Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Fwd: NASA and Human Spaceflight News - Wednesday – August 20, 2014 and JSC Today



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From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: August 20, 2014 3:07:34 PM CDT
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: FW: NASA and Human Spaceflight News - Wednesday – August 20, 2014 and JSC Today

 

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Wednesday, August 20, 2014

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   Headlines

  1. Last Replay Tomorrow of the Aug. 13 All Hands

If you missed the Aug. 13 All Hands with JSC Director Ellen Ochoa, you still have one more day to view the replays tomorrow, Aug. 21, at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.

JSC team members can view the all-hands meeting on JSC cable TV channel 2 (analog), channel 51-2 (digital high definition) or Omni 45.

JSC, Ellington Field, Sonny Carter Training Facility and White Sands Test Facility employees with wired computer network connections can view the event using the JSC EZTV IP Network TV System on channel 402 (standard definition). Please note: EZTV currently requires using Internet Explorer on a Windows PC connected to the JSC computer network with a wired connection. Mobile devices, Wi-Fi connections and newer MAC computers are currently not supported by EZTV. If you are having problems viewing the video using these systems, contact the Information Resources Directorate Customer Support Center at x46367.

JSC External Relations, Office of Communications and Public Affairs x35111

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   Organizations/Social

  1. Tomorrow Last Day to RSVP for JSC NMA Luncheon

Please come out and support the JSC National Management Association (NMA) and hear our own JSC Director Dr. Ellen Ochoa as we kick off 2015-2016.

Cost for members: FREE

Cost for non-members: $20

RSVP by tomorrow, Aug. 21, no later than 3 p.m. on the NMA website.

Event Date: Tuesday, August 26, 2014   Event Start Time:11:30 AM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Gilruth - Alamo Ballroom

Add to Calendar

Leslie N. Smith x46752

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  1. Assertiveness Skills

Assertiveness is the quality of being self-assured and confident without being aggressive. It requires being honest about your wants and needs while still considering the rights, needs and wants of others. Of the three main communication styles, it is the most desirable one to attain. Come and learn to identify assertiveness communication skills from passive and aggressive styles. Identify assertive communication techniques and learn key assertive phrases to use. Understand how self-confidence is an essential trait of assertiveness. Please join Anika Isaac, LPC, LMFT, LCDC, NCC, CEAP, as she presents "Assertiveness Skills".

Event Date: Wednesday, August 20, 2014   Event Start Time:12:00 PM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Building 30 Auditorium

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Lorrie Bennett, Employee Assistance Program, Occupational Health Branch x36130

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  1. Adult Sports Leagues

Do you want a fun team building activity? Sign up a team full of your co-workers for our adult sports leagues. We offer a plethora of different leagues that are fun and for everyone to enjoy! Use the link listed below to sign your team up today.

Registration Dates:

    •  Soccer: Aug. 5 to Sept. 5
    • Basketball: Aug. 19 to Sept. 9
    • Recreation Volleyball: Aug. 18 to Sept. 15
    • Competitive Volleyball: Sept. 8 to Oct. 6

Registration Cost:

    • Soccer: $475 (Gilruth) $500.53 (Online)
    • Basketball: $425 (Gilruth) $447.90 (Online)
    • Volleyball: $225 (Gilruth) $237.37 (Online)

Season Dates:

    • Soccer: Sept. 13 to Nov. 29
    • Basketball: Sept. 17 to Nov. 19
    • Recreation Volleyball: Sept. 23 to Dec. 2
    • Competitive Volleyball: Oct. 14 to Dec. 16

All games are played in the Gilruth Center's gymnasium or field.

Robert K. Vaughn II x38049 http://www.imleagues.com/School/Intramural/Home.aspx?SchId=b77f7df9172d4...

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  1. SCH NCMA September Webinar

Spend 90 minutes with a practicing professional—a contractor selling commercial items to the U.S. government, directly and indirectly. Learn from years of research and practice on how to navigate and negotiate commercial items and pricing. Hear the answers to the questions asked by buyers. Apply the principles and resources provided to leverage your commercial product or service.

The growing number of protests reflects several government and private sectors trends as many companies are seeing difficult times ahead, revising business strategies and weighing the costs of protest litigation.

Robert Jones has over nine years of Department of Defense contracts and accounting experience with both service and manufacturing environments, with over five years in aerospace.

For more information, view the brochure here.

Event Date: Thursday, September 11, 2014   Event Start Time:11:30 AM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: ISS Conference Facility

Add to Calendar

Jeremy Pierre x47561 http://officeofprocurement.jsc.nasa.gov/ncma.asp

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   Jobs and Training

  1. MEST Conference Correction/Additional Information

For civil servants planning on attending the Sept. 16 Medicine, Energy, Space and Technology (MEST) Conference, you must register in SATERN no later than this Friday, Aug. 22. Anyone registering after Aug. 22 will not be reimbursed for the registration fee due to the end of the Fiscal Year accounting cycle. Please use the SATERN External Training Form 182 when registering. For assistance in completing sections B1a through C6 of the form, please contact Lisa Roberts.

Contractors who wish to attend the MEST Conference will need to contact their management for approval and register through the MEST website.

All participants who wish to take part in the technical challenges portion of the conference should contact Walter Ugalde at x38615 no later than Aug. 22 to submit a challenge.

Lisa Roberts x38619 http://www.mestconference.com/

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  1. ISS EDMS User Forum

The International Space Station (ISS) Electronic Document Management System (EDMS) team will hold the monthly General User Training Forum tomorrow, Aug. 21, at 9:30 a.m. at Building 4S, Room 5315. Lync meeting and telecom provided.

If you use EDMS to locate station documents, join us to learn about basic navigation and searching. Bring your questions, concerns, suggestions and meet the EDMS Customer Service team. The agenda is located here.

Event Date: Thursday, August 21, 2014   Event Start Time:9:30 AM   Event End Time:10:30 AM
Event Location: JSC Bldg 4S, Room 5315

Add to Calendar

LaNell Cobarruvias x41306 https://iss-www.jsc.nasa.gov/nwo/apps/edms/web/UserForums.shtml

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  1. Machine Guarding Seminar ViTS: Sept. 3 & 24

This course is an overview or refresher of hazards, needs and requirements for those who may use machines and machinery during the performance of their duties. Basic requirements from NASA and OSHA machine guarding standards will be discussed, as well as an overview of protective devices and procedures. This course is based on the OSHA Training Institute. The course includes quick review, various types of common machinery used at NASA and the safety standards related to those types of machines. The course is intended as a refresher for those who have taken SMA-SAFE-NSTC-0204, Machinery and Machine Guarding, and have the need to use machinery in the performance of their duties for operations where machinery is used. There will be a final exam associated with this course, which must be passed with a 70 percent minimum score to receive course credit.

Sept. 3 registration link:

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

Sept. 24 registration link:

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

Shirley Robinson x41284

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   Community

  1. Just One More Week to Go, Help Us Stuff the Truck

We're nearing the conclusion of our JSC Feeds Families effort, and WE NEED YOU to make it a success!

