Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Fwd: NASA and Human Spaceflight News - Tuesday - May 27, 2014 and JSC Today



Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: May 27, 2014 11:22:30 AM CDT
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Subject: FW: NASA and Human Spaceflight News - Tuesday - May 27, 2014 and JSC Today

 

Be safe everyone.   Lots of high water and slick road conditions in the Houston metro area today.

 

 

JSC Logo

 

 

 

 

   Headlines

  1. Our Big Launch Event is Tomorrow!

NASA TV will broadcast prelaunch activities for the next three crew members flying to the International Space Station, followed by extensive live coverage of their launch and docking to the orbital laboratory tomorrow, May 28. Astronaut Shannon Walker will welcome those on-site to the Teague Auditorium to watch the live coverage as it unfolds. Expedition 39 and 40 posters will be given out (as supplies last).

Expedition 40/41 Flight Engineer Reid Wiseman of NASA, Soyuz Commander Max Suraev of the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roscosmos) and Flight Engineer Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency will launch to the space station in a Soyuz spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 2:57 p.m. CDT (1:57 a.m. May 29, Baikonur time).

NASA TV coverage begins at 2 p.m. and will include video of the prelaunch activities leading up to and including the crew members boarding their spacecraft. Doors to the Teague Auditorium will open at that time for the launch event.

The crew is scheduled to dock to the station's Rassvet module less than six hours later, at 8:48 p.m. NASA TV coverage of docking begins at 8 p.m.

Expedition 40 Commander Steve Swanson of NASA and Flight Engineers Alexander Skvortsov and Oleg Artemyev of Roscosmos will greet the new crew when the hatches open at about 10:25 p.m. NASA TV hatch opening coverage begins at 10 p.m.

JSC, Ellington Field, Sonny Carter Training Facility and White Sands Test Facility employees who cannot make it to the Teague Auditorium but have hard-wired computer network connections can view the events using the JSC EZTV IP Network TV System on channel 404 (standard definition) or channel 4541 (HD). Please note: EZTV currently requires using Internet Explorer on a Windows PC or Safari on a Mac. Mobile devices, Wi-Fi, VPN or connections from other centers are currently not supported by EZTV.

First-time users will need to install the EZTV Monitor and Player client applications:

    1. For those WITH admin rights (Elevated Privileges), you'll be prompted to download and install the clients when you first visit the IPTV website
    2. For those WITHOUT admin rights (Elevated Privileges), you can download the EZTV client applications from the ACES Software Refresh Portal (SRP)

If you are having problems viewing the video using these systems, contact the Information Resources Directorate Customer Support Center at x46367 or visit the FAQ site.

Wiseman, Suraev and Gerst will remain aboard the station until mid-November. Swanson, Skvortsov and Artemyev will return to Earth in mid-September, leaving Suraev as Expedition 41 Commander.

Event Date: Wednesday, May 28, 2014   Event Start Time:2:00 PM   Event End Time:3:30 PM
Event Location: Teague Auditorium, NASA TV

Add to Calendar

JSC External Relations, Office of Communications and Public Affairs x35111 http://www.nasa.gov/station

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  1. Sputnik Moving From Mall Area

Sputnik is an open collaboration space like no other. Not only does it have comfortable seating, a fun yet peaceful interior and whiteboards for illustrating your most brilliant ideas—it's mobile! Sputnik is making its way over to the 400 area, where it will now be air-conditioned for the summer. You can reserve this space for meetings and events by contacting Leah Galindo.

Leah Galindo x36265

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  1. Managed Elevated Privileges Continues

Today, May 27, Managed Elevated Privileges (MEP) continues with the Engineering EC through EG org codes. 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. For more information, go to the MEP website or contact Jannet Johnson at x36394.

Jannet Johnson x36394 https://projects.jsc.nasa.gov/ep/SitePages/Home.aspx

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  1. Don't Can Your Cardboard

Go take a look in a nearby trash bin. Did someone throw cardboard away? If so, take the opportunity to find the nearby cardboard collection station that you and your co-workers can use for cardboard. During a 2013 survey, cardboard was the most prevalent recyclable material item found in dumpsters by a wide margin. Recycling cardboard saves trees, landfill space and money. Federal agencies are required to divert cardboard from landfills, and recycling is easy to do with designated areas set up in each building. So next time you get that box of supplies in the mail, Don't Can Your Cardboard packaging. Recycle it!

Michelle Fraser-Page x34237

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   Organizations/Social

  1. Reminder: Second AAPI Heritage Month Event

The ASIA Employee Resource Group (ERG) would like to invite you to our second event for Asian-American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, "A Glimpse of Asia." It will take place Thursday, May 29, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Teague Auditorium lobby. The JSC community will have the opportunity to try delicacies from all over Asia while viewing photos and cultural exhibits, with a martial arts showcase from Bushi Ban. The Hispanic ERG will also be contributing food, and the cultural exhibit will be a joint effort with Boeing's AAPA. If you would like to help organize this event or have questions, please contact Jennifer Turner.

