Happy Flex Friday eve. Looks like there is a chance for rain in the Houston Metro area! If so, stay dry and be safe.
| | JSC TODAY CATEGORIES - Headlines
- Joint Leadership Team Web Poll
- Morpheus/ALHAT Free Flight at KSC Today - Organizations/Social
- 'Coach's Corner' Featuring Mike Kincaid
- May is Health and Fitness Month at JSC
- Starport's Father-Daughter Dance 2014
- Co-Parenting During Conflict/Separation/Divorce
- How You Can Save a Life - Jobs and Training
- NCMA National Education Seminar Deadline
- TFAWS Call for Abstracts Due May 2 - Community
- 'It Gets Better' Performance May 2 at Jones Hall
- Prescription Drug Take-Back Day
- Co-ops & Interns Needed for Simulated Mars Mission |  |
| Headlines - Joint Leadership Team Web Poll
We use more than 447 tons of copy paper annually at JSC. That's a whole bunch. It's almost a tossup on the sporting event you want to attend. I would go to the World Cup soccer final myself but, then again, you can't get a good mint julep there. This week I have a fairly generic question on meetings. We attend a lot of them, and there are certain things that happen over and over that bug us all. Which one bugs you the most? Lax agenda? Small print on the slides? Starting late? Since I grew up watching Ron and Don Wright win wrestling tag-team matches by stunning their opponents with rags soaked in ether, I am proposing a world-class match. Which hypothetical tag team do you think is unbeatable? Body your slam on over to get this week's poll. - Morpheus/ALHAT Free Flight at KSC Today
Today, the Morpheus/ALHAT team plans another free flight! The Bravo vehicle will ascend approximately 245 meters (800 feet) and, at its apex, will pitch over into a 30-degree glide slope and image the hazard field to determine "safe sites." Morpheus will follow a pre-planned trajectory re-designation to simulate the hazard avoidance maneuvers, travelling over about 406.5 meters (1,300 feet) downrange before descending to a landing within the hazard field after approximately 97 seconds of flight. The test will be streamed live on JSC's UStream Channel. Test firing is targeted for 1 p.m. CDT. Streaming will begin about 20 minutes prior to ignition. View the live stream, along with progress updates sent via Twitter, on the website. If on-site, watch live on JSC HDTV (channel 51-2) and IPTV (channel 4512). * Note: Testing operations are dynamic; actual firing time may vary. Follow Morpheus on Twitter for the latest information @MorpheusLander. (Send "follow morpheuslander" to 40404 for text updates.) More information can be found here, so bookmark us: http://morpheuslander.jsc.nasa.gov Organizations/Social - 'Coach's Corner' Featuring Mike Kincaid
The African-American Employee Resource Group is proud to present the next Coach's Corner event, which will feature JSC External Relations Director Mike Kincaid on April 29 from noon to 1 p.m. in Building 1, Room 966. As the JSC External Relations director, Kincaid is responsible for several facets of day-to-day center operations, including Communications and Public Affairs; Legislative Affairs; Community Outreach; the Office of Education; and the University Research, Collaborations and Partnership Office. Each Coach's Corner event is designed to allow all JSC personnel to come and hear the presenter's career path, important messages in the current environment and to provide an opportunity to have your questions answered by senior management at the center. Please send any questions that you'd like addressed at this event to Kai Harris by April 24. In an effort to track attendance to ensure there is enough room, sign up using the link below. Event Date: Tuesday, April 29, 2014 Event Start Time:12:00 PM Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Building 1, Room 966
Add to Calendar
Kai Harris x40694
[top] - May is Health and Fitness Month at JSC
Get a little healthier and earn some prizes this May during Health and Fitness Month (HFM) at JSC. Brought to you by Starport, HFM has something for everyone to get more active and eat nutritiously. Here are a few of the upcoming activities: - Poker Walk
- Mini-fitness expos
- Free yoga and Pilates classes
- Indoor triathlon at the Gilruth
- Prediction 5K and training program
- Mindful meal purchases at the cafés
- Bike to Work Day
- And a NASA-wide fitness challenge
Visit the Starport website below to learn more about all of these events, including dates, times, prizes and registration information. - Starport's Father-Daughter Dance 2014
Make Father's Day weekend a date your daughter will never forget! Enjoy a night of music, dancing, refreshments, finger foods, dessert, photos and more. Plan to get all dressed up and spend a special evening with the special little lady in your life. The dance is open to girls of all ages, and attire is business casual to semi-formal. A photographer will be on hand to capture this special moment with picture packages for you to purchase. One free 5x7 will be provided. - June 13 from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. in the Gilruth Center Alamo Ballroom
- Cost is $40 per couple ($15 per additional child)
Register online or at the Gilruth Center information desk. You must register by June 11, and there will be no tickets sold at the door. - Co-Parenting During Conflict/Separation/Divorce
Putting aside relationship issues to co-parent agreeably can be fraught with stress. Despite the many challenges, though, it is possible to develop a cordial working relationship with your ex for the sake of your children. Co-parenting is the best way to ensure your children's needs are met and they are able to retain close relationships with both parents. Come learn some key steps involved in co-parenting during conflict, separation and divorce. We will address the types of conflict that are obstacles to co-parenting. Attendees will also be able to identify key co-parenting techniques that allow children the least amount of impact by conflict. Join Anika Isaac LPC, LMFT, CEAP, NCC, as she presents "Co-parenting During Conflict, Separation and Divorce." - How You Can Save a Life
Intimate partner violence, also referred to as domestic violence, impacts people from all walks of life regardless of socio-economic status, education, age, religion, race or gender. Incidents can occur as soon as a first dating relationship in high school or as late as the senior years of a person's life. The impact to the workplace is enormous both in terms of stress and danger to the employee and co-workers, and cost of lost work days and productivity. Co-workers often feel uncertain or helpless about how to help in these situations, so they fall back to myths and stereotypes about it being a "personal problem." The reality is that there is much you can do to help. Join Takis Bogdanos, LPC-S, CEAP, CGP, with the JSC Employee Assistance Program, as he addresses the common misconceptions about intimate partner violence and offers strategies to assist a co-worker or loved one. Jobs and Training - NCMA National Education Seminar Deadline
The National Contract Management Association (NCMA) National Education Seminar topic is "Risk Management for Complex U.S. Government Contracts and Projects." This seminar provides a unique and comprehensive view of what it takes to successfully manage large, complex, high-technology U.S. government contracts and projects. This one-of-a-kind seminar is loaded with process diagrams tools, techniques and best practices to help acquisition professionals in both the U.S. government and industry improve business results. The event is open to both procurement and technical personnel. JSC civil servants, if you want to attend this event, please do three things before **close of business Friday, April 25**: 1. Confirm with your manager that your organization will pay for your registration to attend this event. 3. Go to SATERN and submit an External Training Request Contact Tasha Beasley via email or at 281-483-8501 if you have any questions. Note: Each organization is responsible for funding their participants. Attendance will earn 7 CLPs. If you need any additional information or have any questions, please contact Ethan Miller via email or at x49393. - TFAWS Call for Abstracts Due May 2
You are invited to submit papers for the Thermal and Fluids Analysis Workshop (TFAWS) 2014. This year's workshop will be held at Glenn Research Center from Aug. 4 to 8. The workshop will include short courses of general interest in thermal and fluids, discussions on special topics, hands-on training sessions in many thermal and fluid software packages, vendor demonstrations and paper sessions on the topics that cover active thermal/fluids, passive thermal, aerothermal and interdisciplinary. One ITAR-restricted session will be offered. The abstract submission deadline is May 2, and final manuscript submissions are due July 25. Submissions should be sent to Lauren Storrow (216-433-5565). Typically, 20 minutes will be allotted for each paper, and 10 additional minutes for questions from the audience. Community - 'It Gets Better' Performance May 2 at Jones Hall
