Friday, March 20, 2015

Fwd: [nasa-retirees-jsc] FW: NASA News and JSC Today - Friday, March 20, 2015



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Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: March 20, 2015 at 8:34:39 AM CDT
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Cc: "Nakamura, Stacey T. (JSC-NC211)" <stacey.t.nakamura@nasa.gov>
Subject: [nasa-retirees-jsc] FW: NASA News and JSC Today - Friday, March 20, 2015
Reply-To: larry.j.moon@nasa.gov

JSC Today - Friday, March 20, 2015

Happy Friday everyone.   Stacey was able to batch subscribe the balance of you to our new mailing list last night.   Thanks again to him for all his hard work in figuring that out and helping the rest of our list get subscribe.    Looks like more rain for the Houston metro area perhaps throughout the weekend.   So be safe out there.   Have a great weekend inspite of the weather.

 

 

 

LEADING THE NEWS

• Lava Tubes On Moon May Offer Space For Permanent Settlements.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

• Expandable Habitat To Go To ISS For Testing.

• Virts Tweets Photos Of Solar Storm, Auroras.

• NASA Testing More Precise Landing System.

• US Space & Rocket Center Celebrates 45th Anniversary.

• Peake To Be First UK Astronaut On ISS.

• Riley Visits English Primary School.

• Mars One Delays Timetable By Two Years.

• System To Maintain Oxygen, Water On ISS Explained.

Lava Tubes On Moon May Offer Space For Permanent Settlements.

BBC News (3/19, Rincon, 1.66M) reports that Purdue University scientists led by professor David Blair presented findings at the 46th Lunar and Planetary Science Conference that lava tubes "could safely house permanent bases on the Moon," finding that "tubes of 1km in size and bigger would be structurally sound." Scientists also expect lava tubes on the Moon to be "larger than those" on Earth, "because of the Moon's lower gravity." Using models, the scientists determined that tunnels up to 5km wide "should be stable."

        The Daily Mail (UK) (3/19, Zolfagharifard, 4.78M) reports the features "are common on Earth" and images of the Moon's surface "have revealed skylights that may be openings" to lava tubes.

Expandable Habitat To Go To ISS For Testing.

SPACE (3/19, David, 236K) reports that the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) by Bigelow Aerospace is "scheduled to depart later this year for NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, and then blast toward the station atop SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster." It's launch will offer "a key test for expandable space habitats." The hope is that "expandable habitats" may offer "dramatically larger volumes than rigid, metallic structures as well as enhanced protection against both radiation and physical debris." They are also lighter and so less expensive to transport. BEAM was produced under a $17.8 million contract with NASA. Space quotes NASA's director of Advanced Exploration Systems Jason Crusan from a statement saying, "We're fortunate to have the space station to demonstrate potential habitation capabilities like BEAM," adding the ISS "provides us with a long-duration microgravity platform with constant crew access to evaluate systems and technologies we are considering for future missions farther into deep space."

Virts Tweets Photos Of Solar Storm, Auroras.

WJZ-TV Baltimore (3/19, 78K) reports on tweets from astronaut Terry Virts aboard the ISS of the solar storm and auroras this week. Virts said, "I looked out the window and saw the most amazing sunrise looking down on creation. It was awesome."

        io9 (3/19, Dvorsky, 883K) also picked up on Virts' tweets.

NASA Testing More Precise Landing System.

Engadget (3/19, Moon, 759K) reports on NASA's testing of "a precise landing system that will first be used for future trips to Mars." The test used an XA-0.1B rocket from Masten Space Systems with "the Autonomous Descent and Ascent Powered-flight Testbed (ADAPT) computer" and "the new landing system."

        Gizmodo (3/19, Condliffe, 1.04M) reports the testing is being led by scientists from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

        The Daily Mail (UK) (3/20, 4.78M) has a video illustrating the landing system.

US Space & Rocket Center Celebrates 45th Anniversary.

Alabama Live (3/19, Gathany, 502K) reports on the 45th anniversary celebration of the US Space & Rocket Center at the Biergarten in the Davidson Center for Space Exploration. The "celebration included a photographic retrospective from the Center's archives, games and educational activities as well as a rocket-themed birthday cake."

Peake To Be First UK Astronaut On ISS.

BBC News (3/19, 1.66M) reports on astronaut Tim Peake, who "has been six months in training for the Principia mission, a long-duration flight to the International Space Station (ISS) which is set to launch in November," and who will be "the first British ESA astronaut to visit the Space Station." Peake said, "The cost of space flight is going to get cheaper, and we're going to see more and more missions to lots of different places."

Riley Visits English Primary School.

The Hampshire Chronicle (UK) (3/19, Neal) reports on the visit of astronaut James Riley to Ropley Church of England Primary School Tuesday, where he gave "a presentation on what life is like away from Earth," and "presented eight-year-old Molly Sansom with her very own NASA jump suit." She is the winner of "a competition by Attraction Tickets Direct on behalf of her peers."

Mars One Delays Timetable By Two Years.

NBC News (3/20, Boyle, 2.71M) reports that Mars One is "delaying its timetable for one-way trips to Mars by two years." It hopes to have a lander sent to Mars by 2020 and a crew landing "no earlier than 2027."