Event Date: Thursday, May 29, 2014   Event Start Time:11:00 AM   Event End Time:1:00 PM
Event Location: Teague Auditorium Lobby

Add to Calendar

Jennifer Turner 614-432-4141

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  1. NASA Nerdz Bowling League - Last Chance

I am taking submissions for the NASA Nerdz Bowling League through today, May 27.

Last year the league was a blast, and we had 40 teams in Alpha every Thursday. We hope to have that same number this year and are just a few teams short. Talk to friends and come up for some Thursday night fun!

NASA Nerdz at AMF Alpha and will begin June 5 and run to Aug. 14 on Thursday nights, skipping the July 4th week. Bowling starts at 6:30 p.m. each day, with practice beginning at 6:15 p.m. Typically, bowling ends anywhere from 9 to 9:30 p.m.

Russell Lala 832-385-5989

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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_opportu...

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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  1. Training for Transgender Inclusion

Do you find yourself watching in silence, not sure what to do, when an employee, co-worker or friend is being harassed, ridiculed or isolated because they are different?

As JSC works toward creating a more inclusive workplace, it is important to increase our awareness of the issues faced by employees whose gender identity and/or expression do not match their assigned gender. In observance of PRIDE month, the JSC Out & Allied Employee Resource Group is hosting Mara Keisling, director of the National Center for Transgender Equality. Keisling will address the myths and provide facts surrounding gender identity and expression, outline the workplace challenges faced by transgender employees and provide recommendations for steps to increase inclusion and support our transgender employees.

Register via SATERN (optional):

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

Event Date: Thursday, June 5, 2014   Event Start Time:9:30 AM   Event End Time:12:30 PM
Event Location: B12 / 146

Add to Calendar

Robert Hanley x48654

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  1. System Safety Fundamentals - June 9, Building 20

This course instructs the student in the fundamentals of system safety management and hazard analysis of hardware, software and operations. Types and techniques of hazard analysis are addressed in enough detail to give the student a working knowledge of their uses and how they are accomplished. Skill in analytical techniques is developed through the use of in-class practical exercises. This course establishes a foundation for the student to pursue more advanced studies of system safety and hazard analysis techniques while allowing students to effectively apply their skills to straightforward analytical assignments. Note: This course is a combination of SMA-SAFE-NSTC-0008 (System Safety Workshop) and SMA-SAFE-NSTC-0015 (System Safety Special Subjects). Students who have taken either of these classes should discuss taking this class with the NASA Safety Learning Center management staff.

Target Audience: Supervisors and technical/non-technical personnel who perform safety analysis and/or manage system safety programs.

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

Shirley Robinson x41284

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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

Tuesday – May 27, 2014

 

NASA TV www.nasa.gov/ntv:

·         1 p.m. CT - ISS Expedition 40 In-Flight Event with the CBS Radio Network and ABC Digital News

·         2 p.m. CT - Video File of the Russian State Commission Meeting and Final Expedition 40/41 Pre-Launch Crew News Conference in Baikonur, Kazakhstan

 

 

HEADLINES AND LEADS

 

U.S., European Space Chiefs Urge Public To Look Past Russian Rhetoric

Peter B. de Selding – Space News

 

BERLIN — The heads of the U.S., European and German space agencies asked their publics to look past incendiary Russian government statements about ending the space station partnership to see the durable underlying value of the program.

 

Are U.S. Sanctions Isolating NASA Instead of Russia?

Joe Pappalardo – Popular Mechanics

 

Months ago, the Russian government asked me to head a panel on spaceflight at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. But that was before the crisis in Ukraine, which changed relations between spacefaring companies and nations drastically. The theme of the forum was "A World in Transition," and as we've seen as the diplomatic crisis continues, that includes the way spacefaring nations cooperate in space. The way things are going, NASA may be left out in the cold.

 

Orion's European Service Module Back on Track

Peter B. de Selding – Space News

 

BERLIN — Europe's work on the service module for NASA's Orion crew-transport vehicle has made up most, but not all, of the slip in schedule and is on track for delivery to NASA in time for a late 2017 launch, European government and industry officials said. While the delivery deadline remains challenging, the earlier problem of the module's excess weight has been resolved and the prime contractor is not having to resort to double- and triple-shifts to get the job done, officials said.

 

Orion begins final assembly for test flight

James Dean – Florida Today

 

At Kennedy Space Center, Lockheed Martin personnel have begun attaching a test version of NASA's Orion exploration capsule to the largest spacecraft heat shield ever built. The step marks the start of Orion's final assembly for its first test flight into orbit, planned in December from Cape Canaveral on a Delta IV Heavy rocket.

