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From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: November 26, 2014 at 11:23:00 AM CST
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: FW: NASA and Human Spaceflight News - Wednesday – November 26, 2014
Have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving you all. Maybe next mail from me on Friday (hot deals day). Hope you can join us next Thursday December 4th for our final NASA retirees luncheon of 2014 at Hibachi Grill @11:30NASA and Human Spaceflight NewsWednesday – November 26, 2014Note: There will be no NASA News tomorrow due to the Thanksgiving Day holiday or on Friday, Nov. 28. NASA News will resume on Monday, Dec. 1.HEADLINES AND LEADSSpace station's 3-D printer pops out 1st creation, a sample replacement part for itselfMarcia Dunn – APThe first 3-D printer in space has popped out its first creation.The First 3-D Printer in Space Prints Its First ObjectJack Linshi - TIMEThe printer's goal is to make spare parts and tools for the International Space StationThe first 3-D printer in space has borne its first object, NASA said Tuesday, and it's a bit self-fulfilling.Space Station's 3D Printer Makes 1st PartMike Wall - Space.comThe International Space Station's 3D printer has produced its first part, ushering in what proponents hope will be a new age of off-Earth manufacturing.Retired NASA CIO: Working Harder Than EverDavid F. Carr – Information WeekRetired from government service, Linda Cureton is putting long hours into a consulting business (but also envisioning a "real" retirement someday).While researching a feature on the "second acts" of retired CIOs, I was startled to see former NASA CIO Linda Cureton's name pop up in a Google search next to the word "retired."Manual Used By NASA's Gene Kranz During Apollo 11 Sold At AuctionRobin Burks – Tech TimesA manual used by flight director Gene Kranz during the Apollo 11 mission, the NASA mission that first put humans on the moon, recently sold at auction for $91,909.Thanksgiving in Space: NASA Reveals What's on Astronauts' MenuAlyssa Newcomb – ABC NewsThese explorers may be from several different countries, but on Thanksgiving the six astronauts at the International Space Station will sit down for an out-of-this-world feast.Thanksgiving in space: What's on the menu?Husna Haq - Christian Science MonitorAstronauts aboard the International Space Station will enjoy smoked turkey, candied yams, and green beans, and mushrooms, all without gaining a single pound.What's Thanksgiving like in space?Orbital Sciences Entitled To Partial NASA Payment for Antares FailurePeter B. de Selding – Space NewsOrbital Sciences Corp. will get most of its planned revenue from NASA for the Oct. 28 launch of Orbital's Antares rocket despite the rocket's failure because the milestone that triggered payment was the rocket's ignition and liftoff, not launch success, Orbital and its prospective merger partner, Alliant Techsystems (ATK), said Nov. 24.Astronauts Explain Why Everyone Should Go To SpaceRobin Burks - Tech TimesAstronauts get to do something the rest of us don't: go to space. They get to see the planet as it really is: one small, but beautiful, blue and green orb that takes up a very small place in the Universe.Now, Anyone On Earth Can See A View Of Our Planet From Space In Real TimeJessica Orwig – Business InsiderThere's nothing as profound as seeing Earth from space.NASA Puts $1 Billion Space Medicine Contract Out for Bids, AgainDan Leone – Space NewsNASA is again seeking bids on more than $1 billion of space medicine work covered under a contract that will be awarded at least two years later than planned because of prolonged sparring between incumbent Wyle Laboratories and SAIC.NASA is Working on a 700-Calorie Breakfast BarIrene Klotz - Discovery NewsNASA food scientists are developing a food bar to replace a typical 700- to 800-calorie meal astronauts eat for breakfast.Accomack officials seek NASA input on rezoning requestCarol Vaughn - DelmarvaNowAccomack officials will not take action on a developer's rezoning request until they hear more from NASA about the development's potential impact on NASA Wallops Flight Facility.Accomack County officials said they will not take action on a developer's rezoning request for property near NASA Wallops Flight Facility until they hear from NASA.NASA Wants To Launch Tiny Moon Satellites On Its Next-Generation RocketElizabeth Howell – Universe TodayAs the space community counts down the days to the long-awaited Dec. 4 uncrewed launch of the Orion spacecraft — that vehicle that is supposed to bring astronauts into the solar system in the next decade — NASA is already thinking ahead to the next space test in 2017 or 2018.Why It's Time To Get Excited About Our Favorite Former PlanetGeorge Dvorsky - io9It will be Pluto like we've never seen it before: early next month, NASA's New Horizon's spacecraft will emerge from its slumber as it prepares for what will surely be a historic flyby of the dwarf planet.SpaceX may upset firm's monopoly in launching Air Force satellitesMelody Petersen - Los Angeles TimesEntrepreneur Elon Musk and his upstart company SpaceX are on the verge of upsetting a cozy and pricey military deal that for years has given two aerospace giants the exclusive right to launch the Air Force's most crucial satellites into orbit.Companies Have Technologies, but Not Business Plans, for Orbital Debris CleanupJeff Foust – Space NewsCompanies attending a recent workshop offered a number of technical concepts for reducing the amount of orbital debris, but acknowledged that they lack business plans for carrying out those efforts.COMPLETE STORIESSpace station's 3-D printer pops out 1st creation, a sample replacement part for itselfMarcia Dunn – APThe first 3-D printer in space has popped out its first creation.The 3-D printer delivered to the International Space Station two months ago made a sample replacement part for itself this week. It churned out a new faceplate for the print head casing.Space station commander Butch Wilmore removed the small plastic creation from the printer Tuesday, a day after its manufacture.Some of the plastic piece stuck to the print tray, said NASA spokesman Dan Huot. He noted it's part of the learning process and will be further investigated.About 20 objects will be printed in the next few weeks, all for return to Earth for analysis, NASA said. The space agency hopes to one day use 3-D printing to make parts for broken equipment in space — "an on-demand machine shop," according to project manager Niki Werkheiser.Made in Space, the Northern California company that supplied the space station's 3-D printer, called it "a transformative moment." The newly created, rectangular faceplate — considered functional by the company — includes the Made in Space name, as well as NASA's."When the first human fashioned a tool from a rock, it couldn't have been conceived that one day we'd be replicating the same fundamental idea in space," Aaron Kemmer, chief executive officer, said in a statement.Similar 3-D items will be duplicated at the company's offices in Mountain View for comparison.The stronger-than-expected adhesion to the print tray could mean that the layer-by-layer bonding process is different in weightlessness, NASA noted.The company will replace the orbiting demo machine with a much bigger