Old Person Winter says "miss me yet"!
It is plenty hot and humid, as usual, in the Metro Houston area again. Looking forward to that cool front that will be dipping down our way almost later this week.
| | JSC TODAY CATEGORIES - Headlines
- European Cargo Ship Launch Today to ISS
- Managers, Let Them Talk About You (in a Good Way)
- Recent JSC Announcement
- Shuttle Knowledge Console v8.0 Release - Organizations/Social
- Minority Mental Health Awareness
- Flex Friday Special Returns - Aug. 1 - Jobs and Training
- How to Showcase Advanced Technology
- Increasing Inclusion and Engagement - Enroll Today
- Virtual Workshop for First-Line Supervisors
- What Would You Do in a Medical Emergency on TDY?
- Facility Manager Training - Community
- JSC Child Care Center Has a Few Openings
- Hunger Doesn't Go on Summer Vacation |  |
| Headlines - European Cargo Ship Launch Today to ISS
NASA TV will broadcast live the launch and docking of the European Space Agency's (ESA's) fifth and final Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV-5) cargo spacecraft to the International Space Station (ISS). Loaded with more than seven tons of supplies for the station crew, ATV-5 is scheduled to launch on an Ariane 5 rocket at 6:47 p.m. CDT today, July 29, from Kourou, French Guiana (8:47 p.m. local time). NASA TV coverage will begin at 6:15 p.m. and include commentary from both NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston and ESA's launch provider, Arianespace. The 13-ton "George Lemaitre" spacecraft was named by ESA in honor of the 20th century Belgian astronomer and physicist credited with proposing the theory of the expansion of the universe. ATV-5 is scheduled for a 14-day flight to the station, with docking to the aft port of the Russian Zvezda service module at 8:34 a.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 12. NASA TV coverage of rendezvous and docking will begin at 7 a.m. During its trip to the space station, the "Georges Lemaitre" will fly four miles below the space station Friday, Aug. 8, to test sensors for potential use on future European spacecraft before beginning the final phase of its rendezvous with the orbital laboratory. The "Georges Lemaitre" is expected to remain docked until late January 2015. First-time users will need to install the EZTV Monitor and Player client applications: - For those WITH admin rights (Elevated Privileges), you'll be prompted to download and install the clients when you first visit the IPTV website
- For those WITHOUT admin rights (Elevated Privileges), you can download the EZTV client applications from the ACES Software Refresh Portal (SRP)
If you are having problems viewing the video using these systems, contact the Information Resources Directorate Customer Support Center at x46367 or visit the FAQ site. - Managers, Let Them Talk About You (in a Good Way)
Are you a manager or supervisor who ignites innovation, builds a culture of appropriate risk taking and encourages creative and innovative behaviors from employees? If so, then don't worry about those whispers in the hall—your team may just be nominating you for the new innovation award called the Champion of Innovation. Managers and supervisors can be recognized by a group of subordinates who understand just how special their leader is in fostering innovation—but that's not all it takes. See more submission guidelines here. If you're more than a manager/supervisor in the eyes of your team, now is the time to be recognized for it! All entries will have two voting opportunities to win—one for the agency awards, and one for the JSC awards. The JSC voting will take place after the agency voting is completed. - Recent JSC Announcement
Please visit the JSC Announcements (JSCA) Web page to view the newly posted announcement: 14-015: Communications with Industry Procurement Solicitation for Simulation and Software Technology II (SST II) Contract Archived announcements are also available on the JSCA Web page. - Shuttle Knowledge Console v8.0 Release
The JSC Chief Knowledge Officer is pleased to announce the eighth release of Shuttle Knowledge Console. For this release, we are introducing shuttle-related Mission Operations Directorate training videos with associated documentation. We are also releasing the MER shuttle archive, covering all of the items evaluated for each of the STS missions. We have added an export function to the WebPCASS reports, which will allow users to do advanced analysis of data on their own machines. We've updated the style and structure of the site and introduced some additional interface for the file archives to make pictures, documents and videos easier to use. There is a search hints page that will help users get exactly what they want, and quickly. To date, 2.62 TB of information, with 5.83 million documents of Space Shuttle Program knowledge, has been captured. Click the "Submit Feedback" button located on the top of the site navigation and give us your comments and thoughts. Organizations/Social - Minority Mental Health Awareness
