| Bernard Foing | |
|---|---|
| Born | France |
| Alma mater | Ecole Normale Supérieure of Education & Technology[1] |
| Known for | Principal Project Scientist for SMART-1 |
Bernard Foing is a scientist at the European Space Agency (ESA),[2] Executive Director of the International Lunar Exploration Working Group (ILEWG)[3] and was Principal Project Scientist for SMART-1, the first European mission to the Moon.[4]
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Born in France,[1] Bernard Foing has a PhD in Astrophysics and Space Techniques.[5] He worked 3 years in Chile as an astronomer for the European Southern Observatory (ESO),[5] the French embassy, and as Professor of Astrophysics.[1] A researcher at French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) since 1986,[6] Foing obtained the Habilitation for direction of research in 1990.[6] At ESA since 1993, he is Senior Research Coordinator at the Research and Scientific Support Department.[5] He was president of ILEWG in 1998-2000 and now is their Executive Director.[5]
Foing is known as the father of SMART-1.[3][7] Serving as Principal Project Scientist from conception in 1996,[4] SMART-1 was the first European mission to the Moon.[8] SMART-1's goals were both technological and scientific.[9] First in a series of "Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology",[9] SMART-1 was used to test new state-of-the art instruments such as a solar-electric primary propulsion system.[10] SMART-1 also performed scientific observations of the Moon including determining the Moon's mineralogical composition and the presence and quantity of water in the craters at the Moon's south pole.[10] Launched on September 27, 2003,[11] SMART-1 entered lunar orbit in November 2004[12] and continued orbit until it was intentionally crashed into the lunar surface on September 3, 2006.[13][14] Said Foing, "SMART-1 data are helping to choose future landing sites for robotic and possible manned missions, and its instruments are upgraded and being flown again on the next generation of lunar satellites."[15]
Foing is an organic chemist for Mars Express,[16] a space exploration mission by the European Space Agency.[17] Launched on June 2, 2004,[18] Mars Express is the first planetary mission attempted by the agency.[17] Foing is also co-investigator of the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) for the Mars Express orbiter.[19] The HRSC is a high-resolution camera that can make full-color 3-D images of Mars's surface.[20] The camera can also zoom in for a closer look and may be helpful in identifying useful landing sites for future Mars missions.[20]
Foing has published over 400 articles, including 160 refereed papers, in lunar and planetary science and exploration, solar/stellar physics and astrobiology.[1] He edited 16 books and organized over 50 international conferences and symposia.[1]