Fwd: NASA and Human Spaceflight News – Feb. 24, 2014 and JSC Today

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From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: February 24, 2014 10:42:48 AM CST
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: FW: NASA and Human Spaceflight News – Feb. 24, 2014 and JSC Today

Happy Moonday everyone!   It's  TGIFF week!

________________________________________

Monday, February 24, 2014         Read JSC Today in your browser

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                    JSC TODAY CATEGORIES

1.            Headlines

-  #spacetoground: Weekly ISS Updates

-  Nominate JSC Exceptional Software by March 11

-  Managed Elevated Privileges Continues

2.            Organizations/Social

-  Human Systems Integration ERG February Meeting

-  7th Annual NASA Golf Tournament - Sign Up Today

3.            Jobs and Training

-  Job Opportunities

-  Driving Innovation at JSC - May 7 to 8

-  Electronic Document System (EDS) 2.0

-  Important: Fire Extinguisher Training Time Change

-  Pressure Systems Operator and Refresher Training

4.            Community

-  Does Science Make You HAPPY?

-  Blood Drive Thank You

The Shocking Behavior of a Speedy Star

 

 

   Headlines

1.            #spacetoground: Weekly ISS Updates

Updates on the Cygnus reentry, how you get taller in space and more in this week's Space to Ground.

NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station. Got a question or comment? Use #spacetoground to talk to us.

Space to Ground - 2/21/14

JSC External Relations, Office of Communications and Public Affairs x35111

 

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2.            Nominate JSC Exceptional Software by March 11

This is the 2014 call for software award nominations at JSC, including White Sands Test Facility. Nominees will be considered for the following awards:

o             JSC Exceptional Software Award

o             JSC nominee for NASA Software of the Year Award

o             JSC software nominees for Space Act Awards

o             NASA Exceptional Technology Achievement Medals

The JSC Exceptional Software Award is designed to recognize software that has demonstrated outstanding value to accomplishing the JSC mission.

Apply online using the Web nomination form and to find out other information.

Directorates and individuals must provide their nominations by close of business March 11 via the form link listed. Questions can be sent to Lynn Vernon or Tondra Allen.

Lynn R. Vernon x36917 http://jscexceptionalsoftware.jsc.nasa.gov/SOY_nominate/

 

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3.            Managed Elevated Privileges Continues

On Tuesday, Feb. 25, Managed Elevated Privileges (MEP) continues with DI (Spaceflight Systems Division) and DO (Operations Division).

MEP controls admin rights (Elevated Privileges, or EP) on NASA computers and allows users to request EP when needed. Users must complete SATERN training before submitting any requests for EP.

All users, especially those scheduled for MEP deployment, are strongly urged to complete the SATERN training for "Basic Users" (Elevated Privileges on NASA Information System - ITS-002-09).

Users can coordinate with their supervisor, OCSO or organization IT point of contact to determine the level of EP they may need beyond "Basic User" and any additional training required.

The next scheduled deployment date is March 11, which will complete DO org code and begin with DX org code.

For more information, go to the MEP website or contact Heather Thomas at x30901.

Heather Thomas x30901 https://projects.jsc.nasa.gov/ep/SitePages/Home.aspx

 

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   Organizations/Social

1.            Human Systems Integration ERG February Meeting

Human Systems Integration (HIS) Employee Resource Group (ERG) February Meeting - University Collaboration Opportunities

Join the HIS ERG for their February meeting, which focuses on opportunities for you to partner with Space Grant Consortia and universities. These relationships continue to provide critical infusions of technology and creativity to NASA's mission through academic research, student internships and informal exchanges of ideas. The HSI ERG has created an opportunity for the JSC community to form new academic partnerships through the national network of Space Grant Consortia. Come to the meeting to find out more, and add your collaboration interest to the survey before Feb. 26.

Event Date: Tuesday, February 25, 2014   Event Start Time:11:30 AM   Event End Time:12:30 PM

Event Location: B1/220

 

Add to Calendar

 

James Taylor x34339 https://collaboration.ndc.nasa.gov/iierg/HSI/SitePages/Home.aspx

 

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2.            7th Annual NASA Golf Tournament - Sign Up Today

The Seventh Annual NASA Golf Tournament will be the biggest and best one yet, and we don't want you to miss out!

Reasons to register right now for the seventh Annual NASA Golf Tournament!

o             Thursday, April 10

o             8 a.m. shotgun start

o             Registration - $500 per team (price increases on March 1)

o             Magnolia Creek Golf Club

The silent auction will be back for BOTH days.

Registration fee includes green fees, driving range, 2014 NASA golf polo, breakfast bar, barbecue lunch, participant bag, silent auction entry, drink tickets, tournament awards, door prizes and more.

Registration prices increase after FRIDAY, FEB. 28, and spots are filling very fast. Register your team today!

Event Date: Thursday, April 10, 2014   Event Start Time:6:30 AM   Event End Time:3:00 PM

Event Location: Magnolia Creek Golf Club

 

Add to Calendar

 

Steve Schade x30304 https://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/en/programs/special-events/golf-tournament

 

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   Jobs and Training

1.            Job Opportunities

Where do I find job opportunities?  

Both internal Competitive Placement Plan and external JSC job announcements are posted on the Human Resources (HR) Portal and USAJOBS website. Through the HR portal, civil servants can view summaries of all the agency jobs that are currently open at: https://hr.nasa.gov/portal/server.pt/community/employees_home/239/job_opportunities/133142

To help you navigate to JSC vacancies, use the filter drop-down menu and select "JSC HR." The "Jobs" link will direct you to the USAJOBS website for the complete announcement and the ability to apply online.  

Lateral reassignment and rotation opportunities are posted in the Workforce Transition Tool. To access: HR Portal  > Employees > Workforce Transition > Workforce Transition Tool. These opportunities do not possess known promotion potential; therefore, employees can only see positions at or below their current grade level.