commercial printer next year. The European Space Agency, meanwhile, plans to fly its own 3-D printer in 2015.The First 3-D Printer in Space Prints Its First ObjectJack Linshi - TIMEThe printer's goal is to make spare parts and tools for the International Space StationThe first 3-D printer in space has borne its first object, NASA said Tuesday, and it's a bit self-fulfilling.The object, a replacement faceplate for the printer's casing that holds its internal wiring in place, is one of about 20 objects that will be printed aboard International Space Station (ISS) over the coming weeks, the space agency said. The objects will then be sent down to Earth for analysis, the final step in testing the 3-D printer before establishing a permanent 3-D printing facility aboard the space station."This is the first time we've ever used a 3-D printer in space, and we are learning, even from these initial operations," said Niki Werkheiser, project manager for the ISS's 3-D printer. Creating the faceplate demonstrated how the printer is able to make replacement parts for itself, the agency added. "As we print more parts we'll be able to learn whether some of the effects we are seeing are caused by microgravity or just part of the normal fine-tuning process for printing."Before its launch in June to the ISS, the 3-D printer had successfully completed a series of tests evaluating its ability to withstand take-off forces and to function properly in zero gravity. The goal is to create spare parts and tools to make the ISS less dependent on expensive resupply ships, in addition to improving crew safety.Space Station's 3D Printer Makes 1st PartMike Wall - Space.comThe International Space Station's 3D printer has produced its first part, ushering in what proponents hope will be a new age of off-Earth manufacturing.The 3D printer, which was designed and built by California-based startup Made In Space, created an extruder plate — a piece of itself — on Monday (Nov. 24), wrapping up the hour-long task at 4:28 p.m. EST (2128 GMT). The milestone marks a key step toward a future in which voyaging spaceships print out their own spare parts on the go and colonists on other worlds make what they need from the dirt beneath their boots, advocates say."This is the first object truly manufactured off of planet Earth," Made In Space CEO Aaron Kemmer told Space.com. "It's a huge milestone, not only for Made In Space and NASA, but for humanity as a whole."The extruder plate, which measures roughly 3 inches long by 1.5 inches wide by 0.25 inches thick (7.6 by 3.8 by 0.6 centimeters), features the logos of both Made In Space and NASA, Kemmer said. Choosing the plate, which holds in the printer's electronic board and wiring, for the first build has symbolic significance, he added."We thought a lot about how we could demonstrate the historical shift here," Kemmer said. "It represents the idea that if something goes wrong on the space station, or future space stations, the crew and NASA now have the ability to build a solution."The 3D printer's presence on the space station is part of the 3D Print project, a collaboration between NASA and Made In Space. The machine launched in September aboard SpaceX's unmanned Dragon cargo capsule, then was installed in the orbiting lab's Microgravity Science Glovebox by Expedition 42 commander Barry "Butch" Wilmore on Nov. 17. Calibration activities quickly followed.The chief goal of the first phase of the 3D Print project is to validate 3D printing technology, making sure that it works in orbit as well as it does on the ground, NASA officials have said. Test items printed in space will be compared with identical samples produced by the same machine before it left Earth.The second phase will focus on actual utilization of parts printed out on the space station, said 3D Print program manager Niki Werkheiser, of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.NASA has high hopes for 3D printing, which creates products layer by layer out of plastic, metal or other feedstock material. The technology could reduce the cost of spaceflight and enable more ambitious manned exploration missions, agency officials have said."I think we're making history by, for the first time ever, being able to make what we need when we need it in space," Werkheiser said on NASA TV when the 3D printer was installed. "Even though it may sound a little like science fiction, we're actually able to email our hardware to space instead of launching it."Made In Space sees a similarly bright future for the technology. Sometime next year, the company plans to launch another printer to the space station, on a production rather than a demonstration mission. Made In Space and NASA are also working together on a "recycler" project that will turn trash aboard the orbiting lab into 3D-printed objects. That could happen in 2015 or 2016, Kemmer said.And the company's long-term vision extends far beyond Earth orbit."If we as a species are really going to be attempting to live off-world permanently — on the moon or Mars — we believe the technology that we're building can enable that future, especially if you start building with more and more of the resources in situ," Kemmer said.Retired NASA CIO: Working Harder Than EverDavid F. Carr – Information WeekRetired from government service, Linda Cureton is putting long hours into a consulting business (but also envisioning a "real" retirement someday).While researching a feature on the "second acts" of retired CIOs, I was startled to see former NASA CIO Linda Cureton's name pop up in a Google search next to the word "retired."It turns out her exit from government service was officially a retirement, though she did not head directly for the rocking chair. Instead, she has been building a consulting business: Muse Technologies, which is dedicated to helping other CIOs execute a strategy of IT transformation. She is also a valued thought leader columnist on government IT and CIO strategy for InformationWeek.What she is doing is not unusual. Since federal employees can often retire in their mid-50s (depending on variables like years of government service), they often collect their retirement benefits and pivot quickly into consulting work or sales, trying to win business from former colleagues. For that matter, many CIOs in the private sector also "retire" and go on to other professional activities. Our feature Retired CIOs: 5 Rewarding Second Acts focused on those who have decided to actually retire -- including some who are not necessarily any older than Cureton.Cureton, however, is much too busy to think of herself as retired in any way, shape, or form. "I figured I still had some life in me at 55," she says. "People work much longer than that, so for me, retirement was just a good point of reflection, an opportunity to take more risk and make more significant change."An opportunity, certainly -- but definitely not an opportunity to relax. "I've been working 120-hour weeks, really." Even as a top executive of a government agency, she used to work with a lot of people who kept 9-to-5 hours. When they weren't on duty, tasks sometimes had to wait until the next day. Now, as she works to establish her own small business, there are no checks on how hard or how long she works. Over one recent weekend, she totaled five hours of sleep.Having made a name for herself at NASA, Cureton hung up