Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:30AM PDT (-0700 GMT)BR> Good Morning! In case you haven't already heard... Mars Global Surveyor is in orbit about Mars (as of about 6:31 p.m., yesterday)... YAHOO :-)

Cindy at Hockaday School: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:45AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
I am logging on. Thought I would get an early start as my class will be arriving soon and we will gear up for the 11:00 time here in dallas, Tx. I teach 7th grade Earth Science in an all girls school.

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:49AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Cindy! Welcome :-) Today's chat will begin in about 10 minutes. Ken and I are going to do a quick practice and we'll wait for the rest of the gang to show up.

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:53AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Ken: Welcome to the chat room!

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:54AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Sandy, this is a test

: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:57AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Good morning! Or shall we say good afternoon! I am Marilyn Wall here at John Wayland Elementary in Birdgewater Virginia. My fourth grade is logging on. This is there first web chat. Ken we met at the PTK Live from Mars workshop in July 1996 and at the NSTA luncheon in New Orleans! You are still a fourth grader at heart!

Mrs. Marske/Sioux Center Middle School: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:58AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
We're ready for the chat and look forward to chatting with Ken Edgett and others.

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 8:59AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Marilyn! Welcome to you and your 4th graders :-) When you log on, be sure to type your name and school in the small white box below the chat box.

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:00AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Good Morning Mrs. Marske: Ken will be back to chat in about 5 minutes.

Marilyn Wall John Wayland Elementary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:00AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Oops we were so excited we forgot.

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:01AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marilyn: Perfect, thanks :-)

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:02AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - This is our first web chat here in 6th grade and we are excited.

Ivy Merriot/Montana Polytechnic institute: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:02AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hello everyone

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:03AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
I hope everyone has had a chance to read Ken's bio before today's chat! He's a great writer and has an interesting and very busy life!

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:03AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Mrs. Marske: Your first webchat is going to be a fun experience-- I promise!

Joe/coquille, OR: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:03AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Greetings from the Oregon Coast!

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:04AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Good Morning Ivy. Glad you could join us today!

Marilyn Wall John Wayland: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:04AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
We enjoyed reading the stories about how he got interested in Mars.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:04AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - We've read Ken's bio and have been learning about TES and about Joe the Martian. We think he's cool.

Ivy: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:04AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Thanks! Happy to be here!

St. Brendan: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:05AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Greetings Sandy, Ken, and all, this is our first chat and we're thrilled. We're a 4th grade in San Francisco.

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:05AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Good Morning Everyone! Ken is here and ready to go. Not only is Ken Edgett a planetary geologist and affiliated with the Thermal Emission Spectrometer instrument onboard Mars Global Surveyor, he is also the director of the Arizona Mars K-12 Education Program at Arizona State University in Phoenix.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:06AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Good morning, and a fine morning it is!!! Ready for questions!

St. Brendan: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:06AM PDT (-0700 GMT). . . [25 ]
Oops, forgot to give my name...Marian Shaffner. I'll get better in the future.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:07AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
MGS is in Orbit 1 and doing great!

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:07AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - Our fist question is what happens if the MGS gets lost. Is there a way to track it or find it?

Cindy/Hockaday: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:07AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
I'm jennifer, this is our first webchat in Science, I would like to know what's so special about the sand dunes that you are studying in Mars.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:09AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Jennifer, sand dunes on Mars are interesting because they show how the atmosphere and surface interact. Today Mars is a desert planet- so processes that modify the landscape are mostly caused by wind. Also, dunes have coarse enough grains that the MGS TES will do a really good job of finding out their composition

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:07AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hello Marian! Glad to chat with you again!

St. Brendan: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:08AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dr. Ken, what do we hope to accomplish with the MGS and will it send a probe to Mars' surface?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:10AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi St. Brendan-- MGS will orbit Mars and map and monitor it for at least 1 martian year (687 Earth days). That "Mapping Phase" starts March 1998 and goes to at least January 2000. MGS does not have a lander probe.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:08AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mrs Marske's class-- if MGS gets "lost" then it would be gone, right? couldnt track it-- this is what happened to Mars Observer in 1993. Don-t worry, we won't loose it!

Tibor/Hungary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:08AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hello Sandy, I am alone, because my students must participate in a school party.

Joe/coquille, OR: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:09AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dr. Ken: Do you know about how many pounds of fuel are needed at liftoff to give us 1 minute of retro burn for MOI?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:11AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Joe, regarding how many lbs of fuel are needed... I don't know the answer. St. Brendan: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:09AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dr. Ken, what do we hope to accomplish with the MGS and will it send a probe to Mars' surface?

