Jupiter flagship selected Options

[Stu]

"sublimating seltzer surface of Callisto"

Gold star for effective alliteration, sir!

[belleraphon1]

Stu

Coming from our resident poet, I am quite flattered...

Thanks really

Who does not find these Callisto 'knobs' begging for better resolution..... sublimating seltzer.
http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/jpeg/PIA03455.jpg

Of course, it will take the ESA contribution... JGO, to open up this world.

Craig

[Stu]

Artist's impression Callisto's Spires...

http://www.arcadiastreet.com/cgvistas/jupiter_130.htm

[tedstryk]

I agree. With four planet-sized moons, the surface area to explore is tremendous, and Galileo, while it was a noble salvage mission, barely could scratch the surface. I strongly favored this mission, although much of my bias comes from the fact that the Titan mission strikes me as more technically difficult (in the sense that it depends on more new technology), and is therefore more likely to be delayed.

[belleraphon1]

Artist's impression Callisto's Spires...

WOW... very nice.

Thanks Stu!!!

It just makes me wonder what else we have missed on all the Galilean moons because of the spacecraft Galileo's
stuck high gain antenna... I am sure there are wonders galore awaiting us. And the boring places will not seem so boring anymore...

Then add the places we KNOW are not boring, Io and Europa...

Whew.... what a wonderful way to spend my 70's...

Craig

[dvandorn]

The selection makes sense to me. After all, we've had many years to wring every last little bit of interpretation we can manage from the Galileo data, and even longer to analyze the Voyager and Pioneer data from Jupiter.

Cassini is still going strong at Saturn, and may find even more new things that could, conceivably, impact the kinds of sensors we might want to load onto the next Saturn probe. But there is almost nothing new waiting in the wings that will affect what you'd want to put onto a Jupiter mission.

So, from a mission design and planning point of view, I think this was the best decision. I truly think there are wondrous things yet to behold in Jupiter space. And I'd hate to be bending tin for a Saturn/Titan probe when I found out that there's a truly interesting phenomenon to be studied that our design is ill-equipped to look at.

-the other Doug

[ngunn]

sublimating seltzer surface

Normally I pass over this but seeing the phrase singled out for praise was too much for me. What you have there is a (still alliterative) subliming seltzer surface.

Unless, that is, you mean that the seltzer surface is diverting the energy of its primitive urges towards a higher moral or social cause. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't be suggesting that - at least not on this forum.

[Stu]

True enough, but sometimes it's just nice to turn a blind eye to such a thing and praise artistic effort and intent, you know?

[ngunn]

Your quite right Stu. I take no pleasure in being pedantic, and should not have picked on anyone in particular. The trouble is that these altruistic ices are proliferating everywhere, even in places that normally command respect.

[Stu]

Think you meant "You're quite right..."

I know what you mean though; standards are slipping in everyday life, but I think that when you're amongst friends, as we are here on UMSF, some leeway is allowed. Personally, when it comes to writing about space, I'll take infectious enthusiasm and passion over 1000% correct grammar any day.

[ngunn]

Think you meant "You're quite right..."

- and now you've picked that up I can't even edit it!!!

BTW I liked that picture of the Callisto spires. EDIT: I wonder if they'll turn up on Ceres too?

[volcanopele]

The topic has veered a bit from the discussion of the Jupiter Flagship so I moved everyone's complaints about being old (j/k) to http://www.unmannedspaceflight.com/index.php?showtopic=5835 in the Chit Chat sub-forum

[tedstryk]

I really look forward to the large color images that the Galileo mission generally lacked. Fragments like this tease us with what might have been taken (This is the only fragment of an I27 global mosaic of Io that was transmitted).

[DrShank]

i have been traveling recently and been waiting to see how people felt about the selection. I am really quite pleased to see the level of support shown for the Jupiter selection. It was an extraordinarily difficult choice from the science side, and the disappointment must be great on the other side. NASA has reaffirmed the high importance of Titan/Encleadus so that all is not lost. it will just take a bit longer. In the man time, Cassini can operate for maybe another decade, perhaps more. That is a rich mission and Titan folks will have their hands full for a verrrry long time. Both systems are truly planetary systems in miniature with an incredible diversity of features, bodies, processes and phenomenon. I study the icy satellites and regard them all as fun places to study. so id have been happy with either choice.

I can echo sentiments made by others. We still have many unanswered questions, especially about Europa and Io. Is Europa active??? Seems plausible if not likely but Galileo could not address this issue, period. Period. We dont know. The antenna failure was catastrophic on so many levels, including this one. It is my firm belief that the gains to be made by a return to Jupiter are simply too large and too important. Ive been mapping the satellites for more than 20 years (most of which will be published before the end of the year) and every day i work on these bodies I am reminded that we missed out on so much when Galileo "failed" that i am sometimes driven to tears. the This is certainly true, but it is the amazing diversity of the system and its importance in understanding volcanic and habitable worlds that are the best reason to return.

I am less familiar in detail with the technical issues, but will say that both face significant issues in the short term that we must be sure to address wisely and prudently. The chief of these is the radiation environment of course which can and did upset the Galileo spacecraft on numerous occasions. but it did work and succeed! We just need to start the job and get it done.....

paul

[EccentricAnomaly]

**POOF**