her shingle as an "IT transformation expert," though she concedes that phrase means "everything and nothing." She explains that every good CIO has a change agenda but also many obstacles to achieving it. She created a strategic framework to pursue change "in a more enduring and rapid way," folding strategic planning, enterprise architecture, leadership development, and team building into the package.In government particularly, Cureton saw an unmet need for a brand of consulting that would be less high-level (and less expensive) than that offered by big consulting firms like McKinsey or Deloitte. Muse offers guidance on megatrends like cloud computing, boiling down what's real and what's not.One frustration: "A lot of people talk about IT transformation, but they don't necessarily want to be transformed." Although government is the sector Cureton targeted first, she suspects that the bigger long-term possibility may be with businesses looking to transform themselves. "Maybe they're more able to be transformed."Hard work though it may be, starting Muse was also a lifestyle choice. "I saw this as a chance to do exactly what I want -- do what I love to do, with people I love," Cureton says. Her husband, Douglas, also a retired federal executive, is her chief operating officer.Building a business is hard work, but one measure of success will be whether she can make it into a going concern, one that will eventually be able to survive without her. In a decade, she will have reached the more traditional age for "real" retirement."Ten years sounds about like what it would be," she says. "I definitely have sitting on a beach in mind for about 10 years from now."Manual Used By NASA's Gene Kranz During Apollo 11 Sold At AuctionRobin Burks – Tech TimesA manual used by flight director Gene Kranz during the Apollo 11 mission, the NASA mission that first put humans on the moon, recently sold at auction for $91,909.The manual was Kranz's guide for coordinating the mission, as well as all activities associated with it, including the main mission goal of putting man on the surface of the moon for the first time.As history tells us, that mission was successful, not just for astronauts stepping onto the moon's surface for the first time, but also for those at NASA headquarters, such as Kranz, who worked hard to make the mission happen.The manual is a 3.25" three-ring binder with a label that reads, "Flight Book, Apollo 11, G.F. Kranz." It has 16 tabbed sections that cover a variety of topics concerned with that mission: memos, graphs, charts and notes made by Kranz. The binder also includes an "abort checklist" in Kranz's handwriting, which also includes a diagram of the "Abort Sequence Logic" drawn by Kranz."What makes this manual so spectacular is that it was used during the descent stage of the lunar module onto the surface of the moon- Kranz using this manual when Armstrong landed Eagle," says Bobby Livingston, Exec VP at RR Auction, the company that handled the sell of the manual.Apollo 11 was the mission that first landed humans on the moon. Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepped onto the lunar surface, the first humans ever to do so, on July 21, 1969. The two collected material from the moon's surface before returning to Earth. The event was broadcast live internationally and is known for Armstrong's famous words, "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."Gene Kranz served as a flight director to Apollo 11 and is best known for his part in helping NASA's mission control save the crew of Apollo 13. He acted as a flight director for missions through Apollo 17 and became deputy director of NASA Mission Operations in 1974, followed by becoming director in 1983. He retired in 1994 after the STS-61 spaceflight missiot that repaired the Hubble Space Telescope was completed. Kranz, known widely as a space hero, is a subject of many movies and books.Other items up for auction included a Viking instrument, an extremely rare American flag carried into lunar orbit aboard the Apollo 10 mission, a rare postal cover from the Apollo 15 mission and a manifest from the Apollo 17 mission.The auction for space and aviation memorabilia ended this month. For a full list of items sold, visit the auction website.Thanksgiving in Space: NASA Reveals What's on Astronauts' MenuAlyssa Newcomb – ABC NewsThese explorers may be from several different countries, but on Thanksgiving the six astronauts at the International Space Station will sit down for an out-of-this-world feast.The group, which includes two Americans, will be treated to all of the Thanksgiving staples, with a few necessary tweaks for their home orbiting 260 miles above Earth.While Americans back on Earth deep fry or wait for their birds to roast in the oven, the astronauts will be treated to a main course of irradiated smoked turkey.Also on the menu: Thermostabilizaed candied yams, freeze-dried green beans and mushrooms. The astronauts will also dine on NASA's freeze-dried cornbread dressing, which requires one simple step to cook: Just add water.Of course, it wouldn't be a proper Thanksgiving feast without dessert. The astronauts will be treated to thermostabilized cherry-blueberry cobbler, according to NASA.All of that sounds like enough for a nice post-Thanksgiving feast nap -- in zero G, of course.Thanksgiving in space: What's on the menu?Husna Haq - Christian Science MonitorAstronauts aboard the International Space Station will enjoy smoked turkey, candied yams, and green beans, and mushrooms, all without gaining a single pound.What's Thanksgiving like in space?In a sense, not too different from the first Thanksgivings in America, says NASA astronaut Barry "Butch" Wilmore, commander of Expedition 42 aboard the International Space Station.After all, the English settlers of Plymouth Colony were pioneers in an unknown land, crossing vast oceans to explore new worlds – not unlike astronauts of today."The first thing that comes to mind is going all the way back to those early settlers when they endured some really rough times, crossing the ocean and getting started in an unknown land," Wilmore said in a recorded message from aboard the International Space Station.Of course, not everything is the same. While early settlers may have feasted on wild fowl, venison, corn, beans, and mussels, and modern Thanksgiving tables aren't complete without turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, and mashed potatoes, astronauts aboard the space station will be cutting open bags of freeze-dried, irradiated, and thermostabilized foods on Thursday.What's on the space station's menu this Thanksgiving?According to NASA, the meal will include smoked turkey, candied yams and green beans and mushrooms. The meal also will feature NASA's own freeze-dried cornbread dressing – just add water. Dessert features thermostabilized cherry-blueberry cobbler.Each food item comes in its own vacuum-packed single-serve packet, so astronauts simply cut open the packet and eat right out of it, no preparation or cleanup necessary.Thanksgiving is often a work day in outer space, but astronauts don't seem to mind."People often ask us what it's like to be onboard ISS for the holidays," NASA astronaut Mike Hopkins said in a 2013 Thanksgiving video beamed down from the station. "Though we miss our families, it's great to be in space. As astronauts, this