Jan 25 2012

From The Space Library

RELEASE: 12-025 AEROSPACE SAFETY ADVISORY PANEL RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT

WASHINGTON -- The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, or ASAP, has RELEASEd its 2011 annual report. The ASAP holds quarterly fact-finding and public meetings and visits NASA facilities to directly observe the agency's operations and decision making. In this year's report, the panel highlighted issues related to costs, schedules, resources, requirements and acquisition strategies that may have an impact on safety. "The pursuit of great reward often comes hand in hand with great risk, so it has always been with explorers," panel Chairman Joseph W. Dyer said. "So naturally, it was the panel's duty to ask, 'How safe is safe enough?' We didn't answer that question, but we did point to areas where that question may not produce the level of safety the panel expects and requires." Some of the panel's critical safety issues or concerns in the report include:-- International Space Station -- Commercial Crew-- Space Launch System -- Alcohol Use and Testing Policy Congress established the ASAP in 1968 after the Apollo 1 fire to provide advice and make recommendations to the NASA administrator on safety matters.

RELEASE: 12-026 NASA RENAMES EARTH-OBSERVING MISSION IN HONOR OF SATELLITE PIONEER

WASHINGTON -- NASA has renamed its newest Earth-observing satellite in honor of the late Verner E. Suomi, a meteorologist at the University of Wisconsin who is recognized widely as "the father of satellite meteorology." The announcement was made Jan. 24 at the annual meeting of the American Meteorological Society in New Orleans. NASA launched the National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System Preparatory Project, or NPP, on Oct. 28, 2011, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. NPP was renamed Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership, or Suomi NPP. The satellite is the first designed to collect critical data to improve short-term weather forecasts and increase understanding of long-term climate change. "Verner Suomi's many scientific and engineering contributions were fundamental to our current ability to learn about Earth's weather and climate from space," said John Grunsfeld, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington." Suomi NPP not only will extend more than four decades of NASA satellite observations of our planet, it also will usher in a new era of climate change discovery and weather forecasting." The Suomi NPP mission is a bridge between NASA's Earth Observing System satellites to the next-generation Joint Polar Satellite System, or JPSS, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) program. JPSS is the civilian component of the former National Polar-orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS), which was reorganized by the Obama Administration in 2010. "The new name now accurately describes the mission," said Michael Freilich, director of the Earth Science Division in NASA's Science Mission Directorate. "Suomi NPP will advance our scientific knowledge of Earth and improve the lives of Americans by enabling more accurate forecasts of weather, ocean conditions and the terrestrial biosphere. The mission is the product of a partnership between NASA, NOAA, the Department of Defense, the private sector and academic researchers." Verner Suomi pioneered remote sensing of Earth from satellites in polar orbits a few hundred miles above the surface with Explorer 7 in 1959, and geostationary orbits thousands of miles high with ATS-1 in 1966. He was best known for his invention of the "spin-scan" camera which enabled geostationary weather satellites to continuously image Earth, yielding the satellite pictures commonly used on television weather broadcasts. He also was involved in planning interplanetary spacecraft missions to Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune. Suomi spent nearly his entire career at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where in 1965 he founded the university's Space Science and Engineering Center with funding from NASA. The center is known for Earth-observing satellite research and development. In 1964, Suomi served as chief scientist of the U.S. Weather Bureau for one year. He received the National Medal of Science in 1977. He died in 1995 at the age of 79. "It is fitting that such an important and innovative partnership pays tribute to a pioneer like Verner Suomi," said Mary Kicza, assistant administrator for NOAA's Satellite and Information Service. "Suomi NPP is an extremely important mission for NOAA. Its advanced instruments will improve our weather forecasts and understanding of the climate and pave the way for JPSS, our next generation of weather satellites." Suomi NPP currently is in its initial checkout phase before starting regular observations with all of its five instruments. Commissioning activities are expected to be completed by March. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., manages the Suomi NPP mission for the Earth Science Division of the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The JPSS program provides the satellite ground system and NOAA provides operational support.