 

Artifacts from Apollo missions sell at out-of-this-world auction

Lorenzo Ferrigno and Larry Frum – CNN

 

(CNN) -- It may be the next best thing to owning a piece of the moon. A cloth American flag that was taken to the moon's surface was one of more than 500 aviation and space exploration artifacts sold into private hands at auction this week. "To be honest with you, there's only 12 men who walked on the moon out of 105 billion people who have walked on this earth since humankind started walking upright," Larry McGlynn, the newest owner of the American flag told CNN on Friday. "These are incredibly rare items." The 2.5 inch-by-1.75 inch commemorative American flag framed with an Apollo 15 uniform patch—which also went to the moon—was sold to McGlynn for $27,741.35, according to Bobby Livingston, executive vice president of New Hampshire-based RR Auction.

 

No one injured in hot-fire engine test failure

Associated Press

 

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. — Officials with Aerojet Rocketdyne are investigating the mid-test shutdown of an AJ-26 engine at the Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Mississippi. Company spokeswoman Jessica Pieczonka says in a statement that no one was hurt in the premature shutdown of the testing.

 

Boeing to show off commercial capsule at KSC next month

James Dean – Florida Today

 

Boeing will visit Kennedy Space Center June 9 to discuss its CST-100 crew capsule, a contender to launch NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.

 

Space advocates make pitch in D.C.

Meghan Mistry – Galveston County Daily News

 

For the 23rd year, the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership and the Citizens for Space Exploration journeyed to Washington, D.C., to advocate for manned space exploration. The trip lasted from Tuesday until Thursday, and advocates met with members of Congress to discuss the importance of space travel.

 

How NASA tech makes an impact in your daily life

Eric Davis – Brattleboro (VT) Reformer

 

NASA suffers from an interesting problem: It gets credit for things it didn't do and doesn't get credit for things it did do. The public knows that the investment in space and space technologies brings about innovations that improve our daily lives. An understanding of what those technologies are, however, is something that is often elusive. NASA is often mistakenly credited with inventing commonplace consumer products to which it had either tangential connections or no connections -- certainly not an enabling connection. Meanwhile, the real stories of NASA's technological achievements are often unknown.


COMPLETE STORIES

U.S., European Space Chiefs Urge Public To Look Past Russian Rhetoric

Peter B. de Selding – Space News

 

BERLIN — The heads of the U.S., European and German space agencies asked their publics to look past incendiary Russian government statements about ending the space station partnership to see the durable underlying value of the program.

 

In remarks here May 20 at the Berlin Air Show, these officials, without identifying Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin by name, sought to characterize his remarks as noise, and not a signal of Russian intentions.

 

"We are five partners — five member organizations — in the space station and no one person makes decisions for the station," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. "It hasn't happened in the five years I have been at NASA."

 

Bolden conceded that Russian statements — it was Rogozin — that NASA consider trampolines instead of Russian Soyuz capsules as the sole means of U.S. station crews are not helpful.

 

"We're going through a very difficult time right now, but if you talk to any of the leaders of the five member nations, we are consistent in our belief in the critical importance of the partnership in the international space station. We're trying to keep our heads below the parapet right now. We would like not to be noticed."

 

European Space Agency Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain said that despite U.S. and European tensions with Russia about its incursion into Ukraine, the space agencies' relationships continue as before.

 

"We are going to meet next week in Baikonur [the Russian-run spaceport in Kazakhstan] for the launch of Alexander Gerst, and we are going to meet in July for the launch of our ATV [cargo carrier] to the space station," Dordain said. "The ATV docks to the Russian module at the station.

 

"The station is more than a laboratory for science," Dordain said. "It is a laboratory for cooperation. To sustain six people in orbit, there are 6,000 people working on three continents. If they are not cooperating, the six guys up there are in trouble. We have no choice but to work together on a daily basis."

 

In an unusual departure for an air show panel discussion, the agency chiefs and a large European space contractor debated how far space cooperation should go with nations that do not share the same cultural values. China and Russia were both mentioned.

 

Johann-Dietrich Woerner, chairman of the German Aerospace Center, DLR, said no one pretends that cooperation in space is tantamount to a full endorsement of a partner's government.

 

Woerner said the U.S.-Russian space cooperation, highlighted by the 1975 rendezvous in space of U.S. Apollo and Russian Soyuz rockets, occurred at a time of Cold War tensions that were much more serious than today's issues.

 

"We should not be so naïve as to say that whoever we cooperate with is a nice guy," Woerner said. "We have to be cautious about what we do. There are ethical and political issues and we should consider aspects like intellectual property rights and even human rights. International cooperation in space can pave the way for more peace in the world, as it did in the past. But sometimes we have to be cautious — there is no contradiction in this."