is what we train for and this is where we want to be."And space food has come a long way since the early days of space travel, says NASA food scientist Vickie Kloeris in an interview with Space.com."I've been working with space food about 28 years," Kloeris told Space.com. "Preservation methods that we've used over the years haven't changed all that much, but the variety has grown a bunch over that time because we've gone from short duration shuttle flights to six month stays on the International Space Station.""We now have about 200 different foods and beverages that are part of our baseline food system for the International Space Station," she added. "Included in those are a variety of traditional type Thanksgiving items. For instance, we have sliced turkey that is thermostabilized – it's in a pouch so they warm it up and cut the pouch open and eat out of the pouch with a fork," Kloeris said. "We also have some of the traditional side dishes. We have cornbread dressing freeze-dried – they add water on orbit. We have mashed potatoes – no gravy, unfortunately."Of course, preparing food for astronauts can be challenging. There is no fridge or freezer in the craft, so astronauts cannot enjoy ice cream or other frozen products.New arrivals to weightlessness usually say they feel congested. That's because, when you're standing on Earth, your body is constantly pushing your various internal fluids upward, against gravity. For your first few days before you regain your equilibrium, your body will keep pushing fluids toward your head, where they remain, blocking your sinuses, and, crucially, your sense of smell. To compensate for the microgravity-induced blandness, NASA often packs extra condiments to help spice up space food.That may explain why historically, one of most popular items has been freeze-dried shrimp cocktail. The horseradish provides a little kick for flavor-starved astronauts. And tortillas are the most versatile, stable bread item, adds Kloeris. Unlike bread, they don't produce crumbs, so crew members usually use tortillas for roll-up sandwiches. "We never can seem to get quite enough tortillas up there to satisfy crew," she says.Astronauts craving something fresh may have something to look forward to in future Thanksgivings.NASA is experimenting with growing sweet potatoes in outer space, according to a NASA blog post."The sweet potato may be one of the crops chosen for crews to grow on deep space missions. It provides an important energy source - carbohydrate - as well as beta-carotene," the post explains.Sweet potatoes are also able to adapt to a controlled environment with artificial sunlight, such as in outer space. It's also able to grow in a variety of situations.While the food may be a bit different in outer space than on Earth, there is at least one giant perk to enjoying Thanksgiving in space: astronauts can eat as much as they want without gaining any weight.Orbital Sciences Entitled To Partial NASA Payment for Antares FailurePeter B. de Selding – Space NewsOrbital Sciences Corp. will get most of its planned revenue from NASA for the Oct. 28 launch of Orbital's Antares rocket despite the rocket's failure because the milestone that triggered payment was the rocket's ignition and liftoff, not launch success, Orbital and its prospective merger partner, Alliant Techsystems (ATK), said Nov. 24.Under Orbital's $1.9 billion Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) with NASA, Orbital's obligations are not counted in launches, but in kilograms delivered to the space station.The Oct. 28 launch was the third of a then-planned eight cargo runs for NASA to meet the 20,000-kilogram requirement, with subsequent missions using a larger version of the Cygnus payload module, built by Thales Alenia Space in Italy.Since the failure, officials from Dulles, Virginia-based Orbital have said the failure will not result in any substantial new costs to Orbital.Planned 2015 revenue and profit will remain intact, the company has said, even though it must use someone else's rocket for one or two CRS missions while Antares is refitted with a new first-stage engine that Orbital has not publicly identified. Antares would then resume flights in 2016 and fulfill the CRS contract terms with two or three final missions.Because Orbital will be using a larger version of the Cygnus capsule, the company says it can meet the 20,000-kilogram requirement for CRS with four more flights instead of the five planned originally.ATK officials have said that after a detailed review of Orbital's plans, they believe Orbital can deliver on its promise, and that the companies' merger remains on track even as a shareholder vote was delayed seven weeks, to Jan. 27. A Nov. 24 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gives some indication of how it is that the explosion of a rocket carrying a commercial payload and grounding the vehicle for about two years can be, in financial terms, a wash for Orbital.While the CRS contract with NASA is based on a service-delivery model, NASA and Orbital structured it so that Orbital receives milestone payments tied to launches. It is not uncommon in launch contracts to make "intentional ignition" a milestone that, for example, signals the end of one contractual relationship and the beginning of another — even if ignition and liftoff are followed by explosion and failure.For Orbital's CRS contract, each launch has two milestone payments. The first payment is for ignition and liftoff. The second is for final mission success. With the payload destroyed, NASA will not be paying Orbital the expected $48 million for mission success.Orbital had taken out an insurance policy for that piece of the mission and will thus receive $48 million in insurance proceeds. Orbital said the insurance "will cover the entire final milestone payment." It was unclear whether Orbital had also insured itself for the cost of its insurance premium.Orbital did not disclose the amount of the milestone payment it expects from NASA for the launch.With the launch vehicle paid for by NASA as scheduled, and the insurance proceeds covering the rest, the Oct. 28 failure looks revenue-neutral to Orbital.Instead of eight launches for CRS, Orbital will conduct only seven. Much of the savings from reducing the total number of CRS launches from eight to seven will be redirected to finance the purchase of one or two third-party rockets. There may be costs to Orbital for accelerating the introduction of the new Antares first stage, from 2017 previously to 2016 since the failure. But Orbital said the bottom line effect in 2015 is no big deal.ATK and Orbital agree that the failure may affect Orbital's bid for a follow-on CRS contract.The Orbital-ATK merger terms assumed Orbital would not only complete the current CRS contract, but win a follow-on NASA contract for at least six more station-resupply missions through 2020.Orbital's CRS-2 contract bid is due in December, but NASA is not expected to make a contract award until May — well after the ATK and Orbital shareholders vote.ATK officials have said they will monitor Orbital's post-launch-failure activities, and NASA's response to them, and can always review the merger up until the day it is approved by U.S. regulators.In the meantime, according to the SEC filing, the ups and downs of the two companies' stock prices will not affect the