Published: April 25, 2008 11:42 pm      

Future of space science

‘Our limitation is our imagination’

FAIRMONT — Experts in the nation’s space programs delved into the future of space science during a seminar Friday.

The Space Studies Board Seminar was held Friday at the I-79 Technology Park Research Center in Fairmont. The West Virginia High Technology Consortium Foundation co-hosted the event with the Space Studies Board, which was started in 1958 and focuses on space research.

The seminar, which was free and open to the public, began with a meet and greet — featuring speakers and panelists — and technology demonstrations at 2 p.m. in the lobby. At 2:30 p.m., a panel discussion on “Forging the Future of Space Science: The Next 50 Years” began in the auditorium.

Charles Elachi, director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and vice president of the California Institute of Technology, then gave a presentation titled “The Future of Space and Earth Robotic Exploration: Scientific and Technological Challenges” at 7 p.m. in the exhibition hall.

Elachi is also a professor of electrical engineering and planetary science at the California Institute of Technology, and is a principal investigator on many NASA missions.

Marcia Smith, director of the Space Studies Board, said the Fairmont event was the ninth in the series of seminars scheduled across the country.

The Space Studies Board International Public Seminar Series recognizes the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year that took science into space and celebrates the contributions to space science over the years.

“Almost every aspect of science has increased tremendously” in the last 50 years, said Lennard Fisk, chairman of the board and professor of solar and space physics at the University of Michigan. He said much of our future relies on space science.

“Our only hope of understanding global climate change will come from space,” Fisk said. “There are many of us who believe the future of civilization lies in space.”

During the panel discussion, four individuals offered their expertise on specific pieces of space science. Brian Lemoff, director of physical sciences and technology at the WVHTC Foundation, served as moderator for the forum.

Panelist John Marinaro, chief engineer of the NASA IV&V Facility, spoke about the facility in 2058 and supporting mission software in other galaxies.

He said the IV&V Facility works with every NASA center and supports many types of missions, including earth science, planetary, astrophysics, heliophysics, and human space flight missions.

As far as technology potentials, Marinaro suggested that society could see commercial and recreational space travel in the next five years. Also, scientific instruments could be developed that have 100 times the capability and data acquisition of today and require incredible bandwidths.

He projected that in the next 50 years permanent settlements could be developed on the moon and possibly mars. Also, crews will have visited other destinations in the solar system. Assuming that propulsion is advanced, robotic probes could be sent to other nearby stars in our galaxy, Marinaro said.

“Our limitation is our imagination,” he said.

Michael Goodman, principal scientist for the WVHTC Foundation, talked about understanding and predicting space weather and the role of global computer simulations now and in the future.

“The sun is the driver of space weather,” he said.

Goodman said there are four basic drivers of space weather that originate in the sun’s atmosphere. These drivers include solar wind, continuous UV/EUV emissions, flares, and coronal mass ejections (CME’s).

Maura McLaughlin, assistant professor of physics at WVU, gave a presentation titled “The Past, Present and Future of Pulsar Astronomy: Observing Cosmic Clocks from Earth and Space.”

She explained that pulsars are extremely accurate clocks, and roughly 1,700 pulsars are known today. McLaughlin touched on the telescopes that have been important to pulsar astronomy over the years. In 50 years, experts will have a complete census of the pulsar population in our galaxy and nearby galaxies and will find many new, unexpected systems, she said.

The final presentation was on the National Radio Astronomy Observatory at Green Bank in Pocahontas County. John Ford, electronics division head, said the NRAO allows forefront research into the universe at radio wavelengths.

The 2,700-acre site features the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope, which is the largest fully steerable dish in the world, and several other telescopes. The site also includes a Science Center.

Following the presentations, the floor was opened up to questions from the audience and discussion.

E-mail Jessica Legge at jlegge@timeswv.com.