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:09AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Good "Evening" Tibor: Sorry that your students are missing the chat, BUT we are most happy that you made it!

Tibor/Hungary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:09AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hello Ken, would you give my greetings to Erzsebet Merenyi.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:12AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Tibor, I know Erzsebet Merenyi- we wrote a paper together. She is at the Univ. of Arizona, about 1 1/2 hr drive from where I am. I'll tell her hello.

Marilyn Wall John Wayland: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:09AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
How have the changes in technology helped us learn more about Mars? How is it making more of a difference from the Viking Missions to our MGS missions now in 1997.Mrs. Wall's fourth grade.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:14AM PDT (-0700 GMT).
Hi Marilynn-- regarding changes in technology from Viking to MGS, we have the ability now to do the missions cheaper, and yet have better computer components, better cameras, more spectral range, etc.

Cindy/Hockaday: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:10AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
I am Amy. My question is that we wanted you to explain the TES a little further, so that we could understand it's mission better.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:15AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Amy, the MGS TES (thermal emission Spectrometer) will look down on Mars and observe the infrared light coming from the surface. The TES splits that light into 143 or 286 bands (infrared colors). We use TES to determine what kinds of minerals and rocks are on Mars. Infrared is also HEAT-- so we can get the temperature of Mars, too.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:10AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - Our second question is: How did you get the idea to invent TES and how did you develop it? We've been studying it and are interested.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:17AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mrs Marske- "I" didn't get the idea to invent TES-- that was Dr. Phil Christensen's doing. He came up with this idea for observing minerals on Mars back in 1983, 1984. He got a team together- scientists from around the US and engineers at Santa Barbara Research Center, CA, to build it. They proposed it to NASA in 1985. They got selected a and funded to build it for MArs Observer. M.O. TES was launched in 1992, but lost in 1993. Then we built a new one for MGS.

Tibor/Hungary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:12AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Ken and Sandy: I have seen the MGS web pages, but they are late, I think. I can not read that the MGS has arrived.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:18AM PDT (-0700 GMT).
Hi Tibor-- as for the MGS web pages, my guess is that the people responsible for updating the pages were tired last night and went home to sleep after the orbit insertion. It occured around 6:50 p.m. California time last night. Sorry if they havent been able to keep up.

Marilyn Wall JWE: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:13AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Since the MGS is going into orbit now, why are the observations not happening till March?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:20AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marilynn- Actually, there will be some Mars observations before March. In fact, the Camera, TES, and MOLA will take "contingency" data next week--just incase "aerobraking" doesn't work well. Then the TES, MOC, etc. will also collect other data between now and December. Then turn off until March. In March we will be in our circular orbit that allows SYSTEMATIC mapping of Mars--the data will be much more consistent then.

Cindy/Hockaday: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:14AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi, I'm Valentina. I wanted to know what happened to all the water when Mars was flooded. Did it sink into the surface? What happened?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:21AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Valentina, the scientists also want to know what happened to all the water on Mars! Some water is still in the polar caps, some is in the atmosphere, and some has probably escaped into space over the 4.5 billion year history of the planet. Also, some might be sunk underground and still could be there.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:15AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske We were wondering what kinds of things you do on a daily basis on your job? You must be very busy. We thank you for taking time for us.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:23AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mrs Marske, my day today is definitely busy but probably not what you would expect. I was here at 6:30 a.m. to wait for a local news station to come do an interview--they didn't get here until 7:50 a.m. I am also preparing a lecture for Dr Christensen's Geology of Mars class (since he is at JPL today)... I am going to talk about how the Pathfinder landing site was selected. I also did the TV interview, a radio interview, this web chat.... this afternoon I will help my staff getready for our K-12 teacher worskhop which is tomorrow. Then Sat. night we will turn on TES and be busy all night with that.

Tibor/Hungary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:16AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Ken: when can we get the real TES spectras of the MGS by the Internet? Me and my students are very interesting in it.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:26AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Tibor- As far as I know, some TES data and spectra will start getting placed on our web site--button sometime in the next few weeks. I can't say exactly when because it depends on the entire TES team to make that kind of decision. The data won't be fully calibrated nor particularly useful at such an early time, however. Keep checking our web site and see what happens. I am not in charge of the release of data and data products, so I don't know what the entire plan is.

