Keep the shuttle flying: Fwd: VALENTINE'S DAY EDITION: Human Spaceflight News

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From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: February 14, 2013 7:16:03 AM GMT-06:00
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: FW: VALENTINE'S DAY EDITION: Human Spaceflight News - February 14, 2013 and JSC Today

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

Thursday, February 14, 2013

JSC TODAY HEADLINES
1.            Joint Leadership Team Web Poll
2.            We Love Our Heroes at JSC -- Get to Know Them
3.            Badging Offices Closed in Observance of Presidents' Day
4.            Spring Festival -- Flea Market, Craft Fair, Children's Events and Crawfish Boil
5.            Supervisor ECOMP Training -- Today, Feb. 14
6.            Today! In the Teague: JSAT Why I Work Safely Valentine's Day Photo Badges
7.            NHHPC Member to Member Connect: The True Mother of Invention
8.            Adult Children of Alcoholics: Healing from a Loved One's Addiction
9.            Nominate Your Peer Today! Nominations Close Tomorrow
10.          35th Annual JSC FOD Chili Cook-off Registration is OPEN
11.          Wellness ViTS Today -- Develop Your Own Fitness Program
12.          Starport's Spring Break Camp -- Register Your Child Now
13.          Starport Spinning Workshop Series -- MS 150 Training at the Gilruth
14.          Zumbatomic Kids Fitness at Starport -- Try the First Class for Free
15.          Volunteer Opportunity at Citizen Schools
16.          Does Information Technology Funding Make Your Heart Race?
17.          INCOSE TGCC Feb. 21 Event at Baker Hughes International
18.          Situational Awareness Class: April 30 to May 2 - Building 20, Room 205/206
________________________________________     QUOTE OF THE DAY
" What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork."

-- Pearl Bailey
________________________________________
1.            Joint Leadership Team Web Poll
Space station did have a conversation with Captain Kirk this week -- didn't fool you on that. And it appears likely that Beyoncé overheated the fuse box, causing the Super Bowl blackout. This week I want to hear how you feel about whether we are working toward simple solutions, or are we working to make simple solutions harder? Are we unnecessarily complicated? Question two is about the daughter of a senior staff member who'll be famous next week. She's appearing on "The Mindy Project" on actual TV. Whose daughter is she?
Kelly your Kapoor on over to get this week's poll.
Joel Walker x30541 http://jlt.jsc.nasa.gov/

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2.            We Love Our Heroes at JSC -- Get to Know Them
A unique group of JSC team members united for a recognition ceremony in the parking lot of Space Center Houston on Jan. 23. Volunteer firefighters and emergency medical services personnel were greeted by members of JSC senior management, and the event, organized by the JSC Safety Action Team, symbolized the connection between JSC, the community and the center's dedication to safety. Learn more about the recognition ceremony and get to know the heroes walking among us each day at JSC. There's also a photo gallery on the JSC home page, so find a familiar face and remember to thank the volunteers for all they do for JSC and the surrounding community.
JSC External Relations, Office of Communications and Public Affairs x33317

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3.            Badging Offices Closed in Observance of Presidents' Day
All badging offices will be closed Monday, Feb. 18, in observance of Presidents' Day. Normal working operations will resume Tuesday, Feb. 19, as listed below.
o             Building 110 - 6 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
o             Building 419 - 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
o             Ellington Field - 7 to 11 a.m.
o             Sonny Carter Training Facility - 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
Tifanny Sowell x37447

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4.            Spring Festival -- Flea Market, Craft Fair, Children's Events and Crawfish Boil
On March 23, Starport will have one big spring event at the Gilruth Center! Bring the kiddos out for our Children's Spring Fling, complete with a bounce house, face painting, petting zoo, Easter egg hunt and hot dog lunch. Tickets for the children's event go on sale March 1 in the Buildings 3 and 11 Starport Gift Shops and the Gilruth Center. Tickets are $8 if purchased by March 15, or $10 after and the day of. Only children over 18 months, who will be participating in the activities and eating lunch, need a ticket.
While you're there, do some shopping at the outdoor flea market and indoor craft fair! No tickets needed; this is free and open to the public. We will also be selling crawfish for $7/pound. Hot dogs, soda and other beverages will also be available. Click here for more information and the registration form.
Event Date: Saturday, March 23, 2013   Event Start Time:9:00 AM   Event End Time:2:00 PM
Event Location: Gilruth Center

Add to Calendar

Shelly Haralson x39168 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

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5.            Supervisor ECOMP Training -- Today, Feb. 14

Here are WebEx and dial-in instructions for today's ECOMP presentation.
Dial: 1-800-619-7519. The pass code is: "Supervisor"
The operator will ask your name and center affiliation. For those who are in a conference room listening and participating with others on one telephone, provide only one name and center affiliation for the group.
Date: Today, Feb. 14
Time: 1 p.m. CST
Meeting number: 993 365 616
Meeting password: Ecomp2-14
To join the online meeting (iPhones and other smart phones, too)
1. Go to: https://nasa.webex.com/nasa/j.php?ED=192393752&UID=0&PW=NZTkyNmFmMjdl&RT=MiMx...
2. Enter your name and email address on the right-hand side of the page where it says "Non-NASA Users Join" (even though you are a NASA employee--it's easiest this way). Unless your system/computer configures the sign-in differently and/or you are very familiar in how to join a WebEx, there shouldn't be any issues in accessing the meeting. Questions? Call Lynn Hogan at x33029.
Lynn Hogan x33029

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6.            Today! In the Teague: JSAT Why I Work Safely Valentine's Day Photo Badges
Your JSC Safety Action Team (JSAT) is hosting a Valentine's Day event TODAY in the Teague Auditorium lobby from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. JSAT volunteers will be on hand to laminate photos of your reason for working safely each day. Don't forget to stop by. As a time-saver, please pre-trim your photos to 2'' x 2.5''. Photocopies also work well. Drop your photos off for laminating while you participate in the JSC blood drive.
Reese Squires x37776 http://jsat.jsc.nasa.gov

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7.            NHHPC Member to Member Connect: The True Mother of Invention
The NASA Human Health and Performance Center (NHHPC) is pleased to announce the next Member to Member Connect featuring Nigel Moore, CEO and founder of Green Leader Limited, who will present "The True Mother of Invention." Successful invention, innovation and improvement need more than just an imperative or some initial effort. "Mother" must do much more! Value-adding Integration (VAI) is a concept and methodology for low cost, fast improvement and innovation for products, public services and rare disease healthcare and research. VAI enhances innovative collaboration and is a tool you can use immediately to help your efforts to succeed. All JSC employees are encouraged to attend or participate virtually (go here for WebEx info).
Event Date: Thursday, February 21, 2013   Event Start Time:1:00 PM   Event End Time:2:00 PM
Event Location: B15/CR267

Add to Calendar

MaGee Johnson 281-204-1500 http://sa.jsc.nasa.gov/

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8.            Adult Children of Alcoholics: Healing from a Loved One's Addiction
Do you find yourself constantly seeking approval even when you know you are doing a good job? Do you judge yourself mercilessly? Do you find yourself in the rescuer role repeatedly in life? These are just a few of the maladaptive patterns that adult children of alcoholics/addicts find themselves locked in many years after they leave the home they grew up in. Learn how these behaviors develop, how to break the patterns and how to start new healthy patterns. Join us as Jackie Reese, MALPC, director of the JSC Employee Assistance Program, presents "Adult Children of Alcoholics: Healing from a Loved One's Addiction," on Thursday, Feb. 21, at 12 noon in the Building 30 Auditorium.
Event Date: Thursday, February 21, 2013   Event Start Time:12:00 PM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Building 30 Auditorium

Add to Calendar

Lorrie Bennett x36130

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9.            Nominate Your Peer Today! Nominations Close Tomorrow
The POWER of One Award has been a great success, but we still need your nominations. We're looking for standouts with specific examples of exceptional or superior performance. Our award criteria below will help guide you in writing the short write-up needed for submittal.
o             Single Achievement: Explain how the person truly went above and beyond on a single project or initiative
o             Affect and Impact: What was the significant impact? How many were impacted? Who was impacted?
o             Standout: What stands out? What extra effort? Did the effort exceed and accomplish the goal?
o             Category: Which category should the nominee be in? Gold - agency impact award level; Silver - center impact award level; or Bronze - organization impact award level
If chosen, the recipient can choose from a list of JSC experiences and have their name and recognition shared on Inside JSC.
Click here for complete information on the JSC Awards Program.
Jessica Ocampo 281-792-7804 https://powerofone.jsc.nasa.gov

