Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Fwd: Human Spaceflight (and Mars) News - February 6, 2013 and JSC Today



Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: Kent Castle <kent.d.castle@hotmail.com>
Date: February 6, 2013 2:23:18 PM GMT-06:00
To: Martin Bobby <bobbygmartin1938@gmail.com>
Subject: FW: Human Spaceflight (and Mars) News - February 6, 2013 and JSC Today

I have been getting every day.  Check with Larry,
 
                                         Kent
 

From: larry.j.moon@nasa.gov
To: larry.j.moon@nasa.gov
Date: Wed, 6 Feb 2013 07:03:47 -0600
Subject: FW: Human Spaceflight (and Mars) News - February 6, 2013 and JSC Today

Hope you can join us tomorrow at Hibachi Grill for our monthly NASA Retirees monthly luncheon at 11:30   As always, we have the party room in the back left reserved for our use.

 

 

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

 

JSC TODAY HEADLINES

1.            Want More 'NASA Johnson Style' Fun?

2.            Latest International Space Station Research

3.            Love Basketball? NBA All-Star Jam Session Volunteers Needed on Feb. 14

4.            Social Physics and the Networked TODAY at 11:30 a.m.

5.            Electronic Manufacturing Facility (EMF) Customer Forum

6.            Applications Being Accepted for Scholarship

7.            IAAP - CLNAC Monthly Training Meeting

8.            Starport's Spring Break Camp

9.            Starport Introduces Zumbatomic -- Zumba for Kids

10.          Sweetheart Spin -- Thursday, Feb. 14

11.          Parent's Night Out at Starport

12.          Blood Drive -- Feb. 13 to 14

13.          Recent JSC Announcements

14.          White Sands Test Facility: See the Space Station

15.          Situational Awareness Class: April 30 to May 2 -- Building 20, Room 205/206

________________________________________     QUOTE OF THE DAY

" Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow. "

 

-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

________________________________________

1.            Want More 'NASA Johnson Style' Fun?

Currently, "NASA Johnson Style" has garnered more than 4.2 million views on ReelNASA, making the video the most watched clip on the agency's YouTube channel. Watch the "making of" video to see fun outtakes and bloopers!

Also, celebrate the cool geek inside. The Starport Gift Shops in Buildings 3 and 11 are now selling the "Keep Calm and NASA On" T-shirts that appeared in "NASA Johnson Style."

Watch the "Making of NASA Johnson Style" video here.

Ciandra Jackson x32924 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ybsq1KA274s&list=UUmheCYT4HlbFi943lpH009Q...

 

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2.            Latest International Space Station Research

We broke a record! Last week, the Expedition 34 crew completed 67 hours of science utilization -- a record!

On Monday of this week, Tom Marshburn installed a new centrifuge in the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency's Cell Biology Experiment Facility (CBEF).

CBEF can accommodate various life science experiments, such as cultivating cells and plants, and has a centrifuge so that microgravity samples can be compared to gravity control samples from 0.1 to 2.0G.

Read more about CBEF here.

Liz Warren x35548

 

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3.            Love Basketball? NBA All-Star Jam Session Volunteers Needed on Feb. 14

Volunteers are needed to staff JSC's exhibit at the NBA All-Star Jam Session on Feb. 14 at the George R. Brown Convention Center. The event is described as "wall-to-wall basketball fun for all ages. Fans can shoot, slam, dribble and drive all day, and compete against their friends in skills challenges."

The JSC External Relations Office, Office of Communications and Public Affairs, will support an exhibit that highlights general NASA information and plans for ongoing space exploration while using a fun basketball-related theme for visitors. Your enthusiasm and expertise is needed to reach out to the 10,000 local-area family members and youth expected throughout the event.

Interested volunteers should send an email to: jsc-pao-events@mail.nasa.gov

Available shift times are:

Feb. 14 from 4 to 7 p.m.

Feb. 14 from 7 to 10 p.m.

Training and transportation will be provided.

Robin Hart Prouse x32843

 

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4.            Social Physics and the Networked TODAY at 11:30 a.m.

You are invited to JSC's SAIC/Safety and Mission Assurance Speaker Forum featuring John Sibley Butler, director of the IC² Institute and the Herb Kelleher Center at The University of Texas at Austin.

Subject: Managing Innovation, Creativity, Risk and Capital: Social Physics and the Networked

Date/Time: TODAY, Feb. 6, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Location: Building 1, Room 966

Professor Butler will speak on how the models of wealth creation are being augmented by mathematical models of social networking. He will concentrate on how networking analysis augments traditional cluster analysis when trying to create models of communities that support technology transfer and new venture creation. Research is thus showing that in a globally connected society, networks, rather than organizations, have evolved as the primary unit of analysis when understanding job creation and wealth creation.

Event Date: Wednesday, February 6, 2013   Event Start Time:11:30 AM   Event End Time:12:30 PM

Event Location: Building 1 room 966

 

Add to Calendar

 

Della Cardona/Juan Traslavina 281-335-2074/281-335-2272

 

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5.            Electronic Manufacturing Facility (EMF) Customer Forum

The Engineering Directorate's Electronic Manufacturing Facility (EMF) recently established in Building 29 provides JSC electronic manufacturing services in support of flight and non-flight projects/programs across the center. Starting Thursday, Feb. 7, the EMF will be conducting a monthly customer forum meeting, with the meeting occurring on the first Thursday of every month. Please join us if you currently have work (or plan to have work) in the EMF.

This meeting will be supported by the EMF lab manager and the NASA branch manager, and is intended to facilitate general discussion regarding working with the EMF. As we transition to a new model for funding work in the EMF, we are also prepared to discuss processes and funding topics.

Event Date: Thursday, February 7, 2013   Event Start Time:1:00 PM   Event End Time:2:00 PM

Event Location: Building 16 Room 253

 

Add to Calendar

 

Darilyn Peddie x38279

 

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6.            Applications Being Accepted for Scholarship

The NASA College Scholarship Program will award multiple scholarships agencywide to qualified dependents of NASA civil servant employees. The scholarship recipients must pursue a course of study leading to an undergraduate degree in science or engineering from an accredited college or university in the United States. Applications are available online.

The application deadline is March 31.

Amanda Gaspard x31387

 

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7.            IAAP - CLNAC Monthly Training Meeting

The International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) - Clear Lake NASA Area Chapter (CLNAC) invites you to a monthly training meeting on Feb. 18 at 5:45 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn (Webster). Join us as Tina Wiggins, CAP-OM, 2012-2013 Texas-Louisiana Division President, presents: "Expanding Your Vision: Seeing New Things in New Ways"

Today, admins must not only understand the "big picture," they must become part of it by helping organizations fulfill their missions and remain competitive. Admins must be able to offer creative ideas and innovative solutions to existing problems. In this session, you will examine the skills and strategies needed to see new things in new ways! Topics include:

o             Understanding the importance of creativity

o             Identifying the two phases of idea development

o             Applying creative thinking techniques

o             Recognizing how to change problems into opportunities

o             Weighing the risk of implementing new ideas

Cost to attend is $24 (program and dinner) or $10 (program only). Meal includes healthy portions of pepper-crusted pork loin or herb chicken with loaded mashed potatoes, green beans with bacon and house salad with tomatoes.

RSVP via our website by 5 p.m. on Feb. 14. For more information, contact Frances Jackson at 832-668-2728 or e-mail reservations@iaap-clnac.org. Payment accepted at the door.

Felicia Saenz x32389

 

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8.            Starport's Spring Break Camp

Spring break is just around the corner, and Starport will once again be offering a day camp for kids ages 6 to 12 for the school break. Register your child before spaces fill up! The camp runs from March 11 to 15 from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Fees are $140 per child for the entire week, or $40 per day for selected days. Click here for registration information and more. Register your child at the Gilruth Center during normal operating hours.

Shericka Phillips x35563 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

 

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9.            Starport Introduces Zumbatomic -- Zumba for Kids

Designed exclusively for kids, Zumbatomic classes are rockin', high-energy fitness parties packed with specially choreographed kid-friendly routines. This dance-fitness workout for kids ages 4 to 12 will be set to hip-hop, salsa, reggaeton and more. Our first five-week session starts March 8 at the Gilruth Center. Classes take place on Fridays from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m. We will have a demo class on March 1 that you can try for free! Sign up at the Gilruth front desk for the free class. Each session costs $55/child. Register at the Gilruth Center. Click here for more information.

Shericka Phillips x35563 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

 

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10.          Sweetheart Spin -- Thursday, Feb. 14

Registration is now open for Starport's Third Annual Sweetheart Spin! Grab your sweetheart and sign up for this fun workout. This year we are making it extra special with some amazing prizes and giveaways.

