Number 19: 24/03/2002
A scientific publication by SGF and NEODyS


Special: the results of ESA's call for proposal


On June 2002, ESA has selected 6 different and complemetary space mission projects about NEOs for a Phase A study (see T.S. number 15). By february 2003 the companies, universities and research institutes that presented the initial proposals, carried out the studies for preliminary mission analysis and design and presented these results in a public conference held in ESRIN, Frascati.
The 6 studies, funded by ESA's General Studies Programme, were carried out with the technical support of the Spaceguard Central Node, which is now hosted by ESA and has started its activity to support ESA's Science Programme in all issues related to NEOs.

Click on the images below to read a short resumé of the final descriptions of the 6 projects. In these pages you will find images, videos, interviews to the project managers and other interesting documents.

Two interviews about ESA's results

In this issue of Tumbling Stone, we present two interviews about the results of ESA's call for proposals. The first interview was made to Andrés Gálvez, ESA's representative in charge of following the 6 projects.
The second one was made to Giovanni Valsecchi, Director of the Spaceguard Central Node and is more focused on the participation of the SCN to the projects.


The OECD Meeting and the future of the European NEO Research

by Andrea Carusi, President, The Spaceguard Foundation

On January 20-22 the Global Science Forum (GSF) of the OECD (Organization for the Economic Cooperation and Development) has organized the "Workshop on Near-Earth Objects: Risks, Policies and Actions" at ESRIN, the ESA facility located in Frascati (Italy). The Workshop main purpose was to bring together people with very different backgrounds, and examine what is the level of risk that NEO impacts may represent for the human population and to discuss what type of actions the governmental organization should take to cope with it.
The conclusions of the Workshop will be presented to the OECD GSF plenary session next June, but the Workshop has been already fruitful...


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Editor: Nanni Riccobono
Assistant Editor, web master and graphics: Livia Giacomini (lagia@tiscalinet.it)
Spaceguard Foundation (SGF) is a private, non profit scientific organization aimed at supporting and co-ordinating NEO researches in the world.
NEO Dynamic Site (NEODyS) is a service offered by the University of Pisa (Italy). It provides catalogues, computation of orbits, and projection of the behavior of NEOs in the future, in order to identify possible impacts in advance.
Our sponsors:
The Astronomic Observatory of Mallorca (OAM)
tumblingstone@libero.it

Images of the heading: courtesy of NASA