About Us
Regional Planetary Image Facility
Location:
Lunar and Planetary Institute
3600 Bay Area Boulevard
Houston TX 77058-1113
Phone: 281-486-2182
Email: [email protected]
Director: Dr. Julie Stopar
Data Manager: David Bigwood
The LPI’s RPIF began as a planetary photolibrary created in 1973 with the transfer of Apollo images and cartography from NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC). Transfer of these materials to the LPI provided access for this special collection beyond the secure gates of JSC. LPI continues to provide easy access and collaboration space for students (of all ages), engineers, and scientists. The LPI became part of the RPIF Network in 1977. The collection has expanded over time through the addition of planetary images, maps, technical reports and other printed materials, as well as scientific data products released to the public.
Our RPIF collection is tightly integrated into the LPI’s library. The LPI library has a variety of equipment that is available to qualified users such as light tables and scanners. Temporary workspace and meeting tables are available for users. The reference staff can assist with using the collection, equipment, and with identifying and obtaining materials. RPIF holdings include both online digital products as well as hardcopy documents that can be utilized onsite. Many of our hardcopy documents have not yet been converted to a digital format for online use. For specific information about physical access to hardcopy documents please contact us. If you are looking for a digital version of a specific item in our collection that is not currently available online also please contact us ([email protected]).
The LPI’s RPIF is dedicated to expanding our online collections and increasing accessibility to historical and scientific planetary documents and data. Our physical holdings support the research of staff, students, JSC personnel, and other visitors. We support planetary mission research, data analysis, and archival. We also support mission planning and the creation of new data products and visualizations. Onsite staff are available to answer questions regarding items in our collection as well as to locate and describe items. We are also able to assist in identifying and utilizing items in NASA’s Planetary Data System and other online resources for planetary mission data, including the National Space Science Data Center (NSSDC), JAXA’s digital archive, and the European Space Agency (ESA) planetary science archive. We frequently post announcements of newly available documents on Facebook.