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10.          35th Annual JSC FOD Chili Cook-off Registration is OPEN
Register your team NOW to participate in this year's chili cook-off! Cook, eat, drink and be merry. Also, show your spirit by participating in the showmanship competition, trivia, games and more. See our website for details.
Event Date: Saturday, April 13, 2013   Event Start Time:7:00 AM   Event End Time:5:00 PM
Event Location: Gilruth Center

Add to Calendar

Jeff Bauer 281-226-5132 http://external.jsc.nasa.gov/events/chili/index.cfm

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11.          Wellness ViTS Today -- Develop Your Own Fitness Program
Join us for the second installment of JSC's 2013 fitness/nutrition/Employee Assistance Program series. Dr. Larry Wier will present information on how to jumpstart your health, nutrition and fitness goals with his presentation of "Develop Your Own Fitness Program."
Location: Building 17, Room 2026
Time: 12:30 to 2 p.m.
Dial-in: 1-888-370-7263, pass code 8811760#
To join the online meeting (now from iPhones and other smart phones, too):
1. Go to: https://nasa.webex.com/nasa/j.php?ED=192013347&UID=0&PW=NYzQ4YmVjZjUw&RT=MiMx...
2. Enter your name and email address
3. Enter the meeting password: Fitness*9
4. Click "Join Now"
Each monthly module in this 2013 series will be 90 minutes to facilitate more audience questions. We hope that you will attend each module as often as your schedule permits. Please check the agency's Occupational Health website for information about the series, copies of the slides used and the schedule for the rest of 2013.
Larry Wier x30301

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12.          Starport's Spring Break Camp -- Register Your Child Now
Spring break is just around the corner, and Starport will once again be offering a youth day camp at the Gilruth Center for the school break. We will keep your children active and entertained with games, group activities, crafts and all kinds of fun. Register your child before spaces fill up!
Camper ages: 6 to 12
Camp dates: March 11 to 15
Camp times: 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Camp fees: $140/child for the entire week or $40 per day for selected days
Click here for more information and registration information. Register your child at the Gilruth Center during normal operating hours.
Shericka Phillips x35563 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

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13.          Starport Spinning Workshop Series -- MS 150 Training at the Gilruth
Starport is thrilled to offer a special eight-week training workshop based on the "periodization" approach to training that will prepare you for the MS 150 or a multi-day or long-distance event such as a triathlon or marathon. Each spinning class and training ride will be taught by our phenomenal certified instructors.
Registration closes on Feb. 20.
o             Register at the Gilruth information desk
Thursday Rides/Workshops (5:30 to 6:30 p.m.):
o             Feb. 21 | Feb. 28 | March 7 | March 21 | March 28 | April 4 | April 11 | April 18
Sunday Distance Rides (1.5 to 2.5 hours):
o             TBA
Full Package (All Thursday and Sunday Rides)
o             Price per person: $110
Just Sundays (Both Sunday Rides)
o             Price per person: $25
Individual Sundays
o             Price per person: $15
Take your skills to the next level and sign up today!
Steve Schade x30304 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/Fitness/RecreationClasses/RecreationProgram...

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14.          Zumbatomic Kids Fitness at Starport -- Try the First Class for Free
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. 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.
Session: March 8 to April 5
Class meeting day: Friday
Time: 5:30 to 6:15 p.m.
Location: Gilruth Center Studio 1
Fee: $55/child
Register at the Gilruth Center. Click here for more info.
Shericka Phillips x35563 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/

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15.          Volunteer Opportunity at Citizen Schools
This spring, you have the unique opportunity to help kids discover and achieve their dreams! Citizen Schools works with at-risk middle school students learn about new careers and new futures through hands-on, real-world "apprenticeships" taught by people like you.
By volunteering for an hour-and-a-half (4:30 to 6 p.m.) on campus, once a week, over the course of the semester, you will be able to share your skills and knowledge with low-income students at struggling Houston Independent School District schools. We are also soliciting volunteers for a lesser commitment to work in teams to split up the 10-week program into three segments.
You can learn more about the experience and at our information session today, Feb. 14, from noon to 1 p.m. in Building 1, Room 820.
If you have any questions, you are welcome to contact Mark Jernigan with specific questions.
Event Date: Thursday, February 14, 2013   Event Start Time:12:00 PM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: B1 Rm820

Add to Calendar

Mark Jernigan x39528

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16.          Does Information Technology Funding Make Your Heart Race?
If it does, come learn about IT Labs TODAY. IT Labs is the Technology and Innovation Division of NASA's Chief Technology Officer-Information Technology in the Office of the Chief Information Officer. We are committed to empowering NASA's scientists and engineers with the most innovative information technology in the world.
The annual IT Labs project call for Fiscal Year 2013 is from Feb. 4 to March 21 and is awaiting your proposals for IT solutions in the form of ideas/issues, proofs of concept, and prototypes.
We are already receiving applications and are ready to answer questions about IT Labs and the annual project call. Come in person or dial in with WebEx. WebEx iCal information to open and save is here.
Event Date: Thursday, February 14, 2013   Event Start Time:10:00 AM   Event End Time:11:00 AM
Event Location: Bldg. 1, CR 320

Add to Calendar

Kevin Rosenquist 281-204-1688 https://labs.nasa.gov

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17.          INCOSE TGCC Feb. 21 Event at Baker Hughes International
The next Texas Gulf Coast Chapter (TGCC) event, on the evening of Feb. 21, will be sponsored by Baker Hughes International at 2001 Rankin, near Bush Intercontinental. Baker Hughes invites you to discover how systems engineering is being implemented in the oilfield services industry. There will be an optional tour of Baker's Houston Technology Center starting at 4:30 p.m. The tour requires pre-registration to enable the proper clearance. After the tour, Baker will host the networking portion of the evening. There will be appetizers and non-alcoholic drinks. Speakers will talk about the challenges of implementing the process and how it was tailored to fit this environment. Following the presentation, there will be time for questions.
Please send RSVPs to: Emily.Crose@bakerhughes.com
RSVPs are needed to ensure proper facility support and clearance. If you can't do the tour, you are welcome to attend the regular event starting at 6 p.m.
Larry Spratlin 281-461-5218

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18.          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 in order 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
Thursday, February 14, 2013
HEADLINES AND LEADS

Former NASA administrator Mike Griffin throws cold water on commercial space market, then offers solution

Lee Roop - Huntsville Times

Former NASA Administrator Mike Griffin told a commercial space conference here Wednesday that there is no significant commercial space market and won't be anytime soon. "Commercial space" now, he said, "is really just a name for a different government procurement method." Griffin, a persistent critic of President Obama's space program, said the current system consists of companies such as SpaceX operating with "government as their venture capitalist." SpaceX is getting "something approaching 90 percent" of its funding from the government, he said. "The International Space Station is not a big enough or long-lasting enough market" for those commercial companies, Griffin said, even if the station's life is extended to 2028, as NASA now plans. It wouldn't be a good market even if one company could capture it exclusively, he said, because "the rate of return on investment is unfavorable as opposed to market alternatives. The wise investor would not put his money into it." But Griffin said there is a way to generate the kind of commercial space market he would support. In his model, companies would sell services to the government as needed, but would be able to go on without government investment. Griffin wants America to build a permanent base on the moon. Such a base multiplies the logistical challenges by a factor of 10 over the station, he said, and it would require long-term services ranging from life support to housing. "That market is 10 times larger and 10 times longer than the space station," he said, and it could support a space industry.

