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The Planetary Report • November/December 2010
The Year in Pictures
On the Cover: Only a few privileged people were able to see this year's total solar eclipse on July 11, as it made landfall only in the Cook Islands, Easter Island, and the southernmost tip of Chile. This spectacular composite of digital images obtained from Easter Island during totality reveals subtle details of the Sun's corona as well as features on the nearside of the Moon illuminated by Earthshine.
Features
4 Your Place in Space: Looking Aft, Looking Forward: Bill Nye reflects on the society's 30th anniversary.
6 The Quest to Explore Mercury: Peter D. Bedini and Louise M. Prockter look at the history of exploring Mercury and the MESSENGER mission.
12 2010: The Year in Pictures: Emily Stewart Lakdawalla showcases the year in space.
18 LightSail Update: Assembling the Spacecraft: Louis D. Friedman gives us an update on this exciting Planetary Society project.
20 We Make it Happen! Shoemaker NEO Grants: Bruce Betts announces this year's winners.
Departments
22 Members' Dialogue Robotic vs. manned space exploration
22 World Watch Congress' NASA authorization bill
23 Society News A new global volunteer coordinator, and voluneer spotlight
The Planetary Report • November/December 2010
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