Oral presentations will be scheduled during the conference to allow 10 minutes for speaking and 5 minutes for discussion and speaker transition. Audio-visual equipment available for oral presentations include 35-mm carousel slide projectors, overhead projectors, a laptop PC, and an LCD projector.

NOTE: The 35th LPSC is the LAST LPSC at which 35-mm carousel slide projectors and a slide preview room will be available.

All poster presentations can be posted on Monday afternoon and can remain up through Thursday night. Posters will be spotlighted on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. Authors of papers selected and scheduled for poster presentations must be available to display and discuss their results in the poster area during the assigned time period. Each poster will have a space 44" x 44" for display. Requests for tables, computers, video equipment, etc., cannot be honored due to the limited space available for poster displays.

Masursky Lecture
The Masursky Lecture will be given by Dr. S. Ross Taylor during a special plenary session that will be held Monday afternoon from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. The lecture topic will be included in the final announcement.

Special Session on Oxygen in the Solar System: Origins of Isotopic and Redox Complexity
Oxygen is the third most abundant element in the cosmos. Objects in the solar system not only show wide ranges in the isotopic composition of oxygen that are remnants of distinct nucleosynthetic histories, but also extreme variations in oxygen fugacity as evidenced in mineralogy and mineral chemistry. Yet, while these variations are well documented, an overarching model to explain their development in any combination of temporal and spatial coordinates is beyond our current grasp. The NASA Cosmochemistry Program and the Lunar and Planetary Institute are sponsoring a five-year initiative aimed at better understanding how these variations came to be, and what they tell us about the formation and evolution of the solar system. Individual workshops will focus on the Terrestrial Planets, Meteorites and Asteroids, the Outer Planets, Comets — Cometary Ices and Dust, and Earliest Solar System Materials. This special session will include both invited and contributed presentations focusing on current research into the nature and role of oxygen in each of these settings. Authors submitting abstracts for this session should choose the topic "Special Session: Oxygen in the Solar System" on the abstract submission form.

Special Session on Mars Climate Change
New spacecraft data have revealed both high-resolution and synoptic views of the geology of Mars at a scale at which evidence for climate change can be detected, documented, and compared to general circulation and climate models. General circulation models of the atmosphere are maturing so that water vapor mobility and longer-term orbital parameter changes can be assessed. In this session, papers treating the geological evidence for climate change on Mars, together with atmospheric and climate models that make predictions as to geological features and processes, will be highlighted. Authors submitting abstracts for this session should choose the topic "Special Session: Mars Climate Change" on the abstract submission form.

Special Session on Reports from the Mars Missions
Several missions are due to arrive at the Red Planet in the next two months, including Mars Express, with the "Beagle" lander, and the Mars Exploration Rovers "Spirit"> and "Opportunity". This special session will be devoted to the first science resulting from these missions. All presentations will be by invitation only.

The workshop will examine this emerging field in support of NASA's goal to make its engaging science content available to educators and students. Scientists, data managers, and education and outreach specialists interested in this issue are encouraged to participate. Submission of posters to the LPSC educational session are welcome for programs and issues related to access and use of planetary data in educational settings. The workshop is free. Attendees may register using the workshop registration form. A limited number of travel awards are available for participants. The workshop is co-hosted by the Solar System Exploration Forum and by the Broker Facilitators of the South Central Organization for Researchers and Educators (SCORE). Contact Stephanie Shipp for additional information at shipp@lpi.usra.edu.

Open House Demonstrations of Outreach Programs and Activities
On Sunday evening, March 14, in conjunction with LPSC's open house and registration, LPI will host interactive demonstrations of educational outreach activities and programs. Participants will be provided with tables, poster boards, and electrical connections to show off the latest in space science educational and public outreach. Any computers used must be self-contained units, as computer support will be minimal. Requests for Internet connections will be handled on a case-by-case basis. Internet connections may be provided if judged to be absolutely necessary for a successful demonstration. Those interested in participating should submit an abstract and choose the topic "Education and public outreach: Open house demonstrations" on the abstract submission form (select "poster presentation" as the requested method of presentation). Submission to this demonstration session does not count against the general two-abstract limit. For more information, contact Stephanie Shipp at shipp@lpi.usra.edu.

NASA Headquarters Session
The NASA Headquarters briefing will be held on MONDAY, MARCH 15, at 5:30 p.m. (Note that in the past this event has been held on Wednesday of LPSC week.)

Student/Scientist Reception
A special reception will be held on Monday, March 15, to honor the Masursky Lecturer, the winners of the GSA Stephen E. Dwornik Student Awards for 2003, and all students who are making presentations at the 35th LPSC. The reception, to be held at the South Shore Harbour Resort and Conference Center at 6:30 p.m., will provide opportunities for students to meet and interact with scientists.

Wednesday Night Social Event
A special social event will be held Wednesday, March 17, from 6:00 to 9:30 p.m. Details will be provided in the final announcement.

Combined Publisher's Exhibit
A Combined Publisher's Exhibit will be held in conjunction with the 35th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference. This conference exhibit provides an opportunity for LPSC participants to review new publications in the fields of lunar and planetary sciences, astronomy, astrophysics, geology, geophysics, atmospheric sciences, mathematics, computer science applications, remote sensing, and image processing applications. Publishers and authors are invited to submit materials related to these fields for display at this exhibit. Previous exhibits have featured books, journals, maps, globes, posters, images, slide sets, and CD-ROMs, along with advertising materials, catalogs, and order forms. A comprehensive exhibit catalog listing all participating publishers, all items on display, and contact information will be made available to conference participants at the exhibit.

There is no charge to display items at the exhibit; however, materials sent for the exhibit will not be returned. All materials submitted for display should be sent by February 18, 2004. For more information about the exhibit, contact Linda Chappell, Combined Publishers Exhibit Coordinator, at 281-486-2103 or chappell@lpi.usra.edu.

