Bernard Foing

Bernard Foing
A picture of a male squating next to a Martian lander. He is wearing a red styled tie over a white collared shirt. In the backdrop is a Martian landscape.
Born France
Alma mater Ecole Normale Supérieure of Education & Technology[1]
Known for Principal Project Scientist for SMART-1

Bernard Foing is a French 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]

Biography

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]

SMART-1

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]

Mars Express

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]

Bibliography

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]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "MDRS: Crew 77 Biographies". The Mars Society. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  2. ↑ "Synthesis of SMART-1 lunar results for future exploration | Lunar Science Forum 2009". NASA. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Moon Seen as Laboratory for Life". Space.com. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Our 8th Continent, the Moon". Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "SMART-1 Mission Operations and Lunar Results". China National Space Administration. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "RSSD - Internal seminars 2006". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  7. ↑ Highfield, Roger (2008-04-17). "I'll grow marigolds on the moon, says scientist". London: Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  8. ↑ "Europe probe arrives at the Moon". BBC News. 2004-11-16. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 "ESA Portal - United Kingdom - SMART-1: the lunar adventure begins". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "ESA Science & Technology: SMART-1". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  11. ↑ "SMART-1 Space Probe Slams into the Moon". Space.com. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  12. ↑ Choi, Charles Q. (2007-09-17). "The enduring mysteries of the moon". USA Today. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  13. ↑ "Spacecraft crashes onto Moon". Cosmos. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  14. ↑ "ESA - SMART-1 - Intense final hours for SMART-1". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  15. ↑ "SMART-1's bridge to the future exploration of the Moon". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  16. ↑ Perlman, David (2004-04-02). "Methane found in Mars atmosphere / Scientist offers a few theories for presence of gas exuded by life forms". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Mars Express sees its first water". European Space Agency. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  18. ↑ "Europe goes to Mars". BBC News. 2003-06-03. Retrieved 2009-08-30.
  19. ↑ "Bernard H. Foing". École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. Retrieved 2009-08-29.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 "Mars Express". Discover Magazine. Retrieved 2009-08-30.

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