Expressions of Intent for International Polar Year 2007-2008 Activities

Expression of Interest Details

PROPOSAL INFORMATION

Polar Gateways to Exploration of Icy Worlds in the Solar System  (POlar Gateways to EXploration (POGEX))

Outline
The International Polar Year 2007-2008 occurs at epochs of growing interest in effects of global climate and space weather on Earth polar regions and in ongoing spacecraft exploration of comparable icy regions elsewhere in the Solar System. Earth-like polar ice caps are present with strong seasonal variations on Mars while the kilometers-thick global ice crust of the Jovian moon Europa likely overlays a liquid water ocean greater in volume than the Earth oceans. The Europa ocean potentially provides a refuge for life from the harsh radiation environment at the surface from the Jovian magnetosphere. The Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) is planned to explore Europa and other Galilean moons of Jupiter as part of the NASA Prometheus program. At Earth the Europa model may help us understand how terrestrial life survived apparent episodes of global glaciation (Snowball Earth) during Precambrian times. We propose to highlight connections of solar system exploration to terrestrial polar science for IPY through collaborative science investigations, test flights of instruments with dual applications to polar and planetary science, and related educational activities. One example is the Planetary Active Radio Sounder (PARS) being developed with NASA funding for potential application to JIMO and other missions in the Prometheus series utilizing higher power and telemetry data rate than previously available for planetary missions. PARS would probe with unprecedented resolution the subsurface ice stratigraphy of Europa while also sounding the ionospheric and magnetic field environments of the three icy Galilean moons, also including Ganymede and Callisto. Testing of PARS components and telemetry systems is being considered as an add-on to cosmic ray balloon experiments due to fly during the IPY at Antarctica. This would allow selected surveys of ice stratigraphy to kilometers in depth along the circumpolar flight path around the Antarctic continent over a few weeks, while also probing the polar ionosphere and its radio propagation characteristics through signals reflected both back to PARS and to distributed networks of other receiving stations in the southern hemisphere. Other JIMO-prototype instruments might for example measure high altitude (~ 40 km) atmospheric oxidant chemistry related to snowpack photolysis with applications to the thin oxygen atmosphere of Europa. Collaborations with ground survey teams and geologic mapping archives will be needed to calibrate the high-altitude measurements against surface ice conditions and actual subsurface stratigraphy. An ongoing educational effort will expand to native cultures in polar regions on Sun-Earth Connections and Life on Icy Worlds themes.

What significant advance(s) in relation to the IPY themes and targets can be anticipated from this project?
We will advance the new frontiers theme by using polar regions as gateways to other icy worlds for testing of new spacecraft instrument technologies. Active radio sounding of subsurface ice and the polar ionosphere, and potential atmospheric measurements, fall under the current polar environment, unique vantage point, global/teleconnections themes, while new ice measurements can be compared to data from previous satellite (e.g., RadarSat IceSat) and ground-based surveys in selected regions with respect to the change theme. The human dimension theme will be addressed through expansion of an ongoing Sun-Earth Connections program to include native groups living above the Arctic Circle.

What international collaboration is involved in this project?
Antarctic balloon flights are typically carried out by international teams. Ground surveys along the balloon ground track around the Antarctic continent will require international participation, as will reception and analysis of PARS radio transmissions for ionospheric measurements by a network of ground stations in the southern hemisphere including Antarctica.

FIELD ACTIVITY DETAILS

Geographical location(s) for the proposed field activities:
Circumpolar balloon flights originate from McMurdo Station and follow approximately Vostok, Belgrano, and Byrd station latitudes. The Dec. 2004 recovery for the U.S.-Japan BESS payload occurred just eastward of the Ross Ice Shelf. PARS and other JIMO-related systems will also be tested in Arctic regions, e.g. over Alaska and Greenland.

Approximate timeframe(s) for proposed field activities:
Arctic: TBD: before, during, and after IPY            
Antarctic: 12/2007 - 01/2008            

Significant facilities will be required for this project:
Long (preferably Ultra Long) Duration Balloon with McMurdo Station launch, flight, and recovery infrastructure; existing field stations and ionosonde arrays; snow terrain vehicles, helicopters, fixed wing geophysical platforms, and transport aircraft; satellite remote sensing for ice, ionosphere, and space weather; ice stratigraphy from existing drilling sites near balloon ground track.

