Author and space guru

Born in 1917, Clarke served in the RAF during the Second World War and developed the basic theory of communication satellites. After demobilisation, he took a first class honours degree in physics and mathematics at King's College, London. In a long and extremely distinguished career he has been chairman of the British Interplanetary Society twice, and has published about 80 books. His Mysterious World, Strange Powers and Mysterious Universe TV programmes have been seen worldwide. He is a council member of the Society of Authors, a vice-president of the HG Wells Society and a member of many other scientific and literary organisations. His honours include several doctorates in science and literature, a Franklin Institute Gold Medal, the Marconi Fellowship, the Charles A Lindbergh Award, the UNESCO-Kalinga Prize, and an Oscar nomination for the screenplay of 2001: A Space Odyssey. His recreations include observing the equatorial skies with a 14-inch telescope and playing with his six computers. He has lived in Sri Lanka for the past 30 years, and in 1979 he established the Arthur Clarke Institute for Modern Technologies there. He is also Chancellor of the International Space University and in 1989 was made a Commander of the British Empire. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1994 and in 1995 NASA gave him its Distinguished Public Service Medal. In 1996 he went to Beijing to receive the International Academy of Astronautic's highest honour, the von Karman Award. In 1998 he was knighted for services to literature.

President, Mars Society

Regarded as one of the leading theorists on travel to Mars, Zubrin is the founder of Pioneer Astronautics, a space exploration research and development firm. President of the Mars Society, he is currently engaged in learning how to make human settlement more effective in a Martian environment. Author of more than 100 articles on space exploration, his most noted publications on Mars include The case for Mars: The plan to settle the Red Planet and why we must. Links to Zubrin's current research can be found at the Mars Society website, www.marssociety.org.

Research scientist, British Antarctic Survey

Chair of the 2111 Foundation and research scientist with the British Antarctic Survey, Cockell holds a degree in biochemistry and a doctorate in molecular biology. He has worked at NASA Ames, and more recently on the NASA Haughton Mars project. His research interests are in the field of photobiology, impact events and early Earth. You can find out more about Cockell at the 2111 Foundation website, www.2111.org.

Planetary scientist, NASA Ames

McKay is a planetary scientist with the space science division of NASA Ames, and is currently researching the evolution of the solar system and the origin of life. He is actively involved in planning future Mars missions and conducting research for potential human habitation. His polar research has been conducted in both the Siberian and Canadian Arctic. Catch up with current projects at NASA Ames Research Centre, www.arc.nasa.gov.

Planetary scientist, NASA Ames

Principal investigator at the SETI Institute at NASA Ames for a research project focused on characteristics suitable for life in the Martian environment, Cabrol specialises in the evolution of water on Mars and robotic exploration. She has collaborated on various studies related to the search for life in the solar system, serving as an external reviewer for the NASA Planetary Geology and Geophysics (PGG) and NASA Mars Data Analysis Programme. She has written extensively in her field of study, which can be accessed at the SETI Institute.

Geologist

Researching within the field of paleolimnology (study of lake history), Lim is currently pursuing a doctorate in geology at the University of Toronto. This has taken her to the Canadian high arctic, where she has researched lakes and their potential application to the study of Mars. She is also a member of the Mars Society and works on educational and outreach programmes helping to promote a greater awareness of Mars exploration.

More details:

Journal of Paleolimnology
www.umanitoba.ca/geoscience/paleolim/jopl.html

NASA: Evidence of Martian Lakes
www.nasa.gov/newsinfo/marspics.html

Project scientist, Man Vehicle Laboratory, MIT

A graduate in biomedical engineering, with a PhD in bioengineering, Liu is currently a project scientist at the Center for Space Research and Man Vehicle Laboratory (MIT). He is co-ordinating the scientific and engineering efforts for the International Space Station experiment on human orientation and sensory motor control. These experiments use virtual environment technology to present novel visual stimuli to astronauts and assess their perceptual performance. See if you can orientate yourself with some of the web links provided at National Space Biomedical Research Institute.

More details:

NASA Human Space Flight
htp://spaceflight.nasa.gov

Research scientist, ASPL, NASA Johnson Space Center

Squire has a BSc in physics and a PhD specialising in plasma physics related to fusion energy research. Since then he has worked on the development of the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR). He is now helping develop a light gas high-density helicon plasma source for the VASIMR and researching Ion Cyclotron Resonance Acceleration. Take your first step to becoming a rocket scientist like him at CNN.com - Science.

More details:

Advanced Space Propulsion Laboratory
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/mars/tecnology/propulsion/aspl

The Universe Today
www.universetoday.com/html/special/plasmarocket.html

Space Views Articles
www.spaceviews.com/2000/06/13a.html

Geologist, US Geological Survey, California

A member of the Mariner 9 imaging team and leader of the Viking Orbiter mission, Carr is now an interdisciplinary scientist on Mars Global Surveyor. A distinguished geologist, he has a research background in lunar and planetary studies. In 1994 he was awarded the National Air and Space Museum's medal for lifetime achievement in air and space science and technology. Carr has written more than 150 papers on Mars and a widely used book, Water on Mars. Further geological information can be found at the Geological Society of America.

Artificial gravity scientist, MIT

Working at the Man Vehicle Laboratory, Hecht is responsible for overseeing research on artificial gravity. He investigates what effects unusual environments, such as weightlessness, have on our senses. In particular, he studies the interaction between how vision and our sense of orientation are affected when in a rotating or zero gravity environment.

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