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NASA scientist: Evidence of alien life by 2025

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Story highlights NASA chief scientist believes we're close to finding alien life Indications within a decade; definitive evidence within "20 to 30 years," said Ellen Stofan Finding water on other celestial bodies is key to determination

"I think we're going to have strong indications of life beyond Earth within a decade, and I think we're going to have definitive evidence within 20 to 30 years," NASA chief scientist Ellen Stofan said Tuesday during a panel discussion on water in the universe.

"We know where to look. We know how to look," she said. "In most cases, we have the technology, and we're on a path to implementing it. And so I think we're definitely on the road."

NASA released a graphic noting that scientists have found evidence or indications of water on a number of celestial bodies, including the dwarf planet Ceres and Jupiter's moon Europa.

The Hubble Space Telescope has been key to the discoveries, NASA said in a news release.

"Scientists using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope recently provided powerful evidence that (Jupiter's moon) Ganymede has a saltwater, sub-surface ocean, likely sandwiched between two layers of ice," the agency noted.

There are some caveats involved, of course. NASA isn't talking about intelligent alien civilizations from the Alpha Quadrant; it's referring to microorganisms.

"We are not talking about little green men," Stofan said at the panel. "We are talking about little microbes."

Still, former astronaut John Grunsfeld said it's an exciting time -- and he thinks it's just a matter of time before we find life outside our solar system as well.

"I think we're one generation away in our solar system, whether it's on an icy moon or on Mars, and one generation on a planet around a nearby star," he said.

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NASA scientist: Evidence of alien life by 2025

We are on the verge of discovering aliens, says NASA's chief scientist

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Humanity is on the verge of discovering alien life, high-ranking NASA scientists say.

"I think we're going to have strong indications of life beyond Earth within a decade, and I think we're going to have definitive evidence within 20 to 30 years," NASA chief scientist Ellen Stofan said Tuesday (April 7) during a panel discussion that focused on the space agency's efforts to search for habitable worlds andalien life.

"We know where to look. We know how to look," Stofan added during the event, which was webcast live. "In most cases we have the technology, and we're on a path to implementing it. And so I think we're definitely on the road." [5 Bold Claims of Alien Life]

Former astronaut John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, shared Stofan's optimism, predicting that signs of life will be found relatively soon both in our own solar system and beyond.

"I think we're one generation away in our solar system, whether it's on an icy moon or onMars, and one generation [away] on a planet around a nearby star," Grunsfeld said during Tuesday's event.

Recent discoveries suggest that the solar system and broader Milky Way galaxy teem with environments that could support life as we know it, Grunsfeld said.

For example, oceans of liquid water slosh beneath the icy shells of the Jupiter moonsEuropaand Ganymede, as well as that of the Saturn satellite Enceladus. Oceans covered much of Mars in the ancient past, and seasonal dark streaks observed on the Red Planet's surface today may be caused by salty flowing water.

Further, NASA's Curiosity rover has found carbon-containing organic molecules and "fixed" nitrogen, basic ingredients necessary for Earth-like life, on the Martian surface.

Farther afield, observations by NASA'sKepler space telescopesuggest that nearly every star in the sky hosts planets and many of these worlds may be habitable. Indeed, Kepler's work has shown that rocky worlds like Earth and Mars are probably more common throughout the galaxy than gas giants such as Saturn and Jupiter.

And just as the solar system is awash in water, so is the greater galaxy, said Paul Hertz, director of NASA's Astrophysics Division.

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We are on the verge of discovering aliens, says NASA's chief scientist

Transit graph – Video

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Transit graph
Kepler measures the brightness of stars. The data will look like an EKG showing the heart beat. Whenever a planet passes in front of its parent star as viewed from the spacecraft, a tiny pulse...

By: NASA Ames Research Center

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Transit graph - Video

NASA: We'll find alien life in 10 to 20 years

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Are we alone in the universe? Top NASA scientists say the answer is almost certainly no.

"I believe we are going to have strong indications of life beyond Earth in the next decade and definitive evidencein the next 10 to 20 years," EllenStofan,chiefscientist for NASA, said at a public panel Tuesday in Washington.

"We know where to look, we know how to look, and in most cases we have the technology," she said.

Jeffery Newmark, interim director of heliophysics at the agency put it this way: "It's definitely not an if, it's a when."

However, if visions of alien invasions are dancing in your head, you can let those go.

"We are not talking about little green men," Stofan said. "We are talking about little microbes."