If you have questions about any JSC job vacancies or reassignment opportunities, please call your HR representative.

Brandy Braunsdorf x30476

 

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2.            Driving Innovation at JSC - May 7 to 8

Individuals in technical organizations are invited to join Dr. Joel Sercel as he explores breakthrough ideas that leaders need to create successful systems for the future. This program combines marketing, product development, technology assessment, value-chain design, project execution and talent management in an integrated architecture for achieving breakthrough performance. You will gain the capability to help position your organization for future sustainment, growth and adaptation to new technologies, business models and missions.

Registration is now open to civil service employees. Pre-work assessments and surveys are part of the session, so early registration is encouraged.

Sign up today!

SATERN Scheduled Offering ID 72573

Diane Kutchinski x46490

 

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3.            Electronic Document System (EDS) 2.0

The EDS 2.0 document type Task Performance Sheet (TPS) is preparing for centerwide deployment. This intuitive and simple system will enable TPS's to be generated and approved electronically. If you are a frequent user of JSC Form 1225, please sign up for one of the scheduled training sessions in SATERN.

Course Name: EDS Electronic Task Performance Sheet (eTPS) Training

Course Number: JSC-NT-SAIC-EDS

Two sessions offered on the following days from 9 to 11 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m.

o             Feb. 25

o             Feb. 26

o             March 11

o             March 12

o             March 25

o             March 26

Regina Senegal x32686

 

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4.            Important: Fire Extinguisher Training Time Change

Fire safety, at its most basic, is based on the principle of keeping fuel sources and ignition sources separate.

The Safety Learning Center invites you to attend a one-hour Fire Extinguisher Course that provides instructor-led training on the proper way to safely use fire extinguishers.

Students will learn:

o             Five classes of fires

o             Types of fire extinguishers and how to match the right extinguisher to different types of fires

o             How to inspect an extinguisher

o             How to use a fire extinguisher - P.A.S.S.

o             Understand the importance of knowing where extinguishers are at your location

o             Rules for fighting fires and the steps to take if a fire occurs

o             Hands on (weather permitting)

Date/Time: March 10 from 1 to 2 p.m.

Where: Safety Learning Center - Building 20, Room 205/206

Registration via SATERN required:

https://satern.nasa.gov/plateau/user/deeplink.do?linkId=SCHEDULED_OFFERING_DE...

Aundrail Hill x36369

 

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5.            Pressure Systems Operator and Refresher Training

Pressure Systems Operator and Refresher Training is formerly titled Certified Pressure Systems Courses.

These courses cover updated pressure systems requirements, do's and don'ts to operating, hazard analysis awareness and lessons learned.

Date: March 12

Location: Safety Learning Center - Building 20, Room 205/206

Use this direct link to SATERN for course times and to register.

Pressure Systems Operator - 9 to 11 a.m. CST

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

Pressure Systems Operator Refresher - 11:01 a.m. to 12:01 p.m. CST

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

Aundrail Hill x36369

 

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   Community

1.            Does Science Make You HAPPY?

Yes? Then by all means, volunteer to be a science fair judge! The Mae Smythe Elementary School is in desperate need of judges today, Feb. 24. Wouldn't you love to spend part of your Monday encouraging the next generation of innovators and scientists?  Judging starts at 9 a.m. and concludes at 2:30 p.m. Any amount of time you can spend there -- 30 minutes, two hours, longer  --  will be rewarding for you, enriching for them and, hey -- it's a great way to spend part of a Monday!

Navigate your way to the V-CORPs Web page to sign up for this event. 

Questions? Contact your friendly, neighborhood V-CORPs coordinator.

V-CORPS 281-792-5859 https://nasajsc.secure.force.com/vcorps

 

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2.            Blood Drive Thank You

Thank you to all those who took the time to donate at last week's blood drive.

St. Luke's collected a total of 208 units of blood. You are helping to ensure that blood is there when you or someone close to you may need it. Each donation can help as many as three people -- that's 624 lives!

Retirees are always welcome to return and donate. Send your e-mail address if you would like to be added to the mailing list for notification.

Mark your calendar for the next blood drive from April 16 to 17.

For additional information, check out our website or contact Teresa Gomez at 281-483-9588.

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

 

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

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

 

 

NASA and Human Spaceflight News

Monday – Feb. 24, 2014

 

HEADLINES AND LEADS

 

NASA Suspends Space Capsule Recovery Test Off San Diego Coast

Associated Press

A training exercise designed to showcase the government's ability to recover a space capsule at sea was scrubbed after NASA ran into trouble off the Southern California coast, the space agency said Friday.

Government and industry work to cut the cost of reaching space

Muhammed El-Hasan - Daily Breeze

In January, the head of the U.S. military's special research group known as DARPA sounded the alarm on what many in the space industry, both in and out of government, see as a looming problem that could threaten the nation's leadership in this sector.

NASA to evaluate ISS resupply options through 2024

Chris Bergin – NASA Space Flight

With the lifespan of the International Space Station (ISS) extended to at least 2024, NASA officials have begun evaluating options for the next phase of Commercial Resupply Services (CRS), allowing for the orbital outpost to be stocked up with supplies and equipment after the current CRS deal with SpaceX's Dragon and Orbital's Cygnus spacecraft expires.

Brevard facing strong competition for space ventures

James Dean – Florida Today

It wasn't an encouraging week for those hoping to attract commercial space ventures to the Space Coast.

Astronauts from International Space Station chat with Delaware Township students

Renée Kiriluk-Hill/Hunterdon Democrat Hunterdon County Democrat  

If you could spend 10 minutes chatting with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station what would you ask him?

Ron Littlepage: Don't plop spaceport into a Florida wildlife refuge

Ron Littlepage – Florida Times Union

Plans are being made for private companies to blast rockets into space from the middle of Yellowstone National Park.

UrtheCast Cameras Outside Space Station Send First Data Home

Megan Gannon – Space.com

The two commercial cameras that will keep a constant watch over Earth from outside the International Space Station have beamed their first bits of test data back home.