Two awards are given annually:  one for an oral presentation and one for a poster presentation. The awards are open to U.S. citizens who are currently enrolled as students at any degree level in the field of planetary geosciences. Only one abstract per student will be considered for the award. The student must be the senior author of the abstract and the material should not have been previously presented at another meeting. Judging will be based on both the written abstract and the presentation. Recent graduates, pre-college students, and postdoctoral fellows are not eligible. To apply for the award, students MUST complete the student award application form and MUST send the original application, with an original signature by their advisor, to LPI on or before the deadline of January 13, 2004.

Abstract Submission Policies
There will be a limit of TWO abstracts per first author for oral or poster presentation requests because this is an interdisciplinary meeting, and many members of our community have more than one field of research. Authors submitting two abstracts will be asked to rank them in order of preference.

In an effort to promote the dissemination of research from members of the community who may not be able to attend the meeting, print-only abstracts will still be allowed, but ONLY from those authors who are NOT submitting an abstract for oral or poster presentation. In other words, if you're requesting a print-only abstract, you cannot submit an abstract for any other type of presentation. Authors are limited to ONE print-only request.

The program committee will strictly enforce the above policies. Abstracts submitted in violation of these policies will be rejected. The only exception will be for those who are INVITED to give a talk at a special session (e.g., the Masursky Lecture, or a special topical session). Those abstracts will not be counted against authors as one of the two abstracts they are allowed to submit.

Policy Regarding File Sizes
The number and complexity of abstract files submitted to this meeting have exhausted the resources available on a single CD-ROM, so we must have a policy regarding the sizes of files than can be submitted. All abstracts, regardless of file type, must be NO LARGER THAN 1 MB. We sincerely appreciate your cooperation in this matter. If you attempt to submit a larger file, you will receive an error message, and your attempted submission will be rejected by the system.

Deadline
The electronic abstract deadline for non-PDF files is 5:00 p.m. CST (local time in Houston), Tuesday, January 6, 2004. Abstracts that are not in PDF format will NOT be accepted after this date. The electronic deadline for abstracts submitted in PDF format is 5:00 p.m. CST (local time in Houston) Tuesday, January 13, 2004. No exceptions will be made for late abstracts. If you discover that you are having difficulty submitting your abstract on the Web site, please call us immediately (281-486-2142 or -2188), so that we will have time to assist you.

Preparation of Abstracts
Abstracts can be submitted in any of the following formats: PDF (preferred), PostScript, Microsoft Word for the PC and Mac, WordPerfect for the PC (versions 7 and 8 ONLY), and rich text format (RTF). Templates and detailed instructions are provided. After you prepare your abstract file, you will have to fill out the electronic abstract submission form and upload the file containing your abstract (instructions are provided on the form). Abstracts sent by e-mail will NOT be considered.

Remember that electronic transmission of files is not always instantaneous; gateways can temporarily be shut down, local routers can fail, network traffic can be very heavy, etc. Because your abstract file must be RECEIVED at the LPI by 5:00 p.m., it's in your best interest to submit early to allow for possible delays in transmission. Because of the number of abstracts received and the time required to process them, exceptions cannot be made for anyone, regardless of the reason.

Provision for Hard-Copy Submission
If for some reason you will be unable to submit your abstract electronically, you must contact the LPI by fax (281-486-2125) to request the necessary forms and instructions for submitting by hard copy. These requests must be accompanied by a valid fax number, phone number, and e-mail address (we often have technical problems trying to reach fax numbers, particularly those outside the U.S.). The deadline for hard-copy submissions is January 6, 2004. Hard-copy submissions received after that date will be automatically returned to the author.

NOTE: Those who fail to attend and do not notify the LPI Program Services Department prior to the February 13th deadline will forfeit their full fee.

Sunday Night Registration and Reception
Sunday evening, March 14, 2004, registration and a reception will be held at the LPI from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. The location of the LPI is shown on the area map. Shuttle buses will operate from selected hotels to LPI on Sunday night. Participants arriving after Sunday night will be able to register on site at South Shore Harbour.

Contrary to the information stated previously in this announcement, the hotel does NOT provide complimentary shuttle service to and from any of the Houston airports.

Clear Lake Shuttle (281-334-3873), located in the hotel lobby, provides shuttle service five times a day to or from Hobby Airport for $15.00 (one way; 24-hour-advance reservations required); and to or from George Bush Intercontinental Airport for $85.00 (one way, 24-hour-advance reservations required; $10.00 per additional person).

Galveston Limousine Service provides continuous shuttle service from both George Bush Intercontinental Airport ($60.00 round trip per person) and Hobby Airport ($50.00 round trip per person). Reservations for Galveston Limousine may be made via their Web site at www.galvestonlimo.com or by calling 1-800-640-4826.

Registered guests will have access to the following amenities: complimentary covered parking, marina with rentals for water sports, a 185-foot tropical pool with heated jacuzzi, 70,000-square- foot fitness center, and golfing privileges at South Shore Harbour Country Club (greens fees extra). There are also a number of area babysitting services that will provide childcare at the hotel for a fee; a list of these services is available upon request from the hotel.

There are a number of other hotels in Bay Area Houston relatively close to the conference center, and we have negotiated special rates at most of them. Remember to ask for the LPSC rate when you make your reservations. The local area map shows the locations of the LPI, South Shore Harbour, and other local hotels.

Participants looking for a roommate to share housing expenses can use the roommate search form to post a notice on this Web site.

For further information regarding abstract submission and/or registration information, contact
Linda Tanner
phone: 281-486-2142;
fax: 281-486-2125;
e-mail: tanner@lpi.usra.edu.