STUDENTS FROM NASA EXPLORER SCHOOLS NATIONWIDE MEET IN HOUSTON

WASHINGTON -- Students and teachers from throughout the nation will be
gathering at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston April 29-May 1 to
present research results to fellow students and NASA scientists and
engineers. The 62 students and 31 educators will represent 31 NASA
Explorer Schools at an annual national student symposium.

The students will learn more about NASA research and exploration
through facility tours and presentations from astronauts, scientists
and engineers. Students also will complete hands-on educational
activities related to current NASA missions.

The NASA Explorer Schools Project establishes a three-year partnership
between NASA and school teams to help fourth through ninth grade
education communities improve teaching and learning in science,
technology, math and engineering. The project works primarily with
diverse groups of students who are underrepresented in these
disciplines or who are traditionally underserved in rural or urban
parts of the country. The project joins educators, students and
families in sustained involvement with NASA's research, discoveries
and missions.

The opportunity to participate in the symposium was open to all
current NASA Explorer Schools. Students were required to complete a
research investigation focused on NASA missions or research
interests, including science, aerospace, reduced gravity, robotics,
plant growth in space, or living and working in space.

Regional virtual symposia were held in February and March at all 10
NASA centers using NASA's Digital Learning Network. The regional
symposia challenged students to present their research projects to a
panel of NASA experts via videoconferencing. Schools then
competitively selected students to represent their school at the
national symposium based upon the results of the regional symposia.

The NASA Explorer Schools selected to attend are:

Tanner High School, Tanner, Ala.; Cottonwood Day School, Chinle,
Ariz.; Sanders Middle School, Sanders, Ariz.; Edward Harris Jr.
Middle School, Elk Grove, Calif.; Johnson Elementary, Magnet for
Space Exploration and Technology, San Diego; Roosevelt Middle School,
Glendale, Calif.; San Cayetano Elementary School, Fillmore, Calif.;
Sequoia Middle School, Porterville, Calif.; Two Rivers Magnet School,
East Hartford, Conn.; Bear Creek Middle School, Fairburn, Ga.;
Conyers Middle School, Conyers, Ga.; Park Creek Elementary School,
Dalton, Ga.; Pearl City Elementary School, Pearl City, Hawaii;
Harding Middle School, Des Moines, Iowa; Greenville Elementary
School, Greenville, Ill.; Church Point Middle School, Church Point,
La.; Robert L. Ford K-8 School, Lynn, Mass.; A.L. Holmes Academy,
Detroit; Middle School at Parkside, Jackson, Mich.; Jefferson
Community Schools, Minneapolis; Northeast Nodaway Elementary School,
Parnell, Mo.; Lillie Burney Elementary, Hattiesburg, Miss.; Dr.
Albert E. Einstein Academy, Elizabeth, N.J.; Broughal Middle School,
Bethlehem, Pa.; Forest Lake Elementary Technology Magnet School,
Hopkins, S.C.; Kadoka Elementary, Kadoka, S.D.; Dr. Hesiquio
Rodriguez Elementary School, Harligen, Texas; Jacox Elementary,
Norfolk, Va.; John B. Cary, Richmond, Va.; Solon Springs Schools,
Solon Springs, Wis.; Arapahoe School, Arapahoe, Wyo.

The NASA Explorer Schools project continues the agency's tradition of
investing in the nation's education programs with the goal of
attracting and retaining students in science, technology, engineering
and math disciplines that are critical to NASA's future engineering,
scientific and technical missions. Since the inception of the
Explorer Schools project in 2003, NASA has established partnerships
with a total of 249 schools from diverse communities located in all
50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Video from the event will air on NASA Television's Video File on
Friday, May 1. For NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling
information, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/ntv


For more information about the NASA Explorer Schools project, visit:



http://explorerschools.nasa.gov


For more information about NASA's education programs, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/education
 

NASA NANOSATELLITE TO STUDY ANTIFUNGAL DRUG EFFECTIVENESS IN SPACE

MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. -- NASA is preparing to fly a small satellite
about the size of a loaf of bread that could help scientists better
understand how effectively drugs work in space. The nanosatellite,
known as PharmaSat, is a secondary payload aboard a U.S. Air Force
four-stage Minotaur 1 rocket planned for launch the evening of May 5.


PharmaSat weighs approximately 10 pounds. It contains a controlled
environment micro-laboratory packed with sensors and optical systems
that can detect the growth, density and health of yeast cells and
transmit that data to scientists for analysis on Earth. PharmaSat
also will monitor the levels of pressure, temperature and
acceleration the yeast and the satellite experience while circling
Earth at 17,000 miles per hour. Scientists will study how the yeast
responds during and after an antifungal treatment is administered at
three distinct dosage levels to learn more about drug action in
space, the satellite's primary goal.

The Minotaur 1 rocket is on the launch pad at NASA's Wallops Flight
Facility and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport located at Wallops
Island, Va. The Wallops range is conducting final checkouts. The U.S.
Air Force has announced that the rocket could launch at any time
during a three-hour launch window beginning at 8 p.m. EDT May 5.

"Secondary payload nanosatellites expand the number of opportunities
available to conduct research in microgravity by providing an
alternative to the International Space Station or space shuttle
conducted investigations," said Elwood Agasid, PharmaSat project
manager at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. "The
PharmaSat spacecraft builds upon the GeneSat-1 legacy with enhanced
monitoring and measurement capabilities, which will enable more
extensive scientific investigation."

After PharmaSat separates from the Minotaur 1 rocket and successfully
enters low Earth orbit at approximately 285 miles above Earth, it
will activate and begin transmitting radio signals to two ground
control stations. The primary ground station at SRI International in
Menlo Park, Calif., will transmit mission data from the satellite to
the spacecraft operators in the mission control center at NASA's Ames
Research Center. A secondary station is located at Santa Clara
University in Santa Clara, Calif.

When NASA spaceflight engineers make contact with PharmaSat, which
could happen as soon as one hour after launch, the satellite will
receive a command to initiate its experiment, which will last 96
hours. Once the experiment begins, PharmaSat will relay data in near
real-time to mission managers, engineers and project scientists for
further analysis. The nanosatellite could transmit data for as long
as six months.

"PharmaSat is an important experiment that will yield new information
about the susceptibility of microbes to antibiotics in the space
environment," said David Niesel, PharmaSat's co-investigator from the
University of Texas Medical Branch Department of Pathology and
Microbiology and Immunology in Galveston. "It also will prove that
biological experiments can be conducted on sophisticated autonomous
nanosatellites."

As with NASA's previous small satellite missions, such as the
GeneSat-1, which launched in 2006 and continues to transmit a beacon
to Earth, Santa Clara University invites amateur radio operators
around the world to tune in to the satellite's broadcast.

For more information and instructions about how to contact PharmaSat,
visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/smallsats/pharmasat.html


To view the launch via webcast, visit:



http://sites.wff.nasa.gov/webcast


For the more information about PharmaSat and other small satellite
missions, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/smallsats

NEW GAMMA-RAY BURST SMASHES COSMIC DISTANCE RECORD

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Swift satellite and an international team of
astronomers have found a gamma-ray burst from a star that died when
the universe was only 630 million years old, or less than five
percent of its present age. The event, dubbed GRB 090423, is the most
distant cosmic explosion ever seen.

"Swift was designed to catch these very distant bursts," said Swift
lead scientist Neil Gehrels at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Md. "The incredible distance to this burst exceeded our
greatest expectations -- it was a true blast from the past."

At 3:55 a.m. EDT on April 23, Swift detected a ten-second-long
gamma-ray burst of modest brightness. It quickly pivoted to bring its
ultraviolet/optical and X-ray telescopes to observe the burst
location. Swift saw a fading X-ray afterglow but none in visible
light.

"The burst most likely arose from the explosion of a massive star,"
said Derek Fox at Pennsylvania State University. "We're seeing the
demise of a star -- and probably the birth of a black hole -- in one
of the universe's earliest stellar generations."

Gamma-ray bursts are the universe's most luminous explosions. Most
occur when massive stars run out of nuclear fuel. As their cores
collapse into a black hole or neutron star, gas jets -- driven by
processes not fully understood -- punch through the star and blast
into space. There, they strike gas previously shed by the star and
heat it, which generates short-lived afterglows in many wavelengths.

"The lack of visible light alone suggested this could be a very
distant object," explained team member Edo Berger of Harvard
University.

Beyond a certain distance, the expansion of the universe shifts all
optical emission into longer infrared wavelengths. While a star's
ultraviolet light could be similarly shifted into the visible region,
ultraviolet-absorbing hydrogen gas grows thicker at earlier times.
"If you look far enough away, you can't see visible light from any
object," he noted.

Within three hours of the burst, Nial Tanvir at the University of
Leicester, U.K., and his colleagues reported detection of an infrared
source at the Swift position using the United Kingdom Infrared
Telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii. "Burst afterglows provide us with the
most information about the exploded star and its environs," Tanvir
said. "But because afterglows fade out so fast, we must target them
quickly."

At the same time, Fox led an effort to obtain infrared images of the
afterglow using the Gemini North Telescope on Mauna Kea. The source
appeared in longer-wavelength images but was absent in an image taken
at the shortest wavelength of 1 micron. This "drop out" corresponded
to a distance of about 13 billion light-years.

As Fox spread the word about the record distance, telescopes around
the world slewed toward GRB 090423 to observe the afterglow before it
faded away.

At the Galileo National Telescope on La Palma in the Canary Islands, a
team including Guido Chincarini at the University of Milan-Bicocca,
Italy, determined that the afterglow's so-called redshift was 8.2.
Tanvir's team, gathering nearly simultaneous observations using one
of the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescopes on Cerro
Paranal, Chile, arrived at the same number. The burst exploded 13.035
billion light-years away.

"It's an incredible find," Chincarini said. "What makes it even better
is that a telescope named for Galileo made this measurement during
the year in which we celebrate the 400th anniversary of Galileo's
first astronomical use of the telescope."

A few hours later, Tanvir's team confirmed the distance using one of
the European Very Large Telescopes on Cerro Paranal in Chile.

The previous record holder was a burst seen in September 2008. It
showed a redshift of 6.7, which places it 190 million light-years
closer than GRB 090423.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages Swift. It was built and is
being operated in collaboration with Pennsylvania State University,
the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, and General
Dynamics of Gilbert, Ariz., in the United States. International
collaborators include the University of Leicester and Mullard Space
Sciences Laboratory in the United Kingdom, Brera Observatory and the
Italian Space Agency in Italy, and additional partners in Germany and
Japan.

For more information, images and animations, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/swift/bursts/cosmic_record.html

   
-end-

UPDATED WEB FEATURE SHOWS HOW NASA TECHNOLOGIES IMPROVE LIVES

WASHINGTON -- NASA has launched an expanded version of an interactive
online program that allows users to discover some of the many NASA
technologies that positively impact everyday life. The interactive
"NASA at Home" and "NASA City" sites are enhanced with many new
features, including green-related information to coincide with Earth
Day 2009.

NASA at Home and NASA City take users on an illustrated tour of the
commercial technologies and products that trace their origins to
NASA's investment in space and aeronautics research and development.

Visitors can scroll more than 100 technologies grouped by themes such
as home, airport, grocery store, sports arena, hospital, public
safety and manufacturing. After entering an area, users can
experience the impact NASA has on their lives and find descriptions
of such technologies as temperature-regulated clothing from materials
designed for astronaut suits and gloves, wireless headset telephone
technology pioneered to transmit the first words from the moon,
fire-resistant paint and steel coatings from NASA's heat shield
technology, and remote-controlled ovens based on technology used
aboard the International Space Station.

Among the new features on the sites is Spinoff Challenge, a metagame
that offers users NASA Home and City graphics, wallpapers and screen
savers. NASA Billboard gives visitors up to date information about
what is new at NASA. Audio and streaming video for each of the
technologies enhance the visitor's learning experience. Vibrant
visuals enable users to see the showcased technologies in new ways,
such as during the manufacturing process or their intended use. Users
can share the experience and knowledge with others with the
send-to-a-friend function.

NASA has documented more than 1,600 examples of how the agency's
technologies have been used to improve life on Earth in its annual
"Spinoff" publication. The technologies are available in an online
searchable database that can be accessed directly from this new web
feature.

To view NASA at Home and NASA City, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/city


To learn more about NASA technologies that improve life on Earth,
visit:



http://ipp.nasa.gov/pd_spinoff.htm

NASA, NSBRI SELECT 12 PROPOSALS TO SUPPORT CREW HEALTH ON MISSIONS

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Human Research Program and the National Space
Biomedical Research Institute, or NSBRI, of Houston will fund a dozen
proposals to help investigate questions about astronaut health and
performance on future space exploration missions. The selected
proposals, representing 11 institutions in eight states, will receive
a total of almost $16 million during a three to four-year period.

The Human Research Program provides knowledge and technologies to
improve human health and performance during space exploration. The
program also develops possible countermeasures for problems
experienced during space travel.

Goals include the successful completion of exploration missions and
preservation of astronauts' health throughout their lives. The
program quantifies crew health and performance risks during
spaceflight and develops strategies that mission planners and system
developers can use to monitor and mitigate health and performance
risks.

The 12 projects were selected from 54 proposals NASA received in
response to a research announcement titled "Research and Technology
Development to Support Crew Health and Performance in Space
Exploration Missions."

The proposals were reviewed by non-NASA technical experts and selected
by NASA and NSBRI. Five of the projects will join the Human Research
Program's team of principal investigators, while seven will join
NSBRI's team-based research program.

NSBRI is a NASA-funded consortium of institutions studying health
risks related to long-duration spaceflight. The institute's science,
technology and education projects take place at more than 60
institutions across the United States.

A complete list of the selected principal investigators, organizations
and proposals is available on the Web at:



http://www.nasa.gov/exploration/acd/hrp_nsbri_awards_2009.html


For information about NASA's Human Research Program, visit:



http://humanresearch.jsc.nasa.gov


For information about NSBRI's science, technology and education
programs, visit:



http://www.nsbri.org


For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov
 

EROSPACE SAFETY ADVISORY PANEL RELEASES ANNUAL REPORT

WASHINGTON -- The Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel, or ASAP, has
released its 2008 annual report. The report examines NASA's safety
performance and advises agency and government leaders on ways to
improve performance.

The ASAP is an independent group of experts that has been evaluating
NASA's safety performance and advising the agency on ways to improve
that performance since it was established in 1968.

"The panel members believe NASA and the new administration stand at a
critical crossroads for the nation," panel Chairman Joseph W. Dyer
said. "This was the driving factor in the panel's decision to provide
a brief, to-the-point letter report instead of the standard lengthy
annual report. It is our hope that this summary of critical
safety-related issues will help stimulate and focus the discussion
necessary to make those decisions."

The 11-page report covers such important issues as whether to extend
the space shuttle program; Soyuz reliability and safety; the
direction of exploration programs; workforce development and
sustainment; and safety improvements.

The ASAP bases its advice on direct observation of NASA's operations
and decision-making. In the aftermath of the shuttle Columbia
accident, Congress required the ASAP to submit an annual report to
the NASA administrator and Congress. This annual report examines
NASA's compliance with the recommendations of the Columbia Accident
Investigation Board, as well as NASA's management and culture related
to safety.

For more information about the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel and to
view the 2008 report, visit:



http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/oer/asap

NASA'S KEPLER CAPTURES FIRST VIEWS OF PLANET-HUNTING TERRITORY

PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Kepler mission has taken its first images
of the star-rich sky where it will soon begin hunting for planets
like Earth.

The new "first light" images show the mission's target patch of sky, a
vast starry field in the Cygnus-Lyra region of our Milky Way galaxy.
One image shows millions of stars in Kepler's full field of view,
while two others zoom in on portions of the larger region. The images
can be seen online at:



http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/multimedia/20090416.html


"Kepler's first glimpse of the sky is awe-inspiring," said Lia
LaPiana, Kepler's program executive at NASA Headquarters in
Washington. "To be able to see millions of stars in a single snapshot
is simply breathtaking."

One new image from Kepler shows its entire field of view -- a
100-square-degree portion of the sky, equivalent to two side-by-side
dips of the Big Dipper. The regions contain an estimated 14 millions
stars, more than 100,000 of which were selected as ideal candidates
for planet hunting.

Two other views focus on just one-thousandth of the full field of
view. In one image, a cluster of stars located about 13,000
light-years from Earth, called NGC 6791, can be seen in the lower
left corner. The other image zooms in on a region containing a star,
called Tres-2, with a known Jupiter-like planet orbiting every 2.5
days.

"It's thrilling to see this treasure trove of stars," said William
Borucki, science principal investigator for Kepler at NASA's Ames
Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif. "We expect to find hundreds
of planets circling those stars, and for the first time, we can look
for Earth-size planets in the habitable zones around other stars like
the sun."

Kepler will spend the next three-and-a-half years searching more than
100,000 pre-selected stars for signs of planets. It is expected to
find a variety of worlds, from large, gaseous ones, to rocky ones as
small as Earth. The mission is the first with the ability to find
planets like ours -- small, rocky planets orbiting sun-like stars in
the habitable zone, where temperatures are right for possible lakes
and oceans of water.

To find the planets, Kepler will stare at one large expanse of sky for
the duration of its lifetime, looking for periodic dips in starlight
that occur as planets circle in front of their stars and partially
block the light. Its 95-megapixel camera, the largest ever launched
into space, can detect tiny changes in a star's brightness of only 20
parts per million. Images from the camera are intentionally blurred
to minimize the number of bright stars that saturate the detectors.
While some of the slightly saturated stars are candidates for planet
searches, heavily saturated stars are not.

"Everything about Kepler has been optimized to find Earth-size
planets," said James Fanson, Kepler's project manager at NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "Our images are road maps
that will allow us, in a few years, to point to a star and say a
world like ours is there."

Scientists and engineers will spend the next few weeks calibrating
Kepler's science instrument, the photometer, and adjusting the
telescope's alignment to achieve the best focus. Once these steps are
complete, the planet hunt will begin.

"We've spent years designing this mission, so actually being able to
see through its eyes is tremendously exciting," said Eric Bachtell,
the lead Kepler systems engineer at Ball Aerospace & Technology Corp.
in Boulder, Colo. Bachtell has been working on the design,
development and testing of Kepler for nine years.

Kepler is a NASA Discovery mission. Ames is responsible for the ground
system development, mission operations and science data analysis. JPL
manages the Kepler mission development. Ball Aerospace & Technologies
Corp. is responsible for developing the Kepler flight system and
supporting mission operations.

For images, animations and more information about the Kepler mission,
visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/kepler

NASA SELECTS 16 SMALL BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER PROJECTS

WASHINGTON -- NASA has selected 16 proposals for negotiation of Phase
2 contract awards in the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR)
program. The selected projects have a total value of approximately
$9.6 million. The contracts will be awarded to 16 hi-tech firms
partnered with 15 universities in 18 states.

The Small Business Administration provides guidance for the general
conduct of the STTR Program. NASA is one of the federal agencies
required to reserve a portion of its research and development funds
to award to small business. NASA works closely with Small Business
Administration to ensure compliance with federal regulations.

NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program office at the agency's
headquarters in Washington provides executive oversight of the STTR
program as part of its focus on emerging technologies and efforts to
advance technological innovation for NASA purposes. The office
partners with U.S. industry to infuse innovative technologies into
NASA missions and transition them into commercially available
products and services for NASA and other markets.

As an investment opportunity, STTR innovations address specific
technology gaps in mission programs, provide a foundation for future
technology needs, and are complementary to other NASA research
investments.

Examples of some STTR technologies being pursued in current selected
proposals are provided below:

* A novel on-chip sensor system that monitors body fluids to follow
the potential onset and progress of diseases is being developed. The
integrated platform will provide the technological backbone to
develop microfluidic processing systems and nano-biosensors for a
variety of applications in healthcare and the life sciences.

* A smart reconfigurable antenna for space suits is under development
for use during NASA's spacewalking operations on the moon. These
proposed smart antennas offer a high performance-to-cost ratio and
may reduce the cost of mobile communication antennas.

* A new coordinated control architecture for a new generation of
robotic vehicles is under development. It will improve motion
planning for cooperative mechanisms, task sequencing and monitoring,
and enable the robotic vehicles to work in closely coordinated teams.
This control architecture also can be applied to commercial sector
robots, making factories and warehouses more efficient.

Research proposed to develop a technique and sensor to measure
simultaneously the concentrations of several contaminants in hydrogen
gas storage tanks and supply lines. The purity of hydrogen fuel is
important in engine testing at NASA and the proposed sensor may also
be used for quality control in pharmaceutical, chemical and food
processing industries.

Participating firms and research institutions submitted 25 Phase 2
proposals. The criteria used to select the winning proposals included
technical merit and innovation, Phase 1 results, value to NASA,
commercial potential, and company capabilities.

The program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It
provides qualified small businesses, including women-owned and
disadvantaged firms, with opportunities to propose innovative ideas
that meet specific research and development needs of the federal
government. In addition, the STTR program requires a collaborative
research effort between small business and research institutions.

Phase 1 is a feasibility study to evaluate the scientific and
technical merit of an idea. Awards are for up to 12 months in amounts
up to $100,000. Phase 2 expands on the results of the development in
Phase 1. Awards are for up to two years in amounts up to $600,000.
Phase 3 is for the commercialization of the results of Phase 2 and
requires the use of private sector or non-STTR federal funding. These
NASA awards are for the second-phase in this competitive process.

NASA's STTR program operations are managed by NASA's Ames Research
Center at Moffett Field, Calif. Individual projects are managed by
NASA's field installations. For a list of selected companies, visit:



http://sbir.nasa.gov


For information about the Innovative Partnerships Program, visit:



http://www.ipp.nasa.gov

NASA NEW SPACE STATION MODULE NAME HONORS APOLLO 11 ANNIVERSARY

WASHINGTON -- The International Space Station module formerly known as
Node 3 has a new name. After more than a million online responses,
the node will be called "Tranquility."

The name Tranquility was chosen from thousands of suggestions
submitted by participants on NASA's Web site, www.nasa.gov. The "Help
Name Node 3" poll asked people to vote for the module's name either
by choosing one of four options listed by NASA or offering their own
suggestion. Tranquility was one of the top 10 suggestions submitted
by respondents to the poll, which ended March 20.

"The public did a fantastic job and surprised us with the quality and
volume of the suggestions," said Bill Gerstenmaier, associate
administrator for Space Operations. "Apollo 11 landed on the moon at
the Sea of Tranquility 40 years ago this July. We selected
'Tranquility' because it ties it to exploration and the moon and
symbolizes the spirit of international cooperation embodied by the
space station."

NASA announced the name Tuesday with the help of Expedition 14 and 15
astronaut Suni Williams on Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report." The
show's producers offered to host the name selection announcement
after comedian Stephen Colbert took an interest in the poll and urged
his viewers to suggest the name "Colbert," which received the most
entries.

"We don't typically name U.S. space station hardware after living
people and this is no exception," Gerstenmaier joked. "However, NASA
is naming its new space station treadmill the 'Combined Operational
Load Bearing External Resistance Treadmill,' or COLBERT. We have
invited Stephen to Florida for the launch of COLBERT and to Houston
to try out a version of the treadmill that astronauts train on."

The treadmill is targeted to launch to the station in August. It will
be installed in Tranquility after the node arrives at the station
next year. A newly-created patch will depict the acronym and an
illustration of the treadmill.

Tranquility is scheduled to arrive at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in
Florida in May. There, it will be prepared for space shuttle
Endeavour's flight, designated STS-130, which is targeted for launch
in February 2010. Tranquility will join four other named U.S. modules
on the station: the Destiny laboratory, the Quest airlock, the Unity
node and the Harmony node.

Tranquility is a pressurized module that will provide room for many of
the space station's life support systems. Attached to the node is a
cupola, which is a unique work station with six windows on the sides
and one on top.

Suni Williams made the announcement on "The Colbert Report" two years
after running the Boston Marathon in space on a station treadmill
similar to COLBERT. Video of Williams' run and the name announcement
on "The Colbert Report" will air on NASA Television's Video File. For
NASA TV downlink, streaming video and scheduling information, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/ntv


For more information about the node naming poll, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/name_ISS/index.html

NASA SPACECRAFT SHOW THREE DIMENSIONAL ANATOMY OF A SOLAR STORM

WASHINGTON -- Twin NASA spacecraft have provided scientists with their
first view of the speed, trajectory, and three-dimensional shape of
powerful explosions from the sun known as coronal mass ejections, or
CMEs. This new capability will dramatically enhance scientists'
ability to predict if and how these solar tsunamis could affect
Earth.

