| One hundred years ago, a pioneering astronomer at the University of Arizona posed space exploration's fundamental question: "Is Mars inhabited?" Andrew Ellicott Douglass asked in a scientific paper published in 1907. "Shall we not someday have an instrument capable of answering this?"
Someday could begin Friday, when a spacecraft loaded with UA-designed equipment roars toward the red planet looking for evidence of life. The flight marks the first time a public university has led a NASA mission, and is a pinnacle for the UA's space-science programs.
PART 1 - UA'S SPACE EXPLORATION LEADERSHIP
WAS THERE LIFE ON MARS?
This week, all eyes and minds at the UA are focused on Mars; the Phoenix Mars Mission is to blast off Friday and reach its destination next May. When it does, UA scientists hope they will inch closer to the answer Douglass sought a century ago. Read more »»
ASTRONOMIC SUCCESS
When NASA's latest mission lifts off this week, it carries UA-designed instruments that will search for signs that life could exist on Mars. It also boosts the university's international reputation for space science. Read more »»
MASSES OF DATA FROM SPACE AVAILABLE TO CITIZEN SCIENTISTS
Most spacecraft data now goes to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and soon after to the Planetary Data System, a virtual public library of space imagery on the Web. Anyone with Web access can view and use the information. Read more »»
UA'S TOP TALENT IN SPACE SCIENCES
Bios of the UA scientists who make up the space-science program at the UA. Read more »»
MAKING A MARK AND SETTING THE BAR IN SPACE
A detailed look at the UA's involvement in space missions and telescopes. Read more »»
PART 2 - 100 YEARS OF SPACE SCIENCES IN ARIZONA
AZ'S LONG ROAD TO MARS
When Andrew Ellicott Douglass left after building a world-class telescope on the University of Arizona campus, he became the first in a long line of adventurous scientists whose discoveries and innovation have positioned the UA as a world leader in space science. Read more »»
ARIZONA'S PIONEERING ASTRONOMERS AND SPACE SCIENTISTS
Bios of the astronomers and scientist who help turn the UA's planetary science program into a powerhouse. Read more »»
FLAGSTAFF REVELS IN ROLE, PREPARES FOR NEXT ROUND
The University of Arizona and the state's space prowess, both in astronomy and in NASA's manned and robotic missions, began in the high pines above this mountain town 113 years ago. Read more »»
PART 3 - THE FUTURE OF SPACE SCIENCES AT THE UA
GOING BEYOND...
At the University of Arizona, some of the top astronomers and planetary scientists have obliterated the previous size limits of ground-based telescopes, created imaging systems that have sent back high-resolution pictures of planets in our solar system, and helped identify planets circling distant suns. Read more »»
MYSTERIES OF MARS HAVE INTRIGUED MANKIND
Long before H.G. Wells dreamed of an invasion from space, or the Lowell Observatory was a gleam in founder Percival Lowell's eyes, Mars loomed large in the collective human imagination. But why study Mars? Read more »»
NEXT STOP — EUROPA
NASA's next flagship mission will head for the outer solar system, likely Europa, one of Jupiter's moons. Read more »»
FUTURE MISSIONS AND GIANT TELESCOPES
Details about the missions and telescopes the UA has planned for the near future.
Read more »»
ONLINE COVERAGE - STARNET'S 'ON CAMPUS' BLOG
UA SUCCESS IN SPACE EXPLORATION STARTED WITH THE RIGHT HIRES
"Essentially since the 1970s, Arizona has been one of the leading lights in the world of astronomy, an international powerhouse." Read more »»
NEXT-GENERATION TELESCOPES
Run by a nine-member consortium that includes the UA, the Giant Magellan Telescope will again by trained by scientists at the biggest questions in astronomy. Read more »»
MORE 'ON CAMPUS' COVERAGE OF UA SPACE SCIENCE
Read more blog coverage of the researchers, programs and missions that are part of the UA's space-science program. Read more »»
ONLINE COVERAGE - MARS SITE
Read more Mars coverage in our online site. Read more »»
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