Sweetheart Spin

o             Thursday, Feb. 14 (Valentine's Day)

o             6 to 7 p.m.

o             Gilruth Studio 2

Registration OPEN:

o             Closes Feb. 13

o             $25 per couple

o             $15 per individual

All participants will receive Valentine's Day goodies and refreshments. One lucky participant will win a phenomenal HEART-rate monitor!

Don't delay --- sign up you and your sweetheart today.

Event Date: Thursday, February 14, 2013   Event Start Time:6:00 PM   Event End Time:7:00 PM

Event Location: Gilruth Center - Studio 2

 

Add to Calendar

 

Steve Schade x30304 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

 

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11.          Parent's Night Out at Starport

Take advantage of our special day-after-Valentine's Day Parent's Night Out at the Gilruth Center. Enjoy a night out on the town while your kids enjoy a night with Starport! We will entertain your children with a night of games, crafts, a bounce house, pizza, a movie and dessert.

When: Friday, Feb. 15, from 6 to 10 p.m.

Where: Gilruth Center

Ages: 5 to 12

Cost: $20/first child and $10/each additional sibling if registered by the Wednesday prior to event. If registered after Wednesday, the fee is $25/first child and $15/additional sibling.

Register at the Gilruth Center front desk. Click here for more information.

Shericka Phillips x35563 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

 

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12.          Blood Drive -- Feb. 13 to 14

You or someone you know may need blood sometime in their life. Help make sure blood is available by giving the "Gift of Life" at the JSC blood drive.

You can donate from Feb. 13 to 14 in the Teague Auditorium lobby or at the donor coach located next to the Building 11 Starport Café from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

You can also donate at the donor coach in the Gilruth Center parking lot on Feb. 14 from noon to 4 p.m. Please note the time change.

Remember to eat within four hours prior to donating. Remain lying down for least 10 minutes after donating. Sit down for 10 minutes, eat a snack and drink some juice before you leave the donor center. Drink plenty of fluids throughout the day.

Teresa Gomez x39588 http://jscpeople.jsc.nasa.gov/blooddrv/blooddrv.htm

 

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13.          Recent JSC Announcements

Please visit the JSC Announcements (JSCA) Web page to view the newly posted announcements:

JSCA 13-004: Key Personnel Announcement - Kathryn L. Lueders

JSCA 13-005: Communications with Industry Procurement Solicitation for Aircraft Maintenance and Operational Support Contract

Archived announcements are also available on the JSCA Web page.

Linda Turnbough x36246 http://ird.jsc.nasa.gov/DocumentManagement/announcements/default.aspx

 

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14.          White Sands Test Facility: See the Space Station

Viewers in the White Sands Test Facility area will be able to see the International Space Station this week.

Wednesday, Feb. 6, 7:21 p.m. (Duration: 3 minutes)

Path: 10 degrees above SW to 68 degrees above W

Maximum elevation: 68 degrees

Thursday, Feb. 7, 6:30 p.m. (Duration: 5 minutes)

Path: 10 degrees above SSW to 17 degrees above ENE

Maximum elevation: 49 degrees

Friday, Feb. 8, 7:18 p.m. (Duration: 2 minutes)

Path: 19 degrees above WNW to 21 degrees above N

Maximum elevation: 25 degrees

Saturday, Feb. 9, 6:28 p.m. (Duration: 4 minutes)

Path: 36 degrees above W to 10 degrees above NE

Maximum elevation: 47 degrees

The International Space Station Trajectory Operations Group provides updates via JSC Today for visible station passes at least two minutes in duration and 25 degrees in elevation. Other opportunities, including those with shorter durations and lower elevations or from other ground locations, are available at the website below.

Joe Pascucci x31695 http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/cities/view.cgi?country=U...

 

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15.          Situational Awareness Class: April 30 to May 2 -- Building 20, Room 205/206

NASA is involved in operations where there is always a potential for human error and undesirable outcomes. As part of a team, how we communicate, process information and react in various situations determines our level of success. In our efforts, we often run into glitches and the potential for human error. Situational Awareness is a course that addresses these issues. It involves combining our awareness of what's going on in the operations environment, a knowledge of system failure design criteria and an understanding of expected outcomes from system failures to avoid hazardous situations and develop safe responses to unsafe conditions that may realistically be expected to arise. This course instructs students in the basic tenets and practices of situational awareness and how they apply to hazardous operations in NASA to promote the best proactive safety techniques in practice. Two-and-a-half days. SATERN Registration Required. (Contractors: Update Profile.) https://satern.nasa.gov/learning/user/deeplink_redirect.jsp?linkId=SCHEDULED_...

Polly Caison x41279

 

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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. To see an archive of previous JSC Today announcements, go to http://www6.jsc.nasa.gov/pao/news/jsctoday/archives.

 

 

Human Spaceflight News

Wednesday – February 6, 2013

 

HEADLINES AND LEADS

 

Israel applies for 2nd astronaut

Jewish state in talks with world space agencies to send Israeli astronaut to Space Station

 

Itamar Eichner - Ynet News

 

Will Israel send its second Israeli astronaut to space in the near future? Representatives of the Israel Space Agency at the Science and Technology Ministry have made the first move toward this goal by applying to add an Israeli astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS). The ISS is operated by a consortium which includes five participating space agencies: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Russian Federal Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

 

Two former astronauts, including Commercial Crew official, leave NASA

 

Dan Leone - Space News

 

Former astronauts Clayton Anderson and Brent Jett, the latter of whom was deputy program manager for NASA's Commercial Crew Program, have left NASA, the agency announced Feb. 4 in separate press releases. Jett, a Navy-trained aviator who joined NASA in 1992, had been deputy manager for the Commercial Crew Program since 2010. He left NASA in January, according to his official NASA bio.

 

Giant leap in race to replace Space Shuttle? Dream Chaser gets big boost

 

 

Pete Spotts - Christian Science Monitor

 

One of three companies vying to ferry US astronauts to and from the International Space Station has inked a multimillion dollar deal with aerospace giant Lockheed Martin in a move aimed at preparing a craft dubbed Dream Chaser for the task. The move by Sierra Nevada Corp. highlights the pace at which the company's plans are morphing from plans on paper to hardware on the shop floor. "We're moving from concept to the next phase of the program, probably faster than most people realize," said Mark Sirangelo, who heads the company's space-systems division. Through Lockheed Martin, Sierra Nevada will have access to expertise in using composite materials that Dream Chaser needs, as well as to large manufacturing facilities required to assemble several craft.

 

NASA Is Resurrecting the Most Powerful Rocket Engine Ever Built

 

Amy Teitel - Motherboard.vice.com (an online magazine)

 

When the first Saturn V launched on November 9, 1967, the combined 7.5 million pounds of thrust from the five F-1 engines shook the CBS news building on live television. The F-1 remains the most powerful single chamber rocket engine ever built, a power NASA hopes to resurrect and apply to its Space Launch System (SLS). A team of engineers at NASA's Marshall Spaceflight Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, are now dissecting the old engines to learn their secrets.

 

Last moonwalker calls space station crew, compares elbow room in orbit

 

Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com

 

The last man to walk on the moon made an unexpected call to the most recent men to live in space Tuesday during a visit to NASA's Mission Control in Houston. Gene Cernan, who in December 1972 commanded Apollo 17, the sixth and final lunar landing mission, was touring the Johnson Space Center with some friends when he was invited by flight controllers to talk with ISS Expedition 34 commander Kevin Ford and flight engineers Chris Hadfield and Tom Marshburn live from the U.S. Destiny laboratory on board the International Space Station (ISS), 260 miles (415 kilometers) above the Earth. "I didn't know I was going to be able to do this," Cernan told the station's crew. The moonwalker, who was using a phone receiver to talk with the astronauts in space, could see Ford, Marshburn and Hadfield on the large screens at the front of the control center room. The ISS residents were in turn able to see Cernan via live streaming video on one of their laptop computers.

 

Astronaut in space opens hailing frequencies for William Shatner Thursday

 

Miriam Kramer - Space.com

 

Famed actor William Shatner, renowned for his iconic role as the fictional captain of the Starship Enterprise on TV's "Star Trek," is about to call up a real-life space man. The James T. Kirk actor will call the soon-to-be commander of the International Space Station on Thursday. Shatner, who is Canadian, will speak will fellow Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield will speak via video and phone in a social media gathering sponsored by the Canadian Space Agency. Shatner and Hadfield, who have already traded messages via the Internet, will have their conversation live in front of audience members, who will have the chance to ask questions of Hadfield using the space-to-ground video link. Visit SPACE.com to watch the call live at 10:40 a.m. EST here on SPACE.com.

