Acla Astronautica V01.24, pp. 299-307, 1991 0094-5765/91 $3.00 + 0.00 Printed in Great Britain Pergamon Press plc

Mission to Planet Earth Day: Public Outreach Activities for 1992

Lori B. Oarver Executive Director

National Space Society 922 Pennsylvania Ave., SE

Washington, DC 20003

1992 has been d e s i g n a t e d " I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Year" ( ISY). The concept was f i r s t proposed in l e g i s l a t i o n introduced by United States Senators Spark Matsunaga and Jake Garn and passed by the United States Congress in 1985. Since that time ISY has received the endorsement of 25 na t iona l space agencies and the I n t e r n a t i o n a l As t ronau t i ca l Federat ion. In December 1989 ISY was f o rma l l y endorsed by the United Nat ions. Among ISY's ob jec t i ves is to h i g h l i g h t g l o b a l l y - c o o r d i n a t e d space a c t i v i t i e s in 1992 and coordinate planning f o r a c t i v i t i e s extending i n to the 21st c e n t u r y . l

One of the primary areas of focus f o r ISY w i l l be "Mission to Planet Earth" (MTPE). Among th i s p r o j e c t ' s long-term o b j e c t i v e s is the s i g n i f i c a n t enhancement of space-based monitor ing of th rea ts such as acid ra in , d e f o r e s t a t i o n , ozone dep le t ion and the greenhouse e f f e c t . Numerous MTPE s c i e n t i f i c programs planned f o r 1992 w i l l a lso improve the database of physical knowledge to enable a b e t t e r understanding of global change (our dynamic planet and i t s ecologies~. This w i l l be accomplished by managing and sharing data from remote sensing s a t e l l i t e s and research spacecra f t and making that in format ion r e a d i l y a v a i l a b l e to researchers and members of the pub l i c .

Some of t h i s data has already been co l l ec ted and ks catalogued in r e p o s i t o r i e s around the wor ld , wa i t i ng to be analyzed. Add i t iona l data w i l l be co l l ec ted from s a t e l l i t e s c u r r e n t l y in o r b i t . Ten s p e c i f i c areas of research have thus f a r been selected as "ISY Mission to Planet Earth" p ro jec t s . These ten p ro jec ts are ou t l i ned in t h i s paper. In add i t i on to these p r o j e c t s , al~l o f which are s la ted to be in operat ion by mid-1992, a large network of s a t e l l i t e s , ca l l ed the Earth Observing System (EOS}, i s planned to be in operat ion by 1998. EOS cons is ts of f i v e large Earth observat ion p la t forms (two U.S., two

European and one Japanese>. These w i l l be operated in co6junct ion w i th I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Sta t ion Freedom. Data systems establ ished f o r the sharing of in fo rmat ion during 1992 should a lso provide f o r long-term cooperat ion on EOS through the 21st Century.

An add i t i ona l major o b j e c t i v e o f ISY is a broadened publ ic understanding and support f o r world space a c t i v i t i e s . ISY is an e x c e l l e n t oppor tun i ty to educate the worldwide general publ ic about the tang ib le bene f i t s of the space program. Because one of the primary themes of the ISY is MTPE i t i s appropr ia te to focus major educat ional e f f o r t s on the environmental bene f i t s of the space program.

The Nat ional Space Society (NSS) and the US-ISY Assoc ia t ion w i l l support t h i s educat ional e f f o r t by combining e f f o r t s w i th environmental o rgan iza t ions in support of "Mission to Planet Earth Day" to be held on Ap r i l 25, 1992. Mission to Planet Earth Day publ ic education a c t i v i t i e s draws i n s p i r a t i o n from Earth Day 1990, A p r i l 22, 1990) when worldwide pub l i c a t t e n t i o n was focused on preserv ing and p ro tec t ing our environment. As w i th Earth Day, MTPE Day w i l l inc lude focused a c t i v i t y during the weeks surrounding the actual day of c e l e b r a t i o n . Sustaining pub l ic a t t e n t i o n f o r a year - long event i s extremely d i f f i c u l t . The i n t e n t of MTPE-Day is to prov ide a focused time f o r pub l ic a c t i v i t i e s planned f o r ISY which are associated w i th Mission to Planet Earth.

This paper w i l l examine the issues of importance to the environmental community i n v o l v i n g the Mission to Planet Earth program and the g rass - roo ts experience during Earth Day 1990; i t w i l l o u t l i n e the s t r u c t u r e and o rgan iza t i on being es tab l ished to support Mission to Planet Earth Day and i t w i l l e l uc i da te the reasons f o r es tab l i sh ing MTPE Day as an i n t e r n a t i o n a l educat ional focus of a c t i v i t y . MTPE Day w i l l be a success only i f the worldwide space support o rgan iza t ions p a r t i c i p a t e and include

t h i s theme and t ime-frame in t h e i r planning of events and p ro jec ts in ce l eb ra t i on of the I n t e rna t i ona l Space Year.

Long missing from the study of environmental science has been a thorough understanding of the i n t e r a c t i o n of the many environmental f ac to r s - atmosphere, oceans, land sur faces, comprising the Earth system.

Mission to Planet Earth in general and EOS s p e c i f i c a l l y w i l l be the f i r s t attempts at comprehensive study of these systems. By studying the Earth as a system and making concurrent measurements of environmental f ac to r s these p ro jec t s w i l l prov ide the f i r s t look at the Earth as the intermeshing of the var ious environmental systems. Environmental s c i e n t i s t s understand the importance of t h i s perspec t ive .

EOS a lso o f f e r s the advantage of a long enough study period - 15 years to understand the complex process a f f e c t i n g g lobal change. This w i l l e a s i l y be the most f a r - r e a c h i n g study of g lobal change ever undertaken and w i l l enable the development o f accurate models s imula t ing the behavior and i n t e r a c t i o n of Earth system components and provide a basel ine against which g lobal change can be documented. This global perspect ive and p r e d i c t i v e capaci ty are of p a r t i c u l a r appeal to environmental o rgan iza t ions .