Mental illness affects one in four adults and one in 10 children in America. Do you know which minority groups have the highest suicide rate for pre-teen and elder females? The U.S. Surgeon General reports that minorities are less likely to receive diagnosis and treatment for their mental illness. Almost two-thirds of people with a diagnosable mental illness do not seek treatment. Come and learn more about myths, facts and mental health basics. Be a part of the conversation to help eliminate the stigma that has been pervasive obstacle in the understanding mental health and seeking help. Learn ideas to erase the shame around mental illness in diverse communities. In recognition of National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, please join Anika Isaac, LPC, LMFT, LCDC, NCC, CEAP, as she presents on "Minority Mental Health Awareness." - Flex Friday Special Returns - Aug. 1
Back by popular demand! We understand that getting over to the Gilruth Center is not easy during those nine-hour days. Because of that, Starport is launching an amazing assortment of FREE programs on FLEX FRIDAY to all JSC employees, contractors and their families. Flex Friday - Aug. 1 Special FREE programs include: - More SPINNING classes
- Beginners Boot Camp classes
- Outer Space OSFX class
- Kickboxing class
- Basic Yoga class
All Starport locations (Gilruth Center and Buildings 3 and 11) will also be running a 10 percent discount on all athletics, recreation and fitness merchandise. A full schedule and details are listed here. Be sure you stop by the Gilruth Center for a great FLEX Friday! Jobs and Training - How to Showcase Advanced Technology
The Houston Technology Center (HTC)-JSC will be conducting a three-week, six-session lunch-and-learn course entitled "How to Showcase Advanced Technology" beginning July 30. Too often we hear presentations about exciting technologies, particularly aerospace innovations, but do not clearly see or hear the potential benefits of that technology on Earth. That is, what problems would these technologies solve on Earth? Who are the customers for these technologies and who will pay for them? How to craft a compelling value proposition for advanced technologies and aerospace innovations will be the topic of a twice weekly lunch-and-learn series held on Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon to 1 p.m. in Building 35 on-site at JSC. The course is geared for NASA engineers and contractors; however, HTC clients are also invited and encouraged to attend. For more information, contact Evelyn Boatman at 281-244-8271. Event Date: Wednesday, July 30, 2014 Event Start Time:12:00 PM Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Building 35 JSC Campus
Add to Calendar
Evelyn Boatman x48271
[top] - Increasing Inclusion and Engagement - Enroll Today
These classes focus on creating inclusive environments where team members are encouraged and allowed to bring their whole self to work and fully engage in carrying out the mission of the agency. Increasing Inclusion and Engagement (supervisors) Aug. 6 • 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. SATERN ID: 73724 Increasing Inclusion and Engagement (individual contributors) Aug. 7 (choose one session - morning or afternoon) • AM - 8 a.m. to noon SATERN ID: 73722 - or - • PM - 1 to 5 p.m. SATERN ID: 73723 - Virtual Workshop for First-Line Supervisors
First-line supervisors: Register now for the NASA-wide virtual learning workshop on Appreciate Inquiry (AI), sponsored by the agency's LASER program (a 14-month supervisory development program). The event will be held Wednesday, July 30, from noon to 3:30 p.m. in Building 12, Room 146. AI is a methodology for leaders that applies deliberately positive assumptions about people, organizations and relationships. It leaves behind deficit-oriented approaches to management and vitally transforms the ways to approach questions of organizational improvement and effectiveness. AI is a powerful approach capable of inspiring, mobilizing and sustaining human system change. SATERN registration: LMD-LASER-AI Please contact Nancy Garrick/AH3 at x33076 for more information. - What Would You Do in a Medical Emergency on TDY?
This question-and-answer session is for JSC civil servants to learn about the Global Rescue emergency medical services available on international TDY. This does not cost the employee. Take advantage of this service to be safe and healthy during your business travel. Please bring your supervisor and co-workers. Event Date: Wednesday, July 30, 2014 Event Start Time:1:00 PM Event End Time:2:00 PM
Event Location: Bldg 30 Auditorium
Add to Calendar
Sabrina Gilmore x32773
[top] - Facility Manager Training
The Safety Learning Center invites you to attend an eight-hour Facility Manger Training course, which will provide facility managers with insight into the requirements for accomplishing their functions. - Includes training on facility management, safety, hazard identification and mitigation, legal, security, energy conservation, health and environmental aspects
- Attendees of this course must also register in SATERN for a half day of Fire Warden Training. Others who need Fire Warden training can register through the normal process.