Over the course of an hourlong presentation, NASA leaders described a flurry of recent discoveries that suggest we are closer than ever to figuring out where we might find life in the solar system and beyond.

For example, Jim Green, director of planetary science at NASA, cited a studythat analyzed the atmosphere aboveMars' polar ice caps and suggests that 50% of the planet's northern hemisphere once had oceans up to a mile deep, and that it had that water for a long period of time -- up to 1.2 billion years.

"We think that long period of time is necessary for life to get more complex," Stofan said.

She added that getting human field geologists and astrobiologists on Mars would greatly improve the chances of finding fossils of past life on our nearest planetary neighbor.

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NASA: We'll find alien life in 10 to 20 years

NASA, IBM team up on global hackathon to solve Earths problems

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What if the same drones designed to deliver packages to online shoppers could be used to help astronauts move equipment aboard the international space station?

NASA is challenging developers, scientists, artists and engineers across the world to design apps for these and other futuristic ideas in the space agencys fourth annual space apps hackathon this weekend.

The three-day event takes place at more than 135 locations across the world, including the Washington region. New York City plays host to the global competition.

What started out as a way for NASA to harness innovative ideas from outside its walls has turned into a platform for the agency, academic institutions and technology companies to scour global tech talent.

This year, IBM is teaming up with NASA to provide cloud services to participants during the hackathon, the company said Tuesday.

Participants will be given access to IBMs Bluemix platform as well as the companys signature tools, such as the analytical power of supercomputer Watson to crunch NASA data. IBM employees will provide technical support during the event.

Microsoft, Google, Intel and other tech companies are among dozens of collaborators on the competition.

For IBM, the decision to partner with NASA fits in with a three-fold strategy to raise awareness about Bluemix, connect with the developer community and encourage interest in technology careers, said Sandy Carter, general manager of the companys cloud division.

We want to provide developers access to the top technology trends to spur innovation, she said.

[Could IBMs brain-inspired chip change how computers are built?]

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NASA, IBM team up on global hackathon to solve Earths problems

NASA Scientist: Signs of Alien Life Will Be Found Soon

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Humanity is on the verge of discovering alien life, high-ranking NASA scientists say.

"I think we're going to have strong indications of life beyond Earth within a decade, and I think we're going to have definitive evidence within 20 to 30 years," NASA chief scientist Ellen Stofan said Tuesday (April 7) during a panel discussion that focused on the space agency's efforts to search for habitable worlds and alien life.

"We know where to look. We know how to look," Stofan added during the event, which was webcast live. "In most cases we have the technology, and we're on a path to implementing it. And so I think we're definitely on the road." [5 Bold Claims of Alien Life]

Former astronaut John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, shared Stofan's optimism, predicting that signs of life will be found relatively soon both in our own solar system and beyond.

"I think we're one generation away in our solar system, whether it's on an icy moon or on Mars, and one generation [away] on a planet around a nearby star," Grunsfeld said during Tuesday's event.

Recent discoveries suggest that the solar system and broader Milky Way galaxy teem with environments that could support life as we know it, Grunsfeld said.

For example, oceans of liquid water slosh beneath the icy shells of the Jupiter moons Europa and Ganymede, as well as that of the Saturn satellite Enceladus. Oceans covered much of Mars in the ancient past, and seasonal dark streaks observed on the Red Planet's surface today may be caused by salty flowing water.

Further, NASA's Curiosity rover has found carbon-containing organic molecules and "fixed" nitrogen, basic ingredients necessary for Earth-like life, on the Martian surface.

Farther afield, observations by NASA's Kepler space telescope suggest that nearly every star in the sky hosts planets and many of these worlds may be habitable. Indeed, Kepler's work has shown that rocky worlds like Earth and Mars are probably more common throughout the galaxy than gas giants such as Saturn and Jupiter.

This is a condensed version of a report from Space.com. Read the full report. Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow Space.com @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+.

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NASA Scientist: Signs of Alien Life Will Be Found Soon

NASA Collaborates With IBM For Annual Space Apps Challenge

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NASAs ambitious International Space Apps Challenge is taking place this weekend in over 160 nations across the globe. The space agency, which is collaborating with IBM for the fourth edition of the annual event, is looking to seek the involvement of scientists and entrepreneurs across the globe to create software that can attack a range of problems -- from climate change to manned space flight.

The aim of the event is to design innovative solutions for global challenges through the involvement of technologists, scientists, designers, artists, educators, entrepreneurs, developers and students across the globe, according to a statement published on the event website. The main themes for this years challenge are Earth, Outer Space, Humans and Robotics.