Wallops Island rocket test aborted

Mike Connors Virginian-Pilot

A rocket engine testing scheduled for Wallops Flight Facility has been aborted. The test was halted in the final seconds of the countdown, a NASA news release said. The rocket's flight computer detected an anomalous condition. A new test date has not been determined. Testing for the Antares rocket engine was originally scheduled for Tuesday night, then postponed to Wednesday night. A demonstration flight of Antares to the International Space Station is planned for later this year. (NO FURTHER TEXT)

Doing science in zero-G? You'll have to go through Nanoracks

Alex Knapp - Forbes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbhq7ld9udY&feature=share&list=UUmh7afBz-uWwOSSNTqUBAhg

The frontier of biomedical research is inside an unassuming green box with a black-and-white touchscreen mounted on a rack in the International Space Station. Within that green box is a microplate reader, a workhorse appliance in labs on Earth but the first of its kind to work in the near-zero gravity at 250 miles up. A microplate reader screens hundreds of liquid samples at once for drug candidates or infectious disease, but fluids at zero Gs can float around or settle in unwanted ways. This barred scientists from using microplates in space, where researchers prize the absence of gravity for its insights into how crystals, bacteria and drug agents behave.

Space station's Columbus laboratory celebrates five years of science

Jenny Winder - Space Exploration Network (SEN.com)

For five years the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station has offered scientists the opportunity to conduct science in microgravity. Columbus is ESA's biggest single contribution to the ISS. It was built in Italy and integrated in Germany. The 4.5-metre diameter cylindrical module is equipped with flexible research facilities that offer extensive science capabilities. The module is over 6 m long and weighs more than 10 tonnes. It was shipped to the US and launched on the Space Shuttle Atlantis from the Kennedy Space Center in 2008. Daily crew activities in Columbus are overseen by a dedicated team of engineers and specialists working at the Columbus Control Centre near Munich, Germany.

New weather instrument to hitch a ride on Space Station

Andrew Freedman - ClimateCentral.org

In a high-flying example of recycling, NASA recently announced plans to combine leftover hardware from a now-defunct satellite with new equipment in order to improve scientists' ability to monitor ocean winds around the world. Rather than building an entirely new, autonomous satellite, which could cost up to $1 billion or more, the agency is planning to attach the refurbished instrument to the International Space Station (ISS). Once it is safely attached, the instrument will not require any interaction with the Space Station crew, NASA said in a press release.

NASA'S Robotic Refueling Mission proves its worth in space

Jason Rhian - AmericaSpace.org

An experiment that flew up to the orbiting International Space Station in the final days of the space shuttle era is proving a once theoretical procedure is viable. The Robotic Refueling Mission, delivered to the space station in July 2011, has demonstrated that remotely refueling and repairing satellites is possible. Current satellites were not designed to have their fuel tanks opened (on orbit no less) and to have those tanks "topped off" and then resealed. With NASA now proving that the procedure is possible, the potential savings could be in the billions, and the life spans of a wide range of spacecraft could be expanded far beyond their initial warranties.

NASA prepares to stage new round of J-2X engine tests for mammoth SLS booster

Ben Evans - AmericaSpace.org

A liquid-fueled engine, which once formed part of the most powerful rocket ever brought to operational status in human history, will kick off an ambitious series of tests in the coming weeks at NASA's Stennis Space Center. The second J-2X development engine, designated No. 10002, will shortly be transferred to the A-1 Test Stand for an inaugural round of gimbaling evaluations as part of efforts to someday incorporate it into the Space Launch System (SLS) heavy-lift booster. "The upcoming test series is not only a critical step forward, but important to the Stennis test team as well," said Gary Benton, manager of the J-2X test project at the Hancock County, Miss., installation. "This test series will help us increase our knowledge of the J-2X and its performance capabilities. In addition, the series will help us maintain the high skill level of our team as we look ahead to continued J-2X testing."

Space Exploration Ignored in Obama's State of the Union: No Surprise

Mike Wall - Space.com

The lack of attention given to space exploration in President Barack Obama's annual State of the Union address Tuesday night shouldn't make NASA and the space community nervous, experts say. Spaceflight and exploration received the barest of mentions in the speech, with President Obama invoking the Cold War space race once to highlight the need for increased scientific research and technological development. NASA didn't get a single shout-out. But that's par for the course for State of the Union speeches, experts say, and doesn't necessarily mean the Obama Administration places little value on the space agency or its work.

Mikulski and Shelby Consolidate Power over NASA Appropriations

Dan Leone - Space News

U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, is now also the top Republican on the Appropriations subcommittee, which drafts annual spending bills for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Shelby will serve alongside fellow NASA champion Sen. Barbara Mikulski, the Maryland Democrat who retained the chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations commerce, justice, science subcommittee even as she took over the full committee last month following the death of Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii). Shelby is known as a fierce defender of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

Senate committees get organized; Nelson and Cruz control space subcommittee

Jeff Foust – SpacePolitics.com

Two key Senate committees, Appropriations and Commerce, formally organized their subcommittees this week. As expected, the chair and ranking member of the full Senate Appropriations Committee, Sens. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Richard Shelby (R-AL), respectively, will also serve in the same positions on the Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee, whose jurisdiction includes NASA and NOAA. On Wednesday, the Senate Commerce Committee held its organizational meeting, announcing members of its various subcommittees, including Science and Space. As expected, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) returns as chairman of the space subcommittee, but will have a new ranking member: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), elected in November to replace the retiring Kay Bailey Hutchison.

Students chat with astronaut on space station

Melissa Jenco - Chicago Tribune

From aliens to zero gravity, Naperville children recently had a chance to launch their burning questions about space at an expert who has been living there for almost four months. Kevin Ford, commander of Expedition 34 on the International Space Station, video chatted with students from St. Raphael, All Saints and Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic schools. "It's really such a special place to be that it's really kind of magical," he said of the space station, "To me it's my Disneyland."

Astronaut aboard space station 'visits' Naperville school

Justin Kmitch – Chicago Daily Herald

http://bcove.me/s8c5mxs8

Orbiting about 250 miles above Earth, NASA astronaut Kevin Ford spends his days working with a crew studying potential cures for osteoporosis. But he's longing for a golf range and a meal that doesn't come in a ready-to-eat package. Ford, currently the commander of the International Space Station's Expedition 34 six-person crew, spoke to several dozen St. Raphael Catholic School students Tuesday afternoon via a live video feed.

Statesville native checks in from aboard the International Space Station

Shawn Flynn - News 14 Carolina

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/687512/statesville-native-checks-in-from-aboard-the-international-space-station

Tom Marshburn, of North Carolina, blasted off to space Dec. 19. The Statesville native earned his physics degree from Davidson College and a doctorate in medicine from Wake Forest University, and now he's hovering a couple hundred miles above Earth at the International Space Station. Marshburn and five other members on board are conducting 130 experiments. He admits he uses a lot of his spare time in space taking pictures of home and sending them out on his Twitter feed.

KSC Director wins Space Club Award

Robert D. Cabana, director of NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center, has been selected to receive its 2013 Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award from the National Space Club. Cabana will be honored at the Debus Award Dinner on April 27 at the Debus Conference Facility at the KSC Visitor Complex. The award is named for KSC's first director.

Happy Valentine's Day! Here's a space rose

Kelly Oakes - Scientific American

Still looking for an extra special Valentine's gift? Here's something truly out-of-this-world… Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Overnight Scentsation. This miniature rose was grown in space, on NASA's Space Shuttle Discovery Flight STS-95, in an ASTROCULTURE commercial plant growth chamber. Scientists wanted to see whether a rose grown in space really would smell as sweet as its terrestrial counterpart.

Why blasting off in a space shuttle is safer than walking

David Derbyshire – London Daily Mail

Sitting in a narrow airline seat, watching the cabin crew run through the safety demonstration, many of us find ourselves feeling just a little nervous. But when it comes to judging the risks of travel, we usually get it completely wrong. In 2012 there were 475 fatalities from 23 air accidents — half the death toll in 2000. Professor Arnold Barnett, a U.S. statistician, has worked out that the average passenger has a one in 45 million chance of dying on a flight. This means you could expect to die on a flight only if you flew every day for 123,000 years. So how safe is flying compared with other forms of transport? And are you more likely to come to harm cycling to work or launching yourself into space in a shuttle? The answers may surprise you.
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COMPLETE STORIES

Former NASA administrator Mike Griffin throws cold water on commercial space market, then offers solution

Lee Roop - Huntsville Times

Former NASA Administrator Mike Griffin told a commercial space conference here Wednesday that there is no significant commercial space market and won't be anytime soon. "Commercial space" now, he said, "is really just a name for a different government procurement method."

Griffin, a persistent critic of President Obama's space program, said the current system consists of companies such as SpaceX operating with "government as their venture capitalist." SpaceX is getting "something approaching 90 percent" of its funding from the government, he said.