When directed toward our planet, these ejections can be breathtakingly
beautiful and yet potentially cause damaging effects worldwide. The
brightly colored phenomena known as auroras -- more commonly called
Northern or Southern Lights -- are examples of Earth's upper
atmosphere harmlessly being disturbed by a CME. However, ejections
can produce a form of solar cosmic rays that can be hazardous to
spacecraft, astronauts and technology on Earth.

Space weather produces disturbances in electromagnetic fields on Earth
that can induce extreme currents in wires, disrupting power lines and
causing wide-spread blackouts. These sun storms can interfere with
communications between ground controllers and satellites and with
airplane pilots flying near Earth's poles. Radio noise from the storm
also can disrupt cell phone service. Space weather has been
recognized as causing problems with new technology since the
invention of the telegraph in the 19th century.

NASA's twin Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory, or STEREO,
spacecraft are providing the unique scientific tool to study these
ejections as never before. Launched in October 2006, STEREO's nearly
identical observatories can make simultaneous observations of these
ejections of plasma and magnetic energy that originate from the sun's
outer atmosphere, or corona. The spacecraft are stationed at
different vantage points. One leads Earth in its orbit around the
sun, while the other trails the planet.

Using three-dimensional observations, solar physicists can examine a
CME's structure, velocity, mass, and direction in the corona while
tracking it through interplanetary space. These measurements can help
determine when a CME will reach Earth and predict how much energy it
will deliver to our magnetosphere, which is Earth's protective
magnetic shield.

"Before this unique mission, measurements and the subsequent data of a
CME observed near the sun had to wait until the ejections arrived at
Earth three to seven days later," said Angelos Vourlidas, a solar
physicist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington. Vourlidas
is a project scientist for the Sun Earth Connection Coronal and
Heliospheric Investigation, STEREO's key science instrument suite.
"Now we can see a CME from the time it leaves the solar surface until
it reaches Earth, and we can reconstruct the event in 3D directly
from the images."

These ejections carry billions of tons of plasma into space at
thousands of miles per hour. This plasma, which carries with it some
of the magnetic field from the corona, can create a large, moving
disturbance in space that produces a shock wave. The wave can
accelerate some of the surrounding particles to high energies that
can produce a form of solar cosmic rays. This process also can create
disruptive space weather during and following the CME's interaction
with Earth's magnetosphere and upper atmosphere.

"The new vantage point of these spacecraft has revolutionized the
study of solar physics," said Madhulika Guhathakurta, STEREO program
scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "We can better
determine the impact of CME effects on Earth because of our new
ability to observe in 3D."

STEREO is part of NASA's Solar Terrestrial Probes Program in NASA's
Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The program seeks to
understand the fundamental physical processes of the space
environment from the sun to Earth and other planets.

The Solar Terrestrial Probes Program also seeks to understand how
society, technological systems and the habitability of planets are
affected by solar processes. This information may lead to a better
ability to predict extreme and dynamic conditions in space, and the
development of new technologies to increase safety and productivity
of human and robotic space exploration.

For more information about NASA's STEREO mission, visit:










http://www.nasa.gov/stereo

NASA TO ANNOUNCE NEW SPACE STATION MODULE NAME APRIL 14

WASHINGTON -- NASA's newest module for the International Space Station
will get a new name on April 14.

The agency plans to make the announcement with the help of Expedition
14 and 15 astronaut Sunita "Suni" Williams on Comedy Central's "The
Colbert Report." The program will air at 11:30 p.m. EDT.

The name, which will not be publicly released until the program airs,
was selected from thousands of unique suggestions submitted on NASA's
Internet site, www.nasa.gov. The "Help Name Node 3" poll asked people
to vote for the module's name either by choosing one of four NASA
options or by offering their own suggestion. The poll closed on March
20.

"The node naming poll was organic and took on a life of its own," said
Bill Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Space Operations at
NASA Headquarters in Washington. "We received more than a million
entries, in large part because social media Web sites and television
programs, such as 'The Colbert Report,' took an interest. This spread
overall awareness of the International Space Station."

NASA originally planned to announce the node's name on April 28 after
it arrived at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. However, the
node's arrival at Kennedy is delayed until May, so the announcement
moved to April 14.

The show's producers offered to host the name selection announcement
after comedian and host Stephen Colbert took interest during the
census and urged his followers to post the name "Colbert."

"I certainly hope NASA does the right thing," said Colbert. "Just
kidding, I hope they name it after me."

Node 3 is a pressurized module that will provide room for many of the
space station's life support systems. Attached to the node is the
cupola, a one-of-a-kind work station with six windows around the
sides and one on top. Node 3 is targeted for launch in late 2009.

For more information about the station and Node 3, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA JOHNSON SAFETY AND MISSION ASSURANCE CONTRACT EXTENDED

WASHINGTON -- NASA has exercised a $58 million, one-year extension
option for a contract with Science Applications International
Corporation of Houston to provide support to safety and mission
assurance activities at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

The Safety and Mission Assurance Support Services contract helps
ensure safety, reliability, maintainability, and quality in the
International Space Station Program, the Space Shuttle Program and
the Constellation Program.

This cost-plus-award-fee contract option continues services from May
1, 2009, through April 30, 2010. Work under the contract will be
performed at Johnson, NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida and at
NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico.

Significant subcontractors in the work include Futron Corp. of
Bethesda, Md.; GHG of Houston; M.H. Chew of Livermore, Calif.; URS -
Washington Division of Princeton, N.J.; Management Technology
Associates of Huntsville, Ala.; J&P Technologies of Houston; JES Tech
of Houston; SoHaR Incorporated of Culver City, Calif.; and Texas
Southern University of Houston.

For more information about NASA's Johnson Space Center, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/johnson

SPACE STATION CREW LANDS IN SOYUZ AFTER SUCCESSFUL MISSION

HOUSTON -- Two members of the 18th crew to live and work aboard the
International Space Station and a spaceflight participant returned to
Earth at 2:16 a.m. CDT Wednesday. NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, Russian
cosmonaut Yury Lonchakov and spaceflight participant Charles Simonyi
safely landed their Soyuz spacecraft in the steppes of southern
Kazakhstan.

The Expedition 18 crew members undocked their Soyuz from the station
at 10:55 p.m. April 7. The deorbit burn to slow the Soyuz and begin
its descent toward Earth began at 1:24 a.m. April 8. The landing was
moved to a more southerly landing site because of poor landing
conditions at the original site.

Fincke commanded the Expedition 18 mission, which saw the station go
to full power and begin water supply recycling. He spent 178 days in
orbit on this flight and has accumulated a full year in space during
his career. Launching to the station on Oct. 12, 2008, he also became
the first American to fly to and from the space station twice aboard
a Russian Soyuz. Fincke served almost 188 days as a flight engineer
on the Expedition 9 crew, which launched April 18, 2004, and returned
to Earth on Oct. 23, 2004.

Lonchakov completed his first long-duration spaceflight. He spent
nearly 12 days aboard the space shuttle Endeavour in 2001. He spent
nearly 11 days in space in 2002, launching aboard one Soyuz craft and
landing in another while carrying different crews to the space
station and back. With this mission, he has accumulated a total of
more than 200 days in space.

Simonyi, an American, spent 11 days on the station under a commercial
agreement with the Russian Federal Space Agency. He is the only
spaceflight participant to visit the station twice.

The Expedition 18 crew worked with a variety of experiments, including
human life sciences, physical sciences and Earth observation. Many of
the experiments are designed to gather information about the effects
of long-duration spaceflight on the human body, which will help with
planning future missions to the moon and beyond. Other experiments
involved practical solutions to extended mission challenges such as
repairing electrical components and fighting fire in microgravity.

Before undocking, Fincke and Lonchakov bid farewell to the new station
crew, Expedition 19 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer
Mike Barratt, who launched to the station on a Soyuz March 26.
Remaining on the station with Padalka and Barratt as an Expedition 19
crew member is Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi
Wakata. Wakata launched to the orbiting laboratory on space shuttle
Discovery's STS-119 mission on March 15.

The Expedition 19 crew will be joined in orbit by Russian cosmonaut
Roman Romanenko, European Space Agency astronaut Frank De Winne and
Canadian Space Agency astronaut Robert Thirsk in May, inaugurating
the station's first six-person crew. It also will be the first time
that crew members from all five International Space Station partners
will be living aboard at the same time.

For information about the space station, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA SELECTS MATERIAL FOR ORION SPACECRAFT HEAT SHIELD

HOUSTON -- NASA has chosen the material for a heat shield that will
protect a new generation of space explorers when they return from the
moon. After extensive study, NASA has selected the Avcoat ablator
system for the Orion crew module.

Orion is part of the Constellation Program that is developing the
country's next-generation spacecraft system for human exploration of
the moon and further destinations in the solar system. The Orion crew
module, which will launch atop an Ares I rocket, is targeted to begin
carrying astronauts to the International Space Station in 2015 and to
the moon in 2020.

Orion will face extreme conditions during its voyage to the moon and
on the journey home. On the blistering return through Earth's
atmosphere, the module will encounter temperatures as high as 5,000
degrees Fahrenheit. Heating rates may be up to five times more
extreme than rates for missions returning from the International
Space Station. Orion's heat shield, the dish-shaped thermal
protection system at the base of the spacecraft, will endure the most
heat and will erode, or "ablate," in a controlled fashion,
transporting heat away from the crew module during its descent
through the atmosphere.

To protect the spacecraft and its crew from such severe conditions,
the Orion Project Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston
identified a team to develop the thermal protection system, or TPS,
heat shield. For more than three years, NASA's Orion Thermal
Protection System Advanced Development Project considered eight
different candidate materials, including the two final candidates,
Avcoat and Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator, or PICA, both of
which have proven successful in previous space missions.

Avcoat was used for the Apollo capsule heat shield and on select
regions of the space shuttle orbiter in its earliest flights. It was
put back into production for the study. It is made of silica fibers
with an epoxy-novalic resin filled in a fiberglass-phenolic honeycomb
and is manufactured directly onto the heat shield substructure and
attached as a unit to the crew module during spacecraft assembly.
PICA, which is manufactured in blocks and attached to the vehicle
after fabrication, was used on Stardust, NASA's first robotic space
mission dedicated solely to exploring a comet, and the first sample
return mission since Apollo.

"NASA made a significant technology development effort, conducted
thousands of tests, and tapped into the facilities, talents and
resources across the agency to understand how these materials would
perform on Orion's five-meter wide heat shield," said James Reuther,
the project manager of the study at NASA's Ames Research Center at
Moffett Field, Calif. "We manufactured full-scale demonstrations to
prove they could be efficiently and reliably produced for Orion."

Ames led the study in cooperation with experts from across the agency.
Engineers performed rigorous thermal, structural and environmental
testing on both candidate materials. The team then compared the
materials based on mass, thermal and structural performance, life
cycle costs, manufacturability, reliability and certification
challenges. NASA, working with Orion prime contractor Lockheed
Martin, recommended Avcoat as the more robust, reliable and mature
system.

"The biggest challenge with Avcoat has been reviving the technology to
manufacture the material such that its performance is similar to what
was demonstrated during the Apollo missions," said John Kowal,
Orion's thermal protection system manager at Johnson. "Once that had
been accomplished, the system evaluations clearly indicated that
Avcoat was the preferred system."

In partnership with the material subcontractor, Textron Defense
Systems of Wilmington, Mass., Lockheed Martin will continue
development of the material for Orion. While Avcoat was selected as
the better of the two candidates, more research is needed to
integrate it completely into Orion's design.

For more information about the Orion crew module, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/orion

SATELLITES SHOW ARCTIC LITERALLY ON THIN ICE

WASHINGTON -- The latest Arctic sea ice data from NASA and the
National Snow and Ice Data Center show that the decade-long trend of
shrinking sea ice cover is continuing. New evidence from satellite
observations also shows that the ice cap is thinning as well.

Arctic sea ice works like an air conditioner for the global climate
system. Ice naturally cools air and water masses, plays a key role in
ocean circulation, and reflects solar radiation back into space. In
recent years, Arctic sea ice has been declining at a surprising rate.


Scientists who track Arctic sea ice cover from space announced today
that this winter had the fifth lowest maximum ice extent on record.
The six lowest maximum events since satellite monitoring began in
1979 have all occurred in the past six years (2004-2009).

Until recently, the majority of Arctic sea ice survived at least one
summer and often several. But things have changed dramatically,
according to a team of University of Colorado, Boulder, scientists
led by Charles Fowler. Thin seasonal ice -- ice that melts and
re-freezes every year -- makes up about 70 percent of the Arctic sea
ice in wintertime, up from 40 to 50 percent in the 1980s and 1990s.
Thicker ice, which survives two or more years, now comprises just 10
percent of wintertime ice cover, down from 30 to 40 percent.

According to researchers from the National Snow and Ice Data Center in
Boulder, Colo., the maximum sea ice extent for 2008-09, reached on
Feb. 28, was 5.85 million square miles. That is 278,000 square miles
less than the average extent for 1979 to 2000.

"Ice extent is an important measure of the health of the Arctic, but
it only gives us a two-dimensional view of the ice cover," said
Walter Meier, research scientist at the center and the University of
Colorado, Boulder. "Thickness is important, especially in the winter,
because it is the best overall indicator of the health of the ice
cover. As the ice cover in the Arctic grows thinner, it grows more
vulnerable to melting in the summer."

The Arctic ice cap grows each winter as the sun sets for several
months and intense cold sets in. Some of that ice is naturally pushed
out of the Arctic by winds, while much of it melts in place during
summer. The thicker, older ice that survives one or more summers is
more likely to persist through the next summer.

Sea ice thickness has been hard to measure directly, so scientists
have typically used estimates of ice age to approximate its
thickness. But last year a team of researchers led by Ron Kwok of
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., produced the
first map of sea ice thickness over the entire Arctic basin.

Using two years of data from NASA's Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation
Satellite (ICESat), Kwok's team estimated thickness and volume of the
Arctic Ocean ice cover for 2005 and 2006. They found that the average
winter volume of Arctic sea ice contained enough water to fill Lake
Michigan and Lake Superior combined.

The older, thicker sea ice is declining and is being replaced with
newer, thinner ice that is more vulnerable to summer melt, according
to Kwok. His team found that seasonal sea ice averages about 6 feet
in thickness, while ice that had lasted through more than one summer
averages about 9 feet, though it can grow much thicker in some
locations near the coast.

Kwok is currently working to extend the ICESat estimate further, from
2003 to 2008, to see how the recent decline in the area covered by
sea ice is mirrored in changes in its volume.

"With these new data on both the area and thickness of Arctic sea ice,
we will be able to better understand the sensitivity and
vulnerability of the ice cover to changes in climate," Kwok said.

For more information about Arctic sea ice, visit:





http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/arctic_thinice.html
 

ASA LUNAR SPACECRAFT SHIPS SOUTH IN PREPARATION FOR LAUNCH

GREENBELT, Md. -- NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO,
spacecraft was loaded on a truck Wednesday to begin its two-day
journey to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Launch is targeted
for April 24.

The spacecraft was built by engineers at Goddard, where it recently
completed two months of tests in a thermal vacuum chamber. During its
time in the chamber, the spacecraft was subjected to hot and cold
temperatures it will experience as it orbits the moon.

The satellite's mission is one of the first steps in NASA's plan to
return astronauts to the moon. LRO will spend at least one year in a
low polar orbit on its primary exploration mission, with the
possibility of three more years to collect additional detailed
scientific information about the moon and its environment.

The orbiter will carry seven instruments to provide scientists with
detailed maps of the lunar surface and enhance our understanding of
the moon's topography, lighting conditions, mineralogical composition
and natural resources. Information gleaned from LRO will be used to
select safe landing sites, determine locations for future lunar
outposts and help mitigate radiation dangers to astronauts. The polar
regions of the moon are the main focus of the mission because
continuous access to sunlight may be possible and water ice may exist
in permanently shadowed areas of the poles.

"This is the culmination of four years of hard work by everyone on the
LRO Project," said Cathy Peddie, LRO deputy project manager at NASA's
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "LRO now begins its
launch site processing, where it will be prepped for integration with
our sister mission LCROSS, and eventually encapsulated in the Atlas V
for its journey to the moon."

LRO's instruments have considerable heritage from previous planetary
science missions, enabling the spacecraft to transition to a research
phase under the direction of NASA's Science Mission Directorate one
year after launch.

Accompanying LRO on its journey to the moon will be the Lunar Crater
Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, a mission that will
impact the lunar surface in its search for water ice. The LCROSS
mission is managed by NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field,
Calif.

Goddard manages the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's
Exploration Systems Mission Directorate in Washington.

For more information about LRO, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/lro

NASA SETS TARGET SHUTTLE LAUNCH DATE FOR HUBBLE SERVICING MISSION

HOUSTON -- NASA announced Thursday that space shuttle Atlantis'
STS-125 mission to repair the Hubble Space Telescope is targeted to
launch May 12, 2009.

The final servicing mission to Hubble was delayed in September when a
data handling unit on the telescope failed. Since then, engineers
have been working to prepare a spare for flight. They expect to be
able to ship the spare, known as the Science Instrument Command and
Data Handling System, to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida in
spring 2009.

STS-125 is an 11-day flight featuring five spacewalks to extend
Hubble's life into the next decade by refurbishing and upgrading the
telescope with state-of-the-art science instruments and swapping
failed hardware. Scott Altman will command STS-125, with Gregory C.
Johnson serving as pilot. Mission specialists are veteran
spacewalkers John Grunsfeld and Mike Massimino, and first-time space
fliers Andrew Feustel, Michael Good and Megan McArthur.

The manifest has been adjusted to reflect current planning. The next
space shuttle mission, STS-119, is targeted for launch on Feb. 12,
2009. Preparations continue for the STS-127 mission, currently
targeted for launch in May 2009. That launch will be further assessed
and coordinated with NASA's international partners at a later date.
STS-128 is targeted for August 2009, and STS-129 is targeted for
November 2009. All target launch dates are subject to change.

The shuttle launch manifest is available at:



http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/iss_manifest.html


For more information about the Hubble repair mission, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/hubble
 

NEXT NASA MARS MISSION RESCHEDULED FOR 2011

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Mars Science Laboratory will launch two years
later than previously planned in the fall of 2011. The mission will
send a next-generation rover with unprecedented research tools to
study the early environmental history of Mars.

A launch date of October 2009 no longer is feasible because of testing
and hardware challenges that must be addressed to ensure mission
success. The window for a 2009 launch ends in late October. The
relative positions of Earth and Mars are favorable for flights to
Mars only a few weeks every two years. The next launch opportunity
after 2009 is in 2011.

"We will not lessen our standards for testing the mission's complex
flight systems, so we are choosing the more responsible option of
changing the launch date," said Doug McCuistion, director of the Mars
Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Up to this
point, efforts have focused on launching next year, both to begin the
exciting science and because the delay will increase taxpayers'
investment in the mission. However, we've reached the point where we
can not condense the schedule further without compromising vital
testing."

The Mars Science Laboratory team recently completed an assessment of
the progress it has made in the past three months. As a result of the
team's findings, the launch date was changed.

"Despite exhaustive work in multiple shifts by a dedicated team, the
progress in recent weeks has not come fast enough on solving
technical challenges and pulling hardware together," said Charles
Elachi, director of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena,
Calif. "The right and smart course now for a successful mission is to
launch in 2011." 

The advanced rover is one of the most technologically challenging
interplanetary missions ever designed. It will use new technologies
to adjust its flight while descending through the Martian atmosphere,
and to set the rover on the surface by lowering it on a tether from a
hovering descent stage. Advanced research instruments make up a
science payload 10 times the mass of instruments on NASA's Spirit and
Opportunity Mars rovers. The Mars Science Laboratory is engineered to
drive longer distances over rougher terrain than previous rovers. It
will employ a new surface propulsion system.

Rigorous testing of components and systems is essential to develop
such a complex mission and prepare it for launch. Tests during the
middle phases of development resulted in decisions to re-engineer key
parts of the spacecraft.

"Costs and schedules are taken very seriously on any science mission,"
said Ed Weiler, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission
Directorate at NASA Headquarters. "However, when it's all said and
done, the passing grade is mission success."

The mission will explore a Mars site where images taken by NASA's
orbiting spacecraft indicate there were wet conditions in the past.
Four candidate landing sites are under consideration. The rover will
check for evidence of whether ancient Mars environments had
conditions favorable for supporting microbial life and preserving
evidence of that life if it existed there.

NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the Mars Science Laboratory
project for the Science Mission Directorate.

For more information about the Mars Science Laboratory, visit:



http://mars.jpl.nasa.gov/msl
 

VETERAN ASTRONAUT CARL WALZ LEAVES NASA

HOUSTON -- NASA astronaut Carl Walz is leaving the agency to take a
job in the private sector.

Walz most recently served as director for the Advanced Capabilities
Division in the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate at NASA
Headquarters in Washington. In the division, he played a key role in
developing technologies that will lead to greater capabilities in
robotic and human exploration of the solar system. He oversaw work in
many fields, including nuclear power and propulsion, human adaptation
to spaceflight, and lunar exploration. Many of these programs will
help humans return to the moon and develop a sustained presence
there.

"NASA owes a great debt to Carl Walz for his service as an astronaut
and the expertise and perspective he has shared with us in the
Advanced Capabilities Division," said Doug Cooke, associate
administrator for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. "The
legacy of his leadership will be strongly felt in the next generation
of manned space missions."

A veteran of four space shuttle missions and one International Space
Station expedition, Walz spent 231 days in space. He and fellow
astronaut Dan Bursch held the U.S. spaceflight endurance record of
196 days in space until April 2007.

Expedition 4, his last mission, launched aboard space shuttle
Endeavour in December 2001. Walz, one of the station's earliest
inhabitants, set up equipment and experiments for the orbiting
laboratory. He also completed two spacewalks during the mission, one
in a Russian Orlan suit to outfit the Russian-supplied docking
compartment and one in a U.S. spacesuit to prepare the station for
its first truss segment. His spacewalks lasted a total of 11 hours,
52 minutes.

A retired U.S. Air Force Colonel, Walz also flew on STS-51 in
September 1993, STS-65 in July 1994 and STS-79 in September 1996.

Walz and the STS-51 crew deployed the U.S. Advanced Communications
Technology Satellite and the Shuttle Pallet Satellite. He also took a
seven-hour spacewalk to evaluate tools for the Hubble Space Telescope
servicing mission during that flight.

During STS-65, Walz and the crew worked in the second International
Microgravity Laboratory spacelab module and conducted more than 80
materials and life sciences experiments. That mission completed 236
orbits of Earth, traveling 6.1 million miles and setting a new flight
duration record for the shuttle program.

On STS-79, the seven-member crew docked with the Russian Mir station
and set a record for docked mass in space. That mission also
completed a crew transfer, provided vital supplies to the Mir, and
conducted important research and technology demonstrations.
NASA selected Walz as an astronaut in January 1990. In addition to his
flights, he served in a variety of technical and management positions
within the Astronaut Office in Houston.

For Walz's complete biography, visit:



http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/walz.html


For more information about NASA's Exploration programs, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/exploration
 

SPACE SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR SET TO LAND SUNDAY

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The space shuttle Endeavour crew is expected
to complete its mission to the International Space Station with a
landing at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:19 p.m. EST on
Sunday, Nov. 30. This will conclude a 16-day flight, 11 of which were
spent docked to the station.

The STS-126 mission began Nov. 14 and prepared the space station to
house six crew members for long-duration missions. The new station
cargo includes a water recovery system, additional sleeping quarters,
a second toilet and a resistance exercise device. During four
spacewalks, the crew serviced the station's two Solar Alpha Rotary
Joints, which allow its solar arrays to track the sun, and installed
new equipment in support of future assembly missions. The flight also
delivered station resident Sandra Magnus to the outpost. Greg
Chamitoff will return to Earth aboard Endeavour after spending more
than five months aboard the complex.