Next week, on Friday, May 2, the It Gets Better project is bringing a LIVE performance to Houston, and the Out & Allied @ JSC "It Gets Better" video will be the spotlight performance! Additionally, several JSC employees who appeared in the video will be on stage during a short interview segment. It Gets Better is a moving performance that utilizes the power of song and story to transform painful histories of bullying, harassment and discrimination into a celebration of courage and a campaign for social justice in Houston. The Society for the Performing Arts has arranged for JSC team members to receive 15 percent off tickets to this event. Event Date: Friday, May 2, 2014 Event Start Time:8:00 PM Event End Time:10:00 PM
Event Location: Jones Hall
Add to Calendar
Barbara Conte x31961
[top] - Prescription Drug Take-Back Day
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has scheduled another National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, which will take place on Saturday, April 26, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It provides a venue for people who want to dispose of unwanted and unused drugs. Unused or expired prescription medications are a public safety issue, leading to accidental poisoning, overdose and abuse. The majority of teenagers abusing prescription drugs get them from family and friends -- and the home medicine cabinet. Unused drugs that are flushed contaminate the water supply. The link below will take you to the DEA website, where you can learn more about the program and find a collection site near you. This is an excellent opportunity to dispose of accumulated prescription drugs safely and keep them out of the wrong hands and the waste stream. - Co-ops & Interns Needed for Simulated Mars Mission
Gain leadership experience by mentoring a student team as they design a simulated mission to Mars. During High School Aerospace Scholars, you can share your NASA experiences, college advice and help connect our workforce with the brightest Texas high school students. Choose any week(s) to volunteer and enjoy our fun activities. Summer Schedule: - Week 1: June 15 to 20
- Week 2: June 22 to 27
- Week 3: July 6 to 11
- Week 4: July 13 to 18
- Week 5: July 20 to 25
- Week 6: July 27 to Aug. 1
If interested, please: 1. Complete the mentor application here. 3. Review mentor responsibilities. 4. Apply before May 2. | |
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| JSC Today is compiled periodically as a service to JSC employees on an as-submitted basis. Any JSC organization or employee may submit articles. Disclaimer: Accuracy and content of these notes are the responsibility of the submitters. |
NASA and Human Spaceflight News
Thursday – April 24, 2014
INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION: ISS astronaut Steve Swanson posted the selfie below on Instagram during a spacewalk yesterday morning with the caption "Nice day for a little stroll." Mashable, with nearly 4 million Twitter followers, tweeted about the spacewalk contributing to 6.7 million impressions for Swanson on Twitter yesterday alone.
HEADLINES AND LEADS
Spacewalking astronauts complete urgent repair job at space station, replace dead computer
Marcia Dunn – Associated Press
Spacewalking astronauts easily replaced a dead computer outside the International Space Station on Wednesday and got their orbiting home back up to full strength.
Astronauts complete spacewalk, fix computer
William Harwood - CBS News
Astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steven Swanson returned to the Quest airlock aboard the International Space Station at 11:32 a.m. EDT (GMT-4), ending a short but successful one-hour 36-minute spacewalk to replace a faulty external computer.
Spacewalking Astronauts Replace Dead Computer on Space Station
A pair of NASA astronauts replaced a dead backup computer on the International Space Station during a short spacewalk Wednesday (April 23) to restore a critical computer system back to full strength.
Spacewalkers replace failed computer outside space station
Irene Klotz – Reuters
Two U.S. astronauts wrapped up a speedy spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Wednesday, replacing a failed computer that backs up one used to control critical systems such as the station's solar panel wings.
Mars Missions Could Make Humanity a Multi-Planet Species, NASA Chief Says
In order for humanity to survive into the distant future, we need to visit and learn how to survive on other worlds, according to NASA chief Charles Bolden.
Buzz Aldrin Wants NASA Astronauts to Visit Asteroid in Deep Space
While moonwalker Buzz Aldrin thinks that a mission sending humans to an asteroid is a good idea, the Apollo astronaut isn't so happy with NASA's current plan to use a robot to shrink-wrap a space rock and park it near the moon.
Obama finds Japanese robots 'a little scary'
Juliet Eilperin – The Washington Post
President Obama played soccer Thursday with a Japanese robot -- and came away a bit scared.
Feds see innovation decline within government
Andy Medici – Federal Times
Support for innovation is declining across the government, according to a report by the Partnership for Public Service released April 23.
Top SLS, Orion Official Leaving NASA July 1
Dan Leone – Space News
Dan Dumbacher, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development, will leave the agency effective July 1, a NASA spokesman confirmed April 21.
COMPLETE STORIES
Spacewalking astronauts complete urgent repair job at space station, replace dead computer
Marcia Dunn – Associated Press
Spacewalking astronauts easily replaced a dead computer outside the International Space Station on Wednesday and got their orbiting home back up to full strength.
The two Americans on board, Rick Mastracchio and Steven Swanson, hustled through the urgent repair job, swapping out the computers well within an hour. The new one tested fine.
"Excellent work, gentlemen," Mission Control radioed.
The removed computer, a critical backup, failed nearly two weeks ago. The prime computer has been working perfectly, but NASA wanted to install a fresh spare as soon as possible.
Mission Control waited until after the arrival of a capsule full of fresh supplies Sunday.
Replacing the computer — a compact 50-pound box — involved just three bolts, hardly anything for a spacewalking chore.
Engineers do not know why the original failed. Mission Control asked the spacewalkers to keep an eye out for any damage that might explain the breakdown. Nothing jumped out.
Flight controllers were trying to load software into the spare computer on April 11, but it failed to activate. That set into motion a frenzy of ground meetings and tests to fix the problem.
NASA feared that if the primary computer went down as well, the entire space station would be in jeopardy. These two computers — the primary and backup — control the pointing of the solar wings and radiators, as well as the movement of the robot-arm rail cart.
It was the first failure of one of dozens of so-called MDMs, or multiplexer-demultiplexers, in and outside the space station.
Mission Control kept the spacewalk short and straight-to-the-point; it lasted a mere one hour and 36 minutes. All routine spacewalks by U.S. station crew have been on hold since last summer's near-drowning by a spacewalking astronaut. His helmet filled with water from the cooling system of the suit, and NASA is continuing to investigate the problem.
NASA hopes to reuse the bad computer, once it's inspected indoors by the astronauts and updated.
Their mission accomplished, Mastracchio and Swanson exchanged a few jokes and laughs as they got ready to go back inside.
"My arms are too short for a selfie," Mastracchio said with a chuckle, his camera pointed at himself.
Mission Control spotted a small object floating over Mastracchio's right shoulder as the spacewalk drew to a close. He said he didn't think he lost anything. The NASA commentator, Dan Huot, later said it appeared to be a tiny wire tie.
The space station is home to six men: the two Americans, three Russians and one Japanese.
Astronauts complete spacewalk, fix computer
William Harwood - CBS News
Astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steven Swanson returned to the Quest airlock aboard the International Space Station at 11:32 a.m. EDT (GMT-4), ending a short but successful one-hour 36-minute spacewalk to replace a faulty external computer.