merger. Under the transaction's terms, each Orbital shareholder will receive 0.449 shares of ATK, whose sporting goods division is being split off into a separate company to be 100 percent ATK-owned.Arlington, Virginia-based ATK's Aerospace and Defense division is merging with Orbital in a transaction that appears to leave the combined entity in Orbital's control but in fact is a purchase of Orbital by ATK.The new company, Orbital ATK, will be based at Orbital's current headquarters, with Orbital Chief Executive David W. Thompson keeping that role for the enlarged company.When the transaction is completed, ATK shareholders will own 53.8 percent of Orbital ATK, with Orbital shareholders owning the rest.Astronauts Explain Why Everyone Should Go To SpaceRobin Burks - Tech TimesAstronauts get to do something the rest of us don't: go to space. They get to see the planet as it really is: one small, but beautiful, blue and green orb that takes up a very small place in the Universe.Astronauts also come back from their space journeys changed, and they think that we should all have the opportunity to experience what they did.Although we're starting to see the rise of commercial space exploration and space tourism, we've recently suffered setbacks. Not only did Orbital Sciences' recent supply mission to the International Space Station (ISS) fail, but their rocket exploded shortly after launch. And Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo recently malfunctioned during a test flight, leaving one pilot dead and the other seriously injured.Space exploration is dangerous, but we cannot be deterred by these setbacks. According to those involved in space missions, including astronauts, we must continue pushing for space exploration, and even those of us who are not astronauts should go to space."These trips, whether for profit or not, speak to the very core of humanity, our drive to explore and to always push farther, physically and spiritually," says retired NASA astronaut Leroy Chiao about commercial space travel. "Space flight really is a magical experience: the bright colors of the Earth are mesmerizing from 300 miles up, and the view makes even the most hardened of us reflect what's truly important."German astronaut Ulrich Walter believes space tourism is a necessity."I'm supporting space tourism, because if only some people by profession are flying to space, that's not enough," says Walter. Everyone should do that. In particular, many people telling other people about space is more convincing. Everyone needs to see that."Walter was realistic, though, and states that presently, space tourism is too expensive for most. But he hopes that once space tourism becomes a valid industry, the prices for travel will go down so that more people have the opportunity to experience what he has.Others agree and speak about how seeing the Earth from space changes you."The Earth changes scale," says entrepreneur Richard Garriott, a self-funded astronaut on the ISS in 2008. "It goes from being infinite in your mind's eye to now... not only finite, but frankly pretty damn small."Garriott stated that after he returned to Earth, he was more aware of the planet and started cutting down on his waste and installed solar panels.For now, though, most of us won't ever get to space. However, remember the words of those who have seen the planet for what it really is: a beautiful planet teeming with life and humanity. Perhaps that viewpoint will help us realize what a gift this blue and green rock really is.Now, Anyone On Earth Can See A View Of Our Planet From Space In Real TimeJessica Orwig – Business InsiderThere's nothing as profound as seeing Earth from space.Yet, only the 543 people who have trained as astronauts ever get to experience the Earth in a way that boggles the human mind — called the overview effect — until now.But now, thanks to the High Definition Earth Viewing experiment, anyone with access to a computer and internet can watch Earth float in space from the perspective of the astronauts aboard the International Space Station.The HDEV experiment was activated on April 30 of this year, and so far over 32 million people have experienced the Earth in a way unlike any other — at a height of 268 miles above the surface.Several commercial HD video cameras are attached to the European Space Agency's Columbus module aboard the ISS. Each camera is pointed at Earth, and live records and streams what they see.The live stream cycles through the different cameras on board. When that happens, the live stream cuts out for a few seconds, but the fresh, new view you get is completely worth the few seconds it takes for the switch.As gorgeous as it is, this experiment has a purpose besides awing people on Earth: Each camera is protected inside a pressurized, temperature-controlled case. The experiment aims to test the effects of space on this equipment and the video quality it produces.High school students helped design some of the components of the experiment through the High Schools United with NASA to Create Hardware program.NASA Puts $1 Billion Space Medicine Contract Out for Bids, AgainDan Leone – Space NewsNASA is again seeking bids on more than $1 billion of space medicine work covered under a contract that will be awarded at least two years later than planned because of prolonged sparring between incumbent Wyle Laboratories and SAIC.The Human Health and Performance contract, released for bids Nov. 20, is a follow-on to a bioastronautics contract awarded to El Segundo, California-based Wyle in 2003 and now worth about $1.5 billion. Bids on the new contract, which will have a five-year base period with a three-year option and a two-year option, are due Jan. 29.Wyle's bioastronautics contract expired in April 2013, but dueling bid protests that began that spring have forced NASA to extend the deal through April 2015. The extension kept vital astronaut health services and research funded while the Government Accountability Office considered back-to-back protests from both Wyle and SAIC.After Wyle won the Human Health and Performance contract in March 2013, SAIC filed a protest with the GAO, ultimately prompting NASA to reopen the competition.When NASA reawarded the contract in August 2013, it chose SAIC. The following month, the McLean, Virginia-based firm — which had announced plans the previous summer to split into two companies — rebranded itself as Leidos and spun off its $4 billion government information technology and technical services unit as a publicly traded firm that kept the name SAIC and was slated to get the Human Health and Performance contract.But Wyle filed its own protest with GAO in September 2013, arguing that NASA should discount SAIC's lower bid — at $975 million, nearly 10 percent lower than Wyle's — because it was submitted when the unit was still part of a much larger company with deeper pockets. This time, the GAO sided with Wyle."There is no dispute that 'old' SAIC — the offeror and awardee — did not intend to perform as the prime contractor in this matter, but rather intended that a smaller entity with substantially fewer resources that was completely separate from 'old' SAIC, would perform the contract as the prime contractor," GAO said in its December 2013 decision.NASA, the GAO said, "gave no meaningful consideration to the technical approach 'new' SAIC will actually