299

300 41st IAF Congress

ISY w i l l address many of these issues o f concern to the environmental community. Major i n t e r n a t i o n a l s c i e n t i f i c and engineering s o c i e t i e s have es tab l ished ISY planning committees and study groups and have s o l i c i t e d proposals f o r coordinated research p ro jec t s . P a r t i c i p a t i n g U.S. agencies inc lude the Nat ional Academy of Sciences, Nat ional Aeronaut ics and Space Admin is t ra t ion and Nat ional Oceanographic and Atmospheric Admin i s t ra t i on .

The most a c t i v e i n t e r n a t i o n a l group i s a c o a l i t i o n of agencies ca l l ed SAFISY [Space Agency Forum on ISY). This group,

made up o f 25 na t iona l agencies i s now d iv ided i n t o wor~ing groups and committees based on several top ics and continues to meet several times a year around the globe. At a recent meeting in Bad I sch l , Aus t r i a , more than bO s c i e n t i s t s from 14 count r ies met to review ISY p ro jec ts tha t eva luate the heal th of Earth by using s a t e l l i t e s in space. SAFISY selected ten p rp jec ts they are designing that w i l l r e s u l t in worldwide assessments, completed by 1992, o f such g lobal environmental th rea ts as the greenhouse e f f e c t , the po lar ozone hole and r a i n f o r e s t dep le t i on . A l i s t i n g o f these SAFISY sponsored ISY p ro jec t s i s provided in Appendix A: 2

Appendix A:

i . ENHANCED GREENHOUSE EFFECT DETECTION - - The United States w i l l lead the p r o j e c t , w i th p a r t i c i p a t i o n from many SAFISY member nat ions (as wi th a l l the p ro j ec t s l i s t e d below). The goal i s to determine i f the greenhouse e f f e c t produces a t e l l t a l e " f i n g e r p r i n t " or pa t te rn o f change in s a t e l l i t e - b a s e d g loba l data sets analyzed in ton ' junct ion w i t h ground data. The p ro j ec t w i l l examine h i s t o r i c s a t e l l i t e data sets and w i l l numer ica l l y model greenhouse e f f e c t de tec t i ons .

2. OCEAN VARIABILITY AND CLIMATE - - Led by Europe the p ro j ec t w i l l r e s u l t in space data f o r p r e d i c t i v e models f o r c l imate and ocean c i r c u l a t i o n in the Northeast A t l a n t i c , the Greenland Sea, and the t r o p i c a l A t l a n t i c Ocean, among o ther regions.

3. POLAR STRATOSPHERIC OZONE - - United States and West Germany w i l l co- lead. The p r o j e c t w i l l improve understanding o f changes in polar s t r a t o s p h e r i c ozone by combining space observat ions w i th measurements from the ground and from a i r c r a f t . The goal i s to provide data f o r models and f u t u re ozone dep le t ion p r e d i c t i o n s given expected emissions of na tura l and human-caused t race gases.

4. LAND COVER CHANGE - - France and the United States w i l l l i k e l y co- lead. The p r o j e c t w i l l p roduce annual maps, f o r the

years 1979 to 1989, of land cover change in s p e c i f i c g loba l regions and w i l l design a model f o r p red i c t i ng the consequences of land cover change.

5. PRODUCTIVITY OF THE GLOBAL OCEAN - - Led by Canada and the European Community's J o i n t Research Center, the goal of the p r o j e c t i s to produce global data sets as inputs to a p r e d i c t i v e model on the p r o d u c t i v i t y ( e . g . , vegeta t ion , marine l i f e ) and heal th of the oceans.

b. GLOBAL TROPICAL FOREST MONITORING - - B r a z i l and the European Community's Jo i n t Research Center w i l l co- lead. The p r o j e c t w i l l e s t a b l i s h f o r e s t monitor ing programs ca l l ed "World Forest Watch" and the "Pan Amazonian P r o j e c t , " w i l l use s a t e l l i t e data to de l i nea te fo res ted areas from non - fo res t regions, w i l l est imate d e f o r e s t a t i o n ra tes and w i l l produce g lobal maps of deforested regions f o r the years 1983 to 1991.

7. SEA SURFACE TEMPERATURE - - Led by the United Kingdom and Japan. The p ro jec t w i l l combine s a t e l l i t e observat ions to produce data sets of strong temperature v a r i a b i l i t y in the Western P a c i f i c , the North Sea, the Sea of Japan and the Eastern P a c i f i c , home of El Nino.

8. POLAR ICE EXTENT - - Europe and Japan w i l l co- lead t h i s e f f o r t to monitor and p red ic t changes in A r c t i c and An ta rc t i c ice reg ions, inc lud ing melt ing and f reez ing ra tes , sea ice motion and ice concent ra t ions . The p ro jec t w i l l perform a r e a l - t i m e ice moni tor ing demonstration in 1992.

9. GLOBAL CHANGE ENCYCLOPEDIA - - Led by Canada w i th s i g n i f i c a n t input from the United States, t h i s p ro j ec t w i l l use a v a r i e t y of s a t e l l i t e data nets to produce an animated, computer-based encyclopedia in 1992 showing changes over time in g lobal c l imate and atmosphere (clouds, ozone, temperatures , r a d i a t i o n , e t c . ) , ocean parameters (sur face temperature, wind speed, co l o r , ice e x t e n t ) , and land

changes (temperature, vegeta t ion changes, wetlands, popula t ion, e t c . )

I0. GLOBAL CHANGE ATLAS - - Led by Aus t r i a , the 300-page a t l a s w i l l inc lude hard-cover examples of the encyclopedia, w i th annotat ion and exp lanat ion of the s a t e l l i t e in fo rmat ion used. I t w i l l be d i s t r i b u t e d in Spring, 1992.

