NASA #39;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
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NASA Chief Congratulates ISS Crew on Success of Cygnus Arrival
Coconut Science Lab: http://www.coconutsciencelab.com NASA Chief Charles Bolden calls up the crew of the ISS to congratulate them on the success of the Cygnu...
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NASA Chief Congratulates ISS Crew on Success of Cygnus Arrival - Video
The memory of Neil Armstrong lives on at a NASA center.
President Barack Obama on Thursday signed a bill into law that rebrands the Dryden Flight Research Center in Southern California in honor of the late astronaut. Armstrong was a test pilot at the Mojave Desert facility and later became the first moonwalker.
The center is being renamed the NASA Neil A. Armstrong Flight Research Center. As a consolation, the center's test range will be named for Hugh Dryden, a former NASA executive.
It's not the first name makeover for NASA.
In 1999, the Lewis Research Center in Ohio named for George Lewis, the first executive officer of NASA's predecessor agency was changed to the John H. Glenn Research Center, after the first American to orbit Earth.
NASA says it's developing a timeline to carry out the latest name change.
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Michael Freilich, the scientist who directs the Earth Science Division, explains the importance of the Earth-monitoring satellites
By Stephanie Paige Ogburn and ClimateWire
Michael Freilich: Director of NASA's Earth Science Division. Image: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Flickr
NASA is well-known for its lunar landings and missions to Mars. But the agency makes major use of its space expertise running satellites that monitor the Earth, its climate and its weather.
It currently operates 16 Earth science research missions, and the agency's Earth Science Division is scheduled to launch up to five more in 2014.
Michael Freilich, the scientist who directs the Earth Science Division, took a few minutes to discuss with ClimateWire the importance of the Earth science missions and what he is looking forward to in the new year.
ClimateWire: Why is it important to observe the Earth from space?
Michael Freilich: If you are going to understand the connection between [biological, physical and chemical] processes, you have to be measuring lots of different quantities all at the same time.
The vantage point of space allows us to make measurements that have high spatial resolution but global coverage, and make frequent measurements at a particular place but for long periods of time. We couldn't look at the Earth as an integrated system where you have to measure all these different variables and over all these different scales before the advent of the space age.
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NASA's Glenn Research Center Director Jim Free and former NASA astronaut Scott Altman recognized over 500 Glenn employees and contractors for exceptional contributions and achievements in science, technology, engineering, craftsmanship, leadership and administrative service at the 2013 Honor and Center Awards Ceremony.
Below are the Honor Award recipients, their hometowns and the award citations from the ceremony program.
Presidential Rank Award of Meritorious Senior Professional: Rickey J. Shyne, Strongsville, the rank of Meritorious Executive in the Senior Executive Service for sustained superior accomplishment in management of programs of the United States Government and for noteworthy achievement of quality and efficiency in the public service.
Presidential Rank Award of Distinguished Senior Professional: Isaiah M. Blankson, Solon, for sustained extraordinary accomplishment in the conduct of programs of the United States Government and for professionalism exemplifying the highest standards of service to the public, reflecting credit on the career civil service.
Outstanding Leadership Medal: Ruben Del Rosario, Strongsville, for sustained leadership and exceptionally high-impact achievements in the development strategy to NASA research projects for commercial subsonic transport technologies.
Linda D. Dukes-Campbell, Beachwood, for exceptional leadership of dynamic media and outreach teams at the NASA Glenn Research Center.
Carol A. Ginty, Olmsted Township, for outstanding leadership of significant agency projects including Space Environmental Test, Commercial Space and Cryogenic Propellant Storage and Transfer.
Julie A. Grantier for exceptional and sustained leadership while serving as the technical lead for the European Space Agency Service Module team.
Glen M. Horvat, North Royalton, for exceptional and sustained leadership while serving as Glenn's Senior Spaceflight Chief Engineer.
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NASA's Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity landed on the Red Planet 10 years ago this month and the space agency will celebrate the milestone with a live webcast event tonight.
Spirit and Opportunity landed on Mars in January 2004 to begin a 90-day mission that continues to this day. Spirit, which landed first, went silent in March 2010, but Opportunity is still exploring a decade after reaching the Red Planet. You can watch NASA's Mars rover webcast live here beginning at 10 p.m. EST (0300 Jan. 17 GMT, 7 p.m. PST), courtesy of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
"NASA's twin rovers launched separately in 2003 and landed three weeks apart in January 2004. They completed their three-month prime missions in April 2004 and went on to perform extended missions for years," NASA officials wrote in an announcement. "Spirit and Opportunity made important discoveries about wet environments on ancient Mars that may have been favorable for supporting microbial life." [10 Amazing Mars Discoveries by Spirit & Opportunity]
Tonight's 10th anniversary event will be held at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and feature:
You can also watch the Mars rover celebration directly from NASA here: http://ustream.tv/NASAJPL
10 Years on Mars: Smithsonian Celebrates Spirit, Opportunity Rovers: Photos
If you live in the Los Angeles area, you can attend the event free of charge, though admission is on a first-come, first-serve basis. The event will begin at 7 p.m. local time in JPL's Beckman Auditorium on the California Institute of Technology campus, 1200 E. California Blvd., Pasadena, Calif.
Mars Myths & Misconceptions: Quiz
No planet is more steeped in myth and misconception than Mars. This quiz will reveal how much you really know about some of the goofiest claims about the red planet.
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NASA Celebrates Mars Rovers' 10-Year Mark Tonight: Watch Live @ 10 pm ET
The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel (ASAP), an advisory committee that reports to NASA and Congress, has released its 2013 annual report examining NASA's safety performance over the past year and highlighting issues and concerns to agency and government officials.
The report released Wednesday is based on the panel's 2013 fact-finding and quarterly public meetings; "insight" visits and meetings; direct observations of NASA operations and decision-making processes; discussions with NASA management, employees, and contractors; and the panel members' own experience.
"This year's annual report centers on risk, risk management, accountability, and transparency," said panel chairman Joseph W. Dyer. "The panel notes that in pursuit of a U.S. capability to launch humans into space, and in light of constrained budgets, an argument to accept additional risk could be rationally put forward. The ASAP underscores the need to speak transparently about risk and reward. Acceptable risk needs to be formally accepted, made accountable, and explained to the NASA team, Congress, and the public."
The 2013 report highlights:
-- Commercial Crew Program
-- Exploration Systems Development
-- Funding Uncertainty
-- International Space Station (ISS)
-- Technical Authority
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NASA's Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel Releases 2013 Annual Report
Climate experts from NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will announce new data on 2013 global temperatures during a media teleconference at 1:30 p.m. EST Tuesday, Jan. 21.
The scientists also will discuss 2013's most important weather and climate events. NASA and NOAA are two keepers of the world's temperature data and independently produce a record of Earth's surface temperatures and changes based on historical observations over oceans and land.
Consistency between the two independent analyses, as well as analyses produced by other countries, increases confidence in the accuracy of such data, the assessment of the data, and resulting conclusions. These analyses provide government and business leaders with critical information about climate change.
The NASA and NOAA 2013 global temperature analyses will be issued in a news release 90 minutes before the start of the teleconference.
The teleconference panelists are:
-- Gavin Schmidt, deputy director, NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York
-- Thomas R. Karl, director, NOAA's National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, N.C. and chair of the Subcommittee on Global Change Research
Media can participate in the teleconference by calling 888-810-6809 (toll-free in U.S./Canada) or 1-212-519-0808 (international) and using the passcode "climate." The briefing also will be streamed live at:
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NASA, NOAA To Announce 2013 Global Temperature, Climate Conditions
NASA #39;s use X-ray to scout for hidden BLACK HOLES
NASA #39;s NuSTAR will use its X-ray eyes to scout for hidden black holse in the universe..
By: Juan Demarco
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NASA Inspector General Paul Martin today released a report that examines NASA's "strategic sourcing" efforts. Overall, the Federal Government spends more than $500 billion annually to buy products and services in a highly decentralized manner, resulting in wasteful spending. As a result, Federal agencies have been directed to practice strategic sourcing and consolidate their spending, either by centralizing their contracting decisions or by using government-wide contracts to lower prices and reduce administrative duplication.
