The Second Annual Colin Pillinger Memorial Talk - Beagle 2 and bedbugs

Wednesday 16 November 2016 The second annual public talk in memory of Professor Colin Pillinger CBE FRS brought together two of his colleagues, Professor Mark Sims and Dr Geraint (Taff) Morgan, to share their experiences of working on the Beagle 2 mission and give a unique insight into their latest findings. Professor Mark Sims, Head of the Space Research Centre and Professor of Astrobiology and Space Instrumentation at the University of Leicester, was mission manager for Beagle 2. Since the probe was located on the surface of Mars over ten years after it was declared lost, Mark and his team have continued to analyse images of the landing site. He spoke about the challenges that the mission faced, the significance of the UK landing on Mars, and the legacy of Beagle 2. Dr Taff Morgan, who leads the Applied Science and Technology Group at the Open University, described how technical and scientific expertise gained working on Beagle 2 and other spacecraft is leading to exciting practical applications down here on Earth. ...