The entry flight control team in Mission Control, Houston, will
evaluate weather conditions at Kennedy before permitting Endeavour to
return to Earth. Sunday landing opportunities at Kennedy are at 1:19
p.m. and 2:54 p.m. The secondary landing site at Edwards Air Force
Base, Calif., will be activated Sunday for consideration as well. The
opportunities at Edwards are 4:24 p.m. and 5:59 p.m.

Approximately two hours after landing, NASA officials will hold a
media briefing to discuss the mission. The participants will be:
- Michael Griffin, NASA administrator
- Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for Space Operations

- Mike Leinbach, NASA space shuttle launch director

After touchdown in Florida, the astronauts will undergo physical
examinations and meet with their families. The STS-126 crew is
expected to hold a news conference at approximately 6 p.m. Sunday.
Both news events will be broadcast live on NASA Television. Media
interested in participating in the news conference at Kennedy must
pick up their accreditation badges on Sunday.

The Kennedy News Center will open for landing activities at 8 a.m.
Sunday and close at 8 p.m. or one hour after the last media event.
The STS-126 media badges are in effect through landing. The media
accreditation building on State Road 3 will be open on Sunday from 8
a.m. to noon. The last bus will depart from the news center for the
Shuttle Landing Facility one hour before landing. For updated
information about the landing, call 321-867-2525.

In the event landing is diverted to Edwards, media should call the
Dryden public affairs office at 661-276-3449. Dryden has limited
facilities available for use by previously accredited journalists.

For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming
video, visit:
 

ASA USES ITUNES TO SHARE DEVELOPMENT PROGRESS OF ARES ROCKET

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- Video updates reporting progress made on NASA's
newest family of exploration vehicles -- the Ares I crew launch
vehicle and Ares V heavy cargo launch vehicle -- are now featured on
iTunes.

The Ares Projects quarterly progress reports offer viewers a rare
glimpse at the on-going development work of the next-generation
launch vehicles that will take explorers to the moon and beyond in
coming decades. Beginning in 2015, the Ares I rocket will launch the
Orion crew capsule, carrying astronauts and payloads to the
International Space Station.

iTunes is the place to get an up-close look at the Ares rockets and
learn more about key engine, hardware and system milestones as the
rockets proceed through the design, review and development processes
that will take them -- and their future crews -- to launch.

The video progress reports, which have been produced quarterly
beginning in August 2006, have been used to visually share progress
with the NASA team at all levels and to record the historical work
being completed on America's newest fleet of spacecraft for future
generations. Now, in an effort to share the Ares development with a
broader audience, NASA is posting the full library of reports on
iTunes. The programs range in length from 5-15 minutes.

The 10 quarterly reports produced to date spotlight the detailed
evolution of the Ares vehicles, from earliest conception through
various design phases and the most recent testing. The latest report
in the series -- Ares quarterly progress report number 10 -- includes
video segments about:

- Wind tunnel testing of scale models of the Ares I test vehicle,
known as Ares I-X, and the Ares V rocket. The testing aids engineers
in designing aerodynamic vehicles.

- Disassembly and inspection of part of the J-2X engine -- known as
the powerpack -- that will produce the thrust needed to power the
Ares I rocket to orbit. The powerpack pushes liquid hydrogen and
liquid oxygen into the engine's main combustion chamber. This test
series helped address early design risks. Engineers are now
evaluating hardware used as part of the recent testing.

- The first tests to weld together pieces of the rockets being
developed. NASA recently tested a new robotic friction stir welding
facility by fusing space shuttle fuel tank panels. Friction stir
welding is an innovative technique invented in 1991 that uses forging
pressure and frictional heating to produce high-strength bonds
virtually free of defects.

- A test of a parachute for the Ares I rocket. The parachute will slow
the rapid descent of the rocket's reusable first-stage motor as it
falls back to Earth after detaching from the rocket during its climb
to space. The parachute permits recovery of the motor for use on
future Ares I flights.

The Ares Projects team at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in
Huntsville, Ala., manages the development of the Ares rockets. NASA's
Johnson Space Center in Houston manages the Constellation Program,
which includes the Ares I and Ares V rockets, the Orion crew module
and the Altair lunar lander.

To view the Ares quarterly progress reports on iTunes, visit:



http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?id=296275310


To learn more about the Ares rockets and view the Ares quarterly
progress reports on NASA's Ares web site, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/ares


For more information about NASA's Constellation Program, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/constellation


For additional interactive features and podcasts about NASA, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia
 

NASA CALLS FOR COMMENT ON DRAFT ARES V REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

WASHINGTON -- NASA has released a draft request for proposals, or RFP,
regarding Phase I of its Ares V launch vehicle. The rocket will
perform heavy lift and cargo functions as part of the next generation
of spacecraft that will return humans to the moon. Phase I will
define operational concepts, develop requirements, and refine design
concepts for the Ares V.

This document is a draft of the final version of the RFP for Phase I,
expected in January 2009. By responding to this draft RFP, potential
offerors can provide input on the requirements, small business goals
and contract structure. The industry input received will be combined
with NASA's expertise for potential inclusion in the final version of
the RFP for Phase I, which will ask for bids on five Ares V work
packages.

A pre-solicitation conference is scheduled for Dec. 3, 2008, at NASA's
Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. The conference is
designed for information sharing about the Ares V Phase I for
potential offerors.

NASA PLANS TEST OF 'ELECTRONIC NOSE' ON INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA astronauts on space shuttle Endeavour's 
STS-126 mission will install an instrument on the International Space 
Station that can "smell" dangerous chemicals in the air. Designed to 
help protect crew members' health and safety, the experimental 
"ENose" will monitor the space station's environment for harmful 
chemicals such as ammonia, mercury, methanol and formaldehyde. 

The ENose fills the long-standing gap between onboard alarms and 
complex analytical instruments. Air-quality problems have occurred 
before on the International Space Station, space shuttle and Russian 
Space Station Mir. In most cases, the chemicals were identified only 
after the crew had been exposed to them, if at all. The ENose, which 
will run continuously and autonomously, is the first instrument on 
the station that will detect and quantify chemical leaks or spills as 
they happen.  

"The ENose is a 'first-responder' that will alert crew members of 
possible contaminants in the air and also analyze and quantify 
targeted changes in the cabin environment," said Margaret A. Ryan, 
the principal investigator of the ENose project at NASA's Jet 
Propulsion Laboratory, or JPL, in Pasadena, Calif. JPL built and 
manages the device.  

Station crew members will unpack the ENose on Dec. 9 to begin the 
instrument's six-month demonstration in the crew cabin. If the 
experiment is successful, the ENose might be used in future space 
missions as part of an automated system to monitor and control 
astronauts' in-space environments.  

"This ENose is a very capable instrument that will increase crew 
awareness of the state of their air quality," said Carl Walz, an 
astronaut and director of NASA's Advanced Capabilities Division, part 
of the Exploration System Mission Directorate, which funds the ENose. 
"Having experienced an air-quality issue during my Expedition 4 
mission on the space station, I wish I had the information that this 
ENose will provide future crews. This technology demonstration will 
provide important information for environmental control and 
life-support system designers for the future lunar outpost." 

Specifically, the shoebox-sized ENose contains an array of 32 sensors 
that can identify and quantify several organic and inorganic 
chemicals, including organic solvents and marker chemicals that 
signal the start of electrical fires. The ENose sensors are polymer 
films that change their electrical conductivity in response to 
different chemicals. The pattern of the sensor array's response 
depends on the particular chemical types present in the air. 

The instrument can analyze volatile aerosols and vapors, help monitor 
cleanup of chemical spills or leaks, and enable more intensive 
chemical analysis by collecting raw data and streaming it to a 
computer at JPL's ENose laboratory. The instrument has a wide range 
of chemical sensitivity, from fractional parts per million to 10,000 
parts per million. For all of its capabilities, the ENose weighs less 
than nine pounds and requires only 20 watts of power. 

The ENose is now in its third generation. The first ENose was tested 
during a six-day demonstration on the STS-95 shuttle mission in 1998. 
That prototype could detect 10 compounds, but could not analyze data 
immediately. The second-generation ENose could detect, identify and 
quantify 21 different chemicals. It was extensively ground-tested. 
The third-generation ENose includes data-analysis software to 
identify and quantify the release of chemicals within 40 minutes of 
detection. While it will look for 10 chemical types in this six-month 
experiment, the new ENose can be trained to detect many others. 

For more information about the ENose and the Advanced Environmental 
Monitoring and Control Project, visit: 



http://aemc.jpl.nasa.gov/instruments/enose.cfm

ASA INVITES STUDENTS TO NAME NEW MARS ROVER

WASHINGTON -- NASA is looking for the right stuff, or in this case, 
the right name for the next Mars rover. NASA, in cooperation with 
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures' movie WALL-E from Pixar 
Animation Studios, will conduct a naming contest for its car-sized 
Mars Science Laboratory rover that is scheduled for launch in 2009. 

The contest begins Tuesday, Nov. 18, and is open to students 5 to 18 
years old who attend a U.S. school and are enrolled in the current 
academic year. To enter the contest, students will submit essays 
explaining why their suggested name for the rover should be chosen. 
Essays must be received by Jan. 25, 2009. In March 2009, the public 
will have an opportunity to rank nine finalist names via the Internet 
as additional input for judges to consider during the selection 
process. NASA will announce the winning rover name in April 2009. 

Disney will provide prizes to students submitting winning essays, 
including a trip to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, 
Calif., where the rover is under construction. The grand prize winner 
will have an opportunity to place a signature on the spacecraft and 
take part in the history of space exploration. 

"Mars exploration has always captured the public imagination," said 
Mark Dahl, program executive for the Mars Science Laboratory at NASA 
Headquarters in Washington. "This contest will expand our ability to 
inspire students' interest in science and give the public a chance to 
participate in NASA's next expedition to Mars." 

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures in Burbank, Calif., will make it 
possible for WALL-E, the name of its animated robotic hero and summer 
2008 movie, to appear in online content inviting students to 
participate in the naming contest. The online WALL-E content will 
provide young viewers with a current connection to the human-robotic 
partnership that is transforming discovery and exploration. The 
contest coincides with Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment's 
release of WALL-E on DVD and Blu-ray. The naming contest partnership 
is part of a Space Act Agreement between NASA and Disney designed to 
use the appeal of WALL-E in educational and public outreach efforts. 

"All of us at Disney are delighted to be working with NASA in its 
educational and public outreach efforts to teach schoolchildren about 
space exploration, robot technology and the universe in which they 
live," said Mark Zoradi, president of Walt Disney Studios Motion 
Pictures Group. "WALL-E is one of the most lovable and entertaining 
characters that Pixar has ever created, and he is the perfect 
spokes-robot for this program." 

The Mars Science Laboratory rover will be larger and more capable than 
any craft previously sent to land there. It will check whether the 
environment in a carefully selected landing region ever has been 
favorable for supporting microbial life. The rover will search for 
minerals that formed in the presence of water and look for several 
chemical building blocks of life. 

"We are now in a phase when we're building and testing the rover 
before its journey to Mars," said John Klein, deputy project manager 
for the Mars Science Laboratory at JPL. "As the rover comes together 
and begins to take shape, the whole team can't wait to call it by 
name." 
Additional assignments include imaging its surroundings in high 
definition, analyzing rocks with a high-powered laser beam, 
inspecting rocks and soil with a six-foot robotic arm, and cooking 
and sniffing rock powder delivered from a hammering drill to 
investigate what minerals are in Martian rocks. 

NASA AWARDS CONTRACT FOR SPACE FLIGHT PROJECTS SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT AND
 OPERATIONS

CLEVELAND -- NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland has awarded a 
contract to ZIN Technologies Inc., of Middleburg Heights, Ohio, for 
the definition, design, fabrication, assembly, integration, test and 
operation of a broad array of space flight projects. These projects 
are particularly in the Exploration Technology Development and Human 
Research Programs. 

The total value of the cost plus incentive fee, indefinite delivery, 
indefinite quantity contract, including a three-year base period of 
performance and two one-year options, is approximately $94.5 million. 
The contract is scheduled to begin this month. 

ZIN Technologies Inc., will perform unique International Space Station 
flight investigations in the physical sciences, advanced technology 
development and flight investigations for human research. Other 
investigations include advanced technology development and 
demonstrations in power, in-space propulsion, space communications, 
lunar surface and in-situ resource applications, spacecraft fire 
safety and energy storage and distribution. 

For more information on NASA and its programs, visit: 



http://www.nasa.gov 

NASA AWARDS FUTURE VEHICLE AIRCRAFT RESEARCH CONTRACTS

WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded research contracts worth a total of 
$12.4 million to six industry teams to study advanced concepts for 
subsonic and supersonic commercial transport aircraft that could 
enter service in 25 to 30 years. 

NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate selected teams led by 
The Boeing Company, GE Aviation, Lockheed Martin Corporation, 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Northrop Grumman to receive 
separate 18-month study contracts valued at approximately $2 million 
each. 

The focus of the studies is on commercial transports that can overcome 
significant performance and environmental challenges for the benefit 
of the general public. The work is intended to identify key 
technology development needs, such as advanced airframes and 
propulsion systems, as well as breakthroughs that will enable such 
vehicles to enter service in 2030-2035. The vehicles represent a 
research and development generation known as "N+3," denoting three 
generations beyond the current commercial transport fleet. 

"The future of air transportation is all about protecting the 
environment and responding to increasing energy costs in a balanced 
way," said Juan Alonso, director of NASA's Fundamental Aeronautics 
Program at NASA's Headquarters in Washington. "We will need airplanes 
that are quieter and more fuel efficient, and cleaner-burning fuels 
to power them. We are challenging industry to introduce these new 
technologies without impairing the convenience, safety and security 
of commercial air transportation." 

The studies constitute the first phase of a two-phase acquisition 
involving a competitive down-selection process. Participants who 
successfully complete the first phase will be asked to submit 
proposals for Phase 2, which provides additional funds for initial 
research on the enabling technologies identified in Phase 1. 

The Phase 1 research projects are listed below, including team members 
and award amounts. 

Development of Subsonic Ultra Green Aircraft Research: The Boeing 
Company, Georgia Institute of Technology, GE Global Research and GE 
Aviation; $1.9 million. 

Small Commercial Efficient and Quiet Air Transportation for 2030-2035: 
GE Aviation, GE Global Research, Georgia Institute of Technology and 
Cessna Aircraft Company; $1.97 million. 

Aircraft and Technology Concepts for an N+3 Subsonic Transport: 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Aurora Flight Sciences, 
Aerodyne Research Inc., Pratt and Whitney and Boeing Phantom Works; 
$2.13 million. 

Advanced Concept Studies for Subsonic Commercial Transport Aircraft 
Entering Service in the 2030-2035 Time Period: Northrop Grumman 
Systems Corporation, Tufts University, Sensis Corporation, Spirit 
Aerosystems Corp. and Rolls-Royce North America Inc.; $1.97 million. 

Advanced Concepts Studies for Supersonic Commercial Transport Aircraft 
Entering Service in the 2030-2035 Time Period: The Boeing Company, 
Boeing Phantom Works, GE Global Research, Georgia Institute of 
Technology, M4 Engineering Inc., Pratt and Whitney, Rolls Royce and 
Wyle Labs; $2.28 million. 

NASA N+3 Supersonic, Three Generations Forward in Aviation Technology: 
Lockheed Martin Corporation, GE Global Research, Purdue University 
and Wyle Laboratories; $1.96 million. 

For more information about NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission 
Directorate, visit: 



http://aeronautics.nasa.gov 

NASA MARS LANDER SEES FALLING SNOW, SOIL DATA SUGGEST LIQUID PAST

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander has detected snow falling 
from Martian clouds. Spacecraft soil tests experiments also have 
provided evidence of past interaction between minerals and liquid 
water, processes that occur on Earth. 

A laser instrument designed to gather knowledge of how the atmosphere 
and surface interact on Mars, detected snow from clouds about 2.5 
miles above the spacecraft's landing site. Data show the snow 
vaporizing before reaching the ground. 

"Nothing like this view has ever been seen on Mars," said Jim 
Whiteway, of York University, Toronto, lead scientist for the 
Canadian-supplied Meteorological Station on Phoenix. "We'll be 
looking for signs that the snow may even reach the ground." 
Phoenix experiments also yielded clues pointing to calcium carbonate, 
the main composition of chalk, and particles that could be clay. Most 
carbonates and clays on Earth form only in the presence of liquid 
water. 

"We are still collecting data and have lots of analysis ahead, but we 
are making good progress on the big questions we set out for 
ourselves," said Phoenix Principal Investigator Peter Smith of the 
University of Arizona, Tucson. 

Since landing on May 25, Phoenix already has confirmed that a hard 
subsurface layer at its far-northern site contains water-ice. 
Determining whether that ice ever thaws would help answer whether the 
environment there has been favorable for life, a key aim of the 
mission. 

The evidence for calcium carbonate in soil samples from trenches dug 
by the Phoenix robotic arm comes from two laboratory instruments 
called the Thermal and Evolved Gas Analyzer, or TEGA, and the wet 
chemistry laboratory of the Microscopy, Electrochemistry and 
Conductivity Analyzer, or MECA. 

"We have found carbonate," said William Boynton of the University of 
Arizona, lead scientist for the TEGA. "This points toward episodes of 
interaction with water in the past." 

The TEGA evidence for calcium carbonate came from a high-temperature 
release of carbon dioxide from soil samples. The temperature of the 
release matches a temperature known to decompose calcium carbonate 
and release carbon dioxide gas, which was identified by the 
instrument's mass spectrometer. 

The MECA evidence came from a buffering effect characteristic of 
calcium carbonate assessed in wet chemistry analysis of the soil. The 
measured concentration of calcium was exactly what would be expected 
for a solution buffered by calcium carbonate. 

Both TEGA, and the microscopy part of MECA have turned up hints of a 
clay-like substance. "We are seeing smooth-surfaced, platy particles 
with the atomic-force microscope, not inconsistent with the 
appearance of clay particles," said Michael Hecht, MECA lead 
scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. 

The Phoenix mission, originally planned for three months on Mars, now 
is in its fifth month. However, it faces a decline in solar energy 
that is expected to curtail and then end the lander's activities 
before the end of the year. Before power ceases, the Phoenix team 
will attempt to activate a microphone on the lander to possibly 
capture sounds on Mars. 

"For nearly three months after landing, the sun never went below the 
horizon at our landing site." said Barry Goldstein, JPL Phoenix 
project manager. "Now it is gone for more than four hours each night, 
and the output from our solar panels is dropping each week. Before 
the end of October, there won't be enough energy to keep using the 
robotic arm." 

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith at the University of Arizona. 
Project management is the responsibility of JPL with development 
partnership by Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions 
come from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, 
Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark; Max 
Planck Institute, Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute. 

For more about Phoenix, visit: 

OCEAN WIND POWER MAPS REVEAL POSSIBLE WIND ENERGY SOURCES

WASHINGTON -- Efforts to harness the energy potential of Earth's ocean
winds could soon gain an important new tool: global satellite maps
from NASA. Scientists have been creating maps using nearly a decade
of data from NASA's QuikSCAT satellite that reveal ocean areas where
winds could produce wind energy.

The new maps have many potential uses including planning the location
of offshore wind farms to convert wind energy into electric energy.
The research, published this week in Geophysical Research Letters,
was funded by NASA's Earth Science Division, which works to advance
the frontiers of scientific discovery about Earth, its climate and
its future.

"Wind energy is environmentally friendly. After the initial energy
investment to build and install wind turbines, you don't burn fossil
fuels that emit carbon," said study lead author Tim Liu, a senior
research scientist and QuikSCAT science team leader at NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "Like solar power, wind
energy is green energy."

QuikSCAT, launched in 1999, tracks the speed, direction and power of
winds near the ocean surface. Data from QuikSCAT, collected
continuously by a specialized microwave radar instrument named
SeaWinds, also are used to predict storms and enhance the accuracy of
weather forecasts.

Wind energy has the potential to provide 10 to 15 percent of future
world energy requirements, according to Paul Dimotakis, chief
technologist at JPL. If ocean areas with high winds were tapped for
wind energy, they could potentially generate 500 to 800 watts of
energy per square meter, according to Liu's research. Dimotakis notes
that while this is slightly less than solar energy (which generates
about one kilowatt of energy per square meter), wind power can be
converted to electricity more efficiently than solar energy and at a
lower cost per watt of electricity produced.

According to Liu, new technology has made floating wind farms in the
open ocean possible. A number of wind farms are already in operation
worldwide. Ocean wind farms have less environmental impact than
onshore wind farms, whose noise tends to disturb sensitive wildlife
in their immediate area. Also, winds are generally stronger over the
ocean than on land because there is less friction over water to slow
the winds down - there are no hills or mountains to block the wind's
path.

Ideally, offshore wind farms should be located in areas where winds
blow continuously at high speeds. The new research identifies such
areas and offers explanations for the physical mechanisms that
produce the high winds.

An example of one such high-wind mechanism is located off the coast of
Northern California near Cape Mendocino. The protruding land mass of
the cape deflects northerly winds along the California coast,
creating a local wind jet that blows year-round. Similar jets are
formed from westerly winds blowing around Tasmania, New Zealand, and
Tierra del Fuego in South America, among other locations. Areas with
large-scale, high wind power potential also can be found in regions
of the mid-latitudes of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, where winter
storms normally track.

The new QuikSCAT maps, which add to previous generations of QuikSCAT
wind atlases, also will be beneficial to the shipping industry by
highlighting areas of the ocean where high winds could be hazardous
to ships, allowing them to steer clear of these areas.

Scientists use the QuikSCAT data to examine how ocean winds affect
weather and climate, by driving ocean currents, mixing ocean waters,
and affecting the carbon, heat and water interaction between the
ocean and the atmosphere.

JPL manages QuikSCAT for NASA. For more information about QuikSCAT,
visit:

http://winds.jpl.nasa.gov

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov
 

NASA AND ESA COMPLETE COMPARATIVE EXPLORATION ARCHITECTURE STUDY

WASHINGTON -- Over the last 6 months, representatives from NASA and
the European Space Agency, or ESA, have been engaged in a detailed
assessment of potential programs and technologies that when conducted
cooperatively could one day support a human outpost on the moon.

Findings from the study included a significant mutual interest in the
potential development of lunar cargo landing systems, communication
and navigation systems, lunar orbital infrastructures, and lunar
surface systems, such as habitats or mobility systems. The study also
identified the significant value gained from redundant human crew
transportation capability.

"We are very pleased to have worked with ESA on this comparative
architecture assessment," said Geoff Yoder, director of NASA's
Exploration Systems Mission Directorate Integration Office in
Washington. "Since the announcement of the U.S. Space Exploration
Policy, NASA has sought and welcomed input from its international
partners on NASA's lunar architecture plans in areas of mutual
interest. As future exploration plans mature around the world, it is
becoming increasingly important that we seek compatibilities between
NASA's plans and those of its potential future partners. The work we
did with ESA will serve as a model for discussions with other
potential partners as we begin to implement this very exciting
mission."

NASA and ESA experts briefed the results of their Comparative
Architecture Assessment this week during an ESA sponsored integrated
architecture review held at ESA's European Space Research and
Technology Centre in Noordwijk, The Netherlands.

"ESA is preparing itself for a round of decisions that will mark
Europe's role in human spaceflight and exploration for the decades to
come," said Bruno Gardini, manager of ESA's Exploration Program.
"After the satisfaction of the successful deployment of the Columbus
module and Automated Transfer Vehicle, we are looking forward to
enhancing our role in the partnership for a sustained and robust
space exploration program, where human spaceflight is the
cornerstone. The moon is surely an important case study and useful
test bed to thoroughly prepare for more distant destinations. This
architecture work is very useful to prioritize our proposals to
European decision-makers and define a European strategy."

The study assessed the degree to which NASA and ESA's lunar
exploration architecture concepts could complement, augment, or
enhance the exploration plans of one another. Technical teams from
each agency engaged in a series of joint, qualitative assessments of
the potential scientific and exploration benefits from collaboration
between the ESA capabilities under study and NASA's space
transportation systems and lunar surface exploration architecture
concepts.