For example, one of the challenges asks participants to plan, design and simulate a mission to explore an asteroid, while another seeks to improve the technology used for mapping drinking water resources on Earth.

During the competition, participants would have access to 200 NASA data sources and IBMs cloud services through its Bluemix Platform. The idea behind the challenge is to use analytics tools on Bluemix to develop tools to efficiently utilize publicly available data.

There's this huge mass of people all around the world who are incredible fans of NASA and space in general, Sean Herron, a member of the original NASA team that started the challenge in 2012, reportedly said, adding that the event aims to tap all of this genius and bring them together, and have one big event to try andsolve what we call problems of a global nature.

Ultimately, two projects from each city will qualify for global judging. IBM, which has recently been involved in hackathon events at Howard University and is also a part of Citibanks financial technology innovation event, will offer30 awards for the most innovative use of Bluemix.Moreover, winning apps might be used in future NASA projects.

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NASA Collaborates With IBM For Annual Space Apps Challenge

NASA TV Coverage Set for Sixth SpaceX Resupply Mission to Space Station

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The sixth SpaceX cargo mission to the International Space Station under NASA's Commercial Resupply Services contract is scheduled to launch on Monday, April 13, from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. NASA Television coverage of the launch begins at 3:30 p.m. EDT.

The company's Falcon 9 rocket will lift off at 4:33 p.m., carrying its Dragon cargo spacecraft. Dragon is filled with more than 4,300 pounds of supplies and payloads, including critical materials to directly support about 40 of the more than 250 science and research investigations that will occur during Expeditions 43 and 44.

In addition to launch coverage, NASA also will host a series of prelaunch news conferences on Sunday, April 12, at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. All briefings, which are subject to a change in time, will air live on NASA TV and the agency's website.

During panel discussions Sunday at 1:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., scientists and researchers will discuss the onboard science and research studies. The series of briefings will conclude with a prelaunch news conference at 5 p.m. A post-launch briefing will be held approximately 90 minutes after liftoff Monday.

Science payloads will study new ways to possibly counteract the microgravity-induced cell damage seen during spaceflight, the effects of microgravity on the most common cells in bones, gather new insight that could lead to treatments for osteoporosis and muscle wasting conditions, continue studies into astronaut vision changes and test a new material that could one day be used as a synthetic muscle for robotics explorers of the future.

A Monday launch will result in the Dragon spacecraft arriving at the space station Wednesday, April 15. Expedition 43 Flight Engineer Samantha Cristoforetti of ESA (European Space Agency) will use the station's 57.7-foot robotic arm to reach out and capture Dragon at approximately 7 a.m.Flight Engineer Terry Virts of NASA will support Cristoforetti as they operate from the station's cupola. NASA TV coverage of grapple will begin at 5 a.m.Coverage of Dragon's installation to the Earth-facing port of the Harmony module will begin at 9:15 a.m.

If the launch does not occur on Monday, the next launch opportunity would beat approximately 4:10 p.m.Tuesday, April 14.

After about five weeks at the space station, Dragon will return to Earth filled with more than 3,000 pounds of cargo including crew supplies, hardware and computer resources, science experiments, and space station hardware.

Media may request accreditation to attend the prelaunch news conferences, events and launch online at:https://media.ksc.nasa.gov

The deadline for U.S. media to apply for accreditation is noon on April 9. The application deadline has passed for international media. Media credentials will be valid for mission activities from launch through splashdown at Kennedy and at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

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NASA TV Coverage Set for Sixth SpaceX Resupply Mission to Space Station

NASA code-a-thon uses IBM cloud to build space tech

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NASA is pulling together more than 10,000 developers, scientists, students and entrepreneurs from 62 countries for a code-a-thon.

Sharon Gaudin (Computerworld (US)) on 08 April, 2015 03:18

NASA this weekend is pulling together more than 10,000 developers, scientists, students and entrepreneurs across 62 countries for a code-a-thon aimed at building technology for space exploration.

Using IBM's cloud development platform, Bluemix, participants will be tasked with developing mobile apps, software, hardware, data visualization and platform solutions. The technology being developed will address one of 35 different challenges across four research topic areas -- outer space, Earth, humans and robotics.

The individual challenges include areas like designing a spacecraft for an asteroid mission, creating a robotic asteroid-hunting machine, and creating a drone to be used on a spacecraft.

