Looking Forward to a Year of Exploration, with Emily Lakdawalla

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: This Planetary Radio episode previews a packed 2011 in space exploration, highlighting key robotic missions to comets, Mercury, Vesta, Jupiter, the Moon, and Mars, plus a discussion of the controversial arsenic-based bacteria discovery and its possible implications for life detection. Bruce Betts also covers sky events, space history, listener trivia, and a NASA call for suborbital technology proposals, ending with a Symphony of Science musical tribute.

Main Topics: 2011 Planetary Mission Preview: Emily Lakdawalla outlines the year’s major exploration milestones, emphasizing the breadth of ongoing and upcoming robotic missions across the solar system. Arsenic-Using Bacteria and Astrobiology: Bill Nye discusses Mono Lake bacteria allegedly using arsenic in DNA structures and why the Planetary Society wants to test them in space as an astrobiology experiment. Stardust at Tempel 1: The Stardust spacecraft’s Valentine’s Day flyby of comet Tempel 1 is framed as a chance to revisit a body altered by Deep Impact and possibly image its crater. MESSENGER’s Orbital Arrival at Mercury: Mercury exploration shifts from flybys to orbit, promising detailed global imaging, topography, and magnetic-field studies. Dawn at Vesta and Beyond: Dawn’s ion-powered arrival at Vesta is described as a major first look at a rocky protoplanet, followed later by a planned transfer to Ceres. Juno, GRAIL, and Mars Missions: Upcoming launches include Juno to Jupiter, GRAIL to the Moon, and several Mars missions including Curiosity, Phobos-Grunt, and Yinghuo-1. Skywatch, Trivia, and NASA Technology Proposals: Bruce Betts provides the night-sky forecast, historical notes, a trivia contest, and a listener challenge to propose suborbital flight experiments for NASA.

Key Arguments: Robotic missions remain central to exploration; they are doing major scientific work even when human spaceflight headlines dominate. The Mono Lake arsenic-bacteria claim is intriguing enough to warrant further testing, even if controversial. A space-shuttle flight could provide a unique opportunity to test the bacteria in microgravity and compare their behavior to normal organisms. Orbital missions enable much better geology and planetary science than flybys alone, especially for Mercury and Vesta. Different spacecraft and instrument suites reveal different aspects of the same world, so revisiting targets is scientifically valuable. NASA’s upcoming missions represent both scientific return and public inspiration, from gravity mapping to first-look planetary imaging. The show encourages listener participation through trivia and technology-proposal submissions, reinforcing community involvement in space exploration.

Data Points: Year covered: 2011 - The episode frames the new year as a major one for space exploration. Tempel 1 flyby date: February 14, 2011 - Stardust is scheduled to revisit comet Tempel 1 on Valentine’s Day. Mercury orbit insertion: March 18, 2011 - MESSENGER is expected to enter orbit around Mercury. Dawn arrival window at Vesta: July-August 2011 - The spacecraft will gradually approach Vesta and begin mapping. Juno launch month: August 2011 - Juno is scheduled for launch to Jupiter. GRAIL launch month: September 2011 - The twin Moon gravity-mapping spacecraft are slated to launch. Mars mission launch month: November 2011 - Curiosity, Phobos-Grunt, and Yinghuo-1 are discussed as Mars-bound missions. Jupiter arrival: July 2016 - Juno’s destination arrival is noted as several years after launch. Julian Day: 2,455,564 - Bruce Betts mentions the current Julian day count. Asteroid Vesta size: about 600 kilometers across - Emily describes Vesta as a large rocky asteroid slightly bigger than Mimas. Solar eclipse date: January 4 - Bruce mentions a partial solar eclipse visible from Europe, Africa, and Central Asia. ISS crew size: 6 - A trivia question identifies six people aboard the International Space Station.

Pivotal Quotes: "These bacteria have apparently, replaced the phosphorus, the hand railing on the spiral staircase of their DNA, with arsenic" — Bill Nye: Explaining why the Mono Lake discovery is scientifically provocative and controversial. "It’s going to be a very exciting time this year. So stay tuned." — Bill Nye: Closing his segment on astrobiology and the possibility of a shuttle experiment. "The power of topography to help us understand the geology of another planet is just immeasurable." — Emily Lakdawalla: Describing why MESSENGER’s Mercury mapping will be so important.

Implications: Listeners are given a roadmap of a landmark year for planetary science, with multiple missions poised to reshape knowledge of comets, Mercury, asteroids, Jupiter, the Moon, and Mars, while also inviting public engagement in space-related experiments and outreach.