The start of the spacewalk, known as U.S. EVA-26, came just five hours after the departure of a Russian Progress supply ship that undocked from the Zvezda command module at 4:58 a.m. After moving about 300 miles ahead of the station, the uncrewed Progress will return and re-dock Friday to test an upgraded navigation and rendezvous system planned for future vehicles.
But the spacewalk was the focus for the station's NASA crew and flight controllers at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The goal was to replace an external multiplexer-demultiplexer, or MDM, a 49-pound computer mounted in the central S0 segment of the station's solar power truss that failed April 11.
Less than an hour into a planned 2.5-hour spacewalk, Mastracchio and Swanson pulled a failed external computer from its rack in the central S0 truss segment of the International Space Station's solar power truss Wednesday and installed a replacement, making quick work of a critical repair.
Before unbolting the computer, Mastracchio reported there were no obvious signs of any damage in the area and examining the faulty "black box" after it was removed, he said everything looked good with no evidence of anything out of the ordinary. While additional troubleshooting will be needed to make sure, it would appear that an internal component failure of some sort was responsible for the original malfunction.
With the new computer in place, flight controllers sent commands to power it up and then began a series of diagnostic tests to verify its performance before uplinking the latest software. The faulty computer was carried back inside the station for troubleshooting and repairs.
"Your R & R was successful, we have a good MDM," Hansen called. "It's in diagnostic mode as expected."
"Oh, wonderful," one of the spacewalkers replied. "Fantastic," said the other.
The only other task on the spacewalk timeline was to cut two launch restraint lanyards that were interfering with the operation of doors covering a bay housing spare electrical components. With the lanyards removed, the station's robot arm will be able to access the spares.
"It's a pretty simple EVA in terms of the overall work we have to do," said Glenda Brown, the lead spacewalk planner at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, before the spacewalk. "It's just coming out from the airlock, driving three bolts to remove the failed unit, removing it, temp stowing it and installing the new one. Very straight forward."
On April 11, the backup computer, MDM EXT-2, failed to boot up properly and after reviewing telemetry, flight controllers concluded it was no longer useable. The computer was launched in place with the S0 truss segment in 2002 and operated flawlessly until the malfunction occurred.
While the failure had no immediate impact on station operations, the loss of redundancy put the outpost one failure away from major problems across a wide variety of systems.
Given the critical nature of the systems in question -- solar array positioning mechanisms, a robot arm transporter, coolant loop telemetry -- replacing a failed command MDM was on NASA's "big 12" list of quick-response spacewalk repairs.
But in this case, NASA managers opted to press ahead with launch of the SpaceX Dragon cargo ship before replacing MDM EXT-2. Procedural changes were implemented to ensure good solar array positioning even if a problem later developed with MDM EXT-1.
While NASA normally includes a variety of secondary objectives and "get-ahead" tasks in spacewalk timelines to take full advantage of the crew's time outside, only one minor item was added to the MDM replacement EVA. That's because NASA is still working through an extensive spacesuit analysis triggered by a potentially catastrophic water leak during a spacewalk last summer.
Engineers believe the water backup was caused by contamination that clogged a coolant loop filter, allowing water to make its way into European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano's helmet. Since then, new filters have been installed, the coolant water has been flushed and replaced and new pump assemblies installed.
In addition, Mastracchio and Swanson installed water-absorbing pads in their helmets and plastic straw-like tubes running from their helmets down into the body of their suits to provide an emergency breathing path in case all else fails. The modifications were developed for a pair of "contingency" spacewalks last December.
Mastracchio was wearing suit No. 3011, the same extravehicular mobility unit, or EMU, that Parmitano used, while Swanson was wearing EMU No. 3005. A fresh spacesuit was carried up aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship that was berthed Sunday, along with additional spare parts.
"The anomaly is due to contamination that was likely introduced by a filter that was used to clean the (cooling) system," said space station Program Manager Mike Suffredini.
"We have since scrubbed all the suits' water lines, basically we've flushed the water three times in all three of the suits on orbit and in the cooling lines in the station that provide water to the suits.
"In addition to that, we've replaced the filters, we have replaced the fan pump sep that got clogged up in EMU 3011...and we just did the fan pump sep R & R for suit 3005."
But until the failure investigation is complete, NASA will only conduct contingency spacewalks to carry out critical repairs. Two such spacewalks were carried out last December by Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins to replace an ammonia coolant pump assembly. Today's EVA was NASA's third since the leak.
"We have been working diligently to understand the cause of the anomaly and to recover from that," Suffredini said. "In the process, we have done a thorough review of all our processes and procedures and our hazard reports, and we established a goal for ourselves to have all of that work done before we did a planned EVA.
"However, the vehicle keeps flying and occasionally we have contingency EVAs. We've done (two) of those already, to do a pump module replacement, and we're prepared to do this one for this EXT MDM that has failed."
The U.S. segment of the space station includes 46 computers, 24 of which are mounted in the lab's solar power truss. One of those external MDMs is used to command the others while a second unit serves as a "hot backup," ready to take over in case of any problems that might derail the primary computer.
This was the 179th spacewalk devoted to station assembly and maintenance since construction began in 1998, the second so far this year, the ninth for Mastracchio and the fifth for Swanson.
With today's spacewalk, 114 astronauts and cosmonauts representing nine nations have now logged 1,123 hours and 28 minutes of space station EVA time, or 46.8 days.
Mastracchio moves up to No. 5 on the list of most experienced spacewalkers, with 53 hours and 4 minutes of EVA time across his nine excursions while Swanson's total now stands at 27 hours and 58 minutes.
"Thank you, everyone," Swanson called. "Great work."
Spacewalking Astronauts Replace Dead Computer on Space Station
A pair of NASA astronauts replaced a dead backup computer on the International Space Station during a short spacewalk Wednesday (April 23) to restore a critical computer system back to full strength.
NASA astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steve Swanson made quick work of their repair during the spacewalk, removing the faulty station computer and installing a spare less than an hour after floating outside the orbiting laboratory at 9:56 a.m. EDT (1356 GMT).
"It looks like a good day for you guys to take a walk in space," Mission Control radioed the astronauts as the spacewalk began. The spacewalk was slated to last only 2.5 hours.
Mastracchio and Swanson replaced a computer known in NASA parlance as a Multiplexer-Demultiplexer, or MDM. The device is a backup computer for routing commands to systems supporting the space station's solar arrays, robotic arm rail car and other critical systems along the station's backbone-like main truss.
The 10-year-old MDM computer failed on April 11 during a standard test. The primary computer in the system is working fine, but NASA station flight controllers ordered today's repair spacewalk to restore redundancy in the system.
"Looks like we've got a new MDM," Mastracchio said as he finished the job.
A quick test showed the new computer was working fine.
"Oh wonderful," Mastracchio said.
There are 45 MDM computers on the International Space Station, with 21 of them located on the orbiting lab's exterior and the rest installed inside the station's habitable area. Replacing the MDM computer boxes is one of 12 core space station repair skills astronauts learn before launch, NASA officials have said.
Despite their swift work, the spacewalkers did take time to marvel at the bright blue Earth below. At one point, Mastracchio reminded Swanson to take a look down at the sunlit Earth.
"Where are we?" Mastracchio asked Mission Control later. The answer: Over South America.
"A great view," the astronaut replied.
Wednesday's 2.5-hour spacewalk was substantially shorter than the typical six-hour excursions astronauts take outside the International Space Station. That's because the MDM computer replacement was sole goal for Mastracchio and Swanson
"We want to get this job done as quickly as we can, so we didn't want to add a whole bunch of things for this team to sort out," NASA space station program manager Mike Suffredini told reporters on Friday (April 18).
