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Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Fwd: Human Spaceflight News - July 9, 2013 and JSC Today



Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: July 9, 2013 6:09:49 AM GMT-06:00
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: FW: Human Spaceflight News - July 9, 2013 and JSC Today

Don't forget to join us this Thursday for our monthly NASA Retirees Luncheon at Hibachi Grill at 11:30 on Bay Area Blvd.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Organizations/Social

  1. Parenting Series: Family Structure & Limit Setting

It is commonly said that when you have a child, the child does not come with a parenting manual. Each child and family situation is unique. Providing your child and family structure is a critical parenting responsibility. Successful parenting requires a clear understanding of how essential structure is for a child to thrive. Workshop participants will learn why structure is vital in a child's ability to establish trust, security and safety. Additionally, we will identify how parenting styles shape the effectiveness of structure. Please join Anika Isaac MS, LPC, LMFT, LCDC, CEAP, NCC, of the JSC Employee Assistance Program today, July 9, at 12 noon in the Building 30 Auditorium as she presents "Firm, Fair and Loving Parenting," the third topic of a monthly series focused on parenting.

Event Date: Tuesday, July 9, 2013   Event Start Time:12:00 PM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Building 30 Auditorium

Add to Calendar

Lorrie Bennett, Employee Assistance Program, Occupational Health Branch x36130

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  1. Parent's Night Out at Starport - July 19

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, dessert and loads of fun.

When: Friday, July 19, 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.

Event Date: Friday, July 19, 2013   Event Start Time:6:00 PM   Event End Time:10:00 PM
Event Location: Gilruth Center

Add to Calendar

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

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  1. IAAP CLNAC: The Formula for Success

Join the International Association of Administrative Professionals (IAAP) - Clear Lake NASA Area Chapter (CLNAC) for "The Formula for Success," presented by Clifford J. Wilson, manager, Refining and Olefins, LyondellBasell.

Like a formula, success is determined by different variables, and depending on how much effort is put into each variable, the outcomes for success vary for everyone.

In this workshop, attendees will gain a good understanding of how to define their success and review different variables that must be considered to add up to a winning, successful formula.

The success formula outlined in this speech can be applied at home, in school and in industry.

Please RSVP by close of business Thursday, July 11. The cost is $24 for the program and dinner, or $10 for the program only. One recertification point will be awarded.

Event Date: Monday, July 15, 2013   Event Start Time:5:45 PM   Event End Time:8:00 PM
Event Location: Hilton Garden Inn-Clear Lake NASA, 750 W. Texas Av

Add to Calendar

Ymelda Calvillo 281-282-6878 http://www.iaap-clnac.org

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  1. Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) Info Briefings

The Inclusion & Innovation Council will be considering proposals for additional Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) in the September timeframe. ERGs are voluntary grassroots groups formed around a characteristic or affinity. They foster a sense of personal responsibility and ownership, as well as increased employee engagement. Five ERGs were established at JSC in 2011: the African-American ERG, the ASIA ERG, the Hispanic ERG, the Human Systems Integration ERG, and the Out & Allied ERG. All five have successfully supported center efforts in the areas of recruiting, retention/onboarding and community and education outreach.

If you are interested in learning more about the ERG formation process, please plan on attending one of these information sessions:

    • July 25, 10 to 11 a.m., Building 1, Room 966
    • July 25, 3 to 4 p.m., Building 1, Room 966

Sylvia Stottlemyer x39757

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  1. Late Summer Sports Leagues - Registration Open

Registration is open for Starport's popular league sports!

Registration NOW OPEN:

- Volleyball (Rev 4s and Co-ed) | Mondays and Tuesdays | Registration ends July 16 | Leagues start July 22 and 23

- Basketball (Open) | Wednesdays and Thursdays | Registration ends July 25 | League starts July 31

- Kickball (Co-ed) | Mondays | Registration ends July 31 | League starts Aug. 5

- Softball (Co-ed) | Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays | Registration ends July 31 | Leagues start Aug. 6, 7 and 8

- Ultimate Frisbee (Co-ed) | Mon | Registration ends July 30 | Leagues start Aug. 5

Free-agent registration now open for all leagues.

Flag Football, Soccer and Men's Softball will return in fall 2013.

All participants must register here.

For more information, please contact the Gilruth information desk at 281-483-0304.

Steve Schade x30304 http://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/Fitness/Sports/index.cfm#LS2013

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  1. Johnson Space Center Astronomy Society Meeting

Our July meeting will feature Aaron Clevenson from the North Houston Astronomy Club, giving us a talk entitled "Things That Go Bump in the Night: Cosmic Catastrophes." Come see the fascinating ways in which outer space changes in a sometimes rapid fashion.

What do YOU look for through a telescope? We'll provide some suggestions in our "What's Up in the Sky This Month" talk. We provide a unique take on astronomy-related history in the "Astro Oddities" presentation, and encourage our guests to come up with their own questions that they have always wanted answered in our novice Q&A session. We'll also discuss our upcoming Star Parties, where we invite the public to come view the nighttime sky.

Membership to the JSC Astronomy Society is open to anyone who wants to learn about astronomy. There are no dues, no by-laws -- you just show up to our meeting.

Event Date: Friday, July 12, 2013   Event Start Time:7:30 PM   Event End Time:9:30 PM
Event Location: USRA building auditorium, 3600 Bay Area Blvd.