NASA is studying lunar surface exploration architecture concepts to
support humans returning to the moon before 2020. Consistent with the
principles of the Global Exploration Strategy -- a framework for
coordinating space exploration plans of 14 participating agencies
from around the world -- NASA is pursuing its lunar exploration plans
under an "open architecture" approach. This approach will maximize
opportunities for international and commercial participation. NASA's
architecture concept calls for the transportation of astronauts and
hardware to the moon using the Ares I and Ares V launch vehicles, the
Orion crew exploration vehicle, and the Altair lunar lander, which
are all currently under development by NASA.

ESA is studying scenarios and associated architectures for human space
exploration, building upon its extensive human space flight
experience, including its contributions to the International Space
Station program. While ESA's studies are currently at a conceptual
stage, some of the scenarios assessed as part of this joint study
included potential future use of an automated, Ariane 5-based lunar
cargo landing system; European developed communication and navigation
systems; and ESA-developed human-rated systems, such as a crew
transportation system and orbital outposts.

For more information on NASA's plans to explore the moon, Mars, and
beyond, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/exploration
 

NASA EXTENDS SPACE STATION CARGO DELIVERY CONTRACT

HOUSTON - NASA has awarded Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems Inc. in
Houston, a one-year contract extension valued at $42 million to
provide integration services for cargo delivery to and from the
International Space Station.

Lockheed Martin has held the station's cargo mission contract since
January 2004. The one-year extension will bring the total value of
the contract to $338 million.

The contract provides cargo packing for delivery to and from the space
station, consisting of pressurized and unpressurized science and
logistics carriers, assembly hardware and crew support. It also
involves determining the most efficient way to pack the cargo,
verifying the adequacy of the integrated carriers, packing the
pressurized cargo into sub-carriers and returning the cargo to the
providers once it returns to Earth. The contract also provides
sustaining engineering for NASA carriers.

The extension begins Oct. 1, 2008, and is the first of two such
options provided for in the original contract.

Major subcontractors include United Space Alliance LLC and Bastion
Technologies Inc., both in Houston; Command Technologies Inc. in
Warrenton, Va.; Teledyne Brown Engineering Inc. in Huntsville, Ala.,
and EADS Astrium Space Transportation, Bremen, Germany. The work will
be performed at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston and at the
NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

For more information about the space station, visit:

 

NASA SETS LAUNCH DATES FOR REMAINING SPACE SHUTTLE MISSIONS

HOUSTON -- Following a detailed, integrated assessment, NASA selected
target launch dates for the remaining eight space shuttle missions on
the current manifest in 2009 and 2010. The manifest includes one
flight to the Hubble Space Telescope, seven assembly flights to the
International Space Station, and two station contingency flights,
planned to be completed before the end of fiscal year 2010. The
agency previously selected Oct. 8 and Nov. 10 as launch dates for
Atlantis' STS-125 mission to service Hubble and Endeavour's STS-126 /
ULF-2 mission to supply the space station and service both Solar
Alpha Rotary Joints on the port and starboard end of its truss
backbone that supports equipment and solar arrays.

The approved target dates are subject to change based on processing
and other launch vehicle schedules. They reflect the agency's
commitment to complete assembly of the station and to retire the
shuttle fleet as transition continues to the new launch vehicles,
including Ares and Orion.

SHUTTLE FLIGHTS IN 2009

Feb. 12 -- Discovery (STS-119 / 15A) will kick off a five-flight 2009
with its 36th mission to deliver the final pair of U.S. solar arrays
to be installed on the starboard end of the station's truss. The
truss serves as the backbone support for external equipment and spare
components, including the Mobile Base System. Lee Archambault will
command the 14-day flight that will include four planned spacewalks.
Joining him will be pilot Tony Antonelli and mission specialists John
Phillips, Steve Swanson, Joseph Acaba, Richard Arnold and Japan
Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Koichi Wakata. Wakata will
replace Sandy Magnus on the station as a flight engineer. STS-119
marks the 28th shuttle flight to the station.

May 15 -- Endeavour (STS-127 / 2JA) sets sail on its 23rd mission with
the Japanese Kibo Laboratory's Exposed Facility and Experiment
Logistics Module Exposed Section, the final permanent components of
the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's contribution to the station
program. During the 15-day mission, Endeavour's crew will perform
five spacewalks and deliver six new batteries for the P6 truss, a
spare drive unit for the Mobile Transporter and a spare boom assembly
for the Ku-band antenna. Mark Polansky will be Endeavour's commander
with Doug Hurley as pilot. Mission specialists will be Christopher
Cassidy, Tom Marshburn, Dave Wolf, Tim Kopra and Canadian Space
Agency astronaut Julie Payette. Kopra will become a station flight
engineer replacing Koichi Wakata, who will return home with the
STS-127 crew. It will be the 29th shuttle flight to the station.

July 30 -- Atlantis (STS-128 / 17A) launches on its 31st flight, an
11-day mission carrying science and storage racks to the station. In
the payload bay will be a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module holding
science and storage racks. Three spacewalks are planned to remove and
replace a materials processing experiment outside the European Space
Agency's Columbus module and return an empty ammonia tank assembly.
The mission includes the rotation of astronaut Nicole Stott for Tim
Kopra, who will return to Earth with the shuttle crew. The remaining
crew members have yet to be named. STS-128 marks the 30th shuttle
flight dedicated to station assembly and outfitting.

Oct. 15 -- Discovery's (STS-129 / ULF-3) 37th mission will focus on
staging spare components outside the station. The 15-day flight
includes at least three spacewalks. The payload bay will carry two
large External Logistics Carriers holding two spare gyroscopes, two
nitrogen tank assemblies, two pump modules, an ammonia tank assembly,
a spare latching end effector for the station's robotic arm, a spare
trailing umbilical system for the Mobile Transporter and a
high-pressure gas tank. Canadian Space Agency astronaut Bob Thirsk
will return home aboard Discovery with its crew, which has yet to be
named. STS-129 marks the 31st shuttle mission devoted to station
assembly.

Dec. 10 -- Endeavour (STS-130 / 20A) will close 2009 with its 24th
mission to deliver the final connecting node, Node 3, and the Cupola,
a robotic control station with six windows around its sides and
another in the center that provides a 360-degree view around the
station. At least three spacewalks are planned during the 11-day
mission. The 32nd station assembly mission by a shuttle does not yet
have a crew named.

SHUTTLE FLIGHTS IN 2010

Feb. 11 -- Atlantis (STS-131 / 19A) begins its 32nd mission as the
first flight in 2010, carrying a Multi-Purpose Logistics Module
filled with science racks that will be transferred to laboratories of
the station. The 11-day mission will include at least three
spacewalks to attach a spare ammonia tank assembly outside the
station and return a European experiment that has been outside the
Columbus module. It will be the 33rd shuttle mission to the station.
The crew has yet to be named.

April 8 -- Discovery's (STS-132 / ULF-4) 38th mission will carry an
integrated cargo carrier to deliver maintenance and assembly
hardware, including spare parts for space station systems. In
addition, the second in a series of new pressurized components for
Russia, a Mini Research Module, will be permanently attached to the
bottom port of the Zarya module. The Russian module also will carry
U.S. pressurized cargo. The first Russian Mini Research Module to go
to the station is scheduled to launch on a Russian rocket in the
summer of 2009.

Additionally, at least three spacewalks are planned to stage spare
components outside the station, including six spare batteries, a boom
assembly for the Ku-band antenna and spares for the Canadian Dextre
robotic arm extension. A radiator, airlock and European robotic arm
for the Russian Multi-purpose Laboratory Module also are payloads on
the flight. The laboratory module is scheduled for launch on a
Russian rocket in 2011. The mission marks the 34th mission to the
station. The STS-132 crew has yet to be named.

May 31 -- Endeavour's (STS-133 / ULF-5) 25th mission will carry
critical spare components that will be placed on the outside of the
station. Those will include two S-band communications antennas, a
high-pressure gas tank, additional spare parts for Dextre and
micrometeoroid debris shields. At least three spacewalks are planned
to be carried out by the crew, which has yet to be named. The 15-day
mission will be the 35th to the station.

For the shuttle launch manifest, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/iss_manifest.html

For details on upcoming shuttle missions and their crews, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle
 

ASTRONAUT BARBARA MORGAN TO LEAVE NASA HOUSTON -- Veteran space shuttle astronaut Barbara R. Morgan will leave NASA in August to become an educator at Idaho's Boise State University. NASA's first educator astronaut, Morgan logged more than 305 hours in space aboard shuttle Endeavour's STS-118 assembly mission to the International Space Station in August 2007. She operated the shuttle and station robotic arms to install hardware, inspect the orbiter and support spacewalks. Morgan also served as loadmaster for the transfer of supplies between the shuttle and station, taught lessons from space to schoolchildren on Earth and served on the flight deck during re-entry and landing. "Barbara has served NASA and the Astronaut Office with distinction over the course of her career," Astronaut Office chief Steve Lindsey said. "From the Teacher in Space Program to her current position as a fully qualified astronaut, she has set a superb example and been a consistent role model for both teachers and students. She will be missed." Morgan previously served as the backup to payload specialist Christa McAuliffe in the Teacher in Space Program. McAuliffe and six fellow astronauts lost their lives in the Challenger accident on Jan. 28, 1986. Morgan, who was an elementary schoolteacher in McCall, Idaho, before being selected as McAuliffe's backup, returned to teaching after the accident. She was selected to train as a mission specialist in 1998 and named to the STS-118 crew in 2002. "It is really tough to leave NASA," Morgan said. "It is a great organization with great people doing great things. We're going back to the moon and on to Mars. I'm especially proud that we have three other teachers who are astronauts, and there will be others in the future. I'm very excited to go to work for Boise State University. I like everything about it, and it's going to be wonderful helping exploration by working full time for education." Three other educator mission specialists, Richard Arnold, Joseph Acaba and Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger, are training for future spaceflights. Arnold and Acaba are assigned to fly on the STS-119 space shuttle mission to the station in 2009. Morgan will serve as Distinguished Educator in Residence at Boise State, providing vision and leadership to the state of Idaho on science, technology, engineering and math education. Highlights of Morgan's NASA career will be available on NASA Television's video file. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For more biographical information about Morgan, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/morgan.html For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA AWARDS INFORMATION MANAGEMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS SUPPORT CONTRACT CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA has selected Abacus Technology Corporation of Chevy Chase, Md., to provide information management and communications support at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The contract begins on Oct. 1 with a five-year base period and four one-year options to extend performance. It is a cost-plus-award-fee contract with indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract line items. If all options are exercised and the maximum amount of work is ordered, the total potential value of the contract is approximately $898 million. Abacus Technology Corporation will furnish resources, including management, personnel, equipment and supplies to support Kennedy's work, including voice communications, visual imaging and timing, transmission and cable systems, administrative phones, institutional computer networks, network IT security, publications, library, and computer services. Selected services also may be provided to the U.S. Air Force at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Patrick Air Force Base as IDIQ efforts. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA'S PHOENIX MARS LANDER PUTS SOIL IN CHEMISTRY LAB, TEAM DISCUSSES NEXT STEPS TUCSON, Ariz. -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander placed a sample of Martian soil in the spacecraft's wet chemistry laboratory today for the first time. Results from that instrument, part of Phoenix's Microscopy, Electrochemistry and Conductivity Analyzer, are expected to provide the first measurement of the acidity or alkalinity of the planet's soil. The analysis of this and other soil samples will help researchers determine whether ice beneath the soil ever has melted, and whether the soil has other qualities favorable for life. The Phoenix team is discussing what sample to deliver next to the lander's other analytical instrument, which bakes and sniffs soil to identify volatile ingredients. Engineers have identified possible problems in the mechanical and electrical operation of that instrument, the Thermal and Evolved-Gas Analyzer, or TEGA. Scientists are studying information provided by TEGA's analysis of the first Martian soil sample put in that instrument. The instrument has eight single-use oven cells; each cell can analyze one sample. When doors for a second TEGA oven were commanded open last week, the doors opened only partway. Later, the team determined that mechanical interference may prevent doors on that oven and three others from opening fully. The remaining three ovens are expected to have one door that opens fully and one that opens partially, as was the case with the first oven used. "The tests we have done in our test facility during the past few days show the robotic arm can deliver the simulated Martian soil through the opening with the doors in this configuration," said William Boynton of the University of Arizona, Tucson, lead scientist for TEGA. "We plan to save the cells where doors can open wider for accepting ice samples." Scientists believe the first soil sample delivered to TEGA was so clumpy that soil particles clogged a screen over the opening. Four days of vibration eventually succeeded at getting the soil through the screen. However, engineers believe the use of a motor to create the vibration may also have caused a short circuit in wiring near that oven. Concern about triggering other short circuits has prompted the Phoenix team to be cautious about the use of other TEGA cells. Subsequent soil samples for TEGA will be delivered with a different method than the first. The newer method will sprinkle soil into the instrument to make it easier for particles to get through the screens. The Phoenix mission is led by Peter Smith at the University of Arizona with project management at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and the development partnership at Lockheed Martin in Denver. International contributions are from the Canadian Space Agency; the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen and Aarhus, Denmark; Max Planck Institute, Germany; and the Finnish Meteorological Institute. EDITOR'S NOTE: NASA and the University of Arizona, Tucson, will hold a news media teleconference at 10:30 a.m. PDT, Thursday, June 26, to discuss science results and provide an update on future science gathering plans. To participate in the teleconference, news media should phone the JPL Media Relations Office at 818-354-5011 by 10 a.m. PDT, June 26, to obtain the dial-in number and passcode. For more information about the mission, visit:

NASA SPACECRAFT REVEAL LARGEST CRATER IN SOLAR SYSTEM PASADENA, Calif. -- New analysis of Mars' terrain using NASA spacecraft observations reveals what appears to be by far the largest impact crater ever found in the solar system. NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Global Surveyor have provided detailed information about the elevations and gravity of the Red Planet's northern and southern hemispheres. A new study using this information may solve one of the biggest remaining mysteries in the solar system: why does Mars have two strikingly different kinds of terrain in its northern and southern hemispheres? The huge crater is creating intense scientific interest. The mystery of the two-faced nature of Mars has perplexed scientists since the first comprehensive images of the surface were beamed home by NASA spacecraft in the 1970s. The main hypotheses have been an ancient impact or some internal process related to the planet's molten subsurface layers. The impact idea, proposed in 1984, fell into disfavor because the basin's shape didn't seem to fit the expected round shape for a crater. The newer data is convincing some experts who doubted the impact scenario. "We haven't proved the giant-impact hypothesis, but I think we've shifted the tide," said Jeffrey Andrews-Hanna, a postdoctoral researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge. Andrews-Hanna and co-authors Maria Zuber of MIT and Bruce Banerdt of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., report the new findings in the journal Nature this week. A giant northern basin that covers about 40 percent of Mars' surface, sometimes called the Borealis basin, is the remains of a colossal impact early in the solar system's formation, the new analysis suggests. At 5,300 miles across, it is about four times wider than the next-biggest impact basin known, the Hellas basin on southern Mars. An accompanying report calculates that the impacting object that produced the Borealis basin must have been about 1,200 miles across. That's larger than Pluto. "This is an impressive result that has implications not only for the evolution of early Mars, but also for early Earth's formation," said Michael Meyer, the Mars chief scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. This northern-hemisphere basin on Mars is one of the smoothest surfaces found in the solar system. The southern hemisphere is high, rough, heavily cratered terrain, which ranges from 2.5 to 5 miles higher in elevation than the basin floor. Other giant impact basins have been discovered that are elliptical rather than circular. But it took a complex analysis of the Martian surface from NASA's two Mars orbiters to reveal the clear elliptical shape of Borealis basin, which is consistent with being an impact crater. One complicating factor in revealing the elliptical shape of the basin was that after the time of the impact, which must have been at least 3.9 billion years ago, giant volcanoes formed along one part of the basin rim and created a huge region of high, rough terrain that obscures the basin's outlines. It took a combination of gravity data, which tend to reveal underlying structure, with data on current surface elevations to reconstruct a map of Mars elevations as they existed before the volcanoes erupted. "In addition to the elliptical boundary of the basin, there are signs of a possible second, outer ring - a typical characteristic of large impact basins," Banerdt said. JPL manages the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. For more information about the mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mro

NASA AWARDS SPACE SHUTTLE MAIN ENGINE CONTRACT MODIFICATION

WASHINGTON -- NASA has signed a $16.8 million contract modification to
space shuttle main engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne
Inc. of Canoga Park, Calif., to incorporate an employee retention
plan implemented by the company. Incentives are being provided to
eligible personnel to ensure mission success and construction of the
remaining engines to support space shuttle requirements through
September 2010.

Retention of the knowledgeable and skilled space shuttle main engine
workforce is necessary to produce the remaining shuttle hardware.
This contract modification supports the agency's priorities of safely
flying and retiring the space shuttles.

The contract will end Sept. 30, 2010. This modification brings the
total value of the contract, awarded in January 2002, to $2.181
billion.

The three main engines are 14 feet long and seven and a half feet in
diameter at the nozzle exit. They are liquid propellant rocket
engines that have a combined thrust of more than 1.2 million pounds.
Along with the solid rocket boosters, they provide the thrust to
launch the shuttle.

For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle


UNIVERSITY FACULTY AND STUDENTS TO 'ROCKON!' WITH NASA

WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. -- University faculty and students from across the
country will RockOn! with NASA during a workshop June 22 - 27 at
NASA's Wallops Flight Facility on Wallops Island in Virginia. During
RockOn!, they will learn the basics of building experiments for
flight on suborbital rockets.

RockOn! teams will build the experiments from kits developed by
students from the Colorado Space Grant Consortium and learn about the
steps and procedures for creating payloads for flight. Each
experiment package will include a Geiger counter and sensors for
measuring temperature, acceleration and pressure. The experiments
then will be integrated into payload cans for launch.

The week will culminate with the launching of the experiments early in
the morning June 27 aboard a NASA Orion sounding rocket. The 20-foot
tall, single-stage rocket is expected to fly to an altitude of 41
miles. After launch and payload recovery, participants will do
preliminary data analysis and discuss their results.

"The NASA Sounding Program historically has been a program for
scientists, engineers and technicians to develop the skills necessary
for developing and building advanced satellites and other
spacecraft," said Phil Eberspeaker, chief of the NASA Sounding
Program office at Wallops.

Almost 60 people from universities in 22 states and Puerto Rico are
participating in RockOn!. Eighty-percent of the participants are
faculty members.

"This workshop will equip faculty with the skills and knowledge to
start their own student-led sounding rocket payload programs at their
university or college," said Chris Koehler, director of the Colorado
Space Grant Consortium in Boulder. "This workshop adds a new level of
hands-on programs for higher education students. It is expected that
many of the participants will have students come to Wallops to fly
their own sounding rocket payloads in the coming years."

NASA's Space Grant program sponsors university-based consortia that
focus on developing our nation's future scientist and engineers, as
well as improving science, engineering and technology education.
Using the lessons learned through RockOn!, participants will work to
make flight experiments a part of the educational process at their
home institutions.

"The workshop builds on NASA's interest in reaching out to
universities for engagement with sounding rocket payload research and
educational experiences," said Mary Sandy, director of the Virginia
Space Grant Consortium in Hampton, Va. "It taps into the National
Space Grant College and Fellowship Program interest in having
students and faculty participate in space experimentation and real
space missions."

For more information on NASA education programs on the Internet,
visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/education


NASA FINDS NEW TYPE OF COMET DUST MINERAL

HOUSTON -- NASA researchers and scientists from the United States,
Germany and Japan have found a new mineral in material that likely
came from a comet.

The mineral, a manganese silicide named Brownleeite, was discovered
within an interplanetary dust particle, or IDP, that appears to have
originated from comet 26P/Grigg-Skjellerup. The comet originally was
discovered in 1902 and reappears every 5 years. The team that made
the discovery is headed by Keiko Nakamura-Messenger, a space
scientist at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

"When I saw this mineral for the first time, I immediately knew this
was something no one had seen before," said Nakamura-Messenger. "But
it took several more months to obtain conclusive data because these
mineral grains were only 1/10,000 of an inch in size."

A new method of collecting IDPs was suggested by Scott Messenger,
another Johnson space scientist. He predicted comet
26P/Grigg-Skjellerup was a source of dust grains that could be
captured in Earth's stratosphere at a specific time of the year.

In response to his prediction, NASA performed stratospheric dust
collections, using an ER-2 high-altitude aircraft flown from NASA's
Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The
aircraft collected IDPs from this particular comet stream in April
2003. The new mineral was found in one of the particles. To determine
the mineral's origin and examine other dust materials, a powerful new
transmission electron microscope was installed in 2005 at Johnson.

"Because of their exceedingly tiny size, we had to use
state-of-the-art nano-analysis techniques in the microscope to
measure the chemical composition and crystal structure of Keiko's new
mineral," said Lindsay Keller, Johnson space scientist and a
co-discoverer of the new mineral. "This is a highly unusual material
that has not been predicted either to be a cometary component or to
have formed by condensation in the solar nebula."

Since 1982, NASA routinely has collected cosmic and interplanetary
dust with high-altitude research aircraft. However, the sources of
most dust particles have been difficult to pin down because of their
complex histories in space. The Earth accretes about 40,000 tons of
dust particles from space each year, originating mostly from
disintegrating comets and asteroid collisions. This dust is a subject
of intense interest because it is made of the original building
blocks of the solar system, planets, and our bodies.

The mineral was surrounded by multiple layers of other minerals that
also have been reported only in extraterrestrial rocks. There have
been 4,324 minerals identified by the International Mineralogical
Association, or IMA. This find adds one more mineral to that list.

The IMA-approved new mineral, Brownleeite, is named after Donald E.
Brownlee, professor of astronomy at the University of Washington,
Seattle. Brownlee founded the field of IDP research. The
understanding of the early solar system established from IDP studies
would not exist without his efforts. Brownlee also is the principal
investigator of NASA's Stardust mission.

The comet researchers include Messenger; John Jones, a co-discoverer
of the mineral from Johnson; Simon Clemett and Michael Zolensky in
Johnson's Astromaterials Research and Exploration Science
Directorate; Russ Palma, Minnesota State University at Mankato;
Robert Pepin, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; Wolfgang Kl?ck,
R?ntgenanalytik Messtechnik GmbH, Germany; and Hirokazu Tatsuoka,
Shizuoka University, Japan.

For additional information on NASA programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov


 

NASA AIRCRAFT EXAMINE IMPACT OF FOREST FIRES ON ARCTIC CLIMATE

WASHINGTON -- As the summer fire season heats up, NASA aircraft are
set to follow the trail of smoke plumes from some of Earth's
northernmost forest fires, examining their contribution to arctic
pollution and implications for climate change.

Starting June 29, NASA's DC-8 and P-3B aircraft, based at a Canadian
military base in Cold Lake, Alberta, will begin their final
three-week deployment of the Arctic Research of the Composition of
the Troposphere from Aircraft and Satellites, or ARCTAS, mission. A
third NASA aircraft, the B-200 King Air, will fly from Yellowknife,
Canada. The mission is the most extensive field campaign ever to
study the chemistry of the Arctic's lower atmosphere. The three
airborne laboratories are equipped to fly through the smoke plumes of
northern-latitude forest fires. The resulting data, when combined
with simultaneous satellite measurements, could reveal the impact of
forest fires on the arctic atmosphere.

"The summer campaign will focus on boreal forest fire emissions," said
Jim Crawford, manager of the Tropospheric Chemistry Program at NASA
Headquarters in Washington. "Coupled with the observations of arctic
haze during the spring deployment based in Alaska, these data will
improve our understanding of the relative importance of these two
influences on arctic atmospheric composition and climate."

Boreal forests, which span Earth's northern latitudes, have seen a
rise in natural forest fires during the last decade. Researchers have
debated the degree to which these fires contribute to the Arctic's
atmosphere compared to other sources, such as human-caused emissions
from lower latitudes. The ARCTAS flights through smoke plumes, over
and downwind from their source, will reveal their composition and
transport path.

Researchers also will use the data to examine how the chemistry of
smoke plumes changes over time and distance. Plume chemistry can
contribute to the formation of ozone in the lower atmosphere.
Particulates in smoke plumes can affect Earth's radiation balance
with consequences for climate change.

The mission also is expected to help researchers interpret data from
NASA satellites orbiting over the Arctic. NASA's Cloud-Aerosol Lidar
and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation, or CALIPSO, satellite
can measure the height of various plume components in the atmosphere,
information critical to predicting plume movement. Researchers will
use data from ARCTAS to validate observations from CALIPSO and other
satellites to improve model predictions of fire impacts on chemistry
and climate.