Suffredini said the decision for a short spacewalk is also a safety measure for Mastracchio and Swanson, who are using spacesuits that have new water filters and fan pump systems. That maintenance was performed in the wake of a harrowing June 2013 spacewalk in which a water leak flooded the helmet of Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, nearly drowning him. NASA engineers suspect contamination in the water line caused the leak.
"I feel pretty strongly that we've sorted out the root cause and that our suits are in good shape," Suffredini said.
Today's space station repairs marked the ninth career spacewalk for Mastracchio, and the fifth spacewalk for Swanson. Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Tyurin, Oleg Artemyev and Alexander Skvortsov round out the crew. The spacewalk came on the heels of two other major events for the six-man crew on the International Space Station.
On Sunday (April 20), an unmanned SpaceX Dragon cargo ship arrived at the station carrying 2.5 tons of fresh supplies and gear for the orbiting lab's crew. Then earlier today, at 4:58 a.m. EDT (0858 GMT), a robotic Russian Progress 53 cargo ship was due to undock from the station and park itself about 311 miles (500 kilometers) from the orbiting lab to test its new Kurs automated docking system. The Progress spacecraft is due to return to the space station on Friday (April 25).
Spacewalkers replace failed computer outside space station
Irene Klotz – Reuters
Two U.S. astronauts wrapped up a speedy spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Wednesday, replacing a failed computer that backs up one used to control critical systems such as the station's solar panel wings.
Flight engineers Rick Mastracchio and Steve Swanson left the station's Quest airlock just after 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) for what was expected to be a 2-1/2-hour spacewalk. They replaced the failed computer and got back into the space station with an hour to spare.
"Nice and clean. Great job," Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen from NASA's Mission Control in Houston radioed to the spacewalkers as they prepared to close the hatch.
The computer, about the size of a small microwave oven, is one of two that control critical systems outside the station. These include sending commands to rotate the solar panel wings to track the sun and positioning a mobile base for the station's robotic crane.
"I don't see any obvious damage," Mastracchio said as he and Swanson inspected the unit, which failed on April 11.
U.S. spacewalks generally last more than six hours, but except for emergency repairs, NASA spacewalks remain suspended while engineers assess last year's spacesuit failure that nearly drowned Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano after his helmet filled with water.
The leak was traced to a blocked filter, and NASA flew parts to the station for astronauts to make spacesuit repairs before a pair of emergency spacewalks in December to fix the station's cooling system. Those astronauts also had snorkels and absorbent pads in their helmets in case of similar leaks.
Mastracchio, making his ninth spacewalk, and Swanson, on his fifth, also included snorkels and pads in their helmets.
A new spacesuit is among the cargo aboard the Space Exploration Technologies' Dragon capsule that reached the station on Sunday.
NASA expects to resume routine spacewalks for maintenance and less-pressing repairs in July.
The station, a $100 billion project of 15 nations, is a permanently staffed research laboratory that flies about 260 miles (420 km) above Earth.
Mars Missions Could Make Humanity a Multi-Planet Species, NASA Chief Says
In order for humanity to survive into the distant future, we need to visit and learn how to survive on other worlds, according to NASA chief Charles Bolden.
NASA is in the process of developing technologies that are expected to help humans get to Mars and beyond. Landing astronauts on Mars and even establishing a long-term human presence on the Red Planet is just one step toward learning how to live on a different world, Bolden said during the Humans 2 Mars Summit in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (April 22).
"If this species is to survive indefinitely, we need to become a multi-planet species," Bolden said. "One reason we need to go to Mars is so that we can learn a little bit about living on other planets ... Mars is a steppingstone in the steppingstone approach to other solar systems and other galaxies and things that people have always dreamed of but frequently don't talk about."
Ideally, the first crewed mission to Mars will represent the culmination of many incremental steps — like NASA's ambitious plan to retrieve an asteroid and park it near the moon — taken to safely get humans to and from Mars, NASA officials have said.
Under the space agency's current framework, NASA officials hope to launch humans to Mars by the 2030s after sending an astronaut crew to an asteroid by 2025.
"We, today, are Earth-reliant," Bolden said. "We're dependent on being on this planet. We are not a multi-planet species yet … Only multi-planet species survive for long periods of time."
In general, the architecture for a mission to Mars is not like the Apollo program that brought astronauts to the moon for the first time. The current plan could involve sending multiple spacecraft to the Mars system over the course of years, however, the plan to get to Mars is an evolving process, William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for the agency's human exploration and operations mission directorate, said during the conference today.
"We're starting to take a different approach toward Mars than we have before," Gerstenmaier said. "Our classic [ideas for Mars] missions were more Apollo-style in a way — where we launched everything within a year and we sent the armada of spacecraft … toward Mars. I think we're going to do that maybe over a period of time, over a period of years and build more of an evolvable piece.
"It's not a single mission, but it really is the pioneering aspect," Gerstenmaier added. "Once that mental change starts … and you're looking at it in the long term, then you invest in some things that might actually take longer to go do, but they may be more sustainable."
Learning more about Mars also has tangible effects right now, Bolden said. Understanding the Red Planet could also help scientists peer into the past and future of Earth.
"Mars' formation and evolution are comparable to Earth's and we know that at one time Mars had conditions suitable for life," Bolden wrote in a post on Space.com. "What we learn about the Red Planet may tell us more about our own home planet's history and future and help us answer a fundamental human question — does life exist beyond Earth?" Buzz Aldrin Wants NASA Astronauts to Visit Asteroid in Deep Space
While moonwalker Buzz Aldrin thinks that a mission sending humans to an asteroid is a good idea, the Apollo astronaut isn't so happy with NASA's current plan to use a robot to shrink-wrap a space rock and park it near the moon.
The space agency's asteroid plan centers on launching a robotic mission that aims to capture an asteroid — or a smaller boulder from a space rock — and deliver it to an orbit around the moon where astronauts can visit and sample it sometime in the 2020s. Aldrin would rather see NASA launch astronauts on a mission to an asteroid still in deep space.
"I sure do not think bringing a rock back is better than what the president said — a human mission to an asteroid in 2025 — but send a robot there first so the two get there at the same time," Aldrin said during his talk at the Humans 2 Mars Summit being held in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (April 22).
Aldrin's model, NASA would send an astronaut crew to an asteroid using the space agency's Space Launch System rocket and Orion space capsule. The astronaut crew would be able to operate the asteroid-exploring robot with no time delay, Buzz Aldrin explained. (NASA's plan would use the Orion capsule when astronauts visit the asteroid lassoed near the moon.)
NASA's asteroid-retrieval mission, in its present form, would also help engineers test out ways of deflecting potentially harmful asteroids that could threaten Earth. If NASA officials choose to launch a robotic mission that would pick a boulder off a larger asteroid, they could also use the robot to try to move the large asteroid into a slightly different orbit.
That demonstration could aid in planetary protection, but generally, Aldrin doesn't think that should be NASA's job. "Planetary defense is not a NASA mission. It should be at the very highest level [of the] National Security Council," Aldrin said.
Aldrin also thinks that humans should establish a permanent, internationally co-operative base on Mars. Aldrin believes that an insightful leader could make that particular dream happen as well. And if they prioritize a base on Mars, it could happen.
"That is a legacy that will last in history for a very long time," Aldrin said. "We need to convince people of doing that, and maybe I'll retire. I kind of doubt it … There are a lot of people that think this is an 'egghead' idea, so I've got to hang around and smarten them up."