So far, we've donated 2,447 pounds of food, split between the Clear Lake Food Pantry and the Galveston County Food Bank. It's a far cry from our 60,000-pound target!

Please drop a donation in one of the many food-collection bins across the center, or purchase a food voucher or prepackaged bag of food in the Starport Gift Shops.

Be sure to join us at the Gilruth Center on Aug. 27 between 8 and 11 a.m. for our final event: Stuff the Truck. Drop off your donation to one the JSC team senior leaders there and help us fill up the truck.

Come on JSC team—let's hit our target and help knock out hunger!

Mike Lonchambon/Joyce Abbey x45151/281-335-2041

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  1. Humans in Space Art Video Challenge is Now Open

Join NASA's International Space Station Program and Humans in Space Art in a journey of exploration. Interested college students and early career professionals worldwide are invited to influence the future of life on Earth and human space exploration. Individuals and teams should submit a three minute video capturing their visions of "How will space, science and technology benefit humanity?" Video artwork may be any style. Younger participants may submit a video, but artwork from artists of all ages will be judged together. Winning artwork will be given worldwide visibility and flown in orbit on the International Space Station.

Entries are due Nov. 15.

Visit the website here and select "Challenge" for details.

Please share this information with interested artists, teachers, parents and more. A printable poster is also available on the website.

Jancy McPhee x42022 http://www.HumansInSpaceArt.org

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  1. Blood Drive - Aug. 20 and 21

There is no substitute for blood. It has to come from one person in order to give it to another. Will there be blood available when you or your family needs it? A regular number of voluntary donations are needed every day to meet the needs for blood. Make the "Commitment to Life" by taking one hour of your time to donate blood. Your blood donation can help as many as three patients.

You can donate at one of the following locations:

Teague Auditorium Lobby - 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Building 11 Starport Café Donor Coach - 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Gilruth Center Donor Coach - Noon - 4 p.m. (Thursday only)

Criteria for donating can be found at the St. Luke's link on our website. T-shirts, snacks and drinks will be available for all donors.

Event Date: Wednesday, August 20, 2014   Event Start Time:9:00 AM   Event End Time:4:00 PM
Event Location: Teague Lobby & Bldg. 11

Add to Calendar

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.

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NASA and Human Spaceflight News

Wednesday – August 20, 2014

 

HEADLINES AND LEADS

The final frontier: Universal space travel

 

Clay Dillow - CNBC

 

More than three decades after the launch of the first space shuttle mission (and three years after the last one), investment in new human spaceflight systems is back with an intensity the aerospace industry hasn't seen since the heady days of the Space Race.

 

 

This is what your home on Mars could look like

 

Michelle Starr – C/NET

 

Humans living on Mars is a fascinating concept. We already have Mars One looking to establish a Mars colony, and NASA planning manned missions to the Red Planet, with one objective being to assess the feasibility of living there; whether Mars has the resources necessary for human survival, and whether we have the technology to create what we need.

 

 

Orbital Wraps Up Second Paid ISS Mission for NASA, Eyes Rocket Upgrade for 3rd Cargo Run

 

Dan Leone – SpaceNews

 

WASHINGTON -- Laden with 1,615 kilograms of trash from the international space station, Orbital Sciences Corp.'s uncrewed Cygnus space freighter completed a planned destructive reentry into Earth's atmosphere Aug. 17, marking the end of the second of eight cargo delivery-and-disposal missions the Dulles, Virginia, company owes NASA under its $1.9 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract.

 

 

Curiosity Brushes 'Bonanza King' Target Anticipating Fourth Red Planet Rock Drilling

 

Ken Kremer – Universe Today

 

Eagerly eyeing her next drill site on Mars, NASA's Curiosity rover laid the groundwork by brushing the chosen rock target called 'Bonanza King' on Wednesday, Aug. 17, Sol 722, with the Dust Removal Tool (DRT) and collecting high resolution imagery with the Mast Camera (Mastcam) to confirm the success of the operation.

 

 

Space Cooperation With U.S. Not Affected by Ukraine, Russian Official Says

 

Matthew Bodner – The Moscow Times

 

A senior Russian space official has said cooperation with the U.S. on the International Space Station has not suffered from the Ukraine crisis, despite indications tensions may be imposing themselves on the otherwise resolutely apolitical space partnership.

 

 

Rats in Spaaace! NASA Wants to Put Rodents on Space Station

 

Elizabeth Howell – space.com

 

Call them the "rat-stronauts." NASA is drawing up plans to launch a team of rats with the right stuff to the International Space Station as early as this year. You know, for science. While rodents have flown on space shuttle flights in the past, those missions have only lasted a week or two. This new rats in space mission, however, could range between 30 and 90 days, depending on the availability of spacecraft like SpaceX's Dragon capsule to ferry them on the roundtrip.

 

 

NASA delays award of multibillion dollar SEWP V contract

 

Andy Medici – Federal Times

 

NASA has postponed the award of its $20 billion Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) V contract until September, according to the agency. The delay is primarily due to the large volume of proposals the agency received, which required a lengthy review and selection process, according to NASA spokeswoman Sonja Alexander. There are about 70 contractors on the SEWP IV contract.

 

 

Russian ISS Cosmonauts to get Next-Generation Space Suits

 

Matthew Bodner – The Moscow Times

 

Russia's iconic golden Orlan spacesuits will be replaced with upgraded fifth-generation models aboard the International Space Station, or ISS, next year, as senior space official said on Tuesday, adding that jetpacks are in the works as well.

 

 

ABC developing 'Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth' as TV sitcom

 

collectSPACE.com

 

Aug. 20, 2014 — Astronaut Chris Hadfield's down-to-Earth advice is now the basis for a television sitcom. ABC on Tuesday (Aug. 19) committed to the production of a pilot episode for a family comedy inspired by Hadfield's best-selling book, "An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth" (Little, Brown and Co., 2013), Deadline Hollywood reports. The TV series, as described, will follow an astronaut as he readjusts to domestic life, discovering that it "might be the hardest mission he's ever faced."

 

 

Astronaut Family Comedy Lands At ABC With Pilot Production Commitment

 

Nellie Andreeva – Deadline Hollywood

 

EXCLUSIVE: In a very competitive situation, ABC has landed An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth, a multi-camera comedy from Surviving Jack creators Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker with a pilot production commitment. The project, from Warner Bros TV — where the duo is under an overall deal — and 3 Arts Entertainment, is based on the memoir by Col. Chris Hadfield, a seasoned Canadian astronaut who became an Internet star with his videos from the International Space Station. The TV series is described as a family comedy about an astronaut who is back from space and finds that re-entering domestic life might be the hardest mission he's ever faced. Halpern and Schumacker will write the script and executive produce with 3 Arts' Erwin Stoff and Tom Lassally. Hadfield will serve as a consulting producer.

 

 

Former astronaut emphasizes attitude

 

Nick Duke – The Bayonet

 

Fort Benning Soldiers had the opportunity to hear from one of the pioneers of the American space exploration effort August 14 during the latest edition of the Combat Leader Speaker Program.

 

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas Stafford was among the second group of astronauts selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in September 1962 for participation in the Gemini and Apollo projects.

