DEEP NEWS – Newsletter for the Deep Impact mission Issue 1 – July 2003
Welcome to the nearly 7,000 of you who have told us you want to know
more about the Deep Impact mission. We are currently in Phase C/D.
During this 34-month period, the twin spacecraft – the projectile
impactor and the observing flyby spacecraft, and their science
instruments are being built and the software that will drive them is
being designed and tested. All factors will work together to make
this the first mission to look deep beneath the surface of a comet.
For more about the mission, visit the Deep Impact web site at
http://deepimpact.jpl.nasa.gov or http://deepimpact.umd.edu.
MISSION UPDATE WITH PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR DR. MIKE A’HEARN
For the latest on the Deep Impact mission, take a look at the PI’s
update. Dr. Mike A’Hearn writes to tell us about the current status
of the mission, the construction of both spacecraft and our science
team’s most recent research.
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/mission/update.html
SEND YOUR NAME TO A COMET!
If you haven’t joined the over 200,000 people who have registered to
have their name put on the side of the impactor that will make a
huge crater in Comet Tempel 1, check out
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/sendyourname/
and sign up before it’s too late. Don’t miss the boat – uh, or the
impactor.
WHAT A BLAST!
The science team continues to develop tools for visualizing and
analyzing the impact. Jim Richardson, a graduate student working
with Prof. Jay Melosh, has developed a useful tool that will allow
us to vary the orientation of a simulated impact until we can
reproduce our observations. Ultimately, these simulations will be
used to understand the physical processes that occur in the cometary
nucleus based on theories of hypervelocity impacts into solid
bodies. We have posted two of these simulations on the web page for
your viewing. The animations show the field of view of the two
cameras.
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/mission/wwws.html
HEY KIDS – COOL OFF WITH AN EDIBLE COMET!
Looking for a way to cool down on those hot summer afternoons? Make
a Comet Model and Eat it! This is an activity the whole family can
do together. Make an ice cream comet and add your own "cometary
candy debris." Science never tasted so good!
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/educ/IceCream02.html
DID YOU KNOW? COOL FACT!
Did you know that the Deep Impact spacecraft won’t be the
only "observer" during our encounter with Comet Tempel 1 on July
4th, 2005? While the flyby spacecraft and impactor do their job, an
international group of professional and amateur astronomers will
watch the "cometary fireworks" from Earth. What are they doing to
gear up for this incredible event? Well, they’ve been watching Comet
Tempel 1 since the year 2000. To see some of their images visit our
Small Telescope Science Program web site and take a look at
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/stsp/.
QUESTIONS FROM YOU: WILL THE IMPACT KNOCK THE COMET OFF ITS PATH AND
SEND IT SOMEWHERE ELSE? No. You can think of the impactor hitting
the comet in the same way as a pebble hitting the side of an 18-
wheeler. In both cases, there is a small effect in terms of adding
energy to the target and subtracting it from the projectile, but
again, in both cases, the impacts are not strong enough to knock the
truck or the comet off their course.
MISSION BRAIN TWISTER:
The flyby spacecraft has a solar panel to take in the Sun’s energy
and turn it into power for the spacecraft. The early concept for the
solar panel was that it be one piece. During the design phase, the
engineers decided they needed a larger panel to provide enough
energy for the entire spacecraft. Now the spacecraft has two panels
that are hinged. Why was the hinge necessary?
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/disczone/braintwist-mission1a.html
EVERYBODY’S TALKING…
Important to our Deep Impact outreach team are our master educators
(Solar System Educator Program) and our ambassadors to the public
(Solar System Ambassadors). These people are specially trained in
the Deep Impact mission and its activities. If you are interested in
having an SSEP educator give a workshop in your area, or you think
you might want an Ambassador to speak at a public event, go to:
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/disczone/community.html
and contact those organizations directly, or contact us at:
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/feedback.html.
CALLING ALL GIRL SCOUTS!
Did you know that Deep Impact is part of a new NASA partnership with
the Girl Scouts of the USA? Leader trainers from across the country
are excited about the Deep Impact activities to make ice cream
comets and comet models out of recyclable materials. For a large
event, you can even earn the NASA solar system patch for your
Scouts. Ask your council to check into schedules for NASA trainings
this year. Or, you can go to our web site activities and try them
yourself: http://deepimpact.umd.edu/educ/index.html
Some Scout leaders and troops are already planning to throw
community star parties in their area the night of the Deep Impact
encounter, July 4th, 2005. You could be one of them. Talk to your
local observatory, university or library about a community
partnership with your troop or council and contact us to let us know
your plans at: http://deepimpact.umd.edu/feedback.html.
MAKE A DEEP IMPACT FOR SOMEONE ELSE
Send this issue of Deep News to your friends and tell them they can
register to get it for themselves at:
http://deepimpact.umd.edu/newsletter/signup.html
As we get closer to launch you’ll hear about special opportunities
and meet more of the team who are responsible for putting this
awesome mission into space.
Deep News features information about the mission, the Deep Impact
web site and our products and special programs. The Deep Impact
mission is a partnership among the University of Maryland (UMD), the
California Institute of Technology’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
and Ball Aerospace & Technology Corp. Deep Impact is a NASA
Discovery mission, eighth in a series of low-cost, highly focused
space science investigations. Deep Impact offers an extensive
outreach program in partnership with other comet and asteroid
missions and institutions to benefit the public, educational and
scientific communities. http://deepimpact.umd.edu.