The Office of Inspector General found that despite a 7-year effort, NASA has failed to develop a robust, Agency-wide strategic sourcing program, thereby missing opportunities to maximize savings by aggregating its purchasing power and market position when procuring goods and services, such as office supplies and domestic delivery services. While NASA established a Strategic Sourcing Program as required by a 2005 Office of Management and Budget memorandum, it has never conducted a comprehensive, Agency-wide spend analysis to identify commodities that could benefit from a more strategic procurement approach. Further, although NASA performed limited spend analyses on individual commodities, it has not established requirements regarding how such analyses should be developed, analyzed, and used. While NASA officials said they have realized savings under specific strategic sourcing initiatives, NASA does not track its Agency-wide strategic sourcing efforts and therefore was unable to determine the extent of any efficiencies or cost savings.
The OIG made six recommendations to strengthen NASA's Strategic Sourcing Program and the Agency concurred or partially concurred with four. The Agency disagreed with a recommendation to perform a comprehensive spend analysis of all procurement activities across NASA. However, the OIG continues to believe that NASA would benefit from such an Agency-wide analysis and therefore the recommendation remains unresolved. NASA also disagreed with our recommendation to incorporate into Agency policy the use of strategic sourcing initiatives to the maximum extent possible. Similarly, because we continue to believe that NASA would benefit from adopting policy requiring the use of strategic sourcing initiatives, the recommendation remains unresolved.
The full report can be found on the OIG's website at http://oig.nasa.gov/ under "Reading Room" or at the following link: http://oig.nasa.gov/audits/reports/FY14/IG-14-010.pdf
Excerpts:
Because NASA has failed to develop a robust, Agency-wide strategic sourcing program over the past 7 years, it has missed opportunities to maximize savings by aggregating the Agency's substantial purchasing power and market position when procuring commodities. This resulted from the poor development and implementation of an Agency-wide plan as well as limited Agency-wide communication and senior-level management commitment. While NASA established a plan to manage its strategic sourcing program as required by OMB's 2005 memorandum, the Agency never conducted a comprehensive Agency-wide "spend analysis" to identify additional commodities that could benefit from a more strategic approach to procurement. Further, while NASA performed limited spend analyses on several individual commodities, the Agency did not establish requirements regarding how the analysis should be developed, analyzed, and used. While NASA officials informed us that they have realized savings with regard to specific strategic sourcing initiatives, the Agency does not track Agency-wide strategic sourcing efforts to maximize potential cost savings. As a result, NASA was unable to demonstrate the extent of efficiency or cost savings achieved through its Strategic Sourcing Program.
According to Headquarters Procurement guidance, the primary goal of NASA's Strategic Sourcing Program is "to establish a process that enables NASA to strategically acquire products and services common across the Agency, Centers, or organizations to support the Agency's mission in a more effective and efficient manner."12However, poor development of an Agency-wide plan, coupled with the insufficient implementation of key aspects of that plan, has significantly impaired NASA's Strategic Sourcing Program. NASA developed the Program plan to begin with the analysis of the Agency's procurement activities (spend analysis), carry through contract award and management, and end with measurement of performance results. However, NASA failed to follow critical elements of its plan - specifically, the spend analysis and performance measurement. In addition, limited direction to and communication with its decentralized procurement community regarding strategic sourcing initiatives, coupled with a historic culture of autonomy among the Centers, has resulted in the insufficient implementation of strategic sourcing across NASA.
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The next International Space Station crew, which includes NASA astronaut Steve Swanson, will take part in a NASA Television news conference and then be available for media interviews Wednesday, Jan. 22, at the agency's Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Swanson and cosmonauts Alexander Skvortsov and Oleg Artemyev of the Russian Federal Space Agency will launch to the space station aboard a Soyuz TMA-12M spacecraft March 25 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan as part of Expedition 39. Swanson will serve as commander for Expedition 40 beginning in May. They are scheduled to return to Earth in September.
The news conference with the crew members will be carried live on NASA TV at 1 p.m. CST. B-roll video of the crew will air beginning at 12:30 p.m. Reporters who wish to participate by telephone should call Johnson's newsroom at 281-483-5111 no later than 12:45 p.m. Those following the briefing on social media can ask questions using the hashtag #askNASA.