MTPE Day can take advantage of these e x c i t i n g programs and should focus publ ic a t t e n t i o n on these important a c t i v i t i e s and t h e i r r e s u l t s

In add i t i on to the s c i e n t i f i c b e n e f i t s , ISY can f u l f i l l a broader goal of I n t e r n a t i o n a l publ ic education and support. As envisioned by U.S. ~enator Matsunaga, "The ISY w i l l cons is t of

41st IAF Congreaa 301

space a c t i v i t i e s coordinated on a g lobal bas is , from space missions to classroom a c t i v i t i e s and publ ic expos i t i ons . I t w i l l be a year - long worldwide ce leb ra t i on of humanity 's f u tu re in space commemorating the 50Oth anniversary o f Columbus" voyage to the New World and the 35th anniversary of the I n t e r n a t i o n a l Geophysical Year, or IGY, that ushered in the space age." 3 MTPE Day is intended to focus some of t h i s a c t i v i t y during a p a r t i c u l a r time of year and around a s p e c i f i c theme f o r maximum world medial and as a r e s u l t , publ ic a t t e n t i o n .

Mission to Planet Earth Day w i l l be an i n t e r n a t i o n a l g rass - roo ts a c t i v i t y to inform people about how the space program can and i s bene f i t i ng our environment. Observance of t h i s day w i l l inc lude reg iona l conferences, publ ic symposiap educat ional programs, pub l ic r e l a t i o n s campaigns, and p o l i t i c a l ac t i on . NSS and US-ISY w i l l work w i th NASA, NOAA and the Nat ional Science Foundation to coordinate events in the United States and w i l l support s i m i l a r a c t i v i t i e s in the i n t e r n a t i o n a l community.

Nat ional Space Society President and th ree- t ime space s h u t t l e payload s p e c i a l i s t , Charles Walker was a member of the Earth Day advisory board f o r 1990. Numerous events were held across the United States in Apr i l sponsored by NSS Chapters. Examples of these p ro jec ts inc lude lec tures at elementary and secondary schools, presentat ions tO community-level governments, the host ing of environmental speakers at loca l space conferences, development of aud io -v i sua l presenta t ions and d isp lay booths at Earth Day-sponsored events and c o a l i t i o n - bu i l d ing w i th loca l environmental groups. NSS chapters and members were sponsors of a number o~ r a l l i e s and events. ~ppendix B inc ludes a de ta i l ed l i s t i n g of g rassroots events sponsored by NSS chapters f o r Earth Day 1990.

Appendix B - 4 Sample NSS Chapter A c t i v i t i e s sponsored f o r Earth Day 1990:

Ann Arbor, Michigan * Members went to local elementary schools and presented lec tures on so la r power s a t e l l i t e s $ Chapter represen ta t i ves cont r ibuted ideas toward Earth Day at regional town meeting

One of key members of the Earth Day C o a l i t i o n in that area

Anchorage, Alaska * Devoted Apr i l /May news le t te r to environmental and space issues and to Earth Day events in Alaska $ P a r t i c i p a t e d in loca l events wi th speakers and l i t e r a t u r e d i s t r i b u t i o n

A t l a n t a , Georgia Coordinated general meeting w i th S ie r ra

Club chapter; sponsored a S ie r ra Club speaker : P a r t i c i p a t e d in the Georgia Earth Day Steer ing Committee

Aust in , Texas * Developed a "Space and the Environment" s l i d e show along w i th a 15 page s c r i p t $ Invo lved in a Solar Fa i r

Held a booth during the loca l Earth Day c e l e b r a t i o n ; d i s t r i b u t e d 2,000 "Mission to Planet Earth" f l y e r s

B e l l e v i l l e , I l l i n o i s $ D i s t r i b u t e d F l ye rs at B e l l e v i l l e Area

Col lege Sponsored a speaker on the Madagascar

Ra in fo res t

Boston, Massachusetts and New Hampshire $ Attended the New England Environmental Conference at Tu f t s U n i v e r s i t y ; d i s t r i b u t e d f l y e r s and discussed e n v i r o - space issues

Chicago, I l l i n o i s $ Sponsored a booth a t L inco ln Park where more than 100,000 people gathered f o r a r a l l y

Held general membership meetings cover ing environmental aspects of space, inc lud ing an "Earth + Space = Environment" roundtable discussion

Focused e f f o r t w i th ch i l d ren ; drew murals of space ahd the environment and created models of Space Sta t ion Freedom * Planning major envi ro-space conference f o r 1992

Houston, Texas $ General meeting featured a speaker from Lockheed discussing "Earth as viewed from Space"

Sponsored a booth at the local Earth Day Expo

Planned f o l l o w - o n program wi th environmental focus

Lubbock, Texas Chapter members spoke at local

community events Sponsored a booth and s l i d e

presenta t ion at Earth Day Ral ly

Milwaukee, Wisconsin $ Presented a space d isp lay at the Earth Day Expo $ Received a number of f o l l ow-on speaking i n v i t a t i o n s to loca l environmental groups as a r e s u l t o f Earth Day p a r t i c i p a t i o n S Devoted e n t i r e A p r i l issue of chapter news le t te r to Earth Day and issues i n v o l v i n g space and the environment

Minneapo l is /S t . Paul, Minnesota $ Conducted.several d iscussions about Earth Day and our environmental f u tu re

Put Earth Day f i l e s on computer b u l l e t i n boards

Norman, Oklahoma $ Ran an open house a t a loca l remote sensing lab at the U n i v e r s i t y of Oklahoma

302 41st IAF Congress

Arranged a h ike, ove rn i gh t camp-out and te lescope v iewing w i th e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t s

Or lando, F l o r i d a I Co-sponsored event w i t h Ast ronaut Memorial Space Science Center on Earth Day at NASA's Kennedy Space Center S Held Earth Day p resen ta t i on at the general meeting Z Provided a c o l l e c t i o n of Earth images from EOSAT f o r d isp lay dur ing A p r i l

San Francisco~ C a l i f o r n i a Had a booth in Oakland Ear th Day Ra l l y

f e a t u r i n g s p e c i a l l y designed handouts on env i ro -space issues

St. Lou is , Missour i Sponsored e x h i b i t i o n at the two-day

"g l oba l f a i r " ; d i sp lay inc luded " E a r t h r i s e over Lunar Landscape" backdropj posters d e p i c t i n g envi ronmental mon i t o r i ng from space

