The program and abstracts are now available. Please note that author notification letters will NOT be mailed out, so authors need to check the program index to determine when and where their presentation has been scheduled.

PRESENTATIONS
Oral presentations will be scheduled during the conference to allow 10 minutes for speaking and 5 minutes for discussion and speaker transition; the program includes specific times for each talk.

* * Please note that oral sessions have been scheduled through 5:00 p.m. on Friday, March 18. * *

Audio-visual equipment available for oral presentations includes a laptop PC, an LCD projector and an overhead projector. Dual projection for electronic presentations and 35-mm slide projectors will NOT be available.

We will offer two options for electronic presentations. Please read carefully the instructions provided for electronic presentations.

Poster presentations will be on display ONLY for the time they are scheduled, either on Tuesday or Thursday evening. Posters scheduled for presentation on Tuesday may be installed any time after 1:00 p.m. on Monday but must be removed at the conclusion of the poster session on Tuesday. Likewise, posters scheduled for Thursday presentation may be installed any time after 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday but must be removed at the conclusion of the poster session on Thursday. Authors of papers selected and scheduled for poster presentations must be available to display and discuss their results in the poster area from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. on the designated evening of their presentation.

Poster display space available to authors is 44" × 44" (1.1 m × 1.1 m). Posters will be displayed on free-standing panels that are 4' × 8' (including frame). Two presenters will share one side of one panel, so it is important that displays are confined to the 44" × 44" limit. Posters must be designed to be attached to the panel with pushpins. The background of the poster panels is a dark color, so light-colored backings will help to make a more effective presentation. Due to space limitations, computer demonstrations, VCR players, or tables for handout materials cannot be accommodated as a part of a poster display.

GSA Stephen E. Dwornik Student Awards
The presentation of the 2004 GSA Stephen E. Dwornik U.S. Citizen Student Award winners will be announced during the Monday plenary session, preceding the Masursky Lecture.

SPECIAL SESSION – Cassini and Huygens: New Discoveries from Titan and the Saturnian System
Oral presentations for the special sessions on Cassini at Saturn will be held on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. and Thursday at 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., all in Salon B. Principal Investigators for the Huygens Atmospheric Probe, which entered the atmosphere of Titan on January 14, will present their results on Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. Poster presentations on Titan, Saturn, rings, and icy satellites will be featured on Thursday evening from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

SPECIAL SESSION – Genesis Mission
A special session for oral presentations on the Genesis Mission will be held Monday at 2:15 p.m. in Salon B. This special session will include presentations on condition assessments and examination of the solar-wind collector materials, results from contamination studies, and early science. Poster presentations on field recovery, status of select materials, and analytical methods will be highlighted on Tuesday evening from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

SPECIAL SESSION – [email protected]: A New Window to the Composition and Evolution of the Martian Surface
Oral presentations for this special session, to be held Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. in Salon B, will feature results returned from the year of operations of the OMEGA imaging spectrometer on the Mars Express spacecraft. OMEGA is providing a new window to explore Mars, ranging from mafic minerals to hydrated silicates and sulfates, and in the dynamics of surface ices and atmospheric processes. Poster presentations providing new insights into surface composition using the OMEGA imaging spectrometer will be Tuesday evening from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

SPECIAL SESSION – Mars Polar Atmosphere-Surface Interactions
This session will encompass all new data (Mars Global Surveyor, Mars Odyssey, and Mars Express) and climate models to formulate a coherent view of energy, water, carbon dioxide, and inert gas transports in the polar region. The session will address many of the areas of research that have immediate impact on our understanding of Mars polar processes and planning for future missions. Oral presentations are scheduled for Tuesday, beginning at 1:30 p.m. in Salon B. Poster presentations are scheduled for Tuesday evening from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m.

This year's workshop will focus on pre-service education. The workshop will include presentation of pre-service program structures and models of collaboration in the Earth and space science community, discussion of how space science content is being — or can be — integrated effectively in pre-service programs, and exploration of possible roles that space science researchers and education specialists can offer to the pre-service community. By identifying, enabling, and leveraging partnerships, the space science community can help facilitate better preparation of science teachers, and bring the excitement of space science directly into the classroom.

