Transcript: May Week 4

PAUL
Welcome to Idaho Skies on Radio Boise. This is the last week of May. We’re your hosts, Paul..

RACHEL
..Rachel..

KRIS
..And Kris

PAUL
Mars will receive a new robotic visitor on the 26th.

KRIS
The visitor is the American Phoenix Mars Lander.

RACHEL
Unlike the rovers now active on Mars, Phoenix doesn’t travel across the Martian surface.

KRIS
And also unlike the rovers, Phoenix is landing in the Martian arctic region.

PAUL
This will be the first time a spacecraft has visited this part of Mars.

RACHEL
Phoenix is going to Mars to study the history of water on the planet.

PAUL
Its studies of the Martian arctic will address issues like…

KRIS
Can the Martian arctic support microbial life?

RACHEL
What is the history of water in the Martian arctic?

KRIS
And how do the polar caps influence the Martian climate?

RACHEL
Phoenix carries a robotic arm. With it, Phoenix will dig trenches two feet deep into the Martian permafrost.

PAUL
Perhaps below its icy surface, there are ecological niches that Martian bacteria can take advantage of.

KRIS
Phoenix is equipped with science instruments to detect their presence, should they exist.

RACHEL
You can read more about Phoenix at its web site, phoenix.lpl.arizona.edu

PAUL
The moon reaches the last quarter phase on the 27th.

KRIS
If you stay out late Tuesday night, you can observe this attractive moon phase through your binoculars.

RACHEL
The moon’s largest ocean is visible on the left side of the moon.

PAUL
In Latin it’s called Oceanus Procellarum.

KRIS
But you can call it by its English name, the Ocean of Storms.

RACHEL
The Ocean of Storms stretches over 1,500 miles across, which is half way across the United States.

KRIS
In your binoculars, you’ll notice that the Ocean of Storms is not as well defined as some of the other lunar maria.

RACHEL
This lunar ocean was visited by the Apollo 12 astronauts in November 1969.

KRIS
It was also visited by four unmanned spacecraft, two American and two Russian.

RACHEL
One of those American spacecraft was Surveyor 3.

KRIS
One of the goals of the Apollo 12 astronauts was to land near Surveyor 3 and retrieve pieces of it.

RACHEL
Surveyor 3 had landed 2 and ½ years earlier. NASA was very interested to see what that long exposure to the sun and moon and done to the spacecraft.

KRIS
The astronauts had no trouble locating the old Surveyor. That’s because their lunar module, Intrepid, landed only 600 feet away.

PAUL
That’s Idaho Skies for the last week of May. Our sound engineer this month was Paul Molinari. Join us next month for the space and astronomy news for Idaho and beyond.

For Idaho Skies this is Paul…

RACHEL
..Rachel..

KRIS
.. and Kris.