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Priorities in Space Science Enabled by Nuclear Power and Propulsion (2006) / Chapter Skim
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Appendix C: Additional Solar System Exploration Mission Concepts
Pages 124-128

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From page 124...
... 124 PRIORITIES IN SPACE SCIENCE ENABLED BY NUCLEAR POWER AND PROPULSION C Additional Solar System Exploration Mission Concepts RPS-ENHANCED OR RPS-ENABLED MISSIONS ENVISIONED BY 2020 Additional Long-Lived Lander Concepts In addition to the Venus Long-Lived Lander described in Chapter 4, other examples of long-lived landers enhanced or enabled by radioisotope power systems (RPSs) are, in heliocentric order, as follows: · Mercury Polar In Situ Explorer.
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From page 125...
... APPENDIX C 125 · Europa Astrobiology Lander. The harsh radiation from the jovian magnetosphere breaks all chemical bonds in the top tens of centimeters of Europa's surface, making it desirable that an astrobiology lander be capable of deriving material from a depth of at least 50 cm to analyze it for signatures of biological precursors or activity.
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From page 126...
... 126 PRIORITIES IN SPACE SCIENCE ENABLED BY NUCLEAR POWER AND PROPULSION be deployed on Mars or Venus, except that the payload would emphasize measurement of seismic activity and heat-flow information. The heat-flow probes should be implanted under the surface using a drill or other means.
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From page 127...
... APPENDIX C 127 spacecraft such as landers, Saturn probes, and so on may also be a feature. It is important to note that the saturnian radiation environment is less severe than Jupiter's; thus the lifetime limitation for JIMO does not apply at Saturn.
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From page 128...
... 128 PRIORITIES IN SPACE SCIENCE ENABLED BY NUCLEAR POWER AND PROPULSION Missions Deferred for Technical Reasons Until After 2020 Examples of post-2020 missions enabled by Prometheus-derived propulsion include, in heliocentric order, the following: · Icy Moons Subsurface Sample Return. Large icy, airless moons have surfaces that are greatly altered by external processes (e.g., bombardment by magnetospheric particle and micrometeorites, and ultraviolet chemistry and textural alteration)
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