Griffin, who headed NASA during the second administration of former President George W. Bush, has fought Obama since the president announced his space vision in 2010. The president wanted access to low-Earth orbit and the International Space Station provided by commercial companies, while NASA focused on new technologies. To do that, Obama's first NASA budget as president proposed killing NASA's Constellation program - a program Griffin headed - while giving more funding to companies such as SpaceX. Congress balked, and the two sides compromised on start-up subsidies for commercial space while NASA builds a rocket for deep space missions.

"The International Space Station is not a big enough or long-lasting enough market" for those commercial companies, Griffin said, even if the station's life is extended to 2028, as NASA now plans. It wouldn't be a good market even if one company could capture it exclusively, he said, because "the rate of return on investment is unfavorable as opposed to market alternatives. The wise investor would not put his money into it."

But Griffin said there is a way to generate the kind of commercial space market he would support. In his model, companies would sell services to the government as needed, but would be able to go on without government investment.

Griffin wants America to build a permanent base on the moon. Such a base multiplies the logistical challenges by a factor of 10 over the station, he said, and it would require long-term services ranging from life support to housing. "That market is 10 times larger and 10 times longer than the space station," he said, and it could support a space industry.

Another issue facing commercial space is engineering and safety standards, Griffin said. Without set standards and codes, the industry "won't be insurable without government indemnification."

"How do you handle the issue of recovery from a disaster?" Griffin asked. "In commercial spaceflight, we don't know the answer to that yet. If we can't find the answers, we will not have a commercial spaceflight industry that is anything more than an alternative means of government procurement, and that's not what we're looking for."

Griffin's analysis drew little push-back from an audience supposedly drawn by the possibilities of commercial space. Several questioners said they agreed with his analysis, and others raised other issues.

But an afternoon panel emphasized another conference theme: There are other ways to go. For the second day in a row, suborbital tourist flights already planned by several companies were held up as a sign that the public's interest in space might pay if the price is right.

"More than 500 people have already signed up" to take Virgin Galactic's planned suborbital flights, panel leader and Huntsville aerospace engineer Tim Pickens observed.

Pickens stressed that North Alabama needs to take seriously the economic challenge posed by companies trying hard to drive down the cost of getting into space. If they succeed in places such as California, while Huntsville is tied to complicated and expensive systems, Pickens said that could threaten employment. The aerospace talent is here, Pickens said, but the area needs to be aware and responsive to what is happening across the industry.

One thing happening is rapid change in satellite technology. Small, inexpensive satellites are opening up new possibilities and will offer more if the cost of getting them to space comes down.

John London, small satellite technology program manager for the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense command, sketched a possible scenario for the afternoon panel. Would a television station in Los Angeles buy its own small satellite if it could gain a market advantage by beaming live images not just from the freeway, but from the other side of the world? It very well might, London said, and that's just one example of where new markets could develop.

Doing science in zero-G? You'll have to go through Nanoracks

Alex Knapp - Forbes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbhq7ld9udY&feature=share&list=UUmh7afBz-uWwOSSNTqUBAhg

The frontier of biomedical research is inside an unassuming green box with a black-and-white touchscreen mounted on a rack in the International Space Station. Within that green box is a microplate reader, a workhorse appliance in labs on Earth but the first of its kind to work in the near-zero gravity at 250 miles up. A microplate reader screens hundreds of liquid samples at once for drug candidates or infectious disease, but fluids at zero Gs can float around or settle in unwanted ways. This barred scientists from using microplates in space, where researchers prize the absence of gravity for its insights into how crystals, bacteria and drug agents behave.

Solving that problem was one small step for a tiny company called NanoRacks, which has carved out an unusual niche (and a monopoly, for now) adapting lab gear to the U.S. National Lab on the ISS. Since 2010 it has designed and built all 36 of the modular labs there. It has also acquired for the ISS two microscopes and a centrifuge that can simulate the gravity on, say, the moon or Mars. NanoRacks has flown 70 payloads to the ISS and is contracted to fly 80 more. Last year it generated more than $3 million in revenue, of which only one-quarter comes from NASA. Other customers include European and Saudi space agencies, universities in the U.K. and Vietnam, and even Scotch distiller Ardbeg, which sent up flavor molecules called terpenes to age for two years in charred oak (more on that experiment here).

NanoRacks' entrepreneurial approach has cut the cost of doing science in space just as Elon Musk's SpaceX has shown that startups can deliver payloads safely and more cheaply than governments can. NASA told NanoRacks that a space-ready microplate reader would take years and cost millions. "We told them we could do it in six months for less than a million," says NanoRacks managing director Jeffrey Manber. NanoRacks ended up doing it for $500,000 and even gave NASA the same money-back guarantee it offers commercial customers. "We've only done that one other time," says Marybeth Edeen, who manages the U.S. National Lab aboard the space station. "It's a good model in that incentivizes companies to build robust hardware."

To make its microplate reader space-ready, NanoRacks had to tweak the capillary action of its 96 tiny wells to ensure that liquids were placed correctly on a slide and had to dumb down the machine's user interface so an untrained astronaut could use it. "When astronaut Kevin Ford turned it on and ran the initial experiment, we had to wait for it to run overnight," says Manber. "We had trouble sleeping. But in the morning we downloaded the data, and it was perfect."

NanoRacks charges roughly $60,000 for each microplate reader experiment and is getting a lot more new customers beyond NASA, so it shouldn't take the company too long to get a return on its investment. "We were profitable last year, and we'll be profitable this year," says Richard Pournelle, NanoRacks' senior vice president for business development.

Space station's Columbus laboratory celebrates five years of science

Jenny Winder - Space Exploration Network (SEN.com)

For five years the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station has offered scientists the opportunity to conduct science in microgravity.

Columbus is ESA's biggest single contribution to the ISS. It was built in Italy and integrated in Germany. The 4.5-metre diameter cylindrical module is equipped with flexible research facilities that offer extensive science capabilities.

The module is over 6 m long and weighs more than 10 tonnes. It was shipped to the US and launched on the Space Shuttle Atlantis from the Kennedy Space Center in 2008.

Daily crew activities in Columbus are overseen by a dedicated team of engineers and specialists working at the Columbus Control Centre near Munich, Germany.

"It's been a time of tremendous change; back then, the ISS was under construction, with regular Shuttle cargo flights," says ESA Mission Director Roland Luettgens. "Today, we're in routine operations, the Station is complete, we have full, six-member crews and the ISS including our Columbus lab is achieving an impressive scientific return."

Since 2008 a total of 110 ESA-led experiments involving some 500 scientists have been conducted in many areas such as fluid physics, material sciences, radiation physics, the Sun, the human body, biology and astrobiology. Performing experiments in space over long periods can reveal the inner workings of natural phenomena.

"We focus research on achieving scientific discoveries, developing applications and benefitting people on Earth while preparing for future space exploration," explains Martin Zell, responsible for ESA's utilisation of the European orbital laboratory.

Studying colloids, tiny particles in liquids, is one area of research hampered by gravity. The Colloid experiment on Columbus confirmed that 'quantum forces' can be used to control colloid structures as predicted theoretically over 30 years ago.

Columbus is also helping scientists to understand the human body. Astronauts in space absorb more salt without absorbing more fluids. High-salt diets seem to be causing bone loss in astronauts. It had previously been thought that bone loss was caused by the physical effect of living in weightlessness. This has implications for people suffering from osteoporosis on Earth. Cell research is offering clues on how to control ageing. The Roald biology experiment revealed that certain enzymes in our immune systems are more active in space, helping scientists to combat premature cell death.

In the first of a series of Expose experiments a number of bacteria, seeds, lichen and algae spent 18 months outside Columbus in space with no protection from the harsh space environment. When they were returned to Earth in 2009, the lichen awoke from their dormant state, highlighting the possibility that life forms could survive space travel and perhaps hitch a ride on asteroids to planets.

"Our European laboratory in space is accessible around the clock and allows us to do outstanding research with the international science community," says Martin. "We already have a high demand and continuously receive requests for research in Columbus, so we can expect plenty of exciting results."

Highlights

·         Europe's Columbus laboratory module is celebrating its fifth year of providing science research beyond the effects of gravity.
·         Launched in 2008 it is 6 m long, 4.5-metre in diameter and weighs more than 10 tonnes. It is equipped with flexible research facilities.
·         So far 110 ESA-led experiments involving some 500 scientists have been conducted including fluid physics, material sciences, radiation physics, the Sun, the human body, biology and astrobiology.

