The purpose of the conference is to assess the current state of Mars polar and climate research; discuss what might be learned from investigations of terrestrial analogs and the data returned from current and future missions; and identify the potential science objectives, platform options, and instrument suites for robotic missions to the martian poles within the next decade. This meeting is also intended to advance such missions and to serve as an important resource for those scientists wishing to develop instruments, propose spacecraft, or participate as a member of a science team in response to any future Announcement of Opportunity.

Within the next three years, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (which enters Mars orbit in March 2006) and Phoenix Scout mission (which launches in 2007 and lands at a near-polar location in May 2008) will conduct a variety of additional investigations.

Among the most eagerly anticipated of the new Mars data are that from the orbital radar sounding investigations conducted by the MARSIS (Mars Express) and SHARAD (Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter) instruments, providing our first look at the internal structure and basal topography of the polar deposits.

Some of the specific issues and questions that will be addressed at the meeting include:

• How did the martian polar ice caps and layered deposits originate? How old are they? And what is the chronology of events recorded in their strata?
• How do the compositional, physical, thermal, and radiative properties of the deposits vary, both geographically and with depth?
• What does their stratigraphy, and the ratio of atmospheric isotopes preserved in the ice, tell us about the age of the ice and the annual cycles of carbon dioxide, water, and dust? And how have these cycles changed with time?
• Under what conditions are polar volatiles mobilized and transported to lower latitudes? And do the polar deposits ever completely disappear?
• Is there evidence of past or present glacial flow? How did the spiral pattern of scarps and troughs develop and how do they evolve with time?
• Has the base of either cap ever been at the melting point? Have basal lakes or other environments suitable for the survival and growth of indigenous life ever existed?
• How can the knowledge and experience gained from investigations of the Earth's polar ice sheets (e.g., radio echo sounding, core sampling and stratigraphic analysis, ice margin studies, exploration of Lake Vostok and the Dry Valleys, etc.) benefit Mars polar science and exploration?

To take full advantage of the opportunities the Davos area provides, the conference technical sessions will be held Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, with optional field trips to local sites of geologic and glacial interest on Wednesday and possibly Saturday and Sunday (additional details about the field trips will be included in the second announcement). The possibility of a post-conference field trip (October 7–8) is being coordinated with the organizers of the International Conference on Mars Analogs (tentatively scheduled for October 9–13), which is being sponsored by the Italian Space Agency (ASI).

Any scientist with relevant theoretical, experimental, or polar field experience is strongly encouraged to participate and to submit an abstract. Contingent upon review and acceptance by the Program Committee, abstracts will be published on a CD that will be distributed to conference participants at the meeting. The abstracts and preliminary program will also be available in electronic format and accessible via the conference Web page by August 11, 2006.

Abstracts may address any relevant aspect of terrestrial or martian polar research, including, but not limited to:

• Polar Geology, Glaciology, and Hydrology
• Compositional, Thermophysical, and Spectral Properties
• Present Climate and Meteorology
• Climate History and its Relation to the Evolution of the Polar Deposits, Permafrost and Cryodeposits (found elsewhere on the planet)
• Biology (including life in endolithic, subglacial, and hypersaline environments)
• Geophysical and Remote Sensing Investigations
• Instrument Design and Exploration Strategies

   

Please submit the Indication of Interest even if you do not care about electronic notification of future announcements. The number of e-mails tallied will also serve to facilitate meeting planning.

    STEPHEN CLIFFORD
    Lunar and Planetary Institute
    Phone: 281-486-2146
    E-mail: clifford@lpi.usra.edu

For information regarding meeting logistics and announcements, contact

    KIMBERLY TAYLOR
    Lunar and Planetary Institute
    Phone: 281-486-2151
    E-mail: taylor@lpi.usra.edu