 

Astronaut and Rocker to Premiere Space-Earth Duet Friday

 

Elizabeth Howell - Space.com

 

A song inspired by space will become the first tune to premiere via a ground-and-orbit duet. Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield will collaborate with Canadian musician Ed Robertson, best known as a member of the Grammy Award-winning Barenaked Ladies group, to release the first duet to premiere from space and Earth simultaneously. On Friday, Hadfield will perform in space, and Robertson will sing with a youth choir in Toronto. The tune, called "I.S.S. (Is Somebody Singing)," hints at Hadfield's current home on the International Space Station in the initials of the title. That was deliberate, the collaborators say.

 

Astronaut space photos make Chris Hadfield Twitter star

 

Peter Rakobowchuk - Canadian Press

 

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, who is currently floating beyond the stratosphere, may soon surpass Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the Twittersphere. The 53-year-old astronaut has been tweeting daily from the International Space Station and now has more than a quarter of a million followers. Hadfield has received international attention and praise for the colourful, detailed photos of the world he's been sending since he arrived on the orbiting space lab on Dec. 21, 2012. The Canadian space veteran passed the mark of 250,000 followers on Jan. 24 — just over a month into his five-month stay on the space station.

 

The view from the International Space Station:

Astronaut posts breathtaking pictures of Earth

 

Damien Gayle - London Daily Mail

 

Breathtaking pictures of the Earth from space have taken Twitter by storm after they were posted by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station. Canadian Chris Hadfield snapped the astonishing images over the past few days to give space fans an insight into the incredible views enjoyed from 250 miles above the planet's surface.

 

Mir Space Station: Testing Long-Term Stays in Space

 

Elizabeth Howell - Space.com

 

Mir was a space station that operated for more than 15 years in low Earth orbit. The design was conceived under the Soviet Union, and the station continued work under Russia after the union fell apart in the early 1990s. The space station served as an important precursor to today's International Space Station. Aboard Mir, crews dealt for the first time with long-duration stays in space of more than 400 days. Health effects and psychological situations were observed and documented. In later years, NASA used Mir as a testbed for international co-operation.

 

Where to Launch and Land the Space Shuttle? (1971-1972)

 

 

David Portree - Wired.com

 

NASA's ambition in 1971 was to build a fully reusable Space Shuttle which it could operate much as an airline operates its airplanes. The typical fully reusable Shuttle design in play in 1971 included a large Booster and a smaller Orbiter (image at top of post), each of which would carry a crew. Unlike an expendable launcher – for example, the Saturn V moon rocket - a fully reusable Space Shuttle would not discard spent parts downrange of its launch site as it climbed to Earth orbit. This meant that, in theory, any place that could host an airport might become a Space Shuttle launch and landing site. NASA managers felt no need for a new launch and landing site; they already had two at their disposal. They planned to launch and land the Space Shuttle at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on Florida's east coast and Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB), California. Nevertheless, for a time in 1971-1972, a NASA board reviewed some 150 candidate Shuttle launch and landing sites in 40 of the 50 U.S. states. A few were NASA-selected candidates, but most were put forward by members of Congress, state and local politicians, and even private individuals.

 

Ensuring Science Investments Provide Strong Return

 

Rep. Lamar Smith - RollCall.com (Opinion)

 

(Smith, R-Texas, serves as chairman of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee)

 

Inscribed on the wall of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee hearing room is the quote "Where there is no vision, the people perish." This simple line from the Book of Proverbs is an appropriate message as we begin a new Congress. We must learn from the past, understand the present and have a vision for the future. As chairman, I want the Science, Space, and Technology Committee to be a place where vision drives the dialogue and politics takes the back seat. The top priorities of the committee will be to promote legislation that encourages scientific discoveries, space exploration and the development of new technologies.

 

MEANWHILE ON MARS…

 

NASA exercises caution ahead of Curiosity's first drill

 

Stephen Clark - SpaceflightNow.com

 

Six months after dropping to the surface of Mars suspended under a rocket pack resembling a sci-fi creation, NASA's Curiosity rover is preparing to drill into a slab of rock holding clues of the planet's watery past. Adopting a deliberate, cautious strategy to ensure the rover's drill is ready, engineers have positioned Curiosity near a rock formation dubbed "John Klein" for a series of tests progressively exercising more of the drill's functions. Named for Curiosity's late deputy project manager, the outcrop is a flat patch of rock marked with veins of light-colored calcium sulfate materials such as gypsum or bassinite.

__________

 

COMPLETE STORIES

 

Israel applies for 2nd astronaut

Jewish state in talks with world space agencies to send Israeli astronaut to Space Station

 

Itamar Eichner - Ynet News

 

Will Israel send its second Israeli astronaut to space in the near future? Representatives of the Israel Space Agency at the Science and Technology Ministry have made the first move toward this goal by applying to add an Israeli astronaut to the International Space Station (ISS).

 

The ISS is operated by a consortium which includes five participating space agencies: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Russian Federal Space Agency, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).

 

The request was submitted to the consortium's representatives during the seventh annual International Ilan Ramon Space Conference held in Herzliya last week by the Israel Space Agency and the Fisher Institute for Air and Space Strategic Studies.

 

The conference was attended by senior space agency representatives from 14 countries.

 

The Israeli agency reps told the guests that Israel was interested in sending an astronaut to the space station, which is regularly manned by six astronauts from several countries.

 

According to Science Ministry officials, the international space agency heads did not reject the request and promised to review it.

 

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said there was a good chance that a second Israeli astronaut would be placed in space. However, as NASA no longer sends manned space shuttles, astronauts based in the ISS are launched from Russia.

 

The Science Ministry said in response that the agency had begun looking into the options and consequences.

 

"We cannot launch an astronaut on our own, it's a bit too much for us financially, but the consortium which comprises the International Space Station can sponsor the costs," said Israel Space Agency Chairman Prof. Isaac Ben-Israel.

 

"We are looking into the option of sending an Israeli scientist or researcher," he said.

 

He added that Israel might be admitted into the consortium as a full-fledged member or as an observer state. It could also remain outside the consortium and still send an astronaut on its behalf as a scientific experiment contributor.

 

"That's the way we sent the late Ilan Ramon," explained Ben-Israel. "The Americans accepted our offer to carry out a certain experiment, and Ilan joined the Columbia Space Shuttle as the executor of that experiment."

 

When will we see an Israeli in the International Space Station?

 

"It's too early to say because we've just started working on it. It will take at least three years, because even after someone is chosen he'll have to take a two-and-a-half-year course.

 

"We told the international representatives what we want and they explained the limitations, and now we're checking what matches our needs and how much it will cost. In the long run we want to become part of the European State Agency, which has 27 member countries."

 

A significant step toward this goal was made last week. Science Ministry Director-General Menachem Grinblum and Dr. Paul Weissenberg, deputy director-general for Enterprise and Industry at the European Commission, signed an agreement allowing researchers and space industry officials to cooperate with their European counterparts and receive international research and development budgets.

 

Two former astronauts, including Commercial Crew official, leave NASA

 

Dan Leone - Space News

 

Former astronauts Clayton Anderson and Brent Jett, the latter of whom was deputy program manager for NASA's Commercial Crew Program, have left NASA, the agency announced Feb. 4 in separate press releases.

 

Jett, a Navy-trained aviator who joined NASA in 1992, had been deputy manager for the Commercial Crew Program since 2010. He left NASA in January, according to his official NASA bio.

 

Jett flew his fourth and most recent space mission in 2006 aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis' STS-115 mission. That mission marked the resumption of construction on the international space station, which had been halted after the loss of the Space Shuttle Columbia in 2003.

 

Before joining the Commercial Crew Program as deputy program manager, Jett was director of Flight Crew Operations at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. In that capacity, he oversaw the agency's astronaut selection and training programs.

 

Anderson, an aeronautical engineer and physicist by training, joined NASA in 1983, according to his official agency bio. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998 and most recently flew in space in 2010 aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery on the STS-131 station resupply mission.

 

Anderson's first spaceflight was in 2007. He flew to the international space station on the Space Shuttle Atlantis for a 152-day tour as flight engineer and mission scientist for Expedition 15.

 

Giant leap in race to replace Space Shuttle? Dream Chaser gets big boost

 

 

Pete Spotts - Christian Science Monitor

 

One of three companies vying to ferry US astronauts to and from the International Space Station has inked a multimillion dollar deal with aerospace giant Lockheed Martin in a move aimed at preparing a craft dubbed Dream Chaser for the task.

