Fwd: [nasa-retirees-jsc] NASA News no JSC Today yet

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From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: March 26, 2015 at 8:52:42 AM CDT
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Cc: "nasa-ret-jsc@freelists.org" <nasa-ret-jsc@freelists.org>
Subject: [nasa-retirees-jsc] NASA News  no JSC Today yet
Reply-To: larry.j.moon@nasa.gov

Another rainy day.     be careful out there if you are out and about.

 

 

Some of you maybe randomly not getting our daily mails now  …I suspect that it may be going to your Spam folder—so to prevent this ….add the following email addresses to your Spam filter  Okay list

 

For SPAM filter "okay lists"

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LEADING THE NEWS

• NASA Outlines Plan For How It Will Conduct ARM.

NASA NEWS

• NASA Deputy Administrator Nomination Advances.

• GAO: NASA's Major Projects Had Low Cost Growth Over Past Year.

• Cernan: "There Is No Space Program."

• NASA Idaho Space Grant Consortium Awards Scholarships.

• Man In NASA Spacesuit Seen At Hockey Match.ay

• Those With Ties To NASA Cited As "Inspirational Examples" For Black Students.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

• Soyuz Rolled Out To Pad For Astronaut Launch.

• ULA Launches New GPS Satellite Successfully.

• SpaceX Photos Show New Dragon Spacecraft And Landing Site.

• Aerospace Industry, Legislators Discuss Future Of Space Industry.

• German Astronaut Returns With Stone He Brought To Space.

• Oklahoma Teachers To Be On NASA Educator Trip.

LEADING THE NEWS

NASA Outlines Plan For How It Will Conduct ARM.

The AP (3/25, Borenstein) reports that on Wednesday, NASA revealed how it will conduct the Asteroid Redirect Mission (ARM). Under the $1.25 billion plan, an unmanned spacecraft would head to an asteroid in 2020, "pluck a 13-foot boulder off its surface using robotic arm," and then place it in orbit around the moon for exploration by astronauts in 2025. NASA Associate Administrator Robert Lightfoot, who also unveiled the "leading target" for the robotic spacecraft, said that this mission architecture will "demonstrate the capabilities we're going to need for further future human missions beyond low Earth orbit and then ultimately to Mars." Lightfoot added that this concept was chosen over another candidate mission because it involves technologies "we're going to need when we go to another planetary body." NASA spokesman David Steitz reportedly added that ARM could also help asteroid mining companies and test "planetary defense" methods. Scott Pace, space policy director at George Washington University, said that the mission still has not answered the "larger questions" of where NASA will go afterwards.

        The KPIX-TV San Francisco (3/25, 143K) website reported that NASA would officially announce the asteroid target one year before the robotic spacecraft is launched in 2020. Lightfoot said, "The option to retrieve a boulder from an asteroid will have a direct impact on planning for future human missions to deep space and begin a new era of spaceflight."

        According to the CBS News (3/25, Harwood, 8.2M) website, ARM has been criticized by "many space advocates and scientists" as being unnecessary and a waste of NASA's resources when it could be focusing on a Mars or moon mission. Meanwhile, Lightfoot stressed, "At the end of the day, we selected the option (where) we're going to go to an asteroid and take a boulder off of it. ... Let's get on with it, so we can get this next key step in our journey to Mars moving on."

        The Hampton Roads (VA) Daily Press (3/25, Dietrich, Subscription Publication, 201K) reports that Dan Mazanek of the Langley Research Center, who "championed" the architecture NASA chose, said, "I'm definitely very excited. ... I think this is a win for NASA, as well as humankind. I think we'll look back on this one day and realize all the different things that have come out of this mission and how they affect the future." Langley Acting Director David Bowles said, "This asteroid redirect mission — and the development of the necessary technologies to successfully complete it — is a crucial next step in NASA's efforts to one day help humans safely reach Mars and return home."

