We are living in an extraordinary era of Mars Exploration. Several
missions have already profoundly changed our perceptions of the
Red Planet. In this decade, NASA, Japan, and the European Space
Agency will continue to send spacecraft armed with a variety of
instruments to explore Mars.
With enthusiasm and interest in Mars at an all-time high, ASTC
is pleased to offer this second tour of MarsQuest. This exhibition
brings a new age of exploration to the public by taking
them to several important destinations on Mars. Along the way,
interactive exhibit components introduce visitors to the methods
that scientists use to explore Mars and provide an engaging context
for the many discoveries that are being made.
Additional support from the National Science Foundation has allowed
the MarsQuest development team, led by the Space Science
Institute (SSI), to reassess each exhibit component for effectiveness
and ease of maintenance, ensure that all components are in excellent
condition, and—most importantly—add several new components.
These include an enhanced area on the Search for Life, a Mars
Weather Station, a slice of a Mars meteorite that can be viewed
through a polarizing microscope, and a full-scale model of a Mars
Exploration Rover on loan from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Like sightseers in a national park on Earth, visitors to MarsQuest
see some of the wonders of Mars, such as the solar system's largest
volcano and a canyon as long as the continental United States.
Along the way, interactive exhibit components introduce visitors
to tools scientists use to explore Mars and some of their most
recent discoveries. This exhibition was developed by the Space
Science Institute with funding from the National Science Foundation
and NASA.
Sixteen interactive displays and seven computer
stations allow visitors to:
Educational materials and programs include:
Educator guide and docent guide
MarsQuest Online
An optional 40-minute planetarium show narrated
by Patrick Stewart is available from Loch Ness Productions.
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