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NASA's moon probe starts outer space Internet test

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NASA's newly launched lunar probe has begun testing what could eventually become an outer space Internet.

NASA's Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) observatory said the probe on Thursday night began a limited test of a high-data-rate laser communication system. It's the U.S. space agency's first laser communications test.

If it works as planned, NASA plans to use similar systems to speed up future satellite communications and deep space communications with robots and human exploration crews.

The spacecraft, which launched on Sept. 6 from the Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island, Va., reached lunar orbit on Oct. 6. A series of maneuvers put the probe into the proper orbit for engineers on Earth to check out its instruments and set up the laser communications test.

The test is expected to run through the middle of November, said Dewayne Washington, a spokesman for NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

"They're testing from different vantage points, different weather conditions," Washington said. "We want to gauge how well it would work under different conditions. it'll take a while to do that."

"Everything, so far, is going well," he added.

The space probe's main mission is to study the moon's atmosphere, though officials say testing the laser communications system also a major undertaking.

Using laser communications instead of radio systems would enable robots, such as the Curiosity Mars rover and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, and astronauts to send and receive far greater data loads fron space, whether in orbit around Earth, on the moon or on a distant asteroid.

Two-way laser communications systems can deliver six times more data with 25% less power than the best radio systems, Don Cornwell, Lunar Laser Communications Mission Manager at Goddard, said in an earlier interview.

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NASA's moon probe starts outer space Internet test

NASA Assessing Impacts of Government Shutdown

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The end of the government shutdown may have brought NASA back online, but it will take the space agency a few days to get back up to speed, officials say.

NASA Headquarters and all 10 of the agency's research and operations centers were open by Thursday afternoon (Oct. 17), a day after the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives reached a deal to end the 16-day shutdown that had sent huge numbers of federal employees home, including 97 percent of NASA's 18,000-member workforce.

One of the first orders of business for the space agency is figuring out how the work stoppage may have affected planning and operations going forward, officials said. [NASA's Space Exploration and Tech Goals for 2014 (Photos)]

"It will take a couple of days to get back to more normal operations," NASA spokesman Allard Beutel told SPACE.com. "At the same time, we're doing those initial assessments of what impact we have beyond the obvious the majority of NASA was not working for 16 days."

Some of this work involves relatively simple activities such as catching up on email and rescheduling meetings, Beutel added. But some of it will be more complex, like potentially re-assessing timelines for future space missions.

The shutdown went into effect at midnight on Oct. 1 when the Senate and House couldn't agree on an emergency spending bill to keep the government funded. NASA was forced to furlough all but 550 or so employees, keeping a skeleton crew around to protect the lives of the astronauts aboard the International Space Station and safeguard currently operating scientific spacecraft such as the car-size Mars rover Curiosity.

After the government shutdown ended on Wednesday night (Oct. 16), NASA had to conduct safety walkthroughs of its buildings and facilities before allowing people to come back to work. But that didn't pose too much of a problem, Beutel said at least compared to walkthroughs performed under different circumstances.

"A lot of the infrastructure wasn't completely shut off," he said. "It's a bigger concern when you have a weather situation like a hurricane, where you're really looking for downed wires and flooded buildings and, if you're at Kennedy [Space Center in Florida], alligators in buildings."

With the shutdown finally over, relief and excitement are palpable throughout the NASA workforce, Beutel said.

"People are very eager to get back to work and dive back into the jobs in their areas," he said.

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NASA Assessing Impacts of Government Shutdown

NASA TV Coverage Set Cygnus and ATV Departures, Soyuz Launch Preparations

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NASA Television will provide live coverage of the departure of the newest U.S. commercial cargo spacecraft to deliver supplies to the International Space Station and undocking of the fourth European Space Agency cargo vehicle.

Coverage for departure of the Cygnus spacecraft begins at 7 a.m. EDT Tuesday, Oct. 22. The spacecraft has been attached to the space station since Sept. 29 on a demonstration cargo resupply mission by Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va.

Coverage for departure of the fourth European Space Agency (ESA) Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV-4) cargo spacecraft begins at 4:45 a.m. Monday, Oct. 28.

Cygnus delivered about 1,300 pounds (589 kilograms) of cargo, including food, clothing and student experiments to the Expedition 37 crew aboard the space station. Future flights of Cygnus will significantly increase NASA's ability to deliver new science investigations to the only laboratory in microgravity.

Astronauts will load Cygnus with items no longer needed and detach the spacecraft from the station's Harmony module using the orbiting complex's robotic arm. The crew will release Cygnus at 7:30 a.m. Orbital engineers then will conduct a series of planned burns and maneuvers to move Cygnus toward a destructive re-entry in Earth's atmosphere Wednesday, Oct. 23.

Cygnus was launched on the company's Antares rocket on Sept. 18 from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Pad-0A at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia.

Orbital is the second of NASA's two partners taking part in the agency's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. The goal of COTS is to develop safe, reliable and cost effective cargo transportation systems. Following a successful demonstration mission, the company is poised to begin regular resupply missions.

The ATV-4 spacecraft, named Albert Einstein by ESA in honor of the 20th century theoretical physicist and icon of modern science, launched atop an Ariane 5 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana June 5. The spacecraft docked to the aft port of the Russian Zvezda Service Module June 15, delivering more than 7 tons of supplies.

ATV-4 also will be loaded with items no longer needed aboard the space station. The spacecraft will back away from the station to a safe distance for an engine firing that will enable it to make a planned destructive return through Earth's atmosphere Sunday, Nov. 2.

Preparations also are under way for launch of a new expedition crew to the space station. Launch is scheduled for 11:14 p.m. EDT Wednesday, Nov. 6, from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. New video of launch preparations will begin airing on NASA Television Oct. 22.

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NASA TV Coverage Set Cygnus and ATV Departures, Soyuz Launch Preparations

Scott Carpenter: Project Mercury Astronaut Dies | Pioneering Nasa Astronaut Dies – Video

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Scott Carpenter: Project Mercury Astronaut Dies | Pioneering Nasa Astronaut Dies
Scott Carpenter: Project Mercury Astronaut Dies | Pioneering Nasa Astronaut Dies Scott Carpenter: Project Mercury Astronaut Dies | Pioneering Nasa Astronaut ...

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Scott Carpenter: Project Mercury Astronaut Dies | Pioneering Nasa Astronaut Dies - Video

The Development Of The North American Aviation X-15 – 1962 NASA Educational Film – S88TV1 – Video

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The Development Of The North American Aviation X-15 - 1962 NASA Educational Film - S88TV1
A look at the testing and early flights of the North American Aviation X-15 rocket plane, designed for NASA to research manned flight at the edge of space an...

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The Development Of The North American Aviation X-15 - 1962 NASA Educational Film - S88TV1 - Video

NASA Shutdown Update, What’s Still Running and What’s Not: Space Fan News #116 – Video

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NASA Shutdown Update, What #39;s Still Running and What #39;s Not: Space Fan News #116
Thanks to Scott Lewis for another really good episode. This particular SFN is a good example of why I #39;m happy to have a collaboration with him. He is in a po...

By: Deep Astronomy

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NASA Shutdown Update, What's Still Running and What's Not: Space Fan News #116 - Video

Rolls-Royce Celebrates Expansion of Jet Engine Test Facility at NASA John C. Stennis Space Center in Hancock County …

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HANCOCK COUNTY, Miss.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

NASA Stennis Space Center--Rolls-Royce North America today officially opened its second outdoor jet engine test stand, an investment of $50 million, at the Rolls-Royce Outdoor Jet Engine Test Facility at NASA John C. Stennis Space Center in Hancock County, Miss.

Mr. Brent Christensen, Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority joined local and state officials, and Rolls-Royce North America President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. James M. Guyette to mark the official opening of the second test stand.

Our decision to first build, and now expand, the Rolls-Royce Outdoor Jet Engine Test Stand here at Stennis embraces the spirit of partnership with the State of Mississippi. This relationship continues to grow, which is a direct result of a very positive public-private partnership. said James M. Guyette, President and CEO of Rolls-Royce North America. Rolls-Royce is investing in America because our collective innovation, competitiveness and cooperative spirit and we find the State of Mississippi is the perfect location to expand our operations.

The new jet engine test stand will play a key role in the companys development of next generation technology that will make important advancements in improving fuel efficiency and reducing emissions. The site conducts jet engine testing -- including noise, crosswind, endurance and other tests on the latest and most sophisticated Rolls-Royce civil aircraft engines including the Trent 1000 that powers the Boeing 787 Dreamliner and the Trent XWB that powers the Airbus A350 XWB.

This expansion will result in 35 new, high-tech positions for the State of Mississippi when fully operational.

It is always a great testament to the strength of our states business climate and the quality of our workforce when an existing business chooses to expand in Mississippi, Brent Christensen, Executive Director of the Mississippi Development Authority said. Rolls-Royce selected the Stennis Space Center in Hancock County as the site of its first engine test stand located outside the United Kingdom, and I am proud the company has again looked to Mississippi as a prime location for the testing of their highly sophisticated jet engines.

Rolls-Royce North America first opened its Outdoor Jet Engine Testing Facility at Stennis Space Center in 2007. The company employs over 150 people in the state at this facility and Rolls-Royce Marine Propeller and Waterjet Foundry in Pascagoula, where it machines, manufactures, tests, and repairs propellers for the US Navy and Coast Guard. In Meridian, Mississippi the company also operates a defense regional field office at the Naval Air Station.

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*Based on an exchange rate of $1.60

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Rolls-Royce Celebrates Expansion of Jet Engine Test Facility at NASA John C. Stennis Space Center in Hancock County ...

NASA workers wary about future

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NASA workers and contractors in the Houston area, along with proprietors of businesses they patronize, greeted the prospect of an end to the government shutdown Wednesday with a mixture of relief and apprehension.

Employees welcomed the opportunity to return to work but said they were worried they might be furloughed again because the budget agreement only runs until Jan. 15.

It's bittersweet, said Bridget Broussard-Guidry, president of the local union representing workers at the Johnson Space Center. In the short term it's OK; in the long term there is still the possibility that on Jan. 15 we will be facing the same thing all over again.

The agreement includes back pay for furloughed federal workers but contains no assurances of payment to workers furloughed by federal contractors.

I'm a contractor, said Liz Lawler, 58, of Clear Lake. I have no idea if I will get paid for this time off.

Lawler was furloughed from her job as a personnel troubleshooter for REDE Critique NSS, a contractor for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, after Congress was unable to reach an agreement to fund the government two weeks ago.

The Johnson Space Center furloughed 3,200 workers and NASA contractors furloughed an undetermined number of their 12,000 employees in the Houston area.

NASA furloughed 97 percent of its 18,250 employees nationwide Oct. 1, a fraction of the 800,000 federal workers sent home.

Merchants near the Johnson Space Center said the return of federal employees would make a dramatic difference.

Of course I'm happy, Nidal Ayoub, owner of the Mediterranean Chef on NASA 1 Boulevard, said about the likelihood of NASA workers returning to their jobs. NASA workers made up about 80 percent of his lunch business.

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NASA workers wary about future

NASA Reconsidering Chinese Scientists' Applications

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October 11, 2013

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

NASA said on Thursday that it would be reconsidering the applications of Chinese scientists who were denied access to a conference when the US government opens back up, according to a report by AFP.

NASA is holding a conference at one of its facilities in northern California on November 4 through 8. Six Chinese scientists were denied access to the conference due to what organizers said was an order to temporarily prohibit visits by citizens of several nations, including China, to NASA facilities.

Congressman Frank Wolf wrote a letter to NASA administrator Charles Bolden earlier this week about his disappointment to learn that the Chinese scientists were denied access to the conference.

You indicated at the time that security policies for foreign nationals for particular countries of concern would be reevaluated and new accreditations would not be approved until the security process was vetted, Wolf wrote. However, any restriction against Chinese nationals on NASA centers is entirely an agency policy and not covered under the statutory restriction. Furthermore, it was my understanding that NASAs temporary restrictions had been lifted after a review of security protocols for foreign nationals at all NASA centers.

The US space agency administrator said the situation was unfortunate and that NASA would be taking another look at these applications once the shutdown is over.

It is unfortunate that potential Chinese participants were refused attendance at the upcoming Kepler Conference at the Ames Research Park, Bolden wrote in an email to Congressman Wolf, seen by AFP. Mid-level managers at Ames, in performing the due diligence they believed appropriate following a period of significant concern and scrutiny from Congress about our foreign access to NASA facilities, meetings and websites, acted without consulting NASA HQ (headquarters), he continued.

He said that when he learned of the situation, he directed that NASA reviews the requests for attendance from scientists of Chinese origin and determine whether or not to recontact them immediately when the government reopens its doors. Bolden added that any scientist who meets the clearance requirements in place for foreign citizens will be accepted for participation.

The moratorium ordered in March this year was made, along with additional security measures, by Bolden following a potential security breach at a NASA facility in Virginia by a Chinese citizen. However, Congressman Wolf, who called the ban into question on Tuesday, said that the moratorium should have been lifted by now.

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NASA Reconsidering Chinese Scientists' Applications


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