Planetary Protection Standards for Icy Bodies in the Outer Solar System
Report Released April 7, 2012: Assessment of Planetary Protection Requirements for Spacecraft Missions to Icy Solar System Bodies Statement of Task An ad-hoc committee will be organized under the auspices of the Space Studies Board to develop and recommend planetary protection standards for future spacecraft missions, including possible landers and subsurface probes, to the icy bodies in the outer solar system (asteroids, satellites, Kuiper Belt objects, and comets) in light of current scientific understanding and ongoing improvements in mission-enabling capabilities and technologies.
Specifically, the committee will consider the following subjects and make recommendations, as appropriate, in a report to NASA: 1. The possible factors that usefully could be included in a Coleman-Sagan formulation describing the probability that various types of missions might contaminate with Earth life any liquid water, either naturally occurring or induced by human activities, on or within specific target icy bodies or classes of objects; 2. The range of values that can be estimated for the above factors based on current knowledge, as well as an assessment of conservative values for other specific factors that might be provided to missions targeting individual bodies or classes of objects; and 3. Scientific investigations that could reduce the uncertainty in the above estimates and assessments, as well as technology developments that would facilitate implementation of planetary protection requirements and/or reduce the overall probability of contamination. View further information about Planetary Protection Standards for Icy Bodies in the Outer Solar System on our current projects system.
Meetings
January 31, 2011 - February 2, 2011
Washington D.C. 20001
March 16, 2011 - March 18, 2011
Irvine, California
May 13, 2011 - May 13, 2011
Teleconference June 14, 2011 - June 16, 2011.
Irvine, California August 22, 2011 - August 22, 2011
Teleconference Committee Membership
Committee Biographic Information Dr. Mitchell L. Sogin; (Chair)
Marine Biological Laboratory | Dr. Michael J. Daly
Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences | Dr. Geoffrey Collins; (Vice Chair)
Wheaton College | Mr. Joseph R. Fragola
Valador, Inc. | Ms. Amy Baker
Technical Administrative Services | Dr. Rosaly M. Lopes
Jet Propulsion Laboratory | Dr. John A. Baross
University of Washington | Dr. Kenneth H. Nealson
University of Southern California | Dr. Amy C. Barr
Southwest Research Institute | Mr. Douglas S. Stetson
Space Science and Exploration Consulting Group | Dr. William V. Boynton
University of Arizona | Dr. Mark H. Thiemens; NAS
University of California, San Diego | Dr. Charles S. Cockell
Open University | |
Staff Officer
Mr. Joseph K. Alexander
National Research Council
|