Cindy/Hockaday: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:19AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Do you think that there was or is life on Mars?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:28AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Cindy-- do I think there was/is life on Mars? I don't know. Based on everything that is known about the Early Earth and Early Mars (e.g., 4 billion years ago), the 2 planets were similar then. And we know Earth had life then. SO if the 2 planets were similar and one had life, why not the other? So it is possible, and it is a VERY compelling reason to explore Mars. I do not know if Mars has life--however, in my opinion, if life ever started there, it should still be there, somewhere. Life likes to HANG ON. It likes to find a place to keep living.

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:20AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Will the Mars Camera take photos of the pathfinder site close up?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:29AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Lindsay, the Mars Camera can see objects about the size of a car on Mars. It will be especially good once we are in the circular orbit in March 1998. Every time the spacecraft passes over the Pathfinder site, they will take a picture. However, you can't really POINT the camera, so it is going to take a lot of luck to actually "hit" the landing site. But yes, we'll try--also try to get the 2 Viking sites.

Alan /Taylor Road MS: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:20AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Why did you want the Pathfinder to land at the volcanoes at the Cerberus region? Will the surveyor look at them?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:32AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Alan, I didn't want to land at the volcanoes near Cerberus, but actually land IN the Cerberus dark feature. I argued that we needed to land Pathfinder in a region with a dark (low albedo) surface. The 2 Vikings landed in very similar terrrain--both with no dark material. We don't know exactly what the dark stuff is, but we think it is sandy--sand helps clean dust off of rocks when it blows in the wind. I thought landing in Cerberus would mean that the rocks would not be coated with dust. It turns out that if we landed in Cerberus in 1997, it WOULD have been coated with dust. In 1995 through 1997, we have noticed that most of Cerberus has DISSAPPEARED--it got covered by a thin layer of dust about as thin as a sheet of paper.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:21AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - Are there identifying symbols, logos, etc. on the MGS to identify it if and/or when a person might encounter it in space.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:34AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mrs Marske, MGS has several plaques and logos on it, although I don't know the specifics except for the one on our TES instrument. We have 2 plaques bearing the signatures of 100s of people that helped build the instrumetn. One plaque is a duplicate of one that was on mars Observer. The other is from people who built MGS TES. Also on the plaque we attached a little sand-sized grain of a SNC meteorite from Mars--we are sending back a piece of Mars. Isn't that COOL?

Tibor/Hungary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:21AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Ken: are you publishing the TES News now? I have not got issues for some month.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:35AM PDT (-0700 GMT).
Hi Tibor- We haven't been mailing hardcopy of TES News very regularly because our budget for outreach is so tight. We put the TES News on our web site, and those that are on our mailing list will get it twice a year instead of 4 times a year. The current SEPETEMBER 1997 issue is presently on line.

Josh Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:22AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
What kind of information does TES get?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:36AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Josh- TES helps us map what kinds of rocks and minerals are on Mars, plus gets temperatures and also the atmosphereic pressure and monitors for clouds (dust, ice).

Cindy/Hockaday: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:23AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi, this is Achala, And I want to know if you think the human race could ever thrive on Mars?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:37AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Achala- could the human race survive on Mars? Well, Mars has what we need--water and oxygen--but the water is hard to find and the oxygen is bound up in the rocks and in the water--but, yes, with a lot of technology and engineering, people could live there.

Marilyn Wall JWE: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:24AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
We are fourth graders like you were when you got interested in Mars. Do you think there is a real possibility that we can be part of the team that actually lands on Mars?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:39AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Marilyn's class--Yes, I got interested in Mars when I was in 4th grade. I think that kids today are the luckiest kids of all. They will be the ones that go to Mars--or at least help some of their peers get there (for every astronaut there are 1000s on Earth doing the work to support the mission). What is missing right now is the WILL to send people to Mars (or even back to the Moon). YES, your class might someday go to Mars, but it won't happen by itself. PEOPLE have to WANT to do it, and have to show their leaders (congress, presidents, etc) that they want to do it and WHY they think it is worthwhile.

Tommy Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:25AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Do you think there will be more volcanic activity on Mars?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:41AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Tommy--as far as we know, the volcanoes on Mars are inactive. We think they are probably extinct--but who knows? The youngest big volcanoes are Olympus MOns and Ascraeus Mons--TES can help look to see if there is any heat coming from the summits of these vocanoes--not likely, but it would be cool if it was happening.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:26AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - We read you were involved in the Red Rover project. Whose idea was it? We look forward to participating in that project this year.

