Scientific Ballooning at the Planets
Abstract
NASA's Solar System Exploration Roadmap published in May 2003 calls for an investment in aerial mobility in planetary atmospheres to enable key scientific observations at Titan, Venus and Mars. In the case of Venus, the only planet so far explored by balloon, future mission prospects range from extended reconnaissance missions in the high atmosphere to the use of balloons in sample return. At Titan, a balloon or blimp mission might be the next logical step in the exploration of the surface and atmosphere of that body to follow the Cassini observations of Titan from Saturn orbit that begin in July 2004 and the Huygens probe entry of January 05. An aerial mission to the Titan surface would most likely be coupled with a means of sampling potential organic lakes and/or the icy surface. At Mars, balloon missions provide the opportunity to traverse much longer distances than surface missions like the Mars rover and to exploit a vantage point within a few kilometers of the surface to make unique scientific observations. Except for technologies for balloons themselves and their aerial deployment where significant progress has been made recently, a key technology for planetary lighter than air vehicles, especially for Titan, is autonomy. Much higher levels of autonomy than those to date in planetary exploration will be needed for robust scientifically productive exploration. In this presentation we review the mission opportunities and the key technology challenges.
- Publication:
-
35th COSPAR Scientific Assembly
- Pub Date:
- 2004
- Bibcode:
- 2004cosp...35.2466C