House Science Committee plans hearing on "Mars Flyby 2021" SLS/Orion mission concept

Jeff Foust – Space Politics

The House Science Committee has announced plans for a hearing at 10 am Thursday, February 27th of the full committee with an intriguing title: "Mars Flyby 2021: The First Deep Space Mission for the Orion and Space Launch System?" The only details provided so far is the list of witnesses, which includes some familiar names:

• Dr. Scott Pace, Director of the Space Policy Institute, George Washington University
• General Lester Lyles (ret.), Independent Aerospace Consultant and former Chairman of the Committee on "Rationale and Goals of the U.S. Civil Space Program" established by the National Academies
• Mr. Doug Cooke, Owner, Cooke Concepts and Solutions and former NASA Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems Mission Directorate
• Dr. Sandra Magnus, Executive Director, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

How a Mars Mission Could Ease California's Future Droughts

James Temple – Re/code

For a glimpse at how arid stretches of the southwest might one day deal with droughts like the one gripping California, a good place to start is the NASA Ames Research Center in the heart of Silicon Valley.

COMPLETE STORIES

NASA Suspends Space Capsule Recovery Test Off San Diego Coast

Associated Press

A training exercise designed to showcase the government's ability to recover a space capsule at sea was scrubbed after NASA ran into trouble off the Southern California coast, the space agency said Friday.

Crews had difficulty tying down a mock-up of the Orion capsule aboard an amphibious warship off the shores of San Diego.

NASA said cables attached to the capsule weren't strong enough to handle turbulence and snapped off twice while it was in the well deck of the USS San Diego before it could be moved out to sea on Thursday.

With the Orion mock-up still on the Navy ship, teams could not practice fetching the spacecraft from the ocean.

"Even though the testing didn't go as we had planned, we're learning lessons that will help us be better prepared to retrieve Orion," Bill Hill of NASA headquarters said in a statement.

Engineers were troubleshooting the problem, and it was not clear when the test would be rescheduled.

NASA has been developing a next-generation spacecraft to carry astronauts beyond low-Earth orbit, possibly to an asteroid or Mars. Orion, which will make its first unmanned test flight this fall, is being designed to travel to deep space and return at speeds of 25,000 mph by splashing down into the Pacific.

The water landing is a throwback to the 1960s and 1970s when Navy ships routinely tracked and recovered Mercury, Gemini and Apollo spacecraft after re-entering Earth's atmosphere.

With the space shuttle fleet retired, NASA has decided to go with an ocean splashdown. Unlike in the past, when helicopters would hoist astronauts after a mission, the new plan calls for an amphibious transport ship to dispatch divers and small boat teams to recover Orion and its crew.

Last year, NASA and the Navy practiced recovering the Orion in the calm waters of the Elizabeth River in Virginia with no problem.

Before the latest test was called off, NASA said crews successfully retrieved parts of the spacecraft, including the parachute and a protective covering.

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden was supposed to visit the test site Saturday, but his appearance was canceled.

Government and industry work to cut the cost of reaching space

Muhammed El-Hasan - Daily Breeze

In January, the head of the U.S. military's special research group known as DARPA sounded the alarm on what many in the space industry, both in and out of government, see as a looming problem that could threaten the nation's leadership in this sector.

Speaking at a forum hosted by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Arati Prabhaka, director of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, reportedly said: "I think we're in the middle of a self-inflicted surprise."

Prabhaka was referring to the high cost and slow turnaround time to get national security satellites into space.

Indeed, the space community from the Defense Department and NASA to Boeing and SpaceX are increasingly focused on reducing costs and increasing development speed when sending satellites and other systems beyond Earth's atmosphere.

The rising sense of urgency is driven in large part by the federal government's tightening budget constraints as the national debt continues to break records.

One strategy the government is taking to lower space costs is to act more like a commercial entity in dealing with contractors.

A meeting in summer 2011 hosted by Boeing executive Craig Cooning helps explain how this new approach is taking shape.

Cooning's high-profile guests included David Van Buren, then-acting assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, and Lt. Gen. Ellen M. Pawlikowski, who at the time was the new commander of the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center in El Segundo.

While lunching on teriyaki wrap, short ribs and sticky rice, Cooning and his guests discussed ways to lower the price of building military communications satellites.

"(Buren) was looking for ways to behave more commercial-like and asked us for ideas," recalled Cooning, vice president and general manager of Boeing Space & Intelligence Systems. "That (lunch) was the starting point."

Cooning noted to his guests the differences between two types of satellites built at his company's sprawling El Segundo factory.

One satellite, the Wideband Global Satcom, was for the Air Force. The other was for telecommunications company SkyTerra.

Both satellites were about the same size and weight with sophisticated digital signal processors.

However, the military satellite was more than $100 million more expensive and took a year and a half longer to build.

"And what drove those costs?" Cooning said. "The additional testing, the oversight and the lack of a block buy on parts."

Government programs nearly always involve a level of documentation, testing and oversight that far exceeds that of commercial programs. This is the case even when a satellite or other system has been proven and the contractor is simply building near-duplicates of the original.

In addition, federal purchases of satellites often do not involve a block buy, which is a money-saving approach used to purchase multiple systems.

For example, if a company orders four satellites from Boeing, the buyer pays a lump sum for parts. That allows Boeing to purchase the parts for the four systems at one time even when deliveries are staggered over multiple years.

By making a block buy, Boeing saves 20 to 30 percent on parts and can pass those savings on to the customer.

While there is talk about the government making block buys for satellites, that is not the case now.

"Because of the way the Air Force is authorized money by Congress, they can't obligate future congresses," Cooning said. "They can only obligate what they have on the table. In this case, a single satellite. So we couldn't get the material costs."

Yet, the Air Force did agree to reduce the amount of testing and oversight on four new Global Satcom satellites, for an expected savings of about $50 million in constant dollars for each system, Cooning said.