 

The move by Sierra Nevada Corp. highlights the pace at which the company's plans are morphing from plans on paper to hardware on the shop floor. "We're moving from concept to the next phase of the program, probably faster than most people realize," said Mark Sirangelo, who heads the company's space-systems division.

 

Through Lockheed Martin, Sierra Nevada will have access to expertise in using composite materials that Dream Chaser needs, as well as to large manufacturing facilities required to assemble several craft. In addition, Lockheed developed the Atlas V rocket, which is a likely launch vehicle for Dream Chaser, and has experience working with NASA to certify spacecraft for human spaceflight.

 

It appears to be a significant step forward for the aerospace company, which has been around for 25 years, but has previously focused on smaller ventures. The company has produced small satellites, components for projects such as the Mars Science Laboratory, and rocket motors, including motors for Burt Rutan's Spaceship One and its tourist version for Virgin Galactic, Spaceship Two.

 

Sierra Nevada Space Systems/AP PhotoThis artist's rendering provided by Sierra... View Full Size Sierra Nevada Space Systems/AP PhotoThis artist's rendering provided by Sierra Nevada Space Systems shows the company's Dream Chaser spacecraft docking with the International Space Station.

 

The goal of the NASA commercial crew-transportation program is to free up NASA resources to focus on human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit. That means turning to private companies to build a spacecraft to service the space station, which also should help lay the foundation for a broader commercial human-spaceflight industry, advocates of commercialization say.

 

Last July, the agency divvied up contracts worth a combined $1.1 billion among three companies working on designs – Boeing, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX), and Sierra Nevada Corp. In December, NASA parceled another $29.6 million among the companies for parallel efforts that focus on meeting its performance and safety requirements.

 

Compared with the other two contenders' craft, Dream Chaser's design is unique. While Boeing and SpaceX are developing capsules, Dream Chaser is, in effect, a mini space shuttle, winged for a pilot-controlled landing at runways such as the one the shuttle used at the Kennedy Space Center. The craft is designed to carry up to seven people, including the flight crew, as well as cargo.

 

Within the next six to eight months, the company plans to conduct its first flight tests at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in Palmdale, Calif. The craft will be released from beneath a helicopter, then fly and land without human guidance.

 

The initial test is just to make sure the design can fly, says Jim Voss, a former NASA astronaut and vice president of the company's space-exploration systems division. The typical flight time will run from 30 to 40 seconds. Several more tests will be conducted, with different maneuvers added to each test, to take the full measure of its aerodynamic traits.

 

"We're starting a flight program, we are now starting to think about how to operate the system, how to create a transportation regime to low-Earth orbit and how to build multiple vehicles – all the things necessary to fly and fly within the next few years," says Mr. Sirangelo, adding that the new alliance with Lockheed will help Sierra Nevada meet its targets going forward.

 

SpaceX, based in Hawthorne, Calif., is working on a variant of its Dragon capsule. The capsule has made two cargo trips to the International Space Station so far, and is slated for two more this year under a cargo contract with NASA through at least 2015. The crewed version of Dragon would use rocket motors during the final moments of descent for a soft landing on Earth at mission's end. It would also include an escape system that could be used if a launch was aborted shortly after liftoff. The company has said it plans to test the escape system on the launch pad as early as next December.

 

The other entrant, Boeing, has teamed up with Bigelow Aerospace on another capsule-based approach to crew transportation that would also be expected to use the Atlas V as the launch vehicle.

 

Under NASA's contracts with the three companies, they receive incremental payments that are issued as they successfully meet agreed-upon milestones. If all three meet their milestones for the current contracts, NASA will have invested $1.5 billion in developing a commercial-crew capability for the US since 2009.

 

NASA Is Resurrecting the Most Powerful Rocket Engine Ever Built

 

Amy Teitel - Motherboard.vice.com (an online magazine)

 

When the first Saturn V launched on November 9, 1967, the combined 7.5 million pounds of thrust from the five F-1 engines shook the CBS news building on live television. The F-1 remains the most powerful single chamber rocket engine ever built, a power NASA hopes to resurrect and apply to its Space Launch System (SLS). A team of engineers at NASA's Marshall Spaceflight Centre in Huntsville, Alabama, are now dissecting the old engines to learn their secrets.

 

The first piece of the F-1 brought back to life with a hot fire test was the gas generator, a system of parts small enough to test in a lab that produce some explosive results. The gas generator is the part of an engine that supplies the power to drive the turbomachinery, which feeds propellant into the thrust chamber. For the F-1, the turbopump fed nearly three tons of propellant a second into the thrust chamber generating about 31,000 pounds of force. When all that propellant was thrust through engine's nozzle it generated 1.5 million pounds of thrust.

 

The gas generator is a logical place to start – it's a key part engineers use to determine the size of the finished engine. So knowing the details of this key piece of the F-1 is crucial to developing the next generation of engines. But testing pieces of a rocket that hasn't fired in nearly 50 years isn't easy. They aren't exactly lying around shops in test condition, they're in storage units and museums. So that's where engineers went for F-1s.

 

One F-1 gas generator came from storage at Marshall, and another came from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum; the latter generator was in near pristine condition compared to the one in storage. Techs cleaned the half-century old parts with a technique called structured light 3D scanning, which produces 3D schematics to help keep the structure intact. They also used laser melting, a digital manufacturing technique that produces metal parts, to create new parts for tests.

 

The goal is to capture the F-1's power, but it won't be a matter of just copying the hardware from one engine to another. The F-1 burned a mix of kerosene and liquid oxygen. The SLS, like the shuttle's engines, will burn a more modern mix of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. The two fuel mixtures aren't necessarily plug-and-play, so the study of the old design is also a study into rocket engineering.

 

There are more steps and more tests involved in the effort to bring the F-1 back to life to uncover its secrets. Eventually, Marshall engineers will use modern manufacturing techniques to build a new gas generator that will be measured against the F-1 test results. This is all in the name of getting big, powerful rockets launching from American soil sooner rather than later. The evolved configuration of the SLS is slated to carry payloads up to 130 metric tons (143-tons) Into orbit, so that rocket is going to need about the biggest engines it can find.

 

Of course, the real challenge in this reverse engineering the F-1 challenge is that no one really know how the Saturn V got its power. Pieces of the rocket were built by four main contractors and everything was assembled by NASA. When Apollo ended, a lot of the pieces and paperwork were strewn between sites and never compiled. So not only is building an engine based on the F-1's power going to be really exciting, but historians might learn a little more about the giant lunar rocket. All told, this is a really awesome resurrection.

 

Last moonwalker calls space station crew, compares elbow room in orbit

 

Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com

 

The last man to walk on the moon made an unexpected call to the most recent men to live in space Tuesday during a visit to NASA's Mission Control in Houston.

 

Gene Cernan, who in December 1972 commanded Apollo 17, the sixth and final lunar landing mission, was touring the Johnson Space Center with some friends when he was invited by flight controllers to talk with ISS Expedition 34 commander Kevin Ford and flight engineers Chris Hadfield and Tom Marshburn live from the U.S. Destiny laboratory on board the International Space Station (ISS), 260 miles (415 kilometers) above the Earth.

 

"I didn't know I was going to be able to do this," Cernan told the station's crew. The moonwalker, who was using a phone receiver to talk with the astronauts in space, could see Ford, Marshburn and Hadfield on the large screens at the front of the control center room.

 

The ISS residents were in turn able to see Cernan via live streaming video on one of their laptop computers.

 

"I'm personally proud," Cernan commented. "I'm at the age now where most of you were probably in diapers or knee pants when I went to the moon, but at least what we did worked because it inspired you to do what you're doing."

 

"I think I was 12 when you came home from the moon for the last time," Ford responded, "and you did inspire us for sure, just like whole world, frankly. Every place I go in the world, they know NASA because what you guys did back then that long ago."

 

Elbow room

 

The space-to-ground conversation, which aired on NASA's television channel and was streamed through the space agency's website, showed Ford, Marshburn and Hadfield floating inside the orbiting laboratory with room to spare. And they were inside just one of the space station's dozen modules, which they share with three other crewmates, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Novitskiy, Evgeny Tarelkin and Roman Romanenko.

 

Cernan was struck by the sheer size of the space station, especially given his own experiences in orbit.

 

"You guys live in a hotel. You're living in a palatial palace up there," Cernan stated. "I got to go back to the Gemini days when you had to share elbow room with your buddy and you never got out of your spacesuit for three days."

 

Cernan flew three times to space, including two missions to the moon. He made his first flight seated inside NASA's two-seater Gemini spacecraft. Cernan's only opportunity to stretch his legs during the Gemini 9 mission was during a two hour spacewalk.