Obama finds Japanese robots 'a little scary'
Juliet Eilperin – The Washington Post
President Obama played soccer Thursday with a Japanese robot -- and came away a bit scared.
Obama's visit to the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, or Mirikan, aimed to highlight both Japan's technological prowess and the renewal of a 10-year scientific collaboration agreement between the two countries. While the event had plenty of examples of how the two countries are working together -- including a pre-recorded message from the International Space Station's Japanese commander and two American flight engineers serving alongside him -- the real stars of the show were a couple of robots.
Honda's humanoid robot ASIMO, which was dressed in an astronaut suit and is about the height of a 10 year-old child, went through a series of exercises for the president.
"It's nice to meet you," it said in a metallic voice, before approaching a soccer ball and telling Obama, "I can kick a soccer ball too."
"Okay, come on," the president replied.
The robot then took a couple of steps back and then then ran up to the ball to deliver a hefty punt.
The president trapped the ball with his foot, later telling an audience of roughly 30 students he was slightly intimidated by ASIMO and the other robot he observed at the museum.
"I have to say that the robots were a little scary, they were too lifelike," Obama declared. "They were amazing."
The astronauts described how the two countries' space agencies were working together to monitor rainfall patterns with a Global Precipitation Measurement satellite (GPM), and Obama used it as an example of how Japan and the U.S. "have been at the cutting-edge of innovation," from some of the first modern calculators decades ago to smartphones.
Technology, he told the students, "has allowed us to understand the planet that we share, and to understand not only the great possibilities but also the challenges and dangers from things like climate change -- that your generation is going to help us to find answers to some of the questions that we have to answer."
"Whether it's: How do we feed more people in an environment in which it's getting warmer? How do we make sure that we're coming up with new energy sources that are less polluting and can save our environment?" Obama asked. "How do we find new medicines that can cure diseases that take so many lives around the globe? To the robots that we saw that can save people's lives after a disaster because they can go into places like Fukushima that it may be very dangerous for live human beings to enter into. These are all applications, but it starts with the imaginations and the vision of young people like you."
Feds see innovation decline within government
Andy Medici – Federal Times
Support for innovation is declining across the government, according to a report by the Partnership for Public Service released April 23.
Federal employee answers to three innovation-related questions on the annual Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey dropped from 61.5 out of 100 in 2012 to 59.4 out of 100, according to the report, produced in partnership with Deloitte.
While 90 percent of employees surveyed report they are always looking for better ways to do their jobs only 54.7 percent feel encouraged to do so and only 33.4 percent believe their agency rewards creativity and innovation.
"The bottom line is that federal workers are motivated to improve the way they do their work, but they do not feel supported by their organizations," the report said.
Dave Dye, a director of human capital at Deloitte, LLP, said the report is a message to agency leaders to pay attention and have discussions on innovation and make concerted efforts to enhance innovation in their areas.
"It's not that leaders have to be innovative in their own right it means they need to set up environments for people to feel that innovation Is encouraged, rewarded and respected," Dye said.
Most agencies saw a decline in their "innovation score" according to the report, including:
■ The Army saw one of the largest drops in its innovation score - from 64.2 out of 100 I 2012 to 60.1 out of 100 in 2013.
■ NASA – which had the highest score at 76.0 out of 100 in 2013 – also dropped from 76.5 in 2012.
■ The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network at the Treasury Department saw one of the largest drops among component agencies, from 63.8 out of 100 in 2012 to 52.0 in 2013.
Some agencies that have shown improvement are the National Science Foundation and the Peace Corps. Some NASA facilities also saw improvement, including the John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama.
The ongoing effects of sequestration, budget cuts and threat of furloughs may also have had a dampening effect on federal employees, Dye said.
"When people feel safer or more sure about whats going on they are going to better focus on the mission," he said.
Agency managers should also work to improve their work environments to build trust and confidence in their workforce by showing concerns about people's careers and supporting development opportunities while recognizing good work, according to Dye.
The report recommends that agencies recognize employees at team meetings or with more formal awards to highlight innovation and creativity and reward success. Managers should make sure to share specific goals, provide a forum for open discussion and work to build trust among the workforce that is needed to help spur innovation.
Top SLS, Orion Official Leaving NASA July 1
Dan Leone – Space News
Dan Dumbacher, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development, will leave the agency effective July 1, a NASA spokesman confirmed April 21.
Dumbacher is returning to his alma mater Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., to take a faculty position in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He has been with NASA since 1979, but for a two-and-a-half-year detour to industry that ended in July 1987. Dumbacher became the top Washington-based official for NASA's Space Launch System and Orion programs in 2010 and will be succeeded in that capacity on an interim basis by his deputy, William Hill, Dumbacher told SpaceNews April 22.
Asked why he chose to leave the agency only months before Orion is slated to make its first flight to space aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta 4 — the launch window opens Dec. 5 — Dumbacher said the Purdue opportunity was too good to pass up.
"Chances only come around in life rather sporadically, and that really was the decision," Dumbacher told SpaceNews in an April 23 interview at the Humans to Mars summit here.
Dumbacher said he is leaving the SLS and Orion programs in good shape.
"We got to the point where things are working and things are working well. We're getting budget support on both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue," Dumbacher said.
END
HEADLINES AND LEADSSpacewalking astronauts complete urgent repair job at space station, replace dead computerMarcia Dunn – Associated PressSpacewalking astronauts easily replaced a dead computer outside the International Space Station on Wednesday and got their orbiting home back up to full strength.Astronauts complete spacewalk, fix computerWilliam Harwood - CBS NewsAstronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steven Swanson returned to the Quest airlock aboard the International Space Station at 11:32 a.m. EDT (GMT-4), ending a short but successful one-hour 36-minute spacewalk to replace a faulty external computer.Spacewalking Astronauts Replace Dead Computer on Space StationTariq Malik – Space.comA pair of NASA astronauts replaced a dead backup computer on the International Space Station during a short spacewalk Wednesday (April 23) to restore a critical computer system back to full strength.Spacewalkers replace failed computer outside space stationIrene Klotz – ReutersTwo U.S. astronauts wrapped up a speedy spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Wednesday, replacing a failed computer that backs up one used to control critical systems such as the station's solar panel wings.Mars Missions Could Make Humanity a Multi-Planet Species, NASA Chief SaysMiriam Kramer – Space.comIn order for humanity to survive into the distant future, we need to visit and learn how to survive on other worlds, according to NASA chief Charles Bolden.Buzz Aldrin Wants NASA Astronauts to Visit Asteroid in Deep SpaceMiriam Kramer – Space.comWhile moonwalker Buzz Aldrin thinks that a mission sending humans to an asteroid is a good idea, the Apollo astronaut isn't so happy with NASA's current plan to use a robot to shrink-wrap a space rock and park it near the moon.Obama finds Japanese robots 'a little scary'Juliet Eilperin – The Washington PostPresident Obama played soccer Thursday with a Japanese robot -- and came away a bit scared.Feds see innovation decline within governmentAndy Medici – Federal TimesSupport for innovation is declining across the government, according to a report by the Partnership for Public Service released April 23.Top SLS, Orion Official Leaving NASA July 1Dan Leone – Space NewsDan Dumbacher, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development, will leave the agency effective July 1, a NASA spokesman confirmed April 21.COMPLETE STORIESSpacewalking astronauts complete urgent repair job at space station, replace dead computerMarcia Dunn – Associated PressSpacewalking astronauts easily replaced a dead computer outside the International Space