RELEASE: 12-027 EDUCATORS SELECTED TO FLY ON NASA'S SOFIA AIRBORNE OBSERVATORY

MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. -- Twenty-six educators from the United States have been selected for research flights aboard SOFIA, NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy. As participants in the Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors program, the educators will partner with professional astronomers using SOFIA for scientific observations in 2012 and 2013. SOFIA is a modified Boeing 747SP jetliner equipped with a 100-inch (2.5-meter) diameter telescope. The observatory enables the analysis of infrared light to study the formation of stars and planets; chemistry of interstellar gases; composition of comets, asteroids and planets; and supermassive black holes at the center of galaxies. "The unique design of SOFIA gives educators hands-on experience with world-class astronomical research," said John Gagosian, SOFIA program executive at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Working with astronomers, educators participate in a research project from beginning to end and integrate that unique perspective with classroom lessons and public outreach programs." SOFIA's Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors program is a yearly professional development opportunity extended to educators through a competitive, peer-reviewed process. This year's educators are: -- Melvin Gorman and Gordon Serkis, Chinle Junior High School in Chinle, Ariz.-- Ira Harden and Vincente Washington, City Honors College Preparatory Charter School in Inglewood, Calif.-- Clifford Gerstman and Susan Groff, Middle College High School in Santa Ana, Calif.-- Mike Cimino, Heritage Middle School, and John Clark, Deltona High School in Deltona, Fla.-- Randi Brennon, Hawaii Academy of Arts and Sciences in Pahoa, Hawaii-- Jo Dodds, Twin Falls Senior High School in Twin Falls, Idaho-- Ralph Peterson, North Gem High School in Bancroft, Idaho-- Jennifer Carter and Claudett M. Edie, Rowan County Senior High School in Morehead, Ky.-- Chelen Johnson, Breck School in Golden Valley, Minn.-- Matt Oates, Dilworth STEM Academy in Sparks, Nev.-- Dan Ruby, Fleischmann Planetarium and Science Center in Reno, Nev.-- Ryan Munkwitz and John Walsh, Southampton Intermediate and High School in Southampton, N.Y.-- James Johnson, Children's Center for Treatment & Education in Custer City, Pa.-- Adriana Alvarez and Mariela Aguirre, Alicia R. Chacon International School in El Paso, Texas-- David V. Black, Walden School of Liberal Arts in Provo, Utah-- Carolyn Bushman, Wendover Jr./Sr. High School in Wendover, Utah-- Sarah Scoles, National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and Anne Smith, Green Bank Middle School in Green Bank, W.Va.-- Constance Gartner, Wisconsin School for the Deaf in Delavan, Wis. "These educators submitted applications describing how they plan to take what they learn from SOFIA back to their classrooms and communities to help promote increased literacy in science, technology, engineering and math," said astronomer Dana Backman, manager of SOFIA's education and public outreach programs. "Selection for this unique opportunity is truly an honor for the educators, as well as for their local schools and science centers." SOFIA is a joint program between NASA and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The SOFIA program is managed at the Dryden Aircraft Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., where the aircraft is based. NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., manages SOFIA science and mission operations in concert with the Universities Space Research Association (USRA) in Columbia, Md., and the German SOFIA Institute (DSI) in Stuttgart, Germany. SOFIA's education and public outreach programs are managed by the SETI Institute in Mountain View, Calif., and the Astronomical Society of the Pacific in San Francisco.

