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This bar indicates that you are within the PDS enterprise which includes 6 science discipline nodes and 2 support nodes which are overseen by the Project Management Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). Each node is led by an expert in the subject discipline, supported by an advisory group of other practitioners of that discipline, and subject to selection and approval under a regular NASA Research Announcement.
Mission Information
MISSION_NAME STARDUST
MISSION_ALIAS
MISSION_START_DATE 1999-02-07T12:00:00.000Z
MISSION_STOP_DATE 2006-01-16T12:00:00.000Z
MISSION_DESCRIPTION
MISSION_OBJECTIVES_SUMMARY 
       The primary science goal of the STARDUST mission was to collect      Wild 2 coma samples, plus bonus interstellar dust samples, in      aerogel, and return them to Earth. Additional science return      included images of the comet coma and nucleus, and in situ      measurements of the compositions of dust grains from the Comet      and Interstellar Dust Analyzer (CIDA) and particle impact counts      from the Dust Flux Monitor (DFM) mounted on the comet dust      shield.       These science goals lead to the following objectives in the      design of the STARDUST mission:       1) Provide a flyby of a comet of interest (Wild 2) at a      sufficiently low velocity (less than 6.5 km/s) such that      non-destructive capture of comet dust is possible using an      aerogel collector.       2) Facilitate the intercept of significant numbers of      interstellar dust particles using the same collection medium,      also at as low a velocity as possible.       3) Return as many high resolution images of the comet coma and      nucleus as possible, subject to the cost constraints of the      mission.
REFERENCE_DESCRIPTION Anderson, J.D., E.L. Lau, M.K. Bird, B.C. Clark, G. Giampieri, and M. Patzold, Dynamic science on the Stardust mission, J. Geophys. Res., 108, (E10), 8117, 2003

Brownlee, D.E., P. Tsou, J.D. Anderson, M.S. Hanner, R.L. Newburn, Z. Sekanina, B.C. Clark, F. Horz, M.E. Zolensky, J. Kissel, J.A.M. McDonnell, S.A. Sandford, and A.J. Tuzzolino, Stardust: Comet and interstellar dust sample return mission, J. Geophys. Res., 108, (E10), 8111, 2003, doi:10.1029/2003JE002087.

Kissel, J., A. Glasmachers, E. Grun, H. Henkel, H. Hofner, G. Haerendel, H. von Hoerner, K. Hornung, E.K. Jessberger, F.R. Krueger, D. Mohlmann, J.M. Greenberg, Y. Langevin, J. Silen, D. Brownlee, B.C. Clark, M.S. Hanner, F. Hoerz, S. Sandford, Z. Sekanina, P. Tsou, N.G. Utterback, M.E. Zolensky, and C. Heiss, Cometary and Interstellar Dust Analyzer for comet Wild 2, J. Geophys. Res., 108, (E10), 8114, 2003, doi:10.1029/2003JE002091.

Newburn, R.L., Jr., S. Bhaskaran, T.C. Duxbury, G. Fraschetti, T. Radey, and M. Schwochert, Stardust Imaging Camera, J. Geophys. Res., v. 108, no. E10, p. 8116, 2003, doi:10.1029/2003JE002081.

Sekanina, Z., A model for comet 81P/Wild 2, J. Geophys. Res., 108, (E10), 8112, 2003

Tsou, P., D.E. Brownlee, S.A. Sandford, F. Horz, and M.E. Zolensky, Wild 2 and interstellar sample collection and Earth return, J. Geophys. Res., 108, (E10), 8113, 2003.

Tuzzolino, A.J., T.E. Economou, R.B. McKibben, J.A. Simpson, J.A.M. McDonnell, M.J. Burchell, B.A.M. Vaughan, P. Tsou, M.S. Hanner, B.C. Clark, and D.E. Brownlee, Dust Flux Monitor Instrument for the Stardust mission to comet Wild 2, J. Geophys. Res., 108, (E10), 8115, 2003, doi:10.1029/2003JE002086.