Will the project leave a legacy of infrastructure?
We will use existing NSF and NASA logistics infrastructure to support the field test campaigns. The PARS system components might be reused in later flights for various purposes beyond our investigation. Tested PARS and other instrument components become the foundations for development of flight hardware for future spacecraft missions. Technical publications and educational materials will provide documentary legacy.

How is it envisaged that the required logistic support will be secured?
Consortium
Own national polar operator
National agency

Local logistics support for Antarctic balloon operations is supplied by NSF with funding for science payload development and flight operations by NASA. PARS and other add-on instruments for solar system exploration would be funded by NASA. Collaborative agreements would need to be worked out for participation from outside the U.S.

Has the project been "endorsed" at a national or international level?
Earth polar analogs to icy environments of Europa, Mars, and other solar system bodies have been discussed at many science conferences. A PARS test flight on an Antarctic balloon has been discussed with C. Niebur, NASA Program Scientist for JIMO. We will seek formal endorsements through future funding proposals.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND STRUCTURE

Is the project a short-term expansion (over the IPY 2007-2008 timeframe) of an existing plan, programme or initiative or is it a new autonomous proposal?
Exp

PARS work for JIMO applications is ongoing with NASA support. Testing on a balloon platform in Antarctica is a new approach not considered previously in previous funding proposals for PARS. Testing in polar environments would continue beyond the IPY. There are two to three Antarctic balloon flight opportunities per year.

How will the project be organised and managed?
J. F. Cooper at GSFC will be lead contact for IPY coordination. Principal Investigator for PARS is B. W. Reinisch at University of Massachusetts at Lowell (UML). He will lead on instrumentation and flight operations. Science support for subsurface ice sounding and ionospheric applications is being supplied by various co-investigators at UML, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (Lead: J. L. Green), and the University of Kansas (P. Gogineni). T. Markus at GSFC supports PARS as an expert on polar ice remote sensing and field studies. J. W. Mitchell (GSFC) is U.S. lead for the joint Japan-U.S. BESS balloon flights.

What are the initial plans of the project for addressing the education, outreach and communication issues outlined in the Framework document?
L. Mayo and C. Ng (NASA GSFC) will organize activities to communicate through web sites, publications, and educational forums the IPY-related work and its relation to Solar System Exploration, Sun-Earth Connections, and Life on Icy Worlds. Major education and public affairs infrastructure is available at GSFC to support this effort.

What are the initial plans of the project to address data management issues (as outlined in the Framework document?
J. F. Cooper (GSFC) will lead on data management involving collection, processing, archiving, and public distribution of instrument data and associated information from field campaigns, data analysis, and computer modeling. He is Chief Scientist for the GSFC Space Physics Data Facility, the principal active archive for this project.

How is it proposed to fund the project?
Existing and supplementary funding from the NASA High Capability Instruments for Planetary Exploration, Planetary Atmospheres, other science programs, and educational supplements are expected to support the PARS and other JIMO instrument related efforts.

Is there additional information you wish to provide?
J. F. Cooper is on the NASA Science Definition Team for JIMO. Discussions on an Antarctic balloon flight opportunity for the IPY are still preliminary but J. W. Mitchell and R. E. Streitmatter at GSFC have advised us on requirements from current involvement with the joint U.S.-Japan BESS-Polar experiment. BESS stands for the Balloon-borne Experiment with a Superconducting Spectrometer and has had nine successful flights since 1993. BESS is further described at the following web site: http://lheawww.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/gamcosray/hecr/BESS/BESS.html . We will be soliciting further participants for other JIMO-related experiments such as in high-altitude oxidant chemistry that might fly on the same mission.

PROPOSER DETAILS

Dr John Cooper
Space Physics Data Facility, Code 632
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD
20771
USA

Tel: +1-301-286-1193
Mobile: no
Fax: +1-301-286-1771
Email:

Other project members and their affiliation