"We took programs that historically may have taken five years to do and we can do them in three and a half," Cooning said of the new approach. "Part of that (savings) is the cost of the people for those extra year or year and a half you're pulling off the program."

Cooning added that with a block buy, the Air Force could have saved about $100 million per satellite.

The government's cost-saving push includes satellite sensors.

"I think we're in a new era if you look at the overall budget climate for the government and most things that the government procures," said Bill Hart, vice president of space systems at Raytheon Space & Airborne Systems in El Segundo.

Raytheon makes sensors used in satellites for such customers as the Department of Defense, NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

"One of the changes I see is that instead of our conversations with our customers being, 'what do you want,' it's, 'what do you need,'" Hart said. "This whole notion of meeting the requirements and not overdoing it, if you will, is very much similar to what the commercial side focuses on. Pay for what you need and not anything else."

The push for cost savings means that Raytheon and other government contractors are constantly refining their manufacturing and design processes.

As a result, Raytheon has increased efficiencies by 10 percent annually for the past several years. That includes reducing the size and weight of sensors since it costs about $10,000 to put each pound of payload into orbit.

Raytheon has cut other costs to stay competitive including energy consumption. The company has reduced energy use by about 11 percent, which translates to about $5 million in savings, Hart said.

While the focus on cutting costs is important and necessary, it should not come at the expense of mission success, said Wayne Goodman, vice president of space program operations at El Segundo-based The Aerospace Corp., which advises the Air Force on satellites and launches.

"We probably have the most incredible string of successes. We haven't had a failure since the rash of failures in 1998 and 1999," Goodman said. "When we're launching billion-dollar satellites, we don't want to put them at risk to save some fraction on the rocket."

New satellite planning

Ultimately, the military must balance cost and mission assurance. Reducing noncritical tests is one technique.

Taking a new approach to satellite capabilities also can save money. Known as disaggregation, the idea is to take the capabilities normally found in a single satellite and distribute them among multiple satellites.

For example, a satellite that is powerful enough to communicate with the U.S. president in the event of a nuclear war requires a very durable and expensive architecture.

Satellites involved in more conventional military communications do not need such expensive designs.

Disaggregation calls for separating such capabilities into different satellites instead of having them all in one hyper-pricy satellite.

"So they'll be smaller and you'd think they'd be cheaper to send up," Goodman said.

Disaggregation also means that if one satellite in orbit goes down or is destroyed in an attack, it is more likely that there will be other satellites in orbit to fill the gap.

Rocket launches represent another area where the military is trying to cut costs.

United Launch Alliance, a joint venture between Lockheed Martin Corp. and Boeing, is the only business certified to carry U.S. military satellites into space.

However, Hawthorne-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, is seeking certification to bid for the lucrative launches.

ULA has put together an extraordinary string of successful launches for the Air Force. SpaceX, by contrast, is a relatively young company with frequent hiccups from launch delays to technical anomalies that have led some missions to fall below 100 percent success.

Yet, SpaceX says it offers the least expensive launches worldwide, even cheaper than Chinese launches.

SpaceX already sends commercial satellites into orbit and has a $1.6 billion contract to resupply the International Space Station, saving NASA billions of dollars compared to the now-defunct space shuttle program.

NASA's relationship with SpaceX is based on the space agency's belief that it can save money by putting development and operation of launches into the hands of private industry.

SpaceX's prices are so low that they could upend the price structure the Air Force has used in sending military satellites into orbit.

"What we do know is that if you look at a SpaceX heavy launcher like a Falcon 9 or a Falcon heavy, it's at least 50 percent cheaper than a comparable vehicle by Boeing or Lockheed," said Marco Caceres, senior analyst at the Teal Group Corp. in Fairfax, Va. "We're talking at least $50 million cheaper per vehicle so it's a significant cost saving for the Air Force."

SpaceX did not respond to questions for this article.

Even with greater efforts to reduce expenses, the government may not be going far enough, said James Wertz, an expert on space mission engineering whose Hawthorne company, Microcosm, is writing a book on shrinking the cost of going to space.

Wertz cited the Apollo program, which sent U.S. astronauts to the moon, as a good example of what the United States should do now.

"Historically, things were done in a much quicker and much lower-cost fashion. They would say here's the list of problems. We have to fix them before the next launch," Wertz said of the space program in that era. "Nowadays, if a problem arises what they do is stop all activity until they solve the problem. That dramatically extends schedule and extending schedule extends cost."

Soaring space costs also have led to a government drive to make missions nearly 100 percent successful so as not to lose a billion-dollar system, Wertz said. That, in turn, has further increased the price of missions, a dynamic he called the "space spiral."

Therefore, Wertz said, the government must become more accepting of less expensive spacecraft and rockets, even if that means a greater likelihood of launch failure, in order to lower the overall cost of missions.

"A failure has to be acceptable in a mission perspective," said Wertz, who lectures on space mission engineering at USC and abroad. "What you don't want to do is have people get killed or have the mission not succeed. But there is a difference between having the spacecraft be successful and the mission being successful."

NASA to evaluate ISS resupply options through 2024

Chris Bergin – NASA Space Flight

With the lifespan of the International Space Station (ISS) extended to at least 2024, NASA officials have begun evaluating options for the next phase of Commercial Resupply Services (CRS), allowing for the orbital outpost to be stocked up with supplies and equipment after the current CRS deal with SpaceX's Dragon and Orbital's Cygnus spacecraft expires.

CRS2:

Following the direction to phase out the Space Shuttle Program (SSP) at the completion of ISS assembly, NASA set up the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program, part of a wider effort to free the Agency from Low Earth Orbit (LEO) operations, allowing NASA to refocus on deep space exploration.

The COTS program played a huge role in developing new spacecraft towards the goal of commercial cargo and crew capabilities, with an initial priority of resupplying the ISS as part of an international effort.