Date/Time: Sept. 4 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: Safety Learning Center - Building 20, Room 205/206 Registration via SATERN is required: Community - JSC Child Care Center Has a Few Openings
Space Family Education, Inc. (SFEI) has openings available to dependents of JSC civil servants and contractors for the 2014 school year. Openings available Aug. 25 are for: - Children 24 to 34 months of age
- Children 3 years old
- Children 4 years old
Program Details: 1. Open 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday (closed federal holidays, but open Flex Fridays). 2. Competitive pricing with other comparable child cares, but SFEI includes more amenities. 3. Additional security. Badges are required to get on-site, and an additional security code is required to get in the school's front door. 4. Accelerated curriculum in all classes with additional enrichment and extracurricular programs. 5. Convenience. Nearby and easy access for parents working at on-site at JSC. 6. Breakfast, morning snack, lunch and afternoon snack are all included. 7. Video monitoring available from computers, androids and iPhones. - Hunger Doesn't Go on Summer Vacation
Help the JSC team knock out hunger! Our JSC Feeds Families effort continues with the collection of non-food needs this week. Drop toothpaste, toothbrushes, detergent, shampoo, diapers and other non-food items in the bins conveniently located across JSC. Donations will be shared between the Clear Lake Food Pantry and the Galveston County Food Bank. Don't forget about the upcoming 5K Fun Run on Friday, Aug. 8. Starport will be hosting an exciting event to support JSC Feeds Families. Come help us build a mountain of food! We look forward to seeing you on race day. Registration is OPEN NOW. Time: 7 a.m. on the dot! Distance: 5K (3.1 miles) Location: Gilruth Center Prior to start, all runners must add their 10 pounds of non-perishable food to the pile. The food—and nothing else—is the registration fee. | |
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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
Tuesday – July 29, 2014
International Space Station:
6:15 p.m. CT, Tuesday, July 29 - Coverage of the launch of the European Space Agency's "Georges Lemaitre" Automated Transfer Vehicle to the International Space Station (all channels)
HEADLINES AND LEADS
NASA says first unfolding of Alabama-built James Webb Space Telescope sunshield went 'perfectly'
Lee Roop – Huntsville Times
Imagine having a five-layer umbrella the size of a tennis court that absolutely, positively has to open when you try it. Now, imagine you're trying it across 1 million miles of space.
NASA moves to protect whistleblowers
Tim Devaney – The Hill
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is looking to protect whistleblowers at NASA contractors and subcontractors who shine a light on corporate corruption.
Cuts to space program leave U.S. adrift
Douglas MacKinnon – Tampa (FL) Tribune
On July 20, a minuscule percentage of our population paused to celebrate or ponder the most glorious technological achievement in the history of humankind. That being the Apollo 11 moon landing and Neil Armstrong's historic first step onto its surface 45 years ago.
Our say: Time for our space program to stop drifting
Annapolis (MD) Capital Gazette
If you're old enough, you can recall standing in long lines to view rocks brought from the moon. At the time, when everyone vividly remembered the images of Neil Armstrong's giant leap for mankind on July 20, 1969, that didn't seem like a bad way to spend your time — even if the rocks looked much like those you tossed out of the way of your lawn mower.
Your Legacy: Getting Off This Rock
Peter Diamandis - Forbes
We just celebrated the 45th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing.
Three Kentucky universities sending research to space
David A. Mann - Louisville (KY) Business First
Scientists and engineers from three Kentucky schools are sending a project to space.
Space Business Rising, Experts Say
Emerging efforts to forge a business out of exploring space are making progress, but the sector still has -- literally -- a long way to go, according to a panel of experts.
NASA seeks input on data center consolidation strategies
Colby Hochmuth – Federal Computer Week
The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center wants to look at options for replacing or supplementing existing data centers with more energy-efficient options.
NASA Mars Rover Breaks Driving Record
Nolan Feeney – TIME
Opportunity Mars Rover has driven 25 miles and surpassed expectations since it reached the planet in 2004
NASA's Opportunity Mars Rover has set a new record for the longest off-Earth driving distance, the administration announced.
Saturn's Moon Titan Sheds Light on Hazy Alien Planets
By peering into the haze of Saturn's huge moon Titan, scientists could learn more about how the atmospheres of alien worlds behave.
NASA prepares Mars orbiters for comet close encounter
David Szondy – Gizmag
In October, Mars will encounter comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring, which will come closer to the Red Planet than any recorded comet has passed to Earth. This spectacular event isn't just an astronomical curiosity, it's also a potential hazard to NASA's armada of orbiting explorers, so the space agency is taking steps to protect them from damage by the cosmic visitor.
ESA Spacecraft to Land on a Comet
George Putic – Voice of America
After a long flight through deep space, a European Space Agency probe is finally approaching its target - a comet millions of kilometers away from earth. Scientists say the mission may lead to some startling discoveries about the origins of the water on earth.
COMPLETE STORIES
NASA says first unfolding of Alabama-built James Webb Space Telescope sunshield went 'perfectly'
Lee Roop – Huntsville Times
Imagine having a five-layer umbrella the size of a tennis court that absolutely, positively has to open when you try it. Now, imagine you're trying it across 1 million miles of space.