Station on Wednesday and got their orbiting home back up to full strength.The two Americans on board, Rick Mastracchio and Steven Swanson, hustled through the urgent repair job, swapping out the computers well within an hour. The new one tested fine."Excellent work, gentlemen," Mission Control radioed.The removed computer, a critical backup, failed nearly two weeks ago. The prime computer has been working perfectly, but NASA wanted to install a fresh spare as soon as possible.Mission Control waited until after the arrival of a capsule full of fresh supplies Sunday.Replacing the computer — a compact 50-pound box — involved just three bolts, hardly anything for a spacewalking chore.Engineers do not know why the original failed. Mission Control asked the spacewalkers to keep an eye out for any damage that might explain the breakdown. Nothing jumped out.Flight controllers were trying to load software into the spare computer on April 11, but it failed to activate. That set into motion a frenzy of ground meetings and tests to fix the problem.NASA feared that if the primary computer went down as well, the entire space station would be in jeopardy. These two computers — the primary and backup — control the pointing of the solar wings and radiators, as well as the movement of the robot-arm rail cart.It was the first failure of one of dozens of so-called MDMs, or multiplexer-demultiplexers, in and outside the space station.Mission Control kept the spacewalk short and straight-to-the-point; it lasted a mere one hour and 36 minutes. All routine spacewalks by U.S. station crew have been on hold since last summer's near-drowning by a spacewalking astronaut. His helmet filled with water from the cooling system of the suit, and NASA is continuing to investigate the problem.NASA hopes to reuse the bad computer, once it's inspected indoors by the astronauts and updated.Their mission accomplished, Mastracchio and Swanson exchanged a few jokes and laughs as they got ready to go back inside."My arms are too short for a selfie," Mastracchio said with a chuckle, his camera pointed at himself.Mission Control spotted a small object floating over Mastracchio's right shoulder as the spacewalk drew to a close. He said he didn't think he lost anything. The NASA commentator, Dan Huot, later said it appeared to be a tiny wire tie.The space station is home to six men: the two Americans, three Russians and one Japanese.Astronauts complete spacewalk, fix computerWilliam Harwood - CBS NewsAstronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steven Swanson returned to the Quest airlock aboard the International Space Station at 11:32 a.m. EDT (GMT-4), ending a short but successful one-hour 36-minute spacewalk to replace a faulty external computer.The start of the spacewalk, known as U.S. EVA-26, came just five hours after the departure of a Russian Progress supply ship that undocked from the Zvezda command module at 4:58 a.m. After moving about 300 miles ahead of the station, the uncrewed Progress will return and re-dock Friday to test an upgraded navigation and rendezvous system planned for future vehicles.But the spacewalk was the focus for the station's NASA crew and flight controllers at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The goal was to replace an external multiplexer-demultiplexer, or MDM, a 49-pound computer mounted in the central S0 segment of the station's solar power truss that failed April 11.Less than an hour into a planned 2.5-hour spacewalk, Mastracchio and Swanson pulled a failed external computer from its rack in the central S0 truss segment of the International Space Station's solar power truss Wednesday and installed a replacement, making quick work of a critical repair.Before unbolting the computer, Mastracchio reported there were no obvious signs of any damage in the area and examining the faulty "black box" after it was removed, he said everything looked good with no evidence of anything out of the ordinary. While additional troubleshooting will be needed to make sure, it would appear that an internal component failure of some sort was responsible for the original malfunction.With the new computer in place, flight controllers sent commands to power it up and then began a series of diagnostic tests to verify its performance before uplinking the latest software. The faulty computer was carried back inside the station for troubleshooting and repairs."Your R & R was successful, we have a good MDM," Hansen called. "It's in diagnostic mode as expected.""Oh, wonderful," one of the spacewalkers replied. "Fantastic," said the other.The only other task on the spacewalk timeline was to cut two launch restraint lanyards that were interfering with the operation of doors covering a bay housing spare electrical components. With the lanyards removed, the station's robot arm will be able to access the spares."It's a pretty simple EVA in terms of the overall work we have to do," said Glenda Brown, the lead spacewalk planner at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, before the spacewalk. "It's just coming out from the airlock, driving three bolts to remove the failed unit, removing it, temp stowing it and installing the new one. Very straight forward."On April 11, the backup computer, MDM EXT-2, failed to boot up properly and after reviewing telemetry, flight controllers concluded it was no longer useable. The computer was launched in place with the S0 truss segment in 2002 and operated flawlessly until the malfunction occurred.While the failure had no immediate impact on station operations, the loss of redundancy put the outpost one failure away from major problems across a wide variety of systems.Given the critical nature of the systems in question -- solar array positioning mechanisms, a robot arm transporter, coolant loop telemetry -- replacing a failed command MDM was on NASA's "big 12" list of quick-response spacewalk repairs.But in this case, NASA managers opted to press ahead with launch of the SpaceX Dragon cargo ship before replacing MDM EXT-2. Procedural changes were implemented to ensure good solar array positioning even if a problem later developed with MDM EXT-1.While NASA normally includes a variety of secondary objectives and "get-ahead" tasks in spacewalk timelines to take full advantage of the crew's time outside, only one minor item was added to the MDM replacement EVA. That's because NASA is still working through an extensive spacesuit analysis triggered by a potentially catastrophic water leak during a spacewalk last summer.Engineers believe the water backup was caused by contamination that clogged a coolant loop filter, allowing water to make its way into European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano's helmet. Since then, new filters have been installed, the coolant water has been flushed and replaced and new pump assemblies installed.In addition, Mastracchio and Swanson installed water-absorbing pads in their helmets and plastic straw-like tubes running from their helmets down into the body of their suits to provide an emergency breathing path in case all else fails. The modifications were developed for a pair of "contingency" spacewalks last December.Mastracchio was wearing suit No. 3011, the same extravehicular mobility unit, or EMU, that Parmitano used, while Swanson was wearing EMU No. 3005. A fresh spacesuit was carried up aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo ship that was berthed Sunday, along with additional spare parts."The anomaly is due to contamination that was likely introduced by a filter that was used to clean the (cooling) system," said space station Program Manager Mike Suffredini."We have since scrubbed all the suits' water lines, basically we've flushed the water three times in all three of the suits on orbit and in the cooling lines in the station that provide water to the suits."In addition to that, we've replaced the filters, we have replaced the fan pump sep that got clogged up in EMU 3011...and we just did the fan pump sep R & R for suit 3005."But until the failure investigation is complete, NASA will only conduct contingency spacewalks to carry out critical repairs. Two such spacewalks were carried out last December by Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins to replace an ammonia coolant pump assembly. Today's EVA was NASA's third since the leak."We have been working diligently to understand the cause of the anomaly and to recover from that," Suffredini said. "In the process, we have done a thorough review of all our processes and procedures and our hazard reports, and we established a goal for ourselves to have all of that work done before we did a planned EVA."However, the vehicle keeps flying and occasionally we have contingency EVAs. We've done (two) of those already, to do a pump module replacement, and we're prepared to do this one for this EXT MDM that has failed."The U.S. segment of the space station includes 46 computers, 24 of which are mounted in the lab's solar power truss. One of those external MDMs is used to command the others while a second unit serves as a "hot backup," ready to take over in case of any problems that might derail the primary computer.This was the 179th spacewalk devoted to station assembly and maintenance since construction began in 1998, the second so far this year, the ninth for Mastracchio and the fifth for Swanson.With today's spacewalk, 114 astronauts and cosmonauts representing nine nations have now logged 1,123 hours and 28 minutes of space station EVA time, or 46.8 days.Mastracchio