Robotic Exploration of the Solar System Part 4 The Modern Era 2004 2013 [Paperback]

In Robotic Exploration of the Solar System, Paolo Ulivi and David Harland provide a comprehensive account of the design and management of deep-space missions, the spacecraft involved  some flown, others not  their instruments, and their scientific results.

This fourth volume in the series covers the period 2004 to the present day and features:

• coverage of the Rosetta and Curiosity missions up to the end of 2013
• coverage of Mars missions since 2005, including the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, Phoenix and Fobos-Grunt, plus a description of plans for future robotic exploration of the Red Planet
• coverage of all planetary missions launched between 2004 and 2013, including the Deep Impact cometary mission, the MESSENGER Mercury orbiter, the New Horizons Pluto flyby and the Juno Jupiter orbiter
• the first complete description of the Chinese Change 2 asteroid flyby mission ever published
• extensive coverage of future missions, including the European BepiColombo Mercury orbiter and international plans to revisit the most interesting moons of Jupiter and Saturn.

This superbly illustrated volume explores the technology of recent space probes  including their data processing systems and scientific instrumentation. It includes material on NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and looks ahead to future developments.