STARDUST Status Report

March 17, 2000

There were two Deep Space Network (DSN) tracking passes during the past week. All subsystems onboard the spacecraft are performing normally. Recorded engineering and Navigation Camera images were played back. The aerogel grid was moved toward the open direction approximately 9 degrees. The grid position is adjusted every two weeks to keep the grid perpendicular to the interstellar dust stream.

A Navigation Camera meeting was held to discuss the next series of images to provide additional data to monitor the flight performance of the Navigation Camera. Bright star images and calibration lamp images will be taken, some viewing a star through the periscope.

The science team members dealing with particles had a meeting at NASA Ames Research Center to discuss the curation plans of the returned particles with Johnson Space Center, where the particles will be stored.

For more information on the STARDUST mission - the first ever comet sample return mission - please visit the STARDUST home page: