Fwd: NASA and Human Spaceflight News – Feb. 19, 2014 and JSC Today and the latest potential losses snapshot and More Sad News -passing of Janice Chassay

Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: Bobby Martin <bobbygmartin1938@gmail.com>
Date: February 19, 2014 6:17:58 PM CST
To: bobbygmartin1938.casper@blogger.com, bobbygmartin1938.casperx@blogger.com, bobbygmartin1938.caspers@blogger.com
Subject: Fwd: NASA and Human Spaceflight News – Feb. 19, 2014 and JSC Today and the latest potential losses snapshot and More Sad News -passing of Janice Chassay

Sent from my iPad

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Date: February 19, 2014 2:37:12 PM CST
To: "Moon, Larry J. (JSC-EA411)" <larry.j.moon@nasa.gov>
Cc: "CChassay10@gmail.com" <CChassay10@gmail.com>
Subject: FW: NASA and Human Spaceflight News – Feb. 19, 2014 and JSC Today and the latest potential losses snapshot and More Sad News -passing of Janice Chassay

Sorry for the late news.  

 

thanks to Ed Jung for letting us know of the passing of Charles Chassey's wife, Janice.  Please keep Charles and his family in your thoughts and prayers at this sad time of loss.

 

 

Sad news about the passing of Janice Chassay, wife of Charles Chassay. Details of the Niday Funeral arrangements are shown below. Charles' e-mail address is shown in the cc: line above if you wish to send him a note of sympathy... Please pray for the family during this time of loss.

 

 

http://nidayfunerals.com/obits/?p=7237

 

 

JSC FY 2014 Prospective Losses

(rumors are that Dave Fitts is retiring soon too)

 

+ Prospective

Top of Form FY: Bottom of Form Top of Form Search:   Bottom of Form

 

Loss Type	Center	Org	Employee Type	Name	Separation Date
RETIREMENT	JSC	EP511	FTP	ALANIS, FRANCISCO	02/28/14
RETIREMENT	JSC	DD221	FTP	CLACK, JOHN	02/28/14
RETIREMENT	JSC	JB311	FTP	WAY, GEORGIA	02/28/14
RETIREMENT	JSC	KX111	FTP	JOHNSON, NICHOLAS	03/28/14
RETIREMENT	JSC	DX121	FTP	SEDEJ, DANIEL	04/03/14
RETIREMENT	JSC	CB611	FTP	THOMAS, ANDREW	02/28/14

 

 

 

________________________________________

Wednesday, February 19, 2014          

                    JSC TODAY

1.            Headlines

-  Space to Ground - You'll LOVE the Feb. 14 Episode

-  Gilruth Gate is OPEN

-  Handling Hazards in Space

-  Improvements to NASA TechPort

2.            Organizations/Social

-  Today: JSC Longhorn Pavilion and Gardens Tour

-  ASIA-ERG Lunch and Learn: Networking

-  INCOSE Local Chapter Feb. 20 Program

-  Aliens vs. Astronauts 5.05K Race

-  Youth Spring Break Baseball Camp

-  Starport's Spring Break Camp

-  Starport - Latin Dance Classes

3.            Jobs and Training

-  Lessons Learned in Human Spaceflight

-  ISS EDMS User Forum

-  JSC Imagery Online Training - Feb. 26

-  Facility Manager Training

-  Fire Extinguisher Training

4.            Community

-  Blood Drive: Top 10 Reasons to Donate Blood

-  Applications Being Accepted for Scholarship

-  Annual Space Settlement Design Competition 3/28-30

-  Family Space Day at George Observatory - March 1

Coronal Loops in an Active Region of the Sun

 

 

   Headlines

1.            Space to Ground - You'll LOVE the Feb. 14 Episode

This week's "Space to Ground" features an update on Cubesats, how the crew is playing with fire in space, a look at SPHERES Rings and some of the views of Sochi from the International Space Station.

JSC External Relations, Office of Communications and Public Affairs x35111

 

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2.            Gilruth Gate is OPEN

Thanks to PAE, we now have a brand new slide gate at the Gilruth. On-site employees can now access the Gilruth from 2nd Street. We thank all of you for your patience.

dylan smith x83107

 

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3.            Handling Hazards in Space

The Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) facility on the International Space Station has a large front window and built-in gloves, creating a sealed environment to contain liquids and particles in microgravity for science and technology experiments. More than 30 investigations have used the versatile glovebox -- everything from material science to life sciences. Ports are equipped with rugged, sealed gloves that can be removed when contaminants are not present, and video and data downlinks allow experiments to be controlled from the ground. Researchers also use MSG to test small parts of larger investigations and try out new equipment in microgravity. You can read more here.

Liz Warren x35548

 

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4.            Improvements to NASA TechPort

NASA TechPort is a Web-based software system that provides the NASA community with a single, integrated, comprehensive resource for locating information about NASA-funded technologies. Users can find a variety of information about technologies, such as descriptions, images, funding organization(s), locations where work is being performed and associated technology areas (aligned to the Technology Roadmaps).

TechPort has made changes to the website to enhance the user interface, expand the search capabilities and improve the way users can create their own reports and share information from the system. In 2014, the system will make part of its data public to comply with our Open Data Policy and recommendations from the National Research Council.

For general questions and assistance accessing and using TechPort, you may call the NASA Enterprise Service Desk at 1-877-677-2123 for immediate assistance, or email.

Tracy Bierman 321-867-2345

 

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   Organizations/Social

1.            Today: JSC Longhorn Pavilion and Gardens Tour

Join us today at noon at the Longhorn Pavilion as Jennifer Edinfield, Longhorn Project manager, details why the Clear Creek Independent School District Longhorn Project exists, how it operates and the education opportunities it provides to our local students. The tour will also include the nearby gardens grown by JSC employees. An automatic gate in the parking lot between the Saturn V building and Building 14 provides access to the Longhorn Pavilion.

Stick around for the Green Team monthly meeting immediately following the tour. Hope to see you there!

Event Date: Wednesday, February 19, 2014   Event Start Time:12:00 PM   Event End Time:1:00 PM

Event Location: Longhorn Pavilion

 

Add to Calendar

 

Lynn Lefebvre x36020

 

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2.            ASIA-ERG Lunch and Learn: Networking

Come join the ASIA Employee Resource Group (ERG) for another lunch-and-learn session. We are adding a new format to our sessions: Web articles that participants read and study in advance and come prepared to discuss at the lunch-and-learn session. It's similar to a book club format, but with much shorter reading assignments. You can find the Web articles on the ASIA ERG SharePoint calendar entry for Feb. 19.

Event Date: Wednesday, February 19, 2014   Event Start Time:11:30 AM   Event End Time:1:00 PM

Event Location: B1-820

 

Add to Calendar

 

Stacey Nakamura x34345 https://collaboration.ndc.nasa.gov/iierg/ASIA/

 

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3.            INCOSE Local Chapter Feb. 20 Program

Steve Poulos, manager of the Project Development Group at Jacobs, will discuss programmatic and technical lessons learned spanning both project and systems engineering from his time at NASA. Poulos has more than 30 years of experience in project and systems engineering, including: chief, EVA and Spacesuit Systems Branch in the Engineering Directorate; deputy manager, EVA Project Office; deputy manager, Program Integration Office, International Space Station; chief, Crew and Thermal Systems Division, Engineering Directorate; manager, Orbiter Project Office, Space Shuttle Program; deputy director, Engineering; and manager, EVA Office.

The program will be at the Lockheed Martin Orion Conference Center (2625 Bay Area Blvd., Houston). Social and networking begins at 5:30 p.m., and the program starts at 6 p.m. Please RSVP to Ben Edwards so we know how many to expect. Check out our website for more information.

Event Date: Thursday, February 20, 2014   Event Start Time:5:50 PM   Event End Time:7:00 PM

Event Location: Orion Conference Center

 

Add to Calendar

 

Ben Edwards 281-486-6313

 

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4.            Aliens vs. Astronauts 5.05K Race

In a battle between aliens and astronauts, who would prevail?

Join in on this 5.05K (3.14-mile) race through JSC 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.

Date/time: April 19 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

Entry fee: $25 (includes race T-shirt, with proceeds benefiting the NASA Exchange Scholarship Program)

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

Sign up today -- all fitness levels are encouraged to participate!

Event Date: Saturday, April 19, 2014   Event Start Time:9:00 AM   Event End Time:10:00 AM

Event Location: Gilruth Center

 

Add to Calendar

 

Joseph Callahan x42769 https://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/en/programs/special-events/spring-festival...

 

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5.            Youth Spring Break Baseball Camp

The NASA Starport Spring Break Baseball Camp provides instruction for all levels of youth baseball. Our coaches focus on the development of hitting, catching, base running, throwing, pitching and drills while preparing participants for competitive play. Former Major League Baseball pitcher Chuck McElroy will be leading the camp.

Robert K. Vaughn II x38049 https://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/en/programs/familyyouth-programs/sports-ca...

 

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6.            Starport's Spring Break Camp

Can you believe that Spring Break is just around the corner?! If you're looking for a fun, convenient and familiar place for your children to go for the school break, look no further. NASA Starport Camps at the Gilruth Center are the perfect place. We plan to keep your children active and entertained with games, crafts, sports and all types of fun activities.

Register your child before spaces fill up!

Dates: March 10 to 14

Time: 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Ages: 6 to 12

Cost: $140 all week| $40 per day

Shericka Phillips x35563

 

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7.            Starport - Latin Dance Classes

Latin Dance Intro: Feb. 28 from 8 to 9 p.m.

This class is mostly an introduction to Salsa, but it also touches on other popular Latin dances found in social settings: Merengue, Bachata, and even a little bit of Cha-Cha-Cha. Emphasis is on Salsa and then Bachata.

For the first-time student or those who want a refresher course. You will go over basic steps with variations and build them into sequences.

Registration:

o $50 per person (Feb. 15 to 28)

Salsa Intermediate: Feb. 28 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m.