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:27AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
How much of Mars will be photographed in high resolution mode? AND, will these be colour photos?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:43AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Lindsay, the MGS camera (MOC) has 2 modes--high resulution and low resolution. The Low-res are like weather satellite photos and will be in color. However, the high-res (1.5 meters per pixel) will be black and white. The high-res pictures are only about 3 kilometers wide and maybe 3-10 km long--we wont be able to cover all of Mars--less than a few percent will be seen at high resultion.

: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:27AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
"Mrs. Z at Spring Creek Middle School in Elko, NV" Ken, here in Nevada the Gold Mines are a big business. Is the technology of the TES being used in any commercial way?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:44AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mrs Z-- Good question about using TES technology for commercial purposes. In fact, one of our grad students, Steve Ruff, is very intersted in applying TES technology to the search for gold deposits. Check our Web page under personnel to find his page and see what he has in mind. Also we are using TES-like technology to help the city of Scottsdale, AZ, plan its future. Look under Doug Howard's page in our personnel section for info on that.

Cindy/Hockaday: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:27AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi, this is Kal and I would like to know why the Pathfinder got to Mars quicker than the MGS?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:46AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Kal- Pathfinder got do Mars quicker than MGS partly because it had less mass--so we could get it moving faster. Also, the trajectory, (orbit path) used by Pathfinder was simply a faster route. We wanted MGS to arrive slower so that it could slow down and go into orbit--whereas Pathfinder could get there faster because we were only goint to slow it down by hitting the atmosphere for the landing.

Alan /Taylor Road MS: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:27AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Would you want to be one of the first people to set foot on Mars?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:48AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Alan- I would love to be one of the first people to go to Mars, but I'll tell you, I'd be far more satisfied to be able to go at all--doesn't matter if I am first or millionth. It would still be way awesome. Tell you what, though, what I'd really like to see before I die is people walking on the moons of Saturn. Can you imagine looking up in the sky and seeing Saturn and all its rings?

Jessica Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:27AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
What kind of fossils did you study in college? Do you like to study Mars more than fossils?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:49AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Jessica--in college I studied all kinds of fossils--I had courses about the invertebrates (like clam shells, mollusks) and vertebrates (fish, dinosaurs). I also studied about human fossils. I definitely like Mars better, but fossils--especially ones that tell us about the origin of life and the origin of humans--that stuff is wicked cool.

St.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:27AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dr. Ken, we received a photograph of Phobos from Dr. Peter Thomas and my students are wondering if the actual colors were being displayed. It was so grey and the surroundings so black that it looked like a black and white photo.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:50AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi St. Brendan--I would have to see the picture of Phobos that you are describing to be able to tell you if it is b&w or color--it is probably b&w. By the way, Peter Thomas is an expert on small moons and asteroids and an all around cool guy.

St.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:53AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dr. Ken, Peter Thomas is major cool!! He has even been to San Francisco and dropped by to visit us. You fantastic scientists are an inspiration to us all and my students think NASA is way, way cool!

Marilyn: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:28AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dear Ken: I know you give many workshops and I am always checking your schedule! Please when setting up workshops schedule them in the summer. I often go out to the Tucson area (family lives there) but I was so disappointed to see a workshop scheduled for Sept. when I am back east for the start of school. We would all flock in droves during the summer.

Tibor/Hungary: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:29AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Ken: thanks for the answers. Sandy: I am sorry, but some guests have arrived... I would like to read all this webchat in the archive! :)

Neville/Johannesburg: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:30AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Ken: Is it possible to record and transmit any sounds from Mars such as wind noise or mars tremours?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:52AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Neville--so glad to hear from Africa. Yes, it is possible to record the sounds of winds on Mars--you would need to have a microphone there and transmit the sound back to Earth. The Planetary Society plans to send just such a microphone, possibly on the lander that will arrive December 1999, or on one of the landers for 2001.

Alexa Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:30AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Have you worked with Bridget Landry?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:53AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Alexa--I don't Bridget Landry.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:32AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - Some of our students had to go to lunch and there are a few remaining who wanted to "do lunch" with Ken Edgett. A question from this group is: Do you know what happened to the Mars Observer so it doesn't happen again?