If that were your situation – and it is the situation facing operators of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope – you'd be really interested in the first full-scale unfolding test on the ground. And you'd be really pleased if it performed "perfectly." That's what NASA says happened last week when engineers stacked and opened a full-scale shield at Northrop Grumman's facility in Redondo Beach.
The shield is actually a sunscreen, not an umbrella, and it will protect NASA's newest telescope from the temperature extremes of deep space when it is launched in 2018.
The sunshield was built in Huntsville, Ala., by ManTech International. It is made of Kapton, a high-performance plastic with a reflective aluminium coating. Each of the layers took ManTech's technicians 14-16 months to build.
NASA moves to protect whistleblowers
Tim Devaney – The Hill
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is looking to protect whistleblowers at NASA contractors and subcontractors who shine a light on corporate corruption.
Government contractors will not be allowed to fire, demote or otherwise discipline employees who blow the whistle on their own companies for abusing their authority by mismanaging a NASA contract, wasting NASA funds, or endangering public health or safety, the agency said Monday.
"Such reprisal is prohibited even if it is undertaken at the request of an executive branch official," NASA wrote in the Federal Register.
These government contractor employees would be allowed to disclose evidence and allegations of illegal activities at their companies to NASA's inspector general, members of Congress, the Government Accountability Office, the Justice Department, and a court or grand jury.
However, these protections would not apply to government contractor employees who disclose intelligence information, such as Edward Snowden.
The whistleblower protections go into effect immediately.
Cuts to space program leave U.S. adrift
Douglas MacKinnon – Tampa (FL) Tribune
On July 20, a minuscule percentage of our population paused to celebrate or ponder the most glorious technological achievement in the history of humankind. That being the Apollo 11 moon landing and Neil Armstrong's historic first step onto its surface 45 years ago.
The heroism and bravery of Armstrong and his crew mates Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin — along with the astronauts who flew before and after that historic feat — should serve as an enduring act of pride for our nation. But the fact that we have not been back since Gene Cernan knelt on the lunar surface in December 1972 and traced his daughter's initials into its dust should serve as a marker of shame for the politicians who turned their backs on the promise of what could have been.
For my first published book, I had the honor to speak with all 12 men who walked on the moon. To a person, they all agreed with the quote from famed Russian scientist Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, born in 1857, who said: "Earth is the cradle of humanity, but one cannot remain in the cradle forever."
For many people in and out of the manned spaceflight business, the moon is the obvious, most accessible and most practical stepping-stone to our solar system, and yet our "leaders" abandoned it because its rewards were not tangible enough or its pursuit would not generate enough votes.
Speaking of the manned spaceflight business, for all practical purposes we no longer have one. Embarrassingly — and quite foolishly — we now have to pay the Russians upwards of $70 million per astronaut to take our people to a space station funded for the most part by U.S. taxpayers. On this subject, Michael Griffin, the former head of NASA, called it a "hostage situation."
We find ourselves in this position because Barack Obama is not a fan of human spaceflight. Preferring as he said when he was running for president in 2007, to take the money from NASA and put it into his (still nonexistent) educational programs.
Precisely because of this shortsightedness, back in 2010, Neil Armstrong, James Lovell (the commander of Apollo 13), and Gene Cernan spoke out in an open letter questioning Obama's policy.
The astronauts said: The president's "decision to cancel the Constellation program, its Ares 1 and Ares V rockets, and the Orion spacecraft, is devastating. … For The United States, the leading space-faring nation for nearly half a century, to be without carriage to low Earth orbit and with no human exploration capability to go beyond Earth orbit for an indeterminate time into the future, destines our nation to become one of second- or even third-rate stature."
Cernan later dialed up that criticism. He said "over the past four years, Obama has resorted to leading from behind and asks Americans to settle for a new normal that diminishes our position in the world. Not only is he willing to sacrifice the United States' pre-eminence in space exploration, but he seems unconcerned that our economic and national security might falter as well. It is not just about space, it is about the country."
Is President Obama entirely to blame for the dangerous predicament we find ourselves in? Not at all. He is simply the worst offender in a list of presidents going back to Lyndon Johnson who cared little or not at all about the critical need for the United States to establish and maintain preeminence in space.
Because nature hates a vacuum, The People's Republic of China is eagerly stepping into the void. As China now openly sets its sights upon everything from Earth orbit to the moon's surface, it's important to remember its entire manned space program is controlled by its military and every objective is geared toward creating a military edge over the United States.
Just last week, China tested another missile designed solely to destroy satellites in Earth orbit. Why? Because they know that no nation on Earth is more dependent upon its satellites for national and economic security than the United States.
