Congresswoman Giffords Emphasizes Importance of Space Research During PSI Visit

June 4, 2009 - Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords toured the Planetary Science Institute's headquarters in Tucson on June 1 to learn more about the institute's research and outreach activities.

Giffords, who chairs the Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics of the House Committee on Science and Technology, emphasized the importance of adequate funding for space research and praised PSI for providing high-tech jobs in her Arizona Congressional District.

Giffords also said America's space program is vital to the country because access to space near Earth has important national-security implications.

During a presentation given for Giffords, PSI Director Mark Sykes explained that understanding other planets helps us better understand Earth and has already led to a deeper understanding of the effect humans have on Earth's atmospheric processes. He also said that the long-term dominance of the United States in space will depend on whether it is the first to address the possibility of openly expanding human activity in space.

Sykes noted that PSI participates on the science and instrument teams of a number missions sponsored by NASA and other agencies. These include: Mercury MESSENGER, Dawn, Cassini, Mars Odyssey, Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Mars Exploration Rovers, Mars Express (European Space Agency), Hayabusa (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency), NEO Surveillance and Tracking (Canadian Space Agency) and Chandrayaan-1 (Indian Space Research Organization). He added that PSI has 123 currently funded NASA projects.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords looks at one of the samples Planetary Science Institute scientists use to teach K-12 students about meteors and impact craters.

During a talk given for Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, Planetary Science Institute Director Mark Sykes describes PSI support provided to numerous NASA missions and missions sponsored by ESA, Japan, India and Canada.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords talks with scientists and staff members during her visit to the Tucson-based Planetary Science Institute.

Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and PSI Associate Research Scientist Dan Berman use 3D glasses to view 3D images of Gale crater on Mars that were taken by NASA's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera. HiRISE is flying on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) mission.

The Planetary Science Institute is a private, nonprofit corporation founded in 1972 and dedicated to solar system exploration. It is headquartered in Tucson, Arizona.

PSI scientists are involved in numerous NASA and international missions, the study of Mars and other planets, the Moon, asteroids, comets, interplanetary dust, impact physics, the origin of the solar system, extra-solar planet formation, dynamics, the rise of life, and other areas of research. They conduct fieldwork in North America, Australia and Africa. They also are actively involved in science education and public outreach through school programs, children's books, popular science books and art.

The Institute's researchers are based in 15 states, the United Kingdom, Russia, Switzerland and Australia.