SLAS Regular Meeting
Friday, April 19, 2013, 7:30pm
McDonnell Hall, Washington University

The Next Giant Leap – Future Human
Space Exploration
by
Ms. Ryan Clegg
Washington University

      While NASA has sustained an active program of robotic exploration of the Moon and the planets, human presence in space has been limited to Space Shuttle flights and International Space Station duty, each only a few hundred miles above the Earth’s surface. The last astronaut to travel the 239,000 mile trip to the Moon returned in December 1972. Over forty years later, the question is still open – where should humans venture next? The possibilities include a return to the Moon, perhaps to build a long-term base, or on to Mars, to the moons of Mars, or to one of the asteroids. Ms. Clegg will talk about these possible destinations for manned space exploration and the challenges and scientific rationale for each. Each of these planetary bodies presents exciting scientific questions that need to be answered, and each has its own set of challenges that must be addressed and overcome before humankind can travel there.
      Ryan Clegg is a Doctoral candidate in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Washington University. While her primary research interests are focused on the geology and geochemistry of the Moon, she is also interested in the future of space exploration. Ms. Clegg has been active in a number of science outreach projects that reach pre-college students and the general public.

Meeting Agenda

Welcome

Introduction of Officers

Ms. Clegg

Astro 101 - TBA

Election - Board Member at Large Position (through 2014)

Announcements and Upcoming Star Parties