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        Culberson May Support ARM Because Of Its propulsion Technology. Space News (3/25, Leone, Subscription Publication, 481) reports on how Rep. John Culberson, who has not been a big fan of ARM, said that its "great value" may be the "development of the first interstellar rocket propulsion system that would carry us to Alpha Centauri and beyond." According to the article, this statement, made during a hearing with NASA Administrator Charles Bolden earlier this month, may have been influenced by a meeting at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Culberson said in an interview with the publication that he took part in "a very detailed, in depth discussion" about solar-electric propulsion systems at JPL. However, NASA spokesperson Elizabeth Landau said that the encounter only involved a "very brief exchange" with JPL Chief Engineer Brian Muirhead and Marc Rayman, chief engineer and mission director for the Dawn spacecraft.

               Blog Coverage. Rachel Feltman at the Washington Post (3/25, 5.17M) "Speaking of Science" blog writes that NASA's decision on how to conduct ARM "make[s] sense," especially because it is "a safer mission." Feltman comments that ARM's "really exciting stuff" happens once astronauts get involved.

        Joseph Stromberg at Vox (3/25, 737K) writes that with "lots of opposition" to ARM, there is still no certainty it will take place. Still, Stromberg considers the new update about the mission "a sign that it could live."

        Alan Boyle at the NBC News (3/25, 2.71M) website similarly notes that ARM has not been very popular, and a new Administration could come along and "change course."

NASA NEWS

NASA Deputy Administrator Nomination Advances.

The Helena (MT) Independent Record (3/25, Deedy, 38K) reports the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation unanimously voted to approve Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor Dava Newman as deputy administrator of NASA. The full Senate will next vote on her. Montana Sen. Steve Daines said, "Dr. Newman is uniquely qualified to be NASA Deputy Administrator and I know she will execute and lead with honor and be prepared for whatever challenges may lie ahead."

        Space News (3/25, Foust, Subscription Publication, 481) also covers the story.

GAO: NASA's Major Projects Had Low Cost Growth Over Past Year.

Fierce Government (3/25, McDermott, 224) reports that a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report found that over the past year, the cost of NASA's major projects grew at a rate that was "relatively low compared to historic levels." According to the article, this may be due to the fact that five of NASA's 13 major projects "only recently established cost and schedule baselines," which the GAO reportedly claimed "masks" some growth. Still, the article notes that the report found that NASA was doing better at "meeting best practices for maturing technology and stabilizing design."

        Northrop Grumman Refused GAO Access To Employees Working On JWST. Space News (3/25, Leone, Subscription Publication, 481) reports that the GAO said that Northrop Grumman would not allow the agency to interview its employees individually about their work on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) without the presence of supervisors. In a prepared statement to Congress during a hearing, Critstina Chaplain, GAO director of acquisition and sourcing management, said, "Anytime we're denied access to people or documents, we are concerned since it could be a sign that an entity is afraid of what we will find." Jeffery Grant, senior vice president and general manager of space systems at Northrop Grumman Aerospace, said that he was concerned that the employees would be "intimidated" because of their lack of experience interacting with government officials. Chaplain said in an interview yesterday that while the company may not be used to this type of scrutiny, intimidation has "never been an issue."

        Morse: Palazzo "Farcical" In Claims About Space Directorate Budget. In an op-ed for Space News (3/26, Subscription Publication, 481), Jon Morse, CEO of the BoldlyGo Institute, writes about his concerns over the "considerable risk to the future astrophysics portfolio at NASA, and possibly the entire space science enterprise" because of the JWST. He especially takes issue with Rep. Steven Palazzo, who at a hearing asked what would happen to JWST funds after it's launched. Morse disagrees with Palazzo when he asks whether the Science Mission Directorate funding will "return to their historical proportions after JWST is launched? Will Exploration programs recoup the funding transferred to the JWST program, or will these proportions represent the new norm?" After showing how NASA's space science programs have not had any budget growth recently, Morse calls it "farcical" that Palazzo thinks the division owes any money, especially to Exploration.

Cernan: "There Is No Space Program."

The Voice of America (3/26, Flakus, 70K) reports astronaut Eugene Cernan, the last man to walk on the moon, was at "the annual South by Southwest film festival to help promote a film about him, aptly called 'The Last Man on the Moon.'" Citing the US' inability to put an American in space on its own, he says, "There is no space program."

NASA Idaho Space Grant Consortium Awards Scholarships.

The Coeur d'Alene (ID) Press (3/26, 64K) reports the NASA Idaho Space Grant Consortium awarded $5,000 scholarships to 12 North Idaho College students so they can "pursue degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics." To qualify for all of the money, "the students will participate in STEM-related activities" through next year.