 

Stafford said the early days of the space program had some uncertainty not unlike the uncertain future the military faces today with budget constraints and a drawdown looming.

 

 

Musk's SpaceX Denies Blog Report of Capital Raising Plan

 

Alan Ohnsman – Bloomberg

 

Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the first private rocket maker to deliver cargo to the International Space Station, said it isn't raising funds from private sources, denying a report of plans to do so. The TechCrunch blog said yesterday the aerospace company known as SpaceX was seeking "a large secondary investment" of about $200 million, without saying where it got the information. The fundraising push would result in lifting the Hawthorne, California-based company's value to almost $10 billion, TechCrunch said.

 

 

Stennis Space Center employees receive NASA honor awards

 

Mississippi Press

 

Stennis Space Center Director Rick Gilbrech and NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Lesa Roe presented annual NASA Honor Awards to center employees during an onsite ceremony Aug. 19.

 

COMPLETE STORIES

The final frontier: Universal space travel

 

Clay Dillow - CNBC

 

More than three decades after the launch of the first space shuttle mission (and three years after the last one), investment in new human spaceflight systems is back with an intensity the aerospace industry hasn't seen since the heady days of the Space Race.

 

In the first half of this year, Elon Musk's Hawthorne, California-based SpaceX unveiled both an experimental reusable rocket stage and a new crew vehicle for carrying humans into orbit. By year's end, NASA will select a new crew vehicle from four commercial options, and its next-generation interplanetary crew vehicle, under development by Lockheed Martin, will begin flight tests.

 

Next year Mojave, California-based XCOR Aerospace will begin flying its two-seat suborbital Lynx spaceplane. In 2017, Sierra Nevada Corp. plans to send its seven-seat Dream Chaser spacecraft into orbit, while Boeing will launch the most powerful space rocket ever built—the one that will launch NASA/Lockheed's Orion and crew to an undetermined destination beyond orbit in 2021.

 

This current generation of spacecraft and launch vehicles under construction at private spaceflight ventures like SpaceX, Sierra Nevada, Orbital Sciences, Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Virgin Galactic, XCOR and Blue Origin represents not only a renewed interest in putting humans into space but new opportunities made possible by expanding markets in low Earth orbit (LEO) and, at some point in the next few decades, economic opportunities at destinations beyond.

 

Improving economics is spurring the trend. "Up until this point, space transportation has been an exclusively money-losing proposition, and when things lose money, you don't do a lot of them," said Jeff Greason, founder and CEO of private space company XCOR. As he explained, technical progress will accelerate as investors get better returns on their investments.

 

With launch costs already decreasing and new destinations and revenue streams emerging in orbit, that is already happening. The industry is closer than ever to tipping over into profitability.

New destinations, new markets

 

According to Christopher Ferguson, former NASA shuttle commander and director of crew and mission systems for Boeing's commercial crew program, the business case for human space travel isn't so much about how you get there as it is about where you're going and how much it costs to get there.

 

"This really depends on what the destination is for low Earth orbit and how viable that destination is as a place for leisure or to conduct business," Ferguson said.

 

Those destinations are emerging. Though the International Space Station (ISS) currently serves as the only permanently manned outpost in space, Las Vegas-based Bigelow Aerospace is testing inflatable space habitats in orbit that it hopes to develop into a series of commercial space stations, serving as either scientific outposts that could be leased by government agencies or "space hotels" that would allow space tourists to spend extended periods in orbit. These stations would require regular resupply and the shuttling of researchers and tourists to and from orbit—services that could be supplied not by NASA or another space agency but by private space-transportation companies.

 

"There's a revolution happening in the ownership," said Mark Sirangelo, head of Sierra Nevada's space systems unit. "Everything else before this point was owned by the government. In this case, it's being owned by industry, built by industry. That's a fundamental change."

 

Meanwhile, the cost per space launch is also undergoing fundamental change, thanks to a range of technological developments within the private spaceflight industry. SpaceX has famously shaken up the space launch industry by undercutting its competitors on launch price, in some cases by as much as half.

 

Other spaceflight companies, including Boeing Commercial Airplanes, Sierra Nevada and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin, are variously developing new spacecraft designed to carry humans into orbital space as part of NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP). In addition, these companies are developing potentially less-expensive launch vehicles to get them there. (In the next few weeks, NASA will select one of four spacecraft under consideration to be its new workhorse for servicing the ISS, leaving three spacecraft in need of a new customer.)

 

The current high cost of human space transportation is largely tied up in rocket stages that are destroyed after a single use. There are two ways to go about solving this problem, XCOR's Greason said. The first: Recover, refurbish, and reuse rocket stages (SpaceX has developed and tested reusable rocket stages, and other companies, like Blue Origin, have patented related technologies). SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has predicted that if his company can make rocket reusability a reality, it could lower launch costs via its Falcon 9 rocket—currently advertised at $61.2 million—by an order of magnitude.

 

The other path to reusability is single-stage systems: those that go to space and back all in one piece without shedding rocket motors and fuel tanks along the way, allowing them to be reused over and over again. XCOR is pursuing the latter paradigm with its winged rocket-powered Lynx, a reusable space vehicle that will take off from a conventional runway and blast into suborbital space (roughly 330,000 feet, or 63 miles) powered by an onboard rocket motor before flying back to Earth and landing on a conventional runway.

 

It's here that the future of regular human space travel may have the most room to run. Concepts for wholly new hybrid rocket/air-breathing engine technologies, like those pioneered by U.K.-based Reaction Engines for its still highly conceptual Skylon space vehicle, could in the next decade materialize in runway-to-runway spaceplanes that can go to space and back relatively cheaply and with very fast turnaround between flights—something like a Boeing 777 for orbital destinations.

 

Both single-stage spaceplanes and reusable rocket stages have their merits, Greason said, and there's no obvious reason that one method might have an economic advantage over the other. What is obvious is that reusability will be the idea that drives space-transportation designs in the decades ahead. By the end of the next decade, neither spacecraft that take off and land from a runway like a conventional jet airliner nor reusable rockets will be outside the realm of possibility, and either could change the calculus of human space travel.

 

"The ability to get to orbit less expensively and in a more rapid nature could make a big dent in our ability to live and work in space," Sierra Nevada's Sirangelo said. "If we could solve the problem of getting to space more effectively than we do now, I think we would find ourselves doing more interesting, potentially game-changing things in low Earth orbit."

 

Those game-changing things aren't limited to science experiments and orbiting tourism hubs. With a more established presence in orbit, companies and space agencies will begin to explore experimental technologies, like in-orbit manufacturing.

 

One of the big limiting factors in plaguing future space missions is lifting off from Earth with all the supplies, fuel, spacecraft and equipment humans would need to establish a permanent lunar base or field a Mars mission. Manufacturing facilities in orbit would allow components and raw materials to be shipped into orbit piecemeal and assembled into the means for future missions to points beyond, Sirangelo said. "It's far easier to launch something from orbit than it is to launch it from the ground."

The space beyond

 

If the next decade of human space transportation is about private companies finding and developing cheaper and more efficient ways into Earth orbit, the decade following will be all about space agencies learning how to operate farther and farther from home, with an eventual eye to orbiting and eventually landing humans on Mars in the mid-2030s (per NASA's timeline).