Add to Calendar

Jim Wessel x41128 http://www.jscas.net/

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   Jobs and Training

  1. Machinery & Machine Guarding - July 16 - Bldg. 20

This three-day course provides the student with an in-depth understanding of NASA and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements for machinery and machine guarding. It is based on the OSHA Training Institute Machinery and Machine Guarding course and provides the foundation for meeting our goal of contributing to improving the overall safety of NASA operations. The course also includes an overview of various types of common machinery used at NASA and the safety standards relating to those types of machines. There will be a final exam associated with this course, which must be passed with a 70 percent minimum score to receive course credit.

Target Audience: Safety, Reliability, Quality and Maintainability professionals; maintenance repair supervisors; fabrication shop personnel; and anyone working around or with machinery.

Use this direct link for registration: https://satern.nasa.gov/learning/user/deeplink_redirect.jsp?linkId=SCHEDULED_...

Event Date: Tuesday, July 16, 2013   Event Start Time:8:00 AM   Event End Time:4:00 PM
Event Location: Bldg. 20 Room 205/206

Add to Calendar

Shirley Robinson x41284

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  1. Crane Operations & Rigging Refresher ViTS: July 19

SMA-SAFE-NSTC-0028: This four-hour course serves as a refresher in overhead crane safety and awareness for operators, riggers, signalmen, supervisors and safety personnel, and updates their understanding of existing federal and NASA standards and regulations related to such cranes. Areas of concentration include: general safety in crane operations, testing, inspections, pre-lift plans, and safe rigging. This course is intended to provide the classroom training for re-certification of already qualified crane operators, or for those who have only a limited need for overhead crane safety knowledge. There will be a final exam associated with this course, which must be passed with a 70 percent minimum score to receive course credit. Use this direct link for registration:

https://satern.nasa.gov/learning/user/deeplink_redirect.jsp?linkId=SCHEDULED_...

Event Date: Friday, July 19, 2013   Event Start Time:9:30 AM   Event End Time:1:30 PM
Event Location: Bldg. 17/Room 2026

Add to Calendar

Shirley Robinson x41284

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  1. Payload Safety Process & Requirements - Aug. 5

This eight-hour course is intended as an overview of the requirements and will merely introduce the payload safety and hazard analysis process. It is intended for those who may be monitoring, supervising or assisting those who have the responsibility of identifying, controlling and documenting payload hazards. It will provide an understanding of the relationship between safety and the payload integration process with an orientation to the payload safety review process. It will also describe payload safety requirements (both technical and procedural) and discuss their application throughout the payload safety process: analysis, review, certification and follow-up to ensure implementation. System safety concepts and hazard recognition will be briefly discussed and documentation requirements explained in general terms. Those with primary responsibilities in payload safety should attend SMA-SAFE-NSTC-0011, Payload Safety Review and Analysis.

Use this direct link for registration: https://satern.nasa.gov/learning/user/deeplink_redirect.jsp?linkId=SCHEDULED_...

Event Date: Monday, August 5, 2013   Event Start Time:8:00 AM   Event End Time:4:00 PM
Event Location: Bldg. 20/Room 205/206

Add to Calendar

Shirley Robinson x41284

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  1. Lockout/Tagout - 1 p.m. Aug. 6 - B20/R205/206

The purpose of this course is to provide employees with the standards, procedures and requirements necessary for the control of hazardous energy through lockout and tagout of energy-isolating devices. Occupational Safety and Health Administration standard 29 CFR 1910.147, "The Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout)," is the basis for this course. A comprehensive test will be offered at the end of the class. Use this direct link for registration:

https://satern.nasa.gov/learning/user/deeplink_redirect.jsp?linkId=SCHEDULED_...

Event Date: Tuesday, August 6, 2013   Event Start Time:1:00 PM   Event End Time:4:00 PM
Event Location: Bldg. 20/Room 205/206

Add to Calendar

Shirley Robinson x41284

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   Community

  1. Name the Shuttle - Let Creativity Ring

Beginning on July 4, Space Center Houston launched a statewide "Name the Shuttle" contest—a chance for a Texas resident to name the high-fidelity NASA orbiter replica that will perch atop the 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Visit http://www.nametheshuttle.com to submit an original name. It must be no more than three words and symbolize the spirit of Texas and its unique characteristics of independence, optimism and can-do attitude. You have until noon CDT on Labor Day, Sept. 2, to let your creativity ring. 

Contestants will receive email verification of their submission and a thank-you coupon for discounted admission to Space Center Houston. A panel of judges will select one winner (announced mid-September). 

The winning name will be painted on the side of the shuttle replica, and the winner will have his/her name and hometown incorporated on a placard at the exhibit. The winner will also receive a three-day trip for four to Space Center Houston, which includes a VIP tour of the facility and a behind-the-scenes experience at JSC, hotel accommodations, meals and travel compensation. The winner will also get to attend the grand opening ceremony in 2015.

Space Center Houston 281-244-2100 http://www.nametheshuttle.com/

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JSC Today is compiled periodically as a service to JSC employees on an as-submitted basis. Any JSC organization or employee may submit articles.

Disclaimer: Accuracy and content of these notes are the responsibility of the submitters.