"Aircraft experiments provide the greatest possible detail on the
state of the atmosphere, but only for short, intense periods of
sampling," Crawford said. "By conducting these flights in tight
coordination with satellites and computer models, airborne
observations lead to improvements in the interpretation of satellite
observations and better representation of atmospheric processes in
chemistry and climate models. This improves our confidence in models'
ability to monitor and predict future changes."

The Yellowknife site also will host a portable science station from
Pennsylvania State University that collects ground-based ozone and
aerosol measurements, in conjunction with daily launches of
balloon-borne instruments planned by Environment Canada and the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The ARCTAS flights are being coordinated with research flights being
conducted by the French space agency Centre National d'Etudes
Spatiales, and the German Aerospace Center from Kangerlussuaq,
Greenland.

The summer deployment of ARCTAS follows a spring deployment based in
Fairbanks, Alaska. That mission focused on atmospheric composition,
pollution transport pathways, and the formation of "arctic haze,"
which is fueled by sunlight that causes chemical reactions in
pollutants that accumulate over the winter.

For more information about the ARCTAS mission on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/arctas

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

 

NASA AWARDS CONTRACT FOR CONSTELLATION SPACESUIT FOR THE MOON

WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded a contract to Oceaneering International
Inc. of Houston, for the design, development and production of a new
spacesuit system. The spacesuit will protect astronauts during
Constellation Program voyages to the International Space Station and,
by 2020, the surface of the moon.

The subcontractors to Oceaneering are Air-Lock Inc. of Milford, Conn.,
David Clark Co. of Worcester, Mass., Cimarron Software Services Inc.
of Houston, Harris Corporation of Palm Bay, Fla., Honeywell
International Inc. of Glendale, Ariz., Paragon Space Development
Corp. of Tucson, Ariz., and United Space Alliance of Houston.

"The award of the spacesuit contract completes the spaceflight
hardware requirements for the Constellation Program's first human
flight in 2015," said Jeff Hanley, Constellation program manager at
NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Contracts for the Orion crew
capsule and the Ares I rocket were awarded during the past two years.


The cost-plus-award-fee spacesuit contract includes a basic
performance period from June 2008 to September 2014 that has a value
of $183.8 million. During the performance period, Oceaneering and its
subcontractors will conduct design, development, test, and evaluation
work culminating in the manufacture, assembly, and first flight of
the suit components needed for astronauts aboard the Orion crew
exploration vehicle. The basic contract also includes initial work on
the suit design needed for the lunar surface.

"I am excited about the new partnership between NASA and Oceaneering,"
said Glenn Lutz, project manager for the spacesuit system at Johnson.
"Now it is time for our spacesuit team to begin the journey together
that ultimately will put new sets of boot prints on the moon."

Suits and support systems will be needed for as many as four
astronauts on moon voyages and as many as six space station
travelers. For short trips to the moon, the suit design will support
a week's worth of moon walks. The system also must be designed to
support a significant number of moon walks during potential six-month
lunar outpost expeditions. In addition, the spacesuit and support
systems will provide contingency spacewalk capability and protection
against the launch and landing environment, such as spacecraft cabin
leaks.

Two contract options may be awarded in the future as part of this
contract. Option 1 covers completion of design, development, test and
evaluation for the moon surface suit components. Option 1 would begin
in October 2010 and run through September 2018, under a
cost-plus-award fee structure with a total value of $302.1 million.

Option 2 provides for the Orion suit production, processing and
sustaining engineering under a cost-plus-award fee or a
firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract
structure with a maximum value of $260 million depending on hardware
requirements. Option 2 would begin at the end of the basic
performance period in October 2014, and would continue through
September 2018.

Images and animation of the new designs, as well as more information
about NASA's Constellation Program, are available online at:

http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

To view a feature on the evolution of spacesuits, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/spacesuit_gallery


 

NASA TV AIRS HIGH-DEF DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SPACE STATION ASTRONAUT HOUSTON -- NASA Television will provide a high-definition glimpse of life in space with a special Video File to be broadcast beginning May 22. During his final weeks aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Garrett Reisman has filmed many daily activities in orbit that are anything but routine. A compilation of Reisman's video diaries will be broadcast in high definition, or HD, beginning at 4 p.m. CDT, Thursday, May 22. The footage also will air Friday, May 23, and Tuesday, May 27, from 5 to 8 a.m., 12 to 2 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m. each day. The special NASA TV Video File also will be broadcast in standard-definition on NASA TV immediately following the regularly scheduled daily Video File broadcasts. Reisman, a New Jersey native, has been serving as a flight engineer and NASA science officer aboard the station since arriving on space shuttle mission STS-123 in March. He will return to Earth on the STS-124 flight, targeted to launch to the station on May 31. For technical information on how to receive the special broadcast in high definition, and for NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For more information about the International Space Station and its crew, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA PHOENIX MISSION READY FOR MARS LANDING

WASHINGTON -- NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander is preparing to end its long
journey and begin a three-month mission to taste and sniff fistfuls
of Martian soil and buried ice. The lander is scheduled to touch down
on the Red Planet May 25.

Phoenix will enter the top of the Martian atmosphere at almost 13,000
mph. In seven minutes, the spacecraft must complete a challenging
sequence of events to slow to about 5 mph before its three legs reach
the ground. Confirmation of the landing could come as early as 7:53
p.m. EDT.

"This is not a trip to grandma's house. Putting a spacecraft safely on
Mars is hard and risky," said Ed Weiler, associate administrator for
NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in
Washington. "Internationally, fewer than half the attempts have
succeeded."

Rocks large enough to spoil the landing or prevent opening of the
solar panels present the biggest known risk. However, images from the
High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera on NASA's
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, detailed enough to show individual rocks
smaller than the lander, have helped lessen that risk.

"We have blanketed nearly the entire landing area with HiRISE images,"
said Ray Arvidson of Washington University in St. Louis, chairman of
the Phoenix landing-site working group. "This is one of the least
rocky areas on all of Mars and we are confident that rocks will not
detrimentally impact the ability of Phoenix to land safely."

Phoenix uses hardware from a spacecraft built for a 2001 launch that
was canceled in response to the loss of a similar Mars spacecraft
during a 1999 landing attempt. Researchers who proposed the Phoenix
mission in 2002 saw the unused spacecraft as a resource for pursuing
a new science opportunity.

Earlier in 2002, NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter discovered that plentiful
water ice lies just beneath the surface throughout much of
high-latitude Mars. NASA chose the Phoenix proposal over 24 other
proposals to become the first endeavor in the Mars Scout program of
competitively selected missions.

"Phoenix will land farther north on Mars than any previous mission,"
said Phoenix Project Manager Barry Goldstein of NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

The solar-powered robotic lander will manipulate a 7.7-foot arm to
scoop up samples of underground ice and soil lying above the ice.
Onboard laboratory instruments will analyze the samples. Cameras and
a Canadian-supplied weather station will supply other information
about the site's environment.

"The Phoenix mission not only studies the northern permafrost region,
but takes the next step in Mars exploration by determining whether
this region, which may encompass as much as 25 percent of the Martian
surface, is habitable," said Peter Smith, Phoenix principal
investigator at the University of Arizona, Tucson.

One research goal is to assess whether conditions at the site ever
have been favorable for microbial life. The composition and texture
of soil above the ice could give clues to whether the ice ever melts
in response to long-term climate cycles. Another important question
is whether the scooped-up samples contain carbon-based chemicals that
are potential building blocks and food for life.

The Phoenix mission is led by Smith with project management at JPL.
The development partnership is with Lockheed Martin, Denver.
International contributions are from the Canadian Space Agency; the
University of Neuchatel, Switzerland; the universities of Copenhagen
and Aarhus, Denmark; the Max Planck Institute, Germany; and the
Finnish Meteorological Institute.

For more about the Phoenix mission on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix

HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS FLY HIGH IN NASA AERONAUTICS COMPETITION

HAMPTON, Va. -- NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate has
selected the winners of its high school contest to describe the
passenger and cargo aircraft of the future.

Tom Neuman, a senior from George Walton Comprehensive High School in
Marietta, Ga., and Aditya Singh, a senior from Anglo-Chinese Junior
College in Singapore, won top prizes for essays about their concepts
for multi-functional personal air vehicles.

More than 140 teenagers from 50 schools across the United States and
15 foreign countries submitted 65 entries in four categories: U.S.
individual, U.S. team, non-U.S. individual and non-U.S. team. The top
teams were three eleventh-graders from West High School in Torrance,
Calif., and three ninth-graders from the National High School of
Computer Science, Tudor Vianu, Bucharest, Romania.

"It is wonderful to see high school students from all over the world
thinking about the future of aeronautics and writing down their ideas
about potential solutions for the challenges facing the global
aviation enterprise," said Juan Alonso, manager of the mission
directorate's Fundamental Aeronautics Program. "The students'
inventiveness and creativity is extremely impressive."

NASA's Fundamental Aeronautics Program sponsored the annual
competition. The entries were reviewed by NASA managers and
engineers. The judges based their scores on how well students focused
their papers and how well they addressed four basic criteria:
informed content, creativity and imagination, organization, and
writing.

NASA will award the top scoring papers from the U.S. with a trophy and
a cash prize of $1,000 for the individual award winner and $1,500 for
the team. Non-U.S. students will receive a trophy, but are not
eligible for cash prizes. All participants will receive a NASA
certificate and a personal letter of commendation.

A complete list of winners of the high school contest can be found at:

http://aero.larc.nasa.gov

For more information about NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission
Directorate, visit:

http://aeronautics.nasa.gov
 

NASA NETWORK CONNECTS STUDENTS FOR WEB RETROSPECTIVE SERIES

HAMPTON, Va. -- As part of NASA's 50th anniversary celebration, the
Digital Learning Network will host a series of live webcasts with
students across the country May 13-21. The series will highlight the
contributions of each NASA center to a specific topic in NASA
history. The webcasts also will focus NASA's present and future
efforts in space exploration.

NASA's Digital Learning Network allows the next generation of
explorers to connect with scientists, engineers and researchers
without leaving the classroom. Through interactive videoconferencing,
the network provides distance-learning events designed to educate
through demonstrations and real time interactions with NASA experts.

The 50th anniversary series webcasts are (all times EDT):

Go Flight, May 13, 1 p.m. to 2 p.m.
The year is 1958. Nothing would ever be the same. For the first time,
the United States sent a man-made device into space. This new
frontier of exploration required ingenuity and creativity. NASA's
Johnson Space Center and NASA's Kennedy Space Center will host a web
cast to re-live the significant past events of these two centers
while realizing that future milestones of NASA will be accomplished
by the students inside today's classroom.

Astronomy: Bringing the Past to Light, May 14, 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and 3
p.m. to 4 p.m.
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory are combining forces to bring the rich history and science
of telescopes to light. This interactive learning event will peer
back through time to "first light" for Galileo's refractor, highlight
the evolution of the telescope into today's large mountaintop
reflectors, and focus in on the present and future promise of NASA's
space-based great observatories. Witness the inspiring trek of
innovation and discovery as NASA continues to explore for answers
that power our future.

Advancements in Aeronautics, May 20, 11 a.m. to noon
Fly away with NASA's Langley and Dryden Flight Research Centers to
learn about their roles in the development of aeronautics during
NASA's 50 years. Combined, the two centers have been studying
aviation for more than 90 years. Learn more about this fascinating
area of science and how NASA's advancements have benefited mankind.

Propulsion: Past, Present and Future, May 20, 1:10 p.m. to 2:10 p.m.
NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and NASA's Stennis Space Center
were built to examine Newton's three fundamental laws of motion
through testing large-scale engines used for propulsion, eventually
taking man to the moon. In recent years, both centers were key in the
development of the Space Shuttle Program, taking NASA from the
conceptual stages to the final flight three years from now. As the
shuttle is retired, Marshall and Stennis look to a new era of space
exploration, taking man back to the moon and beyond to new frontiers.


Wind Tunnels and Their Use in Aerospace, May 21, 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. and
2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
You have just put your design idea for your new aircraft or rocket on
paper but if you build it, will it fly? Learn how scientists and
engineers at NASA have answered this question over the past 50 years
without leaving the ground. Take a journey with the Digital Learning
Network and see how NASA uses wind tunnel facilities for aviation and
aerospace research.

To watch the live webcasts, visit:

http://dln.nasa.gov/dln

 

NASA AWARDS CONTRACT FOR ARES I MOBILE LAUNCHER

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA's Kennedy Space Center has awarded a
contract to Hensel Phelps of Orlando, Fla., for the construction of
the Ares I mobile launcher for the Constellation Program. Ares I is
the rocket that will transport the Orion crew exploration vehicle,
its crew and cargo to low Earth orbit. The contract includes an
option for an additional Ares I mobile launcher. It is a firm
fixed-price contract with a value of $263,735,000, if all options are
exercised.

The mobile launcher will support the Ares I and the vehicle's
associated ground support equipment. It will be used in the assembly,
testing and servicing of the Ares I at existing Kennedy facilities.
The mobile launcher will transport the Ares I rocket to the launch
pad and provide ground support for launches. The mobile launcher
consists of the main support structure that comprises the base, tower
and facility ground support systems, which include power,
communications, conditioned air, water for cooling, wash-down, and
ignition over-pressure protection.

Hensel Phelps will supply all labor, materials and equipment necessary
for construction of the Ares I mobile launcher. Ground support
equipment, such as umbilicals, propellant and gases, instrumentation,
controls and communications, necessary to support the Ares I rocket
will be provided and installed under a separate contract or
contracts.

The tower of the mobile launcher will have multiple platforms for
personnel access and will be approximately 390 feet tall.
Construction will take place at the mobile launcher park site area
located north of Kennedy's Vehicle Assembly Building at the space
center in Florida.

For more information about NASA's Constellation Program, visit

http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

 

NASA AWARDS EXTERNAL TANK CONTRACT MODIFICATION

WASHINGTON -- NASA has signed a $39.5 million contract modification
with Lockheed Martin Space Systems, New Orleans, to implement an
external tank program employee retention plan. Incentives are being
provided to eligible external tank personnel to ensure mission
success and construction of the remaining external tanks to support
Space Shuttle Program requirements through September 2010.

Retention of the knowledgeable and skilled external tank workforce is
necessary to produce the remaining shuttle hardware and safely
execute all remaining contract requirements. This modification
supports the agency's priorities of safely flying the space shuttle
and completing construction of the International Space Station.

The contract will end September 30, 2010. This modification brings the
total value of the contract, awarded in October 2000, to $2.967
billion. The contract calls for the delivery of 18 external tanks to
NASA. Eleven tanks remain to be delivered.

Work will be performed at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New
Orleans; NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.; and
NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Lockheed Martin builds, assembles and tests the space shuttle external
tanks for NASA at the Michoud facility. The external tank holds the
liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen for the shuttle's three main
engines. It is the largest single component of the space shuttle and
the only part of the shuttle that is not reused.

At 154 feet tall, the tank is taller than a 15-story building, with a
diameter of about 27.5 feet. During launch, the tank acts as the
structural backbone for the shuttle orbiter and the solid rocket
boosters attached to it. For more information about NASA's Space
Shuttle Program, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

 

ASTRONAUTS TO MAKE VIRTUAL CONNECTION WITH STUDENTS

GREENBELT, MD -- Astronauts flying on a space shuttle mission to
service the Hubble Space Telescope for a final time will speak to
middle school students across America simultaneously at 1:15 p.m.
EDT, April 30, from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt,
Md.

Through NASA's Digital Learning Network (DLN), students at five middle
schools and an invited student audience at Goddard will talk to the
shuttle crew. Topics of discussion will include details about the
upcoming STS-125 mission to service Hubble. Astronauts also will
discuss career diversity among the crew. Each has a doctorate degree
in a science, technology, engineering and mathematics discipline.

The goal of the DLN is to enhance NASA's capability to deliver unique
content by linking students and educators with NASA experts. The DLN
offers videoconferencing or Webcasting at no charge, providing
interactive educational experiences to students and teachers from
kindergarten to college across the country and around the world.

Schools selected to participate are Junior High School 145 Arturo
Toscanini, Bronx, New York; Brenham Junior High School, Brenham,
Texas; and South Puget Intertribal Planning Agency, Shelton,
Washington. Two NASA Explorer Schools, Greencastle-Antrim Middle
School, Greencastle, Pennsylvania, and Middle School at Parkside,
Jackson, Michigan, also will participate.

Anyone can view the 45-minute event live at http://dln.nasa.gov/dln/.

For more information about the Hubble Space Telescope, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/hubble

NASA SELECTS CONTRACTOR FOR LANDSAT DATA CONTINUITY MISSION SPACECRAFT

WASHINGTON -- NASA has selected General Dynamics Advanced Information
Systems, Inc., to build the Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM)
spacecraft.

Under the terms of the $116,306,179 delivery order, General Dynamics
Advanced Information Systems will be responsible for the design and
fabrication of the LDCM spacecraft bus, integration of the government
furnished instruments, satellite-level testing, on-orbit satellite
check-out, and continuing on-orbit engineering support. They also
will provide a spacecraft/observatory simulator.

LDCM is a component of the Landsat Program conducted jointly by NASA
and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) of the Department of Interior.
NASA is providing the LDCM spacecraft, the instruments, the launch
vehicle, and the mission operations element of the ground system.
USGS is providing the mission operations center and ground processing
systems, as well as the flight operations team.

The delivery order was awarded under NASA's Rapid II Indefinite
Delivery Indefinite Quantity Contract. The Rapid II contract is for
core spacecraft systems, with non-standard services such as
operations, launch services, components and studies to meet the
government's space science, Earth science and technology needs.

The contract includes fabrication and testing of the spacecraft with
mission specific design modifications; generation of interface
control documents, instrument and full spacecraft integration;
testing, shipment to the launch site, launch vehicle integration
support and on-orbit checkout.

With a five-year design lifetime, the LDCM satellite will continue the
series of measurements begun with the Landsat-1 mission for the
collection, archiving and distribution of multi-spectral imagery.
This imagery will provide global, synoptic, and repetitive coverage
of the Earth's land surfaces at a scale where natural and
human-induced changes can be detected, differentiated, characterized
and monitored over time.

The LDCM goal is consistent with the Landsat programmatic goals
derived from the Land Remote Sensing Act of 1992. This policy
requires that the Landsat Program provide data into the future that
is sufficiently consistent with previous Landsat data to allow the
detection and quantitative characterization of changes in or on the
land surface of the globe.

The LDCM was conceived as a follow-on mission to the highly successful
Landsat series of missions that have provided coverage of the Earth's
continental surfaces since 1972. The data from these missions
constitute the longest continuous record of the Earth's surface as
seen from space.

More information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov
 

NASA OFFERS EDUCATIONAL ONLINE GAMING OPPORTUNITY TO DEVELOPERS

WASHINGTON -- Educators soon may be able take the "learning can be
fun" adage to another level using computer-simulation games with new
technologies created by NASA and a yet-to-be-selected game developer.


NASA Learning Technologies sponsored a workshop today to present its
concept of delivering NASA content through a Massively Multiplayer
Online (MMO) educational game to interested development partners.
Designed to enhance learning in science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics (STEM), such an online educational game would draw
players into a synthetic environment that can serve as a powerful
"hands-on" tool for teaching a range of complex subjects.

"NASA will continue to pursue innovative strategies to encourage
students to improve their interest and performance in STEM and
related careers," said Dr. Joyce Winterton, NASA assistant
administrator for education. "The use of online educational games can
capture student interest in NASA's missions and science."

The daylong workshop provided more than 200 potential development
partners the opportunity to learn directly from NASA officials about
the vision, goals, and expectations for the development of an MMO
educational game. Participants heard top NASA scientists and
education officials talk about NASA's future plans for space
exploration and how the agency is planning to leverage the game to
enhance education efforts across the country.

The Learning Technologies Project Office is collaborating with the
Innovative Partnerships Program Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight
Center to develop the project's business strategy, which includes a
formal request for proposals for development partners and planning
for today's workshop. The Innovative Partnerships Program Office acts
as a matchmaker between NASA and commercial businesses, research
institutions, and other government laboratories to form mutually
beneficial collaborative agreements for research and licensing.

Workshop sessions underscored the importance of stimulating STEM, the
value of NASA partnerships to the U.S. economy, and information about
current and future science missions. Participants at the workshop
also were provided with the opportunity to register for one-on-one
briefing sessions with NASA officials to discuss specific questions
about the request for proposals.

The power of games as educational tools rapidly is gaining
recognition. Virtual worlds with scientifically accurate simulations
could permit learners to experiment with chemical reactions in living
cells, practice operating and repairing expensive equipment, and
experience microgravity. The goal is to make it easier to grasp
complex concepts and transfer this understanding quickly to practical
problems.

NASA's MMO educational game will function as a persistent, synthetic
environment supporting education as a laboratory, a massive
visualization tool, and a collaborative workspace that simultaneously
draws students into challenging game-play.

NASA Learning Technologies expects the MMO to appeal mainly to
teenagers, ranging from middle-schoolers through high-school and
college students.

For more information, visit:

http://ipp.gsfc.nasa.gov/mmo
 

NASA AWARDS LAUNCH SERVICES CONTRACT TO SPACEX

WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded Space Exploration Technologies, or
SpaceX, a NASA Launch Services contract for the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9
launch vehicles.

The NASA Launch Services contracts are multiple awards to multiple
launch service providers. Twice per year, there is an opportunity for
existing and emerging domestic launch service providers to submit
proposals if their vehicles meet the minimum contract requirements.

The contract is an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ)
contract where NASA may order launch services through June 30, 2010,
for launches to occur through December 2012. Under the NASA Launch
Services IDIQ contracts, the potential total contract value is
between $20,000 and $1 billion, depending on the number of missions
awarded.

The contract seeks a launch capability for payloads weighing 551
pounds or heavier into a circular orbit of 124 miles at an orbital
inclination of 28.5 degrees. Payloads would be launched to support
three NASA mission directorates: Science, Space Operations and
Exploration Systems.

Because an IDIQ contract has been awarded to SpaceX, it can compete
for NASA missions using the Falcon 1 and Falcon 9 launch vehicles as
specified by the NASA Launch Services contract process.

NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center is responsible
for program management. This award to SpaceX adds to the stable of
launch vehicles available to NASA under previously awarded contracts.
The original request for proposal was issued in 1999.