Called the NASA Space App Challenge, the three-day code-a-thon will offer participants more than 200 NASA data sources, including data sets, services and tools, supplied through real-life missions and technology.

"IBM is supporting the NASA Space App Challenge because we saw a great opportunity to contribute to an important cause," said Sandy Carter, general manager of IBM's Cloud Ecosystem and Developers. "Not only are we helping participants build applications that will be used to improve space exploration and life on earth - two initiatives that impact all of humanity - but we're also helping them build their skills for cloud development while helping to cultivate an interest in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) fields."

By working with IBM's Bluemix, developers should be able to use more than 100 cloud-based development tools, ranging from services for Watson analytics to tools for managing data of Internet of Things technologies. They'll also have access to NASA's data via the cloud, as well as being able to quickly compose, test and deploy their apps.

Carter noted that this weekend's challenge is a good opportunity - not just for NASA to get some important coding done - but for IBM to show off its cloud platform.

"The challenge is all about data and speed," said Cartner. "NASA is opening more than 200 data sources and asking participants -- some of which are on the same team but based in different cities around the world -- to leverage that data as they build solutions to some of the most daunting challenges facing our civilization in just two days.... Bluemix provides a global platform for these developers to collaborate on as they mine and make sense of that data and ultimately put it to work."

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NASA code-a-thon uses IBM cloud to build space tech

NASA MSFC Solicitation: Star Tracker for a Small Satellite Application

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Synopsis/Solicitation Combo - Apr 06, 2015 Terms and Conditions and Specifications - Posted on Apr 06, 2015 General Information Solicitation Number: NNM15546363Q Posted Date: Apr 06, 2015 FedBizOpps Posted Date: Apr 06, 2015 Recovery and Reinvestment Act Action: No Original Response Date: Apr 13, 2015 Current Response Date: Apr 13, 2015 Classification Code: 18 -- Space vehicles NAICS Code: 541712 Set-Aside Code: Total Small Business Contracting Office Address NASA/George C. Marshall Space Flight Center, Procurement Office, Marshall Space Flight Center, AL 35812 Description **********PLEASE CONTACT DENECE NORRIS(ARCS), ONLY, IN WRITING AT denece.a.norris@nasa.gov FOR QUOTE OR TECHNICAL CONCERNS. CONTACT INFORMATION IS ALSO IN THE BODY OF THIS SOLICITATION.************** This notice is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; offers are being requested and a written solicitation shall not be issued. This notice is being issued as a Request for Quotations (RFQ) for (1) Ea., Star Tracker for a Small Satelite Application which includes the Emulator. This procurement is a total small business set-aside. The NAICS Code and the small business size standard for this procurement is 541712/500. The offeror shall state in their offer their size status for this procurement. All responsible sources may submit an offer which shall be considered by the agency. However, any award from this RFQ shall require the potential vendor to be certified within the System For Award Management System (SAM)and completion of Reps and Certs in the SAM system prior to award at http://www.sam.gov. Delivery shall be FOB Destination to MSFC, Central Receiving, Bldg 4631, MSFC, AL. Delivery date TBD. Offers for the items described above are due by April 13, 2015 by 4:00 P.M. CST to Denece Norris(ARCS) at denece.a.norris@nasa.gov and must include, solicitation number, FOB destination to this Center, proposed delivery schedule, discount/payment terms, warranty duration, taxpayer identification number (TIN), identification of any special commercial terms, and be signed by an authorized company representative. Offerors shall provide the information required by FAR 52.212-1 (OCT 2014), Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Items, which is incorporated by reference. If the end product offered is other than a domestic end product as defined in the clause entitled "Buy American Act -- Supplies," the offeror shall so state and shall list the country of origin. FAR 52.212-4(DEC 2014), Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items is applicable. FAR 52.212-5 (MAR 2015), Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items is applicable and are attached to this solicitation. The FAR may be obtained via the Internet at URL: http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html The NFS may be obtained via the Internet at URL: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/nfstoc.htm All contractual and technical questions must be in writing (e-mail or fax) to Denece Norris(ARCS) at denece.a.norris@nasa.gov no later than April 9, 2015 by 12:00 P.M. CST. Telephone questions shall not be accepted. Any technical questions will be answered on a "one on one" basis. Selection and award shall be made to the lowest priced, technically acceptable offeror. Technical acceptability shall be determined by review of information submitted by the offeror which must provide a description in sufficient detail to show that the product offered meets the Government's requirement. NASA Clause 1852.215-84(NOV 2011), Ombudsman, is applicable. It is the offeror's responsibility to monitor the following Internet site for the release of solicitation amendments (if any): http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/bizops.cgi?gr=D&pin=62 . Potential offerors will be responsible for downloading their own copy of this combination synopsis/solicitation and amendments (if any). Any referenced notes may be viewed at the following URLs linked below. The official point of contact is Melinda James; however, all questions/offers shall be submitted to Denece A. Norris(ARCS) at denece.a.norris@nasa.gov. Point of Contact Name: Melinda James Title: Contracting Officer Phone: 256-544-0317 Fax: 256-961-9604 Email: melinda.l.james@nasa.gov