 

German industry officials have been criticized in the United States and in Europe for seeking to maintain their business dealings with Russia even at the price of seeming to turn a blind eye to the Ukrainian situation.

 

Airbus Group Chief Executive Tom Enders took offense at this April 30 during an Atlantic Council debate, saying he has seen only two or three German businessmen doing this and these exceptions should not be used to tar all German industry.

 

"I'm a little bit old-fashioned," Enders said. "When it comes to the preservation of international law, this has to have priority over business and corporate profits."

 

Evert Dudok, a senior Airbus Defence and Space executive who heads the space policy arm of the German Aerospace Industries Association, BDLI, said May 20 that space policy is no exception.

 

"Our compliance norms are not necessarily the compliance norms of other countries," Dudok said. "If we come to certain conclusions that culturally we are too far apart from another country, then we shall not cooperate."

 

Addressing Russia specifically, Dudok said Airbus Defence and Space is trying "to keep the ball flat and not be too visible on topics like this."

 

"Political relationships have ups and downs and industrial relationships do not follow that speed of change — thank God. We are of course working with Russia, to take one example, on Eurockot, where we market a launcher with Russia," he said.

 

Bolden said that while the U.S. Congress has NASA on a short leash with respect to dealings with China, that does not mean zero collaboration.

 

"We are discussing geodetics with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and our Earth Sciences Division," Bolden said. "The idea is to persuade China of the importance of putting their data into the international data system so that everybody has access to it. We also partner in aeronautics, looking for an international collaboration on end-route air-traffic management."

 

Dordain said ESA has two of its astronauts taking Chinese-language courses and will issue, with China's space agency, a joint call for proposals on a science mission. ESA is also exchanging Earth observation data with China and discussing joint China-ESA experiments to be flown on the international space station, and on European use of China's future space station.

 

Are U.S. Sanctions Isolating NASA Instead of Russia?

Joe Pappalardo – Popular Mechanics

 

Months ago, the Russian government asked me to head a panel on spaceflight at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (watch it here). But that was before the crisis in Ukraine, which changed relations between spacefaring companies and nations drastically. The theme of the forum was "A World in Transition," and as we've seen as the diplomatic crisis continues, that includes the way spacefaring nations cooperate in space. The way things are going, NASA may be left out in the cold.

 

President Vladimir Putin warned the United States of a "boomerang effect" of sanctions against Russia, and the space panel seemed to make his point. Following American sanctions against Russia, NASA has halted much of its cooperation with the country, and hundreds of executives of U.S. companies sat out the forum this year. SpaceX founder Elon Musk and a NASA official were on the original roster of invited panelists. Neither was here. White House officials said attending the Forum would send "an inappropriate message" in wake of the Ukrainian crisis. Meanwhile, Musk is taking potshots at his competitors' use of Russian rockets as he tried to win the rights to U.S. Air Force launches.

 

In Musk's place, tellingly, was Susmita Mohanty, the CEO of Earth2Orbit, an Indian private space startup. The new Indian government is keen on building Russian relations. I was the only American on the panel—and in the room.

 

Roscosmos deputy director Sergey Saveliev announced during the panel that the Russian government would, later this year, announce a new space policy that would replace the International Space Station. This was not a great reveal—government officials said they would stop cooperation on ISS in 2020, and this week signed a space cooperation agreement with China. A $52 billion influx into Russia's space program gave teeth to the words. "Russia is open to partnerships with all countries," Saveliev said.

 

This is not East versus West. Europe is deeply tied to the Russian space program, and the panelists did not seem to even consider a retreat.  "Space activities and business and cooperation is above short-term political crisis," says Jean Loic Galle, president and CEO of Thales Alenia Space "Even during what we called the Cold War, U.S. and Russia continued to cooperate." His firm partners with Russia on satellites and launch programs. Their most recent joint company formed in 2013. "Whatever the current situation, cooperation with Russia is very strategic for our company and we will try to expand it," he says. An executive with Airbus echoes his comments, saying space projects should "transcend politics."

 

All of this leaves NASA feeling isolated. The agency now depends on Russian spacecraft to deliver astronauts to the ISS and uses Russian rocket engines to launch national security satellites. Cries to replace Russian contracts with private space hardware have increased, but this won't be a rush job.

 

If America does go it alone, it will depend on innovation from private space companies like SpaceX to lower launch prices. There also will be a mandate make America competitive in the satellite launch industry and national security launches. The Russian and European panelists admitted that SpaceX's innovations were prompting them to look at new ways to access orbit, including creating spaceplanes and reusable rockets.

 

Russia is trying to revamp its launch industry in the wake of high profile rocket failures of its Proton-M. Last December, Russia announced the consolidation of about 70 aerospace companies into the United Rocket and Space Corporation. Igor Komarov, general director of the new firm, told the panel that there will be reforms that will introduce innovation into the Russian space industry. "There are quite a few problems with the personnel in the industry and the training of specialists," he says.

