Oct 17 2011

From The Space Library

RELEASE: 11-351 NASA, JAPAN RELEASE IMPROVED TOPOGRAPHIC MAP OF EARTH

WASHINGTON -- NASA and Japan released a significantly improved version of the most complete digital topographic map of Earth on Monday, produced with detailed measurements from NASA's Terra spacecraft. The map, known as a global digital elevation model, was created from images collected by the Japanese Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer, or ASTER, instrument aboard Terra. So-called stereo-pair images are produced by merging two slightly offset two-dimensional images to create the three-dimensional effect of depth. The first version of the map was released by NASA and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in June 2009. "The ASTER global digital elevation model was already the most complete, consistent global topographic map in the world," said Woody Turner, ASTER program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "With these enhancements, its resolution is in many respects comparable to the U.S. data from NASA's Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM), while covering more of the globe." The improved version of the map adds 260,000 additional stereo-pair images to improve coverage. It features improved spatial resolution, increased horizontal and vertical accuracy, more realistic coverage over water bodies and the ability to identify lakes as small as 0.6 miles (1 kilometer) in diameter. The map is available online to users everywhere at no cost. "This updated version of the ASTER global digital elevation model provides civilian users with the highest-resolution global topography data available," said Mike Abrams, ASTER science team leader at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "These data can be used for a broad range of applications, from planning highways and protecting lands with cultural or environmental significance, to searching for natural resources." The ASTER data cover 99 percent of Earth's landmass and span from 83 degrees north latitude to 83 degrees south. Each elevation measurement point in the data is 98 feet (30 meters) apart. NASA and METI are jointly contributing the data for the ASTER topographic map to the Group on Earth Observations, an international partnership headquartered at the World Meteorological Organization in Geneva, Switzerland, for use in its Global Earth Observation System of Systems. This "system of systems" is a collaborative, international effort to share and integrate Earth observation data from many different instruments and systems to help monitor and forecast global environmental changes. ASTER is one of five instruments launched on Terra in 1999. ASTER acquires images from visible to thermal infrared wavelengths, with spatial resolutions ranging from about 50 to 300 feet (15 to 90 meters). A joint science team from the United States and Japan validates and calibrates the instrument and data products. The U.S. science team is located at JPL. NASA, METI, Japan's Earth Remote Sensing Data Analysis Center (ERSDAC), and the U.S. Geological Survey validated the data, with support from the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and other collaborators. The data are distributed by NASA's Land Processes Distributed Active Archive Center at the U.S. Geological Survey's Earth Resources Observation and Science Center in Sioux Falls, S.D., and by ERSDAC in Tokyo. Users of the new version of the ASTER data products are advised that while improved, the data still contain anomalies and artifacts that will affect its usefulness for certain applications.

RELEASE: 11-353 THREE NEW FLIGHT DIRECTORS CHOSEN TO LEAD NASA'S MISSION CONTROL

HOUSTON --NASA has selected three new flight directors to manage International Space Station operations. Judd Frieling, Tomas Gonzalez-Torres and Greg Whitney will join a select group of human spaceflight leaders in the Christopher C. Kraft Jr. Mission Control Center at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. NASA's flight directors lead a team of flight controllers, support personnel and engineering experts from around the world. They also are involved in cargo and crew vehicle integration with the station and developing plans for future exploration missions. "As we move into a new era of spaceflight, these flight directors will help us transition the knowledge and experience from the existing human spaceflight programs into the next period of exploration and space station operations," said John McCullough, chief of the Flight Director Office at Johnson. "This includes development of new technologies and techniques for spaceflight and development and execution of our future missions in the years to come." After the new flight directors have completed their training and certification, NASA will have 25 active flight directors supporting the space station, exploration, commercial spaceflights and new technology demonstration initiatives. Prior to the selection of Frieling, Gonzalez-Torres and Whitney, only 80 people had served as NASA flight directors in the almost 50 years of human spaceflight. Judd Frieling was born in Austin, Texas, but considers Pflugerville, Texas, his hometown. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas in 1996. He began a diverse flight control career in 1997 as an Onboard Data Interfaces and Network (ODIN) officer, serving as lead for the STS-97 station assembly mission, and worked to resolve multiple computer failures during the STS-100 mission. He was instrumental in developing new operations processes and procedures, allowing the Mission Control Center to operate with significantly smaller staffs during quiet periods aboard the station. In 2004, Frieling transitioned to space shuttle flight control as a Data Processing Systems (DPS) officer, where he supported 20 shuttle flights. He served as lead DPS officer for STS-118 and STS-130. Tomas Gonzalez-Torres was born in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. He earned a Bachelor of Science in aerospace engineering from Iowa State University in 1998. A veteran spacewalk flight controller, Gonzalez-Torres has been the group lead for the Extravehicular Activities (EVA) Systems Group for the past three years, and recently has been acting chief of the EVA Operations Branch. He joined NASA in 1994 and worked as a spacewalk task and systems instructor. Gonzalez-Torres became an EVA officer in 2005, working 17 shuttle flights, including lead for the STS-121 assembly mission that featured tests of shuttle heat shield inspection and repair techniques. He served as the lead spacewalk officer for the final Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission, STS-125, and four space station expedition spacewalks. Greg Whitney was born in Albany, N.Y., but considers Rye, N.H., his hometown. He earned a Bachelor of Science in aerospace engineering from the University of Texas in 2002. He joined NASA in 2002 and supported space station activities as an Operations Planner. Whitney also supported space shuttle missions as a Flight Activities Officer (FAO), developing plans to optimize crew operations. This resume includes 14 space station expeditions and 12 space shuttle missions, and he served as the lead FAO for the last shuttle flight, STS-135, earlier this year. He also spent time as an acting group lead for spaceflight planning activities.

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