employ, nor the probable costs associated with that approach."SAIC spokeswoman Lauren Presti told SpaceNews Nov. 25 that SAIC's original proposal spelled out how the company would manage the Human Health and Performance contract following the corporate split.Regardless, GAO ordered NASA to either award the Human Health and Performance contract to Wyle, or seek bids for a third time. NASA chose to seek new bids.Wyle spokeswoman Liz Palm said Nov. 25 that Wyle will make a third run at the contract, which NASA's solicitation says could be worth as much as $1.44 billion when options are taken into account. SAIC, however, was noncommittal about its intentions."We've seen the solicitation, and we're evaluating it," Presti said. "Hopefully we'll be bidding it but we're not certain just yet."NASA is Working on a 700-Calorie Breakfast BarIrene Klotz - Discovery NewsNASA food scientists are developing a food bar to replace a typical 700- to 800-calorie meal astronauts eat for breakfast.That sounds like a lot, but the average crewmember aboard the International Space Station eats 3,000 calories a day, a level needed to support two hours of daily exercise required for bone and cardiovascular health in microgravity."They burn a lot of calories with that, and do a lot of work so given their activity load that's what we plan for," said Maya Cooper, with NASA contractor Wyle Laboratories at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.With cargo ships regularly making supply runs to the station, keeping the pantry stocked with food is not a problem. But NASA is laying the groundwork for missions that will take astronauts far beyond the station's 260-mile high orbit, making food deliveries few and far between.Space aboard cargo ships also will be severely limited, prompting scientists to come up with ways to reduce the mass of food. For now, the focus is on breakfast, which now might entail six separate packages of foods, such as eggs, sausage, bread and drinks."This takes up a lot of space and you get a lot of trash," Cooper said. "If we had just one meal replacement bar, it's dense, but it saves a ton in terms of mass and packaging volume."For a 2.5-year trip to Mars, each astronaut would need about 2.5 tons of food — the single largest consumable item needed for space missions, according to Cooper."If we can get the mass of the food down now we're starting to change what's required in terms of vehicle infrastructure," she said. "It takes a long time to get to Mars and there are limits to how much you can carry, how much space you're going to have for the food, how much water you're going to have available for the food."In addition to developing a nutritious food bar, NASA will test just how happy astronauts might be eating them."We do recognize that food … has a host of psycho-social implications for the crew," Cooper told Discovery News. "There is never a point where we're going to stipulate that eating meals is irrelevant. With the food bar, it becomes a necessity because we just don't have the space for the food. But before we implement it, we are doing testing to see what the satiety level is in terms of the bar and at what point … does mood start to change, in terms of frequency" of eating them.The ground-based studies will look at whether rotating the food bar every second or third breakfast is enough to keep astronauts happy and still meet mass reduction requirements.Accomack officials seek NASA input on rezoning requestCarol Vaughn - DelmarvaNowAccomack officials will not take action on a developer's rezoning request until they hear more from NASA about the development's potential impact on NASA Wallops Flight Facility.Accomack County officials said they will not take action on a developer's rezoning request for property near NASA Wallops Flight Facility until they hear from NASA.The Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to postpone action on a request from Atlantic Town Center Development Corporation for conditional rezoning of about 77 acres near Wattsville from agricultural to residential.The developers propose to build 432 housing units, including multifamily housing, and commercial buildings on the property.Supervisor Robert Crockett in his motion included a stipulation that the board invite Caroline Massey, NASA Wallops Flight Facility assistant director for management operations, to come to a meeting in January to discuss further the development's potential impact on Wallops operations.Massey in response to the county's previous invitation to comment on the developer's plans sent two emails, one dated July 23, 2014 and a second email dated Sept. 17, 2014, expressing concern.The county customarily sends such plans in the northern part of the county to NASA for comment."This is a serious concern for me, NASA's opinion. ... We all know the economic impact of NASA," Crockett said.Massey in the July email wrote that part of the property being considered for rezoning falls within the recently updated Wallops Flight Facility Accident Potential Zone for airfield hazards. "This is particularly concerning given that WFF has recently experienced a significant increase in airfield operations including night operations," Massey said.The developers have said they plan to keep the area in the APZ open; part would be used as a drainfield.In the September email, Massey gave additional input about the rezoning request, noting the entire area falls within an area where Wallops aircraft operations, including at night, "create a noise nuisance for the public.""Wallops recommends that the county consider the fact that the current Accomack County agricultural zoning is compatible with current WFF aircraft operations in an APZ, but changing to allow for residential and densely populated facilities in this specific location is not," Massey said.The Planning Commission recommended denial of the rezoning. But Planning Director Rich Morrison said he could support up to 100 units and rezoning of up to 29 acres of the property.The applicants' proposal is for 16 acres to have 13 units per acre; 44 acres to have eight units per acre; 12 acres to have four units per acre; 19 acres to be used for general business; and 28 acres be left open.Attorney Mark Baumgardner speaking for the developer said financial backers have put over $2 million into planning for the project already. A recent market study done at the planning commission's request, showed " a strong demand for muilti-family housing in this community, and there is none," he said.Of six people who spoke at a public hearing, five were against the rezoning.But Pete Messick, a Melfa Realtor, read a letter from the Eastern Shore Association of Realtors in support of the project. The letter said there is "a legitimate need" for multifamily housing on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.Among those speaking against the rezoning was Robert Tittle of Captains Cove."You want to build these apartments here and stack people on top of each other," he said. Tittle also was concerned about the Accident Potential Zone, noting an acquaintance's house during the Antares' rocket explosion "shook like I don't know what at this spot right here," near the property in question."There's a danger to the people," he said.Haydon Gordon of Greenbackville urged officials to "really, really listen to NASA ... You want to have a good, safe