 

Solutions to the technical challenges in doing so are already in the works, largely thanks to research conducted over more than a decade of continuously inhabiting the ISS, said Jason Crusan, director of advanced exploration systems within NASA's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. "We have used the LEO environment to learn quite a lot about the human as a system, and we've developed a lot of countermeasures for those effects over time."

 

Among the challenges NASA faces in taking humans deeper into space:

 

    Developing a completely closed-loop system for water supplies that recycles every drop of sweat, urine, condensation and wastewater into drinkable water for the crew.

    Space agriculture systems that allow for the growing of food in space.

    Air-recycling systems that can reliably scrub carbon dioxide and provide enough oxygen for humans during a long-duration spaceflight (the flight to Mars takes nine months).

    Radiation shielding to minimize dangerous solar and cosmic radiation that are far less of an issue within the protective boundaries of Earth's magnetic field.

 

Aboard the ISS, things like a closed-loop water-recycling system and reliable space-borne agriculture are already close to reality, Crusan said.

 

NASA's Orion spacecraft offers a glimpse into this future. Though its gumdrop shape and exterior look evokes memory of the Apollo spacecraft of four decades ago, Orion's developers at Lockheed Martin Space Systems have built all kinds of next-generation technologies into the spacecraft, including enhanced radiation shielding and a new generation of carbon-scrubbing technology to maintain the crew's breathable environment.

 

Slated for a first crewed mission in 2021, it is expected to serve as NASA's deep-space exploratory spacecraft for the next decade, potentially carrying astronauts to the moon, nearby asteroids and even Mars or one of its moons in the 2030s. As it happens, the next two decades of deep-space travel is already shaping up in a hangar in Florida.

 

That doesn't mean there won't be new developments, Boeing's Ferguson said, but that it's possible to get a pretty good look at the future of human space transportation—even space transportation to places far beyond what technology is currently capable of—by looking at the various technologies already under development today and imagining how they'll complement each other in the future.

 

"I don't think you're going to see anything out of Star Wars," he said of future manned missions to deep-space destinations. "You'll see something like Orion, but something like Orion coupled up with an inflatable space habitat."

 

From a technical standpoint, there's little holding NASA and private industry back from an era in which humans move freely between Earth and orbit or orbit and points beyond, Greason said. Industry is ready, and the scientific community is eager. The next era of human space transportation can really start as soon as humans decide they want it to.

 

"If the American taxpayer wants to send a government-backed, manned mission to the moon, or to an asteroid, or to Mars, we can do it anytime we want to do it, and it shouldn't have to take 20 years," Greason said. "I'm in the private space business because I don't feel like waiting 20 years for something to happen. So I'm focused on what can we start doing right now."

 

 

This is what your home on Mars could look like

 

Michelle Starr – C/NET

 

Humans living on Mars is a fascinating concept. We already have Mars One looking to establish a Mars colony, and NASA planning manned missions to the Red Planet, with one objective being to assess the feasibility of living there; whether Mars has the resources necessary for human survival, and whether we have the technology to create what we need.

 

While, however, it's still a distant dream, that hasn't stopped people from thinking about how we might live if we get there. Recently, NASA and Makerbot held the Mars Base challenge: to design human habitation, using materials either found on Mars or brought from Earth, that could be 3D printed.

 

With 228 submissions on Thingiverse, the competition was fierce -- but the three top designs are in, with the first place winner receiving a MakerBot Replicator Desktop 3D printer and spools of MakerBot PLA filament going to second and third.

 

First place was awarded to Noah Hornberger, who designs 3D printed objects. His design, The Queen B (top image), is a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment consisting of six-sided rooms laid out in a hex-based grid. It's also designed to shield against the cosmic radiation humans would be exposed to under the Mars atmosphere, using depleted uranium panels, as well as providing warmth using water piped through the walls, heated using a subterranean exothermic chemical reactor.

 

"This is quite a multifaceted challenge," Hornberger wrote. "I have tried to think through the theory of my design as much as possible and prove it with a printed model. I designed something that I would feel happy living in for a few years (at least)."

 

In second place is a more traditional building -- the Martian Pyramid by Thingiverse user Valcrow of Redicubricks. Chosen for its stable triangular geometry, the building is designed around sustainability, housing a closed aquaponics system for growing food, using solar panels for power and built around a central reservoir for water storage.

 

The third place entry also took design cues from antiquity. The Mars Acropolis by project and design engineer Chris Starr is based on the Greek Acropolis, and is a three-tiered structure designed to be built from composite materials. Housed inside would be three greenhouses to serve as both a renewable food source and source of oxygen. In the lower level would be stored oxygen generators and supply tanks, while a water tower sits atop the structure, to be collected from water vapour in the Mars atmosphere.

 

"We really loved seeing how the designs in the Mars Base Challenge were often inspired by structures here on Earth that have withstood the passage of time and harsh weather elements," said MakerBot CEO Bre Pettis. "It was challenging to select just three winners from the 228 entries. We were happy to have the experts from JPL on board to help with the judging process, as they took this challenge very seriously. Overall, this was a very inspiring challenge."

 

While it's true that we won't be getting to Mars quite yet, if or when we do, it's possible we'll be living there in style.

 

 

Orbital Wraps Up Second Paid ISS Mission for NASA, Eyes Rocket Upgrade for 3rd Cargo Run

 

Dan Leone – SpaceNews

 

WASHINGTON -- Laden with 1,615 kilograms of trash from the international space station, Orbital Sciences Corp.'s uncrewed Cygnus space freighter completed a planned destructive reentry into Earth's atmosphere Aug. 17, marking the end of the second of eight cargo delivery-and-disposal missions the Dulles, Virginia, company owes NASA under its $1.9 billion Commercial Resupply Services contract.

 

Cygnus decoupled from station Aug. 15 after a 31-day stay, Orbital said in an Aug. 18 press release. It reentered the atmosphere east of New Zealand at approximately 9:15 a.m. Eastern time Aug. 17. Cygnus was launched July 13 by Orbital's Antares rocket from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

 

In two missions, Orbital has delivered 4,793 kilograms of cargo to the station, 1,664 kilograms of which went up on the mission just completed, according to the company's website. Orbital's Commercial Resupply Services contract, which was signed in 2008 and helped pay for development of Cygnus and Antares, calls for delivery of 20,000 kilograms of cargo by 2017.

 

The two-stage Antares combines a Ukrainian-built core stage powered by Russian-made engines refurbished by Aerojet Rocketdyne of Sacramento, California, with a solid-fueled upper stage provided by the company Orbital is in the process of merging with, ATK of Magna, Utah.

 

For its third paid cargo mission to station, slated to launch Oct. 21, Orbital will replace the ATK Castor 30B Antares used for its latest launch with an ATK Castor 30XL. The upgrade will allow Cygnus to carry about 2,290 kilograms of cargo to station — an increase of nearly 40 percent by mass, compared with the second mission, according to Orbital's Aug. 18 press release.