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov
 

NASA TO BROADCAST EARTH VIEWS IN HIGH DEFINITION TELEVISION HOUSTON -- Since humans first flew in space, nothing has captivated astronauts more than the view of home out the window of their spacecraft. In honor of Earth Day, April 22, NASA will make those views available to people here on Earth with an event highlighting imagery taken by astronauts and the science behind it. For the first time ever, NASA Television will air a special hour-long broadcast of views of Earth taken in High Definition, or HD, by astronauts on past space shuttle and International Space Station missions. The special HD broadcast will air between 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. EDT on Friday, April 18, and replay at the same time on Monday, April 21. It will air every hour from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, April 22. The Friday HD broadcast will feature a silent version of the Earth views. The broadcasts on Monday and Tuesday will include a discussion of the views by Dr. Justin Wilkinson, a scientist with the Crew Earth Observations Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The footage also will air on standard NASA TV during regularly scheduled Video File broadcasts. For technical information on how to receive the special broadcast in high definition, and for NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For more information about NASA's Earth Day events, and the space shuttle and space station programs, visit:

NASA TURNS GREEN WITH NATIONWIDE EARTH DAY ACTIVITIES WASHINGTON -- NASA centers across America will roll out the green carpet April 22 to celebrate Earth Day and reporters are invited to hear first hand about the agency's contributions to understanding and protecting our environment. NASA Earth research missions study all aspects of our planet, from its oceans, land surfaces and atmosphere, to its biosphere and cryosphere. NASA is a world leader in studying the cause and effects of climate change now and in the future. NASA research contributes to improved air and water quality and promotes healthier lands and wildlife habitats. The agency operates dedicated Earth science spacecraft and conducts research with instruments aboard other national and international satellites. NASA plans several new missions in the next few years, with two launching in 2008. Decision makers around the world use NASA Earth science data to support policy making and resource management decisions. With the world's largest contingent of dedicated Earth scientists and engineers, NASA will host interactive activities that span a variety of topics. NASA also will mark the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 8 Earthrise photograph, which was credited for inspiring environmental movements in the late 1960s and 1970s. Bill Anders, the Apollo 8 astronaut who took the famous "Earthrise" photo, will be available for live NASA Television interviews from 7 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. EDT on Earth Day. Joining Anders will be a NASA scientist to discuss present day NASA Earth science research. Media interested in arranging for live interviews with Anders should contact Al Feinberg on 202-358-1058 by 4 p.m. EDT Friday, or DC Agle at 818-393-9011 by 7 p.m. EDT Monday. NASA TV also will air a special hour-long High-Definition TV broadcast of Earth views taken in HD by astronauts on past space shuttle and space station missions. The HD broadcast will air on the morning of Friday, April 18, from 6 to 8 a.m. EDT, and replay during the same time on Monday, April 21. On Earth Day, the HD broadcast will air from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. EDT. The footage also will be broadcast on standard NASA TV during the regular Video File hours those days. For information on how to receive the special HD broadcast, and information about NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv To commemorate Earth Day on NASA's Web site, http://www.nasa.gov, the agency will feature several new items, including the 10 most outstanding Earth views taken by astronauts aboard the space station. Web features also will highlight a breathtaking series of nighttime images of city lights from orbit gathered by astronaut Don Pettit, who lived aboard the station in 2003. Pettit narrates the imagery, which he gathered using a special mechanism he developed to steady the camera and track cities as the station flew overhead at five miles per second. The site also will provide opportunities for visitors to share their opinions. NASA Earth Day center activities include: Ames Research Center at Moffet Field, Calif. -- A media availability on Earth Day for reporters to interview Earth scientists and experts -- A Directors Colloquium on April 17, co-sponsored with the GREEN Team, focusing on "Monitoring and Modeling the Life Support Systems of Planet Earth" Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. -- Panel discussions and presentations, including researchers Peter Hildebrand and James Hansen Glenn Research Center in Cleveland -- Presentation by Mark Shanahan, the Ohio governor's energy advisor Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. -- EarthFest (April 26) features lectures, panel discussions and interactive Earth activities -- "Park and Walk Day." Employees are encouraged to park their cars on Earth Day and walk to meetings, reducing the NASA carbon footprint Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. -- "One Green Step for Man -- One Green Planet for Mankind" public event that includes presentations and a tree planting dedication Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. -- Community fair featuring Earth photo contests, exhibits by local environmental agencies and demonstrations of Earth-friendly products Wallops Flight Research Facility on Wallops Island, Va. -- Public event (April 26) featuring presentations and activities, including a scavenger hunt For more information about these activities, please contact the public affairs office at the individual NASA field center. For more on NASA's Earth science activities, visit:

NASA STATEMENT ON STUDENT ASTEROID CALCULATIONS WASHINGTON -- The Near-Earth Object Program Office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., has not changed its current estimates for the very low probability (1 in 45,000) of an Earth impact by the asteroid Apophis in 2036. Contrary to recent press reports, NASA offices involved in near-Earth object research were not contacted and have had no correspondence with a young German student, who claims the Apophis impact probability is far higher than the current estimate. This student's conclusion reportedly is based on the possibility of a collision with an artificial satellite during the asteroid's close approach in April 2029. However, the asteroid will not pass near the main belt of geosynchronous satellites in 2029, and the chance of a collision with a satellite is exceedingly remote. Therefore, consideration of this satellite collision scenario does not affect the current impact probability estimate for Apophis, which remains at 1 in 45,000.

NEW NASA MOON MISSION BEGINS INTEGRATION OF SCIENCE INSTRUMENTS GREENBELT, Md. -- Several instruments that will help NASA characterize the moon's surface have been installed on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO. The powerful equipment will bring the moon into sharper focus and reveal new insights about the celestial body nearest Earth. Engineers and technicians on the LRO Integration and Test Team work almost around the clock in a clean room at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., to ready the spacecraft for testing and eventual launch later this year. "The spacecraft really is coming together now," said Cathy Peddie, LRO deputy project manager at Goddard. "We are in the space assembly homestretch and making solid progress. You can begin to see what LRO will look like in all of its glory." Four of six instruments have been mated to the spacecraft, with one to be installed soon and one to arrive in the near future. The instruments are: The Lyman-Alpha Mapping Project was built and developed at the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio. The instrument will map the entire lunar surface in the far ultraviolet spectrum and search for surface ice and frost in the polar regions. It will provide images of permanently shadowed regions that are illuminated only by starlight. The Cosmic Ray Telescope for the Effects of Radiation, or CRaTER, was built and developed by Boston University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Boston. CRaTER will characterize the lunar radiation environment, allowing scientists to determine potential impacts to astronauts and other life. It also will test models on the effects of radiation and measure radiation absorption by a type of plastic that is like human tissue. The results could aid in the development of protective technologies to help keep future lunar crew members safe. Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment was built and developed by the University of California, Los Angeles, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Diviner will measure surface and subsurface temperatures from orbit. It will identify cold traps and potential ice deposits as well as rough terrain and other landing hazards. The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter was conceived and built by scientists and engineers at Goddard. The instrument will measure landing site slopes and lunar surface roughness and generate high resolution three-dimensional maps of the moon. The instrument also will measure and analyze the lunar topography to identify both permanently illuminated and shadowed areas. The Russian-built Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector has arrived from the Institute for Space Research in Moscow. The detector will create high-resolution maps of hydrogen distribution and gather information about the neutron component of lunar radiation. Its data will be analyzed for evidence of water ice near the moon's surface. The remaining instrument, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera from Arizona State University in Tempe, Ariz., will provide high resolution imagery to help identify landing sites and characterize the moon's topography and composition. It should arrive at Goddard in May. Also on board will be the Mini-RF Technology Demonstration experiment sponsored by NASA's Exploration Systems and Space Operations Mission Directorates. The miniaturized radar will be used to image the polar regions and search for water ice. The communications capabilities of the system also will be tested during the mission. The satellite is scheduled to launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in late 2008 on an Atlas V rocket. It will spend one year in low polar orbit on its primary exploration mission, with the possibility of three more years to collect additional detailed scientific information about the moon and its environment. That information will help ensure a safe and productive human return to the moon. The spacecraft is being built and managed by Goddard for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. It will transition to the Science Mission Directorate in 2010. For more information about LRO on the Web, visit:

NASA COMPLETES FIRST FULL-SCALE MOTOR TEST FOR ORION SPACECRAFT WASHINGTON -- NASA has completed the first full-scale rocket motor test for the Constellation Program's Orion spacecraft, a test of a solid rocket that will be used to jettison the craft's launch abort system. Now under development, Orion will be America's next human spacecraft, designed to fly to the International Space Station and be part of a space flight system to return humans to the moon. The Orion jettison motor will separate the craft's launch abort system from the Orion crew module during launch. The Orion launch abort system is a larger solid rocket motor system that will provide a safe escape for the crew in an emergency on the launch pad or during the climb to orbit. The test completed late last month is a critical milestone in NASA's preparations for a series of flight tests planned to begin late this year of the full Orion abort system. "This was a major success for the Orion launch abort system team," said Mark Cooper, NASA's integrated product team lead for launch abort system propulsion at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. "The test provided valuable data on motor performance that will allow design and analytical refinements by our contactor team. The test is the culmination of intense and focused work by the entire jettison motor team." The jettison motor static test firing was conducted by Aerojet Corporation in Sacramento. NASA has partnered with Lockheed Martin Corporation, Orbital Sciences Corporation, and Aerojet to supply the jettison motor. NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., manages the Orion launch abort system design and development effort with partners and team members from Marshall. For still and video imagery to accompany this release, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation For more information about NASA's plans to return to the moon and go beyond, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration

NASA AWARDS SPACE STATION WATER CONTRACT TO HAMILTON SUNDSTRAND WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded a sole-source contract to Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International Inc., Windsor Locks, Conn., for water production services aboard the International Space Station. The firm fixed-price contract has a potential value of $65 million and extends through Sept. 30, 2014. Hamilton Sundstrand will provide equipment that uses the station's excess carbon dioxide and hydrogen to produce water and methane. The methane will be vented into space, and the water will be fed into the station's waste water system, where it will undergo treatment before it is used. Under the contract, NASA will not buy hardware, but instead will purchase the water service. If the system does not work, NASA will not pay for it. "This is a fundamental shift in the way we do business," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for Space Operations. "In the business arrangement we have negotiated for water production services, the contractor is responsible for all system development and performance. The only requirements we have imposed are those associated with safety and interfaces. This provides a procurement and technology test bed for future exploration systems, which need to operate in an environment far from Earth, where routine resupply is not feasible." The equipment employs a chemical process known as a Sabatier reaction. The process is named for French Nobel laureate and chemist Paul Sabatier, who discovered that hydrogen and carbon dioxide produce methane and water at elevated temperatures and pressures. The Hamilton Sundstrand-provided hardware will be flown during shuttle mission STS-130, which is targeted for launch in late 2009. A checkout of the system is planned for May 2010. Hamilton Sundstrand will retain title to the hardware and ensure it meets NASA's space station safety and interface requirements. Water is used on the space station for a variety of purposes, including drinking, food preparation, oxygen generation, electronic equipment cooling and hygiene. About half of the station's water needs are obtained through recycling. The rest of its water currently is transported by the space shuttle or supply ships, including the Russian Progress and European Automated Transfer Vehicle. "We are very excited to provide this service to NASA," said Ed Francis, Hamilton Sundstrand Space, Land & Sea vice president and general manager. "Our experience providing environmental control and life support systems and other hardware for the space station gives us the insight needed to recognize areas we can help NASA. This is a great example of how NASA and industry can work together to benefit both." Hamilton Sundstrand provides a number of systems for the space station, including those that control electrical power and process water, waste and air. The company has been the prime contractor to NASA for astronaut spacesuits since 1981. For information about the International Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

STEPHEN HAWKING SPEAKS AT NASA 50TH ANNIVERSARY EVENT WASHINGTON -- On Monday, April 21, Professor Stephen Hawking of the University of Cambridge will be the featured speaker at a lecture that is part of a series honoring NASA's 50th anniversary. The title of Hawking's lecture is "Why we should go into space." The event will be held at the George Washington University's Morton Auditorium at 3 p.m. EDT. Admission is by invitation only, but reporters are welcome to attend. NASA television will broadcast the event live on the Web at: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv News media representatives should R.S.V.P. by calling 703-556-4861 or e-mailing LM_NASA@hayespr.com. NASA was created by the National Aeronautics and Space Act and began operations on Oct. 1, 1958. The 50th anniversary NASA lecture series features prominent speakers to discuss the benefits that space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research provide in addressing global issues such as the economy, education, health, science and the environment. Lockheed Martin Corporation of Bethesda, Md., is co-sponsoring the two-year lecture series. Hawking's lecture also is being co-sponsored by the Space Policy Institute at George Washington University's Elliott School. For more information about the NASA 50th Anniversary Lecture Series, visit:

NASA EXTENDS CASSINI'S GRAND TOUR OF SATURN PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA is extending the international Cassini-Huygens mission by two years. The historic spacecraft's stunning discoveries and images have revolutionized our knowledge of Saturn and its moons. Cassini's mission originally had been scheduled to end in July 2008. The newly-announced two-year extension will include 60 additional orbits of Saturn and more flybys of its exotic moons. These will include 26 flybys of Titan, seven of Enceladus, and one each of Dione, Rhea and Helene. The extension also includes studies of Saturn's rings, its complex magnetosphere, and the planet itself. "This extension is not only exciting for the science community, but for the world to continue to share in unlocking Saturn's secrets," said Jim Green, director, Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters, Washington. "New discoveries are the hallmarks of its success, along with the breathtaking images beamed back to Earth that are simply mesmerizing." "The spacecraft is performing exceptionally well and the team is highly motivated, so we're excited at the prospect of another two years," said Bob Mitchell, Cassini program manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Based on findings from Cassini, scientists think liquid water may be just beneath the surface of Saturn's moon, Enceladus. That's why the small moon, only one-tenth the size of Titan and one-seventh the size of Earth's moon, is one of the highest-priority targets for the extended mission. Cassini discovered geysers of water-ice jetting from the Enceladus' surface. The geysers, which shoot out at a distance three times the diameter of Enceladus, feed particles into Saturn's most expansive ring. In the extended mission, the spacecraft may come as close as 15 miles from the moon's surface. Cassini's observations of Saturn's largest moon, Titan, have given scientists a glimpse of what Earth might have been like before life evolved. They now believe Titan possesses many parallels to Earth, including lakes, rivers, channels, dunes, rain, snow, clouds, mountains and possibly volcanoes. "When we designed the original tour, we really did not know what we would find, especially at Enceladus and Titan," said Dennis Matson, the JPL Cassini project scientist. "This extended tour is responding to these new discoveries and giving us a chance to look for more." Unlike Earth, Titan's lakes, rivers and rain are composed of methane and ethane, and temperatures reach a chilly minus 290 degrees Fahrenheit. Although Titan's dense atmosphere limits viewing the surface, Cassini's high-resolution radar coverage and imaging by the infrared spectrometer have given scientists a better look. Other activities for Cassini scientists will include monitoring seasons on Titan and Saturn, observing unique ring events, such as the 2009 equinox when the sun will be in the plane of the rings, and exploring new places within Saturn's magnetosphere. Cassini has returned a daily stream of data from Saturn's system for almost four years. Its travel scrapbook includes nearly 140,000 images and information gathered during 62 revolutions around Saturn, 43 flybys of Titan and 12 close flybys of the icy moons. More than 10 years after launch and almost four years after entering into orbit around Saturn, Cassini is a healthy and robust spacecraft. Three of its science instruments have minor ailments, but the impact on science-gathering is minimal. The spacecraft will have enough propellant left after the extended mission to potentially allow a third phase of operations. Data from the extended mission could lay the groundwork for possible new missions to Titan and Enceladus. Cassini launched Oct. 15, 1997, from Cape Canaveral, Fla., on a seven-year journey to Saturn, traversing 2.2 billion miles. It is one of the most scientifically capable spacecraft ever launched, with a record 12 instruments on the orbiter and six more instruments on the European Space Agency's Huygens probe, which piggybacked a ride to Titan on Cassini. Cassini receives electrical power from three radioisotope thermoelectric generators, which generate electricity from heat produced by the natural decay of plutonium. The spacecraft was captured into Saturn orbit in June 2004 and immediately began returning data to Earth. The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project between NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. For more information on the Cassini-Huygens mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/cassini

NASA SPACECRAFT FINE TUNES COURSE FOR MARS LANDING PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA engineers have adjusted the flight path of the Phoenix Mars Lander, setting the spacecraft on course for its May 25th landing on the Red Planet. "This is our first trajectory maneuver targeting a specific location in the northern polar region of Mars," said Brian Portock, chief of the Phoenix navigation team at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. The mission's two prior trajectory maneuvers, made last August and October, adjusted the flight path of Phoenix to intersect with Mars. NASA has conditionally approved a landing site in a broad, flat valley informally called "Green Valley." A final decision will be made after NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter takes additional images of the area this month. The orbiter's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera has taken more than three dozen images of the area. Analysis of those images prompted the Phoenix team to shift the center of the landing target 8 miles southeastward, away from slightly rockier patches to the northwest. Navigators used that new center for planning today's maneuver. The landing area is an ellipse about 62 miles by 12 miles. Researchers have mapped more than five million rocks in and around that ellipse, each big enough to end the mission if hit by the spacecraft during landing. Knowing where to avoid the rockier areas, the team has selected a scientifically exciting target that also offers the best chances for the spacecraft to set itself down safely onto the Martian surface. "Our landing area has the largest concentration of ice on Mars outside of the polar caps. If you want to search for a habitable zone in the arctic permafrost, then this is the place to go," said Peter Smith, principal investigator for the mission, at the University of Arizona, Tucson. Phoenix will dig to an ice-rich layer expected to lie within arm's reach of the surface. It will analyze the water and soil for evidence about climate cycles and investigate whether the environment there has been favorable for microbial life. "We have never before had so much information about a Mars site prior to landing," said Ray Arvidson of Washington University in St. Louis. Arvidson is chairman of the Phoenix landing-site working group and has worked on Mars landings since the first successful Viking landers in 1976. "The environmental risks at landing -- rocks and slopes -- represent the most significant threat to a successful mission. There's always a chance that we'll roll snake eyes, but we have identified an area that is very flat and relatively free of large boulders," said JPL's David Spencer, Phoenix deputy project manager and co-chair of the landing site working group. Today's trajectory adjustment began by pivoting Phoenix 145 degrees to orient and then fire spacecraft thrusters for about 35 seconds, then pivoting Phoenix back to point its main antenna toward Earth. The mission has three more planned opportunities for maneuvers before May 25 to further refine the trajectory for a safe landing at the desired location. In the final seven minutes of its flight on May 25, Phoenix must perform a challenging series of actions to safely decelerate from nearly 13,000 mph. The spacecraft will release a parachute and then use pulse thrusters at approximately 3,000 feet from the surface to slow to about 5 mph and land on three legs. "Landing on Mars is extremely challenging. In fact, not since the 1970's have we had a successful powered landing on this unforgiving planet. There's no guarantee of success, but we are doing everything we can to mitigate the risks," said Doug McCuistion, director of NASA's Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. For more information about Phoenix, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix

NASA EARTH SCIENTIST TO HEAD PROGRAMS OFFICE IN SCIENCE DIRECTORATE WASHINGTON -- Michael R. Luther has been named deputy associate administrator for programs in NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Ed Weiler, associate administrator for the directorate, made the announcement Wednesday. Luther will be responsible for overseeing the safe and successful execution of the directorate's 36 missions currently in formulation and development, as well as 54 operating science missions. Prior to this appointment, Luther was deputy director for programs in the Science Mission Directorate's Earth Science Division. "Mike brings an unprecedented amount of knowledge in overall science programs along with extensive experience in Earth research. That experience will be invaluable as we prepare for upcoming Earth-related launches and campaigns," said Weiler. Luther began his tenure at NASA Headquarters in 1987 and has served as program manager of the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite and Earth science flight program director. He has worked at NASA since 1981 when he joined Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va. In 2005, Luther received the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal. "It is an honor and a privilege to assist Ed Weiler and Deputy Associate Administrator Chuck Gay in managing the world's premier civilian space science organization," Luther said. Luther's predecessor, Todd May, who served in the position since 2007, will return to Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. NASA's Science Mission Directorate conducts research and scientific programs to observe the Earth, study space weather and explore the solar system and the universe beyond. To achieve these scientific goals, NASA manages a diverse constellation of spacecraft and conducts an assortment of grant-based research programs. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA LAUNCHES NEW SCIENCE WEB SITE WASHINGTON -- NASA's Science Mission Directorate has launched a new Web site that provides enhanced and engaging information about NASA's vast scope of scientific endeavors and achievements. The site will provide in-depth coverage of NASA's past, present and future science missions with features that include: - Interactive tables and searches for Earth, heliophysics, planetary and astrophysics missions - Insight into dark matter and dark energy, planets around other stars, climate change, Mars and space weather - Resources for researchers including links to upcoming science solicitations and opportunities - A mapping of science questions for NASA science missions and the data they produce - A citizen-scientist page with access to resources that equip the public to engage in scientific investigation - Expanded "For Educators" and "For Kids" pages to provide access to a broader range of resources for learning the science behind NASA missions - Easy-to-navigate design and an improved search engine to help find information Visit the new NASA science Web site at: http://nasascience.nasa.gov

SHAPING THE MOONSCAPE: WORKERS READY COURSE FOR NASA'S 15TH ANNUAL GREAT MOONBUGGY RACE IN HUNTSVILLE, ALA., APRIL 4-5 HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- Each year around this time, John Tripp walks across a lunar surface, pondering the challenges ahead for explorers brave enough to take on its cratered terrain. For now, his "moon" is a winding ribbon of cement footpaths looped around Huntsville's famed U.S. Space and Rocket Center, where Tripp is a construction foreman. By month's end, a half-mile of the paths will be transformed into a harsh lunar landscape that will test the engineering savvy and physical endurance of about 400 high school and college students on 68 teams converging here April 4-5 for NASA's 15th annual Great Moonbuggy Race. The event is organized by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville. The students, hailing from 20 states, Puerto Rico, Canada, India and Germany, are coming to race lightweight moonbuggies they designed, based on the original lunar rovers first used during the Apollo 15 moon mission in 1971. Tripp's construction team will greet them with 17 unique course obstacles, built of plywood and old tires, and covered with 20 tons of gravel and 5 tons of sand. All of it will be reshaped into moon-like ridges, craters, sandy basins and lava-etched "rilles." The course was designed in 1993 by Dr. Larry Taylor, a lunar geologist at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, Dr. J.M. Wersinger, a physics professor at Auburn University in Auburn, Ala., and Marshall's University Affairs Officer Dr. Frank Six. It proved so challenging that race planners began adding hay bales for added safety; about 175 bales will line the course this year. Even so, seatbelts are a requirement. The students appear ready for the challenge. For two days, their vehicles will brave the course against the backdrop of some of America's most famous rockets and space vehicles. Cheered on by hundreds of friends and spectators, they'll vie for cash prizes and trophies awarded by NASA and corporate sponsors. Each moonbuggy starts the competition disassembled and folded for transport -- like the actual rovers flown to the moon in the early 1970s. Each buggy must fit into a space no larger than 4 feet in width, height and length. It must be carried in "collapsed" mode to the starting line, assembled, then checked for all required parts -- fenders, a flag and simulated hardware, including batteries, a communications antenna, radio and TV camera. Then, they're off. Each rover is piloted by two students: one male, one female. The buggies race against the clock instead of each other. Drivers push hard to conquer each obstacle without exceeding the race's 15-minute time limit -- a new rule in 2008. Tripp keeps the moonbuggy course safe, but tough. As the person in charge of the course for the past 13 years, he's made a science of getting the right blend of sand and rock, and building the right combinations of steep and shallow features. He has to stay sharp, he said, because student builders grow ever more sophisticated, refining their designs from year to year to field sturdier buggies. The schools also consult with each another. Veterans compare concepts and give new teams free insight. "That camaraderie is exciting to see," says Tammy Rowan, manager of Marshall's Academic Affairs Office, which organizes the race each year. "The race doesn't just pit schools against one another. It's a shared experience for students who love math, science and engineering. We hope it shows them the community and partnership that awaits them in these career fields, and provides practical, hands-on experience to reinforce their class work." Tripp admits he enjoys making the experience a true challenge. His course never fails to keep the pit crews in NASA's repairs tent busy on race day - welding snapped struts, and replacing bent wheels and sprockets. But most teams push through and Tripp likes that too. "Some of them reach the end and just fall over exhausted," Tripp said. "But they get there. That's what it's all about." The 2008 race is sponsored by NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate, along with the Northrop Grumman Corp., The Boeing Company and Teledyne Brown Engineering, all of Huntsville. Additional contributors include the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics; ATK Launch Systems, Inc.; CBS-TV affiliate WHNT (Ch. 19); Jacobs Engineering Science Technical Service Group; Stanley Associates; Science Applications International Corp.; the Tennessee Valley chapter of the System Safety Society Inc.; the United Space Alliance, LLC; and the U.S. Space & Rocket Center

SATURN'S MOON RHEA ALSO MAY HAVE RINGS PASADENA, Calif. - NASA's Cassini spacecraft has found evidence of material orbiting Rhea, Saturn's second largest moon. This is the first time rings may have been found around a moon. A broad debris disk and at least one ring appear to have been detected by a suite of six instruments on Cassini specifically designed to study the atmospheres and particles around Saturn and its moons. "Until now, only planets were known to have rings, but now Rhea seems to have some family ties to its ringed parent Saturn," said Geraint Jones, Cassini scientist, and lead author on a paper that appears in the March 7 issue of the journal Science. Jones began this work while at the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Katlenburg-Lindau, Germany, and is now at the Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College, London. Rhea is roughly 950 miles in diameter. The apparent debris disk measures several thousand miles from end to end. The particles that make up the disk and any embedded rings probably range from the size of small pebbles to boulders. An additional dust cloud may extend up to 3,000 miles from the moon's center, almost eight times the radius of Rhea. "Like finding planets around other stars, and moons around asteroids, these findings are opening a new field of rings around moons," said Norbert Krupp, a scientist on Cassini's Magnetospheric Imaging Instrument from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research. Since the discovery, Cassini scientists have carried out numerical simulations to determine if Rhea can maintain rings. The models show that Rhea's gravity field, in combination with its orbit around Saturn, could allow rings that form to remain in place for a very long time. The discovery was a result of a Cassini close flyby of Rhea in November 2005, when instruments on the spacecraft observed the environment around the moon. Three instruments sampled the dust directly. The existence of some debris was expected because a rain of dust constantly hits Saturn's moons, including Rhea, knocking particles into space around them. Other instruments' observations showed how the moon was interacting with Saturn's magnetosphere, and ruled out the possibility of an atmosphere. Evidence for a debris disk in addition to this tenuous dust cloud came from a gradual drop on either side of Rhea in the number of electrons detected by two of Cassini's instruments. Material near Rhea appeared to be shielding Cassini from the usual rain of electrons. Cassini's Magnetospheric Imaging Instrument also detected sharp, brief drops in electrons on both sides of the moon, suggesting the presence of rings within the disk of debris. The rings of Uranus were found in a similar fashion, by NASA's Kuiper Airborne Observatory in 1977, when light from a star blinked on and off as it passed behind Uranus' rings. "Seeing almost the same signatures on either side of Rhea was the clincher," added Jones. "After ruling out many other possibilities, we said these are most likely rings. No one was expecting rings around a moon." One possible explanation for these rings is that they are remnants from an asteroid or comet collision in Rhea's distant past. Such a collision may have pitched large quantities of gas and solid particles around Rhea. Once the gas dissipated, all that remained were the ring particles. Other moons of Saturn, such as Mimas, show evidence of a catastrophic collision that almost tore the moon apart. "The diversity in our solar system never fails to amaze us," said Candy Hansen, co-author and Cassini scientist on the Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrograph at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. JPL manages Cassini for NASA. "Many years ago we thought Saturn was the only planet with rings. Now we may have a moon of Saturn that is a miniature version of its even more elaborately decorated parent." These ring findings make Rhea a prime candidate for further study. Initial observations by the imaging team when Rhea was near the sun in the sky did not detect dust near the moon remotely. Additional observations are planned to look for the larger particles. The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Magnetospheric Imaging Instrument was designed, built and is operated by an international team led by the Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins

NASA AWARDS EXTERNAL TANK CONTRACT MODIFICATION WASHINGTON - NASA has signed a $47.5 million contract modification with Lockheed Martin, New Orleans, for space shuttle external fuel tanks. The modification aligns and extends all activities associated with the production contract to include final assembly of one tank, partial manufacture of a tank and the acquisition of the component parts for one additional tank to serve as spares. The modification supports the agency's priorities of safely flying the space shuttle, completing construction of the International Space Station and NASA's long-term plan to return astronauts to the moon and beyond. The cost plus award fee/incentive fee contract will conclude Sept. 30, 2010, and brings the total value of the contract, awarded in October 2000, to $2.93 billion. The contract calls for the delivery of 18 external tanks to NASA. Work will be performed at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Lockheed Martin builds, assembles and tests the space shuttle external tanks for NASA at the Michoud facility. The external tank holds the liquid hydrogen fuel and liquid oxygen for the shuttle's three main engines. It is the largest single component of the space shuttle and the only part of the shuttle that is not reused. At 154 feet tall, the gigantic rust-colored tank is taller than a 15-story building and as wide as a silo, with a diameter of about 27.5 feet. During launch, the tank acts as the structural backbone for the shuttle orbiter and the solid rocket boosters attached to it.