zone."Herman Chesser of Atlantic Volunteer Fire Company said his biggest concern is that the company would need a ladder truck, at a $1.5 million cost, to service the commercial buildings and townhouses proposed for the property.NASA Wants To Launch Tiny Moon Satellites On Its Next-Generation RocketElizabeth Howell – Universe TodayAs the space community counts down the days to the long-awaited Dec. 4 uncrewed launch of the Orion spacecraft — that vehicle that is supposed to bring astronauts into the solar system in the next decade — NASA is already thinking ahead to the next space test in 2017 or 2018.Riding atop the new Space Launch System rocket, if all goes to plan, will be a suite of CubeSats that will explore the Moon as Orion makes its journey out to our largest closest celestial neighbor. NASA announced details of the $5 million "Cube Quest" challenge yesterday (Nov. 24).CubeSats are tiny satellites that are so small that they are often within the reach of universities and similar institutions that want to perform science in space without the associated cost of operating a huge mission. The concept has been so successful that some companies are basing their entire business model on it, such as Planet Labs — a company that is performing Earth observations with the small machines.NCube-2 cubesat, a typical configuration for this kind of satellite (although the outer skin is missing.) Credit: ARES InstituteThe competition will be divided into several parts, including a ground tournament to see if the CubeSats can fly on the SLS, a lunar derby to ensure they can communicate at a distance of 10 times the Earth-moon distance, and a deep-space derby to put the CubeSat in a "stable lunar orbit" and work well there."The Cube Quest Challenge seeks to develop and test subsystems necessary to perform deep space exploration using small spacecraft. Advancements in small spacecraft capabilities will provide benefits to future missions and also may enable entirely new mission scenarios, including future investigations of near-Earth asteroids," NASA stated.For more details on the competition, check out this link.Why It's Time To Get Excited About Our Favorite Former PlanetGeorge Dvorsky - io9It will be Pluto like we've never seen it before: early next month, NASA's New Horizon's spacecraft will emerge from its slumber as it prepares for what will surely be a historic flyby of the dwarf planet.New Horizons will emerge from its 99-day hibernation on December 6. It's six-month encounter with the dwarf planet will culminate on July 14, 2015 when the spacecraft makes its closest approach.SciAm describes the mission:New Horizons went into hibernation for the final time on Aug. 29 of this year. When the robot wakes up early next month, the mission team will check out its operating systems and science gear, and devise and test the command sequences that will guide New Horizons on its historic flyby of Pluto and its five known moons.The Pluto encounter technically begins on Jan. 15, 2015. Over the next six months, the spacecraft will use seven different science instruments to study the geology and topography of Pluto and its largest moon, Charon, map the two objects' surface compositions and temperatures, study Pluto's atmosphere and search for undiscovered moons and rings in the dwarf planet system, among other things, team members said.The $700 million mission should help lift the veil on Pluto, which has remained largely mysterious since its 1930 discovery because it is so small, dim and distant. (On average, the frigid object orbits about 3.65 billion miles, or 5.87 billion km, from the sun — more than 39 times the Earth-sun distance.)Okay, gotta say — this is going to be awesome.SpaceX may upset firm's monopoly in launching Air Force satellitesMelody Petersen - Los Angeles TimesEntrepreneur Elon Musk and his upstart company SpaceX are on the verge of upsetting a cozy and pricey military deal that for years has given two aerospace giants the exclusive right to launch the Air Force's most crucial satellites into orbit.In recent years, those satellite launches have become so expensive under the Air Force's controversial contract with a joint venture owned by Boeing Co. and Lockheed Martin Corp. that the missions now rank as the nation's fourth-most-costly weapons program.Musk has said his company can perform a satellite launch for less than $100 million — a fraction of the price charged by the Boeing-Lockheed joint venture. The average cost for each launch using rockets from Boeing and Lockheed has soared to $420 million, according to a recent analysis by the Government Accountability Office.To get a share of the business, Hawthorne-based SpaceX — short for Space Exploration Technologies Corp. — must prove it can reliably launch the military satellites, which can take years to build and are crucial to national security.Air Force officials are in the final stages of a years-long, detailed review of the rocket company's launches and operations. A decision on whether to certify SpaceX for the launches, they said, is expected next month."This is huge," said Marco Caceres, senior analyst and director of space studies at Teal Group. "It would break up a monopoly and has the potential to save the taxpayer an awful lot of money."Boeing and Lockheed have faced no competition for the rocket launches since 2006 when they formed a joint venture called United Launch Alliance.Before that, the two firms had competed against each other for the contracts. After they began working together, the bill for launching satellites skyrocketed, costing taxpayers billions of dollars and leaving less money for other military programs.The Air Force's deal with the joint venture has been criticized for years on Capitol Hill. In April, Republican Sen. John McCain of Arizona demanded an investigation into whether the Air Force's Space Command was retreating from earlier promises by the Pentagon that other companies would be allowed to compete for the lucrative work.The public denouncements of the deal have put pressure on Space Command officials, who operate from the Los Angeles Air Force Base in El Segundo, to make a decision on whether SpaceX should be certified as a reliable launch provider.Although the launches by the Boeing-Lockheed venture have been expensive, they have also been dependable.Tory Bruno, United Launch Alliance's chief executive, said about the firm's launch numbers, "We're now at 89 — a perfect record of mission success."The risk involved in space missions became clear last month when two rockets crashed within four days of each other. On Oct. 28, an unmanned rocket bound for the International Space Station exploded in a fireball just seconds after liftoff. No one was hurt when the rocket owned by Dulles, Va.