New weather instrument to hitch a ride on Space Station

Andrew Freedman - ClimateCentral.org

In a high-flying example of recycling, NASA recently announced plans to combine leftover hardware from a now-defunct satellite with new equipment in order to improve scientists' ability to monitor ocean winds around the world.

Rather than building an entirely new, autonomous satellite, which could cost up to $1 billion or more, the agency is planning to attach the refurbished instrument to the International Space Station (ISS). Once it is safely attached, the instrument will not require any interaction with the Space Station crew, NASA said in a press release.

The main beneficiaries of the new instrument will be scientists at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), who will use the data to monitor tropical storms and hurricanes as well as other weather conditions that can pose hazards for mariners, and NASA atmospheric scientists as well.

The instrument is known as a scatterometer, and the new ISS-RapidScat will help fill the gap left when NASA's previous wind-monitoring satellite, known as "QuickScat," stopped working in 2009 after operating for eight years longer than its design lifetime. NOAA meteorologists have been relying on data from other space-based scatterometers that have more limited geographical coverage in the meantime, such as ASCAT, operated by the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites.

A scatterometer is a microwave radar sensor used to measure the reflection, or scattering effect, produced while scanning the surface of Earth. The ISS-RapidScat will scan the surface of the oceans and infer information about wind speeds based on how energy is reflected back from the water.

According to NASA, ISS-RapidScat will have similar capabilities to QuickScat once it is launched to the Space Station aboard a SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft, and installed at the end of the station's Columbus laboratory.

James Franklin, chief of forecast operations at NOAA's National Hurricane Center in Miami, said the new scatterometer will benefit hurricane tracking and forecasting, particularly when it comes to detecting storms in their formative stages.

"It sounds like a very clever plan to us and we are going to be very eager to see the data," he said in an interview. "It just kind of fell into our lap."

Franklin said the new scatterometer data will not result in significant improvements to hurricane forecasting, but it will help with storm monitoring.

"This is nice, this is good, this is clever, it looks like it's going to be cost effective . . . (but) it's not going to revolutionize hurricane forecasting," he said.

The ISS-RapidScat instrument is expected to remain in service for at least two years.

NASA is heralding its approach as a cost-conscious move in a fiscally conservative climate.

"The ability for NASA to quickly reuse this hardware and launch it to the space station is a great example of a low-cost approach that will have high benefits to science and life here on Earth," said Mike Suffredini, NASA's International Space Station program manager, in a press release.

NASA's do-it-yourself solution to the scatterometer data contrasts with the difficulty that NASA, NOAA and other agencies have had in trying to keep a far more complex next-generation fleet of polar-orbiting satellites on schedule and on budget. NOAA's weather forecasters are preparing for a gap in polar satellite coverage starting sometime in 2017 and lasting for at least one year. If that occurs, NOAA has warned Congress and the White House that the accuracy of weather forecasts, particularly medium-range forecasts, will be less accurate than they are today.

NASA'S Robotic Refueling Mission proves its worth in space

Jason Rhian - AmericaSpace.org

An experiment that flew up to the orbiting International Space Station in the final days of the space shuttle era is proving a once theoretical procedure is viable. The Robotic Refueling Mission, delivered to the space station in July 2011, has demonstrated that remotely refueling and repairing satellites is possible.

Current satellites were not designed to have their fuel tanks opened (on orbit no less) and to have those tanks "topped off" and then resealed. With NASA now proving that the procedure is possible, the potential savings could be in the billions, and the life spans of a wide range of spacecraft could be expanded far beyond their initial warranties.

"This achievement is a major step forward in servicing satellites," said Frank Cepollina, associate director of the Satellite Servicing Capabilities Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. "RRM gives NASA and the emerging commercial satellite servicing industry the confidence to robotically refuel, repair, and maintain satellites in both near and distant orbits—well beyond the reach of where humans can go today."

Like so many things that NASA is working on these days, the RRM project is a collaborative effort with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). It is the CSA's Dextre robotic arm that has tested whether or not the process of refueling satellites in space is indeed possible.

Using a specially-designed pallet, Dextre and the Canadarm have performed remote refuelings of simulated "satellites" (with simulated fuel, naturally) that had been designed to emulate the process that would be conducted on the real thing. So how was this done? How did NASA and the CSA use the RRM pallet to test this theory?

On orbit, the simulated "satellite" had a number of valves, nozzles, and seals that are similar to what can be found on actual satellites. Four prototype tools were employed to open up those seals, transfer a simulated fuel, and then reseal the "tank." The tools were affixed to the end of Dextre's arm, and Dextre then performed the procedures that a robotic refuel and repair craft would conduct. According to NASA, the mission was a success.

This is just one of the most prominent technology demonstrators that NASA is working on. The RRM experiment was conducted by controllers on the ground at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

This new procedure could see a new age, one where spacecraft on orbit remain there for far longer than their predecessors have been able to. This would mean that fewer new satellites will need to be placed on orbit, and the cost to do so would diminish. Also, this should mean that the space environment will be less cluttered with defunct satellites.

With this first demonstration complete, future efforts will be conducted to prove that on-orbit repairs are also possible. The next series of experiments—slated to take place later this year—will include cutting thermal blankets as well as fastener and electronic termination cap removal.

The hundreds of geosynchronous satellites that stand to benefit from this include those that provide services such as weather forecasting as well as cellular and other communications services. NASA hopes that the RRM experiment will kick-start a new commercial industry, one which services and repairs satellites on orbit.

The RRM was launched to the International Space Station on board Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-135—the last mission of the space shuttle era.

NASA prepares to stage new round of J-2X engine tests for mammoth SLS booster

Ben Evans - AmericaSpace.org

A liquid-fueled engine, which once formed part of the most powerful rocket ever brought to operational status in human history, will kick off an ambitious series of tests in the coming weeks at NASA's Stennis Space Center. The second J-2X development engine, designated No. 10002, will shortly be transferred to the A-1 Test Stand for an inaugural round of gimbaling evaluations as part of efforts to someday incorporate it into the Space Launch System (SLS) heavy-lift booster. "The upcoming test series is not only a critical step forward, but important to the Stennis test team as well," said Gary Benton, manager of the J-2X test project at the Hancock County, Miss., installation. "This test series will help us increase our knowledge of the J-2X and its performance capabilities. In addition, the series will help us maintain the high skill level of our team as we look ahead to continued J-2X testing."

Although current plans envisage that a set of RS-25D powerplants of Space Shuttle Main Engine heritage will propel the SLS' first stage, it is expected that Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne's J-2X will ultimately form the backbone of the Earth Departure Stage in the fully-evolved form of the new booster. According to NASA's conservative manifest, this final form of the SLS is not expected to fly until at least 2032, but will be capable of lofting up to 130 metric tons of payload into low-Earth orbit. (This is substantially higher than the 118-metric-ton capacity of the Saturn V.) Known as the "Block II," this beefed-up form of the SLS will form the cornerstone of the agency's human spaceflight aspirations and support the eventual (though somewhat nebulous) goal of reaching an asteroid or Mars, sometime in the mid-2030s.

Yet all grand endeavors begin with incremental steps. The first aim of the upcoming Stennis tests will be to verify and demonstrate the J-2X's capabilities. Already, the No. 10001 development engine has been successfully "hot-fired," and a total of 34 tests have already been undertaken, including a full-flight-duration firing of 500 seconds on only its eighth test. (This is the earliest full-flight-duration firing ever performed on a rocket engine during its test phase in U.S. history.) Engineers will compare data from a series of hot-fire tests from the 10001 and 10002 engines and will vary liquid hydrogen and oxygen inlet pressures and temperatures to assess their impact on overall performance.

The heritage of the J-2X extends back almost five decades, to the era of the Saturn V and its immediate predecessor, the Saturn IB, which boosted the Apollo astronauts on missions into low-Earth orbit and outward to the Moon in 1968–75. The latter, the IB, saw service throughout that period, lofting Apollo 7, together with three Skylab crews and the astronauts of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, and a J-2 provided the impetus of its S-IVB second stage. When the Saturn IB flew for the first time, the J-2 became the first rocket engine in history to be capable of restarting in space, and this was successfully demonstrated on the unmanned AS-203 mission in July 1966. Astronauts Gus Grissom and Wally Schirra, prime and backup commanders for Apollo 1, the first scheduled manned launch of the Saturn IB, nicknamed the booster "the big maumoo."