 

"We talked about living up there like we live down here, we didn't even have hot water on the moon to warm a cup of coffee," said Cernan.

 

"You're right, the space station is a palace, actually," Ford radioed. "We did fly up here in a [Russian] Soyuz though, and I bet you, inch-for-inch for elbow room, that it's pretty tight, too. But we didn't have to spend a lot of time in it, and we only have four hours home from here."

 

"I've been here for a little over 100 days now and Tom and Chris have been up here 45 or so," the station commander told Cernan. "Living in space is something we can do now because of what you guys did those years ago."

 

Shoulders of giants

 

Cernan's visit to Mission Control was with some friends from Space Center Houston, the official visitor center for Johnson Space Center. Thousands of young children visit the museum and attraction to learn about NASA's past, present and future activities in space.

 

"You're doing one heck of a great job and you have got a big legacy to build upon. From where you leave off, we're going to get those kids excited down here about pressing on and going even further," Cernan told Ford and his crew members.

 

"It is going to make a huge difference to generations 100 years from now," Ford replied. "[They] are going to benefit from what we're doing up here and of course, benefit from what you did those years ago."

 

"Yours is a remarkable story, we can't compete with that," Ford said to Cernan. "Great to have you in the center and truly have you aboard the International Space Station."

 

"One last thought," said Cernan. "We always used to look at it as we stood on the shoulders of giants of the nation. Remember, when you guys get back, the job is not done. You are now the shoulders for those kids to stand upon."

 

Astronaut in space opens hailing frequencies for William Shatner Thursday

 

Miriam Kramer - Space.com

 

Famed actor William Shatner, renowned for his iconic role as the fictional captain of the Starship Enterprise on TV's "Star Trek," is about to call up a real-life space man. The James T. Kirk actor will call the soon-to-be commander of the International Space Station on Thursday.

 

Shatner, who is Canadian, will speak will fellow Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield will speak via video and phone in a social media gathering sponsored by the Canadian Space Agency. Shatner and Hadfield, who have already traded messages via the Internet, will have their conversation live in front of audience members, who will have the chance to ask questions of Hadfield using the space-to-ground video link.

 

This will not be the first time the "Star Trek" captain and the real-life space flyer have beamed messages back and forth. On Jan. 3, Shatner sent Hadfield a note via Twitter to ask what life is like aboard the spac station. Hadfield responded in kind.

 

"@WilliamShatner Yes, Standard Orbit, Captain. And we're detecting signs of life on the surface," Hadfield (wrote in his Twitter chat with Shatner. Hadfield regularly posts messages and photos of his mission as @Cmdr_Hadfield.

 

Even before Twitter brought them together, Hadfield was on Shatner's radar screen. Shatner posed with a small photo cutout of the astronaut as part of the public outreach program for Hadfield's mission.

 

Hadfield and two crewmates — American astronaut Tom Marshburn and Russian cosmonaut Roman Romanenko — arrived at the space station in December aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. They joined three other crewmates already living aboard the space station.

 

Hadfield is the flight engineer for the six-man Expedition 34 crew, and will take charge of Expedition 35 in March, when he will become Canada's first space commander.

 

Since NASA astronaut Mike Massimino became the first spaceflyer to use Twitter in 2009, astronauts aboard the International Space Station have used the social media service as a way to post mission updates and photos. Hadfield also used the website to release the first original song ever recorded in space (his tune "Jewel in the Night" has 88,927 views on YouTube as of today).

 

Visit SPACE.com on Thursday, Feb. 7, to watch Star Trek actor William Shatner call astronaut Chris Hadfield live at 10:40 a.m. EST (1540 GMT). You can watch the Shatner-Hadfield space call live here on SPACE.com.

 

Astronaut and Rocker to Premiere Space-Earth Duet Friday

 

Elizabeth Howell - Space.com

 

A song inspired by space will become the first tune to premiere via a ground-and-orbit duet.

 

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield will collaborate with Canadian musician Ed Robertson, best known as a member of the Grammy Award-winning Barenaked Ladies group, to release the first duet to premiere from space and Earth simultaneously.

 

On Friday, Hadfield will perform in space, and Robertson will sing with a youth choir in Toronto.

 

The tune, called "I.S.S. (Is Somebody Singing)," hints at Hadfield's current home on the International Space Station in the initials of the title. That was deliberate, the collaborators say.

 

"I wanted to impart some of the wonder that Chris has imparted to me," Robertson wrote in a blog for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., the national broadcaster of Canada.

 

"I wanted it to be a celebration not about the remoteness of space, but about the connectedness of a human being on the I.S.S. who looks down and sees the whole planet in a way that, from our perspective, we don't have the opportunity to."

 

'Dude, you are a high-functioning individual'

 

Hadfield, who will command Expedition 35 in March, is an accomplished musician who plays in two astronaut bands. In December, he released the first original song recorded on the station: "Jewel of the Night."

 

Robertson, who describes himself as a long-time friend of Hadfield's, initially planned to write "Is Somebody Singing" with only a little input from the Canadian astronaut. The two first met more than a decade ago when Hadfield offered the popular band a tour of Mission Control.

 

But when he reached out to Hadfield about the project, Robertson was astonished that the astronaut committed to collaborating on it in 2012, despite being in the middle of training for his five-month space mission.

 

"I wrote the first verse and chorus, sent it to him, and asked for some technical jargon for the second verse because the first verse was emotional," Robertson wrote. "I asked him to be on the lookout for speeds and weights and a number of revolutions, serial numbers; anything we can use to put some technical data into this song. After about a day and a half he sent me the second verse, and it was poetic and good. I was just like, 'Dude you are a high-functioning individual.'"

 

Space music

 

While Robertson and Hadfield will be the first to premiere a song by playing it simultaneously from Earth and space, their performance will not be the first Earth-space duet. That distinction belongs to NASA astronaut Cady Coleman, who collaborated with Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson on the ground to play the band's song "Bourree" over a satellite connection.

 

That concert, in which Coleman played the flute, took place April 11, 2011, during the space station's Expedition 27 mission. The performance was a celebration of the 50th anniversary of humanity's first spaceflight by Yuri Gagarin on April 12, 1961.

 

Music is a common pastime for astronauts. If they're not listening to it as they gaze at Earth, they are often creating it themselves.

 

The first song performed in space was the holiday standard "Jingle Bells," as part of a 1965 Christmas prank by Gemini 6 astronauts Tom Stafford and Wally Schirra.

 

Just before playing the song, they joked on the intercom that they could see an object "like a satellite going from north to south, probably in polar orbit … Looks like he might be going to re-enter soon." (They were referring to Santa Claus.)

 

Astronaut space photos make Chris Hadfield Twitter star

 

Peter Rakobowchuk - Canadian Press

 

Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, who is currently floating beyond the stratosphere, may soon surpass Prime Minister Stephen Harper in the Twittersphere.

 

The 53-year-old astronaut has been tweeting daily from the International Space Station and now has more than a quarter of a million followers.

 

Hadfield has received international attention and praise for the colourful, detailed photos of the world he's been sending since he arrived on the orbiting space lab on Dec. 21, 2012.

 

The Canadian space veteran passed the mark of 250,000 followers on Jan. 24 — just over a month into his five-month stay on the space station.

 

Entering the weekend, the country's prime minister had more than 290,000 followers, although most of the messages sent from his account have been written by staff.

 

As is the case with many prominent people, most of the short-form messages that appear under Harper's name are crafted by ghost-tweeters working for him.

 

That's not the case with Hadfield and other astronauts on the space station. All the tweets are his own and, according to one NASA official in charge of social media, that's what is being encouraged.

 

"There's no ghost-tweeting or anything like that," said Amiko Kauderer, NASA's social media lead at the Johnson Space Center.

 

"They (astronauts) truly are doing their tweeting."

 

Hadfield has earned some illustrious fans. Among those who have since exchanged tweets with him are William Shatner, the Montreal-born actor better known as Captain James T. Kirk from "Star Trek."

 

Canada's most prolific extraterrestrial tweeter has impressed Kauderer, who trains astronauts in the use of social media.

 

"He's out of control — and it's good," Kauderer told The Canadian Press in an interview from Houston.

 

"It's been very good (and) we've been very pleased with what he is able to show."

 

When Hadfield blasted into space and left Earth in December, he had only 20,000 followers on Twitter. He first started using the social media site back on Earth, in Sept. 2010, and he credits his two sons, Evan and Kyle, with pushing him into setting up his Twitter and Facebook accounts.

 

But Kauderer also said that astronauts are not required to get involved in social media when they are in space.

