Future Missions and Prospects

The High-Energy Solar Spectroscopic Imager (HESSI) is a NASA-funded mission to study the characteristics of particle acceleration in solar flares via the X-ray and gamma-ray emission produced in these energetic events. 

In the area of planetary studies, NASA s Mars Odyssey mission is also scheduled for launch in 2001. Among its suite of instruments are a gamma-ray spectrometer and two neutron detectors. These will be used to fully map the Martian surface and determine its elemental composition. The neutron and gamma-ray measurements in combination will also be used to obtain an estimate of the water content of the Martian near-surface. 

---