Lunar and Planetary Institute








 

First Announcement — July 2006

 

SPONSORS —
LCROSS Mission Project,
NASA Ames Research Center,
Lunar and Planetary Institute,
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

SCIENTIFIC ORGANIZING COMMITTEE —
Jennifer Heldmann (chair),
   NASA Ames Research
   Center/SETI Institute
Geoff Briggs,
   NASA Ames Research Center
Tony Colaprete,
   NASA Ames Research Center
Don Korycansky,
   University of California,
   Santa Cruz
Pete Schultz,
   Brown University
  

  MEETING LOCATION AND DATE
  The Workshop on Lunar Crater Observing and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) Site Selection will be held at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, California, October 16–17, 2006.

 

  KEY POINTS:
Date:  October 16–17, 2006
Location:  Moffett Field, CA
  MISSION OBJECTIVE
  The primary objective of the LCROSS mission is to help advance the Vision for Space Exploration by investigating the presence of water on the Moon. The mission, scheduled for launch in October 2008, will use the impact of its upper stage launch vehicle to enable a monitoring spacecraft following closely behind to study the composition of lunar regolith in a permanently shadowed region where cold-trapping of volatiles is expected. The ejecta cloud will be imaged and studied in detail spectroscopically in order to directly measure the concentration of water and to characterize other physical and compositional properties of permanently shadowed lunar regolith.

 

 
  TARGET SELECTION
  LCROSS shall target the following:
  • a 3-km-radius impact area at 3s (LCROSS aims for 3-km-radius impact area but final accuracy may be as high as 10 km; targeting accuracy will be refined in upcoming weeks)
  • poleward of 70° latitude at either lunar pole
  • a region of permanent shadow
  • a region on the lunar nearside such that the impact plume is observable to groundbased observatories

 

 
  PURPOSE AND SCOPE
  The purpose of this workshop is to identify the impact site with the highest potential for scientific return.

The LCROSS project is soliciting recommendations for potential impact sites from the community. All members of the scientific community, however, are invited to participate in the LCROSS Site Selection Workshop.

Researchers will have the opportunity to present their recommendations at the LCROSS Site Selection Workshop (15-minute talks followed by Q&A). Proposed sites must be consistent with the LCROSS Mission Objective and Target Selection criteria. Each site presented will be discussed in an open forum. The LCROSS Site Selection Committee will then recommend optimal sites to NASA Headquarters and to the Lunar Precursor and Robotic Program (LPRP) at Marshall Space Flight Center for use in their final target selection.

Because of the open forum format, only oral presentations (no posters) will be accepted. However, individuals who cannot attend the workshop may submit their recommendations via print-only abstracts.

 

   
 
  CALL FOR ABSTRACTS
  All abstracts must be submitted electronically to the Lunar and Planetary Institute via the electronic submission form by 5:00 p.m. U.S. Central Daylight Time on Tuesday, August 15, 2006. Abstracts may be no longer than two pages, including graphics, tables, and references. Templates and detailed instructions for formatting and submitting your abstract are provided.

Note that electronic submission of files is not always instantaneous; gateways can be shut down temporarily, local routers can fail, network traffic can be heavy, etc. Because your file must be received at the LPI by 5:00 p.m. CDT, it is in your best interest to submit early to allow for possible technical problems or delays in transmission. Please do not wait until the last minute to access the system; access to the Web form will terminate at 5:00 p.m. CDT.

The abstracts and preliminary program will be available in electronic format and accessible via the workshop Web site on September 15, 2006. These files will be in PDF format. Author notification letters will not be mailed, so authors should check the online program to find out where their abstract has been scheduled.

 

   KEY POINTS:
 Abstract Deadline:
 Tuesday, August 15, 2006
 5:00 p.m. CDT
  REGISTRATION
  There will be no registration fee associated with this workshop. However, participants will be asked to register in advance so that the meeting organizers will have an accurate headcount for planning purposes. A registration form will be provided in the final announcement, which will be posted on this Web site by September 15, 2006. The preregistration deadline will be October 2, 2006.

 

   
 
  BADGING AND LODGING
  The workshop will be held at the NASA Ames Conference Center (NACC), which is behind the Main Gate to NASA Ames Research Center. Each driver must present current U.S. identification, e.g., U.S. driver's license, NASA badge, or U.S. military ID at the Main Gate.

Foreign nationals without U.S. identification must contact the local organizing chair (Jennifer Heldmann, jheldmann@mail.arc.nasa.gov) as soon as possible for additional badging instructions.

Lodging is available either onsite at the NASA Ames Lodge or in nearby hotels.

For information regarding the NASA Ames Lodge, please visit http://naccenter.arc.nasa.gov/lodging.html.

For information regarding nearby hotels, please visit http://naccenter.arc.nasa.gov/hotels.html.

 

   
 
  INDICATION OF INTEREST
  To subscribe to a mailing list to receive electronic reminders and special announcements relating to the meeting via email, please submit an electronic Indication of Interest form by August 4, 2006.

Please submit the Indication of Interest even if you do not care about electronic notification of future announcements. The number of forms received will facilitate the planning of the meeting.

 

    
 
  CONTACT INFORMATION
  For further information regarding the scientific objectives, program format, and/or logistics of the meeting, contact

    JENNIFER HELDMANN
    NASA Ames Research Center
    Phone: 650-604-5530
    E-mail: jheldmann@mail.arc.nasa.gov

For information regarding indications of interest or meeting announcements, contact

    MARY CLOUD
    Lunar and Planetary Institute
    Phone: 281-486-2143
    Fax: 281-486-2125
    E-mail: cloud@lpi.usra.edu

For information regarding abstract submission, contact

    LINDA TANNER
    Lunar and Planetary Institute
    Phone: 281-486-2142
    Fax: 281-486-2125
    E-mail: tanner@lpi.usra.edu

 

SCHEDULE
August 4, 2006 Deadline for indication of interest form
August 15, 2006 Deadline for electronic submission of abstracts
September 15, 2006 Final announcement with program, abstracts,
and registration forms posted on this Web site
October 2, 2006Deadline for preregistration
October 16–17, 2006Workshop on Lunar Crater Observing and
Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) Site Selection
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