However, it was during the Saturn V heyday that the engine literally reached its greatest heights. Five J-2s adorned its S-II second stage—which, at 82 feet tall, represented the largest cryogenically-fueled rocket stage ever built—with a single J-2 on its S-IVB third stage. The latter supported the so-called "Translunar Injection" (TLI) burn, three hours after launch, which propelled the Apollo spacecraft out of Earth's gravitational well and onto a course for rendezvous with the Moon.

The eventual success of the J-2 in its endeavor to enable humanity's first visit to another celestial body did not come about in the absence of difficulty. During the unmanned Apollo 6 flight in April 1968, two of the engines on the S-II abruptly shut down, just four minutes into a planned six-minute firing, and this required the others to burn for 59 seconds longer to compensate for the power loss. Since the failed engines were on opposite sides of the S-II, their loss balanced each other out and the Saturn V did not tumble, but the glitch offered a hairy reminder that playing with fire—and particularly playing with liquid hydrogen and oxygen, together with an enormous beast of a rocket—was by no means routine.

It is no understatement to declare that the performance of the J-2 during the 1968–69 timeframe had a direct impact upon the effort to plant American bootprints on the lunar surface. In the wake of the Apollo 6 incident, engineers found that frost forming on propellant lines when the J-2 was fired at ground temperatures offered extra protection against ruptures. However, this frosting did not occur in the vacuum of space … and this pointed to a potential failure point. A great deal of attention was paid to the engine in the latter half of 1968, until, in October, the crew of Apollo 7—astronauts Wally Schirra, Donn Eisele, and Walt Cunningham—rode the Saturn IB perfectly into orbit. As the first stage fell away, and the J-2-fed S-IVB second stage took over, four words from Schirra made all of the engineers' efforts worthwhile. She was "riding like a dream."

That dream ultimately went far beyond any previously imagined in human history, and in July 1969 the crew of Apollo 11 rode the Saturn V, with J-2s propelling its second and third stages, to accomplish the first piloted landing on the Moon. Five more landings were achieved by December 1972. The Skylab space station was boosted into low-Earth orbit in May 1973, marking the final flight of the Saturn V. And today, exactly four decades later, the engines that helped make these grand dreams a reality are ready to show us again what they can do. Last month, Jason Rhian wrote about efforts to include an upgraded version of the F-1 engine—of which five fed the Saturn V's first stage—into the SLS design, and the forthcoming J-2X tests offer a tantalising shred of hope that, this time, the effort to send humans beyond Earth orbit may bear fruit.

Still, there remains a long road ahead. The contract to design and develop the J-2X—worth some $1.2 billion—was awarded by NASA to Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne in July 2007, and since then its progress has been rapid and impressive. Within a year, it completed a successful shakedown of its gas generator, and the engine itself was hot-fired for a full flight duration of 500 seconds in November 2011. A little over six months later, a marathon test of its "powerpack"—the upper segment of the engine, including the gas generator, liquid hydrogen, and oxygen turbopumps, as well as related valves and ducting—was performed. This won rave reviews as the longest firing ever conducted at Stennis' A Test Stand; at 1,150 seconds, it easily eclipsed a Space Shuttle Main Engine test of 1,075 seconds in August 1989.

Although the J-2X will not ride an SLS until at least the early 2030s, the first generation of the booster is presently less than five years away—according to NASA's most recent manifest—from its maiden launch. In December 2017, it will carry the unmanned Exploration Mission (EM)-1 on a circumlunar trial of the Orion spacecraft, equipped with a European-built service module, and between two and four years after that event, a crew of four will embark on humanity's first venture beyond Earth orbit in almost five decades when they circumnavigate the Moon.

"This is a very exciting time for the country and NASA as important achievements are made on the most advanced hardware ever designed for human spaceflight," said Associate Administrator for the Human Exploration Operations Directorate William Gerstenmaier, last year. "The SLS will power a new generation of exploration missions beyond low-Earth and the Moon, pushing the frontiers of discovery forward. The innovations being made now, and the hardware being delivered and tested, are all testaments to the ability of the U.S. aerospace workforce to make the dream of deeper Solar System exploration by humans a reality in our lifetimes."

Space Exploration Ignored in Obama's State of the Union: No Surprise

Mike Wall - Space.com

The lack of attention given to space exploration in President Barack Obama's annual State of the Union address Tuesday night shouldn't make NASA and the space community nervous, experts say.

Spaceflight and exploration received the barest of mentions in the speech, with President Obama invoking the Cold War space race once to highlight the need for increased scientific research and technological development. NASA didn't get a single shout-out.

But that's par for the course for State of the Union speeches, experts say, and doesn't necessarily mean the Obama Administration places little value on the space agency or its work.

"It is very rare that NASA gets a mention in any State of the Union," said Stanford University's Scott Hubbard, the former "Mars Czar" who restructured NASA's Red Planet program after several high-profile failures in the late 1990s.

"The small size of NASA's budget and impact compared to the issues of sequestration, defense [and the] social safety net often cause space to fade into the background," Hubbard told SPACE.com via email.

Space policy expert John Logsdon voiced similar sentiments, saying the lack of space themes came as no surprise to him given the amount of ground the president had to cover in the speech.

"Space issues are really not at the top of the national priority list," Logsdon, a professor emeritus at George Washington University, told SPACE.com. "In terms of things like climate change or the fiscal situation or gun control, space doesn't compete."

While NASA didn't get a mention, the agency wasn't completely shut out of the State of the Union. Mars rover Curiosity flight director Bobak Ferdowsi — who gained fame as "Mohawk Guy" during the 1-ton rover's harrowing landing last August — sat in first lady Michelle Obama's box during the speech, along with a handful of other special guests.

His inclusion could be a heartening sign for NASA, both Hubbard and Logsdon said, as could the space agency's participation in President Obama's inaugural parade last month. (Ferdowsi marched in the parade, along with models of Curiosity and NASA's Orion deep-space crew capsule.)

NASA and the space community will get a better idea of where they stand when President Obama releases the administration's federal budget request for fiscal year 2014, which should happen soon.

"Of course we would have liked to hear him vocalize his support for a vigorous and sustainable space program — something that inspires Americans young and old, and that brings enormous benefits to the country," Commercial Spaceflight Federation president Michael Lopez-Alegria told SPACE.com via email. "Certainly there were other important topics competing for airtime; we're hopeful that he will continue to demonstrate such support through his budgets and policies."

While most State of the Union addresses gloss over or ignore space, that's not always the case, notes Scott Pace, director of the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University.

"President Reagan was an exception," Pace told SPACE.com via email. "He included major space elements in his 1984 and 1986 addresses."

President Reagan's 1984 State of the Union included a call to build a permanently manned space station. His 1986 speech reaffirmed that goal and also stressed the need for a strong missile-defense system.

Mikulski and Shelby Consolidate Power over NASA Appropriations

Dan Leone - Space News

U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama, the top Republican on the Senate Appropriations Committee, is now also the top Republican on the Appropriations subcommittee, which drafts annual spending bills for NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Shelby will serve alongside fellow NASA champion Sen. Barbara Mikulski, the Maryland Democrat who retained the chairmanship of the Senate Appropriations commerce, justice, science subcommittee even as she took over the full committee last month following the death of Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii). Shelby is known as a fierce defender of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

Marshall is the hub for work on NASA's Space Launch System, the heavy-lift rocket NASA is building with shuttle-heritage components for deep-space missions. Shelby has been supportive of this work, which has its roots in the canceled Constellation Moon return program, but deeply skeptical of NASA's Commercial Crew Program, an initiative to develop privately operated astronaut taxis to service low Earth orbit and the international space station.

The full Senate Appropriations Committee announced Shelby's appointment to the commerce, justice, science subcommittee Feb. 12.

He replaces former Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, the Texas Republican who retired in January after 24 years in the Senate. Hutchison was instrumental in the creation of the Space Launch System and its companion crew capsule, the Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle.