This class continues teaching salsa beyond what is taught in the introduction class. You should be comfortable and confident with the material from the introduction class before moving on to the intermediate class. This is a multi-level class where students may be broken up into groups based on class experience.

Shericka Phillips x35563 https://starport.jsc.nasa.gov/en/programs/recreation-programs/salsalatin...

 

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   Jobs and Training

1.            Lessons Learned in Human Spaceflight

The NASA Safety Center's Technical Excellence Office is proud to host this event as part of its 2014 Guest Lecture Series.

Stephen F. Cash, director of the Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, will speak on how the desire for high-performance systems often results in very complex designs with low margins, as well as ways to try to avoid certain pitfalls that can be present in human spaceflight.

Register for this free event here.

Note: This guest lecture is being offered as a live webcast. The webcast requires that Microsoft® Silverlight be installed on your computer, so it is recommended that you check system requirements and test your system prior to the webcast. To test your system, click here. If it is not installed, an option to download and install the software will appear when conducting the above system test.

Event Date: Friday, February 21, 2014   Event Start Time:10:00 AM   Event End Time:12:00 PM

Event Location: Live Webcast

 

Add to Calendar

 

Lynne Sahay 440-962-3054 https://nsc.nasa.gov/

 

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2.            ISS EDMS User Forum

The International Space Station Electronic Document Management System (EDMS) team will hold the monthly General User Training Forum this Thursday, Feb. 20, at 9:30 a.m. in Building 4S, Conference Room 5315. WebEx and telecom provided.

If you use EDMS to locate station documents, join us to learn about basic navigation and searching. Bring your questions, concerns and suggestions, and meet the station EDMS Customer Support team. The agenda can be found here. 

Event Date: Thursday, February 20, 2014   Event Start Time:9:30 AM   Event End Time:10:30 AM

Event Location: JSC 4S, CR 5315

 

Add to Calendar

 

LaNell Cobarruvias x41306 https://iss-www.jsc.nasa.gov/nwo/apps/edms/web/UserForums.shtml

 

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3.            JSC Imagery Online Training - Feb. 26

Need to find NASA mission pictures or videos? Learn how during a webinar on Wednesday, Feb. 26, from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Mary Wilkerson, Still Imagery lead, will show users how to find NASA mission images in Imagery Online (IO) and the Digital Imagery Management System (DIMS). Leslie Richards, Video Imagery lead, will show employees the video functionality in IO. This training is open to any JSC/White Sands Test Facility employee. To register, go to this link.

This training is provided by the Information Resources Directorate.

Event Date: Wednesday, February 26, 2014   Event Start Time:11:00 AM   Event End Time:12:15 PM

Event Location: WebEx

 

Add to Calendar

 

Scientific and Technical Information Center x34245 http://library.jsc.nasa.gov

 

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4.            Facility Manager Training

The Safety Learning Center invites you to attend an eight-hour Facility Mangers Training.

This course provides JSC Facility Managers with insight into the requirements for accomplishing their functions.

o             Includes training on facility management, safety, hazard identification and mitigation, legal, security, energy conservation, health and environmental aspects.

o             Attendees of this course must also register in SATERN for a half-day Fire Warden Training. * Others that need Fire Warden training can register through the normal process.

Date/time: March 6 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Where: Safety Learning Center - Building  20, Room 205/206

Registration via SATERN required:

https://satern.nasa.gov/learning/user/deeplink_redirect.jsp?linkId=SCHEDULED_...

Aundrail Hill x36369

 

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5.            Fire Extinguisher Training

Fire safety, at its most basic, is based on the principle of keeping fuel sources and ignition sources separate.

The Safety Learning Center invites you to attend a one-hour Fire Extinguisher Course that provides instructor-led training on the proper way to safely use fire extinguishers.

Students will learn:

o             Five classes of fires

o             Types of fire extinguishers and how to match the right extinguisher to different types of fires

o             How to inspect an extinguisher

o             How to use a fire extinguisher - P.A.S.S.

o             Understand the importance of knowing where extinguishers are at your location

o             Rules for fighting fires and the steps to take if a fire occurs

o             Hands on (weather permitting)

Date/time: March 10 from 9 to 10 a.m.

Where: Safety Learning Center - Building 20, Room 205/206

Registration via SATERN required:

https://satern.nasa.gov/plateau/user/deeplink.do?linkId=SCHEDULED_OFFERING_DE...

Aundrail Hill x36369

 

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   Community

1.            Blood Drive: Top 10 Reasons to Donate Blood

Here are the remaining five reasons of the top 10 reasons to donate blood.

5. You'll feel good about yourself afterwards.

4. You'll be helping to ensure that blood is there when you or someone close to you may need it.

3. It's something you can do on equal footing with the rich and famous--money can't buy blood. Only one person can give it to another.

2. You'll be someone's hero! You may give a child, mother, father, sister or brother a chance at life.

1. It's the right thing to do!

You can donate from Feb. 19 to 20 in the Teague Auditorium lobby or at the donor coach located next to the Building 11 Starport Café from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

You can also donate at the donor coach in the Gilruth Center parking lot on Feb. 19 from noon to 4 p.m. Note: This a change from Thursday to Wednesday for this blood drive only.

