Dear Planetary Society Members,




We need your help in supporting the Aurora Program!Members and other friends and colleagues in the UK have asked that we pass this important information along to you.




Aurora is a long-term program set up by the European Space Agency (ESA) to
explore the Moon and Mars, initially with robotic probes, leading the way
for manned missions to both targets.




How is it different from the American proposal?
In January 2004, the U.S. President proposed future missions "to the Moon,
Mars and beyond", though, at present, there is no definition as to what
types of missions will be included or how they will be achieved. In
contrast, Aurora has a defined program of missions, and the first two are
already in progress: SMART-1 is currently en route to the Moon, testing a
new ion-drive propulsion method, and Mars Express is in orbit around the Red Planet, sending back spectacular data.




Why should the UK be involved?




The UK has shown itself to be enthusiastic and supportive of space science,
and involvement in Aurora will offer opportunities for various branches of
science, engineering, and research. Additionally, a MORI (Market & Opinion
Research International) poll showed that the general public looks on space
exploration as a source of inspiration and national pride. Also, very
importantly, Aurora will provide inspiration for the next generation of
scientists and engineers.




Why is action needed now?




Funding. Aurora funding is split into 5-year phases, and ESA member states
sign up at their required level for each period. When a new 5-year period
begins, a member may revise their level of contribution. The start of the
next 5-year phase has been deferred until 2006, and as a result, ESA is
looking for an interim payment to cover the intervening period. The UK
must make a decision on this interim payment by 30 September this year.
Action is needed now to help ensure that the UK does not miss out on this
exciting, challenging, and rewarding venture.




What are the costs?




The annual subscription during the next 5-year period will be £25million,
but the interim payment that ESA is looking for is only £5million, the cost
of two days' work on Heathrow's Terminal 5 -- equivalent to less than 10p
per person.




What can you do to help?
It is likely that the payment will have to be made on behalf of the UK by
the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council (PPARC). As there is
no time for Parliament to debate additional funding, this money would have
to come out of PPARC's existing budget as an unplanned expense, with the
hope of recovering it in a subsequent budget. You can help ensure that a
decision is made in favor of this by writing to express your support for
the UK's involvement in this project.




The relevant people to contact are as follows:




1) Ian Halliday, Chief Executive, PPARC, Polaris House, North Star Avenue,
Swindon, Wiltshire, SN2 1SZ




2) Peter Warry, Chair, PPARC, Polaris House, North Star Avenue, Swindon,
Wiltshire, SN2 1SZ




A posted letter will have the most effect, but you can also write to them
by e-mail via their secretary, Glenys.Short@pparc.ac.uk




You can also write to the Minister for Science and Innovation:




Lord Sainsbury of Turville, House of Lords, London, SW1A 0PW




An advantage of writing to Lord Sainsbury would be to widen the support, by
asking him to show his support to PPARC, not only for this project, but
also to give his assurance that this unexpected payment will be recovered
in their next budget. Although it is presently not government policy to be
involved in manned space projects, the early work on Aurora is
concentrating on robotic missions, so there should be no conflict.




You could go wider still by writing to your Member of Parliament (MP), asking them to speak to Lord Sainsbury. You can find your MP's contact details at




http://www.parliament.uk/directories/directories.cfm




Further details, including cost comparisons and suggestions of what to say in your letter, can be found at www.geocities.com/uk4aurora.




We thank you for your help and support of this program. Remember, the UK
must make a decision on this interim payment by 30 September this year, so
we ask that you please act now.




We hope Aurora will go ahead and that Britain will decide to take part in
this exciting challenge and to reap the rewards in the exploration of Mars.




Sincerely,




Louis D. Friedman
Executive Director


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