NASA AWARDS CONSTELLATION PROGRAM SUPPORT CONTRACT WASHINGTON - NASA has awarded SGT Inc. of Greenbelt, Md., a contract for support services for Constellation Program, which is developing new spacecraft to travel beyond low Earth orbit. The Constellation fleet includes the Orion crew vehicle, the Ares I and Ares V launch vehicles and Altair human lunar lander. The small business contract has a potential value of $60 million with options. Work on the contract will be performed at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston with additional work possible at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., and NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. SGT Inc. will provide program planning and control services supporting the Constellation Program. Services include the program's business management, configuration and data management, requirements analysis and integration, schedule management and integration and technology protection. The base period of the indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity, cost-plus-award-fee contract is three years, effective April 11. The contract's base value is not to exceed $60 million. Two one-year extension options are available and could bring the total contract value to $100 million.

NASA VIEWS LANDING SITE THROUGH EYES OF FUTURE MOON CREW WASHINGTON - NASA has obtained the highest resolution terrain mapping to date of the moon's rugged south polar region, with a resolution to 20 meters per pixel. Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., collected the data using the facility's Goldstone Solar System Radar located in California's Mojave Desert. The imagery generated by the data has been incorporated into animation depicting the descent to the lunar surface of a future human lunar lander and a flyover of Shackleton Crater. The mapping data collected indicate that the region of the moon's south pole near Shackleton Crater is much more rugged than previously understood. The Shackleton rim area is considered a candidate landing site for a future human mission to the moon. "The south pole of the moon certainly would be a beautiful place to explore," said Doug Cooke, deputy associate administrator for the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, Washington. "We now know the south pole has peaks as high as Mt. McKinley and crater floors four times deeper than the Grand Canyon. There are challenges that come with such rugged terrain, and these data will be an invaluable tool for advance planning of lunar missions." Three times during a six-month period in 2006, scientists targeted the moon's south polar region using Goldstone's 70-meter radar dish. The antenna, three-quarters the size of a football field, sent a 500-kilowatt strong, 90-minute long radar stream 231,800 miles to the moon. The radar bounced off the rough-hewn lunar terrain over an area measuring about 400 miles by 250 miles. Signals were reflected back to two of Goldstone's 34-meter antennas on Earth. The roundtrip time, from the antenna to the moon and back, was about two-and-a-half seconds. "I have not been to the moon, but this imagery is the next best thing," said Scott Hensley, a scientist at JPL and lead investigator for the study. "With these data we can see terrain features as small as a house without even leaving the office." Previously, the best resolution of the moon's south pole was generated by the Clementine spacecraft, which could resolve lunar terrain features near the south pole at 1 kilometer per pixel. The new resolution generated by JPL is 50 times more detailed. NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will provide the next generation of lunar imaging and data. The spacecraft is scheduled to launch in late 2008. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera will retrieve high resolution images of the moon's surface and lunar poles with resolutions to 1 meter. These images will provide knowledge of polar illumination conditions, identify potential resources and hazards, and enable safe landing site selection. Other instruments aboard the orbiter will return data such as temperature maps, ultraviolet images, characterization of radiation on the moon and a high resolution 3-D map. NASA's quest for up-to-date imagery of the moon also will benefit from international missions such as Japan's Selene robotic probe. Funding for the program was provided by NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. To view animation, terrain maps of the moon's south pole and images from this story, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/exploration/mmb/022708.html Video animation developed from the high resolution imaging also will air on NASA Television. For NASA TV downlink and schedule information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv JPL manages the Goldstone Solar System Radar and the Deep Space Network for NASA. To learn more about them, visit: http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn For information about NASA's exploration program to return humans to the moon, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration

NASA'S NEWEST CONCEPT VEHICLE TAKES OFF-ROADING OUT OF THIS WORLD HOUSTON - In a car commercial, it would sound odd: active suspension, six-wheel drive with independent steering for each wheel, no doors, no windows, no seats and the only color available is gold. But NASA's latest concept vehicle is meant to go way off-road, as in 240,000 miles from the nearest pavement, and drive on the moon. NASA is working to send astronauts to the moon by 2020 to set up a lunar outpost, where they will do scientific research and prepare for journeys to more distant destinations. Built at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, the new design is one concept for a future lunar truck. The vehicle provides an idea of what the transportation possibilities may be when astronauts start exploring the moon. Other than a few basic requirements, the primary instruction given to the designers was to throw away assumptions made on NASA's previous rovers and come up with new ideas. "To be honest with you, it was scary when we started," said Lucien Junkin, a Johnson robotics engineer and the design lead for the prototype rover. "They tasked us last October to build the next generation rover and challenge the conventional wisdom. The idea is that, in the future, NASA can put this side-by-side with alternate designs and start to pick their features." One of the first standards to go was the traditional expectation that a vehicle should have four wheels. Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity, still cruising around the Red Planet, have already proved the value of a couple of extra wheels. When one of the six wheels became inoperable, the rovers had no problem rolling on using the remaining five. With the number of wheels decided, the next question was how those wheels should turn. On a car, the front wheels turn a few inches in either direction, and both wheels point in the same direction. On this rover, all six wheels can pivot individually in any direction, regardless of where any other wheel points. To parallel park, a driver could pull up next to the parking place, turn all the wheels to the right and slide right in. Of course, astronauts will not have trouble finding a parking space on the moon. But the feature, called crab steering, has advantages for a vehicle designed to drive into the craters of the moon. If a slope is too steep to drive down safely, the vehicle could drive sideways instead - no backing up or three-point turns required. The all-wheels, all-ways steering also could come in handy when unloading and docking payloads or plugging into a habitat for recharging. Introducing crab steering drove the concept in several other ways. If the rover's wheels turn to drive in a different direction, the driver needs to be able to do the same. The driver stands at the steering mechanism because sitting in a spacesuit is not comfortable or practical. The astronaut's perch - steering mechanism, driver and all - can pivot 360 degrees. "The Apollo astronauts couldn't back up at all because they couldn't see where they were going in reverse," said Rob Ambrose, assistant chief of the Automation, Robotics and Simulation Division at Johnson. "If you have a payload on the back or are plugging into something, it could be really important to keep your eyes directly on it." The vehicle also can be the ultimate low-rider. It can lower its belly to the ground, making it easier for astronauts in spacesuits to climb on and off. Individual wheels or sections can be raised and lowered to keep the vehicle level when driving on uneven ground. Some, all or none of these features may be selected for the design of a rover that eventually goes to the moon. NASA's lunar architects currently envision pressurized rovers that would travel in pairs, with two astronauts in each rover. The new prototype vehicle is meant to provide ideas as those future designs are developed. "This rover concept changed the whole paradigm," said Diane Hope, program element manager for NASA's Exploration Technology Development Program at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., which sponsored the vehicle's development. "It's not something I would have expected. It provides an alternative approach." To view images of the lunar truck and another rover technology in development, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/constellation/main/lunar_truck.html A Video File of the lunar truck will air on NASA Television. For schedule and downlink information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

NASA ANNOUNCES AGENCY QUALITY AWARD WINNERS WASHINGTON - NASA has presented its highest honor for quality and technical performance, the George M. Low Award, to four companies committed to innovative management, process quality and customer service. The awards were presented Tuesday at NASA's fifth annual Project Management Challenge Conference in Daytona Beach, Fla. Winners received a trophy with a medallion alloyed with material flown to the moon on Apollo 11. The 2007 Low Awards were given in the business service and product categories. Lockheed Martin Mission Services of Houston, nominated by NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, received the award for the large business service category. Sierra Lobo Inc. of Milan, Ohio, nominated by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., won the small business service category. Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne Inc. of Canoga Park, Calif., also nominated by Marshall, won the award for large business product. ASRS Aerospace Corporation of Cape Canaveral, Fla., nominated by NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, won the small business product award. The agency also recognized four finalists: Boeing Space Operations Company, Cape Canaveral; Oceaneering International Inc., Houston; Space Systems Division at Jacobs Engineering, Huntsville; and the National Institutes of Aerospace, Hampton, Va. Established in 1985, NASA's Excellence Award for Quality and Productivity demonstrates the agency's commitment to promote excellence and continual improvement by challenging the NASA's contractor community to be a global benchmark of quality management practices. In 1990, the award was renamed in memory of George M. Low, an outstanding NASA leader who contributed greatly during his 27-year tenure. Low was the deputy administrator from 1969-1976 and a leader in the early development of NASA's space programs. The agency also presented Quality and Safety Achievement Recognition (QASAR) awards to four individuals committed to safety. The award recognizes individual government and contractor employees who have demonstrated exemplary performance in contributing to the quality and/or safety of products, services, processes, or management programs and activities. This year's QASAR winners were: Michael Sampson and Melonie Scofield of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.; Russell Bakes of ATK Launch Systems, Brigham City, Utah; and Thelma Cox of the Stennis Defense Contract Management Agency office in New Orleans.

NEW WEB FEATURE SHOWS HOW NASA TECHNOLOGIES IMPROVE OUR LIVES WASHINGTON - NASA has added to its Web site an interactive program that allows users to discover some of the many NASA technologies that positively impact everyday life. NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale unveiled NASA at Home and NASA City Tuesday in Denver at the 3rd Space Exploration Conference. The interactive site takes users on an illustrated tour of the commercial technologies and products in their homes and cities that trace their origins to NASA's investment in space and aeronautics research and development. NASA has documented more than 1,500 examples of how NASA technologies have been used for bettering life on Earth. Visitors can scroll over technologies grouped by themes such as the home, airport, grocery store, sports arena, hospital, public safety, and manufacturing. After entering an area, users can read a short description of the technology to learn more about products such as temperature-regulated clothing from materials used in astronauts' suits and gloves, wireless headset telephone technology pioneered to transmit the first words from the moon, fire-resistant paint and steel coatings from NASA's heat shield technology, and remote-controlled ovens based on technology used aboard the International Space Station. Users also can connect to NASA's complete database of associated spinoff technologies from NASA at Home and NASA City.

NASA ISSUES DRAFT PROGRAMMATIC ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR SHUTTLE TRANSITION WASHINGTON - NASA has issued a draft programmatic environmental assessment on potential impacts resulting from the Space Shuttle Program's move toward retirement in 2010 and the transition to the Constellation Program. The assessment concludes that, because of the use of shuttle components and facilities by the Constellation Program, potential environmental impacts from disposing of the shuttle program's real and personal property would be minimal to moderate, depending on the property disposition method. The study also assesses the social and economic influence of the shuttle program on the regions around NASA's major centers. Analysis shows that the contribution of the shuttle program is relatively modest in proportion to the overall economic activity of the regions, less than one percent, except in the Kennedy Space Center, Fla., region, where it is less than three percent. The National Environmental Policy Act requires federal agencies to consider the potential environmental consequences of their proposed actions before deciding whether and how to proceed. NASA developed this draft programmatic environmental assessment to help make informed decisions on the best options for disposing of shuttle assets. The draft programmatic environmental assessment examines the effects of implementing a centralized process to dispose of shuttle program real and personal property. Real property includes items such as buildings, structures and land, while personal property includes items such as flight hardware, parts, and materials. While the shuttle program is scheduled for retirement in 2010, disposition activities for excess property are underway and may extend several years past the final flight in 2010. Options for disposal of property include reuse by other NASA programs, storing for future NASA use, demolition, or release to the General Services Administration for disposition. NASA will accept public comments on the draft programmatic environmental assessment through March 28, 2008. The final programmatic environmental assessment is expected to be complete in spring 2008. An appendix in the final programmatic environmental assessment will include public comments and NASA's responses. NASA expects to provide a formal decision on the method of the shuttle program property disposition activities in early 2009. The draft programmatic environmental assessment is available at all NASA centers and on the Web at: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/main/pea.html NASA also has prepared the Final Constellation Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement to address the potential environmental impacts associated with continuing preparation for and implementation of the Constellation Program.

NASA CO-SPONSORS OCEAN VOYAGE TO PROBE CLIMATE-RELEVANT GASES WASHINGTON - More than 30 scientists will embark next week on a research mission to the Southern Ocean. Researchers will battle the elements to study how gases important to climate change move between the atmosphere and the ocean under high winds and seas. NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Science Foundation are sponsoring the Southern Ocean Gas Exchange Experiment, a six-week research expedition aboard the NOAA ship Ronald H. Brown, departing Feb. 28 from Punta Arenas, Chile. The Ronald H. Brown is a state-of-the-art oceanographic research platform and the largest research vessel in the NOAA fleet. Scientists from dozens of universities and research institutions plan to measure turbulence, waves, bubbles, temperature and ocean color, and investigate how these factors relate to the air-sea exchange of carbon dioxide and other climate-relevant gases. The research will help improve the accuracy of climate models and predictions. The world's oceans are estimated to absorb about 2 billion metric tons of carbon from the atmosphere every year, which is about 30 percent of the total annual global emissions of carbon dioxide. Scientists know higher wind speeds promote faster exchange of gases, but there have been very few studies aimed at directly measuring these exchanges under real world conditions where other factors, such as breaking waves, can influence the process. "NASA's ongoing effort to understand the global carbon cycle will benefit from the data this cruise will produce about the mechanisms that govern gas transfer in this remote part of the world's ocean," said Paula Bontempi, manager of NASA's ocean biology and biogeochemistry research program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "NASA's global satellite observations of ocean color that reveal so much about the health of our oceans also will be improved in this region as we validate what our space-based sensors see with direct measurements taken at sea." NASA's Aqua satellite makes ocean color observations over the Southern Ocean every few days with the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer. The satellite, launched in 2002, uses six instruments to make global measurements of the atmosphere, land, oceans, and snow and ice cover. The Southern Ocean covers a vast area and has some of the roughest seas on Earth. "It is the largest ocean region where the surface waters directly connect to the ocean interior, providing a pathway into the deep sea for carbon dioxide released from human activities," said Christopher Sabine, an oceanographer at NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, Seattle, and co-chief scientist on the cruise. "Understanding how atmospheric carbon dioxide is absorbed into these cold surface waters under high winds speeds is important for determining how the ocean uptake of carbon dioxide will respond to future climate change." "We will be directly assessing the rate and mechanism by which the ocean is taking up carbon and releasing it," said cruise co-chief scientist David Ho of Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University, Palisades, N.Y. "This is the first U.S.-led effort to use all the state-of-the-art tools that we have to quantify gas exchange in the Southern Ocean. After years of planning, it is extremely satisfying to see the experiment finally take place." For more information on the experiment on the Web, visit: http://so-gasex.org For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home

NASA DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR AND OHIO GOVERNOR DISCUSS BENEFITS OF SPACE EXPLORATION AT COLUMBUS FUTURE FORUM COLUMBUS, Ohio - NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale and Gov. Ted Strickland discussed Thursday during a Future Forum in Columbus how space exploration gives Ohioans a more competitive economy and better quality of life. The event, which was part of a yearlong series of events across the country marking NASA's 50th anniversary, took place at the city's Center of Science and Industry, known as COSI. "Ohio's history in innovation and exploration has hugely contributed to our nation's achievements in science and technology," Strickland said. "We will continue to build on this legacy as we work to bring the jobs of the future to our state." Astronaut Carl Walz, an Ohio native and director of the Advanced Capabilities Division in NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, discussed the agency's plans to return to the moon and beyond. Other NASA participants included astronaut Piers Sellers; Woodrow Whitlow, director of NASA's Glenn Research Center, Cleveland; Geoffrey Landis, a researcher at Glenn; and John Hairston, director of external affairs at Glenn. Ohio has a rich, diverse history in the nation's space program - from 38 astronauts who have called Ohio home to grants that fund education opportunities for future explorers. Ohio is home to three active NASA Explorer Schools, each of which has received a grant to purchase technology tools, online services and in-service support to engage students in science and mathematics. In addition, Glenn plays a pivotal role in the development of the next generation of spacecraft for travel to the moon and beyond. "COSI is proud to support this commemorative NASA event. Hosting the Future Forum in Columbus allows us to showcase our region's dedication to science and technology on a world stage, and is a testament to the strong link between NASA and Ohio," said David E. Chesebrough, president and CEO of COSI. "Our mission is to engage the public with real science and research, and this forum uniquely helps to fulfill that goal." Panels throughout the day featured open discussions among NASA representatives and Ohio academic and commercial groups regarding the future of space exploration. Panelists included representatives from COSI, Ohio State University, technology trade group TechColumbus, Entrotech, Battelle and BioOhio, all of Columbus; the Northeast Ohio Technology Corp., the NASA Ohio Space Grant Consortium and NASA's Glenn Research Center, all of Cleveland; the University of Dayton; and Ball Aerospace, Boulder, Colo. The Columbus Future Forum was sponsored in part by the National Space Grant College and Fellowship Program. Other sponsors include Ball Aerospace and Raytheon Corp., Waltham, Mass. For complete biographical information about Dale, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/about/highlights/dale_bio.html For more information about COSI, visit: http://www.cosi.org

NASA ANNOUNCES ROTARY WING AIRCRAFT RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES WASHINGTON - NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate has amended its NASA Research Announcement to solicit additional research proposals. The "Research Opportunities in Aeronautics 2007" has been amended to include new topics in support of the Subsonic Rotary Wing Project. With the amendment, the Subsonic Rotary Wing Project encourages proposals that advance the state-of-the-art in engine compressor technology, transmission noise modeling, low-frequency noise effects and rotorcraft icing methodology. The challenge of the project is to develop validated physics-based multidisciplinary design and analysis tools for rotorcraft, integrated with technology development, enabling rotorcraft with advanced capabilities to fly as designed for any mission. Meeting this challenge will require innovative technologies and methods, with an emphasis on integrated, multidisciplinary, first-principle computational tools specifically applicable to the unique problems of rotary wing aircraft. NASA plans to announce additional research topics in other project areas in the near future. For updates, visit NASA's Research Opportunities Web site at: http://nspires.nasaprs.com NASA expects that educational institutions, nonprofit organizations and industry engaged in foundational research will be the primary award recipients for this announcement. Specific evaluation criteria, deadlines and points of contact are available in the announcement.