The development of the commercial resupply element resulted in agreements being signed between NASA and SpaceX – with their Dragon spacecraft, along with Rocketplane Kistler (RpK) – and their K-1 vehicle. 

However, NASA managers opted to terminate the deal with RpK, eventually signing up one of the other contenders, Orbital – with their Cygnus spacecraft.

The Orbital deal to carry out ISS resupply flights - under the $1.9 billion CRS contract - called for eight missions carrying approximately 20,000 kg of cargo to the ISS. SpaceX were awarded $1.6 billion to conduct 12 Dragon resupply runs to the Station.

Both Orbital and SpaceX had to prove they could safely send their new spacecraft to the $100 billion Station, with Dragon conducting two COTS flights to pass a series of communications, rendezvous and berthing objectives.

Orbital's Cygnus spacecraft conducted one COTS mission prior to receiving a green light to begin CRS flights.

Both vehicles are now fully operational, with SpaceX currently preparing to launch their third CRS mission (CRS-3/SpX-3) to the ISS, while Orbital recently completed their first CRS mission (CRS-1/ORB-1).

Even before ISS was – as expected – extended to conduct operations through to at least 2024, the question of adding more commercial flights was always on the cards.

With the additional lifetime of the ISS confirmed, NASA managers have begun to evaluate a second salvo of commercial resupply missions under what is known as CRS2, allowing for early discussions on how the Agency can ensure a smooth continuation of supplies heading uphill from US soil.

"Over the past two years, NASA and its American industry partners have returned International Space Station resupply launches to U.S. soil, established new national space transportation capabilities and helped create jobs right here on Earth," noted a NASA release introducing the evaluations into CRS2.

"In January, the Obama Administration announced plans to extend the life of the space station through at least 2024 – marking another decade of discoveries to come that will benefit Earth while increasing the knowledge NASA needs to send astronauts to an asteroid and Mars.

"NASA has issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking industry feedback on options to meet the future needs of the International Space Station for cargo delivery of a variety of new science experiments, space station hardware and crew supplies."

CRS2 will cover services from 2017 through 2024, with the NASA RFI noting the Agency may elect to have one contract or multiple contracts to meet the requirements.

The document also notes the Agency expects to allocate between $1.0B and $1.4B per year to facilitate these services.

CRS2 outlines call for the delivery of 14,250 to 16,750 kilograms (kg) of pressurized cargo, along with 1,500 to 4,000 kg of unpressurized cargo per year.

The current scenario involves Orbital's Cygnus ending its missions via a destructive re-entry, taking with it a full compliment of trash for disposal. However, SpaceX's Dragon is capable of returning downmass via its safe re-entry and splashdown off the coast of California.

Sources also note discussions have – and will continue – to take place between NASA and SpaceX, per the potential of a larger trunk on Dragon, in order to enable larger Orbital Replacement Unit (ORU) transportation uphill to the outpost.

The CRS2 document notes that the Agency is looking at a requirement that would result in the return/disposal of up to 14,250 to 16,750 kg of pressurized cargo and the disposal of 1,500 to 4,000 kg of unpressurized cargo per year.

The RFI outlines the aforementioned services will be conducted over four to five missions per year.

While SpaceX and Orbital are likely to be front runners for the CRS2 contract, the RFI provides additional requirements and outlines that could foster possibilities for other commercial vehicles to compete for the roles.

"ISS will maintain the capability to support a berthing and a docking capability as physical interfaces to the ISS.  Service providers must be compatible with both prime and backup attachment ports," the document added.

"Berthing will be to a Common Berthing Mechanism (CBM).  Docking will be to the new International Docking Adapter (IDA)."

This allowance for berthing and docking vehicles opens up the potential for other commercial vehicles, such as Boeing's CST-100 – which is currently competing for the right to launch NASA astronauts to the ISS.

SNC's Dream Chaser is also aiming to provide crew launch capability, while also positioning itself for a multi-role path that could include cargo flights – as much as the vehicle hasn't been associated with CRS level missions.

Dream Chaser can launch and land with or without crew, on cargo only or combined missions. She would also bring another downmass option to the table.

The CRS2 scenario could also reopen the potential of ATK's Liberty space system making another attempt to win a NASA contract.

Despite the lack of news over the last few years, sources note the project is still alive, although it will only progress when customers are forthcoming.

A potential use of Liberty for CRS missions would likely relate to the extended cargo configuration, allowing the Liberty spacecraft to take full advantage of the launch vehicle lift capacity to transport a pressurized pod – the Liberty Logistics Module or LLM – along with the composite crew module.

Based on NASA's 15-foot diameter Multi-Purpose Logistic Module (MPLM) design, the LLM will include a common berthing mechanism (CBM) and will be capable of transporting up to 5,100 pounds of pressurized cargo.

With that capability, the LLM could be used to transport four full-size science racks to the ISS.

Although the Mobile Launcher (ML) Liberty was set to use for launches is now fully part of the Space Launch System (SLS) program, L2 information notes a back up plan had been evaluated, allowing Liberty to be stacked in High Bay 1 in Kennedy Space Center's Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB), launching from Pad-39B via a modified Shuttle Mobile Launch Platform (MLP).

Other interesting items listed in the document include a Launch on Need (LON) capability, required within two months of the previous flight.  Vehicles will also be required to be able to be mated to the ISS Mission for 45 to 75 days.

Responses to the RFI is due by close of business on March 21, 2014.

Brevard facing strong competition for space ventures

James Dean – Florida Today

 

It wasn't an encouraging week for those hoping to attract commercial space ventures to the Space Coast.

On Tuesday, FLORIDA TODAY sister paper The Daily Times of Salisbury, Md., reported that Bigelow Aerospace was pitching Wallops Island, Va., as a launching point for human spaceflight missions.

According to the newspaper, Mike Gold, Bigelow's director of D.C. Operations, told the Eastern Shore Defense Alliance that Kennedy Space Center has "so much activity that commercial activity will be bumped."