 

Consolidation and innovation may not go hand in hand, however. That makes foreign partnerships even more important. If Washington D.C.'s idea was to shut out the Russian spaceflight industry, they may have only shut themselves out. It's not impossible to imagine the next generation space station being closed to U.S.—leaving our astronauts floating outside the airlock, peering through the window at the Europeans, Indians, and Chinese inside.

 

Orion's European Service Module Back on Track

Peter B. de Selding – Space News

 

BERLIN — Europe's work on the service module for NASA's Orion crew-transport vehicle has made up most, but not all, of the slip in schedule and is on track for delivery to NASA in time for a late 2017 launch, European government and industry officials said.

 

While the delivery deadline remains challenging, the earlier problem of the module's excess weight has been resolved and the prime contractor is not having to resort to double- and triple-shifts to get the job done, officials said.

 

"The preliminary design review for the service module has been successfully concluded and that is a key milestone in the consolidation of the schedule," European Space Agency Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain said here May 20 during the Berlin Air Show.

 

NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said here that the United States remains committed to a long-term partnership with Europe on Orion that would extend well beyond the current agreement, calling for one complete service module and spare parts for a second.

 

"Europe and the United States have established a partnership with Orion and the service module that is unprecedented," Bolden said. "The United States has never — ever, ever — partnered with another nation and said, 'You're on the critical path and I can't do this without you.'

 

"And that's exactly what we said, and we did it with intention because we wanted to send a message. People can pretend that they don't hear the message, but we're in this for the long run as partners."

 

The Orion service module, to be fitted on the back end of the crew-transport capsule to provide propulsion and crew supplies, is currently part of a long-standing barter agreement between ESA and NASA under which ESA provides services, rather than cash, to NASA in return for ESA's 8 percent use of the international space station's common resources.

 

ESA has been fulfilling its barter obligations up to now by providing Automated Transport Vehicle (ATV) launches sending fuel, water and other cargo to the station. The fifth and final ATV launch is scheduled for July.

 

In November 2012, ESA governments approved extending their participation in the space station to 2020. The fifth ATV launch covers ESA's barter obligations to NASA to 2017. To cover the period to 2020, ESA agreed to spend 455 million euros ($623 million) on the Orion service module — enough to cover a full flight-ready module and parts for a second flight.

 

But because of a debate among ESA nations, mainly Germany, France and Italy, over who will pay for ESA's other station operating costs through 2020, the governments authorized ESA to spend only 250 million euros on the Orion work.

 

The remaining 205 million euros was left for the next conference of ESA government ministers, scheduled for December in Luxembourg.

 

Dordain said he remained confident that his governments will finance the remaining service module requirements to complete the contract with Airbus Defence and Space's Bremen, Germany, division, which is the service module's prime contractor.

 

Johann-Dietrich Woerner, chairman of the German Aerospace Center, DLR — Germany's space agency — said Germany backs full approval of the extension to 2020 and also wants ESA governments to support NASA's proposed extension of station operations to 2024.

 

"Germany is supporting this because our strategy is very simple," Woerner said here May 20. "We would like to use [the station] as long as it is accessible."

 

France has been less interested in the station than Germany and in the past has conditioned its support on Germany's continued financial backing of Europe's Ariane rocket program. That condition remains, but May 20 remarks here by France's space minister, Genevieve Fioraso, suggest that France is not contesting the extension to 2020.

 

In a briefing with journalists, Fioraso said France nonetheless has issues with extending its participation to 2024 without an indication from NASA that its support for rocket builder Space Exploration Technologies Corp. will not permit SpaceX to proceed with "dumping, because that's what it is" of cheap SpaceX rockets on the international market where they compete with Europe's Ariane 5 vehicle.

 

Given ESA's and France's support for the Ariane rocket line, it remained unclear whether NASA's station resupply services contract with Hawthorne, California-based SpaceX — and a similar one with Orbital Sciences of Dulles, Virginia — is qualitatively different from what occurs in Europe.

 

One ESA official said the agency has received no formal word from France that the NASA-SpaceX relationship will be a hurdle to Europe's continued space station role.

 

Completion of the preliminary design review of the Orion service module was announced May 19 — nearly a year after the original schedule, but on time following ESA's revised schedule set last November.

 

Bart Reijnen, Airbus's head of orbital systems and space exploration, said completion of the review gives the program a much-improved status from where it was a year ago, when it was many months behind schedule.

 

In a May 20 interview, Reijnen said service module's weight issue has been resolved but that the overall schedule remains challenging. The critical design review, he said, is scheduled for late 2015 — just two years before the planned launch assuming no delays on the U.S. sides.

