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MESUR, the ''M''ars ''E''nvironmental ''SUR''vey was a NASA program designed to explore the planet Mars in preparation for human follow-up missions of the Space Exploration Initiative. The only mission of the program that was completed was MESUR Pathfinder. ==History== MESUR was a planned set of 16 surface missions on Mars that would also set up a planetary network across Mars and work in conjunction with Mars Observer.〔Christian Science Monitor, "(LAUNCH WINDOW NEARS FOR MARS OBSERVER )", ''Robert C. Cowen'', 5 July 1992 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 The original plan was proposed by NASA Ames,〔Businessweek, "(THE LILLIPUTIANS WHO MAY CONQUER MARS )", ''Eric Schine'', 9 September 1991 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 but it would eventually include ideas from the competing JPL proposal. It was envisioned as a low-cost method of surveying Mars, with risk tolerance, since a loss of a spacecraft was not fatal to the program, because of multiple relatively cheap space probes. MESUR Pathfinder would be the ''pathfinder'' mission for the MESUR program. MESUR regular missions would start landing in 1999. The multi-year MESUR would have 16 more landers, landing in the projected period of 1999-2003,〔Associated Press, "(NASA UNVEILS PROTOTYPE OF MARS ROVERS )", 27 June 1992 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 and lasting 10 years.〔New York Times, "(After 17 Years, NASA Prepares for a Return Trip to Mars )", ''JOHN NOBLE WILFORD'', 22 September 1992 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 Launches would start in 1996.〔Deseret News, "(SMALL INSTRUMENTS CUT COST OF MARS EXPLORATION )", ''Joseph Bauman'', 16 September 1993 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 Several of the landers would carry ''Soujourner''-class rovers.〔Deseret News, "(FIRM'S X-RAY WINDOWS BLAST OFF FOR MARS IN '96 )", ''Dennis Romboy'', 8 June 1995 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 The entire program was projected at a cost of $1 billion US, with per annum spending restricted to $150 million US, starting in FY1994. They were planned to be low-cost missions to Mars, instead of multibillion-dollar missions.〔New York Times, "(NASA Plans an Economy Flight to the Solar System's Last Stop )", ''JOHN NOBLE WILFORD'', 8 September 1992 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 The rovers and landers would have instruments and cameras to examine surface rocks, search for water, perform seismography, and observe meteorology. The seismology experiments would help determine the internal structure of Mars. After Pathfinder, in 1999, four landers would be launched in a single rocket. At the next launch window in 2001, four more landers would again launch in on a single rocket. Finally in 2003, the last eight landers would launch on two rockets.〔New York Times, "(SCIENCE WATCH; NASA Seeks to Send 16 Landers to Mars )", ''JOHN NOBLE WILFORD'', 12 May 1992 (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 On 26 June 1992, NASA unveiled the prototype for Mars Sojourner, ''Rocky IV'', on the 25th anniversary of the first US lunar lander.〔 After the loss of ''Mars Observer'', the MESUR program was shelved, and ''Pathfinder'' became part of the NASA Discovery Program.〔Jane's, "(Mars Pathfinder (United States), SPACECRAFT - SCIENTIFIC )" (accessed 20 Feb 2009)〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「MESUR」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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