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:33AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
EVERYONE: Your questions are awesome and very plentiful! Please hold up for about 5 minutes so that Ken can catch up. He is about 20 questions behind and would like to try and answer all of you!!! Thanks :-)

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:34AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Will we be able to keep up with Global Surveyor especially the progress of aerobraking maneuvers via the website?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:55AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Lindsay--TES will start returning data as early as this Saturday night (Sept 13th, evening in west coast North America). I don't know when stuff will start to be put on line--keep checking the web page and refer to my answer to Tibor, above.

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:35AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Ken, please type faster so you can answer all our questions!! :-)

Frank Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:36AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
How does the TES work? Have you seen the Mars rock? Do you think it really had fossil bacteria in it?

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:36AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - How close is the MGS to Mars when it is the closest?

Marilyn Wall JWE: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:36AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
We need to do this chat via CU-See-Me videoconferencing. Would that be cool!!

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:42AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
When will the TES start working and returning data full-time? Will we see it on-line?

Marilyn Wall JWE: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:46AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Could you type your url for your page?

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:47AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske - Kevin, one of our students, noticed on the internet last night showing the MGS telemetry info and wondered what did "alarm=014" mean. This appeared on all of the telemetry data.

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:56AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mrs Marske/Kevin--I don't know off-hand what the "alarm=014" means--I am a geologist not one of the navigation engineers--MGS is a team effort, it takes so many specialists that it isnt possible for one person to know how all of it works.

Lacey Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:47AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
What kind of information do you get from the TES?

Ivy: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:48AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Yes, I CAN imagine!

St.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:50AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dr. Ken, we think YOU are wicked cool!

Amber Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:50AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
How can we get a subscription to the Red Planet Connection?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:57AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Amber--You can check our web pages and click down to the education section, then down the the Red Planet Connection section, to find out how to subscribe. I suggest that entire classrooms subscribe, especially if you are in grades K-8. Joe the Martian is a regular feature in these newsletters--you'll love it!

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:52AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Can you ask Mr. Goodall to explain the telemetry abbreviations that appear on the telemetry pages?

Mike Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:53AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Are we going to land another spacecraft on Mars?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:59AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hi Mike--yes, we will land several more spacecraft on Mars. The next one goes down near teh south polar cap and gets there in Dec 1999. In April 2001, we launch another one taht carries a rover that will last for 1 year collecting samples--it arrives in Jan 2002. The next rover/lander goes in 2003, and in 2005 we launch a vehicle that will land in 2006 and retrieve samples that will be sent back to Earth--the samples get here in 2008.

Marilyn Wall JWE: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:54AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Back to our first question about technology! We think it is really cool. Just the fact that we are able to check this stuff out on the WWW and with our work with Live from Mars we feel we are part of the team!! Though we live in the Shenandoah Valley, we can also travel to Mars and be a part of NASA through the Internet! We can also get our parents interested too.

Mrs.: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:54AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Marske It was great chatting. Thanks again. We have been excited for you and the MGS team. Congratulations.

Marilyn: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:57AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Dear Ken: Thank you for taking the time to talk to us! We agree that Mars is way cool!! Your fourth grade friends, here in Virginia. Mrs. Wall's fourth grade class.

Lindsay/Nahanni El: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:57AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Thanks for the answers, and congratulations on a great mission so far. Now the fun starts! Keep us informed.

Joel Andover, ME: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 9:58AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Do you think there might be life under Mars' ice caps?

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 10:00AM PDT (-0700 GMT). . . [128 ]
Hi Joel--the possibility of life underneath mars ice caps is still something to consider. In fact, in 1976 there was much discussion to land Viking 2 near the edge of the north polar cap to look for life. Who knows?

Joe/coquille, OR: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 10:00AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Do you have any idea what will be the most likely cause of the demise of Surveyor when it finally "dies"?

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 10:01AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
EVERYONE: Thank you very much for sending in such great questions today! You really did your homework! It's time for Ken to get back to work now. A very special thank you to Ken for taking the time to spend with us today! Your answers were terrific and you answered every question! Good luck with TES and we hope to chat with you again in the future :-)

Dr_Ken/MGS_TES AzState: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 10:02AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Hey everyone, I am so glad you could join me today. What a fun time this is for all of us to be alive and to all be a part of the exploration of the New World! Keep checking our web pages button for more info on TES and the TES personell, and thanks for all your well wishes!

Ivy: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 10:04AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Thanks Ken and Sandy! Its been inspiring!

Sandy/NASA Chat Host: . . . . Fri, Sep 12, 10:12AM PDT (-0700 GMT)
Goodbye Ivy. Thanks for joining us today! Hope to chat with you again!