 

"I would not say that mass today is an issue," Reijnen said. "We have sufficient [schedule] margin at the moment, but of course we would prefer that this margin increase and not vaporize in the next 18 months. There was a mass issue, and there is still a mass challenge to increase our margins."

 

Orion begins final assembly for test flight

James Dean – Florida Today

 

At Kennedy Space Center, Lockheed Martin personnel have begun attaching a test version of NASA's Orion exploration capsule to the largest spacecraft heat shield ever built.

 

The step marks the start of Orion's final assembly for its first test flight into orbit, planned in December from Cape Canaveral on a Delta IV Heavy rocket.

 

"This team has done a great job keeping us on track for Orion's first test flight," said Cleon Lacefield, Lockheed Martin vice president and Orion program manager.

 

Additional steps include joining the crew module with the service module, connecting both to an adapter that will fit on the rocket, fueling of the spacecraft and adding a launch-abort system.

 

Exploration Flight Test-1 will send Orion more than 3,000 miles from Earth, setting up a 20,000 mph re-entry through the atmosphere exposing the capsule to 4,000-degree heat.

 

Launch of Exploration Flight Test-1 had been planned in the fall, but NASA gave up its launch slot to a Department of Defense mission. NASA has said it hopes to have Orion ready if an earlier launch date becomes available, but the mission is tentatively targeting Dec. 4.

 

Boeing shows off capsule interior

 

Boeing will visit Kennedy Space Center on June 9 to discuss its CST-100 crew capsule, a contender to launch NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.

 

A media invitation offers a "boarding pass" to experience a capsule mockup and preview the "Commercial Crew Processing Facility" in which flight vehicles will be assembled in a renovated space shuttle hangar and engine shop.

 

The first ISS flights are targeted for 2017.

 

But Boeing recently also unveiled a capsule interior designed for non-NASA crews who would represent the real arrival of commercial spaceflight.

 

Rather than the utilitarian jumble of buttons and switches familiar in the shuttle and other spacecraft cockpits, an image shows sleek, cushioned seats, curving consoles and a soothing blue sky scene that "helps passengers maintain their connection with Earth," according to a press release.

 

Boeing said the design built on its experience with commercial airliners, such as the Boeing 787

 

"We are moving into a truly commercial space market and we have to consider our potential customers — beyond NASA — and what they need in a future commercial spacecraft interior," said Chris Ferguson, a former shuttle astronaut who directs Crew and Mission Operations for Boeing's Commercial Crew Program.

 

Those commercial astronauts could launch to private space stations planned by Bigelow Aerospace, which recently showed off a full-scale model of its BA-330 station.

 

Artifacts from Apollo missions sell at out-of-this-world auction

Lorenzo Ferrigno and Larry Frum – CNN

 

(CNN) -- It may be the next best thing to owning a piece of the moon.

 

A cloth American flag that was taken to the moon's surface was one of more than 500 aviation and space exploration artifacts sold into private hands at auction this week.

 

"To be honest with you, there's only 12 men who walked on the moon out of 105 billion people who have walked on this earth since humankind started walking upright," Larry McGlynn, the newest owner of the American flag told CNN on Friday. "These are incredibly rare items."

 

The 2.5 inch-by-1.75 inch commemorative American flag framed with an Apollo 15 uniform patch—which also went to the moon—was sold to McGlynn for $27,741.35, according to Bobby Livingston, executive vice president of New Hampshire-based RR Auction.

 

But the biggest seller was a complete Apollo 15 rotational hand controller used by Commander David Scott to fly and land his lunar module on the surface of the moon in 1971. The joystick-like device was purchased by an anonymous European client for $610,063, Livingston said.

 

"It's a very important hand controller. It was the most used of all the missions," Livingston said, adding that Scott had to manually land with the joystick because he was off-course during his descent onto the moon.

 

A crewman optical alignment sight, which is similar to a periscope for space, sold for over $126,000, he said.

 

All three items came from Scott's personal collection.

 

"These items represent the pinnacle of Apollo-era flown material," said Richard Jurek, co-author of "Marketing the Moon: The Selling of the Apollo Lunar Program."

 

He added, "While risking their lives during the most critical and historic phases of their mission -- these are the items that the astronauts personally selected to retain as mementos from arguably the greatest technological and engineering achievement of the 20th century."

 

The market is hot for space items, especially lunar-surface artifacts and prices are continually going up, Livingston said. The weeklong auction was RR Auction's seventh NASA-themed sale.

 

Seventy items from Apollo 11 -- the first manned mission to land on the moon -- also were offered, including pieces from the personal collections of Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins.

 

Many of the collectors, including McGlynn, grew up watching America's space program, and feel a personal connection to the pieces.

 

"I actually saw an American flag like the one I bought at a geology professor's house years ago," McGlynn said. Though he did not want to identify the professor, he said that the flag was a gift from an astronaut who was advised by the professor.