 

 

 

 

NASA TV:

·         UNDERWAY – Expedition 36 EVA by Chris Cassidy & Luca Parmitano (began at 7:02 CDT)

 

Human Spaceflight News

Tuesday – July 9, 2013

 

HEADLINES AND LEADS

 

Showdown on NASA's future expected this week

 

Ledyard King – Florida Today

 

Conflicting visions of where the nation's space program should be headed will get a full airing this week. A key House Science, Space and Technology subcommittee will begin crafting a bill Wednesday that would reauthorize NASA for the next two years. The impact of those decisions could be felt for the next decade, assuming they can be reconciled with the competing priorities of the Obama administration and lawmakers.

 

House Democrats Preparing Their Own NASA Authorization Bill

 

Dan Leone - Space News

 

Democrats in the House are set to unveil their own NASA authorization bill, which unlike a much leaner Republican proposal due to be marked up June 10 would authorize $18 billion in spending for 2014 — more than NASA has gotten since 2011. Compared with the draft proposal unveiled in late June by the Republican leadership of the House Science space subcommittee, the Democratic bill — to be put forth July 9 by ranking subcommittee member Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) — would authorize more than $1 billion in additional NASA spending for 2014, according to an official summary of the bill obtained by SpaceNews. But with Republicans controlling the agenda in the House of Representatives, it remains to be seen whether the House Science, Space and Technology Committee's GOP leadership will give formal consideration to Edwards' bill.

 

Report: NASA has 'made progress' on research aboard Space Station, but could do better

 

Lee Roop - Huntsville Times

 

NASA Inspector General Paul Martin said Monday that the space agency has made progress maximizing research on the International Space Station, but could do more. One of the critical factors in doing more is "the availability of reliable transportation to and from the station for crew and cargo," the IG's report said.

 

Watchdog: Guide ISS group better

KSC-based agency struggles for funding

 

James Dean - Florida Today

 

To get the most science research out of the International Space Station, NASA must improve oversight of a local nonprofit group and develop new commercial transportation systems, the agency's internal watchdog reported Monday. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, started by Space Florida and headquartered outside Kennedy Space Center, has met initial goals since its 2011 selection by NASA to manage the ISS National Lab, says the NASA Office of Inspector General. But the organization known as CASIS has struggled to fill key positions and attract outside funding, and existing performance criteria do not clearly measure how well it is fostering non-NASA research aboard the orbiting complex.

 

Fresh Ammunition for Commercial Crew Proponents in NASA OIG Report

 

Brian Berger – Space News

 

With the House Appropriations commerce, justice, science subcommittee poised to take up NASA's 2014 budget request July 10, a new report from the NASA Office of the Inspector General (OIG) highlights why the agency has been fighting year after year to win full funding for its Commercial Crew Program. The July 8 report, "NASA's Efforts To Maximize Research on the International Space Station," notes that once any one of the three private space taxis now under development finally enters service, NASA and its partners stand to nearly double the amount of crew time devoted to research.

 

Bacteria In Space Grows in Strange Ways

 

Miriam Kramer – Space.com

 

Bacteria grown in a dish of fake urine in space behaves in ways never-before-seen in Earth microorganisms, scientists say. A team of scientists sent samples of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa into orbit aboard NASA's space shuttle Atlantis to see how they grew in comparison to their Earth-dwelling counterparts. The 3D communities of microorganisms (called biofilms) grown aboard the space shuttle had more live cells, were thicker and had more biomass than the bacterial colonies grown in normal gravity on Earth as controls. The space bacteria also grew in a "column-and-canopy" structure that has never been observed in bacterial colonies on Earth, according to NASA scientists.

 

NASA responds to 7-year-old's letter, with a letter

 

MSN News

 

Seven-year-old Dexter Walters wanted to go on a one-way trip to Mars, but realized he might be too young. So he wrote to NASA asking what it takes to become an astronaut. "I heard that you are sending two people to Mars and I would like to come, but I'm 7, so I can't," Dexter's letter read. "I would like to come in the future. What do I need to do to become an astronaut?" To Dexter's surprise, NASA wrote back. Dexter's mother posted Dexter's letter and NASA's response on Reddit, where it quickly became one of the most viral images of the day. "NASA wants you to know that your thoughts and ideas to further space exploration are important, and we hope that you will continue to learn all you can about NASA's space programs, missions, and accomplishments," the letter from NASA's Public Communication Program said. "Just think – in a few years, you could be one of the pioneers that may help lead the world's activities for better understanding of our earth and for exploring space." (NO FURTHER TEXT)

 

NASA Encourages 7-Year-Old's Astronaut Dreams

 

Mike Wall - Space.com

 

NASA's response to a seven-year-old boy who wants to be an astronaut created quite a stir on the Internet Monday, surprising many people who apparently equate mailing letters to government agencies with chucking them in the nearest wastebasket.

 

In search of funds, NASA's Johnson Space Center offers its technical expertise to outsiders

 

Jacob Goodwin - Government Security News

 

The NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX, is sounding a lot like an out-of-work job candidate trying to impress a potential employer with its wide range of technical capabilities that it swears can immediately be put to work on that employer's behalf. Does your company work on display systems? If so, NASA's expertise in "human-centered design and evaluation of lighting, viewing, and display systems" might prove extremely valuable.