Chapter-sponsored speakers presented the p o t e n t i a l b e n e f i t s to our p lanet t ha t would be der ived from the u t i l i z a t i o n of e x t r a t e r r e s t r i a l resources $ Sold d i sp lay merchandise of Landsat Images of St. Louis from space

Report tha t several people met a t the Expo booth have attended f u t u r e chapter meetings

Vandenberg, C a l i f o r n i a Had a d i sp lay booth at Santa Maria

V a l l e y ; e x h i b i t e d v ideo tape from TRW of Miss ion to Planet Earth and d i s t r i b u t e d brochures

D i s t r i b u t e d copies of the v ideo to the news media $ Ass is ted w i th a r e p o r t on t e l e v i s i o n s t a t i o n KSBY (NBC) cover ing space technology and saving the environment

Washington, D.C. Held a d i sp lay at three-day "Earth Day

Expo" held on the Mall near the Nat iona l A i r and Space Museum (est imated bO0,O00 a t tendance) ; e x h i b i t inc luded LANDSAT images and EOS d i s o l a y : l i t e r a t u r e on these issues was a lso d i s t r i b u t e d

While these a c t i v i t i e s i n d i v i d u a l l y may not seem to have a great impact j I have inc luded t h i s l i s t i n g of chapter events to show the o v e r a l l r e s u l t s t h a t can come from a focused e f f o r t . Local chapters and members w i l l make the most of coord inated a c t i v i t y by t a i l o r i n g i t to t h e i r community.

NSS Chapters r e p o r t tha t most o f these events were successfu]~ o f f e r i n g unique o p p o r t u n i t i e s to conduct outreach about our pro-space message as wel l as ga i n i ng a g rea te r understanding of issues r e l a t e d to space and the environment. The chapters met w i th va r i ous reac t i ons a t p u b l i c Earth Day e v e n t s , - r e p o r t i n g an approx imate 80% p o s i t i v e r e a c t i o n to our message. The other 20% were sometimes h o s t i l e to our presence at these events, c i t i n g environmental concerns over

severa l NASA programs ( s o l i d rocket motor p r o p e l l e n t being the most predominant concern) . A very small percentage of the p u b l i c commented tha t problems on Earth were more impor tan t than problems in space, and tha t we should h a l t a l l space e f f o r t s u n t i l our problems here are so lved. On balance, i t seems tha t the e n v i r o n m e n t a l l y conscious c i t i z e n , wh i l e not i n i t i a l l y aware of the connection between space and the environment, i s accept ing of these e f f o r t s once in formed.

The r e a c t i o n of the space a c t i v i s t community was a lso not 100% suppor t i ve of t h i s new env i ro -space c o a l i t i o n . A small percentage o f NSS members and chapters was openly h o s t i l e toward our e f f o r t s to cour t the envi ronmenta l community. Several chapters refused to p a r t i c i p a t e in loca l events~ and our spec ia l Earth Day issue of ~d Astra drew more than the usual nega t i ve responses. NSS cont inues to p u b l i s h an on-going d ia logue of membership debate over t h i s issue. Again~ on balance, when space advocates are made aware of the c r i t i c a l relationship between space and the environment, they support these coalition efforts.

The larger space movement as a whole, made up of many o r g a n i z a t i o n s , is deve lop ing environmental i n t e r e s t , i t i s impor tan t to f o l l o w up these a c t i v i t i e s w i th cont inued involvement . NSS is working w i th Earth Day o rgan ize rs to coord ina te a c t i v i t i e s f o r 1992. While an organized Earth Day ce l eb ra t i on has been held on ly tw ice (1970 and 1990), o rgan ize rs have expressed an i n t e r e s t in ex tend ing a c t i v i t i e s to an annual basis , poss ib ly us ing a v a r i e t y of themes to focus a t t e n t i o n to c r i t i c a l areas. NSS has proposed to Earth Day o rgan ize rs tha t the theme of "Mission to P lanet Ear th" be used f o r Earth Day 1992. We have not yet rece ived an o f f i c i a l response.

In a d d i t i o n , NSS and US ISY are working w i t h NASA to br ing together the leaders of the environmental movement to educate them about MTPE~ EOS, and the r o l e space plays in enhancing our understanding of g loba l change. Already one meeting has taken place at which o rgan ize rs from the Global Tomorrow C o a l i t i o n , World W i l d l i f e Fund~ and Natura l Resources Defense C o u n c i l discussed f u t u r e areas of cooperat ion. While some of these groups expressed concern over s p e c i f i c aspects of the space program, we have been able to f i n d s u b s t a n t i a l support f o r 1992-Mission to P lanet Ear th P r o j e c t s as we l l as the Earth Observat ion System. NSS and US ISY are p lann ing to sponsor a h i g h - l e v e l seminar a t which leaders of the major environmental groups w i l l be b r i e f e d by NASA on the environmental b e n e f i t s of the space program.

41st IAF CQn&re#8 30"3

Already~ numerous events are planned f o r ISY, many of which have an appropr ia te t i e - i n w i th Mission to Planet Earth Day. Planned ISY pub l ic events that prov ide a l i k e l y t i e - i n w i th MTPE Day ~nclude: E x h i b i t i o n s , which could have a f r e e admittance during the day; v ideo programs f o r broadcast, cable and educat ional t e l e v i s i o n could be promoted f o r a i r i n g during t h i s per iod; conferences, symposiums and l o c a l l y sponsored speakers. A l i s t of planned outreach a c t i v i t i e s and events is found

in appendix C.

Appendix C.

Theatre, Te lev i s i on - "Space Age" - "ISY Worldwide Music C e l e b r i t y Performance"

Education - Global Change Encyclopedia - Global Change At las - NASA/ISY i n t e r a c t i v e S a t e l l i t e Video- conference Series - NASA/ISY Spacelink - U .S . /Sov ie t Young Astronaut/Cosmonaut Pro jec ts - IEEE ISY Science In format ion Network - D i r e c t o r y of Education Resources f o r Earth Sciences -Student Earthwatch -Global Mosaic of S a t e l l i t e Imagery -Worldwide data base of s a t e l l i t e data a p p l i c a t i o n s - I n t e r n a t i o n a l Set of Resource M a t e r i a l s -NASA/National Science Teacher's Associat ion 1992 Student Program -PEACESAT -"Space Awareness" program in the U.S.