Toward that end, China has publicly stated it plans to establish human bases as well as commerce on the moon. When that day comes, we may have real reason to regret both abandoning the moon and mothballing our manned spaceflight program.
Our say: Time for our space program to stop drifting
Annapolis (MD) Capital Gazette
If you're old enough, you can recall standing in long lines to view rocks brought from the moon. At the time, when everyone vividly remembered the images of Neil Armstrong's giant leap for mankind on July 20, 1969, that didn't seem like a bad way to spend your time — even if the rocks looked much like those you tossed out of the way of your lawn mower.
Forty-five years have passed since Apollo 11. As we reported last week, the Lunar and Planetary Institute made moon rock samples available for a presentation — "It's a New Moon" –at four county libraries. The objective, as a county librarian said, was to get kids excited about space.
And that's crucial, particularly in a community where a lot of adult residents work at the Goddard Space Flight Center or for contractors that would be involved in an expanded space program, and where future commanders of a Mars mission may be marching in formation at the Naval Academy at this instant.
But if the adults had more sense, they would be more excited about space — and would be listening closely to 84-year-old Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin. The former Apollo 11 astronaut has been tirelessly advocating for American leadership in human space flight, and describes NASA as "adrift." Given that we now rely on Russia to take our astronauts into low Earth orbit, does anyone want to argue with him about that?
Actually, NASA has presentable long-range plans for landing on an asteroid by the mid-2020s and getting to Mars in the 2030s. What's missing is the long-range funding commitment that would assure that these plans won't constantly be pushed off into the future — at least until we get nervous about Chinese successes in manned space flight.
Is that a petty and chauvinistic way to look at it? Perhaps. But compared to other avenues, a space race is a benign and productive outlet for superpower rivalry.
In Huffingtonpost.com recently, University of Texas professor Wallace Foster noted that NASA's fiscal 2015 budget is $17.5 billion — and Americans spend more than $35 billion a year on pizza and $250 billion a year on the costs of our lingering affection for tobacco. The Iraq and Afghanistan wars have cost about $1.2 trillion since 9/11. Would it be reckless to double spending on space and make a commitment to getting a manned mission to Mars in 20 years — especially as it's estimated that every dollar spent on the space program yields an economic benefit of $8 to $10?
An 11-year-old at the Annapolis library program built a model moon rover he dubbed Future, remarking that it's "the future of science." We hope today's citizens and politicians have the foresight to invest enough in science, including but not limited to the space program, so that the 11-year-old — and this nation — have the future they deserve.
Your Legacy: Getting Off This Rock
Peter Diamandis - Forbes
We just celebrated the 45th anniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing.
The fact that we went to the Moon with 1960s technology is extraordinary.
The fact that we never went back is shameful.
Should we send another mission to the Moon? Absolutely.
But it should be a private effort — incentivized by government, but not carried out by the government.
And it should be part of humanity's expansion to Mars and the near-Earth asteroids as well.
Thousands of years from now, it will be these next few decades that are remembered as the moment in time when the human race became a multi-planetary species.
You are alive during these times and it's part of your legacy.
But this time, when we go back to the Moon, it won't be with an Apollo-style program.
Missions this complex now require the kind of cost efficiencies and risk mindset found only in today's commercial industries and entrepreneurial risk takers.
To be affordable and successful, these missions need to use the accelerating (exponential) technologies we are developing today in our labs and commercial companies.
Unfortunately, our traditional NASA approach was to use 20-year-old stuff — or, in other words, only use technology that has been proven to work time and time again.
Did you know that Curiosity — the pinnacle of our Mars exploration program roving around the surface of Mars today — is using a PowerPC processor similar to that in your 1997 PowerBook G3 Laptop… 17 years ago?
The other challenge with our traditional government space programs is their "start-stop-start-stop-CANCEL" cycle. The biggest of programs take a decade to execute (and thereby span several election cycles). As such, time and time again we've seen the most audacious government ventures canceled as Democrats scrap Republican initiatives, and Republicans sideline Democratic programs. Consequently, nothing gets accomplished.
It is only with a commercial mindset and commercial technologies (supported by government incentives) that we will achieve the long-term exploration, commercialization and industrialization of space.
The systems pioneered by a company like SpaceX, with its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon2 spacecraft (which allows for propulsive landing), is a perfect example of what we need to go back to the Moon and beyond to Mars.
By the way, have you ever heard Elon speak about his plans for Mars? He's publicly committed to providing round-trip human transport to the Red Planet for $500,000 per person in about 15 years.
I for one, wouldn't bet against him.
