NEO’s are mostly known to be
asteroids and comets. The interest in NEO’s is not only for the
prevention of an impact, but also for scientific study to better
understand how our solar system was formed. In this interview, you
will hear Paul talk about ongoing JAXA (Japanese Space Agency) and
NASA missions of two vehicles visiting different asteroids. Both of
which will reach their destinations in 2018 and will extract
samples to bring back to Earth for analysis. Various minerals and
even water are expected to be discovered. These samples might not
only solve the mysteries of the solar system, but they could also
provide solutions for long duration deep space exploration. For
example, the minerals and water found in these asteroids could
later be used as resources for traveling vehicles headed to Mars.
Paul is an expert in his field which makes him the primary contact
at NASA with regards to small body exploration and potentially
hazardous asteroids. To him and his team, every day is Asteroid
Day, but on June 30th he’ll be more busy than usual speaking to the
media and space enthusiasts about asteroids.
Inspiration
and Education As a little boy growing up in Canada, Paul
was able to see the auroras quite frequently. He would lay down in
the snow and watch the auroras, satellites and meteorites dance
across the night sky. From an early age, he knew what he wanted to
do when he grew up and stayed the course. He went on to obtain the
following degrees: B.A. in Astronomy and Physics - Colgate
University M.S. in Space Studies, Minor in Geology - University of
North Dakota Ph.D. in Geology - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
Recognition In recognizing Paul's contributions to
Near Earth Orbit research and exploration studies, Asteroid 8139
(1980 UM1) was named Paulabell. Paul Abel bio and NASA’s ARES
directorate:
https://ares.jsc.nasa.gov/people/individualbios/showbio.pl…
NASA’s Osiris-Rex mission to Asteroid Bennu:
https://www.nasa.gov/osiris-rex JAXA’s
Hayabusa 2 mission to Asteroid Ryugu:
http://global.jaxa.jp/projects/sat/hayabusa2/
By Ana Guzman ideaXme Space ambassador. Follow: Ana Guzman @mupwa
and ideaXme @ideaxm
Who would
you like to meet? What question would you like to ask that person?
Paul's answer: "I would like to have met Gene Roddenberry, the
of Star Trek. When I was about 5
years old I used to watch Star Trek re-runs late at night with my
mother. It was a very special time for me and I was enthralled by
the crew and their adventures as they explored strange new worlds
and boldly went where no one had gone before. It was a terrific
show and one that helped to inspire my interest in astronomy and my
eventual career at NASA. I would have liked to have had an
afternoon with him discussing his inspirations for the show and the
challenges he faced trying to get his vision of the future on 1960s
television. It was not all about the space travel and encounters
with aliens, but also about exploring humanity in all of its
aspects. I would be keenly interested to see if he saw any
parallels between what is happening now here on Earth and his Star
trek universe. And more importantly, if he had any insight into
humanity's future with respect to our space