 

Space Shuttle Enterprise Exhibit Reopening in NYC this Week

 

Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com

 

Space shuttle Enterprise is ready for its re-debut. NASA's first winged orbiter, a prototype spacecraft used in the late 1970s for atmospheric flight and ground tests, space shuttle Enterprise will reopen on display Wednesday at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City. The space shuttle, which has been off-limits to the public for the past seven months, first debuted on exhibit on the flight deck of the Intrepid museum, a converted World War II aircraft carrier, last July. Three months later, Hurricane Sandy hit Manhattan, leaving the space shuttle with minor damage but destroying its air-pressurized enclosure.

 

Sandra Bullock: Up in the air with 'Gravity'

 

Bryan Alexander - USA Today

 

If you thought going to the moon was complicated, try shooting a sci-fi set in the depths of outer space. Director Alfonso Cuarón spent nearly five years trying to perfect the look of zero gravity for the thriller Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney (out Oct. 4). "We wanted to shoot the whole film showing zero gravity with the actors moving in a choreographic way," say Cuarón, perhaps best known for directing 2004's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The film follows Ryan Stone (Bullock), a medical engineer on her first space shuttle mission, alongside veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (Clooney). Their routine mission goes very, very wrong when the shuttle is destroyed, leaving them tethered together and spiraling in space.

__________

 

COMPLETE STORIES

 

Showdown on NASA's future expected this week

 

Ledyard King – Florida Today

 

Conflicting visions of where the nation's space program should be headed will get a full airing this week.

 

A key House Science, Space and Technology subcommittee will begin crafting a bill Wednesday that would reauthorize NASA for the next two years. The impact of those decisions could be felt for the next decade, assuming they can be reconciled with the competing priorities of the Obama administration and lawmakers.

 

The Republican-led panel is expected to vote on a fiscal 2014 measure that assumes sequestration budget cuts will remain in effect through at least fiscal 2015. That means NASA would receive a maximum annual budget of $16.8 billion, slightly more than it got in fiscal 2013 but not the $17.7 billion President Barack Obama is requesting for next year.

 

Administration officials and GOP lawmakers differ sharply on individual NASA programs.

 

Under the Republican bill, space exploration would get $300 million more (about $3 billion) than the administration wants. But the bill would eliminate $100 million in seed money to kick-start NASA's highly touted mission to find and retrieve an asteroid.

 

Mississippi Republican Rep. Steven Palazzo, who chairs the Space Subcommittee, calls the asteroid mission "a costly and complex distraction" that would drain resources from the more important goal of sending astronauts to Mars. NASA officials counter that finding an asteroid and drawing it into the moon's orbit is a crucial stepping-stone to reaching the Red Planet.

 

The GOP measure also would require that at least one of the aerospace companies NASA is assisting under its Commercial Crew program be ready to fly astronauts to the International Space Station by Dec. 31, 2017. But it would provide only $700 million next year -- not the $821 million NASA said it needs to maintain a 2017 schedule for the program to replace the space shuttle.

 

And the bill would slash the requested Earth science budget by a third (from about $1.8 billion to $1.2 billion) next year.

 

Cuts to science would deprive analysts of valuable data that help forecast rising sea levels, forest productivity, and gas and electric utility loads, said Maryland Rep. Donna Edwards, the top Democrat on the Space Subcommittee.

 

"These uses and societal benefits are exactly what we hope for when we make federal investment in research and technology," she said last month during a hearing on the GOP bill. "To stop them would be irresponsible."

 

On Monday, Edwards released her own version of a NASA reauthorization bill. It calls for spending $18.1 billion and would beef up science spending. But, like the GOP version, it calls for more accountability from NASA and would spend $700 million on the Commercial Crew program.

 

There's no guarantee that any House-approved NASA spending bill would get far in the Senate, where Democrats in the majority are more supportive of the president's agenda, such as the asteroid mission.

 

That could leave the space program limping along as it tries to build consensus at a time when government is looking for ways to improve efficiency.

 

Steven Squyres, an astronomy professor at Cornell University and a NASA adviser, said the agency is being stretched beyond its capability while lawmakers and the administration chart its trajectory.

 

"NASA's being asked to do too much with too little," he said.

 

House Democrats Preparing Their Own NASA Authorization Bill

 

Dan Leone - Space News

 

Democrats in the House are set to unveil their own NASA authorization bill, which unlike a much leaner Republican proposal due to be marked up June 10 would authorize $18 billion in spending for 2014 — more than NASA has gotten since 2011.

 

Compared with the draft proposal unveiled in late June by the Republican leadership of the House Science space subcommittee, the Democratic bill — to be put forth July 9 by ranking subcommittee member Rep. Donna Edwards (D-Md.) — would authorize more than $1 billion in additional NASA spending for 2014, according to an official summary of the bill obtained by SpaceNews. But with Republicans controlling the agenda in the House of Representatives, it remains to be seen whether the House Science, Space and Technology Committee's GOP leadership will give formal consideration to Edwards' bill.

 

Edwards' proposal is similar to the Republican bill in several ways: First, authorized funding for NASA's Planetary Science Division would rise to about $1.5 billion in 2014, restoring the program to its 2012 level. Likewise, NASA's Commercial Crew Program would be authorized for $700 million in 2014, exactly what the Republican bill proposes.