 

"These astronauts resonate. People love the heroism and the sophistication," Livingston said. "You have to remember, everyone from Galileo to Einstein to Neil Armstrong looked up to the moon, wanting to figure out how to get there -- and these astronauts were able to get up there and come back down."

 

No one injured in hot-fire engine test failure

Associated Press

 

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. — Officials with Aerojet Rocketdyne are investigating the mid-test shutdown of an AJ-26 engine at the Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Mississippi.

 

Company spokeswoman Jessica Pieczonka says in a statement that no one was hurt in the premature shutdown of the testing.

 

The AJ26 engine powers the Antares rocket that has been used to deliver supplies to the International Space Station. Officials say the test started at 2 p.m. Thursday. About 30 seconds into the planned 54-second test, the rocket engine used in the Antares launch vehicle first stage "terminated prematurely, resulting in extensive damage to the engine."

 

Officials say the cause of the failure is not known. Pieczonka says the company is leading an investigation to determine the cause.

 

NASA officials say they are also checking into the incident.

 

Boeing to show off commercial capsule at KSC next month

James Dean – Florida Today

 

Boeing will visit Kennedy Space Center June 9 to discuss its CST-100 crew capsule, a contender to launch NASA astronauts to the International Space Station.

 

A media invitation offers a "boarding pass" to experience a capsule mockup and preview the "Commercial Crew Processing Facility" in which flight vehicles will be assembled, in a renovated space shuttle hangar and engine shop.

 

The first ISS flights are targeted for 2017.

 

But Boeing recently also unveiled a capsule interior designed for non-NASA crews who would represent the real arrival of commercial spaceflight.

 

Rather than the utilitarian jumble of buttons and switches familiar in the shuttle and other spacecraft cockpits, an image shows sleek, cushioned seats, curving consoles and a soothing blue sky scene that "helps passengers maintain their connection with Earth," according to a press release.

 

Boeing said the design built on its experience with commercial airliners.

 

"We are moving into a truly commercial space market and we have to consider our potential customers – beyond NASA – and what they need in a future commercial spacecraft interior," said Chris Ferguson, a former shuttle astronaut who directs Crew and Mission Operations for Boeing's Commercial Crew Program.

 

Those commercial astronauts could launch to private space stations planned by Bigelow Aerospace, which showed off a full-scale model of its BA-330 station alongside the Boeing's new capsule interior during an event at Bigelow's North Las Vegas headquarters.

 

Space advocates make pitch in D.C.

Meghan Mistry – Galveston County Daily News

 

For the 23rd year, the Bay Area Houston Economic Partnership and the Citizens for Space Exploration journeyed to Washington, D.C., to advocate for manned space exploration.

 

The trip lasted from Tuesday until Thursday, and advocates met with members of Congress to discuss the importance of space travel.

 

Bob Mitchell, president of BAHEP, said there were more than 350 office visits, 10 more than last year. 

 

"Those are scheduled, sit-down visits," said Mitchell, who made his 15th trip. "They're not walk-ins or walk-bys, but 350 actual scheduled sit-down visits."

 

League City Mayor Tim Paulissen accompanied representatives of the two organizations for his second time.

 

"When we came up here last year, we were trying to promote the continuation of funding for NASA and to extend operational life of the space station," he said. "Both of those have been accomplished.

 

"What we're most concerned with now is the national security with Russia and our current state of dependence on them for a ride back to our own space station."

 

The issue with Russia was one of this year's main talking points, Mitchell said.

 

"Every year, we change our talking points," he said.

 

"This year, we focused more on the need for commercial, crew-manned exploration and the International Space Station."

 

The 110 travelers were divided into teams that visited offices. Paulissen said the teams consisted of one or two business people and a student.

 

"League City has a lot of residents that work for NASA, and while we've lost our share, we want to make sure our legislators know the importance of our jobs and NASA," he said.

 

Paulissen and his team visited 11 offices in the two days, all of which were of Texas congressional officers.

 

"We have kind of been speaking to the choir," he said.

 

"We're going to all Texas representatives, so they are already positive about NASA and want funding."

 

Joe Mayer, chairman of Citizens for Space Exploration, and Brian Freedman, chairman of the trip, said overall, congressional reactions had been positive.

 

"The International Space Station remains a vital tool for research in the eyes of Congress," they said in an email. "There is support for a continued national program that will move us in the direction of deep space exploration."

 

How NASA tech makes an impact in your daily life

Eric Davis – Brattleboro (VT) Reformer

 

NASA suffers from an interesting problem: It gets credit for things it didn't do and doesn't get credit for things it did do. The public knows that the investment in space and space technologies brings about innovations that improve our daily lives. An understanding of what those technologies are, however, is something that is often elusive. NASA is often mistakenly credited with inventing commonplace consumer products to which it had either tangential connections or no connections -- certainly not an enabling connection. Meanwhile, the real stories of NASA's technological achievements are often unknown.

