Aug 10 2012
From The Space Library
MEDIA ADVISORY: M12-148 NASA SETS RADIATION BELT STORM PROBES MISSION LAUNCH EVENTS COVERAGE
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA's Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) are set to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket Aug. 23. The 20-minute launch window for the twin probes at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41 begins at 4:08 a.m. EDT. Launch commentary coverage, as well as prelaunch media briefings, will be carried live on NASA Television and the agency's website. RBSP will explore space weather -- changes in Earth's space environment caused by the sun -- that can disable satellites, create power grid failures and disrupt GPS service. The mission also will allow researchers to understand fundamental radiation and particle acceleration processes throughout the universe. Prelaunch News Conference A prelaunch news conference on NASA TV will be held at NASA Kennedy Space Center's Press Site at 1 p.m. Monday, Aug. 20. Briefing participants are: -- Michael Luther, deputy associate administrator for programs, NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington -- Tim Dunn, NASA launch director, Kennedy Space Center, Fla. -- Vernon Thorp, program manager, NASA Missions, United Launch Alliance, Denver, Colo. -- Richard Fitzgerald, RBSP project manager, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md. -- Kathy Winters, launch weather officer, 45th Weather Squadron, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. RBSP Mission Science Briefing Immediately following the prelaunch news conference, an RBSP mission science briefing will be held and carried on NASA TV. Briefing participants are: -- Mona Kessel, RBSP program scientist, NASA Headquarters, Washington -- Nicola Fox, RBSP deputy project scientist, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory -- Craig Kletzing, principal investigator, University of Iowa, Electric and Magnetic Field Instrument Suite and Integrated Science instrument -- Harlan Spence, principal investigator, University of New Hampshire, Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal Plasma Suite instrument, Durham, N.H. -- Lou Lanzerotti, principal investigator, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Radiation Belt Storm Probes Ion Composition Experiment, Newark, N.J. The science briefing is scheduled to conclude by 3 p.m. A post-launch news conference also will be held approximately 2 1/2 hours after launch on Aug. 23. Atlas V Launch Vehicle Rollout Tuesday, Aug. 21: There will be a media opportunity to observe rollout of the Atlas V rocket from the Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad. Media should be at Kennedy's Press Site at 9 a.m. for transportation to the viewing location near Space Launch Complex 41. Remote Camera Placement at Space Launch Complex 41 Tuesday, Aug. 21: Photographers who wish to set up remote sound-activated cameras at the Atlas V launch pad will transported to Space Launch Complex 41. Media should meet in the Kennedy Press Site parking lot at 1:30 p.m. Media also should plan to use a timer that can be set for more than 24 hours. Only news media representatives establishing a remote camera at the pad will be permitted for this activity. Launch Day Press Site Access Thursday, Aug. 23: Media will cover the RBSP launch from Kennedy's Press Site. Access will be through Gate 3 on State Road 405, east of the Kennedy Center Visitor Complex beginning at 12:30 a.m. Kennedy Press Site Hours Monday, Aug. 20: 8 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 21: 8 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 22: 8 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 23: 12:30 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. NASA Television Coverage On Monday, Aug. 20, NASA Television will carry the RBSP prelaunch news conference and mission science briefing live beginning at 1 p.m. On Thursday, Aug. 23, NASA Television coverage of the launch will begin at 1:30 a.m. and conclude after the second of the two RBSP spacecraft has separated from the Atlas V, which occurs 91 minutes and six seconds after launch. Live launch coverage will be carried on all NASA Television channels. A post-launch news conference will be held at Kennedy's Press Site approximately 2 1/2 hours after launch. Spokespersons also will be available at the Press Site for interviews and to answer questions. RBSP is part of NASA's Living with a Star program, managed by the agency's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md., built the pair of RBSP spacecraft and will manage the mission for NASA. NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management. United Launch Alliance is the provider of the Atlas V launch service. ####-end-
RELEASE: 12-268 NASA SELECTS SPACE BIOLOGY RESEARCH PROPOSALS
WASHINGTON -- NASA selected 15 experiments to be funded through its most recent research announcement for opportunities in space biology research. Ten of these experiments will be conducted aboard the International Space Station in the near future. Five others will be ground-based studies. NASA's Space Biology Program will fund the proposals to investigate how cells, plants and animals respond to microgravity. Space biology scientists will examine and discover underlying mechanisms of adaptation to changes resulting from the spaceflight environment. This research will help determine how cells and organisms regulate and sustain growth, metabolism, reproduction and development. These studies could provide a foundation upon which other NASA researchers and engineers can build approaches and countermeasures to the problems confronting human exploration of space. It also could lead to new biological tools or applications on Earth. The selected proposals are from 12 institutions in 10 states and will receive a total of about $4 million during a one- to three-year period. Scientific and technical experts from academia and government reviewed the proposals.