Teresa Gomez x39588 http://jscpeople.jsc.nasa.gov/blooddrv/blooddrv.htm

 

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2.            Applications Being Accepted for Scholarship

The NASA College Scholarship Program will award multiple scholarships agencywide to qualified dependents of NASA civil servant employees. The scholarship recipients must pursue a course of study leading to an undergraduate degree in science or engineering from an accredited college or university in the United States. Applications are available online.

The application deadline is March 31.

Amanda Gaspard x31387

 

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3.            Annual Space Settlement Design Competition 3/28-30

The Space Settlement Design Competition is an exciting industry simulation game for high school students (grades 10 to 12) set in the middle years of the 21st century. This competition emulates the experience of working as a member of an aerospace company team, developing a design and operations proposal for a large human base, called ATLAS, which orbits the sun and is designed to capture asteroids from the asteroid belt beyond Mars and to bring them to a stable orbital point called L4 in the Earth-moon system for subsequent study, mining and exploration in the year 2049.

The competition is March 28 to 30 at JSC. More information and registration forms can be found on our website.

Event Date: Friday, March 28, 2014   Event Start Time:6:00 PM   Event End Time:11:00 PM

Event Location: JSC Gilruth Center

 

Add to Calendar

 

Sara Malloy x46803 https://sites.google.com/site/ssdc201314/

 

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4.            Family Space Day at George Observatory - March 1

The Challenger Learning Center at the George Observatory is holding a Family Space Day on Saturday, March 1, from about 3 to 8 p.m.

For purchase are tickets to complete a 45-minute Challenger Center mission to the moon! Challenger Center mission tickets may be purchased for $10 a person online.

After enjoying a trip to space, stay for the evening and look at the night sky through our telescopes. Telescope tickets can be purchased at the observatory gift shop.

George Observatory is located in the heart of Brazos Bend State Park. Admission to the park is $7 for adults; kids 12 and under are free.

Megan Hashier 281-226-4179 http://www.hmns.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=404&Ite...

 

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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.

 

 

NASA and Human Spaceflight News

Wednesday – Feb. 19, 2014

 

NASA TV: www.nasa.gov/ntv

12:30 p.m. Central: Hopkins and Mastracchio will be interviewed by the ABC Digital On-Line Network

 

PAO NOTE: Starting tomorrow, Feb. 20, this news will be sent from a universal mailbox, JSC-NASA-HumanSpaceflight-News@mail.nasa.gov. Add this email address to your contact list to ensure it does not end up in your junk mail folder.

 

HEADLINES AND LEADS

 

Must-see space TV: Astronauts star in new network television series

 

Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com

 

NASA astronaut Mike Massimino is back on "The Big Bang Theory" in a new episode of the hit CBS comedy, but he soon won't be the only spaceman on network television. Massimino, a veteran of two actual space shuttle flights to upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope and one made-for-TV mission to the International Space Station, is making his fifth cameo appearance on "The Big Bang Theory." In the episode "The Table Polarization," premiering Feb. 27, Massimino reunites with his "crewmate" Howard Wolowitz (actor Simon Helberg) to offer him another chance to go to space.

 

NASA's Johnson Space Center takes customer-first approach to IT

 

Jason Miller – Federal News Radio

 

NASA's Johnson Space Center is taking a different approach to working with vendors and one that the Obama administration has been promoting over the last few years. Annette Moore, the acting chief information officer, said vendors approach her organization through a vendor management office.

 

Soledad O'Brien to Host Nat Geo's 'Live From Space'

The cable network is not sending the journalist into orbit -- though she will be the face of the live telecast from Mission Control in Houston

 

Michael O'Connell - Hollywood Reporter

 

Soledad O'Brien is heading to the final frontier. The Hollywood Reporter has learned that the veteran broadcast journalist will host National Geographic Channel's Live From Space special when it bows on March 14 -- though she will do so safely from earth.

 

Del Tech facility named to honor Lewes astronaut

 

Melissa Steele – Lewes Cape Gazzette

 

Joe Hudson says he always knew Ted Freeman would fly airplanes. The two became best friends in elementary school, and soon after were flying their own planes. "We learned to fly together as kids at age 15," Hudson said. "I knew he would go on to bigger things and he did."

 

NASA Teaches Humanoid Robonaut 2 Medical Skills for Space Emergencies (Video)

 

Megan Gannon – Space.com

 

NASA is training a humanoid space robot to pull double duty as an emergency doctor in space — a surrogate physician that could one day be controlled by experts on Earth to help sick or injured astronauts. The $2.5 million Robonaut 2, nicknamed R2, is designed to work alongside the astronauts and even take over some of their more tedious duties inside and outside the International Space Station. The new NASA training is adding telemedicine skills to that mix.

