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September 27, 2007. The NASA Dawn mission successfully
launches towards the rising sun from Cape Canaveral. Dawn uses
ion
propulsion to rendezvous with the asteroid Vesta and small
planet Ceres,
the largest objects between Mars and Jupiter. PSI scientists
Mark Sykes
and Bill Feldman are Co-Investigators and members of its Science
Team,
Bill Feldman designed the Gamma-Ray Neutron Spectrometer
instrument,
Pasquale Tricarico is simulating spacecraft trajectories about
Vesta and
Ceres and determining asteroid flyby opportunities en route,
Matt
Chamberlain is characterizing the Dawn targets using groundbased
thermal
and microwave observations, and Bob Gaskell will be determining
object
shape and surface topography.
Image credit: Launch mosaic by Randy Pollock, stitching by Johan
Kiviniemi, inset by NASA/Kim Shiflett.
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