Conferences - I n t e r n a t i o n a l Student Space Congress - Space and the Environment ( to be held in Chicago)

Ar t and Music - Or ig ina l music composed f o r the ISY - "A r t of the Cosmos" - ISY Sculpture - Goodwil l space bal loons - ISY CNN Event - ISY Commemorative Stamp

U.N. Pro jec ts - Management o~ the Resources of the Earth and i t s Environment - Long-term Education Programs - Publ ic Education - e x h i b i t i o n s , videos~ EXPO p a r t i c i p a t i o n

I n t e r n a t i o n a l A c t i v i t i e s f o r )SY ( in add i t i on to SAFISY p ro jec t s )

-U.S.S.R: G i f t s of remote sensing

photographs to developing na t ions ; launch of eco log ica l module "P r i r oda " f o r Mar; launch of "Meteo" meteoro log ica l s a t e l l i t e s .

-Europe/aapan: Examination of ocean v a r i a b i l i t y and c l imate to examine t r o p i c a l r a i n f o r e s t s .

-Europe: T ra in ing course in microwave remote-sensing technology f o r the b e n e f i t o f A f r i can coun t r ies .

-South America: Organizat ion of a se r i es of press seminars on r a i n f o r e s t ecology; spec ia l p u b l i c a t i o n o f B r a z i l i a n Society f o r the Advancement of Science (publ ished in Spanish and Portuguese).

- A u s t r i a : Geospace w i l l develop cur r icu lum ma te r i a l s f o r primary and secondary schools and u n i v e r s i t i e s to in t roduce and apply bene f i t s o f s a t e l l i t e remote sensing.

- I t a l y : T ra in ing program f o r s c i e n t i s t s in developing count r ies to u t i l i z e data from f u t u r e space missions such as ISTP and UARS.

- A u s t r a l i a : Conference planned by U n i v e r s i t y o f Canberra to be held in Singapore in auly 1991 to plan ISY a c t i v i t i e s .

- I n d i a : Proposed " I n t e r n a t i o n a l School f o r Space Research", classrooms, labs, e tc . to t r a i n s c i e n t i s t and researchers~ summer teaching i n s t i t u t e s to be held at Punjabi U n i v e r s i t y ; const ruc t ion of a space science e x h i b i t i o n center fo r the general pub l i c .

-China: Space science seminar ~or teachers from developing count r ies , sponsored by the State Education Commission of China.

- P h i l i p p i n e s : Tra in ing workshop on space science and education f o r teachers in developing coun t r ies .

-Sw i t ze r land : O rb i t i ng U n i f i c a t i o n Ring S a t e l l i t e to o r b i t the Earth f o r severa) days.

A d d i t i o n a l l y , events whose ]SY themes are not s p e c i f i c a l l y targeted to the environment could bene f i t from the focused a c t i v i t y o f MTPE Day. Planned outreach a c t i v i t i e s that might be included in a broader range of p u b l i c - i n t e r e s t a t t e n t i o n are l i s t e d in Appendix D.

Appendix D.

Events - Columbus 500 Space Sai l Cup

Exh ib i t i on~ - "Where Next, Columbus?", National A i r and Space Museum

Theatre. T e ~ v i ~ i o n - "To The Stars" - Paramount P ic tu res 25th Anniversary o f Star Trek

304 41st IAF Congress

Educat ion Youth Space Education Week - 1992

- " V i s i o n s of E x p l o r a t i o n : Past, Present , Future"

"Together to Mars" - "ISY Comic Book" - "Space Arc" - "Quantum" ISY e d i t i o n - I n t e r n a t i o n a l Young Ast ronauts Space Jamboree 1992 - Student Payload Rocket Launching

Conferences - European ISY Conference - World Space Congress - 1992 P lanetary Congress - ASPRS - I n t e r n a t i o n a l Conference on Space I n f o rma t i on Systems

- 1992 SOAR - I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Development Conference

Each of these a c t i v i t i e s should focus some e f f o r t on p u b l i c outreach and educat ion f o r maximum e f f e c t i v e n e s s . ISY a c t i v i t i e s throughout the year can extend the MTPE Day c e l e b r a t i o n .

Already, groups tha t have heard about MTPE Day have begun to make plans. An o u t l i n e of s p e c i f i c MTPE Day p r o j e c t s

u n d e r d iscuss ion f o l l o w s :

Conferences A group of NSS Chapters from the

Midwest United States i s p lann ing a major two-day conference to be held in Chicago f o r "Mission to P lanet Ear th Day 1992." Prominent speakers in the f i e l d of the environment and space are being s o l i c i t e d (such as Jacques Cousteau and Carl Sagan). Programming f o r t h i s conference w i l l focus on the s ta tus and r e s u l t s o f such ISY p r o j e c t s as "Enhanced Greenhouse E f f e c t D e t e c t i o n , ' "Ocean V a r i a b i l i t y and Cl imate" and "Global T rop i ca l Forest M o n i t o r i n g . " In a d d i t i o n , pub l i c symposia are being planned by NSS chapters in e i g h t reg ions of the U.S. and in A u s t r a l i a :

- Washington, D.C. - Boston~ Massachusetts - Houston, Texas - Los Angeles, C a l i f o r n i a - A t l a n t a , Georgia - Denver, Colorado - S e a t t l e , Washington - St. Louis, Missour i - Sydney, ' A u s t r a l i a

P u b l i c F o r u m s These w i l l occur in con junc t ion w i th the symposia f o r the purpose of opening up d iscuss ion to the p u b l i c . Community leaders w i l l be i n v i t e d to express t h e i r ideas, w i th the i n t e n t to i n s p i r e p u b l i c d iscuss ion and debate.