 

She pointed out that NASA astronaut Kevin Ford, who is currently aboard the space station with Hadfield, is not tweeting because he chose not to.

 

Kauderer stressed that the primary job of the astronauts is to perform their science experiments and keep up maintenance of the space station, which is the size of a football field.

 

But no one has ever been reprimanded for spending too much time, or been told to stop using social media, after hours.

 

"Tweeting is not included in their timeline, but they do have pockets of spare time built in," Kauderer said.

 

"It never interferes with the current task at hand which is operating the space station and managing those science experiments and that sort of thing."

 

Anna Kapiniari, the Canadian Space Agency's manager of strategic communications, says the agency is "overjoyed" at the reaction people have had to Hadfield.

 

"The success is due to Chris' passion, enthusiasm and eloquence," she wrote in an email. "Canadians can tell he is authentic, has reflected on the experience and so his posts, even at 140 characters, have real meaning."

 

Though the CSA has been tweeting since 2010, the first astronaut to tweet from the space station was NASA's Mike Massimino in May 2009.

 

That first one wasn't a live tweet. Massimino sent an email back to Earth and his message from orbit was retweeted. Massimino, who continues to tweet from Earth, is still one of the top astronauts on Twitter with more than 1.2 million followers.

 

The first actual "live" tweet from the space station came from fellow NASA astronaut T.J. Creamer in January 2010.

 

But they say travelling to space brings new perspective. How's this for an eye-opener: None of the astronauts, or any Canadian politician, comes close to the Twittersphere status of another famous Canuck.

 

Pop idol Justin Bieber has more than 33 million followers — which is more than 50 times Hadfield, and the prime minister, combined.

 

The view from the International Space Station:

Astronaut posts breathtaking pictures of Earth

 

Damien Gayle - London Daily Mail

 

Breathtaking pictures of the Earth from space have taken Twitter by storm after they were posted by an astronaut aboard the International Space Station.

 

Canadian Chris Hadfield snapped the astonishing images over the past few days to give space fans an insight into the incredible views enjoyed from 250 miles above the planet's surface.

 

Via the internet connection on the space station, he updates his Twitter and Google+ accounts daily with the beautiful pictures he has taken and news on the progress of the various missions and experiments he and his colleagues carry out.

 

Commander Hadfield has been taking the Twitterverse by storm from aboard the ISS since he arrived on the ISS on December 21.

 

But the 53-year-old's accomplishments spread far beyond the field of photography.

 

Not only is the 53-year-old set to take command of the space station, but he is also preparing to jam with the head man of indie pop group the Barenaked Ladies and chat with William Shatner in a webcast organised by the Canadian Space Agency.

 

These, his most recent set of pictures, were taken over the past week or so and show locations as diverse as San Francisco's glittering lights and breathtaking cloud formations over Africa.

 

Not all the images are labelled with their location, but each presents an entrancing view of our jewel-like planet from a vantage point few will ever be able to see it.

 

The first Canadian to walk in space, Commander Hadfield, 53, a former air force fighter pilot, has previously flown two Space Shuttle missions in 1995 and 2001.

 

Aside from his military and space career, the former farm boy also has a strong creative streak, expressed not only through his beautiful photography but also as a singer-songwriter.

 

On Friday he will conduct an Earth-plus-space jam with the Barenaked Ladies' Ed Roberston, a fellow Canadian, to add another accomplishment to his already enviable biography.

 

And that comes after a chat with the original spaceship commander James T Kirk - aka William Shatner - to be broadcast online and on Twitter on Thursday.

 

You can see more incredible pictures from space and catch up on Commander Hadfield's progress on Twitter at @Cmdr_Hadfield

 

Mir Space Station: Testing Long-Term Stays in Space

 

Elizabeth Howell - Space.com

 

Mir was a space station that operated for more than 15 years in low Earth orbit. The design was conceived under the Soviet Union, and the station continued work under Russia after the union fell apart in the early 1990s.

 

The space station served as an important precursor to today's International Space Station. Aboard Mir, crews dealt for the first time with long-duration stays in space of more than 400 days. Health effects and psychological situations were observed and documented.

 

In later years, NASA used Mir as a testbed for international co-operation. The agency was eager to move forward with ISS, but felt that it required experience working with Russia before continuing. As such, NASA signed an agreement to send its astronauts aboard Mir.

 

Results from the program were mixed, with some American astronauts comparing about feeling isolated and undersupported when training overseas. Worse, by the time NASA astronauts arrived, Mir was nearing the end of its operational lifetime and experienced frequent power failures and a near-fatal fire.

 

Astronauts generally, however, got a lot of microgravity research done during the program. Also, the experience aboard Mir gave NASA and the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) an education on how to best work together for ISS.

 

Extending long-term duration experience

 

According to Encyclopedia Astronautica, Mir was intended as a successor project to the Soviet Union's Salyut series of space stations. While the United States was focused on the moon program in the 1960s and developing the shuttle in the 1970s, Russia went in another direction after the space race.

 

The country worked on developing expertise in long-duration spaceflight, and felt that a larger space station would allow for more research in that area. Mir was originally authorized in a February 1976, then evolved by 1978 to a station with several ports for crewed Soyuz spacecraft and cargo Progress spaceships.

 

NPO Energia began work in earnest on the station in 1979, reportedly subcontracting the responsibilities to KB Salyut because Energia was preoccupied with the Salyut, Soyuz, and Progress programs, among others. Work stalled somewhat as Russia developed a Buran space shuttle, but according to the encyclopedia, in 1984 the Soviet Union made it a priority to orbit the station in two years to coincide with the 27th Communist Party Congress in spring 1986.

 

It took some planning adjustments, but the first module of Mir launched successfully on Feb. 20, 1986. The next step would be bringing it alive for cosmonauts to occupy it.

 

"The decision was taken to launch Soyuz T-15 on a unique dual station mission," the encyclopedia stated in an article about Mir's construction.

 

"The Soyuz would first dock with Salyut 7, which was dead in space, and completely repair the station. They then would fly in their Soyuz to Mir, and put it into initial operation. This spectacular mission marked a new maturity in the Soviet space program."

 

Construction and dissolution

 

Mir was a modular space station, meaning that there were different parts that were shipped up and put together to form the greater whole. The first module that launched was the Mir base block (or core module).

 

During the next decade, the Soviets launched several other modules. But political change was brewing amid the construction. The Soviet Union dissolved when one Soviet cosmonaut, Sergei Krikalev, was in space between 1991 and 1992. He is sometimes dubbed "the last Soviet citizen" because of this.

 

After construction was finished, Mir had a collection of facilities. At 43 feet (13.1 meters) long, the "core" module of the station was the main area where the cosmonauts and astronauts did their work. It also housed the main computer and vital space station parts, such as communications.

 

In addition to solar arrays and a docking port, the station had several facilities for orbital science. These included, but were not limited to, two Kvant modules (that did astronomy and other science research), Kristall (which had a facility for microgravity manufacturing) and Spektr (focused on Earth work).

 

Mir is most famous for hosting long-duration missions during its early years in space. For this reason, the Soviets and Russians dominate the list of the 10 longest spaceflights on record. Topping the list is Valeri Polyakov, who spent nearly 438 days aboard Mir and landed on March 22, 1995.

 

Shuttle-Mir program

 

In 1993, NASA and Russia made a pact to bring space shuttles to Mir. This would benefit the respective programs in a couple of ways. It would give NASA astronauts, then confined to shuttle flights, some valuable long-term flight experience. And it would provide Russia with some badly needed cash as the young country struggled to keep its expensive spaceflight program afloat.

 

The program ran between 1994 and 1998, with several NASA astronauts spending months aboard the orbiting facility. They trained in Russia, working to learn the language and a new space program all at the same time. Some of the astronauts thrived in the new environment, while others struggled. (More details are provided in the book "Dragonfly," which covers the history of the program.)

 

Meanwhile, mechanical problems aboard Mir mounted, particularly in 1996-97. Astronaut Jerry Linenger's mission in particular was marred by issues ranging from a fire that broke out on Mir, a resupply ship that nearly hit the station, and several failures of onboard systems.

 

The next shuttle astronaut on Mir, Michael Foale, was among a crew that experienced a collision with a resupply ship. Criticism of the program reached an apex during Linenger's and Foale's stays in space, with some arguing it was unsafe to keep the astronauts on board. Congress launched an inquiry. However, NASA deemed the situation safe enough and the program continued until 1998.

 

The International Space Station presented a new platform for Russia and the United States to work together. However, it also proved to be a drain on Russia's finances. Private schemes were contemplated to keep Mir working, but they fell through. Russia thus decided to deorbit Mir to preserve money for ISS.