 

The Castor 30XL is the latest in the Castor 30 series ATK developed specifically as an Antares upper stage. A pair of Antares demonstration launches in 2013, which did not count toward fulfilling the company's delivery-and-disposal contract with NASA, used the Castor 30A. ATK has lengthened subsequent versions of the motor, squeezing more power out of it by packing it full of more solid fuel.

 

 

Curiosity Brushes 'Bonanza King' Target Anticipating Fourth Red Planet Rock Drilling

 

Ken Kremer – Universe Today

 

Eagerly eyeing her next drill site on Mars, NASA's Curiosity rover laid the groundwork by brushing the chosen rock target called 'Bonanza King' on Wednesday, Aug. 17, Sol 722, with the Dust Removal Tool (DRT) and collecting high resolution imagery with the Mast Camera (Mastcam) to confirm the success of the operation.

 

By brushing aside the reddish, more-oxidized dust scientists and engineers leading the mission observed a gray patch of less-oxidized rock material beneath that they anticipated seeing while evaluating the utility of 'Bonanza King' as the rover's fourth candidate for Red Planet rock drilling and sampling.

 

To date, the 1-ton robot has drilled into three target rocks to collect sample powder for analysis by the rover's onboard pair of the chemistry labs, SAM and CheMin, to analyze for the chemical ingredients that could support Martian microbes, if they ever existed.

 

So far everything is proceeding quite well.

 

The brushing activity also revealed thin, white, cross-cutting veins which is a further indication that liquid water flowed here in the distant past. Water is a prerequisite for life as we know it.

 

"They might be sulfate salts or another type of mineral that precipitated out of solution and filled fractures in the rock. These thin veins might be related to wider light-toned veins and features in the surrounding rock," NASA said in a statement.

 

Based on these results and more from laser zapping with Curiosity's Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) instrument on Sol 719 (Aug. 14, 2014) the team decided to proceed ahead.

 

The imminent next step is to bore a shallow test hole into the brushed area which measures about about 2.5 inches (6 centimeters) across.

 

If all goes well with the "mini-drill" operation, the team will proceed quickly with full depth drilling to core a sample from the interior of the dinner plate sized rock slab for delivery to Curiosity's two chemistry labs.

 

Bonanza King sits in a bright outcrop on the low ramp at the northeastern end of a spot leading in and out of an area called "Hidden Valley" which lies between Curiosity's August 2012 landing site in Gale Crater and her ultimate destinations on Mount Sharp which dominates the center of the crater.

 

Just days ago, the rover team commanded a quick exit from "Hidden Valley" to backtrack out of the dune filled valley because of fears the six wheeled robot could get stuck in slippery sands extending the length of a football field.

 

As Curiosity drills, the rover team is also searching for an alternate safe path forward to the sedimentary layers of Mount Sharp.

 

To date, Curiosity's odometer totals over 5.5 miles (9.0 kilometers) since landing inside Gale Crater on Mars in August 2012. She has taken over 178,000 images.

 

Curiosity still has about another 2 miles (3 kilometers) to go to reach the entry way at a gap in the treacherous sand dunes at the foothills of Mount Sharp sometime later this year.

 

Mount Sharp is a layered mountain that dominates most of Gale Crater and towers 3.4 miles (5.5 kilometers) into the Martian sky and is taller than Mount Rainier.

 

"Getting to Mount Sharp is the next big step for Curiosity and we expect that in the Fall of this year," Dr. Jim Green, NASA's Director of Planetary Sciences at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC, told me in an

 

 

Space Cooperation With U.S. Not Affected by Ukraine, Russian Official Says

 

Matthew Bodner – The Moscow Times

 

A senior Russian space official has said cooperation with the U.S. on the International Space Station has not suffered from the Ukraine crisis, despite indications tensions may be imposing themselves on the otherwise resolutely apolitical space partnership.

 

"[The International Space Station, or ISS] is in absolutely no way affected [by the Ukraine conflict]," Vladimir Solovyev, the Federal Space Agency's head of the Russian segment of the space station, was cited Tuesday as saying by news agency Interfax.

 

"How could there be sanctions, when the ISS is an international project in which everyone is tied to each other? The Russian side provides the station's transportation service," he added.

 

Though the ISS is a project of 15 nations — including European, Canadian and Japanese space officials — it is overseen by the U.S. and Russia.

 

Relations between the two countries have progressively cooled ever since Ukraine's pro-Kremlin president Viktor Yanukovych was ousted in February, resulting in a year-long import ban on food products from the West —including the U.S. — in retaliation for economic sanctions imposed on Russia.

 

With the ISS program set to expire in 2020, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said in May that Russia was not interested in prolonging its work with an "unreliable partner" such as the U.S.

 

Russia's ISS program manager, Alexei Krasnov, said last month Federal Space Agency Roscosmos had not yet received permission to confirm its continued participation because of the Ukrainian crisis, SpaceNews reported.

 

The vaunted U.S-Russia space partnership has weathered a number of political storms since its inception in the late 1990s, including the 2008 Georgian crisis, when tensions between Washington and Moscow flared over Russia's brief invasion of its post-Soviet neighbor.

 

 

Rats in Spaaace! NASA Wants to Put Rodents on Space Station

 

Elizabeth Howell – space.com

 

Call them the "rat-stronauts." NASA is drawing up plans to launch a team of rats with the right stuff to the International Space Station as early as this year. You know, for science.

 

While rodents have flown on space shuttle flights in the past, those missions have only lasted a week or two. This new rats in space mission, however, could range between 30 and 90 days, depending on the availability of spacecraft like SpaceX's Dragon capsule to ferry them on the roundtrip.

 

This means there will need to be changes to animal husbandry to keep the rats happy and healthy, said Julie Robinson, NASA's chief scientist for the space station, in a recent press conference. [Animal Pioneers of the Space Age (Photos)]

 

"This will allow animals to be studied for longer period of time on space station missions," she said, adding that of the 35 or so studies where rats have gone into space, few of them have gone for more than two weeks.

 

The actual schedule for launching the rats to the space station and returning them back to Earth is not fully figured out yet. A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft typically launches supplies to the space station, then returns cargo to Earth with a water splashdown, spending some time in the ocean before being towed to port. That could potentially be uncomfortable for the rats.

 

Robinson said that launching rats on for the experiment are preferable to mice, which are smaller and require less food, because rats' neurocognitive functioning is similar to that of humans. Bringing the rodents on board is just one of several ways in which the space station is changing for science.

NASA astronaut Steve Swanson with lettuce

 

Plants and fruit flies

 

Robinson's remarks came during NASA's Destination Station: ISS Science Forum, in May, which showcased science work on the space station in the context of a decadal survey of station program science objectives.

 

Among the things investigators are pushing for are more life sciences experiments on station, to better understand the effects of microgravity on living organisms.

 

A recent example of that is "Veggie" (NASA's Veg-01 experiment), which is supposed to test the feasibility of growing lettuce and other plants for space colonization. Veggie arrived on the space station with the last Dragon cargo shipment in April, and is now operational in orbit.

