A New Mars - the View from Mars Global Surveyor

Exploration of the planets is not an easy task. Mars Global Surveyor has had its share of
challenges as it begins a two-year mapping mission.

Joseph G. Beerer, flight operations manager for Mars Global Surveyor, will present "A New
Mars - the View from Mars Global Surveyor" at a colloquium at 2 p.m. Tuesday, June 1, at NASA
Langley's H.J.E Reid Conference Center.

Beerer will share some new insights into our most hospitable neighboring planet, the tumult
of managing the operations of this dramatic new exploration, as well as describe NASA's
continuing program of robotic exploration of Mars.

Media Briefing:

A media briefing will be held at 1:15 p.m. in the Wythe Room of the Reid Conference
Center, 14 Langley Blvd. at NASA Langley.

Mars Global Surveyor (MGS), since arriving at the red planet in September 1997, has begun
a decade of intensive exploration, providing an impressive new view in spectacular detail.

Beerer will introduce new instrumentation, much advanced since the last global view of
Mars 20 years ago, and discuss how it is just beginning to reveal a new understanding of the
atmosphere, surface and interior of the planet.

Prior to his current position at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Beerer was Surveyor
mission design manager during the development phase and engineering office manager on the
Mars Observer project. He joined JPL in 1969 as an engineer in the Mission Design Section and
has worked on a variety of spacecraft missions.

Beerer earned his bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering in 1964 from the
University of Colorado and a master of science degree in astrodynamics in 1969 from the
University of California at Los Angeles.

The public is invited to the Sigma Series lecture at the Virginia Air and Space Center that
evening at 7:30.

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