At the same time, my own company Planetary Resources has a team of 40 engineers up in Redmond, Washington building a new generation of autonomous 'space drones' called the Arkyd-200 and Arkyd-300 spacecraft. These are drones designed to find and prospect near-Earth asteroids for strategic metals and rocket fuel (hydrogen and oxygen).
Finally, I'm very proud of our Google Lunar XPRIZE, which has offered $30M (of Google's money) in purses, plus up to $30 million in additional NASA contracts, to the first private team to build a robot, land it on the Moon, send back photos and videos, and rover (or hop) 500 meters.
In success, all of these commercial projects and initiatives will spark the creation of a cottage industry of exploration companies that will help bring down the cost of accessing the Moon, Mars and the asteroids by 50-fold.
These next few decades represent the window in time when the human race is moving irreversibly off the Earth. Thousands of years from now, when humanity looks back, it will be our generation who took the bold steps beyond the bounds of Earth.
Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky, the Russian scientist considered the father of modern-day cosmonautics, famously said, "Earth is the cradle of humanity, but one cannot remain in the cradle forever." It's time for us to get out of the cradle and start exploring the boundless resources of space.
All of this is being made possible by exponential technologies. Ultimately we are demonetizing and democratizing access to space and near-Earth resources.
If you'd like to learn more about how this is all happening, considering joining this year at Abundance 360.
In the meantime, when you look up at the Moon at night, know that you and your children will actually have the opportunity to travel there one day soon.
Three Kentucky universities sending research to space
David A. Mann - Louisville (KY) Business First
Scientists and engineers from three Kentucky schools are sending a project to space.
According to a news release, the University of Louisville, University of Kentucky and Western Kentucky University are using a NASA grant to fund research aboard the International Space Station.
The project involves physics experiments on colloids, which are mixtures of microscopic particles suspended throughout a substance. Examples of colloids include milk, which has microglobules of butterfat suspended in whey, and blood, which contains blood cells suspended in plasma, the release said.
U of L mechanical engineering assistant professor Stuart Williams is the project's principal scientific investigator. In the release, he said the exact nature of the experiments to be performed still is being determined.
Williams said the space station setting provides a "unique research environment" and will help scientists explore how particles interact in zero gravity. The research "will yield insight into the physics of colloidal interactions, which is important for the development of the next generation of sophisticated materials," he said in the release.
According to researchers, understanding colloidal physics is needed to develop new materials with enhanced energy, thermal, optical, chemical and mechanical properties. Potential applications include more efficient solar energy panels, stronger and lighter aerospace materials and less expensive electronic displays, the release said.
Williams said the collaborative nature of the coming project will raise the state's profile in colloidal research. Research on the space station is expected to begin in June 2015.
The project's managing principal investigator is Suzanne Smith, UK's Donald and Gertrude Lester Professor of Mechanical Engineering and director of the NASA Kentucky Space Grant Consortium. The team also includes Gerold Willing, U of L assistant professor of chemical engineering, Hemali Rathnavake, WKU assistant professor of chemistry, Janet Lumpp, UK associate professor of electrical and computer engineering, and NASA partner Ronald Sicker.
Space Business Rising, Experts Say
Emerging efforts to forge a business out of exploring space are making progress, but the sector still has -- literally -- a long way to go, according to a panel of experts.
Private sector companies are now actively resupplying the International Space Station at a fraction of the cost of prior government services. The next big milestone will come when NASA awards contracts for its Orion manned space vehicle programs.
Speaking of the ISS resupply missions, NASA Ames Research Center director Simon "Pete" Worden said "this stuff is going really well.
"The space economy is emerging and we government guys have to get used to the fact we are not going to make it all happen by ourselves," Worden said at the New Space event here.
He pointed to startups such as Moon Express in Silicon Valley, work on nano-satellites at the University of Michigan that generated a Kickstarter campaign, and efforts from Tel Aviv to Shanghai.
"You don't think of Lithuania as a space power, but they launched some satellites, and I met their prime minister a few weeks ago." Worden said. "I was in Jordon recently. There's great talent around the world."
The US Air Force is evaluating commercial Falcon rockets, said Daniel Mosqueda, Director of Air Force programs for the Universities Space Research Association. "I can't discuss some of the companies we're working with because some of that is proprietary, but we are getting launch costs down to millions instead of hundreds of millions," he said.
The Air Force also is mulling opportunities to let private companies launch some of its military payloads into space. "That would have never happened in past, but it's happening now," Mosqueda said.
Budget cuts in government space programs "were one of the best things that happened -- it forced us to figure out what to do, and now we are looking much more closely at lower-cost launch and delivery systems," he added.