        Mars One Said To Be "Losing Some Of Its Sheen." The Washington Post (3/19, Kaplan, 5.17M) reports on Mars One, which "has dazzled earthly audiences with its sweeping ambitions and seductive, Kennedy-esque promise" to send a crew to Mars by 2024. The company CEO Bas Lansdorp "thinks he can get people to Mars faster and more cheaply than government-run space agencies like NASA in part because those who go are never coming back." Yet the idea "may be losing some of its sheen" under criticism from "a team of MIT scientists" and from one of its "supporters, Nobel Prize-winning physicist Gerard't Hooft." Hooft said that he had advised them to "put a zero after everything," suggesting "a launch date 100 years rather than 10 years from now and a budget of $60 billion rather than just $6 billion." As former Canadian astronaut Julie Payette said recently, "nobody is going anywhere in 10 years."

        The Verge (3/19, O'Kane, 876K) reports that Lansdorp is defending the idea against charges that it is "a scam."

System To Maintain Oxygen, Water On ISS Explained.

CNET News (3/19, Starr, 851K) reports on the means by which astronauts on the ISS are able to breathe, which it says is similar to a system developed for submarines, and consisting "of two components: the Water Reclamation System and the Oxygen Generation System." All water and humidity on the ISS is recirculated having been "purified to very stringent standards," but the system is not able to reclaim so much that no water must be shipped. It does, however, "reduce the amount of water that needs to be shipped from Earth." The other system, uses electrolysis "to split the water into its component atoms of hydrogen and oxygen." The hydrogen is then "combined with the carbon dioxide to create carbohydrates that feed the plant and the oxygen, as mentioned earlier, is expelled."

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Headlines

  1. The Hubble Space Telescope Trivia Challenge Winner

… is Jeffery P. Bloom!

This week's trivia question:

How many different types of instruments are there on the Hubble Space Telescope? (Don't forget to name it/them!) 

The correct answer: Six (Wide Field Camera 3, Cosmic Origins Spectograph, Advanced Camera for Surveys, Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph, Near Infrared Camera and Multi-object Spectrometer, Fine Guidance Sensors)

Congratulations, Jeffery, and thanks to all challenge participants!

This week's challenge is a preview of the Hubble scavenger hunt to be presented by the JSC Knowledge Office (JKO). Starting April 20, you can visit the JKO home page to participate in the four-day online adventure. By answering three daily questions correctly, you'll be in the running for amazing prizes. To be eligible for the grand-prize drawing, you must participate in all four days of the scavenger hunt.

Look for more information to be announced in JSC Today.

Robin Prouse x32843 http://hubble25th.org/

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  1. What's Up with JSC Features?

A lot, actually. If you haven't yet clicked on the articles, they're new to you!

Read up on how the Virtual Reality Lab helped EVA reach its 50-year milestone; our center director's newest award; Space Day Texas 2015; Scott Kelly's upcoming voyage to the International Space Station, which will set a new American record; and much more. Don't forget to gawk over the pretty pictures, too.

Catch up on your spaceflight news today!

JSC Features x33317 https://jscfeatures.jsc.nasa.gov/pages.ashx/0/Home

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   Organizations/Social

  1. Aliens vs. Astronauts 5.05K, Food Trucks - April 4

There is still time to register for Starport's Aliens vs. Astronauts 5.05K (3.14 miles)—A BATTLE TO DETERMINE THE ULTIMATE LIFE FORM!

Race participants will register as either an alien or astronaut, with times for each species being averaged to crown the fastest life form in the universe. Gather your alien and astronaut friends and family! This 5.05K race is open to the public.

Food trucks will be arriving at the Gilruth at the conclusion of the race.

Date/Time: April 4 at 9 a.m.

Where: Race begins at the Gilruth Center and runs through JSC

Prizes: Overall male and female; first-, second- and third-place finishers in each age category

Registration Fee: $30 (with a portion of proceeds going to the NASA Exchange Scholarship Program)

For more information and online registration, visit the Starport website. Signups are available online and at the Gilruth Center.

Event Date: Saturday, April 4, 2015   Event Start Time:9:00 AM   Event End Time:2:00 PM
Event Location: Gilruth Center

Add to Calendar

Steve Schade x30304 https://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/en/events/aliens-vs-astronauts

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  1. Last Day to Register: Craft Fair & Flea Market

TODAY is the last day to purchase a craft fair or flea market booth for Starport's Annual Spring Festival on Saturday, April 4, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Clean out those closets, attics and garages and sell your unwanted items and homemade crafts at one big event! Get a flea market booth to sell your unwanted items for $10, or feature homemade crafts, baked goods or new items with a craft fair booth for $40. Tables and electricity are available for an additional fee. Register online or get more information. Applications will also be accepted by fax at 281-244-0575 or via email. This event and booth rentals are open to the public.

Cyndi Kibby x35352

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   Jobs and Training

  1. Human Systems Academy Lecture

Join the Human Systems Academy lecture on "Bone." This course will highlight the challenges to translating astronaut biomedical data to evidence for human skeletal health risks and performance.

It is the probability of fractures and the detection of osteoporotic bone(s) that will drive the requirement for countermeasures, the types of countermeasures and timing of the intervention.

However, after 40 years of studying bone loss in space, there is still a requirement for more data. To paraphrase a common sentiment: "When will we know when the data are "good enough?"

As space is limited, please register in SATERN.

Event Date: Tuesday, March 24, 2015   Event Start Time:10:00 AM   Event End Time:12:00 PM
Event Location: B2S/Studio B (Rm 180)

Add to Calendar

Ruby Guerra x37108 https://sashare.jsc.nasa.gov/hsa/default.aspx

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JSC Today is compiled periodically as a service to JSC employees on an as-submitted basis. Any JSC organization or employee may submit articles.

Disclaimer: Accuracy and content of these notes are the responsibility of the submitters.

 

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