"Wallops is just right; you've got everything you need in terms of legal and regulatory readiness, but it's not so developed" that the company would encounter a lot of delays, Gold said.

Those comments came three years after a high-profile local event in which Robert Bigelow, president of the Las Vegas-based company, said he'd like to manufacture commercial space stations on the Space Coast, potentially employing up to 2,000 people. The station modules would launch here, and crews would follow.

"The absolute, ultimate, most important action, I think, that the state of Florida can take, beginning now, is to secure launch facilities to be used exclusively by the new commercial space industry, and to provide all possible political support," Bigelow said then.

Heeding the advice, Space Florida in 2012 proposed developing the Shiloh commercial launch complex at the north end of Kennedy Space Center and the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Now beginning an environmental review, the proposal received a less-than-welcome reception at a Feb. 12 public hearing in Titusville. Environmentalists say any new pad should be closer to existing NASA or Air Force pads. They believe launches could harm wildlife and cultural resources inside the refuge, and require road and waterway closures that would block visitors and be bad for fishing guides and other businesses.

Meanwhile, the near-term prize the Shiloh site hopes to attract — launch company SpaceX — has strengthened its interests in a competing site on Texas' Gulf Coast.

(Page 2 of 2)

 

The Valley Morning Star of Harlingen, Texas, reported Wednesday that SpaceX has continued buying property in Cameron County, which SpaceX has called the frontrunner for its private launch complex. An environmental review there is nearing completion.

Through its Dogleg Park LLC subsidiary, SpaceX this year has bought 28 new lots surrounding the proposed complex at Boca Chica Beach, bringing its holdings to 88 lots totaling roughly 36 acres, in addition to 56.5 acres it has leased, the newspaper reported.

The company packaged 13 of those lots, totaling just more than eight acres, under the name "Mars Crossing Subdivision."

The news reports underscored Space Florida President Frank DiBello's closing message to his board at a Feb. 5 meeting: "We are not alone," he said. "There is real competition out there, and we're going to have to really fight for maintaining a lead position in this industry."

NASA seeks input for ISS contracts

 

NASA has asked for industry input by March 21 on the next round of contracts it will award to deliver cargo to the International Space Station between 2017 and 2024.

SpaceX and Orbital Sciences Corp. won the first round of Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contracts, helping both to develop new rockets and spacecraft.

SpaceX's Dragon cargo capsules launches from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, so winning a follow-on contract would secure at least several launches a year from this area. The third of 12 missions under the Hawthorne, Calif., company's $1.6 billion contract is targeting a March 16 liftoff.

Orbital's Cygnus flies from Virginia's Eastern Shore. The Dulles, Va.-based company last week completed its first of eight missions under a $1.9 billion contract when a Cygnus departed the station and burned up in the atmosphere. The next launch is planned in early May.

 

Astronauts from International Space Station chat with Delaware Township students

Renée Kiriluk-Hill/Hunterdon Democrat Hunterdon County Democrat  

If you could spend 10 minutes chatting with an astronaut aboard the International Space Station what would you ask him?

Delaware Township School fourth- and fifth-graders were ready to go on Wednesday when they got the chance to do just that, through the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) program.

Everyone in the school got to listen in over speakers in the gym, where they were gathered that morning. "We put 400 people in one room and got them to be super-silent. That's just amazing," said teacher Val Wheatley, who organized the undertaking.

Since then, she said, "Everyone's still bubbling about it."

Delaware Township, a Pre-K through grade 8 school, submitted a proposal in April 2013 to take part in the ham radio program, Wheatley said.

ARISS is offered through a partnership between NASA; the American Radio Relay League, or ARRL; the Radio Amateur Satellite Corporation, or AMSAT; and other amateur radio organizations and space agencies in Russia, Canada, Japan and Europe.

In other words, volunteer enthusiasts connect schools with the astronauts in space.

Delaware Township's connection, for instance, was made from Earth to Space Station by way of ham radio operator Shane Lynd in Queensland, because the Station was 200 miles overhead Australia that day at that time.

At the school's end, Wheatley oversees an after-school, four-week amateur radio enrichment program, run through the PIE parent's group. Middle-school student Sam Zeloff had gotten his amateur radio license — the school used his call letters to make its connection on Wednesday — and he worked on the the connection with the Station, along with classmate Robert Steve, Wheatley said.

Meanwhile, the younger students had been studying space and each drafted a question they'd like to ask. Teachers chose the questions to put to Dr. Koichi Wakata, a Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut aboard Expedition 38, whose crew was launched in November.

According to online information posted by ARISS, it "receives many excellent proposals and has only a few contact opportunities — so the competition is tough!"

Once Delaware Township's application was approved, links were set up for the big day. In Huntington Beach, Ca., Charlie Sufana became the amateur radio moderator for the school.

He told the student that the space station was "flying over Southeast Asia on a northwest to southeast track, whizzing along at around 17,500 miles an hour."

The school's radio mentor was Bob Greenberg.

It was 3 a.m. in Australia, Wheatley said, but all worked out as planned and students hung on to Wakata's every word, many declaring afterwards that they now want to study for amateur radio licenses.

It was purely a radio contact, although the school did set up an Internet feed so that students could track the Space Station in flight.

Students asked questions and were answered quickly — some answers will be followed up with more classroom study, said Wheatley.

Fourteen were asked before the Space Station moved out of range of the radio in Australia. One student wanted to know if the crew had to repair the Space Station. It had, around Christmastime.

Another asked if the astronauts could take their phones to space and, if so, would they work. No, they don't.

Food and other supplies, they heard, reach them by way of shuttles. Wakata tweeted photos after deliveries, showing in one photo a green apple in space, in another a ripe, red tomato.

Could they watch the Olympics? No, but they did send an astronauts'-eye photo of Sochi for all to see.

A question about the effects of space travel on the body was particularly appropriate, it's one of the things the astronauts on Expedition 38 are studying.

Before the connection students in art classes created works lining the halls, imagining themselves in space, and to enter in a space art contest.