Man In NASA Spacesuit Seen At Hockey Match.

Next Impulse Sports (3/25, Blackburn, 99K) reports that "a person in a full NASA spacesuit" was spotted near the ice during a Lightning-Panthers hockey game. It was for "a clever little bit of advertising," according to the Lightning organization.

        The USA Today (3/25, Scott, 4.95M) "FTW" blog and Washington Post (3/25, Larimer, 5.17M) "Speaking of Science" blog also covers the story.

Those With Ties To NASA Cited As "Inspirational Examples" For Black Students.

The Voice Online (UK) (3/25, Brady) reports that "leading black history specialist Robin Walker" will give a lecture on Sunday at the Aston Business School about how those of African descent have contributed to the sciences in order to inspire black students to enter the sciences. Eric Mitchell, who heads a "maths and English tuition service," said that there are many "inspirational examples" out there, such as astronaut Mae Jemison and NASA aeronautical engineer Christine Darden.

HUMAN EXPLORATION AND OPERATIONS

Soyuz Rolled Out To Pad For Astronaut Launch.

TIME (3/25, Kluger, 19.19M) details the rollout of the Soyuz rocket that will carry astronauts Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko to the ISS for their one-year mission to the ISS. According to the article, the process, "like everything else in the Russian space program," is ritualized to accommodate "the very breakable machines and the very superstitious people who build and fly them." This "slow exercise," according to the article, ends with the "thrill" of realizing that soon astronauts will be launching into space.

        Spaceflight Now (3/25, Clark, 3K) and Engadget (3/25, Tarantola, 759K) also cover the story.

        Little Known About Long-term Effects Of Spaceflight. USA Today (3/25, Watson, 4.95M) continues coverage of the goal of Kelly's ISS mission, which could affect him physically and psychologically. Kelly said, "It's not going to be easy to spend a year in that kind of isolated environment. ... But I think I'm up for that challenge." Mathias Basner of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine said that even though four people so far have lived a year or more in space, "next to nothing" is known about the actual effects of long-term spaceflight.

        Business Insider (3/25, Orwig, 2.26M) reports that NASA's Julie Robinson said in a previous interview, "Even though it's only two crew members, it really gives us our first glimpse at what happens from 6 to 12 months and what risks are there that we don't know about today."

        Meanwhile, the AP (3/25, Dunn) lists five items the public should know about Kelly's upcoming mission, all of which have been mentioned in previous reports.

        The WEVO-FM Concord, NH (3/26, 2K) "Word of Mouth" website has an interview with Mark Kelly, Scott's twin brother, about his role in the project and "about being the sibling who stays home."

        Also covering the story are the WATE-TV Knoxville, TN (3/25, 30K) website, ABC News (3/26, Kerley, SunserI, 3.41M) website, Mic (3/25, Plenke), The Times (UK) (3/26, Goddard, 10K), Nature World News (3/25, Stallard), SPACE (3/25, Kramer, 236K), and New Scientist (3/25, 11K).

        TIME To Document Mission Across All Platforms. The Mother Nature Network (3/25, d'Estries, 122K) "Earth Matters" blog reports that TIME magazine announced that it will document Kelly's mission in "a 12-month multimedia series across all its digital and print platforms." Kelly said in a trailer, "A lot of things that are very worthy endeavors do have risks, and I think it's important for our species to maintain our explorer-mindset, to be able to push our boundaries of technology and experience. ... I feel pretty fortunate that I'm here and I get to risk it all one more time."

        Blog Coverage. Robbie Gonzalez at io9 (3/25, 883K) writes that in the latest episode of "Smarter Every Day," host Destin spoke with Kelly about how astronauts fly aboard the Soyuz and his upcoming experiments. Destin also spoke with astronaut Reid Wiseman "about the unexpected (albeit surprisingly) orbital mechanics of the Soyuz-ISS." Gonzalez commented that the video contained "really, really great stuff:"

ULA Launches New GPS Satellite Successfully.

