Robotic Planetary Science: the Mars Exploration Rovers and Beyond

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Speaker(s): Ashley Stroupe

One of the primary tasks of the Jet Propulsion Lab is robotic planetary science. This talk will discuss the current state of the art in planetary rovers, the Mars Exploration Rovers, focusing in particular on their autonomous capabilities. There will also be details of some of the scientific results of the MER mission. Several limitations are still inherent in the MER rovers, however. These limitations will be identified and some possible suggested solutions will be presented. This will include details on a prototype system, TRESSA for advanced planetary science. The talk will conclude with a brief discussion of robotics, JPL, and NASA opportunities.

Colloquium

Junior and senior physics majors attend our biweekly colloquium series, held on Tuesday afternoons at 4:30 p.m. in Shanahan B460. The talks are open to all students and to the public, and are frequently attended by scientists from the other Claremont Colleges, Cal Poly Pomona, and others. The series features speakers from a broad range of institutions and fields of physics.