 

Mir broke up in Earth's atmosphere on March 23, 2001, with some large fragments falling into the South Pacific Ocean – well away from inhabited areas. The station had a tumultuous history, but the lessons learned on board Mir are still used by NASA, Russia and their spacefaring partners today.

 

Where to Launch and Land the Space Shuttle? (1971-1972)

 

 

David Portree - Wired.com

 

NASA's ambition in 1971 was to build a fully reusable Space Shuttle which it could operate much as an airline operates its airplanes. The typical fully reusable Shuttle design in play in 1971 included a large Booster and a smaller Orbiter (image at top of post), each of which would carry a crew.

 

The Booster's rocket motors would ignite on the launch pad, drawing liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen propellants from integral internal tanks. At the edge of space, its propellants depleted, the Booster would release the Orbiter. It then would turn around, reenter the dense part of Earth's atmosphere, deploy air-breathing jet engines, and fly under power to a runway at its launch site. Because it would return to its launch site, NASA dubbed it the "Flyback Booster." It would then taxi or be towed to a hanger for minimal refurbishment and preparation for its next launch.

 

The Space Shuttle Orbiter, meanwhile, would arc up and away from the Booster. After achieving a safe separation distance, it would ignite its rocket motors to place itself into Earth orbit. After accomplishing its mission, it would fire its motors to slow down and reenter Earth's atmosphere, where it would deploy jet engines and fly under power to a runway landing. As in the case of the Booster, the Orbiter would need minimal refurbishment before it was launched again.

 

Unlike an expendable launcher – for example, the Saturn V moon rocket - a fully reusable Space Shuttle would not discard spent parts downrange of its launch site as it climbed to Earth orbit. This meant that, in theory, any place that could host an airport might become a Space Shuttle launch and landing site.

 

NASA managers felt no need for a new launch and landing site; they already had two at their disposal. They planned to launch and land the Space Shuttle at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) on Florida's east coast and Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB), California. Nevertheless, for a time in 1971-1972, a NASA board reviewed some 150 candidate Shuttle launch and landing sites in 40 of the 50 U.S. states. A few were NASA-selected candidates, but most were put forward by members of Congress, state and local politicians, and even private individuals.

 

The Space Shuttle Launch and Recovery Site Review Board, as it was known, was chaired by Floyd Thompson, a former director of NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. The Board got its start on 26 April 1971, when Dale Myers, NASA Associate Administrator for Manned Space Flight, charged it with determining whether any of the candidate sites could host a single new Shuttle launch and landing site as versatile as KSC and VAFB were together. The consolidation scheme aimed to trim Shuttle cost by eliminating redundancy.

 

The proposed Space Shuttle launch and landing sites were a motley mix. Many were Defense Department air bases of various types (for example, Patuxent Naval Air Station, Maryland), while a few were city airports (for example, the Lincoln, Nebraska Municipal Airport). Some sites were associated with no existing facility: for example, Texas proposed two areas near the Big Bend of the Rio Grande River and Wyoming offered 11 of its 23 counties. KSC and VAFB were on the list, as were NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, and Ellington Air Force Base in Houston, Texas, which had as its chief function to serve NASA's Manned Spacecraft Center.

 

Texas had the most candidate sites (22) of any state, while Nebraska and Wyoming tied for second place with 12 sites each. Furthest north and east were Presque Isle Air Force Base, Dow Air Force Base, and Loring Air Force Base in Maine. Furthest south were sites around Brownsville, Texas, near the mouth of the Rio Grande. VAFB was the westernmost site considered.

 

The 10 states that contained no candidate Space Shuttle launch and landing sites lacked obvious disqualifying features (or, at least, appeared no less qualified than most of the states that had candidate sites). Alaska and Hawaii were the exceptions:  both were disqualified because they were located too far from established U.S. space industry. The Midwestern states of Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and Minnesota contained no sites, though candidates existed in neighboring states Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Ohio, and Michigan. West Virginia alone among states east of the Mississippi River and south of the Ohio River lacked a candidate site. The east coast states of Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Jersey rounded out the list of no-shows.

 

In its efforts to cull unsuitable sites, the Thompson Board focused most of its attention on the effects of sonic booms, the sudden waves of air pressure produced when an aircraft or spacecraft exceeds the speed of sound (that is, "breaks the sound barrier"). Sonic booms, which the Board wrote had "the startling audibility and dynamic characteristics of an explosion," were a bone of contention in the U.S. in the early 1970s; concern at the time over possible injury to people on the ground and damage to structures helped to kill U.S. plans to develop a supersonic passenger aircraft akin to the Anglo-French Concorde.

 

The Thompson Board determined that the Space Shuttle would generate its most powerful sonic boom during ascent, while the Booster and Orbiter formed a single large vehicle. The Booster's rocket plume would, for purposes of calculating sonic boom effects, make the ascending, accelerating spacecraft appear even bigger. The Shuttle's flight path characteristics – for example, the pitch-over maneuver that it would perform as it steered toward orbit – would create a roughly 10-square-mile "focal zone" for sonic boom effects about 33 nautical miles downrange of the launch site.

 

"Overpressure" in the focal zone would almost certainly exceed six pounds per square foot (psf) and might reach 30 psf, which would be powerful enough to damage structures (plaster and windows could suffer damage at an overpressure as low as three psf, the Board noted). Winds could unpredictably shift the focal area by several miles. The Board urged that "the severe overpressures associated with the focal zone. . .be prevented from occurring in any inhabited area."

 

Based on this and other criteria, the Thompson Board trimmed the list of candidate single Space Shuttle launch and landing sites to just seven. These were: KSC; VAFB; Edwards Air Force Base, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; Matagorda Island, Texas; Michael Army Air Field/Dugway Proving Ground, Utah; and Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho.

 

As the Thompson Board continued its deliberations, the Space Shuttle design was undergoing rapid and profound changes. At its 22 June 1971 meeting, the Board discussed NASA Administrator James Fletcher's 16 June announcement that the space agency would spread out Shuttle costs by adopting "series development" of the Booster and Orbiter. The Orbiter would be developed first. Until the Booster could be developed, the Orbiter would be coupled with an "interim expendable booster" – possibly a modified Saturn V S-IC stage - that would separate after depleting its propellants and fall back to Earth downrange of the launch site.

 

In addition, Fletcher had told reporters, Shuttle contractors would abandon work on the Orbiter's reusable internal liquid propellant tanks in favor of expendable external tanks. The latter would be less technologically challenging than the former and thus would have a lower development cost. The tanks would break up high in the atmosphere after separating from the Orbiter.

 

The Thompson Board received a whirlwind series of briefings on the Shuttle design changes at KSC, the Manned Spacecraft Center, and Marshall Space Flight Center in late September 1971, after which Floyd Thompson called a two-month recess to give the Shuttle design time to firm up. Then, on 5 January 1972, Fletcher announced that President Richard Nixon would seek new-start funding for the Space Shuttle Program in the Fiscal Year (FY) 1973 NASA budget.

 

On 15 March 1972, as NASA and Nixon's Office and Management and Budget jousted over the Shuttle's development cost, Fletcher announced that the reusable Booster would be abandoned entirely in favor of a single expendable External Tank (ET) and a pair of  solid-propellant boosters. The latter would separate from the Orbiter/ET combination and descend on parachutes for reuse. NASA's Office of Manned Space Flight subsequently determined that the Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) could not safely touch down in "a controlled manner" on land; they would instead need to splash down and be recovered at sea.

 

The Thompson Board met just twice more. At its 27 March 1972 meeting, it discussed the implications of the 15 March booster decision, and officially eliminated all non-coastal candidate Shuttle launch and landing sites from consideration. At its final meeting on 6 April 1972, the  Board compared the cost of building and operating a single new Space Shuttle launch and landing facility at Matagorda Island, 65 miles south of Houston, Texas, with the cost of modifying and operating both KSC and VAFB.

 

The Board's members assumed that NASA would build five Orbiters and conduct 60 missions per year. To launch that many missions – more than one per week - from Matagorda Island, the Shuttle fleet would need one Orbiter Thermal Protection System (TPS) maintenance and checkout bay, three vehicle assembly highbays for mating the Orbiter with its ET and twin SRBs, three Mobile Launcher Platforms for transporting the Shuttle/ET/SRBs combinations to their launch pads, three launch pads,  three firing rooms, and one landing strip.