Ron Littlepage: Don't plop spaceport into a Florida wildlife refuge

Ron Littlepage – Florida Times Union

Plans are being made for private companies to blast rockets into space from the middle of Yellowstone National Park.

Unfortunately, the beloved park will have to be closed to visitors for a good part of the year to accomplish that.

Sorry.

And the park's unique environment will likely be damaged. Sorry about that, too, but there's money to be made.

OK. The above is fiction, but the harsh reality is Space Florida, which is leading the state's efforts to boost the space industry, is pushing to build a private launch site in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

Each year more than a million people visit the refuge, only about a two-hour drive from Jacksonville on Interstate 95.

They are drawn there by the refuge's beauty and the more than 500 species of fish, birds and wildlife that inhabit it.

Those visitors pump more than $60 million into the local economy annually.

In the quest to create jobs, likely at the expense of others, Space Florida is planning for 24 launches a year from a 200-acre site within the refuge.

That would require shutting down access to parts of the refuge in advance of each launch and would impact Mosquito Lagoon and Canaveral National Seashore, which generates another $67 million in local economic impact.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has expressed concerns that "upland, wetland and coastal scrub habitat could be destroyed, degraded or displaced during construction of proposed launch pads, access roads and utility rights-of-way, and during launch operations."

The service added that "a catastrophic event could have severe long-term impacts on refuge resources."

A workable alternative would be for Space Florida to work from the NASA launch sites within the Kennedy Space Center, which have worked well in coordination with the refuge for decades.

The argument against that is the private companies don't want to have to deal with the "red tape" that comes from launching from a government site.

Let's see: red tape vs. bald eagles, wood storks and roseate spoonbills and the spectacular display of migratory birds that come to the refuge each year?

The 1,000 people who attended recent public hearings in New Smyrna Beach and Titusville clearly sided with the wildlife and keeping the refuge open.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which will have to approve the commercial spaceport, has begun a review process that could take up to 18 months.

There's no question the surrounding area has been hit hard by the loss of space-related jobs that came with the end of the space shuttle program.

The jobs that would come with the commercial launches are needed, but that can be accomplished without degrading the wildlife refuge.

A commercial spaceport in Yellowstone National Park? No way.

The same should go for one of Florida's gems, the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

UrtheCast Cameras Outside Space Station Send First Data Home

Megan Gannon – Space.com

The two commercial cameras that will keep a constant watch over Earth from outside the International Space Station have beamed their first bits of test data back home.

The Vancouver-based company UrtheCast has not publicly released any pictures of videos showing its cameras' view of the planet just yet. But company officials announced this week that they have successfully downlinked camera data to the ground station in Moscow from both their high-resolution camera and medium-resolution camera. They've even acquired test imagery from the medium-resolution device.

By passing this test, UrtheCast (pronounced "EarthCast") is a step closer to its goal of providing Internet users and commercial clients with a stream of near-real time continuous footage of Earth.

"With both cameras functioning as anticipated, we are now focusing on further commissioning and calibration of the cameras and the pointing platform for the HRC [high-resolution camera]," UrtheCast's chief technology officer, George Tyc, said in a statement. This step is necessary before imagery can be acquired from the HRC.

Tyc added that the first "official full color, Ultra HD video" would be released in the second quarter of the year.

The cameras launched to the space station in November as part of Russian cargo delivery and were installed on the hull of the orbiting outpost during a spacewalk by Russian cosmonauts Oleg Kotov and Sergey Ryazanskiy on Jan. 27. An initial attempt to fix the cameras to the station in December had to be abandoned after the devices hit a communications glitch.

The cameras will capture stills and video of the planet from the viewpoint of the space station, which circles the globe every 90 minutes at an average altitude of 248 miles (400 kilometers). The medium-resolution camera will record 30-mile-wide (50 kilometers) swathes of imagery and will be able to make out objects about 19 feet (6 meters) across or larger. The high-resolution camera, meanwhile, will be able to resolve targets as small as 3.3 feet (1 meter) across, according to UrtheCast.

House Science Committee plans hearing on "Mars Flyby 2021" SLS/Orion mission concept

Jeff Foust – Space Politics

The House Science Committee has announced plans for a hearing at 10 am Thursday, February 27th of the full committee with an intriguing title: "Mars Flyby 2021: The First Deep Space Mission for the Orion and Space Launch System?" The only details provided so far is the list of witnesses, which includes some familiar names:

• Dr. Scott Pace, Director of the Space Policy Institute, George Washington University
• General Lester Lyles (ret.), Independent Aerospace Consultant and former Chairman of the Committee on "Rationale and Goals of the U.S. Civil Space Program" established by the National Academies
• Mr. Doug Cooke, Owner, Cooke Concepts and Solutions and former NASA Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems Mission Directorate
• Dr. Sandra Magnus, Executive Director, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Exactly what this mission concept is, and whether it would include a crew, are unclear. Last November, at another hearing of the House Science Committee's space subcommittee, Dennis Tito pitched members on using SLS and Orion as part of a revised mission architecture for his Inspiration Mars mission concept, which would send a married couple on a Mars flyby mission. At that hearing, he said there was a backup mission architecture that could launch in late 2021; it would take 88 days longer than the 501-day mission in the 2018 plan, but would feature flybys of both Mars and Venus.

An individual familiar with Inspiration Mars's activities said earlier this month that the organization was now focused on studying that 2021 mission opportunity. It's unclear, though, if that is the same mission concept the House Science Committee will consider in Thursday's hearing.

Also, Rep. Steve Stockman (R-TX), a member of the committee, posted a note to his Facebook page about the hearing, saying that the committee would "hold a hearing on an exciting mission to send Americans to flyby both Mars and Venus in 2021." If correct, that sounds very much like the alternative mission architecture Tito mentioned in November.

