grades 8-12 participated in a two-week program last summer, sponsored by NASA Ames, the University Affiliated Research Center (UARC), and the Girl Scouts of Northern California (GSNorCal), in which they learned video production skills and applied these to writing, directing and editing short films about 
Tech Trek sends twelve girls, about to enter eighth grade, to a weeklong summer camp at Sonoma State University, where they where they participate in hands-on STEM activities and have opportunities to interact with women employed in STEM fields.
