The exploration of Mars is a slow but exciting affair. In 2019 and 2020, more missions arrive at Mars. Among other things, Nasa'S InSight Mission is to investigate Mars ' interior by "looking into" the planet. For this, two seismometers and a drill probe are carried to collect data on active processes in Mars ' interior. InSight lands according to plan on 26. November 2018 and towards the end of January 2019, if all goes well, there should be results to share.
Nasa'S Mars 2020 Rover is first launched in July/August 2020, but in January 2019 experiments and instruments had to be handed over at Nasa'S Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), where instruments are mounted on the robber. The last "Landing Site Workshop" will be completed and the selected landing site expected to be published. The lecture will be briefed on the chosen landing site from which the future years of the exploration of Mars will take place and on how far JPL is reached with the robber.
About Morten Bo Madsen
Results of the Mortens scientific work include identification of the source of the magnetic properties of dust and soil on Mars; Complicity in proving the presence of water ice under loose soil on the Mars surface using Nasa'S Phoenix lands; and important contributions to show that the Gale crater on Mars had in the past running water in the form of rivers.
Morten has a broad interest in the exploration of Mars and he has participated and contributed to all of Nasa'S landed missions on the planet side (and inclusive) Mars Path finds the mission. At the moment he is "Co-Investigator" on the Mastcam-Z instrument (the main camera on Nasa's Mars 2020 mission), and on the MOXIE experiment (which for the first time must produce oxygen directly from the thin atmosphere of Mars). and "Collaborator" on the SuperCam instrument, which consists of a number of spectrometers and a camera. Morten is also a Co-Investigator on the HABIT instrument on the ESA ExoMars 2018 landing platform and on Nasa's Opportunity rover. From 2011 to 2016, Morten Co-Investigator ("Participating Scientist") was on Nasa'S Curiosity rover.
This lecture is part of the Spring lecture series with the theme space. Watch the other lectures here.