In addition to Mikulski and Shelby, the lawmakers formally named to the Senate Appropriations commerce, justice, science subcommittee are:
·         Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.)
·         Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.)
·         Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
·         Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.)
·         Sen. Mark Pryor (Ark.)
·         Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.)
·         Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
·         Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)
·         Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
·         Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.)
·         Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine)
·         Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska)
·         Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.)
·         Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.)
·         Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.)

Senate committees get organized; Nelson and Cruz control space subcommittee

Jeff Foust – SpacePolitics.com

Two key Senate committees, Appropriations and Commerce, formally organized their subcommittees this week. As expected, the chair and ranking member of the full Senate Appropriations Committee, Sens. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Richard Shelby (R-AL), respectively, will also serve in the same positions on the Commerce, Justice, and Science Subcommittee, whose jurisdiction includes NASA and NOAA, according to subcommittee assignments announced by the committee on Tuesday.

The rest of the CJS subcommittee:

Democrats
Republicans
Barbara Mikulski
Patrick Leahy
Dianne Feinstein
Jack Reed
Frank Lautenberg
Mark Pryor
Mary Landrieu
Jeanne Shaheen
Jeff Merkley
Richard Shelby
Mitch McConnell
Lamar Alexander
Susan Collins
Lisa Murkowski
Lindsey Graham
Mark Kirk
John Boozman

On Wednesday, the Senate Commerce Committee held its organizational meeting, announcing members of its various subcommittees, including Science and Space. As expected, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL) returns as chairman of the space subcommittee, but will have a new ranking member: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), elected in November to replace the retiring Kay Bailey Hutchison. John Boozman (R-AR), who had previously been the ranking member of the subcommittee, is no longer on the Commerce committee; his role was relatively limited in any case, as Hutchison, the ranking member of the full committee in the last Congress, played a bigger role on space issues, working directly with Nelson.

The full subcommittee:
Democrats
Republicans
Bill Nelson
Barbara Boxer
Mark Pryor
Amy Klobuchar
Mark Warner
Richard Blumenthal
William Cowan
Ted Cruz
Roger Wicker
Marco Rubio
Dean Heller
Dan Coats
Ron Johnson

The assignments of Nelson and Cruz to be the top members of their parties on the space subcommittee comes just a day after the two clashed in a Senate Armed Services Committee meeting to vote on the nomination of Chuck Hagel to be the Secretary of Defense. Will those subcommittee hearings be nearly as exciting?

Students chat with astronaut on space station

Melissa Jenco - Chicago Tribune

From aliens to zero gravity, Naperville children recently had a chance to launch their burning questions about space at an expert who has been living there for almost four months.

Kevin Ford, commander of Expedition 34 on the International Space Station, video chatted with students from St. Raphael, All Saints and Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic schools.

"It's really such a special place to be that it's really kind of magical," he said of the space station, "To me it's my Disneyland."

Ford has been aboard the space station since late October. Prior to his launch, he had a chance meeting in his native state of Indiana with Kathy Tierney, reading specialist at St. Raphael, who set up the chat, calling it "a piece of history."

"These guys are our future … and hopefully maybe one of them will be spurred on to want to take part in this," she said of the students. "And not everybody has to be an astronaut to take part."

As Ford floated in front of the camera, he talked about getting used to living in a zero gravity environment, including going to bed in a sleeping bag held in place with clips and bungee cords and the need for astronauts to exercise daily since they aren't using muscles as they normally would.

Kids got a laugh out of watching him gulp his orange mango drink as the liquid floated in front of his face and made funny faces of their own when he told them he hadn't had a real shower in 112 days.

Ford, who is scheduled to head home in mid-March, said he misses family and friends and the ability to play golf and take walks. The astronauts occasionally take spacewalks, he said, but they are few and far between because each takes a week of preparation and recovery and can be dangerous.

The commander also talked about some of the research on the space station and said last year the astronauts were able to grow vegetables.

"I think someday out in space perhaps some people might be able to grow some of their own food or hopefully on another planet," he said.

He also told students about research the astronauts performed on fish that produce and lose bone density in the same way as mammals, which they hope will give scientists insight about osteoporosis.

Asked whether aliens exist, Ford replied he couldn't say for certain, but he hasn't seen evidence of them.

"One of the things I do know is we know very little about our universe," he said. "Even though we think we know a lot, and we do know a lot more than we used to, we have a lot to learn about our universe. So maybe we'll find the answer to that some years down the road."

Whether they want to explore space or have another career in mind, Ford encouraged students to pursue their passions and let them in on a secret – he was turned down by NASA three times before becoming an astronaut.

"If it hadn't worked out I would have been OK with it because there are so many other great things to do, but it is worth pursuing your dreams and staying persistent if you really want something," he said. "Just make your life fun for you whatever it is and just go for your dreams."

Afterward, fifth-grader Jack Konopka, 10, said he enjoyed hearing about life on the space station.

"I liked it a lot," he said. "It was just really fun that we could communicate with him in space."

Astronaut aboard space station 'visits' Naperville school

Justin Kmitch – Chicago Daily Herald

http://bcove.me/s8c5mxs8

Orbiting about 250 miles above Earth, NASA astronaut Kevin Ford spends his days working with a crew studying potential cures for osteoporosis. But he's longing for a golf range and a meal that doesn't come in a ready-to-eat package.

Ford, currently the commander of the International Space Station's Expedition 34 six-person crew, spoke to several dozen St. Raphael Catholic School students Tuesday afternoon via a live video feed.

During the half-hour chat, students were able to watch Ford float around a portion of the space station as he answered their questions. Ford was only able to hear the students.

"(Floating in zero gravity) is pretty crazy. We get used to it after a while so it becomes very second nature for us to fly around and use handrails to guide us easily inside the space station," Ford said as he performed a variety of zero-gravity gymnastics.

"I think if I had to choose, I would rather have gravity instead of zero gravity," he said. "It's fun for a while, but I'd rather live on Earth."

Ford joined the space station in late October and is scheduled to return to Earth in mid-March.

"I'm conditioned enough now that I can stay up here as long as they need me to," he said. "But I'm looking forward to coming home."

Conditioning in space, he said, is one of the few activities that requires effort.

"Floating up here is almost like lying in bed all day because it takes no effort at all," he said. "So 22 hours a day is like being in bed, so I take advantage of two hours on the elliptical and weight machines to get strong."

The brief visit was organized by St. Raphael's reading specialist Kathy Tierney, who met Ford over the summer.

"We rent a lake house in Indiana and his family happened to be renting the house next to us," she said. "I asked what he did and when he told me, I asked him if he'd help me do something with kids. We exchanged emails and that was that."

Tierney said she hopes Ford will be able to visit the school in person after his mission is complete.

Statesville native checks in from aboard the International Space Station

Shawn Flynn - News 14 Carolina

http://charlotte.news14.com/content/687512/statesville-native-checks-in-from-aboard-the-international-space-station

Tom Marshburn, of North Carolina, blasted off to space Dec. 19.

The Statesville native earned his physics degree from Davidson College and a doctorate in medicine from Wake Forest University, and now he's hovering a couple hundred miles above Earth at the International Space Station.

Marshburn and five other members on board are conducting 130 experiments. He admits he uses a lot of his spare time in space taking pictures of home and sending them out on his Twitter feed.

"The Southeast United States is very unique, and where I grew up in North Carolina is a very unique place on the planet. It's very hard to pick out the cities. I have seen Charlotte and some of the surrounding area. It's a beautiful place there and we love to catch it as we go across the Piedmont area," Marshburn said.

After spending months in a zero-gravity environment the size of a 747, the astronauts say they're looking forward to coming home.

I'll be looking forward to a hot shower, some running water, feeling the wind," said Marshburn.

"As beautiful as it is here, you live on the best spaceship, that is the planet Earth. I'm looking forward to getting back and living on Earth again," Cmdr. Kevin Ford said.

Until then, they'll continue to live where only a few have gone before.

KSC Director wins Space Club Award

Robert D. Cabana, director of NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center, has been selected to receive its 2013 Dr. Kurt H. Debus Award from the National Space Club.

Cabana will be honored at the Debus Award Dinner on April 27 at the Debus Conference Facility at the KSC Visitor Complex.

The award is named for KSC's first director.

Cabana is the tenth director of KSC, where he manages approximately 8,600 employees. The former space shuttle commander served as the director of NASA's Stennis Space Center in Mississippi.