 

If NASA opted for the dual-site approach, three Orbiters based at KSC would conduct 40 missions per year using one Orbiter TPS bay, two vehicle assembly highbays, two Mobile Launcher Platforms, two pads, two firing rooms, and one landing strip. The two Orbiters based at VAFB would conduct 20 missions per year using one Orbiter TPS bay, one vehicle assembly highbay, two Mobile Launcher Platforms, one pad, one firing room, and one landing strip. The KSC/VAFB plan would thus need one more TPS bay, Mobile Launcher, and landing strip than the Matagorda Island plan.

 

The single-site plan would, however, incur greater construction costs than the dual-site plan, for the simple reason that Matagorda Island had no spaceflight infrastructure already in place. The Board estimated that Matagorda Island construction and operations would cost $5.365 billion through FY 1990, while KSC and VAFB would together cost $5.137 billion. The single-site plan would, as predicted, lead to reduced Shuttle operations costs, but these savings would amount to only $87.6 million. Constructing the Matagorda Island site would, on the other hand, cost $315 million more than would modifying KSC and VAFB to support Shuttle launches. This meant that the single-site option would cost $228 million more.

 

In addition to its greater monetary cost, the single-site option would introduce substantial programmatic risk and societal costs. The Texas coastal site was partly privately owned, so construction could not begin there until NASA had negotiated purchase of the private land. Infrastructure such as roads, railways, an electric grid, a harbor, an airport, a waste treatment plant, and a water system would need to be built new or expanded. Thousands of workers would need to relocate to the area in less than five years, placing enormous strain on local housing, schools, and what few amenities existed in the immediate area. At the same time, the communities around KSC, already under pressure as the Apollo Program drew to an end, would suffer catastrophic job losses.

 

The Thompson Board briefed James Fletcher on its results on 10 April 1972. Just four days later, Fletcher told a press conference at NASA Headquarters that Space Shuttles would launch from KSC starting in 1978 and that launches from VAFB would be phased in early in the 1980s.

 

Ensuring Science Investments Provide Strong Return

 

Rep. Lamar Smith - RollCall.com (Opinion)

 

(Smith, R-Texas, serves as chairman of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee)

 

Inscribed on the wall of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee hearing room is the quote "Where there is no vision, the people perish." This simple line from the Book of Proverbs is an appropriate message as we begin a new Congress. We must learn from the past, understand the present and have a vision for the future.

 

As chairman, I want the Science, Space, and Technology Committee to be a place where vision drives the dialogue and politics takes the back seat. The top priorities of the committee will be to promote legislation that encourages scientific discoveries, space exploration and the development of new technologies.

 

With broad jurisdiction over America's federal research and development efforts, the committee helps make sure taxpayers' investments provide a strong return.

 

The committee oversees agency budgets of $39 billion, most of which is focused on research and development. The purpose of the committee is to encourage the kinds of R&D that lead to new innovations and job creation.

 

Our first hearing on Wednesday will begin this process by examining the positive impact of today's R&D and looking forward to potential breakthrough innovations in the future.

 

Federally funded basic research has supported the creation of technologies that have changed and improved our daily lives — including the MRI, GPS, laser technology and the Internet.

 

Innovation is also critical to a healthy American economy. High-tech companies may only make up 5 percent of all businesses, but they account for 40 percent of America's increase in productivity and half of all exports. So it is important that we invest in the right kinds of R&D that lead to new innovations and technological advancements.

 

But in order to achieve the innovations of tomorrow, we must better educate American students today. We need to empower them with the tools they will need to succeed. That means preparing students for advanced degrees and ensuring that young adults have the scientific and mathematic literacy to thrive in a technology-based economy.

 

The committee will look for ways not only to encourage students to study science, technology, engineering and mathematics but also to inspire them to pursue careers in STEM fields. The committee will set priorities for the National Science Foundation and other federal research agencies, including STEM education initiatives.

 

Perhaps no career in the world requires more science and math education than a career in human spaceflight.

 

Astronauts have inspired generations of Americans, but, with no clear mission, NASA needs decisive leadership from Congress.

 

As we move beyond the space shuttle era, the committee will help keep our space program moving forward. We will work on a NASA reauthorization bill that promotes the commercialization of space and advances space exploration to expand our knowledge of the universe and inspire our nation.

 

In addition to encouraging the exploration of new worlds, the committee promotes policies that benefit those of us here on Earth. We cannot reach our goal of energy independence without investing in energy development.

 

The committee will propose an Energy R&D bill, which includes all forms of energy including nuclear, clean coal and natural gas. This legislation will help harness more domestic energy resources and find ways to make production safer, cheaper and more efficient.

 

And producing American energy creates American jobs. In South Texas, the increased use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to access oil and natural gas in the Eagle Ford Shale formation has created thousands of well-paid jobs.

 

According to data from the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis, average per-capita incomes in counties with Eagle Ford Shale wells jumped more than 13 percent from 2008 to 2011. Across the United States, income fell.

 

As our country continues to face a fiscal crisis, it is clear that Congress needs to cut spending and prioritize the investments that will provide a good return for American taxpayers. STEM education initiatives, space exploration and investments in basic research are the long-term investments that will provide economic growth and help us ensure America's future prosperity and success.

 

MEANWHILE ON MARS…

 

NASA exercises caution ahead of Curiosity's first drill

 

Stephen Clark - SpaceflightNow.com

 

Six months after dropping to the surface of Mars suspended under a rocket pack resembling a sci-fi creation, NASA's Curiosity rover is preparing to drill into a slab of rock holding clues of the planet's watery past.

 

Adopting a deliberate, cautious strategy to ensure the rover's drill is ready, engineers have positioned Curiosity near a rock formation dubbed "John Klein" for a series of tests progressively exercising more of the drill's functions.

 

Named for Curiosity's late deputy project manager, the outcrop is a flat patch of rock marked with veins of light-colored calcium sulfate materials such as gypsum or bassinite.

 

"On Earth, forming veins like these requires water circulating in fractures," said Nicolas Mangold of the Laboratoire de Planetologie et Geodynamique de Nantes in France, who works on Curiosity's ChemCam science team.

 

Beginning in late January, controllers put Curiosity through series of tests to gauge how the rover will react during a drill. Engineers first commanded the rover's drill to press down on four locations on the "John Klein" outcrop to check whether the amount of force applied by the drill matched predictions.

 

The drill is designed to hammer into rocks and collect material for analysis by the rover's chemical and mineral sensors. It is attached to the end of Curiosity's robot arm and uses percussive and spin motion to bore into rock.

 

"Drilling into a rock to collect a sample will be this mission's most challenging activity since the landing. It has never been done on Mars," said Richard Cook, Curiosity's project manager at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

 

"The drill hardware interacts energetically with Martian material we don't control," Cook said in a statement issued in January. "We won't be surprised if some steps in the process don't go exactly as planned the first time through."

 

On Saturday, engineers activated the drill for a test run using the device's percussive motion. The drill bit carved a small sliver in the rock about two-thirds of an inch long.

 

The next step is a "mini-drill" test employing the drill's rotary motion long enough to accumulate a ring of rock powder around a hole. Officials will study the powder to see if it is suitable to be ingested by Curiosity's sample handling mechanisms, according to NASA.

 

"We are proceeding with caution in the approach to Curiosity's first drilling," said Daniel Limonadi, lead systems engineer for Curiosity's surface sampling and science system, in a status report posted on NASA's website. "This is challenging. It will be the first time any robot has drilled into a rock to collect a sample on Mars."

 

The powder samples will be examined by miniature laboratories inside the rover body to determine the material's mineral and chemical composition.

 

The drill is the last of Curiosity's instruments to be used since it arrived on Mars six months ago.

 

Curiosity has logged more than 2,300 feet on its odometer since it landed Aug. 6.

 

The six-wheeled robot is now exploring a region known as "Yellowknife Bay," a shallow pit about two feet deep lying one-third of a mile from the rover's landing site.

 

Scientists picked the Yellowknife Bay region as Curiosity's first destination because orbital observations showed the area was made of different terrain than the rover's touchdown point.

 

"The orbital signal drew us here, but what we found when we arrived has been a great surprise," said John Grotzinger, Curiosity's lead scientist, in a statement. "This area had a different type of wet environment than the streambed where we landed, maybe a few different types of wet environments."

 

Curiosity's ultimate objective is Mount Sharp, a three-mile-high peak in Gale Crater, the ancient impact site where Curiosity landed.

 

Observations from satellites orbiting Mars show Mount Sharp's foothills could contain clays, which harken to a time when the planet was warmer and wetter.

 

END

 

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KjH

Kyle Herring

NASA Public Affairs

 

"We are alive

And though our bodies lie alone here in the dark

Our souls & spirits rise

To carry the fire & light the spark"

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