The commercial space movement has come a long way since it was perceived as a bunch of "tin-foil-hat-wearing twinkies," said Michael Lopez-Alegria, president of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. But companies need to be "steel eyed" about safety.
"We still have to demonstrate success. You won't make money if you hurt people," he said.
In recognition of that fact, Richard Branson said last year that he and his children will be passengers on the first commercial flight to the edge of space by his company, Virgin Galactica, scheduled for later this year.
NASA seeks input on data center consolidation strategies
Colby Hochmuth – Federal Computer Week
The NASA Goddard Space Flight Center wants to look at options for replacing or supplementing existing data centers with more energy-efficient options.
The agency's request or information was spurred by a federal mandate to consolidate its buildings and a requirement that new construction must use 30 percent less energy.
Goddard's strategy is three-fold: data center retrofit technologies and solutions with high return on investment as short term, interim measures; stand-alone containerized data center solutions that meet criteria for two distinct use cases; and modular containerized data center solutions in order to establish a longer-term strategic data center plan.
Vendors need to provide enough data to substantiate any return on investment projections for the changeover.
Click here to see the RFI. NASA Mars Rover Breaks Driving Record
Nolan Feeney – TIME
Opportunity Mars Rover has driven 25 miles and surpassed expectations since it reached the planet in 2004
NASA's Opportunity Mars Rover has set a new record for the longest off-Earth driving distance, the administration announced.
Opportunity has driven 25 miles since it arrived on Mars in 2004. It crossed the milestone after a 157-foot drive on Sunday.
"This is so remarkable considering Opportunity was intended to drive about one kilometer and was never designed for distance," John Callas, Mars Exploration Rover Project Manager, said in a statement. "But what is really important is not how many miles the rover has racked up, but how much exploration and discovery we have accomplished over that distance."
Opportunity is traveling along the rim of the Endeavor Crater, where NASA has gathered evidence of ancient water supply that was less acidic than those studied elsewhere on the planet.
As the rover approached this milestone, the team behind it named a 20-foot-wide Mars crater after the previous record holder, the Soviet Union's Lunokhod 2, which drove 24.2 miles on the moon in 1973.
Saturn's Moon Titan Sheds Light on Hazy Alien Planets
By peering into the haze of Saturn's huge moon Titan, scientists could learn more about how the atmospheres of alien worlds behave.
A team of scientists has recently developed a technique to help unscramble the messages encoded in the light signatures of exoplanets located light-years from Earth, but wanted to test it out a little closer to home first. The scientists used data collected from 2006 to 2011 by the Cassini spacecraft in the Saturn system to examine Titan's hazy atmosphere and learn more about how it works.
Scientists have known for a while that many exoplanets probably have atmospheres obscured by haze and smog. That haze creates a problem for astronomers wanting to study those far-away worlds. Just as scientists try to understand the properties of stars by analyzing the light they emit, scientists study alien worlds by observing what happens to light as it passes through those planets' atmospheres. Scientists wait until the exoplanet passes, or transits, in front of its star, then gather the light with a telescope and use a prism to separate the light into its individual wavelengths, in the process gathering information about the planet's atmosphere, including its temperature, structure and overall composition.
"It turns out that there's a lot you can learn from looking at a sunset," said Tyler Robinson in a NASA statement. Robinson, a postdoctoral research fellow at NASA's Ames Research Center, in California, led the team that produced the results.
But if the exoplanet's atmosphere is hazy, the measurements gathered might not accurately reflect what the atmosphere is really like. For a while, scientists thought that the haze would affect atmosphere measurements, but modeling the effects in their calculations would be complicated and take a lot of computing power. To make the calculations simpler, astronomers downplayed the haze's effect.
Scientists realized, though, that they could learn more about how the haze behaves by studying smoggy worlds in our own solar system, therefore, they turned their attention to Titan.
"Their analysis provided results that include the complex effects due to hazes, which can now be compared to exoplanet models and observations," according to a NASA statement. Specifically, the analysis revealed that scientists might be able to get reliable information about only the upper reaches of an exoplanet's atmosphere. For Titan, that region equals 90 to 190 miles (150 to 300 kilometers) above the moon's surface. The team also found that haze affected short wavelengths of light more than other wavelengths. Scientists had previously believed that haze affected all wavelengths similarly.
The technique devised by Robinson and his team can be applied to measurements taken of any extraterrestrial world, including planets like Mars and Saturn.
"Ty's results are proof of concept that you can remotely detect features of molecules on distant, cold worlds," Sarah Ballard, the NASA Carl Sagan Fellow in Astronomy at the University of Washington, said. "I feel a renewed hope that mankind is one step closer to detecting the signatures of faraway life."
