Pluto, Venus, and the Moon
With the disarray existing within the Russian solar system exploration program, no commitments to other missions have been made. However, a number of proposals retain a very high level of interest within the scientific community, and behind-the-scenes negotiations are underway to find either domestic or international financial support. Perhaps the most likely next mission will be a joint US-Russian project to send an instrumented vehicle past Pluto and dropping a probe on its surface, the oft-discussed Pluto Fast Fly-by mission. One scenario envisions a spacecraft launched in 1999 by a Russian booster reaching Pluto in the period 2006-2007. Another joint US-Russian mission, based on the new American Discovery program, would renew Venus studies under the Surface-Atmosphere Geochemistry Experiments (SAGE) concept, taking advantage of Russian Venus lander technology. Finally, a number of lunar exploration missions have been suggested with an emphasis on lunar rovers and exploitation of lunar materials (References 196-211).
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
