Dr. Scott C. Mest

Research Report 2007

Mest joined PSI in July 2007 and is located off-site at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.

Mest is currently working with D. Crown and L. Bleamaster on several of their funded research projects, and incorporating related data and observations from his post-doctoral work (described below) into these studies. Mest is involved with two of Crown’s projects. The first is to assist in Crown’s PGG-funded project to map the geology and geomorphology of the Reull Vallis source region (covered by 3 MTM Quadrangles) located northeast of Hellas basin. The second is assist in Crown’s PGG-funded project to map an area northwest of Hellas basin. He is able to incorporate much of the Mars-related impact crater work that he did during his post-doctoral tenure. Mest is also working with L. Bleamaster on his MDAP-funded project to characterize impact craters and other sedimentary basins in several areas surrounding the Hellas basin.

Mest is currently involved in the Lunar Mapping and Modeling Project (LMMP), under the auspices of the Lunar Precursor Robotics Program (LPRP) within NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate (ESMD). Managed by M. Nall at Marshall Space Flight Center, the LMMP was established in August 2007 between 5 key cooperating organizations – Ames, GSFC, JPL, CRREL and USGS – and charged with the task of identifying the Level 1 requirements that mission planners, scientists and NASA would need upon return to the moon whether as a robotic or human presence. Mest became involved in this project in January 2008 and is part of the effort to develop the Level 3 requirements.

Although currently unfunded for the following projects, Mest continues to work on some the research begun during his post-doctoral position at GSFC, including (1) analysis of impact crater floor deposits in the southern highlands of Mars and (2) geologic and geomorphic mapping of the north and south polar regions of the Moon. Mest has utilized students through the National Space Club Scholar Program and NASA Undergraduate Student Research Program to continue the lunar mapping project. Mest is also collaborating with N. Petro (ORAU/GSFC) to evaluate impact crater size frequency distributions within South Pole-Aitken basin and several other equally-sized areas of the lunar surface to determine if SPA contains an anomalously higher density of craters.

Abstracts

Crown, D.A., L.F. Bleamaster, S.C. Mest and J.F. Mustard (2007). Geology of the NW Rim of Hellas Basin. Eos Trans. AGU, 88(52), Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract P41A-0189.