RELEASE: 12-270 HERE COMES THE SUN: NASA PICKS SOLAR ARRAY SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT PROPOSALS
WASHINGTON -- NASA's Space Technology Program has selected Deployable Space Systems (DSS) of Goleta, Calif. and ATK Space Systems Inc., of Commerce, Calif., for contract negotiation to develop advanced solar array systems. High-power solar electric propulsion, where the power is generated with advanced solar array systems, is a key capability required for extending human presence throughout the solar system. The selected proposals offer innovative approaches to the development of next-generation, large-scale solar arrays and associated deployment mechanisms. These advanced solar arrays will drastically reduce weight and stowed volume when compared to current systems. They also will significantly improve efficiency and functionality of future systems that will produce hundreds of kilowatts of power. These advanced solar arrays could be used in future NASA human exploration and science missions, communications satellites and a majority of other future spacecraft applications. "The technology embodied in these proposals will greatly advance the boundaries of NASA's science and exploration capabilities," said Michael Gazarik, director of NASA's Space Technology Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Our investment in this technology acknowledges that this technology is a priority for NASA's future missions, as reported recently by the National Research Council. Once matured through these ground tests, NASA hopes to test next generation solar array systems in space, opening the door for exploration of a near-Earth asteroid, Mars and beyond." This solicitation involved a competitive selection process and covers two acquisition phases. Under Phase 1, Deployable Space Systems and ATK Space Systems will develop their solar array system technology during the next 18 months. With successful completion of Phase 1 the two companies, as well as other offerors who can demonstrate a comparable degree of technical maturity, will compete for a Phase 2 award to demonstrate their technologies in space. The intent of Phase 2 is to prove flight readiness through an in-space demonstration of an advanced, modular and extendable solar array system. During Phase 1, Deployable Space Systems and ATK Space Systems also will design, analyze and test a scalable solar array system capable of generating more than 30kW of Power. In addition, the Phase 1 teams will identify the most critical technological risks of extending their concept to 250kW or greater power levels. Phase 1 awards range between approximately $5 million and $7 million. NASA's Game Changing Development Program Office, located at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., sponsored this solicitation under Phase 1. NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland will manage the awarded contracts for the agency's Space Technology Program. NASA's Space Technology Program is innovating, developing, testing, and flying hardware for use in NASA's future science and exploration missions. NASA's technology investments provide cutting-edge solutions for our nation's future.
RELEASE: 12-276 NASA CURIOSITY MARS ROVER INSTALLING SMARTS FOR DRIVING
PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars rover Curiosity will spend its first weekend on Mars transitioning to software better suited for tasks ahead, such as driving and using its strong robotic arm. The rover's "brain transplant," which will occur during a series of steps Aug. 10 through Aug. 13, will install a new version of software on both of the rover's redundant main computers. This software for Mars surface operations was uploaded to the rover's memory during the Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft's flight from Earth. "We designed the mission from the start to be able to upgrade the software as needed for different phases of the mission," said Ben Cichy of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., chief software engineer for the Mars Science Laboratory mission. "The flight software version Curiosity currently is using was really focused on landing the vehicle. It includes many capabilities we just don't need any more. It gives us basic capabilities for operating the rover on the surface, but we have planned all along to switch over after landing to a version of flight software that is really optimized for surface operations." A key capability in the new version is image processing to check for obstacles. This allows for longer drives by giving the rover more autonomy to identify and avoid potential hazards and drive along a safe path the rover identifies for itself. Other new capabilities facilitate use of the tools at the end of the rover's robotic arm. While Curiosity is completing the software transition, the mission's science team is continuing to analyze images that the rover has taken of its surroundings inside Gale Crater. Researchers are discussing which features in the scene to investigate after a few weeks of initial checkouts and observations to assess equipment on the rover and characteristics of the landing site. The Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft delivered Curiosity to its target area on Mars at 10:31:45 p.m. PDT on Aug. 5 (1:31:45 a.m. EDT on Aug. 6), which includes the 13.8 minutes needed for confirmation of the touchdown to be radioed to Earth at the speed of light. Curiosity carries 10 science instruments with a total mass 15 times as large as the science payloads on NASA's Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity. Some of the tools, such as a laser-firing instrument for checking rocks' elemental composition from a distance, are the first of their kind on Mars. Curiosity will use a drill and scoop, which are located at the end of its robotic arm, to gather soil and powdered samples of rock interiors, then sieve and parcel out these samples into the rover's analytical laboratory instruments. To handle this science toolkit, Curiosity is twice as long and five times as heavy as Spirit or Opportunity. The Gale Crater landing site at 4.59 degrees south, 137.44 degrees east, places the rover within driving distance of layers of the crater's interior mountain. Observations from orbit have identified clay and sulfate minerals in the lower layers, indicating a wet history.