 

Other critters NASA hopes to fly are fruit flies. That's because, of the 900 known genes for human disease, about 700 are present in flies, said Marshall Porterfield, director of the space life and physical sciences division at NASA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. Fruit flies are also commonly used on Earth because they have short lifetimes, allowing investigators to track changes over multiple generations.

 

"The space station is the perfect laboratory for these long-term types of study experiments," Porterfield said.

 

Astronaut time precious

 

An experiment on the station can take anywhere from 15 minutes to 140 hours for astronauts to perform, Robinson said. There are about 200 experiments active on Expedition 40 right now. Those that take longer tend to be human body-related experiments, and combine multiple investigators to get the most return for the science.

 

One example: The XSENS ForceShoe launched to the space station in late May. The ForceShoe has sensors to calculate how much "loading" the astronauts are putting on their feet during exercising.

 

The closer astronauts can simulate Earth's gravity when on a treadmill or doing weight lifting, the better, Robinson said. The first generation of space station exercise equipment was inadequate, and the next generation – although improved – is missing the tools required to make these measurements accurately.

 

"We have that next generation of hardware, but the force measurement that we had hoped to get … isn't winding up working," she said, adding the hope that these shoes' sensors will be able to send that data to investigators.

 

If an experiment is not directly related to NASA's mandate of exploration, the agency often encourages the partner to apply to CASIS (the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space), a nonprofit organization that manages the space station's U.S. laboratory with experiments of its own.

 

For its own part, CASIS said it wants to do what is "necessary to be successful" and not "to put a limit," said Duane Ratliff, its chief operating officer. The organization works closely with NASA to see if there are ways to work around limits in astronaut time to achieve scientific objectives.

 

 

NASA delays award of multibillion dollar SEWP V contract

 

Andy Medici – Federal Times

 

NASA has postponed the award of its $20 billion Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) V contract until September, according to the agency.

 

The delay is primarily due to the large volume of proposals the agency received, which required a lengthy review and selection process, according to NASA spokeswoman Sonja Alexander. There are about 70 contractors on the SEWP IV contract.

 

She said the delay was also partially due to a bid protest against the contract. IMPRES Technology Solutions, Inc., Metis intellisystems, LLC, Futron, Inc., Patriot Comm and Ideal System Solutions, Inc. said NASA has unreasonably determined their proposals exceeded the allowed page limit. But the GAO denied the protests in a ruling Aug. 5.

 

 

Russian ISS Cosmonauts to get Next-Generation Space Suits

 

Matthew Bodner – The Moscow Times

 

Russia's iconic golden Orlan spacesuits will be replaced with upgraded fifth-generation models aboard the International Space Station, or ISS, next year, as senior space official said on Tuesday, adding that jetpacks are in the works as well.

 

"The suits will be on ISS in the fall of 2015," Interfax quoted Vladimir Solovyev, the Federal Space Agency's head of the Russian segment of the space station, as saying.

 

Russia's Orlan series of extravehicular spacesuits — worn by cosmonauts on space-walks outside the space station — are massively popular among both cosmonauts and astronauts, their non-Russian equivalents. In comparison to the U.S. suits, the one-piece Orlan design is easier to put on and take off, as the suit features a hatch on the back.

 

The Orlan suits currently used by cosmonauts aboard the ISS are the fourth-generation Orlan-MK suits, but they are nearing the end of their lifespan. They will be replaced with the newer Orlan-MKS models.

 

Some of the newer features of the suit include automated environmental control systems, allowing the cosmonaut to focus on work rather than his air conditioning, as well as polyurethane seals to increase the service life of the suits.

 

Solovyev was quoted by ITAR-Tass as saying that NPP Zvezda, the company the builds the Orlan suits, is also working on a new jetpack to go with them. The jetpacks would be used to return cosmonauts to the ISS airlock if they become detached from the station's exterior — a feature that would be activated by the simple click of a button.

 

"This capability is very important," he said. Cosmonauts traverse the station's hull by moving two hooks from anchor to anchor, minimizing the risk of coming lose by always making sure one tether remains attached.

 

"We have had several cases where the cosmonauts, in violation of instructions, unfasten two [lines] and hold on with their hands. This is essentially a bad situation," Solovyev added.

 

Meanwhile, NASA's space suits are currently out of action following a harrowing incident with Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano's suit during an July 2013 spacewalk. While working outside of the ISS, Parmitano reported that his helmet was filling with water, prompting an immediate end to the spacewalk when the water began to obstruct his breathing. Replacements will be delivered by U.S. private space firm SpaceX on Sept. 19.

 

 

ABC developing 'Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth' as TV sitcom

 

collectSPACE.com

 

Aug. 20, 2014 — Astronaut Chris Hadfield's down-to-Earth advice is now the basis for a television sitcom.

 

ABC on Tuesday (Aug. 19) committed to the production of a pilot episode for a family comedy inspired by Hadfield's best-selling book, "An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth" (Little, Brown and Co., 2013), Deadline Hollywood reports. The TV series, as described, will follow an astronaut as he readjusts to domestic life, discovering that it "might be the hardest mission he's ever faced."

 

Hadfield returned to Earth in May 2013 after a five-month stay on board the International Space Station. During the expedition, which was his third spaceflight, he became the first Canadian to command a mission and attracted a huge following on social media through his downlinked videos and music performances recorded from orbit. His cover of David Bowie's "Space Oddity" was watched more than 20 million times on YouTube.

 

Hadfield retired from the Canadian Space Agency just two months after landing to become a university professor and professional speaker.

 

In his book "An Astronaut's Guide," Hadfield wrote about how his experiences training for space and flying in orbit could be applied to everyday life on the ground.

 

"What happened to me is interesting to me, but what really matters is what does it mean to someone else," Hadfield told collectSPACE.com soon after the book was released. "What happens in space is inherently, I think, interesting to people, but it can be sort of like watching a juggler. It is fascinating to watch a juggler, but what does it mean? It is entertaining."

 

"So, it is really about how you bring it back and make the experience as relevant that matters," Hadfield said.

 

According to Deadline, creators Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker (CBS' "S#*! My Dad Says," Fox's "Surviving Jack") will write and team with Erwin Stoff ("The Matrix") and Tom Lassally ("Edge of Tomorrow") to produce.

 

Hadfield will serve as a consulting producer.

 

If ABC approves it for air, the "Astronaut's Guide"- based series won't be the only space-themed sitcom on network TV, nor is it ABC's only astronaut-based property.

 

Coming soon to NBC, the sitcom "Mission Control" stars Krysten Ritter ("Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23") as a "tough but brilliant aerospace engineer, leading a team of NASA scientists" in the 1960s. The half-hour comedy is being executive produced by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay ("Anchorman," "Talladega Nights").

 

ABC has also green-lit "Astronaut Wives Club," a limited-event series based on Lily Koppel's best-selling book by the same title. The 10-episode drama, which is scheduled to debut next spring, tells the true-life story of the spouses of America's early spacemen.

 

"An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth" was Hadfield's first book. His second, due out this October, is "You Are Here: Around the World in 92 Minutes" (Little, Brown and Co.). Combining Hadfield's commentary with the photos he took while on the space station, "You Are Here" reproduces an orbit around the Earth.