moves up to No. 5 on the list of most experienced spacewalkers, with 53 hours and 4 minutes of EVA time across his nine excursions while Swanson's total now stands at 27 hours and 58 minutes."Thank you, everyone," Swanson called. "Great work."Spacewalking Astronauts Replace Dead Computer on Space StationTariq Malik – Space.comA pair of NASA astronauts replaced a dead backup computer on the International Space Station during a short spacewalk Wednesday (April 23) to restore a critical computer system back to full strength.NASA astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Steve Swanson made quick work of their repair during the spacewalk, removing the faulty station computer and installing a spare less than an hour after floating outside the orbiting laboratory at 9:56 a.m. EDT (1356 GMT)."It looks like a good day for you guys to take a walk in space," Mission Control radioed the astronauts as the spacewalk began. The spacewalk was slated to last only 2.5 hours.Mastracchio and Swanson replaced a computer known in NASA parlance as a Multiplexer-Demultiplexer, or MDM. The device is a backup computer for routing commands to systems supporting the space station's solar arrays, robotic arm rail car and other critical systems along the station's backbone-like main truss.The 10-year-old MDM computer failed on April 11 during a standard test. The primary computer in the system is working fine, but NASA station flight controllers ordered today's repair spacewalk to restore redundancy in the system."Looks like we've got a new MDM," Mastracchio said as he finished the job.A quick test showed the new computer was working fine."Oh wonderful," Mastracchio said.There are 45 MDM computers on the International Space Station, with 21 of them located on the orbiting lab's exterior and the rest installed inside the station's habitable area. Replacing the MDM computer boxes is one of 12 core space station repair skills astronauts learn before launch, NASA officials have said.Despite their swift work, the spacewalkers did take time to marvel at the bright blue Earth below. At one point, Mastracchio reminded Swanson to take a look down at the sunlit Earth."Where are we?" Mastracchio asked Mission Control later. The answer: Over South America."A great view," the astronaut replied.Wednesday's 2.5-hour spacewalk was substantially shorter than the typical six-hour excursions astronauts take outside the International Space Station. That's because the MDM computer replacement was sole goal for Mastracchio and Swanson"We want to get this job done as quickly as we can, so we didn't want to add a whole bunch of things for this team to sort out," NASA space station program manager Mike Suffredini told reporters on Friday (April 18).Suffredini said the decision for a short spacewalk is also a safety measure for Mastracchio and Swanson, who are using spacesuits that have new water filters and fan pump systems. That maintenance was performed in the wake of a harrowing June 2013 spacewalk in which a water leak flooded the helmet of Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, nearly drowning him. NASA engineers suspect contamination in the water line caused the leak."I feel pretty strongly that we've sorted out the root cause and that our suits are in good shape," Suffredini said.Today's space station repairs marked the ninth career spacewalk for Mastracchio, and the fifth spacewalk for Swanson. Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata and Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Tyurin, Oleg Artemyev and Alexander Skvortsov round out the crew. The spacewalk came on the heels of two other major events for the six-man crew on the International Space Station.On Sunday (April 20), an unmanned SpaceX Dragon cargo ship arrived at the station carrying 2.5 tons of fresh supplies and gear for the orbiting lab's crew. Then earlier today, at 4:58 a.m. EDT (0858 GMT), a robotic Russian Progress 53 cargo ship was due to undock from the station and park itself about 311 miles (500 kilometers) from the orbiting lab to test its new Kurs automated docking system. The Progress spacecraft is due to return to the space station on Friday (April 25).Spacewalkers replace failed computer outside space stationIrene Klotz – ReutersTwo U.S. astronauts wrapped up a speedy spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Wednesday, replacing a failed computer that backs up one used to control critical systems such as the station's solar panel wings.Flight engineers Rick Mastracchio and Steve Swanson left the station's Quest airlock just after 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT) for what was expected to be a 2-1/2-hour spacewalk. They replaced the failed computer and got back into the space station with an hour to spare."Nice and clean. Great job," Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen from NASA's Mission Control in Houston radioed to the spacewalkers as they prepared to close the hatch.The computer, about the size of a small microwave oven, is one of two that control critical systems outside the station. These include sending commands to rotate the solar panel wings to track the sun and positioning a mobile base for the station's robotic crane."I don't see any obvious damage," Mastracchio said as he and Swanson inspected the unit, which failed on April 11.U.S. spacewalks generally last more than six hours, but except for emergency repairs, NASA spacewalks remain suspended while engineers assess last year's spacesuit failure that nearly drowned Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano after his helmet filled with water.The leak was traced to a blocked filter, and NASA flew parts to the station for astronauts to make spacesuit repairs before a pair of emergency spacewalks in December to fix the station's cooling system. Those astronauts also had snorkels and absorbent pads in their helmets in case of similar leaks.Mastracchio, making his ninth spacewalk, and Swanson, on his fifth, also included snorkels and pads in their helmets.A new spacesuit is among the cargo aboard the Space Exploration Technologies' Dragon capsule that reached the station on Sunday.NASA expects to resume routine spacewalks for maintenance and less-pressing repairs in July.The station, a $100 billion project of 15 nations, is a permanently staffed research laboratory that flies about 260 miles (420 km) above Earth.Mars Missions Could Make Humanity a Multi-Planet Species, NASA Chief SaysMiriam Kramer – Space.comIn order for humanity to survive into the distant future, we need to visit and learn how to survive on other worlds, according to NASA chief Charles Bolden.NASA is in the process of developing technologies that are expected to help humans get to Mars and beyond. Landing astronauts on Mars and even establishing a long-term human presence on the Red Planet is just one step toward learning how to live on a different world, Bolden said during the Humans 2 Mars Summit in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (April 22)."If this species is to survive indefinitely, we need to become a multi-planet species," Bolden said. "One reason we need to go to Mars is so that we can learn a little bit about living on other planets ... Mars is a steppingstone in the steppingstone approach to other solar systems and other galaxies and things that people have always dreamed of but frequently don't talk about."Ideally, the first crewed mission to Mars will represent the culmination of many incremental steps — like NASA's ambitious plan to retrieve an asteroid and park it near the moon — taken to safely get humans to and from Mars, NASA officials have said.Under the space agency's current framework, NASA officials hope to launch humans to Mars by the 2030s after sending an astronaut crew to an asteroid by 2025."We, today, are Earth-reliant," Bolden said. "We're dependent on being on this planet. We are not a multi-planet species yet … Only multi-planet species survive for long periods of time."In general, the architecture for a mission to Mars is not like the Apollo program that brought astronauts to the moon for the first time. The current plan could involve sending multiple spacecraft to the Mars system over the course of years, however, the plan to get to Mars is an evolving process, William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for the agency's human exploration and operations mission directorate, said during the conference today."We're starting to take a different approach toward Mars than we have before," Gerstenmaier said. "Our classic [ideas for Mars] missions were more Apollo-style in a way — where we launched everything within a year and we sent the armada of spacecraft … toward Mars. I think we're going to do that maybe over a period of time, over a period of years and build more of an evolvable piece."It's not a single mission, but it really is the pioneering aspect," Gerstenmaier added. "Once that mental change starts … and you're looking at it in the long term, then you invest in some things that might actually take longer to go do, but they may be more sustainable."Learning more about Mars also has tangible effects right now, Bolden said. Understanding the Red Planet could also help scientists peer into the past and future of Earth."Mars' formation and evolution are comparable to Earth's and we know that at one time Mars had conditions suitable for life," Bolden wrote in a post on Space.com. "What we learn about the Red Planet may tell us more about our own home planet's history and