Feb 25 2010
From The Space Library
CONTRACT RELEASE: C10-063
NASA AWARDS CONTRACT MODIFICATION FOR SHARED SERVICES CENTER
WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) of Falls Church, Va., a modification to exercise the first option year under its existing contract. This is a one-year option period for the continuation of financial management, human resources, procurement and information technology support services to NASA. The one-year option increases the existing NASA Shared Services Center support contract by more than $38 million and provides services through Sept. 30, 2011. The center is a partnership among NASA, CSC, and the states of Mississippi and Louisiana. The center performs selected business activities for all 10 NASA centers.
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RELEASE: 10-023
NASA CUES UP UNIVERSITY CUBESATS FOR GLORY LAUNCH THIS FALL
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA will launch small research satellites for several universities as part of the agency's Educational Launch of Nanosatellite, or ELaNA, mission. The satellites are manifested as an auxiliary payload on the Taurus XL launch vehicle for NASA's Glory mission, planned for liftoff in late November. The satellites, called CubeSats because of their shape, come from Montana State University, the University of Colorado and Kentucky Space, a consortium of state universities. The University of Florida was selected as an alternate in case one of the three primary spacecraft cannot fly. CubeSats are in a class of small research spacecraft called picosatellites. They have a size of approximately four inches, a volume of about one quart and weigh no more than 2.2 pounds. To place these satellites into orbit by an agency expendable launch vehicle, NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida is adapting the Poly-Picosatellite Orbital Deployer, or PPOD. This deployment system, designed and manufactured by the California Polytechnic State University in partnership with Stanford University, has flown previously on Department of Defense and commercial launch vehicles. Montana State designated its satellite as Explorer 1 Prime, or E1P. The name honors the launch and scientific discoveries of the Explorer-1 mission, which detected the Van Allen radiation belts more than 50 years ago. E1P will carry a miniature Geiger tube to measure the intensity and variability of the electrons in the Van Allen belts. Colorado's satellite is named Hermes. Its mission is to improve CubeSat communications through the on-orbit testing of a high data-rate communication system that will allow the downlink of large quantities of data. The Kentucky vehicle is called KySat-1. It includes a camera to support a scientific outreach program intended for, but not limited to, Kentucky students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The satellite also has a 2.4-gigahertz industrial, scientific and medical band radio, which will be used to test high-bandwidth communications in the license-free portion of the S-band. The satellites will hitch a ride to space with the Taurus rocket's primary payload, NASA's Glory spacecraft. The Glory climate mission, developed by NASA's Science Mission Directorate, will extend the nearly 30-year record of precise measurements of the sun's energy output. It also will obtain first-ever, global measurements of the distribution of tiny airborne aerosol particles. Aerosols represent one of the greatest areas of uncertainty in understanding Earth's climate system. The ELaNA project is managed by NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy.
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RELEASE: 10-191
NASA SEEKS INNOVATIVE IDEAS ABOUT HUMAN HEALTH CHALLENGES
WASHINGTON -- NASA will host LAUNCH: Health, a global forum focusing on health issues, at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida from Oct. 30-31. NASA, the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Department of State, and NIKE are partnering on LAUNCH to identify, showcase and support innovative approaches to sustainability challenges through a series of forums. LAUNCH forums focus on key areas, including water, air, food, and energy. They provide a venue for evaluating creative ideas among peers and collaborative, solution-driven discussions. This second forum, LAUNCH: Health, will bring together entrepreneurs from around the world who will be selected based on their innovative approaches to addressing health issues. During the two-and-a-half day forum, they will discuss their proposed solutions to health issues with council members who represent business, policy, engineering, science, communications and sustainability sectors. The sessions are designed to identify challenges and discuss future opportunities for entrepreneurs' innovations. LAUNCH: Health seeks transformative innovations to improve health and the quality of life on Earth, specifically for people in the first 20 years of life, in the following categories: - Nutrition and food - Physical activity - Preventive health care "NASA's interest in technology development and problem solving in the area of human health issues makes hosting this discussion among innovators and thought leaders a natural fit, NASA's Deputy Administrator Lori Garver said. Solutions to health issues here on Earth have the potential to benefit space explorers of the future, as well as humankind overall. Problem solvers can submit their ideas through the InnoCentive website, which allows NASA to collaborate with people throughout the world who are interested in sustainability issues. Challenges are posted online for which problem solvers can submit solutions. Innovators can submit their proposals via the LAUNCH InnoCentive challenge at: https://gw.innocentive.com/ar/challenge/9625880 "NASA is enthusiastic about LAUNCH: Health and its focus on identifying and accelerating innovative strategies to address human health and performance in challenging environments, said Dr. Jeff Davis, director of Space Life Sciences at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Innovative health solutions for diagnostic capability in remote locations on Earth and in space require simple, rugged, portable, devices with low power requirements. Forums such as Launch allow NASA to contribute to and benefit from the ideas of many people. "We see LAUNCH as a great opportunity to support innovators and entrepreneurs who are helping provide sustainable solutions to today's biggest development challenges, added Alex Dehgan, director of USAID's Office of Science and Technology. U.S. journalists are invited to attend the two-day forum. In addition to regular Kennedy Space Center media credentials, reporters must register in advance. To RSVP, reporters should contact David Steitz at 202-358-1730 or david.steitz@nasa.gov by Sept. 24. The forum will be streamed online on UStream, discussed through social media outlets including Twitter, and featured on NASA's Buzzroom. http://buzzroom.nasa.gov To learn more about LAUNCH, visit: http://www.launch.org
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MEDIA ADVISORY: M10-122
NASA TV AIRS INTERVIEW EXCERPTS ABOUT ASSISTANCE TO TRAPPED MINERS IN CHILE
HOUSTON -- From 5:30-6 p.m. EDT, NASA Television will air excerpts of an interview with Dr. Michael Duncan, who is leading a NASA team to Chile. NASA has been asked by the Chilean government through the U.S. Department of State to provide technical advice that might assist the trapped miners at the San Jose gold and copper mine near Copiapo, Chile. Duncan is the deputy chief medical officer in the Space Life Sciences Directorate at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. He and three other NASA experts are traveling to Chile next week to provide advice and consultation on medical, nutritional and behavioral health issues. These excerpts will be re-aired as part of the regular NASA TV Video File on the Media and Public Channels. For future air times and streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv Later in the day, NASA also will post the interview online at: http://www.nasa.gov/videos
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