How a Mars Mission Could Ease California's Future Droughts

James Temple – Re/code

For a glimpse at how arid stretches of the southwest might one day deal with droughts like the one gripping California, a good place to start is the NASA Ames Research Center in the heart of Silicon Valley.

On the second floor of a building known as N239, with gray pockmarked walls designed to resemble the surface of the moon, is a room full of beakers, instruments and machines. This is the Water Technology Development Lab.

There, scientist Michael Flynn and his team are working on a daunting task: Making sure astronauts don't die of dehydration. That becomes a particularly tricky problem as NASA winds up for a three-year journey to and from Mars.

Given the constraints of any spacecraft, the only way to do it is to recycle sweat and urine. And Flynn believes the best way to do that is to mimic the human body's own processes, using synthetic membranes that, like the intestines, are lined with lipids and proteins that evolution engineered into ideal water filters. That technology already exists, but now NASA wants to engineer a bacteria that produces vast amounts of the stuff — creating a living membrane that can last a lifetime.

What does that have to do with a California drought? Everything.

More reliable and less energy-intensive water membranes could make desalination and waste-water recycling more affordable and efficient, easing pressure on groundwater and reservoirs.

Just how well it works at industrial scale remains to be seen – but it's abundantly clear that new approaches are needed, whether they come from NASA or elsewhere.

Amid California's worst drought on record, merely asking citizens to voluntarily stop watering their lawns and washing their cars isn't cutting it.

Rains finally arrived two-thirds of the way into the wet season. But hundreds of thousands of acres of normally fertile farmland are fallow. The Sierra snowpack that feeds streams and reservoirs reached historic lows. Seventeen communities are in danger of running out of water in the next few months. And the federal government announced Friday that it couldn't provide any water from its reservoirs to farmers this year.

Western states are bracing for a landmark wildfire year, and soaring food prices are likely to ripple throughout the nation.

President Barack Obama visited California's Central Valley earlier this month to announce a $170 million aid package.

"We're going to have to stop looking at these disasters as something to wait for," Obama said.

Indeed, if this were a one-year fluke in a single state, muddling through with rationing and importing water from elsewhere might suffice. But it's not.

This is the third year in a row California has struggled with severe water shortages — and much of the West is suffering moderate to severe drought conditions in 2014 as well. Large parts of India, China and Africa have battled droughts and resulting food shortages in recent years.

Given the twin challenges of population growth and climate change, the pressures on water systems are widely expected to grow in the decades ahead.

"Warming temperatures associated with climate change will likely create increasingly dry soil conditions across much of the globe in the next 30 years, possibly reaching a scale in some regions by the end of the century that has rarely if ever been observed in modern times," concluded a report by the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

In other words, this year's anomaly could become tomorrow's new normal.

"This may be a wake-up call," said David Sedlak, co-director of the Berkeley Water Center and author of the new book "Water 4.0."

He said there are three main options for adding to the water supply: Recycling waste water, desalinizing sea water and capturing storm runoff.

All three could benefit from the sort of advances being explored at NASA. But he was quick to stress that today's technology works and there's no reason to wait around for radical breakthroughs to begin addressing these challenges.

The city of Perth, Australia, already gets about 17 percent of its water through desalination, while California awaits construction of a single significant plant. Some 17 are in various planning stages in the state, with the first set to come online in Carlsbad during the next two years, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

"Solving the problem of water supply over the next 10 or 20 years is going to rely on technologies that are here and mature now," Sedlak said.

We simply need the political will and capital to begin deploying them: Building more desalination plants, adding storage capacity, installing infrastructure for capturing urban storm water, and designing office buildings and homes with systems that can recycle and reuse water.

There are also big gains to be had by simply modernizing water infrastructure and using more efficient toilets, shower heads and washing machines, said Heather Cooley, co-director of the water program at the Pacific Institute. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 14 percent of treated water is lost through leaks.

In the Golden State, another ripe conservation opportunity is getting residents to replace sprawling grass lawns with "drought tolerant, California-friendly landscapes," she said.

But there's no question that there are vast differences in cost between traditional approaches and emerging ones. Groundwater starts at $375 per acre foot, while recycled water begins at $1,200 and seawater desalination costs at least $1,800, according to a 2010 Equinox Center analysis for San Diego County, Calif.

Making strides in water technology is critical for lowering costs, which in turn is critical for moving to these new systems. New approaches also promise to reduce energy use – which is not a trivial issue. Twenty percent of California's electricity goes to moving, treating, heating and consuming water, according to the California Energy Commission.

The "biomimetic membranes" that NASA is starting with were developed by Danish biotech company Aquaporin for a variety of terrestrial applications, including more energy efficient desalination and water recycling. (See sidebar.)

The company's membranes are lined with their namesake aquaporin proteins, naturally occurring compounds in cell walls that allow water through but block salt particles and toxins.

The limitation of this technology for astronauts is that the membranes have a shelf life. The proteins eventually unfold, losing the structure that makes them ideal filters.  And failures aren't allowed in space.

A malfunctioning water recycling system on the International Space Station back in 2009 was only repaired thanks to the delivery of a new part, something that won't be possible during a Mars mission.

If hoped-for funding kicks in next year, the water lab will begin serious work on engineering the bacteria to create living membranes. Should it work as hoped, it would essentially self repair.

The plan is to integrate the membrane into NASA's so-called Next Generation Life Support Water Recycling Processor, which is the current best candidate for a Mars mission.

NASA is also planning to build the technology into spacesuits to provide an emergency system should astronauts have to spend extended periods outside the spacecraft — say, in a scenario like the one imagined in the recent movie "Gravity."

As NASA improves on the technology, it plans to test it on the International Space Station. But Flynn said they'll put it to work on Earth as well.

By installing it within the closed-loop water systems of a NASA Ames building known as Sustainability Base, they hope to light the path for building water recycling technology within every home, drastically reducing demand for fresh water.

"It's where we demonstrate commercial applicability – and potential for addressing challenges like the drought we have right now," Flynn said.

 

END

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