Exploring the Solar System The History and Science of Planetary Exploration

by Launius, Roger D.

• ISBN13: 9781137273161
• ISBN10: 113727316X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2013-01-08
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan

Summary

From the beginning of the Space Age the United States, followed soon by other nations, began an impressive effort to learn about the planets of the solar system. The data collected and analyzed by scientists has revolutionized understanding of our neighbors. These efforts also captured the imagination of people from all backgrounds like nothing else except the Apollo lunar missions. Through a succession of analytical essays on major aspects of the history of robotic planetary exploration, this book opens new vistas in the understanding of the development of planetary science in the Space Age.

Author Biography

Roger D. Launius is a senior curator in the Division of Space History at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.

Table of Contents

PART I: MANAGING PLANETARY SCIENCE
Homer Newell and the Origins of Planetary Science in the United States; J.D.Ruley
The Survival Crisis of the U.S. Solar System Exploration Program; J.M.Logsdon
The Rise and Demise of NASA's 'Faster, Better, Cheaper' Approach to Planetary Exploration; A.P.Kaminski
PART II: DEVELOPING NEW APPROACHES TO PLANETARY EXPLORATION
Redefining Celestial Mechanics in the Space Age: Astronomy, Astrodynamics, Deep-Space Navigation, and the Pursuit of Accuracy; A.J.Butrica
Big Science in Space: Viking, Cassini, and the Hubble Space Telescope; W.H.Lambright
Visual Imagery in Solar System Exploration; P.J.Westwick
Returning Scientific Data to Earth: The Parallel but Unequal Careers of Genesis and Stardust and the Problem of Sample Return to Earth; R.D.Launius
PART III: EXPLORING THE TERRESTRIAL PLANETS
Planetary Science and the 'Discovery' of Global Warming; E.M.Conway
Exploring Planet Earth: The Development of Satellite Remote Sensing for Earth Science; A.K.Johnston
Venus-Earth-Mars: Comparative Climatology and the Search for Life in the Solar System; R.D.Launius
Missions to Mars: Reimagining the Red Planet in the Age of Spaceflight; R.Markley
PART IV: UNVEILING THE OUTER SOLAR SYSTEM
Parachuting onto Another World: The EuropeAn Space Agency's Huygens Mission to Titan; A.Russo
Pluto: The Problem Planet and its Scientists; D.A.DeVorkin
Transcendence and Meaning in Solar System Exploration; W.E.Burrows