Contest~: A. I n t e r n a t i o n a l Essay Contest - Poss ib le Topic Choices:

- C h i l d r e n of ages 12 and under: "Describe

Ear th as seer from space by an a l i e n from another p l a n e t . " -Ages 13 - 15: "Describe the changes in l i f e on Ear th in the year 2100 tha t w i l l r e s u l t from s tudy ing the Earth from space in 1992." Ages i b - 18: "Describe a poss ib le d iscovery found from s tudy ing the Earth from space ( through the use of remote

sensing systems such as EOS) and what soc ia l~ p o l i t i c a l and economic consequences t h a t d iscovery would b r i n g . " - o r "Suppose another p lanet was d iscovered t h a t could support the human species. Describe how you would i n t roduce the human presence to t h i s p l ane t . S p e c i f i c a l l y i l l u s t r a t e how you would design l i f e on t h i s new p lanet to avoid the envi ronmenta l problems tha t we now face on E a r t h . "

B. I n t e r n a t i o n a l P ro jec t Design Contest - Poss ib le Design Choices:

-For c h i l d r e n 18 and under: "The study of space i s v i t a l f o r improving l i f e on Ear th . Through a model, drawing, or some o ther c r e a t i v e dev ice, create what you fee l best i l l u s t r a t e s t h i s i dea . "

C. I n t e r n a t i o n a l Inventors Contest:

-For a l l age groups: "Using physical models, design technology tha t could be used in f u t u r e s tud ies of Earth from space. "

D. I n t e r n a t i o n a l Logo Contest:

- For a l l age groups: "Design an i n s i g n i a to be used wor ldwide tha t i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of the g loba l ac t i on : "Mission to P lanet E a r t h ' . "

School A c t i v i t i e s

A. Schools a t a l l l eve l s

- Speakers from both environmental and space groups. A day or I / 2 day event, w i t h organized p ro jec t s ( t ha t the speaker sets up). - Classroom a c t i v i t i e s - D i s t r i b u t i o n to se l ec t teachers throughout the world o f "Mission to P lanet Earth Day" issue of Teachino Soace. (separate e d i t i o n s f o r va r i ous educat iona l l e v e l s ) . - P a r t i c i p a t i o n in the I n t e r n a t i o n a l Contests.

B. For s tudents 15 and under

-Set up i n t e r n a t i o n a l oen 0al league. The s tudents o f p a r t i c i p a t i n g coun t r i es would rece ive a pen pal from a d i f f e r e n t na t i on to share ideas about what they, t h e i r country and t h e i r school are doing f o r "Mission to Planet Ea r t h . "

C. Students 16 and over

-Student "Mission to Planet Ear th" Congresses s~t uo around th~ wor ld .

4lst IAF Congress 305

O~ganiza t iona l s t r u c t u r e would i nc l ude a s tar# o r g a n i z e r and severa l c lass r e p r e s e n t a t i v e s ho ld ing monthly meetings and r e c e i v i n g m a t e r i a l s from NSS and US- ISY. A c t i v i t i e s would i nc lude organized s tudent l e t t e r w r i t i n g on env i ro -space issues to n a t i o n a l government leaders , development of MTPE Day events , loca l p r o j e c t con tes t , space and envi ronmenta l f a i r s , speakers and f i l m s .

CR~leqe "Mission To Planet Ear th" Act ion

- R a l l y f o r use of space technology to save the p lanet - L e t t e r w r i t i n g on env i ro -space issues to p o l i t i c a l leaders - P o l i t i c a l lobbying -M iss ion to Planet Earth Day A c t i v i t i e s : Student organized speakers, campus-wide f a i r s , f i l m s and media events

Community P ro jec ts

- I n t e r e s t e d NSS Chapters and space support o rgan i za t i ons would assoc ia te themselves w i th a s i s t e r envi ronmental o r g a n i z a t i o n loca l chapter to plan a c t i v i t i e s f o r MTPE Day in t h e i r loca l areas. Such a c t i v i t i e s might inc lude f a i r s , j o i n t l ec tu res at schools, f i e l d t r i p s ( i . e . nature walks, h ikes, space museum or p lane ta r ium/ observatory v i s i t s ) .

Mas~ Media /Pub l ic Awareness

-Press re leases o u t l i n i n g events s p e c i f i c to loca l areas -Documentary f i l m s and news c l i p s on MTPE Day loca l events - P u b l i c a t i o n of MTPE Day events in env i ronmenta l p u b l i c a t i o n s around the world

-Spec ia l issues of space support pub l i ca t i ons~ such as Ad Astra - P u b l i c a t i o n of book le ts o u t l i n i n g MTPE Day a c t i v i t i e s and p r o j e c t s , based on those publ ished by Earth Day o rgan ize rs in 1990 -Sa les of env i ronmen ta l l y safe bumper s t i c k e r s , t - s h i r t s , pos ters , buttons on MTPE Day - D i s t r i b u t i o n of NSS/Bushnell sponsored educa t iona l k i t , " S a t e l l i t e S c i e n t i s t "

P lanetar iums and Museums

-Arrange MTPE sh6ws and d i sp lays at p lane ta r iums and museums -Fea tu re l e c t u r e r s on v iewing the Earth from space and space from the Earth -Demonstrate EOS and o ther remote sensing technology through "hands-on" models -a r range j o i n t - sponso red programs among e x i s t i n g environmental and space programs a t museums

This va r i ed l i s t o f poss ib le MTPE Day p r o j e c t s i s intended to prov ide i n t e r e s t e d i n d i v i d u a l s and o rgan i za t i ons w i th ideas f o r p lanning t h e i r own programs. As w i th ISY as a whole.

out reach to and educat ion o f the general p u b l i c on the synergy between space programs and the environment w i l l only be e f f e c t i v e i f those o f us in the i n t e r n a t i o n a l space community take the i n i t i a t i v e . Th is theme was recognized by NASA A d m i n i s t r a t o r Richard T r u l y , in a speech on ISY: " C l e a r l y , g loba l problems r e q u i r e g l oba l s o l u t i o n s implemented on an i n t e r n a t i o n a l scale w i th the coopera t ion of a l l n a t i o n s . . . T h a t ' s why I t r u s t t h a t we . . . can count on your support and invo lvement to make ISY-the I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Year of 1992-a year to remember. . .and a year to ensure tha t the p rec ious g i f t s of Planet Ear th are passed on to f u t u r e g e n e r a t i o n s . " 5 Everyone i s i n v i t e d to p a r t i c i p a t e in one of these planned a c t i v i t i e s or to s t a r t a r e l a t e d p r o j e c t . MTPE Day i s intended to p rov ide a framework f o r wor ldwide p u b l i c a t t e n t i o n to be focused on the I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Year and i t s var ied a c t i v i t i e s .

