Sep 29 1981
From The Space Library
NASA Administrator James M. Beggs announced the reorganization of Headquarters effective November 9 "to assure proper delegation of authority to all line managers, set forth a clear distinction between line and staff, and a simplification of field centers' reporting lines." The change would combine the Office of Space Science and Office of Space and Terrestrial Applications into an Office of Space Science and Applications. It would set up an Office of Management to handle some functions now under the NASA comptroller and some now under the Office of Management Operations and to support program offices in managing research and development and institutional resources.
Associate administrators in the program offices would be NASA's major line officers through whom center directors would report to Headquarters. JPL and GSFC would report to the associate administrator for Space Science and Applications. ARC, LaRC, and LeRC would report to associate administrator for Aeronautics and Space Technology; JSC, KSC, MSFC, and the National Space Technology Laboratories (NSTL), to the associate administrator for STS. Remaining program offices would be Space Transportation Operations and Space Tracking and Data Systems.
The administrator's staff would include chief engineer, comptroller, procurement, equal opportunity, external relations, general counsel, inspector general, legislative affairs, associate deputy administrator, and assistants to the administrator. A reorganization working group led by NASA's general counsel S. Neil Hosenball would work out functional and personnel changes; a reorganization steering committee led by Dr. Hans Mark, deputy administrator, would review the plans and recommend a complete reorganization package to the administrator. (NASA Release 81-156)
The external tank (ET) for the third shuttle flight (ET 3) left the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans on a NASA barge for KSC. Unlike those used in the first two flights, this tank would be light brown, the natural color of the insulation sprayed on the tank's exterior. The white paint on the first two tanks weighed about 600 pounds. Since the tank went almost all the way to orbit, elimination of the paint would add nearly 600 pounds payload besides saving several thousand of dollars in handling and would not affect the tank's fire-retardant or water-repellent qualities. (MSFC Release 81-122)
Pravda, the official Communist Party newspaper, marked the fourth anniversary of orbital laboratory Salyut 6 with a report of planned space activity. A "lull" was being used for an overhaul of the ground-control center in the Crimea. Employees were on long-awaited vacations, and a skeleton staff was monitoring Salyut 6, orbiting without a crew since May 26.
After orbiting for nearly two months of unspecified tests, a Cosmos craft launched April 25 had linked with the Salyut in June to form a 34-ton complex. A flight-test manager said that the complex would help in designing future space stations and was being monitored to see how such a heavy system behaved in space. Since docking with the Salyut the Cosmos had used its engines twice to raise the orbit of the complex. (NY Times Oct 7/81, B-II)
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