 

 

Astronaut Family Comedy Lands At ABC With Pilot Production Commitment

 

Nellie Andreeva – Deadline Hollywood

 

EXCLUSIVE: In a very competitive situation, ABC has landed An Astronaut's Guide To Life On Earth, a multi-camera comedy from Surviving Jack creators Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker with a pilot production commitment. The project, from Warner Bros TV — where the duo is under an overall deal — and 3 Arts Entertainment, is based on the memoir by Col. Chris Hadfield, a seasoned Canadian astronaut who became an Internet star with his videos from the International Space Station. The TV series is described as a family comedy about an astronaut who is back from space and finds that re-entering domestic life might be the hardest mission he's ever faced. Halpern and Schumacker will write the script and executive produce with 3 Arts' Erwin Stoff and Tom Lassally. Hadfield will serve as a consulting producer.

 

This is the third time Halpern and Schumacker, repped by ICM Partners, will be adapting a memoir into TV comedy series. Both of their previous efforts, CBS' S#*! My Dad Says and Surviving Jack, were based on books by Halpern, and both went to series on CBS and Fox, respectively.

 

 

Former astronaut emphasizes attitude

 

Nick Duke – The Bayonet

 

Fort Benning Soldiers had the opportunity to hear from one of the pioneers of the American space exploration effort August 14 during the latest edition of the Combat Leader Speaker Program.

 

Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas Stafford was among the second group of astronauts selected by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in September 1962 for participation in the Gemini and Apollo projects.

 

Stafford said the early days of the space program had some uncertainty not unlike the uncertain future the military faces today with budget constraints and a drawdown looming.

Former astronaut emphasizes attitude

 

"It is kind of a fluid period of time," he said. "This is a time where, to me, you've got to take the initiative and in a way think outside the box. Think of something, either management-wise or technical-wise, that can keep the U.S. Army efficient and ahead of anyone else in the world."

 

During his 13-year tenure at NASA, Stafford participated in several notable space flights. He piloted Gemini VI during the first rendezvous in space. He later commanded Gemini IX and performed a demonstration of a rendezvous that would be used in the Apollo lunar missions.

 

He commanded Apollo 10 in May 1969, the first flight of the lunar module to the moon. He descended to within nine miles of the moon's surface, performing the entire lunar landing mission except the actual landing. During this mission, he identified what would become the first lunar landing site for Apollo 11.

 

Upon reentry on Apollo 10, Stafford earned a Guinness World Record for the highest speed ever achieved by man at 24,791 miles per hour.

 

He was later assigned as deputy director of Flight Crew Operations at the NASA Manned Space Flight Center. He logged his fourth space flight as Apollo commander of the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, a flight that culminated with the first meeting in space between American astronauts and Soviet cosmonauts, bringing an end to the "space race" between the two countries.

 

Despite all his accomplishments with NASA, Stafford told the Fort Benning Soldiers that it wasn't his intelligence that enabled his success.

 

"It's your attitude, not your aptitude, that will help you achieve the greatest altitude in your career and your life," Stafford said. "You've got to have some aptitude, but the big thing is your attitude. ... The attitude to do the best job you possibly can is key."

 

In 1975, Stafford assumed command of the Air Force Test Flight Center and was promoted to major general.

 

Stafford was later promoted to lieutenant general and initiated the F-117A stealth fighter project and started the B-2 stealth bomber project, in addition to many other innovations.

 

He said this experience with developing new technologies has helped him to keep an open mind.

 

"You always have to have your mind open to new ideas, but realistic ideas - what can be achieved, not some fairy tale dream," Stafford said. "We're looking for things that can be put into effect within a reasonable period of time and can work for us."

 

 

Musk's SpaceX Denies Blog Report of Capital Raising Plan

 

Alan Ohnsman – Bloomberg

 

Elon Musk's Space Exploration Technologies Corp., the first private rocket maker to deliver cargo to the International Space Station, said it isn't raising funds from private sources, denying a report of plans to do so.

 

The TechCrunch blog said yesterday the aerospace company known as SpaceX was seeking "a large secondary investment" of about $200 million, without saying where it got the information. The fundraising push would result in lifting the Hawthorne, California-based company's value to almost $10 billion, TechCrunch said.

 

"SpaceX is not currently raising any funding nor has any external valuation of that magnitude or higher been done," John Taylor, a company spokesman, said in an e-mail. "The source in this report is mistaken."

 

Musk, SpaceX's chief executive officer, plans to ferry astronauts along with cargo within the next few years and in May debuted a reusable version of its Dragon capsule for such missions. The company, which launches commercial satellites, also seeks to win contracts to put U.S. Defense Department satellites into orbit.

 

SpaceX has a contract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for at least 12 missions to resupply the space station, worth $1.6 billion, according to the company's website.

 

Musk, who leads Tesla Motors Inc. (TSLA) and is the biggest investor in solar power provider SolarCity Corp., founded SpaceX in 2002 and so far hasn't sold shares of the rocket company to the public. His net worth is $12.2 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

 

 

Stennis Space Center employees receive NASA honor awards

 

Mississippi Press

 

Stennis Space Center Director Rick Gilbrech and NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Lesa Roe presented annual NASA Honor Awards to center employees during an onsite ceremony Aug. 19.

 

In addition to presenting awards, Gilbrech, a resident of Slidell, La., also received NASA's Equal Employment Opportunity Medal for outstanding leadership qualities in promoting diversity and inclusion at Stennis. This prestigious NASA medal is awarded to individuals for outstanding achievement and material contribution to the principles and goals of NASA's Equal Employment Opportunity, Diversity and Inclusion programs, either within the government or within community organizations or groups. Gilbrech has served as a diversity and inclusion champion in creating an inclusive work environment where employees are engaged, valued and respected and where their talents are fully utilized. This was demonstrated by Stennis receiving the highest possible ranking in the support for diversity category in the 2012 and 2013 Employee Viewpoint Survey.

 

Three Stennis employees received NASA's Exceptional Service Medal. This prestigious medal is awarded to a government employee for sustained performance that embodies multiple contributions to NASA projects, programs, or initiatives.

 

Beth Bradley of Slidell, La., received NASA's Exceptional Service Medal for her work as chief of the Center Management Support Division in the Stennis Office of Procurement. Bradley leads a division of contract specialists with active/inactive contracts valued at more than $1.4 billion. Her leadership and expertise has proven instrumental across a broad spectrum of procurements. She also is a strong advocate of NASA's Small Business Program, contributing to Stennis receiving the NASA Administrator's Cup for the best small business program agencywide in 2012.

 

Wendy Houser of Baton Rouge, La., received NASA's Exceptional Service Medal for her work as an attorney and mentor in the Stennis Office of the Chief Counsel. Houser demonstrates outstanding and sustained leadership qualities, providing sound analytical advice to subordinates, peers and superiors on a broad spectrum of issues and programs. NASA recently recognized Houser as its 2014 Attorney of the Year for exhibiting performance at the highest levels of excellence and achievement.