-based Orbital Sciences blew up, but 2 tons of supplies, experiments and equipment were destroyed.Three days later, Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo broke apart just after its rocket engines ignited during a test flight over the Mojave Desert. One of two pilots was killed.The Air Force's decision on whether to certify SpaceX comes at the same time that Space Command officials are nearing a separate determination of which firm will win a contract to launch a spy satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office. The Pentagon opened that contract to competitive bidding in June — the first true competition for the launches since 1998.The Air Force said SpaceX was the only company working to be certified for launches, making the competition for the contract between it and United Launch Alliance. Officials said they would award the contract by Dec. 31.A spokesman for SpaceX said the company does not talk about whether it has bid for a contract before the winner is announced.Over the last two years, Musk has repeatedly slammed the government's deal with the Boeing-Lockheed venture. He filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims this year, claiming that the Air Force's block purchase of 36 launches from the joint venture last December was illegal. The case is still pending.United Launch Alliance executives have defended the deal. They say that by purchasing 36 launches in advance, the Air Force got "stability and predictability" needed for national security, while also "saving the taxpayers money."But in court, Musk's lawyers called the contract "dangerous, fiscally irresponsible, and offensive to American values of open competition and fairness."SpaceX has been able to keep costs lower by manufacturing its own engines and rocket parts — including the Dragon capsule, which has been used to deliver supplies to the International Space Station for NASA, and the Falcon 9 rocket. Most of the work is done in a sprawling factory near Los Angeles International Airport.The Boeing-Lockheed venture relies on subcontractors, including to build its rocket engines. It has bought dozens of engines made at a Russian factory — a purchasing decision that has become increasingly contentious with the new tensions between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the West.The news agency Reuters recently obtained a 2011 audit by the Pentagon's Defense Contract Audit Agency, showing that the joint venture had proposed paying $303 million for a dozen of the Russian engines, known as the RD-180, or about $25 million each.The auditors said the subcontract for the purchase of the engines was "not acceptable" because it had failed to negotiate "a fair and reasonable price."Jessica Rye, a spokeswoman for the joint venture, said the Russian engines' price "was thoroughly reviewed and accepted" by the government. She said the engine was "competitively priced" compared with alternatives.Rye also disputed the GAO's estimated average launch cost of $420 million. She said the company estimates that each launch costs an average of $225 million.The threat of competition from SpaceX already has spurred executives at United Launch Alliance's Denver headquarters to take action.Bruno, a former Lockheed executive, was unexpectedly named the joint venture's top leader in August, replacing Michael Gass, who had headed the firm since its creation in 2006.At a public forum sponsored by the Atlantic Council, a nonprofit think tank, this month, Bruno vowed to slash United Launch Alliance's costs "by half." He said the firm was also making plans to eventually stop using the Russian rocket engines."ULA is America's ride to space," Bruno said, "and it will continue."Companies Have Technologies, but Not Business Plans, for Orbital Debris CleanupJeff Foust – Space NewsCompanies attending a recent workshop offered a number of technical concepts for reducing the amount of orbital debris, but acknowledged that they lack business plans for carrying out those efforts."Right now there is no business case for debris remediation," said James Armor, vice president of ATK Spacecraft Systems & Services, during a Nov. 19 panel session at a workshop here held by the University of Maryland's Center for Orbital Debris Research and Education (CODER).ATK has looked at the market, he said, in its role as prime contractor for ViviSat, a satellite servicing venture. "You cannot rely on strictly commercial market forces to mitigate this," he said, arguing that neither companies nor government agencies currently appeared willing to pay for orbital debris removal services. "Basically, it's not a problem until it's a problem."That view, echoed by others attending the conference, has not deterred companies from developing concepts to reduce the amount of debris in orbit. Several presented debris removal concepts at the workshop, with many focused on moving defunct satellites and upper stages that pose the largest risk for generating debris.Natick, Massachusetts-based Busek Co. Inc., a company best known for its electric propulsion systems, unveiled a concept at the CODER workshop that would use two different spacecraft to move large debris items to graveyard orbits.A large tug, called the Orbital Debris Remover (ORDER), would approach an object. ORDER would then deploy a smaller, tethered spacecraft, named Satellite on an Umbilical Line, to grapple the object. ORDER would then use electric propulsion to tow the object to a graveyard orbit.The system would take about two months to move a low Earth orbit satellite down to an altitude where it would quickly re-enter, said Daniel Williams, director of business development for Busek, and a single ORDER spacecraft would have enough propellant to remove more than 40 such satellites, at an estimated cost of $80 million. "To me, that seems like a really great buy," he said in a Nov. 18 presentation.Moffett Field, California-based Skycorp is developing its own tug, designed specifically to deal with defunct satellites in geosynchronous orbit. Dennis Wingo, chief executive and founder of Skycorp, estimated that there are 550 metric tons of dead satellites there, posing a risk of collision with other spacecraft. "The probability of a collision is low, but the consequences of one are dire," he said Nov. 19.Skycorp's proposed High Mobility Space Vehicle could move up to 20 such satellites into graveyard orbits per year. However, the company has yet to announce contracts with customers for either that application or other satellite-servicing roles, in large part because they have not been economically compelling to operators. "Cost is everything," Wingo said.Claude Phipps of Santa Fe, New Mexico-based Photonic Associates pitched a concept at the workshop involving a space-based ultraviolet laser. That system, placed in a sun-synchronous orbit, would fire laser pulses at objects in low Earth orbit, pushing them into lower orbits to accelerate their re-entry.Phipps estimated this system would cost $560 million to develop over four years. He said international cooperation would likely be required for this to address concerns about its use as a weapons system, but believed commercial funding could also mitigate those concerns. "This is a possibility that can automatically avoid many of these perceived risks," he said.Given the lack of commercial markets for orbital debris removal, Armor argued that government incentives are needed to make these or other debris removal ventures economically feasible. That could include direct funding of debris removal efforts, either through contracts or "bounties" placed on individual debris objects.Some, though, remained optimistic that companies will see the economic benefit in paying for debris removal and other satellite servicing applications. "It will happen, when a satellite operator sees a compelling economic value," Wingo said.ENDMore at www.spacetoday.net
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