Florida Today (3/25, Dean, 178K) reports that the United Launch Alliance (ULA) successfully launched a Delta IV rocket carrying the GPS IIF-9 satellite that will replace one launched "nearly 22 years ago." This was the first of three GPS launches for the year and "the third successful launch from the Cape in 25 days." The article notes that the next launch "could be" SpaceX's ISS cargo mission scheduled for no earlier than April 10.

        The WFTV-TV Orlando, FL (3/25, 128K) website, Sen (3/25, Klotz), Reuters (3/25, Klotz), Spaceflight Now (3/25, Ray, 3K), NASA Space Flight (3/25, Graham, 305), Spaceflight Insider (3/25, Thompson), AmericaSpace (3/25, Evans), and InsideGNSS (3/25) also cover the story.

        Air Force Will Modify Launch Capability Contract. Reuters (3/25, Shalal) reports that Air Force and Pentagon officials said that the Air Force will modify the launch capability contract it now awards to ULA because it is no longer possible to hold fair competitions with it in place. Air Force Space Command Commander General John Hyten said that it was originally designed to protect the industry. Dyke Weatherington, acting deputy assistant defense secretary for space, strategic and intelligence systems, added that some of the funds from the current contract will be added to future launch service contracts instead.

        Shotwell "Walks Back" Some Of Musk's Comments. Space News (3/25, de Selding, Subscription Publication, 481), in an article titled, "SpaceX's Shotwell Walks Back Musk's Cronyism Charge," reports that last week, when SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell was making public appearances, she at times had to answer for CEO Elon Musk's previous comments and "near-libelous public accusation" that the ULA and Air Force were "in cahoots" to keep the company out of military launch competitions. The article noted that Shotwell, during a congressional hearing, praised the Air Force's certification effort, but was asked to try to explain Musk's comments and whether he represented the company or not by Rep. Rob Bishop.

SpaceX Photos Show New Dragon Spacecraft And Landing Site.

SPACE (3/25, Wall, 236K) reports that SpaceX has posted photos on Flickr providing "a tantalizing glimpse of its first rocket-landing site on dry land, as well as several looks at the company's next Dragon cargo spacecraft."

        Blog Coverage. Daniel Cooper at Engadget (3/25, 759K) writes that SpaceX tested "a pair of its SuperDraco engines in Texas." Because the engines are part of the company's crew abort system, they are "one of the most important components" for its manned spacecraft.

Aerospace Industry, Legislators Discuss Future Of Space Industry.

The Bay News 9 Tampa (FL) (3/25, Pallone, 60K) website reports on the upcoming annual "Florida Space Day," where representatives from the aerospace industry will discuss with "legislators about the importance and opportunities the state's $9 billion space industry brings to Florida." The meeting will take place in the Capitol building in Tallahassee, and will also include discussions about the facility upgrades at the Kennedy Space Center, "including program initiatives involving NASA's Orion program; and the new heavy lift rocket called the Space Launch System."

        Florida Space Coast Struggles After End Of The Shuttle Program. Wired (3/25, Schiller, 4.24M) reported, in a 2,500+-word article, on the decline of Florida's Space Coast following the end of the shuttle program, highlighting coverage from Rob Stephenson's series, "Myths of the Near Future." While the article noted that the region's economy has recovered, helped in part by the arrival of companies like Northrop Grumman and Embraer, "it's clear that the shuttle program was part of the community's identity and psyche as well as the economy," according to Stephenson. The article noted that the Kennedy Space Centers' 20-year plan was seen as a source of hope for the region.

        In a similar vein, the Orlando (FL) Sentinel (3/26, Lafferty, 794K) reports that Titusville remains an important destination for some fans, though "the crowds in Titusville are smaller for today's SpaceX and Air Force missions."

German Astronaut Returns With Stone He Brought To Space.

The Local (DEU) (3/25, 2K) reports that German astronaut Alexander Gerst has returned to the Cologne with a stone from the city's Cathedral that he brought with to the International Space Station in 2014. During his visit, Gerst presented to students from 15 schools "on his experiences in space and the research he had done."

Oklahoma Teachers To Be On NASA Educator Trip.

The Woodward (OK) News (3/26, Horn, 11K) reports that 20 Oklahoma teachers "will be participating in the NASA Oklahoma Space Grant VIP Consortium's Educator Trip at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas." There they "will get an in-depth look at NASA operations each day."