 

One hotel mogul's next frontier: Outer space

 

Jane Wells – CNBC

 

A tall hangar rises out of nowhere, surrounded by concertina wire and tumbleweeds on the barren outskirts of North Las Vegas. In this dry, unforgiving place, Robert Bigelow is designing housing that will have to withstand much harsher conditions. Here, inside Bigelow Aerospace, the man who made a fortune putting up hotels is now building inflatable space habitats. Seven years ago, he successfully launched two test habitats into orbit to obtain data about their strength, durability and radiation protection. Bigelow is finally at work on the real deal, including a small habitat that will be tested at the International Space Station (ISS) next year and two larger units (330 cubic meters) that are expected to be ready to launch by 2016.

 

Turksat 4A Healthy Following ILS Proton Launch

 

Peter B. de Selding – Space News

 

Turkey's newly launched Turksat 4A Ku-, C- and Ka-band telecommunications satellite is healthy in orbit and is expected to be transferred to its owners by mid-March after initial testing, satellite builder Mitsubishi Electric Co. (Melco) said Feb. 18.

 

COMPLETE STORIES

 

Must-see space TV: Astronauts star in new network television series

 

Robert Pearlman - collectSPACE.com

 

NASA astronaut Mike Massimino is back on "The Big Bang Theory" in a new episode of the hit CBS comedy, but he soon won't be the only spaceman on network television.

 

Massimino, a veteran of two actual space shuttle flights to upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope and one made-for-TV mission to the International Space Station, is making his fifth cameo appearance on "The Big Bang Theory." In the episode "The Table Polarization," premiering Feb. 27, Massimino reunites with his "crewmate" Howard Wolowitz (actor Simon Helberg) to offer him another chance to go to space.

 

Massimino may be the first astronaut to be featured on scripted television in 2014, but as it stands now, he will be far from the last. All four major U.S. networks, ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX, have space exploration-themed shows in development or set to air. Add to that cable networks such as National Geographic Channel, and astronauts are soon to be this year's television stars.

 

Astronauts, and their wives

 

Massimino is a real U.S. astronaut playing a fictional one. In ABC's upcoming series, actors — and actresses — will take on the roles of historical NASA astronauts, and their spouses.

 

JoAnna Garcia Swisher is first lead to be announced for "Astronaut Wives Club," a 10-episode series based on Lily Koppel's same-titled 2013 book about the women behind America's first astronauts. Helmed by Stephanie Savage, the co-creator of "Gossip Girl," "Astronaut Wives Club" is set to launch on ABC this summer.

 

Swisher will trade in her mermaid tail as "Ariel" on ABC's "Once Upon a Time" for the role of Betty Grissom, the real life wife of Mercury astronaut Virgil "Gus" Grissom, whose spacecraft promptly sank to the oceanfloor after splashing down from space.

 

Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry will step into the role of a more modern astronaut, though not on "Wives Club." Premiering July 2 on CBS, Berry will portray "Molly Watts," a fictional space explorer, in the Steven Spielberg-produced "Extant."

 

The series, described by CBS as a thriller, follows Berry's character after she returns from a yearlong space mission. Little more has been revealed about the series' plot, other than that "her experiences lead to events that ultimately will change the course of human history."

 

Space history, of a sort, is also the setting for "Mission Control" by executive producer and comedian Will Ferrell. NBC has ordered a pilot episode for the series, which has been described as a "workplace ensemble in the tone of 'Anchorman' [that] examines what happens when a strong woman butts heads with a macho astronaut in the race to land on the moon."

 

From space to the 'Cosmos'

 

Two TV documentaries coming in March will seek to take their audiences to outer space, rather than re-stage it with actors.

 

In "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey," FOX and National Geographic Channel are re-launching the late astronomer Carl Sagan's 1980 groundbreaking science series with 13 new parts. Hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and produced by "Family Guy" creator Seth MacFarlane, "Cosmos" will premiere on 123-branded FOX channels in 125 countries and 90 National Geographic Channels in 170 countries, making it the largest-ever global launch for a TV series.

 

The first episode, "Standing Up in the Milky Way," airs on FOX on March 9, followed by an encore presentation the following night on National Geographic.

 

Then on March 14, as "Cosmos" continues to air, National Geographic and Channel 4 in the U.K. will produce "Live from Space," a two-hour, unprecedented television special featuring NASA astronaut Richard Mastracchio and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Koichi Wakata live from the International Space Station.

 

According to the network, viewers will be able to chat via video with Mastracchio and Wakata and have their faces beamed into space to join the conversation. In addition to the astronauts, flight controllers and researchers will also be featured in segments originating from NASA's Mission Control in Houston during the course of the live event.

 

On the launch pad

 

Even more astronaut and space-related programming is in the works.

 

Announced last June, Primeridian Entertainment has hired "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" screenwriter and director Nicholas Meyer to pen a pilot episode and treatment for a TV series to "examine the tense competition between the US and USSR superpowers at the height of the Cold War, starting with the scramble to capture the remains of the Nazi V-2 [rocket] program."

 

The still untitled space-race-themed project is being based on Matthew Brzezinski's 2007 "Red Moon Rising: Sputnik and the Hidden Rivalries That Ignited the Space Age."

