Space Sciences Laboratory

Commissioning of the twin ESCAPADE spacecraft (Blue & Gold) is proceeding smoothly. The Rocket Lab and University of California, Berkeley ops team tested the VISIONS cameras (provided by Northern Arizona University). There’s not too much to see this far from Mars, but Gold snapped this selfie of its solar panel in visible and infrared light. The sensitivity of these shots tells us that ESCAPADE has a good chance at imaging Martian aurora from orbit. The infrared images will be used to study how the Martian surface heats and cools across days and seasons.👇 https://lnkd.in/gESgA4Px

Thank you Cole Dorman, PhD candidate at the University of Michigan College of Engineering, for taking part in our instrumentation & technology seminar. We were excited to learn about your work developing magnetometers for satellite missions and your contributions to NASA's TRACERS mission.

Our associate director for planetary science Rob Lillis spoke with the New York Times about the long journey getting the trailblazer ESCAPADE mission into space. "This mission has nine lives," Lillis said. https://lnkd.in/gBAHzHsj

Our mission operations director Abhishek Tripathi spoke with Scientific American on the recently launched ESCAPADE mission. "If you can demonstrate that you can go to Mars with two spacecraft for around $100 million, that greatly bolsters the case for more commercial efforts, more university efforts."

Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket has successfully launched NASA’s ESCAPADE mission to Mars from Cape Canaveral. ESCAPADE is the first UC Berkeley–led planetary mission, using two twin satellites, Blue and Gold, to map Mars’ magnetic field and atmosphere in 3D.

Photos from today's launch party for NASA's ESCAPADE, carried to space by Blue Origin's New Glenn 2.

They said it couldn't be done: build two interplanetary probes for 1/10th of the typical cost, and do it in America. As we stand just 3 days from launching our twin probes Blue and Gold to Mars on a Blue Origin rocket, I can say WE DID IT. I'm just SO proud of the ESCAPADE team. For all those at our University of California, Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory and our steadfast partners at Rocket Lab, Advanced Space, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, what a long strange journey this has been. Counted out more than once, the team dug deep to pull ourselves back on track every time, always with the staunch support of NASA HQ. Let's launch these puppies on Sunday and start writing a new chapter in planetary science. Image: John Grinold and Ellen Taylor in front of the twins at Astrotech Space Operations, LLC, recently mated to the ESPA ring before encapsulation inside New Glenn-2.

🚀 Launch Alert | We're targeting New Glenn's second launch no earlier than Sunday, November 9, from LC-36. NG-2 will send NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration's ESCAPADE twin spacecraft on their journey to Mars and carry a Viasat technology demonstration for NASA's Communications Services Project.

Final big milestone before launching the ESCAPADE Twins to Mars!! https://lnkd.in/exFhe8R5

The ESCAPADE mission was covered by the Daily Californian. Principal investigator Rob Lillis told the Daily Cal: “Understanding the space weather environment near Mars is...of practical importance as we plan to send humans to Mars.” https://lnkd.in/ecEj2yrH