 

The Democrat bill also contains strong support for NASA's human spaceflight enterprise, which got top billing in the official summary of the bill Edwards is poised to introduce. Edwards said NASA should commit to human exploration of Mars by 2030, a more explicit directive than U.S. President Barack Obama made in 2010, when he canceled the Constellation Moon exploration program and directed NASA to send humans to an astronaut by 2025 in preparation for manned Mars missions sometime in the 2030s.

 

The similarities between the two bills end there, for the most part.

 

The Republican bill would ban an asteroid retrieval mission the Obama administration proposed in April and instead direct NASA to send more astronauts and hardware to lunar space. The Republican bill, which assumes NASA will be subject to across-the-board sequestration cuts for the foreseeable future, also called for shrinking NASA's Earth science program and restructuring NASA management.

 

The official summary of the Democratic bill mentions none of these things, and directs NASA to only one destination: Mars. The agency would be on the hook to draw up a 15-year Mars road map for Congress, under the Democrats' bill, but it would be entirely up to NASA to decide whether the road to the red planet included detours to the Moon, asteroids or Mars' natural satellites.

 

Edwards, who previewed her bill July 8 during a presentation at the Center for Strategic and International Studies here, said the Republican proposal keeps NASA tethered to legally mandated technical directives while at the same time choking off funding for crucial programs.

 

"I don't think [that's] the way you do science, frankly," said Edwards, the only speaker at the event.

 

Report: NASA has 'made progress' on research aboard Space Station, but could do better

 

Lee Roop - Huntsville Times

 

NASA Inspector General Paul Martin said Monday that the space agency has made progress maximizing research on the International Space Station, but could do more. One of the critical factors in doing more is "the availability of reliable transportation to and from the station for crew and cargo," the IG's report said.

 

The question of using the station to the maximum isn't academic. Beyond the issues of what could be done in zero gravity, the station cost $100 billion to build - most of that America's money - and it costs $3 billion a year to operate. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages the science experiments on the station.

 

Complicating the task is the situation regarding the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (CASIS), the non-profit organization NASA chose to manage at least 50 percent of the research on the station. That relationship was mandated by Congress, and NASA currently gives CASIS $15 million a year. CASIS is expected to supplement that by its own efforts.

 

CASIS has a "particularly challenging" job attracting private investment, the report says, because private entities have a "historic lack of interest" in research in space that isn't government-funded. CASIS has taken positive steps to increasing research, the report says, but those steps aren't quantifiable to see if the goals are being met.

 

The transportation problem is also important, the report said. The station isn't fully crewed with seven astronauts now, which limits research, because the crew must be kept to six - the number of seats available at any time aboard existing Soviet escape rockets docked at the station. Also, cargo flights need to be regular, not occasional, to ferry experiments to and from the station.

 

NASA uses three main data points to grade its use of the station for science: average weekly crew time spent on experiments, number of experiments, and space allocated for research. NASA has increased the level of activity for each of the three since the station was fully assembled in 2011, the report says. Read the full report here.

 

Watchdog: Guide ISS group better

KSC-based agency struggles for funding

 

James Dean - Florida Today

 

To get the most science research out of the International Space Station, NASA must improve oversight of a local nonprofit group and develop new commercial transportation systems, the agency's internal watchdog reported Monday.

 

The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, started by Space Florida and headquartered outside Kennedy Space Center, has met initial goals since its 2011 selection by NASA to manage the ISS National Lab, says the NASA Office of Inspector General.

 

But the organization known as CASIS has struggled to fill key positions and attract outside funding, and existing performance criteria do not clearly measure how well it is fostering non-NASA research aboard the orbiting complex.

 

Without more precise measures, the report says, "it will be difficult to determine if CASIS is achieving its goal of improving the return on investment in the ISS by increasing use of the National Lab."

 

NASA said those criteria will be established later this year and called "short-sighted" the report's focus on CASIS as the key to maximizing ISS research, saying the agency and its international partners are also making strides to increase ISS "utilization."

 

NASA selected CASIS with a goal of encouraging research that could provide a return on investment in the station, which cost the U.S. $100 billion to build (including the shuttle missions required for assembly) and now about $3 billion to operate each year.

 

The space agency gives CASIS $15 million annually, of which $3 million must directly fund research grants. The center is charged with raising additional funding through memberships and donations.

 

CASIS experienced early challenges that slowed its progress.

 

Its first executive director resigned after seven months on the job. No full-time replacement has been named, and eight of 15 positions on the board directors remain unfilled.

 

Still, CASIS met its 2012 goals when it selected 17 experiments to be performed by a station expedition launching in September; secured at least three self-funded research projects; and enrolled over 50 members (raising just $3,200).

 

Overall ISS research grew steadily as the outpost's assembly, begun in 1998, was completed with the final shuttle missions in 2011, according to NASA's main measures.

 

Weekly crew time devoted to research has increased by more than 14 hours since 2010, to 37.5 hours, and the number of active investigations roughly doubled between 2008 and 2012, to 115.

 

About 75 percent of NASA's internal research space and 40 percent of the external sites are being used.

 

According to the inspector general's report, "the ability of CASIS to attract sufficient interest and funding from private users and investors" is key to maximizing station research.

In addition to the center's important role, the report highlighted the need for commercial rockets and spacecraft to ferry cargo and crews to the station to increase its research capability.