RELEASE: 12-028 NASA'S NUSTAR SHIPS TO VANDENBERG AHEAD OF MARCH 14 LAUNCH

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, shipped to Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., on Tuesday to be mated to its Pegasus launch vehicle. The observatory will detect X-rays from objects ranging from our sun to giant black holes billions of light-years away. It is scheduled to launch March 14 from an aircraft operating out of Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands. "The NuSTAR mission is unique because it will be the first NASA mission to focus X-rays in the high-energy range, creating the most detailed images ever taken in this slice of the electromagnetic spectrum," said Fiona Harrison, the mission's principal investigator at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif. The observatory shipped from Orbital Sciences Corporation in Dulles, Va., where the spacecraft and science instrument were integrated. It is scheduled to arrive at Vandenberg on Jan. 27, where it will be mated to the Pegasus, also built by Orbital, on Feb. 17. The mission will be launched from the L-1011 "Stargazer" aircraft, which will take off near the equator from Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific. NuSTAR and its Pegasus will fly from Vandenberg to Kwajalein attached to the underside of the L-1011, and are scheduled to arrive on March 7. On launch day, after the airplane arrives at the planned drop site over the ocean, the Pegaus will drop from the L-1011 and carry NuSTAR to an orbit around Earth. "NuSTAR is an engineering achievement, incorporating state-of-the-art high-energy X-ray mirrors and detectors that will enable years of astronomical discovery," said Yunjin Kim, the mission's project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena. NuSTAR's advanced telescope consists of two sets of 133 concentric shells of mirrors, which were shaped from flexible-glass similar to that found in laptop screens. Because X-rays require large focusing distances, or focal lengths, the telescope has a lengthy 10-meter (33-foot) mast, which will unfold a week after launch. These and other advances in technology will enable NuSTAR to explore the cosmic world of high-energy X-rays with much improved sensitivity and resolution over previous missions. During its two-year primary mission, NuSTAR will map the celestial sky in X-rays, surveying black holes, mapping supernova remnants, and studying particle jets travelling away from black holes near the speed of light. NuSTAR also will probe the sun, looking for microflares theorized to be on the surface that could explain how the sun's million-degree corona, or atmosphere, is heated. It even will test a theory of dark matter, the mysterious substance making up about one-quarter of our universe, by searching the sun for evidence of a hypothesized dark matter particle. "NuSTAR will provide an unprecedented capability to discover and study some of the most exotic objects in the universe, from the corpses of exploded stars in the Milky Way to supermassive black holes residing in the hearts of distant galaxies," said Lou Kaluzienski, NuSTAR program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. NuSTAR is a small-explorer mission managed by JPL for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. The spacecraft was built by Orbital Sciences Corporation. Its instrument was built by a consortium including Caltech, JPL, Columbia University, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., the Danish Technical University, the University of California, Berkeley, and ATK-Goleta. NuSTAR will be operated by U.C. Berkeley, with the Italian Space Agency providing its equatorial ground station located at Malindi, Kenya. NASA's Explorer Program is managed by Goddard. JPL is managed by Caltech for NASA-

RELEASE: 12-030 NASA'S J-2X ENGINE KICKS OFF 2012 WITH POWERPACK TESTING

BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. -- A new series of tests on the engine that will help carry humans to deep space will begin next week at NASA's Stennis Space Center in southern Mississippi. The tests on the J-2X engine bring NASA one step closer to the first human-rated liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen rocket engine to be developed in 40 years. Tests will focus on the powerpack for the J-2X. This highly efficient and versatile advanced rocket engine is being designed to power the upper stage of NASA's Space Launch System, a new heavy-lift launch vehicle capable of missions beyond low-Earth orbit. The powerpack comprises components on the top portion of the engine, including the gas generator, oxygen and fuel turbopumps, and related ducts and valves that bring the propellants together to create combustion and generate thrust. "The J-2X upper stage engine is vital to achieving the full launch capability of the heavy-lift Space Launch System," said William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. "The testing today will help ensure that a key propulsion element is ready to support exploration across the solar system." About a dozen powerpack tests of varying lengths are slated now through summer at Stennis' A-1 Test Stand. By separating the engine components -- the thrust chamber assembly, including the main combustion chamber, main injector and nozzle -- engineers can more easily push the various components to operate over a wide range of conditions to ensure the parts' integrity, demonstrate the safety margin and better understand how the turbopumps operate. "By varying the pressures, temperatures and flow rates, the powerpack test series will evaluate the full range of operating conditions of the engine components," said Tom Byrd, J-2X engine lead in the SLS Liquid Engines Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. "This will enable us to verify the components' design and validate our analytical models against performance data, as well as ensure structural stability and verify the combustion stability of the gas generator." This is the second powerpack test series for J-2X. The powerpack 1A was tested in 2008 with J-2S engine turbomachinery originally developed for the Apollo Program. Engineers tested these heritage components to obtain data to help them modify the design of the turbomachinery to meet the higher performance requirements of the J-2X engine. "The test engineers on the A-1 test team are excited and ready to begin another phase of testing which will provide critical data in support of the Space Launch System," said Gary Benton, J-2X engine testing project manager at Stennis. J-2X is being developed for Marshall by Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne of Canoga Park, Calif.