future and help us answer a fundamental human question — does life exist beyond Earth?"Buzz Aldrin Wants NASA Astronauts to Visit Asteroid in Deep SpaceMiriam Kramer – Space.comWhile moonwalker Buzz Aldrin thinks that a mission sending humans to an asteroid is a good idea, the Apollo astronaut isn't so happy with NASA's current plan to use a robot to shrink-wrap a space rock and park it near the moon.The space agency's asteroid plan centers on launching a robotic mission that aims to capture an asteroid — or a smaller boulder from a space rock — and deliver it to an orbit around the moon where astronauts can visit and sample it sometime in the 2020s. Aldrin would rather see NASA launch astronauts on a mission to an asteroid still in deep space."I sure do not think bringing a rock back is better than what the president said — a human mission to an asteroid in 2025 — but send a robot there first so the two get there at the same time," Aldrin said during his talk at the Humans 2 Mars Summit being held in Washington, D.C., Tuesday (April 22).Aldrin's model, NASA would send an astronaut crew to an asteroid using the space agency's Space Launch System rocket and Orion space capsule. The astronaut crew would be able to operate the asteroid-exploring robot with no time delay, Buzz Aldrin explained. (NASA's plan would use the Orion capsule when astronauts visit the asteroid lassoed near the moon.)NASA's asteroid-retrieval mission, in its present form, would also help engineers test out ways of deflecting potentially harmful asteroids that could threaten Earth. If NASA officials choose to launch a robotic mission that would pick a boulder off a larger asteroid, they could also use the robot to try to move the large asteroid into a slightly different orbit.That demonstration could aid in planetary protection, but generally, Aldrin doesn't think that should be NASA's job. "Planetary defense is not a NASA mission. It should be at the very highest level [of the] National Security Council," Aldrin said.Aldrin also thinks that humans should establish a permanent, internationally co-operative base on Mars. Aldrin believes that an insightful leader could make that particular dream happen as well. And if they prioritize a base on Mars, it could happen."That is a legacy that will last in history for a very long time," Aldrin said. "We need to convince people of doing that, and maybe I'll retire. I kind of doubt it … There are a lot of people that think this is an 'egghead' idea, so I've got to hang around and smarten them up."Obama finds Japanese robots 'a little scary'Juliet Eilperin – The Washington PostPresident Obama played soccer Thursday with a Japanese robot -- and came away a bit scared.Obama's visit to the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, or Mirikan, aimed to highlight both Japan's technological prowess and the renewal of a 10-year scientific collaboration agreement between the two countries. While the event had plenty of examples of how the two countries are working together -- including a pre-recorded message from the International Space Station's Japanese commander and two American flight engineers serving alongside him -- the real stars of the show were a couple of robots.Honda's humanoid robot ASIMO, which was dressed in an astronaut suit and is about the height of a 10 year-old child, went through a series of exercises for the president."It's nice to meet you," it said in a metallic voice, before approaching a soccer ball and telling Obama, "I can kick a soccer ball too.""Okay, come on," the president replied.The robot then took a couple of steps back and then then ran up to the ball to deliver a hefty punt.The president trapped the ball with his foot, later telling an audience of roughly 30 students he was slightly intimidated by ASIMO and the other robot he observed at the museum."I have to say that the robots were a little scary, they were too lifelike," Obama declared. "They were amazing."The astronauts described how the two countries' space agencies were working together to monitor rainfall patterns with a Global Precipitation Measurement satellite (GPM), and Obama used it as an example of how Japan and the U.S. "have been at the cutting-edge of innovation," from some of the first modern calculators decades ago to smartphones.Technology, he told the students, "has allowed us to understand the planet that we share, and to understand not only the great possibilities but also the challenges and dangers from things like climate change -- that your generation is going to help us to find answers to some of the questions that we have to answer.""Whether it's: How do we feed more people in an environment in which it's getting warmer? How do we make sure that we're coming up with new energy sources that are less polluting and can save our environment?" Obama asked. "How do we find new medicines that can cure diseases that take so many lives around the globe? To the robots that we saw that can save people's lives after a disaster because they can go into places like Fukushima that it may be very dangerous for live human beings to enter into. These are all applications, but it starts with the imaginations and the vision of young people like you."Feds see innovation decline within governmentAndy Medici – Federal TimesSupport for innovation is declining across the government, according to a report by the Partnership for Public Service released April 23.Federal employee answers to three innovation-related questions on the annual Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey dropped from 61.5 out of 100 in 2012 to 59.4 out of 100, according to the report, produced in partnership with Deloitte.While 90 percent of employees surveyed report they are always looking for better ways to do their jobs only 54.7 percent feel encouraged to do so and only 33.4 percent believe their agency rewards creativity and innovation."The bottom line is that federal workers are motivated to improve the way they do their work, but they do not feel supported by their organizations," the report said.Dave Dye, a director of human capital at Deloitte, LLP, said the report is a message to agency leaders to pay attention and have discussions on innovation and make concerted efforts to enhance innovation in their areas."It's not that leaders have to be innovative in their own right it means they need to set up environments for people to feel that innovation Is encouraged, rewarded and respected," Dye said.Most agencies saw a decline in their "innovation score" according to the report, including:■ The Army saw one of the largest drops in its innovation score - from 64.2 out of 100 I 2012 to 60.1 out of 100 in 2013.■ NASA – which had the highest score at 76.0 out of 100 in 2013 – also dropped from 76.5 in 2012.■ The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network at the Treasury Department saw one of the largest drops among component agencies, from 63.8 out of 100 in 2012 to 52.0 in 2013.Some agencies that have shown improvement are the National Science Foundation and the Peace Corps. Some NASA facilities also saw improvement, including the John C. Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama.The ongoing effects of sequestration, budget cuts and threat of furloughs may also have had a dampening effect on federal employees, Dye said."When people feel safer or more sure about whats going on they are going to better focus on the mission," he said.Agency managers should also work to improve their work environments to build trust and confidence in their workforce by showing concerns about people's careers and supporting development opportunities while recognizing good work, according to Dye.The report recommends that agencies recognize employees at team meetings or with more formal awards to highlight innovation and creativity and reward success. Managers should make sure to share specific goals, provide a forum for open discussion and work to build trust among the workforce that is needed to help spur innovation.Top SLS, Orion Official Leaving NASA July 1Dan Leone – Space NewsDan Dumbacher, NASA's deputy associate administrator for exploration systems development, will leave the agency effective July 1, a NASA spokesman confirmed April 21.Dumbacher is returning to his alma mater Purdue University in West Lafayette, Ind., to take a faculty position in the School of Aeronautics and Astronautics. He has been with NASA since 1979, but for a two-and-a-half-year detour to industry that ended in July 1987. Dumbacher became the top Washington-based official for NASA's Space Launch System and Orion programs in 2010 and will be succeeded in that capacity on an interim basis by his deputy, William Hill, Dumbacher told SpaceNews April 22.Dumbacher's departure was first reported by NASAWatch.com.Asked why he chose to leave the agency only months before Orion is slated to make its first flight to space aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta 4 — the launch window opens Dec. 5 — Dumbacher said the Purdue opportunity was too good to pass up."Chances only come around in life rather sporadically, and that really was the decision," Dumbacher told SpaceNews in an April 23 interview at the Humans to Mars summit here.Dumbacher said he is leaving the SLS and Orion programs in good shape."We got to the point where things are working and things are working well. We're getting budget support on both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue," Dumbacher said.END
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