May 9 1994
From The Space Library
Representatives of NASA and the Departments of Commerce, Defense, Energy, and Transportation conducted a National Facilities Study. The study established the need for two new wind tunnels and made 70 recommendations affecting aeronautics and space facilities nationwide. (NASA Release 94-73; Fla Today, May 22/94)
NASA announced the signing of a contract modification with Rockwell International Space Systems Division, Downey, California. The contract provided for the production of the Multifunction Electronic Display Subsystem (MEDS) to be installed in each of the four Space Shuttle orbiters. MEDS is to replace some of the current electromechanical flight instruments and meters in the shuttle cockpit. (NASA Release C94-n)
The Defense Department said that robot spacecraft Clementine suffered a malfunction on May 7 that would prevent it from flying by and photographing the asteroid Geographos. However, Clementine was to continue to per-form a military mission that would test 23 "advanced technologies." On May 19, the managers of Clementine were to fire its main thruster to ease the craft into a circular path between the Moon and Earth, where they can continue to test its prototype military components in the upper reaches of the Van Allen radiation belts around the planet. Since its January 25 launch, Clementine has provided 1.5 million images of the Moon at a bargain price. (W Post, May 10/94; NY Times, May 10/94; USA Today, May 10/94; W Post, May 11/94; W Times, May 13/94; W Post, May 19/94)
The Boeing Company announced that it planned to cut about 900 jobs at its plant in Huntsville, Alabama, because it lost an eight-year, $1.05 billion contract with NASA. However, Boeing anticipated that Computer Sciences Corporation, which won the NASA contract, would hire most of the affected workers. (NY Times, May 10/94)
On May 9, NASA stopped accepting proposals for its pilot project High Performance Computing and Communications Program. More than 400 communities, corporations, and school districts submitted proposals for using NASA's vast databases via the Internet. Winners of the cooperative agreements were to be announced in July. Scottsdale, Arizona, one of the communities that submitted a proposal, hoped to use NASA data to help urban development and balance such development against environmental considerations. (LA Times, May 10/94)
Lockheed Space Operations Company in Titusville announced that 183 personnel would lose their jobs as a result of NASA budget cuts. Lockheed was the main contractor in a $607 million-a-year shuttle processing agreement with NASA. (Fla Today, May 10/94)
Robert Raspen, NASA deputy assistant inspector general for auditing, said NASA had rejected its auditor's advice that it discontinue its use of SPACEHAB Corporation. NASA felt it needed SPACEHAB to conduct its commercial experiments. (Fla Today, May 10/94)
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