 

There was also news in April 2013 of a series pitch by the writers behind AMC's "Mad Men" under the working title, "Cocoa Beach." Based in part on veteran space journalist Jay Barbree's 2007 book "Live from Cape Canaveral," the series would focus on the space program of the 1960s and the journalists who covered it.

 

"Hopefully, it happens," Dave Netterstrom, the mayor of the real Cocoa Beach, told Florida Today. "We want to let people know we're a cool place to visit and a cool place to live."

 

NASA's Johnson Space Center takes customer-first approach to IT

 

Jason Miller – Federal News Radio

 

NASA's Johnson Space Center is taking a different approach to working with vendors and one that the Obama administration has been promoting over the last few years.

 

Annette Moore, the acting chief information officer, said vendors approach her organization through a vendor management office.

 

"When Larry Sweet was the CIO at NASA Johnson Space Center, Larry made an intentional decision to get us more in the direction of a business technology office," she said. "We actually created a position for vendor management support and IT procurement support. So we actually have a staff dedicated here on our directorate level that works that vendor management piece to ensure that the vendor gets connected to the right office in our directorate, gets connected with the right individual in our directorate and gets the right level of attention to get them connected into what we are doing with our initiatives and our priorities. We also have a chief technology officer on the directorate staff. That CTO does the same thing and those two positions work hand-in-hand to ensure that the vendor gets the appropriate level of contact at the right level within our directorate."

 

Sweet moved on to become NASA CIO in June.

 

Moore said the goal is to simplify the path for vendors to find the most appropriate person and to help her office ensure they are using their time most wisely.

 

The Obama administration has been pushing agencies to develop vendor management offices to improve the acquisition process. The President's Management Advisory Board recommended the use of VMOs as a single door into the agency in 2011. The Veterans Affairs, the General Services Administration and Treasury Department are among the agencies that took part in a pilot in 2012.

 

For NASA Johnson Space Center, the VMO will play a big role in the coming months as Moore is looking for ways to expand her center's use of cloud computing and other technologies.

 

"We have some smaller initiatives that are using cloud. We are looking at those larger initiatives that we want to move into the cloud," Moore said. "In fact, I have a game-changing challenge for my IT organization right now to look more into areas that we can move into the cloud. So we are looking in 2014 at how we can expand that and really make some game changing moves for 2014. We've taken some baby steps toward that."

 

She said in the applications and data systems offices is where the biggest opportunities exist to take advantage of cloud computing.

 

Moore didn't say whether or not her office has developed an acquisition strategy or would use existing contracts under the IT Infrastructure Integration Program (I3P). NASA awarded three contracts under I3P for a host of different services from application to end user to Web enterprise technologies.

 

Johnson Space Center is implementing some of the offerings from I3P, but the bigger benefit, Moore said, is the need to review and improve procedures and processes around IT programs.

 

The vendor organization and move to the cloud are part of a broader effort across Johnson Space Center to focus more on using technology to enable the mission.

 

Moore said her office is comprised of five different areas that cover about 59 functions: business management and policy, end user services, project management and technical integration, an application and data systems and information technology security and communications.

 

She said one priority is redefining organization's functions to better serve the mission areas.

 

"The reorganization is really taking place around our whole approach to how we provide IT services," Moore said. "IT organizations are recognizing the need to be more agile, more flexible and more adaptable to change. They are understanding that organizations that are traditionally hard IT core organizations are moving more toward looking at the business technology to ensure they can meet the business needs of any organization. So what I'm trying to do is reshape this organization to [one that focuses on] business technology that provides IT solutions that meet the business needs of our customer. That is a little bit of a different approach than what you might from a traditional IT organization."

 

She added her staff includes customer service agents that are tied directly to the mission areas across the center.

 

"They are listening to and hearing what the needs of the customers are, what their challenges are and what looks like the type of IT organization that will meet their business needs," Moore said. "I also invest in an IT leadership council across the center that includes someone from our station's program, from our missions' operations directorate, from our engineering directorate, from the Orion program and from several other key organizations at the center. I listen to those folks. I hear what their pain points are, what their challenges are, what their business needs are and what their next business evolution will be for their organization, and my responsibility is to ensure I'm tied into those key points and that I'm helping to drive this organization into a direction that will meet the needs of our customers."

 

She said the reaction from the mission areas has been positive because they feel like the CIO's shop is listening to their needs and concerns.

 

"What's paramount for me is the customer experience and I want to convey that to my customers. I want that to resonate with my customers when they think about my directorate," Moore said.

 

Soledad O'Brien to Host Nat Geo's 'Live From Space'

The cable network is not sending the journalist into orbit -- though she will be the face of the live telecast from Mission Control in Houston

 

Michael O'Connell - Hollywood Reporter

 

Soledad O'Brien is heading to the final frontier. The Hollywood Reporter has learned that the veteran broadcast journalist will host National Geographic Channel's Live From Space special when it bows on March 14 -- though she will do so safely from earth.

 

The latest in Nat Geo's push into event programming, and following a string of space-related alternative programming on cable, Live From Space will feature orbiting astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Koichi Wakata interacting with viewers from the International Space Station. O'Brien and notable NASA engineer Mike Massimino will appear from the Mission Control in Houston.