After the news conference, interview opportunities are available in person, by phone or through the Internet. To request credentials to attend in person or to reserve an interview opportunity, media must contact Johnson's newsroom by 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17. The deadline for international journalists to attend in person has passed.
Swanson was born in Syracuse, N.Y., and grew up in Steamboat Springs, Colo. He holds degrees from University of Colorado, Florida Atlantic University and Texas A&M University. Swanson worked as a NASA systems engineer and flight engineer for the Shuttle Training Aircraft before being selected as an astronaut in 1998. Since then, he has flown on two space shuttle missions, STS-117 and STS-119, to the space station and conducted four spacewalks. Swanson's hobbies include backpacking, camping, trail running and mountain biking.
The Expedition 39-40 crew members will be the first to share their final weeks of mission preparations and their flight experiences on Instagram. Those interested can follow along at:
http://instagram.com/internationalspacestation
For Swanson's full biography, visit:
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NASA TV News Conference, Media Availability with Next Space Station Crew
NASA's Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-L (TDRS-L) is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket Thursday, Jan. 23, from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
The 40-minute launch window extends from 9:05 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. EST.
Prelaunch media briefings and launch commentary coverage will be carried live on NASA Television and the agency's website.
The TDRS-L spacecraft is the second of three new satellites designed to ensure vital operational continuity for NASA by expanding the lifespan of the fleet, which consists of eight satellites in geosynchronous orbit. The spacecraft provide tracking, telemetry, command and high bandwidth data return services for numerous science and human exploration missions orbiting Earth. These include NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and the International Space Station. TDRS-L has a high-performance solar panel designed for more spacecraft power to meet the growing S-band communications requirements.
NASA will host a number of prelaunch activities at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Tuesday, Jan. 21
-- 1 p.m.: Prelaunch news conference on NASA TV at the Kennedy Press Site
Wednesday, Jan. 22
-- 9 a.m.: Transportation to Atlas V launch vehicle rollout departs the Kennedy Press Site parking lot (not on NASA TV)
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NASA Sets Coverage Schedule for TDRS-L/Atlas V Launch Events
3 hours ago NASA Global Hawk 872 carries the Hawkeye sensors on wing-mounted pylons during a checkout flight of ATTREX instruments. Credit: NASA / Tom Miller
A NASA Global Hawk recently completed a checkout flight of science instruments in preparation for a study of the moisture and chemical composition of the stratosphere over the western Pacific Ocean.
In December, Global Hawk 872 flew more than six hours in restricted airspace during the checkout flight near Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The flight was the first for a Global Hawk to carry instruments in pods hung on wing-mounted pylons. The pods carried the Hawkeye cloud particle probe instrument. Hawkeye is one of 13 sensors installed in the unmanned Global Hawk for the Airborne Tropical Tropopause Experiment (ATTREX) mission that begins later this month from a base on Guam.
The Dec. 20 checkout flight was the 29th Global Hawk project flight for 2013, bringing the yearly total of flight hours to 476. Last year also saw a number of firsts for NASA's Global Hawk project including flying new sensors, initial operation of a ground control station at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, the deployment of both Global Hawks to Wallops, flying over a foreign country (Canada) and carrying an instrument in wing-mounted pods.
Explore further: NASA's HS3 mission analyzes Saharan dust layer over Eastern Atlantic
A consortium of scientists are in the early stages of preparation for a multi-year airborne science campaign to study the humidity and chemical composition of air entering the tropical tropopause layer of ...
One of two of NASA's Global Hawk unmanned aircraft flew over the remnants of Tropical Storm Erin and investigated the Saharan Air Layer in the Eastern Atlantic Ocean on Aug. 20 and 21. The instruments aboard ...
Data from the dropsondes that are dispersed from one of NASA's Global Hawk unmanned aircraft assisted forecasters at the National Hurricane Center when analyzing the environment of newborn Tropical Storm ...
NASA's Hurricane and Severe Storm Sentinel, or HS3, mission will be a complex one for the pilots flying NASA's Global Hawk aircraft from the ground. The mission, set to begin this month, will be the first ...