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NASA MSFC Solicitation: Star Tracker for a Small Satellite Application

NASA Community Announcement: SOFIA Third Generation Science Instrument

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Synopsis - Apr 06, 2015 General Information Solicitation Number: NNH15ZDA007J Posted Date: Apr 06, 2015 FedBizOpps Posted Date: Apr 06, 2015 Recovery and Reinvestment Act Action: No Original Response Date: N/A Current Response Date: N/A Classification Code: A -- Research and Development NAICS Code: 541712 Contracting Office Address NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA Headquarters Acquisition Branch, Code 210.H, Greenbelt, MD 20771 Description Summary of Announcement: NASA's Astrophysics Division plans to solicit proposals for the development of a Third Generation Science Instrument (3G SI) for the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) via an Amendment to ROSES-2015 in June 2015. Background and Details: The SOFIA observatory consists of a German built 2.7 meter telescope mounted in a Boeing 747 SP aircraft supplied and modified by NASA. Flying at altitudes up to 45,000 feet, SOFIA observes from above more than 99 percent of Earth's atmospheric water vapor, thereby opening windows to the universe not available from the ground. The SOFIA Program conducts Principal Investigator (PI)-led investigations to advance NASA's strategic goals in astrophysics, which are to discover the origin, structure, evolution, and destiny of the Universe and search for Earth-like planets. Additional information concerning these areas of investigation is provided through appropriate links found on the NASA Science Mission Directorate (SMD) homepage at http://science.nasa.gov/ . Currently, seven first- and second-generation science instruments are commissioned, or in commissioning, or in development by institutions in both the U.S. and Germany, including both imaging cameras and spectrographs. This Community Announcement is for the intended release of a program element in the ROSES-2015 NRA for the development and delivery of a 3G SI for the SOFIA observatory. The total funding available for the SOFIA 3G SI is expected to be $17M. The current SOFIA Program planning budget is sufficient to select and develop one new instrument over the period of Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 to FY 2019. NASA has the goal to commission any new instrument selected in the 2018 time frame. Proposals in response to the final SOFIA 3G SI solicitation will be due 90 days after its formal release. Participation will be open to all categories of U.S. and non-U.S. organizations, including educational institutions, industry, not-for-profit organizations, Federally Funded Research and Development Centers, NASA Centers and other Government agencies. Institutions under the jurisdiction of the German Space Agency (Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft-und Raumfahrt - DLR) are not eligible to propose under the SOFIA 3G SI solicitation. The participation of all eligible non-U.S. institutions and investigators is conducted as a no-cost transfer agreement. The SOFIA 3G SI program element posted in ROSES-2015 may contain provisions that differ substantially from this Community Announcement, in which case the provisions in the program element and ROSES-2015 will take precedence. This Community Announcement is issued to provide the scientific community with advance notice that NASA plans to release a solicitation in the near future for the purposes of procuring the above SOFIA 3G SI. It is expected that the solicitation will be released as Program Element D.11 of the ROSES-2015 NRA by an amendment in early June 2015. It is anticipated that Step-1 proposals will be due in mid July and full Step-2 proposals will be due at the end of August. The due date for proposals will be not less than 90 days after the release of the solicitation. Additional Info: This solicitation for third generation science instruments for SOFIA will appear on the NSPIRES web page for program element D.11 of ROSES-2015. Once it is posted it will be found by going to http://solicitation.nasaprs.com/ROSES2015table3 and following the link for Program Element D.11. Questions regarding this community announcement may be directed to: Point of Contact Name: Dr Eric Tollestrup Title: Program Scientist NASA SOFIA Program Phone: 202-358-1256 Fax: 202-358-3062 Email: eric.v.tollestrup@nasa.gov

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NASA Community Announcement: SOFIA Third Generation Science Instrument


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