 

O'Brien, now a contributor at Al Jazeera America, will also serve as co-executive producer.

 

"It's an honor to be the host and co-executive producer of such an ambitious and important event. I'm thrilled to further my relationship with my partners at National Geographic to tell the untold story that unfolds above the sky each day," said O'Brien. "For those that were thrilled by Gravity, I think they'll be even more impressed by the incredible work being done every day aboard the ISS and the tremendous risks and sacrifices the astronauts undertake. We will get to witness the greatest show beyond earth."

 

Airing for two hours, Live From Space aims to give viewers a unique perspective on astronaut life and work. It will air at 8 p.m. ET in the U.S., simulcasting in 170 countries -- notably Channel 4 in the U.K.. Spanish-language net Nat Geo Mundo will also air the special.

 

"With more than 25 years of live television experience, Soledad is the perfect partner for this incredibly exciting television moment," said NGC president Howard T. Owens. "We are ecstatic to have her join us to bring to life the thrilling pulse of this live broadcast."

 

Live From Space marks an extension of O'Brien's current relationship with Nat Geo. Last year she signed on to moderate and executive produce the annual National Geographic Bee, which returns to the network in May.

 

Del Tech facility named to honor Lewes astronaut

 

Melissa Steele – Lewes Cape Gazzette

 

Joe Hudson says he always knew Ted Freeman would fly airplanes.

 

The two became best friends in elementary school, and soon after were flying their own planes.

 

"We learned to fly together as kids at age 15," Hudson said. "I knew he would go on to bigger things and he did."

 

Freeman graduated from Lewes High School before entering the U.S. Naval Academy and then the U.S. Air Force. He dedicated his life to aviation, becoming one of 14 astronauts chosen to fly to the moon. Tragically, Freeman never made it to space after the jet he was piloting crashed in 1964 near Houston during a routine flight. The canopy of the jet was struck by a snow goose which sent pieces into the aircraft's engines, disabling them.  Though Freeman was instructed to eject from the jet, he banked hard away from military housing to avoid striking any people.  By the time he was clear, his jet was too low to allow him to eject properly and he died in the subsequent crash.

 

In honor of Freeman's hard work, perseverance and legacy, Delaware Technical and Community College on Feb. 18 named its new aviation maintenance building after him.

 

"Today we open a new building and program in honor of a world-class human being," said Ileana M. Smith, vice president and campus director of the Owens Campus.

 

The 9,800-square-foot building will allow students to learn airplane engine maintenance giving them more opportunities to find employment in the aviation field, said Del Tech President Orlando George.

 

"Programs like this are investments … investments in people, in Sussex Countians, in Delawareans and in our business community," he said.

 

NASA Teaches Humanoid Robonaut 2 Medical Skills for Space Emergencies (Video)

 

Megan Gannon – Space.com

 

NASA is training a humanoid space robot to pull double duty as an emergency doctor in space — a surrogate physician that could one day be controlled by experts on Earth to help sick or injured astronauts.

 

The $2.5 million Robonaut 2, nicknamed R2, is designed to work alongside the astronauts and even take over some of their more tedious duties inside and outside the International Space Station. The new NASA training is adding telemedicine skills to that mix.

 

In a new video of Robonaut 2's telemedicine training, the automaton performed an ultrasound scan on a mannequin and even used a syringe like it would to administer a real-life injection. The tests were performed using a ground-based version of R2 robot, the mechanical twin of the one currently aboard the space station.

 

"I would say that within an hour I trained him more than with other students I'm working for a week, so I think that he's learning really fast," Dr. Zsolt Garami, of the Houston Methodist Research Institute, says in the video.

 

Far from earthly hospitals, astronauts who currently live on space station, typically in six-month-long stints, must be trained in basic surgery and medical procedures in case of an emergency. But Robonaut 2, which has a camera-equipped head, could administer care to spaceflyers, controlled by doctors on the ground.

 

So far, tests with Robonaut 2 have shown that human controllers can perform tasks "correctly and efficiently by using R2's dexterity to apply the appropriate level of force and can track their progress using R2's vision system," NASA officials explained in a video description. Garami said the robot might eventually be able to learn to do some tasks on its own.

 

Robonaut 2's telemedical skills could be useful on Earth, too, allowing doctors to conduct complex medical procedures on humans in remote locations, according to NASA.

 

The space-bound Robonaut 2 launched to the International Space Station as just a torso with arms in 2011 during the final flight of the space shuttle Discovery. That Robonaut 2 will get legs, a set of high-tech limbs with seven joints each, sometime later this year, NASA officials have said.

 

One hotel mogul's next frontier: Outer space

 

Jane Wells – CNBC

 

A tall hangar rises out of nowhere, surrounded by concertina wire and tumbleweeds on the barren outskirts of North Las Vegas. In this dry, unforgiving place, Robert Bigelow is designing housing that will have to withstand much harsher conditions.

