2 – Every Twenty-Six Months

In the second episode of the WeMartians Podcast, we explore the topic of Launch Windows, answering questions like “why do they happen?”, “when do they happen?”, and “are any windows more important than others?” From there, we’ll talk about Mars’ windows specifically. Then follow along as we explore the two mission profiles in the upcoming launch windows in March – the delayed InSight mission from NASA and the European Space Agency’s ExoMars 2016 mission, including the Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) and Schiaparelli Entry and Landing Demonstrator. Audio links from the show Bruce Banerdt – Von Karman Lecture Series on InSight Scott Hubbard, joint press conference with Planetary Society and Mars Society (courtest of the New Atlantis) Walter Cugno and Alvaro Giménez on ExoMars Giancinto Gianfiglio on ExoMars Thomas Walloschek on ExoMars Loïc Trompet on NOMAD Antonio Gracia Berná on CaSSIS Other links ESA’s ExoMars 2016 Mission Page A Sensitive Search for Methane on Mars NASA audio used under public domain. All others used under fair use policy. WeMartians Theme Song is “RetroFuture” by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/