The concept of "Mission to Planet Earth Day~" developed by US-ISY Pres ident Harvey Meyerson, was i n s p i r e d by the coopera t i ve e f f o r t s of NSS members dur ing Ear th Day 1990. In an e d i t o r i a l in the spec ia l "Ear th Day" issue of Ad As t ra . NSS member Richard F e r r a r i o u t l i n e d what has become the basis of MTPE Day:

"The issues and concerns of space a c t i v i s t s and e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t s are j b e l i e v e i t or no t , very s i m i l a r .

"While space a c t i v i s t s look to the s t a r s and the eventual se t t l ement of space, we and our descendants must s t i l l e s t a b l i s h homes on t h i s p l ane t . Even i f we are ab le to u t i l i z e space q u i c k l y , t h i s i s a very r e l a t i v e term. We can expect genera t ions to pass before space w i l l be access ib le to the average person.

" L i ke e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t s , we are very concerned about the damage tha t has been done and i s con t inu ing to occur to our wor ld . We f e e l a sense of loss and anger when an o i l tanker s p i l l s i t s cargo or when we hear o f vast t r a c t s of i r r e p l a c e a b l e r a i n f o r e s t being c leared. We understand tha t people have to begin working towards s o l u t i o n s about how to use our resources respons ib ly and what the r a m i f i c a t i o n s of development are.

"Un l i ke some e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t s , however, space a c t i v i s t s look to the development, recovery of resources and the eventual se t t l ement of space as par t of the o v e r a l l s o l u t i o n to the problems we face on Ear th .

" In the near term, we can and do use space tO moni tor our e x i s t i n g resources and to d iscover new ones. We a lso u t i l i z e space to t rack the e f f e c t s of p o l l u t i o n and c l ima te changes caused by occurrences l i k e the hole in our ozone layer and the inc reas ing d e s e r t i f i c a t i o n

306 41st IAF Congress

of the p l a n e t . Weather s a t e l l i t e s save l i v e s and p r o p e r t y by a c c u r a t e l y p r e d i c t i n g g l o b a l weather c o n d i t i o n s . Communicat ions s a t e l l i t e s a l l o w us r e a l - t ime q l imoses o f h i s t o r y i n the makino - - i n B e r l i n , i n China i n South A f r i c a .

" I n the f u t u r e , we w i l l be d e v e l o p i n g the m a t e r i a l r esou rces o f the Moon and the a s t e r o i d s as w e l l as e s t a b l i s h i n g o r b i t a l power f a c i l i t i e s and m a n u f a c t u r i n g s t a t i o n s . Power s t a t i o n s t h a t harness the Sun 's energy and d i r e c t i t to Ea r th w i l l ease and e v e n t u a l l y e l i m i n a t e the need to burn f o s s i l f u e l s .

" E v e n t u a l l y , the e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f human c o l o n i e s , both i n o r b i t around the E a r t h and on the l una r s u r f a c e , w i l l r e l i e v e p ressures on our t i r e d o ld home. One o f the reasons our ecosystem i s under tremendous pressure i s our e x p l o d i n g w o r l d p o p u l a t i o n . More peop le means more use o f a l ready d w i n d l i n g p r e c i o u s resou rces , making i t i n c r e a s i n g l y d i f f i c u l t to p reserve and p r o t e c t our env i r onmen t . Can we in 9ood consc ience , j u s t i g y p r e s e r v i n g l a r g e t r a c t s o f open land f o r b u f f a l o , e l e p h a n t s , t i g e r s and pandas when c h i l d r e n are s t a r v i n g to death? Can we m o r a l l y p reven t d r i l l i n g f o r o f f s h o r e o i l when peop le are f r e e z i n g ? How can we r e s p o n s i b l y reques t c o u n t r i e s l i k e B r a z i l and o t h e r d e v e l o p i n g T h i r d World n a t i o n s not to use t h e i r resources to t r y to improve c o n d i t i o n s f o r t h e i r own people?

"What I am sugges t i ng here i s t h a t t h e r e i s more than one s o l u t i o n to our prob lems. I t makes p e r f e c t sense t h a t space a c t i v i s t s and e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t s work t o g e t h e r towards i m p r o v i n g our env i ronmen t and imp rov ing what the f u t u r e ho ld f o r us a l l . We can be power fu l a l l i e s i n a cause t h a t a l r eady a f f e c t s us and w i l l c o n t i n u e to a f f e c t us even more i n the f u t u r e .

"The r e l a x a t i o n o f t e n s i o n s between the East and the West a f f o r d s us a go lden o p p o r t u n i t y . Na t i ons can r e d i r e c t energy and resources away f rom defense and towards more p o s i t i v e p u r s u i t s . Perhaps e n v i r o n m e n t a l i ssues coupled t o resea rch and development f o r s p a c e - r e l a t e d p r o j e c t s can share i n the s o - c a l l e d "peace d i v i d e n d . '

"We shou ld not be n a i v e enough to b e l i e v e t h a t we are "ou t o f the woods" as f a r as n a t i o n a l i s t i c t endenc ies are concerned. But I do b e l i e v e t h a t humanity i s beg inn ing to see i t s e l f as p a r t o f one spec ies r a t h e r than many i n d i v i d u a l n a t i o n a l i t i e s . Space t r a v e l has a l l owed us t o look back and v iew our wo r l d as the un ique and f r a g i l e p l a n e t i t i s . As a space a c t i v i s t , I a l s o r e a l i z e t h a t Ea r th w i l l a lways have s p e c i a l meaning t o humani ty .