 

Here, inside Bigelow Aerospace, the man who made a fortune putting up hotels is now building inflatable space habitats. Seven years ago, he successfully launched two test habitats into orbit to obtain data about their strength, durability and radiation protection.

 

Bigelow is finally at work on the real deal, including a small habitat that will be tested at the International Space Station (ISS) next year and two larger units (330 cubic meters) that are expected to be ready to launch by 2016.

 

Getty Images

The Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM) on display during a media briefing at which NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver and Bigelow Aerospace founder Robert Bigelow announced that BEAM will join the International Space Station to test expandable space habitat technology.

 

"We've always been on the destination side of the coin," he said in a rare interview inside his headquarters. "We're hostage to the transportation folks, the taxi folks."

 

Bigelow believes "the taxi folks" will be able to ferry crew and cargo to his private destinations by 2017. He has delivered a report to NASA suggesting that a company could rent out one-third of a habitat for 60 days for $25 million, though the cost of catching a ride there via Elon Musk's SpaceX could run $26.5 million a seat.

 

Bigelow's venture began more than 12 years ago, after he read that NASA had cut funding for a program to explore inflatable habitats—housing that could be folded up and tucked into a rocket, then expanded in orbit to house several people.

 

"I couldn't believe the program had been stopped," Bigelow said. As an experienced builder, he persuaded NASA to grant him an exclusive license to the technology, and he launched Bigelow Aerospace.

 

Current housing on the ISS is rigid and made of aluminum, which Bigelow said does not provide the best protection against radiation. The BA-330 habitats expand to three times the size of housing units on the ISS, and he's beginning to build a mock-up of a much larger unit called the Olympus that will open to a spacious 2,250 cubic meters.

 

The Olympus will need a "superheavy" launch rocket, though, and Bigelow believes he will have to build it near a seaport and ferry it to a launch site.

 

Closer to a space vacation?

 

CNBC's Jon Fortt and Jane Wells run down today's hot topics, including space travel, e-cigarette promotion in the U.K. and the maker of "Candy Crush" files for an IPO.

 

He's also designing a lunar base to house astronauts, scientists, miners or whoever may end up on the moon. However, the base would be made in low Earth orbit—say, near the ISS, and then pushed to lunar orbit and the Moon's surface using tugs the company is also designing. Bigelow would not construct the base on the Moon itself.

 

"If you've ever been on a construction site at night, you see all the service trucks there from all the stuff that went wrong the day before," he said. Waiting until you get to the moon to construct housing is "asking for a whole lot of trouble."

 

Bigelow recently filed with the Federal Aviation Administration to amend a 1967 space treaty so that anyone who makes it to the Moon can have private property considerations.

 

"There is already a policy that declares that if you have a habitable system in space, that there is a standoff zone of 200 miles," he said. "We're asking for the same consideration on the Moon."

 

Private companies might take the big risks needed to further humanity's return to the Moon only if the profit motive of mining minerals there could be guaranteed. With the amendment he is proposing, "Landings can occur, but not right in your own backyard," Bigelow said.

 

Bigelow Aerospace is hoping to hire six astronauts this year and provide them with housing in Las Vegas. The company is also in discussions with foreign governments about helping them move forward with their own plans for space.

 

The venture is a so costly a gamble that only those with the deepest pockets can afford to wager. When asked how much money he's spent on this, Bigelow said, "I stopped counting at $250 million."

 

Timing is everything, he said, and housing and transportation need to be in sync. "It doesn't do us any good to be there alone."

 

Still waiting for the opportunities and affordability of space to reach critical mass, Bigelow said, "The International Space Station cannot produce enough demand by itself to support even two transportation companies. There is a serious need to have one or more destinations."

 

Turksat 4A Healthy Following ILS Proton Launch

 

Peter B. de Selding – Space News

 

Turkey's newly launched Turksat 4A Ku-, C- and Ka-band telecommunications satellite is healthy in orbit and is expected to be transferred to its owners by mid-March after initial testing, satellite builder Mitsubishi Electric Co. (Melco) said Feb. 18.

 

Tokyo-based Melco, whose two-satellite Turksat contract win in 2011 represented a breakthrough in its efforts to build an export market for its DS2000 satellite platform, said Turksat 4A's launch by an International Launch Services (ILS) Proton rocket will give the satellite more than 30 years of in-orbit maneuvering life. The spacecraft's contracted design life is 15 years. The launch occurred from the Russian-run Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Feb. 15.

 

Ankara-based Turksat said the 4,850-kilogram Turksat 4A would be operated at first at 50 degrees east longitude before being moved to its permanent slot at 42 degrees east. The Melco-built Turksat 4B is scheduled for launch, also aboard an ILS Proton, late this year.

 

Melco's win of the Turksat contract was valued at the time by Turksat at $571 million including the construction and launch of the two satellites. Besting U.S. and European competitors for the deal was considered as a partial validation of Melco's strategy of broadening its market beyond the Japanese government.

 

Melco has invested in plant and equipment to raise its annual satellite throughput capacity to eight satellites from four previously as part of the export-oriented strategy.

 

END

 

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