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Comets, Asteroids and the Interplanetary Shooting Gallery
Comets, Asteroids and the Interplanetary Shooting Gallery
presented by Dr. Donald K. Yeomans
Manager, NASA’s Near Earth Object Program Office
For
the 2001 schedule and archived webcasts, please contact
Audio Visual Services at 818.354.6170.
If you don't have RealPlayer,
you can download the free RealPlayer 8 Basic.
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Thursday, June 20
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The von Kármán Auditorium at JPL
4800 Oak Grove Drive
Pasadena, CA
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Friday, June 21
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The Vosloh Forum at Pasadena City College
1570 East Colorado Blvd.
Pasadena, CA
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Both lectures begin at 7 p.m.
Admission is free. Seating is limited.
For more information, call (818) 354-0112.
In four decades of solar system exploration, we have witnessed the first voyages to the Moon and eight of the nine major planets, as well as to four asteroids and two comets. These explorations have provided abundant evidence for the presence of water and the occurrence of catastrophic collisions of comets and asteroids with the planets, the natural satellites, and each other.
The formation and evolution of intelligent life depends critically on the presence of liquid water, carbon-based molecules, and a relatively stable environment, and the absence of impacts or other conditions that would halt the evolutionary process. This presentation will describe the role of comets and asteroids in bringing the building blocks of life to the early Earth and in punctuating the subsequent evolutionary process, and the steps being taken today to ensure that a future asteroid or comet will not further affect the evolutionary process.
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