Laser radar systems now being developed at Rochester Institute of Technology and MIT's famed Lincoln Lab could eventually generate ultra-detailed, three-dimensional maps of planets, comets, asteroids and moons. The scientists are developing a LIDAR (light detection and ranging) technology that operates both in the optical and ultraviolet, and could deliver detailed information about atmospheric composition, plus air temperature and pressure, wind speed, and precise topological features of a planet or planetary body.

Sure, you can sign up for a little piece of property on the Moon, but the little certificate you get in return won't mean anything. Now that the space tourism industry is starting to heat up, though, a few space lovers are calling for a plan to truly open up the lunar real estate business.

Quick, small and innovative: That's the kind of mission NASA is seeking, and that's what the Mars Scout program is all about. NASA's past missions to MarsMariner, Viking, Pathfinderwere mostly large-scale exploratory ventures, with sometimes a decade or more separating launches. Mars Scout missions, scheduled to begin in 2007, can be launched much more frequently and cheaply. Best of all, the program allows small groups of scientists to propose very specific missions on subjects that address cutting-edge questions in their fields.