The workshop, designed to support NASA's goal to make its science content available to all educators and students, is hosted by the Pre-Service Educators Working Group, part of NASA's Office of Space Science Support Network. Pre-service faculty; space science researchers; and pre-service, formal, and informal educators are invited and encouraged to participate. The workshop is free. Attendees may register using the workshop registration form. For more information, contact Stephanie Shipp, Denise Smith, or Laurie Ruberg.

E/PO Program and Product Demonstrations
On Sunday evening, March 13, in conjunction with LPSC's open house and registration, the LPI will host displays of educational outreach programs and product demonstrations. The displays are intended to showcase programs that have an interactive component and/or associated products. Displays will be set up at 4:30 p.m. and will be on display from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the Berkner Room at the LPI.

NASA Headquarters Session
The NASA Headquarters briefing will be held on Monday, March 14, at 5:30 p.m. in Salon B of the South Shore Harbour Conference Center.

Student/Scientist Reception
A special reception will be held on Monday, March 14, to honor the Masursky Lecturer, the winners of the GSA Stephen E. Dwornik U. S. Citizen Student Awards for 2004, and all students who are making presentations at the 36th LPSC. The reception, which will provide opportunities for students to meet and interact with scientists, will be held at the South Shore Harbour Resort and Conference Center at 6:30 p.m. in the Marina Plaza Ballroom.

Targeting Sites for Observation by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Part 1: Capabilities and Plans for Community Input
An interactive session to solicit input from the community on planning potential targets for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) will be held in the Marina Plaza Ballroom on Wednesday, March 16, from 5:15 to 6:30 p.m. Richard Zurek of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory will chair the session. In November 2006, MRO will commence a campaign of global, regional, and targeted observations lasting one Mars year. Targets can be observed simultaneously or independently with HiRISE, a high-resolution camera (with a ground-sampling distance, or GSD, of 0.3 m); CTX, a context camera (GSD = 6 m); and CRISM, a visible- near-infrared imaging spectrometer (GSD = 20 m). Stereo can be acquired via repeated observations. MRO also carries SHARAD, a shallow radar sounder (to a depth of 500 m); MARCI, a wide-angle color imager; and MCS, an atmospheric infrared sounder. This session previews the MRO mission plan, instrument performance, observation modes, and targeting options. A plan and schedule for receiving community input on potential targets will be presented and discussed.

Wednesday Night Social Event Tickets for the Wednesday evening social event will NO LONGER be included in the registration fee. In lieu of the traditional barbecue dinner, the conference social event will be held at South Shore Harbour on Wednesday, March 16, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. * * *  There will be NO chili cookoff this year. * * * A cash bar with cocktails will be available starting at 6:30 p.m. at poolside, to be followed by a gourmet buffet dinner with wine and beer from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Buffet tickets (including two drink tickets for wine, beer, or soft drinks) are $20, and can be purchased using the registration form. A limited number of buffet tickets will be available for purchase at the conference registration desk ONLY on Sunday evening at the LPI and on Monday at South Shore Harbour.

Combined Publishers' Exhibit
A Combined Publishers' Exhibit will be held in conjunction with the 36th 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, videos, DVDs, 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, 2005. For more information about the exhibit, contact Linda Chappell, Combined Publishers Exhibit Coordinator, at 281-486-2103 or [email protected].

NOTE: Those who fail to attend and do not notify the LPI Program Services Department prior to the February 25 deadline will forfeit their full fee.

* * Advance tickets for the Wednesday evening social event ($20.00) may be purchased via the registration form. * *

Sunday Night Registration and Reception
Sunday evening, March 13, 2005, 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.

There are a number of other hotels in the Clear Lake area, 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.

Clear Lake Shuttle (291-334-3873), located in the lobby of South Shore Harbour Resort and Conference Center, provides shuttle service five times a day to or from Hobby Airport for $20.00 (one way, $10.00 per additional person, 24-hour advance reservations required); and to or from George Bush Intercontinental Airport for $85.00 (one way, $10.00 per additional person, 24-hours advance reservations required).

For further information regarding abstracts and registration, contact
Linda Tanner
phone:  281-486-2142;
fax:  281-486-2125;
e-mail:  [email protected].