 

This is an issue that has nagged at NASA since the Apollo program. Prior to the success of the Apollo program, for many, travel to other celestial bodies and the associated space technologies were dreams of the future, but with the successful Moon landings, there came the realization that these cutting-edge technologies were things of the present. This generated a keen interest in the public and an expectation that, since we were now living in a "space age," that these technologies developed for space should reach homes and factories across the country.

 

This era, the middle portion of the 20th century, was also a period when many new technologies were already reaching the public, spurred by advances in manufacturing and electronics. And while this influx of new consumer electronics and gadgets happened during a time when people were discovering the possibilities of space flight, many of the new goods were not directly related to any space or NASA mission. As a result, to this day, people (sometimes employees of NASA included) often mistake common household goods like microwave ovens, quartz wristwatches, smoke detectors, and barcodes for NASA technologies. While the Apollo program did bring about many significant spinoff technologies -- like some of the first practical uses of the integrated circuit, the predecessor of the modern microchip -- the difference between recorded spinoff technologies and public perception is pronounced.

 

The belief that NASA technologies have direct benefit to our everyday lives, though, is not misplaced.

 

The benefits of NASA technology are all around us. Among those that have had the greatest impact are: Nutrition advances now present in 99 percent of infant formula; cardiac pump that functions as a "bridge to transplant" for patients and which has saved hundreds of lives; the cameras in many cell phones; memory foam, a material found in everything from mattresses to sports helmets; aerodynamics advances that have been widely implemented in truck designs -- today nearly all trucks on the road incorporate NASA technology; liquid-metal alloys that are used in everything from sports equipment to computers and mobile devices; phase-change materials that have been incorporated into numerous apparel products; rocket-powered parachutes that can rescue entire airplanes; invisible braces; and tensile fabrics that are seen in structures all around the world.

 

These and many other products have all benefitted from the nation's investments in aerospace technology. The list goes on.

 

A recent analysis of companies who have recently commercialized NASA technology shows impressive results: billions of dollars in generated revenue, billions in cost savings, tens of thousands of jobs created and tens of thousands of lives saved.

 

NASA is committed to moving technologies and innovations into the mainstream of the U.S. economy, and we actively seek partnerships with U.S.companies that can license NASA innovations and create spinoffs in areas such as health and medicine, consumer goods, transportation, renewable energy and manufacturing.

 

NASA is also committed to telling this story and making sure both that the public is aware of the benefits of its investment in space technology, but also that American industry is aware of the availability of NASA technology research and assistance through its Technology Transfer Program.

 

Just this month, NASA released its newest edition of Spinoff. A long-standing NASA tradition, this annual report highlights some of the many advances that have come out of NASA's Technology Transfer Program.

 

Spinoffs in this year's book alone include an invisible coating, developed by a NASA Dual-Use Technology partner and tested at NASA facilities, that is capable of breaking down pollutants, eliminating odors, and inhibiting the buildup of grime. The technology's many applications include enhancing the efficiency of solar cells, sanitizing air in the homes of those suffering from cystic fibrosis, and even transforming buildings and towering modern art sculptures into massive air purifiers.

 

Other developments include a robot assistant now found in the halls of hospitals around the country, helping with everything from registering patients to logging vital signs. The robot has been dubbed "a Mars rover in a hospital" by one of its developers, who employed the expertise he gained working on Mars robotics for NASA to create the technology. The robot is not only easing the workload of hospital staff but also providing an economic return, creating 20 new jobs for its manufacturer.

 

Also featured is a recreational trailer designed using the same principles that supplied comfortable living quarters for the crew of the International Space Station. The trailer's creator used his experience as a NASA architect to create a unique, eco-friendly means for reconnecting with nature and revitalizing interest in our nation's parks.

 

And then there is solar concentration technology that, for the same amount of silicon, can provide many times the power of conventional panels benefited from innovations developed through a NASA Small Business Innovation Research partnership. The company founded to commercialize these NASA-derived sustainable energy installations now employs 30 workers, all with a mission to move renewable solar power into true mainstream use.

 

In addition, there was developed a worldwide search and rescue system that was founded through NASA innovation. Enabled in part by satellite ground stations developed and constructed by a NASA partner, the true value of this spinoff is inestimable. To date, more than 30,000 lives have been saved, on average more than six a day, from the highly publicized 2010 rescue of teen sailor Abby Sunderland to the rescue of fishermen, hikers, and adventurers around the world.

 

The Spinoff report is available online at http://spinoff.nasa.gov, where you will also find a searchable database of the over 1,800 spinoffs NASA has recorded since it began the Spinoff report in 1976.

 

 

END

More at www.spacetoday.net

 

 

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