 

Three commercial crew systems now in development with NASA backing could fly more astronauts to the station than Russia's three-seat Soyuz spacecraft — the only ride now available — enabling a full-time crew of seven instead of six.

 

That extra person could nearly double the amount of crew time devoted to research each week.

 

Funding for commercial crew vehicles that would launch from Florida has fallen well short of NASA's requests, however, and there's no guarantee one will be ready by the 2017 target.

 

SpaceX has flown two commercial cargo missions under an ISS resupply contract, and Orbital Sciences Corp. hopes to fly a demonstration within a few months.

 

The ISS is expected to operate until at least 2020, possibly to 2028.

 

Fresh Ammunition for Commercial Crew Proponents in NASA OIG Report

 

Brian Berger – Space News

 

With the House Appropriations commerce, justice, science subcommittee poised to take up NASA's 2014 budget request July 10, a new report from the NASA Office of the Inspector General (OIG) highlights why the agency has been fighting year after year to win full funding for its Commercial Crew Program.

 

The July 8 report, "NASA's Efforts To Maximize Research on the International Space Station," notes that once any one of the three private space taxis now under development finally enters service, NASA and its partners stand to nearly double the amount of crew time devoted to research.

 

The space station's six-person crew manages to devote an average of 35 hours per week to scientific investigations. Although the space station is capable of supporting a seven member crew, the orbital outpost is limited to a crew of six for as long as Russian Soyuz vehicles remain the only way to transport crew to and from the international space station (ISS). And those six crew members devote most of their waking hours to the necessary task of keeping the space station and their own bodies in working condition.

 

"The lack of crew transportation vehicles other than the Soyuz limits the amount of research that can be conducted on the ISS," the OIG report says. "Although the Station is capable of supporting a seven-member crew, each Soyuz has a three-person capacity and only two Soyuz vehicles can be docked at the ISS at one time. This means that only six crew members can safely be aboard the ISS at a time to allow for evacuation in case of an emergency."

 

Through its Commercial Crew Program, NASA is subsidizing development of competing capsule systems offered by Boeing and Space Exploration Technologies Corp., and a lifting-body design offered by Sierra Nevada Corp. All three crew transportation systems are designed to transport a minimum of four astronauts.

 

"Accordingly, once one of these vehicles is operational the ISS can be staffed with its full complement of seven," the OIG report points out. "According to the ISS Program Office, a seventh astronaut could increase crew time devoted to research by more than 33 hours per week – a 94 percent increase over current rates."

 

NASA is asking Congress for $821.4 million for the Commercial Crew Program for 2014. While that's lower than the $850 million NASA sought for the program for 2012 and 2013, Congress has proven unwilling to fully fund the program, approving only $406 million for 2012 and $489 million for 2013.

 

"If this trend continues in the future," the OIG notes in its report, "NASA likely will not meet its goal of having at least one vehicle transporting crew to the ISS in 2017.

 

"In that case, NASA would have to purchase additional seats on Soyuz vehicles. Soyuz manufacturing and assembly requirements require NASA to procure Soyuz seats at least three years in advance to avoid a gap in ISS crew transportation."

 

NASA recently agreed to pay Russia $71 million per seat for Soyuz rides to and from the space station. That's a greater than three-fold increase since 2006 when NASA was paying $22 million a seat.

 

Bacteria In Space Grows in Strange Ways

 

Miriam Kramer – Space.com

 

Bacteria grown in a dish of fake urine in space behaves in ways never-before-seen in Earth microorganisms, scientists say.

 

A team of scientists sent samples of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa into orbit aboard NASA's space shuttle Atlantis to see how they grew in comparison to their Earth-dwelling counterparts.

 

The 3D communities of microorganisms (called biofilms) grown aboard the space shuttle had more live cells, were thicker and had more biomass than the bacterial colonies grown in normal gravity on Earth as controls. The space bacteria also grew in a "column-and-canopy" structure that has never been observed in bacterial colonies on Earth, according to NASA scientists.

 

"Biofilms were rampant on the Mir space station and continue to be a challenge on the [International Space Station], but we still don't really know what role gravity plays in their growth and development," NASA's study leader Cynthia Collins, an assistant professor in the department of chemical and biological engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., said in a statement. "Our study offers the first evidence that spaceflight affects community-level behaviors of bacteria, and highlights the importance of understanding how both harmful and beneficial human-microbe interactions may be altered during spaceflight."

 

Most biofilms found in the human body and in nature are harmless, but some are associated with disease, NASA officials said.

 

The space bacteria were cultured in artificial urine on NASA's Atlantis shuttle in 2010 and again in 2011 before the retirement of NASA's space shuttle program. Collins and her team of researchers used fabricated urine because it can be used to study the formation of biofilm outside and inside the body. Understanding how to safely remove and recycle waste is particularly relevant because of its importance in long-term spaceflight, NASA officials said.

 

"The unique appearance and structure of the P. aeruginosa biofilms formed in microgravity suggests that nature is capable of adapting to nonterrestrial environments in ways that deserve further studies, including studies exploring long-term growth and adaptation to a low-gravity environment," Collins said in a statement. "Before we start sending astronauts to Mars or embarking on other long-term spaceflight missions, we need to be as certain as possible that we have eliminated or significantly reduced the risk that biofilms pose to the human crew and their equipment."