 

Ronald Rigney of Poplarville, received NASA's Exceptional Service Medal for his contributions to propulsion testing at Stennis. Rigney previously served as manager of the space shuttle main engine test project at Stennis and now is chief of the Propulsion Test Project Office in the Stennis Project Directorate. Throughout his tenure, Rigney's leadership and contributions to propulsion testing have been instrumental in the successful execution of numerous test projects.

 

Six Stennis employees received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal. This prestigious NASA medal is awarded to any government employee for a significant specific achievement or substantial improvement in operations, efficiency, service, financial savings, science or technology that contributes to the mission of NASA.

 

Dinna Cottrell of Covington, La. (and a native of Baton Rouge), received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for her leadership in a number of areas as chief information officer at Stennis and during her stint as acting deputy director for the Stennis Center Operations Directorate. Cottrell provided exceptional performance on a number of critical projects, including implementation of a project funding priority system and various information technology advancements. Her expertise has produced lasting benefits for both NASA and Stennis.

 

Sallie Bilbo of Pearl River, La., received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for significant contributions to NASA and Stennis missions as a public affairs specialist in the Stennis Office of Communications. Bilbo is recognized as the "go-to person" for support of various Stennis activities, including VIP meetings, conferences, tours and historical activities. She serves as Space Flight Awareness manager for all NASA research centers, the Defense Contract Management Agency and the NASA Engineering and Safety Center. Her contributions and expertise ultimately impact NASA's and Stennis' mission success.

 

Thomas Jacks of Mandeville, La., received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for engineering and technical leadership contributions to the B-2 Project Team at Stennis. Jacks serves as design lead for the project and has made critical contributions in the effort to restore and prepare the stand for testing of NASA's Space Launch System core stage. His leadership has led directly to project savings and has been instrumental in managing a diverse group of designers and engineers.

 

Bryon Maynard of Slidell, La. (and a native of Bostic, N. C.), received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for his knowledge, engineering skills and leadership as part of the project team working to restore and prepare the B-2 Test Stand at Stennis for stage testing. Maynard led in development of restoration requirements and continues to make critical contributions to the ongoing project. His encyclopedic knowledge of the B-2 test facility has been an invaluable asset to the project.

 

Sonia Rushing of Escatawpa, received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for her work as a contract specialist in the Stennis Office of Procurement. Stennis is the largest consumer of rocket propellants in the U.S., and Rushing is responsible for all aspects of the center's five propellant contracts. She played an integral role in Stennis exceeding four of its five business goal categories in fiscal year 2013. Her commitment to uninterrupted delivery of propellants has been critical in enabling NASA to meet its engine-testing goals at Stennis.

 

Katrina Wright of Picayune, (and a native of Greenwood), received NASA's Exceptional Achievement Medal for her work as industrial hygiene manager at Stennis. Wright's leadership of the industrial hygiene and health physics programs at Stennis has been critical in ensuring worker health and safety. This was demonstrated in her work to implement the new Globally Harmonized System Hazard Communication standards required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Wright's efforts ensure safe work precautions are known and used efficiently, resulting in key improvements in the Stennis safety culture.

 

One Stennis employee received NASA's Exceptional Public Service Medal. This prestigious medal is awarded to any non-government individual for sustained performance that embodies multiple contributions on NASA projects, programs, or initiatives.

 

William Turner of Bay St. Louis, received NASA's Exceptional Public Service Medal for his work as project manager for ISS Action Inc. on the Stennis Protective Services Contract. Turner leads more than 80 personnel to manage and properly badge hundreds of visitors per week, provide twenty-four hour emergency response, conduct employee vetting and site entry control, conduct random vehicle inspections, enforce traffic regulations and provide general investigative services.

 

One Stennis employee received NASA's Exceptional Public Achievement Medal. This prestigious NASA medal is awarded to any non-government individual for a significant specific achievement or substantial improvement in operations, efficiency, service, financial savings, science, or technology that contributes to the mission of NASA.

 

Andrew Martin of Upper Arlington, Oh., received NASA's Exceptional Public Achievement Medal for his work as the lead structural design engineer on the B-2 Test Stand restoration project. Martin conducted a comprehensive, hands-on structural assessment of the B-2 facility from the sub-basement to ground level to the highest structures. Martin's design team developed the initial structural restoration assessment report and initial cost and schedule estimates that ultimately were adapted to become the project's facility restoration requirements and cost and schedule estimates.

 

Four Stennis employees received NASA's Early Career Achievement Medal. This prestigious NASA medal is awarded to any government employee for unusual and significant performance during the first 10 years of an individual's early career in support of the agency.

 

Justin Junell of Slidell, La., received NASA's Early Career Achievement Medal for his critical, accurate analyses and test operations expertise on high-priority propulsion test projects and his contributions to numerous propulsion test projects across nearly all of the Stennis test stands. His technical and leadership abilities also have enabled him to serve as the test conductor for several engine tests. The test conductor is responsible for running a successful engine test, a role reserved for the most seasoned and capable operations engineers.

 

Nicholas Nugent of Carriere, received NASA's Early Career Achievement Medal for his contributions as mechanical design lead for the B-2 Test Stand restoration and adaptation project. Nugent coordinated a multi-contractor mechanical systems/process piping design team, developing four major design packages to restore the B-2 Test Stand mechanical systems, including the water systems, cryogenic propellant system and high-pressure gas system.

 

Michael Perotti of Slidell, La. (and a native of Santa Rosa, Calif.), received NASA's Early Career Achievement Medal for his contributions to safety and mission assurance (SMA) for test operations at Stennis. Perotti is one of the youngest engineers to achieve SMA console operations for propulsion testing. Since 2011, he also has assumed lead responsibility for the center's Mishap Interim Response Team. He currently is responsible for all SMA aspects for the A-1 Test Stand.

 

Rebecca Strecker of Slidell, La., received NASA's Early Career Achievement Medal for contributions in key NASA public affairs positions at Stennis, Kennedy Space Center and the NASA Shared Services Center. Strecker also served an assignment at NASA Headquarters. As NASA news chief at Stennis, Strecker has managed numerous high-profile media events onsite and provided key support for the success of Stennis' 50th anniversary celebration in 2011, including production of the anniversary video.

 

Two Stennis employees received the NASA Silver Achievement Medal. This prestigious medal is awarded to individuals or teams by NASA center directors for a stellar achievement that supports one or more of NASA's core values.

 

Andrew Guymon of Diamondhead, received NASA's Silver Achievement Medal for outstanding support to NASA's Morpheus Program to develop an innovative takeoff and landing vehicle in direct support of the agency's goal to expand the frontiers of knowledge, capability and opportunity in space. Guymon is the lead mechanical operations engineer and primary test conductor for the Morpheus engine test project at Stennis. He also has provided valuable support to the AJ26 engine test project at Stennis.

 

Steven Rathbun of Slidell, La. (and a native of Muskegon, Mich.) received NASA's Silver Achievement Medal for outstanding contributions to the Pressure Vessel and Pressurized System (PVS) Program at Stennis. As pressure systems administrator for the Jacobs Technology Facility Operating Services Contract, Rathbun's work consistently exceeds expectations. Rathbun has led in implementing several proactive changes to enhance the excellence and safety of the Stennis PVS Program.

 

 

END

More at www.spacetoday.net

 

 

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