Starting this month, NASA will send a remotely piloted research aircraft as high as 65,000 feet over the tropical Pacific Ocean to probe unexplored regions of the upper atmosphere for answers to how a warming climate is changing ...
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Several companies, working closely with NASA, ended 2013 with an impressive string of achievements to build on in 2014 as the American aerospace industry continues to develop and demonstrate commercial human spaceflight capabilities with the potential to support both commercial and government customers.
The year will be pivotal for NASA's Commercial Crew Program (CCP) as the agency looks to announce one or more awards by August for Commercial Crew Transportation Capability (CCtCap) contracts that would lead to operational crewed flights to the International Space Station. NASA intends to use new commercial systems to fly U.S. astronauts to and from the station within the next three years.
NASA's industry partners are pursuing ambitious milestones this year as CCP moves forward. The partners are Blue Origin of Kent, Wash.; The Boeing Company of Houston; Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) of Sparks, Nev.; and Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) of Hawthorne, Calif.
Milestones planned by the companies include sophisticated software demonstrations, a free flight to evaluate a vehicle in a simulated space environment and launches to test the first of a new generation of launch abort systems. The goal of CCP is to develop a new generation of U.S. human transportation systems capable of delivering humans to low-Earth orbit from American soil.
"Our partners have steadily moved pieces from the drawing boards and computer screens to factory floors and test stands across the country," said Kathy Lueders, acting manager of CCP. "The new year offers exciting opportunities for these companies to demonstrate the reach and potential of their hard-earned innovations."
Blue Origin test-fired its BE-3 engine in 2013. It plans this year to review its assembly of a sub-scale propellant tank and conduct a review of the space vehicle's subsystems design.
With the completion of a detailed design review in 2013, Boeing continued to develop its spacecraft, the CST-100, confirming in this review the service module propulsion system was ready to move into the next phases: production and integration with the CST-100 spacecraft.
Boeing's certification plan for the CST-100 detailed several aspects of its development and operation, including plans for testing components and systems along with the spacecraft as a whole -- a plan that takes the spacecraft through development to the launch pad and on to mission operations.
"Boeing's goal is to develop a safe and reliable commercial space transportation system and these reviews are vital to meet that goal," said Gennaro Caliendo, NASA's Integration Team lead for Boeing. "They help ensure that the spacecraft and its myriad systems will work together to accomplish challenging missions, which require the utmost attention to detail."
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NASA's Commercial Crew Partners Aim to Capitalize, Expand on 2013 Successes in 2014
AMAZING! NASA FINDS #39;HAND OF GOD #39;!
This has quickly become one of my favorites! The fact that there is SO MUCH DETAIL! The odds of finding a hand are 1 thing. But to find an Eye in the Palm wi...
By: DAHBOO77
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NASA Powers Up State-of-the-Art Space Launch System Software Avionics
The modern avionics system that will guide NASA #39;s Space Launch System (SLS), the most powerful rocket ever built, has seen the light. The flight software and...
By: NASA #39;s Marshall Center
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NASA Powers Up State-of-the-Art Space Launch System Software Avionics - Video
ISS Extended to 2024 on This Week @NASA
NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden and White House Science Advisor John Holdren, announced that the Obama administration is extending usage of the Internation...
By: NASA
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Comet Ison Meteor Dust/Debris UPDATE Jan. 12 Noctilucent Cloud "Hand of God" NASA News Update
Animated artistic rendering of NASA #39;s "Hand of God" X-Ray image compiled from Chandra and NuSTAR telescope/observatory, superimposed over noctilucent cloud a...
By: p1nesap
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#39;Hand Of God #39; NASA Image Shows Exploded Star
The image was taken with two NASA telescopes, the NuSTAR and the Chandra, which show the remnants of an exploded star.
By: NewsyScience
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NASA video: Monster sunspot erupts with X-class flare towards Earth
VIDEO COURTESY: NASA, SOHO (ESA/NASA) A large coronal mass ejection has reached Earth -- days after the Sun sent a massive burst of solar wind and electromag...
By: RT
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NASA video: Monster sunspot erupts with X-class flare towards Earth - Video