 

Scientists sent 12 devices with eight vials of P. aeruginosa — a bacterium that can be associated with disease on Earth — into orbit on Atlantis. Once in space, astronauts on the shuttle introduced the bacterium to the fake urine while scientists on the ground began the control experiment.

 

After the samples arrived safely on Earth, Collins and her team took a detailed 3D image of the biofilms to investigate their internal structure, and used other research methods to investigate the colony's thickness and cell growth.

 

The study, published in the April 20 issue of the journal PLOS ONE, also could have implications for bacterial research on Earth. It's possible that this kind of research could help scientists and doctors more effectively limit the spread of infection in hospitals, Collins said.

 

NASA Encourages 7-Year-Old's Astronaut Dreams

 

Mike Wall - Space.com

NASA's response to a seven-year-old boy who wants to be an astronaut created quite a stir on the Internet Monday, surprising many people who apparently equate mailing letters to government agencies with chucking them in the nearest wastebasket.

 

The British boy, whose name is Dexter, mailed NASA a handwritten letter recently asking for advice about becoming an astronaut. "I heard that you are sending two people to Mars and I would like to come but I'm 7 so I can't," Dexter wrote in the note, which includes a drawing of two people in a space capsule, presumably on their way to or from the Red Planet.

 

NASA's Office of Communications replied with a letter encouraging Dexter to work hard in school and keep "reaching for the stars." "Just think — in a few years, you could be one of the pioneers that may help lead the world's activities for better understanding of our Earth and for exploring space," the letter states.

 

The space agency also sent Dexter some stickers and posters, the Huffington Post reported. Dexter was thrilled, according to his mother, whom HuffPo identifies as Katrina Anderson.

 

Anderson posted photos of Dexter's letter and the package NASA sent in response on the image-sharing site imgur early Monday. Just 12 hours later, her album had been viewed nearly 160,000 times.

 

Writing back to kids with big space dreams is all in a day's work, NASA officials said.

 

"We try to answer as many Q's as possible on social media. For those who prefer postal mail, we respond there, too," officials said Monday via the space agency's Twitter account, @NASA, which has more than 4.3 million followers.

 

In search of funds, NASA's Johnson Space Center offers its technical expertise to outsiders

 

Jacob Goodwin - Government Security News

 

The NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX, is sounding a lot like an out-of-work job candidate trying to impress a potential employer with its wide range of technical capabilities that it swears can immediately be put to work on that employer's behalf.

 

Does your company work on display systems? If so, NASA's expertise in "human-centered design and evaluation of lighting, viewing, and display systems" might prove extremely valuable.

 

Perhaps your organization is developing state-of-the-art ear buds for listening to music on a smartphone. The space technicians at the Johnson Space Center, whose "world-class capabilities, include acoustics modeling, requirements allocation, and implementation of appropriate noise controls using flight-certified acoustics materials, acoustic testing, and noise remediation assistance," might make ideal partners.

 

Or, suppose, your company is working on a new weight loss program. Perhaps you should pick the brains of NASA's experts, who regularly perform "analyses of blood and urine samples for biochemical endocrine, and other physiological markers, in addition to detailed dietary intake assessment."

 

In short, NASA is ready, willing and able to put decades of its mounting expertise to work on behalf of government, university and commercial activities.

 

"These capabilities can be of great benefit to the nation by enhancing technological research and development, increasing the nation's economic vitality, expanding human knowledge, and preserving United States critical skills," explains a NASA sources sought notice released on July 8.

 

The Space Center believes its expertise can be applied in a variety of industries and applications, such as first responders, energy, petrochemical, medical, transportation, advanced manufacturing, robotics, aerospace and government agencies (such as DoD and DHS.)

 

"The expectation is that NASA [Johnson Space Center] will be fully reimbursed for all costs incurred in the performance of work…," insists the notice.

 

NASA identifies at least 16 areas in which its employees' expertise might be useful outside the space agency:

 

1.     Human health and performance;

2.     Robotics;

3.     Counterfeit parts detection;

4.     Fastener and material testing;

5.     Workmanship training;

6.     Estimating risk and performance during system or project design;

7.     Simulation;

8.     Software;

9.     Crew exercise systems;

10.  Structural and manufacturing testing, analysis and engineering;

11.  Imaging science;

12.  Battery design, development and testing, and cell analysis and testing;

13.  Large-scale underwater testing in controlled environment (neutral buoyancy laboratory);

14.  Environmental and life support systems, air and water monitoring and recycling, active thermal control and extreme environment protective suites;

15.  Crew interface rapid prototyping lab

16.  Propulsion system design, development and testing.

 

"With the release of this Announcement, JSC looks forward to sharing its unique capabilities to meet the needs of others," says the agency's notice. "Partnering will foster innovation through collaboration, assist in solving complex problems relevant to life on earth and create a more efficient and effective Government."

 

Responses from interested parties are due by September 8.

 

Space Shuttle Enterprise Exhibit Reopening in NYC this Week

 

Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com

 

Space shuttle Enterprise is ready for its re-debut.

 

NASA's first winged orbiter, a prototype spacecraft used in the late 1970s for atmospheric flight and ground tests, space shuttle Enterprise will reopen on display Wednesday at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum in New York City.

