Technical Description: This proposal seeks funding for a small portion of an Indo-U.S. collaborative effort that has begun building a capability of astronomical observation of comets and asteroids at the Kavalur Observatory, Indian Institute of Astrophysics in Bangalore. This program has been undertaken in consultation with Dr. Tom Gehrels and staff at the University of Arizona, Tucson. The proposed Indian system will emulate the Spacewatch system for astroid exploration that Dr. Gehrels has pioneered at the Steward observatory. This proposal will allow for closer collaboration with the Indian participants and in addition to their annual visits to Tuscon will provide them with the necessary computer software, hardware, and procedures for for their own Spacewatch System. The system requires continuous updates and immediate communication with India particularly for discoveries of near-Earth asteroids. The study of asteroids has become a well established discipline, important for the understanding of our origins as well as for the dynamical evolution of near-Earth objects. The relationship between asteroids, comets and meteorites is an area of major scientific interest that has become enhanced through the use of charge- coupled devices (CCD) for scanning rather than photographic scanning. Scope: A program of asteroid exploration is important not only for the interesting scientific information but also as a base of knowledge to begin the exploitation of non-terrestrial resources. These may provide sources of water and metals or even such economically important resources such as cobalt and platinum. An increase in the number of telescopes in the world that can do this kind of work can lead to important discoveries. The facility in India will be world-class and the capability will be there for making a significant contribution. This program will facilitate the transfer of knowledge from other countries to India, because the India Institute for Astrophysics (IIA) will have very capable hardware and software, which will attract scientists throughout the world.