NASA prepares Mars orbiters for comet close encounter
David Szondy – Gizmag
In October, Mars will encounter comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring, which will come closer to the Red Planet than any recorded comet has passed to Earth. This spectacular event isn't just an astronomical curiosity, it's also a potential hazard to NASA's armada of orbiting explorers, so the space agency is taking steps to protect them from damage by the cosmic visitor.
Comet C/2013 A1 Siding Spring was discovered in 2013 by Robert H. McNaught at Siding Spring Observatory. It's unusual because its orbit is so elongated that this is the first time it's visited the inner solar system in several million years. That would be enough to peak astronomers' interest, but early calculations indicated that it would pass so close to Mars that it could result in a once in a million years impact on the Red Planet.
As Siding Spring approached Mars, new observations and calculations proved that the comet wouldn't strike, but its nucleus would pass within 82,000 mi (132,000 km) of the planet at a relative speed of 35 mi/sec (56 km/sec, 126,000 mph, 200,000 km/h) on October 19. This is only a tenth of the distance of the closest observed comet encounter with Earth.
While the nucleus of the comet won't hit, Mars will pass through its tail. This tail is made up of gas so tenuous that it's almost a vacuum, but it also includes solid particles of various sizes down to 0.5 mm that could destroy one of the orbiters like a bullet going through a smartphone
NASA is now preparing its Mars Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) orbiters for the encounter, as well as the approaching Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) spacecraft, scheduled to arrive a month before Siding Spring, and its two surface rovers Opportunity and Curiosity. It's also configuring the craft to take advantage of the event to take a closer look at the passing comet.
The agency solicited three computer models of the comet's passing from the University of Maryland in College Park, the Planetary Science Institute in Tucson, Arizona, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. These were used for calculating how best to protect the orbiters.
NASA is putting all three of the orbiters through course maneuvers that will place them on the opposite side of the planet during the most dangerous 20 minutes of the encounter, which will occur 90 minutes after Siding Spring makes its closest approach. It will be during this period that debris from the comet will reach Mars.
According to the space agency, the MRO made a course correction on July 2, and the Mars Odyssey will do the same on August 27. Meanwhile, MAVEN will arrive in Mars orbit on September 21, after which it will make a protective maneuver on October 9. Though the Martian atmosphere is extremely thin, NASA says that it's thick enough to keep the two rovers out of danger by burning up any comet particles.
In a cosmic example of making lemonade out of unexpected lemons, NASA will use the instruments on the various spacecraft to observe Siding Spring's passing and its effects on the Martian atmosphere as it encounters the tail. In addition, the rovers' cameras will record the comet's passing and any meteors burning up in the Martian atmosphere. NASA hopes that the very long orbit of the comet will provide new insights into the early history of the Solar System.
ESA Spacecraft to Land on a Comet
George Putic – Voice of America
After a long flight through deep space, a European Space Agency probe is finally approaching its target - a comet millions of kilometers away from earth. Scientists say the mission may lead to some startling discoveries about the origins of the water on earth.
Ten years ago, a European Space Agency rocket took off with a spacecraft called Rosetta, on a mission to perform the most detailed study of a comet.
While asteroids are large rocks, almost like small planets, comets are mostly made of ice, says Ralph Cordey, the business manager for Airbus Defense and Space, which built the Rosetta spacecraft.
"We know today that our Earth has a great deal of water on it, we don't know exactly where it came from and it's likely that comets had a lot to do with that process," said Cordey.
It took more than 10 years for Rosetta to make three swings around Earth and one around Mars - gathering enough speed to reach the comet named 67P / Churyumov-Gerasimenko, 400,000 kilometers from Earth.
For the last two-and-half years many of its onboard systems were in the sleep mode to save energy, says Airbus engineer Simon Barraclough.
"So when we're close to the Sun, a lot of things are on. When we're further from the Sun, a lot of things are off," said Barraclough.
A 'wake-up call' in January brought cheers in the mission headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany, as a signal from Rosetta indicated that its computer was wide awake again.
The spacecraft will soon start orbiting the comet at a distance of about 10 kilometers, taking measurements and mapping its surface.
In November, it is scheduled to release a smaller probe called Philae, which will land on the comet.
Cordey says both Rosetta and Philae will measure the comet's gas and dust and send pictures of its surface.
"It will also have a very nice radar system onboard it which will communicate with the orbiting spacecraft - the mothercraft - and use the radar signals to probe the heart of the comet's nucleus. So it's not just looking at the surface or the environment around it, it's actually going to be probing what's underneath the surface," he said.
The probes will travel with the comet for a full year.
Rosetta will continue measuring how the comet changes as it approaches the sun and starts to warm up, while Philae will analyze samples of the its surface and subsurface.
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