" I suggest t h a t space a c t i v i s t s and e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t s w o r k t o g e t h e r toward l i v i n g w i t h n a t u r e on Ear th and expanding i n t o the S o l a r System on a permanent bas i s . A space a c t i v i s t can f e e l l i k e an

e n v i r o n m e n t a l i s t and v z c e versa .

" A p r i l 22, E a r t h Day 1990, p r o v i d e s us w i t h a p e r f e c t o p p o r t u n i t y to show t h a t we can work t o g e t h e r as a group towards a common g o a l : the p r e s e r v a t i o n o f our home w o r l d and the expans ion o f the human race i n t o the S o l a r System and beyond. " 6

The space movement p r o f i t e d g r e a t l y f rom i t s i n v o l v e m e n t w i t h Ea r th Day 1990. Space e n t h u s i a s t s have had the o p p o r t u n i t y to l e a r n a g r e a t deal about the harm being done to our p l a n e t ' s f r a g i l e e n v i r o n m e n t . At the same t ime , members o f e n v i r o n m e n t a l o r g a n i z a t i o n s have ga ined some exposure to the r o l e t h a t space can p lay in work ing to i d e n t i ~ y and r e v e r s e t h i s damage. Deve lop ing t h i s r e l a t i o n s h i p f u r t h e r i s one o f the goa ls o f ISY and o~ MTPE Day. ISY p u b l i c a c t i v i t i e s have been modeled a f t e r major p u b l i c h o l i d a y s t h a t have thousands o f g r a s s r o o t s a c t i v i t i e s d e d i c a t e d to a common theme. To use an American example, ISY and Miss ion to P l a n e t Ea r th Day are analogous to the U.S. b i c e n t e n n i a l in 1976 and i t s yea r - long c e l e b r a t i o n , w i t h the peak o f a c t i v i t i e s focused on the Four th o f J u l y . 7 ISY p u b l i c a c t i v i t i e s should a l s o be focused on a s p e c i f i c t ime o f year f o r maximum impac t . Another obv ious t ime o f focused a c t i v i t y w i l l occur ( e s p e c i a l l y in the U.S . ) on Columbus Day. Themes f o r

t h i s t ime o f year w i l l most l i k e l y cen te r on e x p l o r a t i o n and d i s c o v e r y . MTPE Day p lans can a s s i s t in deve lop ing these a d d i t i o n a l a c t i v i t i e s .

I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Year and Miss ion to P l a n e t Ea r th Day w i l l be an i d e a l o p p o r t u n i t y f o r i n d i v i d u a l s in the space and e n v i r o n m e n t a l movements to work toward a common goal o f a b e t t e r u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f the damage being done to our p l a n e t . We can then work t o g e t h e r on ways to p rese rve our env i ronmen t . NSS and US-ISY are work ing to c o o r d i n a t e e x i s t i n g p r o j e c t s as w e l l as i n s p i r e new ones to b r i n g t h i s focus o f a c t i v i t y to the w o r l d w i d e genera l p u b l i c .

For i n f o r m a t i o n on p a r t i c i p a t i n g in MTPE Day p lease c o n t a c t :

Doug Fu lmer , F i e l d C o o r d i n a t o r N a t i o n a l Space Soc ie t y 922 P e n n s y l v a n i a , Ave. , SE Washington, D.C. 20003

Renee Twombly U.S. I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Year A s s o c i a t i o n bOO Maryland Ave . , SW Washington, D.C. 20024

41st IAF Con&ress 307

R e f e r e n c e s :

I Meyerson, Harvey, US ISY Associat ion, "1992: I n te rna t i ona l Space Year" f ac t sheet

2 U.S. ISY, News Release, "Sc ien t i s t s Meet in Aust r ia to Review ISY 'Mission to Planet Earth" Pro jec ts " , February, 1990

3 U.S. Senate Proceedings~ testimony by Senator Spark Matsunaga, Conaresslonal Record, March 9, 1989

4 Phone in terv iews wi th NSS Chapter leaders, conducted by NSS in te rn , Janine Berkowitz, May 2 - 15, 1990

5 Tru ly j Richard: Remarks fo r the " I n t e r n a t i o n a l Space Year Publ ic Informat ion Conference fo r Commerce and Indus t ry " , July 17, 1989, Washington, D.C.

b Fer ra r i , Richard "Out of the Woods?", Ad Astra, A p r i l , 1990

7 Meyerson, Harvey, US-ISY Associat ion, "1992: In te rna t iona l Space Year" fac t sheet

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Forman, Brenda, "Defending the Only Planet We've Got", Space Tracks ~ u ~ e t i n , May, 1990

Fulmer, Doug, "Understanding Spaceship Ear th" , del ivered at the In te rna t iona l Space Development Conference, May 2b-28, 1990

Garverj Lo r i , "Bui ld a Space Const i tuency", Soace News, Vol. i , No.3, January 29-February 4, 1990

Gauthier, Daniel , "Sov ie t Missions to Ear th" , Ad As,rap A p r i l , 1990

ISY Mission to Planet Earth Conference Report, Durham, New Hampshire, Apr i l 29 - May I t 1988

Keesey, Lor i "EOS: The $17 B i l l i o n Question"j Ad Astra, Apr i l 1990

NASA, CNES, ESA, "Train ing in Remote-Sensing Appl icat ions: Space and Education", Report of the Deauvi l le Conference on Education and App l ica t ions , 12-15 February 1990

National Space Society Annual Reoort, 1990

Sietzen, Frank J r . , "Database Ear th" , Ad A~tra, Apr i l 1990

"Turning a New Leaf: Di rect ions fo r the ' 9 0 ' s " , Proceedings from the Environmental Education Conference, March 16-18, 1990

U.S. ISY~ News Release. "Sc ien t i s t s Meet in Austr ia to Review ISY "Mission to Planet Earth" Pro jec ts " , February, 1990