NASA Invites Academia and Industry to Lunar Dust Workshop

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center will sponsor a Lunar Dust Workshop Jan. 30 through Feb. 1 at the NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. The three-day workshop will focus on the effects of lunar dust for human and robotic missions to the moon, as well as procedures and technologies to protect astronauts and vehicles.

Lunar dust has been recognized as a significant challenge to a prolonged human presence on the moon. While there have been a number of independent efforts to address the concern of lunar dust, the workshop will provide a collective setting to discuss findings. Workshop organizers hope to bring together diverse groups currently studying lunar dust issues with designers and operators of hardware that will operate in the lunar environment; gain a consensus on the major engineering, scientific, and medical issues related to lunar dust; and develop a strategy for addressing the most critical issues.

The format will include summary presentations, working group sessions, and continuous poster presentations. The workshop will be limited to approximately 150 invited attendees from NASA, academia, industry, and other appropriate backgrounds. Those interested in attending the workshop should contact Michael Sims at Michael.Sims@arc.nasa.gov.

Located at NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., the NASA Engineering and Safety Center is an independent organization that coordinates and conducts engineering testing and safety assessments to support NASA projects and programs.

For more information: http://www.nasa.gov/offices/nesc.