 

The space shuttle, which has been off-limits to the public for the past seven months, first debuted on exhibit on the flight deck of the Intrepid museum, a converted World War II aircraft carrier, last July. Three months later, Hurricane Sandy hit Manhattan, leaving the space shuttle with minor damage but destroying its air-pressurized enclosure.

 

The Intrepid's new "Space Shuttle Pavilion," which relies on a metal skeleton to maintain its shape, is now ready to again open to visitors.

 

"After many months of hard work recovering from Sandy we are extremely excited to announce the opening of our new Space Shuttle Pavilion, and to once again [be able to] share Enterprise with all who visit the museum," Intrepid president Susan Marenoff-Zausner said in a statement.

 

The new structure is more than just a redesigned shell to cover the same exhibit.

 

Enterprise, which as before is mounted 10 feet (3 meters) off the deck, allowing guests to walk underneath it, is now joined inside the pavilion by another spacecraft.

 

The Intrepid moved its Russian Soyuz TMA-6 spacecraft exhibit from the aircraft carrier's hangar deck to the flight deck pavilion on June 25. The capsule, which flew to and from the International Space Station (ISS) in 2005, is on loan from Gregory Olsen, who landed aboard the Soyuz as a privately-funded flight participant, or "space tourist."

 

Since retiring the space shuttle fleet in 2011, NASA has relied on Russia's Soyuz to fly its astronauts to the space station. The U.S. space agency is intending to hire private launch providers to resume domestic flights to the orbiting outpost as the commercially-built and operated spacecraft become available in 2017.

 

The Intrepid's flown Soyuz is one of only three on display in the United States.

 

In addition to the capsule, the rebuilt pavilion also features a new stage for programmed demonstrations, new exhibits highlighting technology spin-offs from the 30-year shuttle program, and a film narrated by "Star Trek" actor Leonard Nimoy about the history of the winged spacecraft.

 

The space shuttle Enterprise, however, remains the centerpiece. The exhibit includes a larger observation platform, atop which guests can get nose-to-nose with the prototype orbiter.

 

And a new soundscape entryway greets visitors coming to see the space shuttle with the audio that was recorded between NASA's mission control and the astronaut crews who flew Enterprise's approach and landing tests.

 

"Our team is working hard to bring an incredible exhibit to life that will allow space shuttle Enterprise to continue to inspire generations of innovators and dreamers for years to come," said Marenoff-Zausner.

 

The reopening on Wednesday marks just the beginning of the Intrepid's planned festivities to welcome visitors to the new display. As it did last year for the first ribbon cutting, the museum is again organizing a "SpaceFest" celebrating "all things space."

 

For four days starting July 25, the Intrepid and its partners will host hands-on demonstrations, astronaut appearances and free movie screenings. Among the other SpaceFest highlights, the museum will unveil a LEGO model of space shuttle Enterprise assembled by a LEGO master builder.

 

The rebuilt Space Shuttle Pavilion is a temporary home for the real shuttle, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places in March. The Intrepid is working toward building a permanent exhibit facility for Enterprise, which will display the orbiter near, but not on, the aircraft carrier, while providing enhanced educational programs.

 

Sandra Bullock: Up in the air with 'Gravity'

 

Bryan Alexander - USA Today

 

If you thought going to the moon was complicated, try shooting a sci-fi set in the depths of outer space.

 

Director Alfonso Cuarón spent nearly five years trying to perfect the look of zero gravity for the thriller Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney (out Oct. 4).

 

"We wanted to shoot the whole film showing zero gravity with the actors moving in a choreographic way," say Cuarón, perhaps best known for directing 2004's Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. "This has never been done before. It was a journey of learning. But it looks pretty darn good."

 

Gravity, which Cuarón wrote with his son Jonás, opens the prestigious Venice Film Festival on Aug. 28 in Italy, and Cuarón will show off footage at the July 18-21 Comic-Con in San Diego.

 

The film follows Ryan Stone (Bullock), a medical engineer on her first space shuttle mission, alongside veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (Clooney). Their routine mission goes very, very wrong when the shuttle is destroyed, leaving them tethered together and spiraling in space.

 

A scene in which Bullock struggles to make it back into the International Space Station shows the scope of the work, done at Shepperton Studios in England. It required numerous processes to show the floating, from elaborate wire work to encasing Bullock in a 9-foot cube made of LED lights. And that was before the computer graphics were added.

 

"Sandra had to be in tremendous shape for this kind of filming," says producer David Heyman. "When she was not shooting she was either spending time with her son or working out for these scenes."

 

The return to the space station might show a moment of calm for Bullock's character, who nearly perishes in her space suit, yet it also highlights why outer space is such a scary mental concept.

 

"She's confronted with the idea that Earth is so far away. She can see the whole Earth and she doesn't belong to it," says Cuarón. "What is really scary for people is being lost or alone in the immensity of the void."

 

The filmmakers had the task of depicting some of the great celestial bodies in the galaxy, and used computers to map and shoot millions of stars and the Earth in various states. After pulling it off, Cuarón was struck with the majesty of the planet, which becomes a major character in Gravity.

 

"When you see this Earth from outer space with all of its beauty and colors, you don't see all of these separations between these countries," says Cuarón. "Earth is just one organic, beautiful thing. We happen to live in a very stunning and beautiful place."

 

END

 

 

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