Originally from Minneapolis, Cabana graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1971. He is a distinguished graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School and has logged over 7,000 hours in 36 different aircraft.

Cabana was selected as an astronaut candidate in 1985. He has flown four space shuttle missions, serving as commander on the final two.

Cabana also served as deputy director of NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. He is married to the former Nancy Joan Shimer. They have three children.

Happy Valentine's Day! Here's a space rose

Kelly Oakes - Scientific American

Still looking for an extra special Valentine's gift? Here's something truly out-of-this-world… Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the Overnight Scentsation.

This miniature rose was grown in space, on NASA's Space Shuttle Discovery Flight STS-95, in an ASTROCULTURE commercial plant growth chamber. Scientists wanted to see whether a rose grown in space really would smell as sweet as its terrestrial counterpart.

Turns out, its scent was different to what it would have been on Earth. Volatile compounds are what make a flower smell the way it does, and they act differently in microgravity. From NASA:

In low gravity [...] the rose actually produced fewer volatiles than it did on Earth. But the fragrance that it did generate was critically altered. The flower in space had a more "floral rose aroma," which is aesthetically pleasing.

And in case you were wondering exactly how the astronauts and scientists measured the flowers scent:

To collect the scent, they reached into the ASTROCULTURE chamber and touched the rose using a tiny silicon fiber. Less than one centimeter long, and only 1 to 2 millimeters in diameter, the fiber was coated with a special liquid to which molecules around the flower petal adhere. After the shuttle returned to Earth, researchers took the fiber and analyzed the molecules they found on it.

The rose's scent was so different from anything earthly that International Flavours & Fragrances (who conducted the research with NASA) commercialised the new fragrance, meaning you can now buy perfume with the 'space rose' note.

Why blasting off in a space shuttle is safer than walking

David Derbyshire – London Daily Mail

Sitting in a narrow airline seat, watching the cabin crew run through the safety demonstration, many of us find ourselves feeling just a little nervous.

But when it comes to judging the risks of travel, we usually get it completely wrong.

Studies show that around 40 per cent of people suffer from a degree of anxiety about flying. After the 9/11 disaster, thousands of Americans refused to fly for fear of another attack.

Which is why this week's announcement that air travel has never been safer will have taken many by surprise. According to the U.S. Aviation Safety Network, last year was the safest for flying since 1945.

In 2012 there were 475 fatalities from 23 air accidents — half the death toll in 2000.

Professor Arnold Barnett, a U.S. statistician, has worked out that the average passenger has a one in 45 million chance of dying on a flight.

This means you could expect to die on a flight only if you flew every day for 123,000 years. So how safe is flying compared with other forms of transport?

And are you more likely to come to harm cycling to work or launching yourself into space in a shuttle? The answers may surprise you.

MOTORBIKES – 125 DEATHS FOR EVERY BILLION MILES TRAVELLED

Human bodies are not designed to survive skidding along Tarmac at 50mph, which is why motorbikes and mopeds are the most dangerous mode of transport.

Last year 362 people died in motorbike accidents in the UK. Although motorbikes make up just one per cent of traffic, they account for 20 per cent of road deaths.

The death toll has halved over the last decade, a fall that may be linked to better bike design and improved medical care at crash scenes. However, it is still sufficiently high to make many of us think twice before jumping on the back of a Harley-Davidson.

WALKING – 41 DEATHS

Mile for mile, walking on roads and pavements is more deadly than driving or cycling. But it is getting safer thanks to better road crossings and improvements in car design, so they cause less damage on impact.

A decade ago, 857 pedestrians were killed on the roads in a year — nearly twice 2012's toll of 453.

CYCLING — 35 DEATHS

Most types of road accident are becoming less frequent in Britain. But cycling is bucking the trend.
Last year 122 cyclists were killed on the roads — the highest number in five years.

While some motorists view cyclists as Lycra-clad maniacs, the two youngest victims were aged eight, while the oldest was 94. Sixteen were teenagers and five were under 12.

Most were commuters, or youngsters enjoying a ride close to home. Almost all — 106 of the victims — died after a collision with a car. In almost all cases, the driver was unharmed.

Government statistics show that cycling deaths are more common during recessions — they rose during the economic downturns of the early 1930s and early 1980s — as people get on their bikes to save money.

FERRY – 20 DEATHS

Ferries are the most dangerous form of public transport and have been involved in some of the most appalling disasters in recent times.

Notoriously, 193 passengers and crew died when the Herald of Free Enterprise cross-Channel ferry capsized within minutes of leaving the Belgian port of Zeebrugge. Less well known is that many died of hypothermia rather than drowning due to the chilly March sea water.

Not all ferry deaths involve capsizing vessels. In 1993 two children died on board the Celtic Pride from Swansea to Cork when sewage leaked into their cabin. In December a woman drowned after falling off a ferry between Hull and Rotterdam. She had been drinking and it is thought she may have lost her balance.

Despite our worst Titanic-fuelled fears, you are still twice as safe on a cross-Channel ferry as you are on a cross-country cycle ride.

SPACE SHUTTLE — 14 DEATHS

Since the first manned space flight in 1961, 530 men and women have made the journey into space.

Eighteen never returned.

One Russian cosmonaut died in 1967 when his Soyuz space capsule parachute failed to open on re-entry.

Three Russians died in 1971 when their capsule decompressed accidentally and suffocated them.
The most dangerous spacecraft is the space shuttle.

Seven people died in 1986 when the Challenger shuttle broke apart 71 seconds into its flight.

Another seven were killed as the Columbia shuttle re-entered the Earth's atmosphere in 2003.

Between 1981 and 2011, space shuttles flew for a total of 1,320 days over 500 million miles, giving the figure of seven deaths per billion miles flown.

However, if you look at an individual astronaut's overall risks, then space travel is by far the deadliest form of transport.

Out of 650 known astronauts, three per cent have died in space or during lift-off or re-entry.

CAR — 4 DEATHS

Around 2,000 people die on British roads each year — five people a day. Cars are the most dangerous form of transport: 883 motorists or passengers died in accidents last year.

However, the number of deaths has fallen in recent decades as car design has improved, safety features such as airbags have been installed and seatbelts and child booster seats have been made mandatory.

AIR — 0.5 DEATHS

Statistically one of the safest ways to travel is by air. More than half the deaths last year occurred in just two crashes. One crash in Nigeria killed 153 people and another in Pakistan killed 127.

But in the U.S., where there are 10 million flights each year, there has not been a fatal airliner crash for four years.

The last major European disaster was in 2009 when an Air France Airbus 330 travelling from Brazil to Paris came down in the Atlantic with 228 people on board.

Improved navigation techniques, higher safety standards and more reliable planes and engines are all thought to have made flying safer.

'It is much more dangerous to land and take off than cruise at 35,000 feet,' says Professor David Spiegelhalter, an expert in risk at Cambridge University. 'Passengers are being perfectly rational to be most nervous at those points.'

Light aircraft are significantly more dangerous than commercial planes. Professor Spiegelhalter estimates that you would have to travel 7,500 miles on a commercial plane before you reached the one-in-a-million chance of death, but only 15 miles on a light aircraft before encountering the same risk.

BUS OR COACH — 0.5 DEATHS

Bus or coach may not be the most glamorous ways to hit the road in Britain, but they are the safest — eight times safer than going by car.

Drivers of buses and coaches have to pass far tougher driving tests than car drivers and are retested more often. Coaches and buses outside urban areas are also fitted with speed limiters, which enforce a maximum speed on motorways.

RAIL — 0.2 DEATHS

Britain's railways got off to a bad start. During the opening ceremony of the Liverpool and Manchester line on September 15, 1830, George Stevenson's Rocket ran over and killed the local MP, William Huskisson.

But now — despite tragedies such as the 2002 Potters Bar rail crash, which killed seven people and injured 76 — trains are the safest form of transport in the UK.

In the last five years no rail passengers have died in a crash. The industry says the average number of deaths over the past decade is around one every other year.

Rail travel is more than 1,400 times safer than travelling by motorbike, 400 times safer than walking and 20 times safer than using a car.

So if you're of a nervous disposition, the only way to travel is by train.

END

Keep the shuttle flying

Thursday, February 14, 2013

Fwd: VALENTINE'S DAY EDITION: Human Spaceflight News - February 14, 2013 and JSC Today

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