NASA AWARDS REUSABLE SOLID ROCKET MOTORS CONTRACT MODIFICATION WASHINGTON - NASA has awarded a contract modification valued at $812.5 million to ATK Launch Systems Inc., of Brigham City, Utah, for continued delivery of space shuttle reusable solid rocket motors. The modification changes the current contract to align production to launch schedule requirements through Sept. 30, 2010. The modification reflects adjustments made in the shuttle manifest and makes deliveries consistent with the planned retirement of the space shuttle in September 2010. ATK Launch Systems Inc. will produce and refurbish flight and ground-test reusable solid rocket motors for the Space Shuttle Program on this cost-plus-award fee contract, which was awarded in October 1998. Work will be performed at the contractor's plants in Brigham City and Clearfield, Utah, along with facilities at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. For more information about the Space Shuttle Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA SPONSORS STUDIES OF NEXT GENERATION ASTRONOMY MISSIONS WASHINGTON - NASA has selected 19 science teams to conduct yearlong studies of new concepts for its next generation of major observatories. The studies will help NASA make decisions about how it explores the heavens in the future, following the Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey. Every 10 years, astronomers and physicists from across the U.S. work with the National Academy of Sciences to define the future research directions for the fields of astronomy and astrophysics. The science teams' work is part of an effort to ensure that technical and cost input is accurate for this upcoming Astronomy and Astrophysics Decadal Survey. The survey produces directions that guide federal agencies such as NASA and the National Science Foundation in planning their programs over the coming decade. "Astrophysics is truly in a golden age, revolutionizing our knowledge of topics as diverse and compelling as the origin and evolution of the universe, the physics of black holes and the distribution and habitability of planetary systems across our galaxy," said Alan Stern, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, Washington. "The exciting new astrophysics mission concept studies we are funding will seed preparations for astronomical space missions and paradigm-shifting discoveries across the early 21st century. Today, NASA's Science Mission Directorate is setting sail on a whole new chapter in continued U.S. leadership in astrophysics." The concept studies total approximately $12 million in fiscal years 2008 and 2009, ranging in cost from $250,000 to $1 million. Among the ideas selected for further study as potential new space telescopes are: -A study of the organic molecules in interstellar space and star-forming clouds (Scott Sandford, NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.); -A census of black holes in our galaxy and distant galaxies and of the birth of stellar black holes in the early universe (Jonathan Grindlay, Harvard College Observatory, Cambridge, Mass.); -A test of theories that predict a rapid inflationary expansion when the universe was less than a fraction of a second old by characterizing the distribution of distant galaxies (Gary Melnick, Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, Cambridge); -Observations of faint signatures of polarized light in the cosmic microwave background that will also reveal information about inflationary expansion (Stephan Meyer, University of Chicago); -Exploration of the origins of cosmic rays (James Adams, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.). Several different methods to search for and characterize exoplanets, planets that orbit a star outside our solar system, also were chosen. Among these approaches are: - Precise mapping of the movements of stars induced by planets circling them (Geoffrey Marcy, University of California, Berkeley); -Direct imaging of giant planets around nearby stars (Mark Clampin, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.; Olivier Guyon, University of Arizona; Tuscon; John Trauger and Michael Shao, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.); -Imaging nearby Earth-sized worlds using large telescopes with multiple instruments and separate spacecraft to block the light from these exoplanets' host star (Webster Cash, University of Colorado, Boulder; David Spergel, Princeton University, N.J.). Some of the proposals explore a powerful new combination of telescopes and instruments optimized for observing the tenuous filaments of intergalactic hydrogen gas known as the cosmic web gas (Kenneth Sembach, Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore) or star formation in our own and distant galaxies (Paul Scowen, Arizona State University, Tempe). Another mission would place two laser beacons on Mars. Precise measurements of the distance to these beacons would provide the most stringent test yet of Einstein's theory of general relativity (Thomas Murphy, University of California, San Diego). NASA also will sponsor studies about how to create the next generation of extremely precise and large optics for X-ray and optical astronomy (Roger Brissenden; Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory; Marc Postman, Space Telescope Science Institute). Another study investigates the possibility of putting an extremely large array of radio telescopes on the lunar surface to map clouds of hydrogen gas that formed during the infancy of our universe, even before the first stars (Jacqueline Hewitt, MIT; Cambridge; Joseph Lazio, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington). "The number, range, and quality of the proposals submitted indicate very powerfully the level of enthusiasm in the community for addressing frontier astrophysics research and employing the very latest technologies," said Jon Morse, division director for Astrophysics, NASA Headquarters. "This early investment directed toward the decadal study will pay off in the coming years." The studies' results are expected in March 2009. Concepts that rank highly in the decadal survey may result in missions that would launch after the suite of missions in development such as the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope, scheduled to launch in May, the Kepler mission, scheduled to launch in 2009, and the James Webb Space Telescope, scheduled to launch in 2013. For more information on NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA UPDATES ENDEAVOUR'S MOVE TO LAUNCH PAD MONDAY CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Endeavour's rollout to Launch Pad 39A at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., has been rescheduled for 12:01 a.m. on Monday, Feb. 18. Endeavour is targeted to lift off March 11 on the 16-day STS-123 mission to the International Space Station. The first movement of the shuttle will be approximately seven hours earlier than previously scheduled. The fully assembled space shuttle, consisting of the orbiter, external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters, will be mounted on a Mobile Launcher Platform and delivered to the pad on top of a crawler transporter. The crawler will travel slower than 1 mph during the 3.4-mile journey. The process is expected to take approximately six hours. NASA Television's Media Channel will provide live coverage of Endeavour at the launch pad beginning at 6:30 a.m. Video highlights of the rollout will air during NASA TV Video File segments. Media are invited to a photo opportunity of the shuttle at the pad and an interview availability with Endeavour Flow Director Ken Tenbusch at 8 a.m. Monday. Dates and times of this event are subject to change. Updates are available by calling 321-867-2525. Weather permitting, as part of NASA's 50th anniversary activities, the Air Force Thunderbirds will fly over Endeavour at the launch pad at approximately 10:15 a.m. Journalists must arrive at Kennedy's news center by 6 a.m. for transportation to the viewing area. Foreign news media accreditation for this event is closed. Foreign media with credentials must arrive at the Pass and Identification Building on State Road 3 by 6 a.m. for transportation to the news center. The STS-123 mission will deliver the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Kibo laboratory and the Canadian Space Agency's two-armed robotic system, Dextre. Five spacewalks will be conducted during the flight. Endeavour will be commanded by Dominic Gorie. Gregory H. Johnson will be the pilot. Mission specialists will be Robert L. Behnken, Mike Foreman, Rick Linnehan, Garrett Reisman and Japanese astronaut Takao Doi. Reisman will remain on the station as a resident crew member, replacing station Flight Engineer Leopold Eyharts of the European Space Agency, who will return home on Endeavour. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For more information about the STS-123 mission and crew, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts123/index.html

NASA UNVEILS $17.6 BILLION BUDGET WASHINGTON - NASA announced a $17.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2009 to continue exploring the solar system, building the International Space Station, studying Earth from space and conducting aeronautics research. NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale said the increase for NASA's 2009 budget demonstrates President Bush's commitment to the agency's missions. With the increase, NASA still accounts for less than 1 percent of the federal budget. The NASA budget includes $5.78 billion for the space shuttle and space station programs, $4.44 billion for science, $3.5 billion for development of new manned spacecraft systems and $447 million for aeronautics research. Dale noted steady progress with NASA's missions, with three successful space shuttle launches last year and up to six planned for this year, including a flight to service the Hubble Space Telescope. The agency also is making progress in developing the Orion spacecraft and Ares launch vehicles to replace the aging shuttle fleet and prepare for journeys to the moon and destinations beyond. NASA has 55 science missions currently in space, about half involving international partnerships, with 15 additional missions scheduled for launch by the end of 2009. "In Earth science, NASA's investments in measuring the forces and effects of climate change are allowing policymakers and the public to better understand its implications to our home planet," Dale said. A recently completed decadal survey for Earth science includes views of the scientific community that will help the agency set priorities for new missions to add to humanity's knowledge of Earth and its climate and ecosystems. NASA will dedicate $910 million during the next five years to develop new missions to add to our Earth-observing fleet of spacecraft. The budget also includes funding for lunar science to further scientific understanding of the moon and for planetary science and astrophysics to continue exploring worlds beyond Earth and to study dark energy and other mysteries of the cosmos. In aeronautics, NASA is helping address fundamental research needs facing the Next Generation Air Transportation System, aimed at making U.S. air travel safer, more efficient and environmentally friendly. As the International Space Station nears completion, the NASA budget provides funding to help spur development of commercial space transportation services to send cargo and possibly crews to the station after the shuttles retire in 2010. Without commercial providers, the United States will depend on the Russian Soyuz spacecraft to carry astronauts between Earth and the space station. "The development of space simply cannot be 'all government all the time,' " Dale said. "NASA's budget for FY 2009 provides $173 million for entrepreneurs - from big companies or small ones - to develop commercial transport capabilities to support the International Space Station. NASA is designating $500 million toward the development of this commercial space capability. "With over $2.6 billion in NASA funds available over the next five years to purchase cargo and crew services to support ISS operations, we would much rather be using this money to purchase cargo and crew services from American commercial companies than foreign entities," she added. -end-

NASA AND THE BEATLES CELEBRATE ANNIVERSARIES BY BEAMING SONG 'ACROSS THE UNIVERSE' INTO DEEP SPACE WASHINGTON -- For the first time ever, NASA will beam a song -- The Beatles' "Across the Universe" -- directly into deep space at 7 p.m. EST on Feb. 4. The transmission over NASA's Deep Space Network will commemorate the 40th anniversary of the day The Beatles recorded the song, as well as the 50th anniversary of NASA's founding and the group's beginnings. Two other anniversaries also are being honored: The launch 50 years ago this week of Explorer 1, the first U.S. satellite, and the founding 45 years ago of the Deep Space Network, an international network of antennas that supports missions to explore the universe. The transmission is being aimed at the North Star, Polaris, which is located 431 light years away from Earth. The song will travel across the universe at a speed of 186,000 miles per second. Former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney expressed excitement that the tune, which was principally written by fellow Beatle John Lennon, was being beamed into the cosmos. "Amazing! Well done, NASA!" McCartney said in a message to the space agency. "Send my love to the aliens. All the best, Paul." Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, characterized the song's transmission as a significant event. "I see that this is the beginning of the new age in which we will communicate with billions of planets across the universe," she said. It is not the first time Beatles music has been used by NASA; in November 2005, McCartney performed the song "Good Day Sunshine" during a concert that was transmitted to the International Space Station. "Here Comes the Sun," "Ticket to Ride" and "A Hard Day's Night" are among other Beatles' songs that have been played to wake astronaut crews in orbit. Feb. 4 has been declared "Across The Universe Day" by Beatles fans to commemorate the anniversaries. As part of the celebration, the public around the world has been invited to participate in the event by simultaneously playing the song at the same time it is transmitted by NASA. Many of the senior NASA scientists and engineers involved in the effort are among the group's biggest fans. "I've been a Beatles fan for 45 years - as long as the Deep Space Network has been around," said Dr. Barry Geldzahler, the network's program executive at NASA Headquarters, Washington. "What a joy, especially considering that 'Across the Universe' is my personal favorite Beatles song." NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., operates the Deep Space Network. For information about the Deep Space Network, go to: http://deepspace.jpl.nasa.gov/dsn/index.html

NASA UPDATES INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION CREW ASSIGNMENTS HOUSTON - NASA has updated assignments for International Space Station expedition crews. The updates reflect changes in the launch schedule for space shuttle missions that will transport rotating crew members. Astronaut Garrett E. Reisman, a member of the Expedition 16 and 17 crews, now is scheduled to return to Earth on the STS-124 shuttle mission, which is targeted to launch April 24, 2008. He originally was slated to return on STS-126. As planned, Reisman will fly to the station on STS-123, which is targeted to launch in March. He is a native of New Jersey and has a doctorate in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology. Astronaut Gregory E. Chamitoff is scheduled to fly to the station as a mission specialist on STS-124. He will take Reisman's place as an Expedition 17 flight engineer and return to Earth on shuttle mission STS-126, which is targeted to launch Sept. 18, 2008. Chamitoff, who was born in Montreal, Canada, grew up in San Jose, Calif. He has a doctorate in aeronautics and astronautics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Astronaut Sandra H. Magnus will fly to the station on STS-126 to replace Chamitoff. Magnus, a native of Illinois with a doctorate in material science and engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, will serve as a flight engineer and NASA science officer for part of Expedition 17 and part of Expedition 18. Magnus will return to Earth on shuttle mission STS-119 in the fall of 2008. Astronaut Koichi Wakata will launch on STS-119 and become the first resident station crew member from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, replacing Magnus on Expedition 18. Wakata will serve as a flight engineer on Expedition 18 and return on STS-127. Backup crew assignments also have been updated. They are included in the following International Space Station crew lineup: Expedition 16 Peggy Whitson, NASA astronaut Yuri Malenchenko, Russian cosmonaut Daniel Tani, NASA astronaut Leopold Eyharts, European Space Agency astronaut Garrett Reisman, NASA astronaut (Backup: Timothy Kopra) Expedition 17 Sergei Volkov, Russian cosmonaut (Backup: Maxim Suraev) Oleg Kononenko, Russian cosmonaut (Backup: Oleg Skripochka) Gregory Chamitoff, NASA astronaut (Backup: Timothy Kopra) Sandra Magnus, NASA astronaut (Backup: Nicole Stott) Expedition 18 Michael Fincke, NASA astronaut (Backup: Michael Barratt) Salizhan Sharipov, Russian cosmonaut (Backup: Yuri Lonchakov) Koichi Wakata, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut (Backup: Soichi Noguchi) For astronaut biographical information, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios For more information about NASA's International Space Station Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA ANNOUNCES SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH TARGETS HOUSTON - NASA Friday announced Feb. 7 as the target launch date for shuttle Atlantis' STS-122 mission to the International Space Station and mid-March for the launch of Endeavour on STS-123. Liftoff of Atlantis from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., will be at 2:47 p.m. EST. A decision by the Russian Federal Space Agency to move up its Progress launch from Feb. 7 to Feb. 5 enables both STS-122 and STS-123 to launch before the next Russian Soyuz mission in early April. This allows astronauts assigned to the space station's Expedition 16 crew to complete the tasks they have trained for, including support of the launch and docking of Jules Verne, the first European Space Agency Automated Transfer Vehicle. Targeting Feb. 7 also allows time to complete modifications to the engine cutoff sensor system that postponed two shuttle launch attempts in December. Atlantis' main objective during its STS-122 mission to the station is to install and activate the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory, which will provide scientists around the world the ability to conduct a variety of experiments in life, physical, and materials science, Earth observation and solar physics. Shuttle Endeavour's STS-123 mission will deliver Kibo, the first section of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's laboratory module, and Dextre, Canada's new robotics system to the space station. NASA managers will meet in the coming weeks to address the schedule of remaining shuttle flights beyond STS-123. For the latest shuttle information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA'S NEXT MOON MISSION SPACECRAFT UNDERGOING CRITICAL TESTS GREENBELT, Md. - NASA's next mission to Earth's closest astronomical body is in the midst of integration and testing at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, known as LRO, will spend at least a year mapping the surface of the moon. Data from the orbiter will help NASA select safe landing sites for astronauts, identify lunar resources and study how the moon's environment will affect humans. Engineers at Goddard are building the orbiter and rigorously testing spacecraft components to ready them for the harsh environment of space. After a component or entire subsystem is qualified, it is integrated into the LRO spacecraft. The core suite of avionics for the orbiter is assembled and undergoing system tests. "This is a major milestone for the mission," said Craig Tooley, LRO project manager at Goddard. "Our team has been working nearly around the clock to get us to this point. Reaching this milestone keeps us on the path to sending LRO to the moon later this year." Various components of the avionics and mechanical subsystem are in the process of going through their qualification program. Six instruments and one technology demonstration aboard the spacecraft will provide important data to enable a safe and productive human return to the moon. The six instruments are scheduled to arrive at Goddard in the coming months for integration. The spacecraft will ship to NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in August in preparation for launch. The orbiter and the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite will launch aboard an Atlas V rocket in late 2008. The trip to the moon will take approximately four days. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter initially will enter an elliptical orbit, also called the commissioning orbit. Once moved into its final orbit, a circular polar orbit approximately 31 miles above the moon, the spacecraft's instruments will map the lunar surface. For more information about the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, visit: http://lro.gsfc.nasa.gov For more information about NASA's exploration program to the moon and beyond, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration

NASA SPACECRAFT TO MAKE HISTORIC FLYBY OF MERCURY LAUREL, Md. - On Monday, Jan. 14, a pioneering NASA spacecraft will be the first to visit Mercury in almost 33 years when it soars over the planet to explore and snap close-up images of never-before-seen terrain. These findings could open new theories and answer old questions in the study of the solar system. The MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging spacecraft, called MESSENGER, is the first mission sent to orbit the planet closest to our sun. Before that orbit begins in 2011, the probe will make three flights past the small planet, skimming as close as 124 miles above Mercury's cratered, rocky surface. MESSENGER's cameras and other sophisticated, high-technology instruments will collect more than 1,200 images and make other observations during this approach, encounter and departure. It will make the first up-close measurements since Mariner 10 spacecraft's third and final flyby on March 16, 1975. When Mariner 10 flew by Mercury in the mid-1970s, it surveyed only one hemisphere. "This is raw scientific exploration and the suspense is building by the day," said Alan Stern, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. "What will MESSENGER see? Monday will tell the tale." This encounter will provide a critical gravity assist needed to keep the spacecraft on track for its March 2011 orbit insertion, beginning an unprecedented yearlong study of Mercury. The flyby also will gather essential data for mission planning. "During this flyby we will begin to image the hemisphere that has never been seen by a spacecraft and Mercury at resolutions better than those acquired by Mariner 10," said Sean C. Solomon, MESSENGER principal investigator, Carnegie Institution of Washington. "Images will be in a number of different color filters so that we can start to get an idea of the composition of the surface." One site of great interest is the Caloris basin, an impact crater about 800 miles in diameter, which is one of the largest impact basins in the solar system. "Caloris is huge, about a quarter of the diameter of Mercury, with rings of mountains within it that are up to two miles high," said Louise Prockter, the instrument scientist for the Mercury Dual Imaging System at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel. "Mariner 10 saw a little less than half of the basin. During this first flyby, we will image the other side." MESSENGER's instruments will provide the first spacecraft measurements of the mineralogical and chemical composition of Mercury's surface. It also will study the global magnetic field and improve our knowledge of the gravity field from the Mariner 10 flyby. The long-wavelength components of the gravity field provide key information about the planet's internal structure, particularly the size of Mercury's core. The flyby will provide an opportunity to examine Mercury's environment in unique ways, not possible once the spacecraft begins orbiting the planet. The flyby also will map Mercury's tenuous atmosphere with ultraviolet observations and document the energetic particle and plasma of Mercury's magnetosphere. In addition, the flyby trajectory will enable unique particle and plasma measurements of the magnetic tail that sweeps behind Mercury. Launched Aug. 3, 2004, MESSENGER is slightly more than halfway through its 4.9-billion mile journey. It already has flown past Earth once and Venus twice. The spacecraft will use the pull of Mercury's gravity during this month's pass and others in October 2008 and September 2009 to guide it progressively closer to the planet's orbit. Insertion will be accomplished with a fourth Mercury encounter in 2011. The MESSENGER project is the seventh in NASA's Discovery Program of low-cost, scientifically focused space missions. The Applied Physics Laboratory designed, built and operates the spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA. For more information about MESSENGER, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/messenger

NASA AWARDS TRACKING AND DATA RELAY SATELLITE CONTRACT

WASHINGTON - NASA has awarded a contract to Boeing Satellite Systems,
Inc. in El Segundo, Calif., for two satellites that will replenish
the NASA communication relay network that provides telecommunications
links between low Earth orbiting spacecraft and the ground.

Boeing will design, develop, fabricate, integrate, test, ship, provide
launch support, conduct in-orbit checkout operations and provide
sustaining engineering support for the new Tracking and Data Relay
Satellites, known as TDRS-K and TDRS-L. Boeing also will design,
assemble, test, install and verify modifications that are necessary
to make the ground terminals at NASA's White Sands Complex in New
Mexico fully compatible with the new TDRS-K and -L spacecraft design.


This is a fixed price incentive fee contract with a basic period of
performance beginning in December 2007 and extending through April
2025, if options are exercised. The contract includes options for two
additional spacecraft, TDRS-M and -N. The maximum target value for
this contract is $1,224,102,439.

The TDRS-K spacecraft is expected to launch by December 2012, and
TDRS-L is expected to launch in 2013. Each satellite has a design
life of 15 years.

This contract will extend the lifetime of the Tracking and Data Relay
Satellite System, which is the primary source of voice, data and
telemetry for the Space Shuttle and International Space Station
Programs. The system also provides satellite communication and
science data relay services for many low Earth orbiting science
missions, including the Hubble Space Telescope and Earth Observation
System missions. The system also will provide these services for
NASA's Constellation Program.

The contract also provides an option to modify an additional
Space-to-Ground Link Terminal at White Sands. The government is
exercising the option for the terminal at the time this contract is
awarded.

The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System is a national asset that
provides critical support to NASA science and human exploration
missions as well as support to many other government agencies and
commercial organizations. The Tracking and Data Relay Satellite
System Project is located at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in
Greenbelt, Md.

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

 

NASA TARGETS SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS LAUNCH ON JAN. 2 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - Space shuttle Atlantis' STS-122 mission to the International Space Station now is targeted to launch no earlier than Jan. 2 from NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The liftoff date depends on the resolution of a problem in a fuel sensor system. Early Sunday, one of the four engine cutoff, or ECO, sensors inside the liquid hydrogen section of Atlantis' external fuel tank gave a false reading while the tank was being filled. NASA's current Launch Commit Criteria require that all four sensors function properly. The sensor system is one of several that protect the shuttle's main engines by triggering their shut down if fuel runs unexpectedly low. Atlantis' scheduled launch on Thursday, Dec. 6, was delayed after two liquid hydrogen ECO sensors gave false readings. The main objective of Atlantis' 11-day mission is to install and activate the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory, which will provide scientists around the world the ability to conduct a variety of life, physical and materials science experiments. For the latest information about the STS-122 mission and the ECO sensor system, visit:

WASHINGTON - NASA has replaced a crew member assigned to space shuttle mission STS-126. Astronaut Donald R. Pettit will take the place of astronaut Joan E. Higginbotham, who has left NASA to accept a position in the private sector. The mission is targeted to launch in September 2008 and will deliver equipment to the International Space Station enabling larger crews to reside aboard the complex. Higginbotham flew as a mission specialist on STS-116 in December 2006. She began her career at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., in 1987, contributing to 53 space shuttle launches. She was selected as an astronaut in 1996. "Joan has done a tremendous job as an astronaut during the past 11 years," said Steve Lindsey, chief of the Astronaut Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. "She contributed her expertise to nearly every space shuttle and International Space Station mission. She will be missed, but we wish her the very best in her future endeavors." The STS-126 mission will be Pettit's second spaceflight. Pettit will serve as a mission specialist aboard shuttle Endeavour. He joins previously named crew members Commander Christopher J. Ferguson, Pilot Eric A. Boe and mission specialists Stephen G. Bowen, Robert S. Kimbrough and Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper. Pettit first flew as a crew member of Expedition 6, logging more than 161 days in space, including more than 13 hours during two spacewalks. He launched to the station aboard shuttle mission STS-113 in November 2002 and returned to Earth on the Soyuz TMA-1 spacecraft in May 2003. He was selected as an astronaut in 1996. For complete astronaut biographical information, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

BREAKTHROUGH MAP OF ANTARCTICA LAYS GROUND FOR NEW DISCOVERIES

WASHINGTON - A team of researchers from NASA, the U.S. Geological
Survey, the National Science Foundation and the British Antarctic
Survey unveiled a newly completed map of Antarctica today that is
expected to revolutionize research of the continent's frozen
landscape.

The Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica is a result of NASA's
state-of-the-art satellite technologies and an example of the
prominent role NASA continues to play as a world leader in the
development and flight of Earth-observing satellites.

The map is a realistic, nearly cloudless satellite view of the
continent at a resolution 10 times greater than ever before with
images captured by the NASA-built Landsat 7. With the unprecedented
ability to see features half the size of a basketball court, the
mosaic offers the most geographically accurate, true-color,
high-resolution views of Antarctica to date.

"This mosaic of images opens up a window to the Antarctic that we just
haven't had before," said Robert Bindschadler, chief scientist of the
Hydrospheric and Biospheric Sciences Laboratory at NASA's Goddard
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "It will open new windows of
opportunity for scientific research as well as enable the public to
become much more familiar with Antarctica and how scientists use
imagery in their research. This innovation is like watching
high-definition TV in living color versus watching the picture on a
grainy black-and-white television. These scenes don't just give us a
snapshot, they provide a time-lapse historical record of how
Antarctica has changed and will enable us to continue to watch
changes unfold."

Researchers can use the detailed map to better plan scientific
expeditions. The mosaic's higher resolution gives researchers a
clearer view over most of the continent to help interpret changes in
land elevation in hard-to-access areas. Scientists also think the
true-color mosaic will help geologists better map various rock
formations and types.

To construct the new Antarctic map, researchers pieced together more
than a thousand images from three years of Landsat satellite
observations. The resulting mosaic gives researchers and the public a
new way to explore Antarctica through a free, public-accessWeb
portal. Eight different versions of the full mosaic are available to
download.

In 1972, the first satellite images of the Antarctic became available
with the launch of NASA's Earth Resources Technology Satellite (later
renamed Landsat). The series of Landsat satellites have provided the
longest, continuous global record of land surface and its historical
changes in existence. Prior to these satellite views, researchers had
to rely on airplanes and survey ships to map Antarctica's ice-covered
terrain.

Images from the Landsat program, now managed by the U.S. Geological
Survey, led to more precise and efficient research results as the
resolution of digital images improved over the years with upgraded
instruments on each new Earth-observing satellite.

"We have significantly improved our ability to extract useful
information from satellites as embodied in this Antarctic mosaic
project," said Ray Byrnes, liaison for satellite missions at the U.S.
Geological Survey in Reston, Va. "As technology progressed, so have
the satellites and their image resolution capability. The first three
in the Landsat series were limited in comparison to Landsats 4, 5,
and 7."

Bindschadler, who conceived the project, initiated NASA's collection
of images of Antarctica for the mosaic project in 1999. He and NASA
colleagues selected the images that make up the mosaic and developed
new techniques to interpret the image data tailored to the project.
The mosaic is made up of about 1,100 images from Landsat 7, nearly
all of which were captured between 1999 and 2001. The collage
contains almost no gaps in the landscape, other than a doughnut
hole-shaped area at the South Pole, and shows virtually no seams.

"The mosaic represents an important U.S.-U.K. collaboration and is a
major contribution to the International Polar Year," said Andrew
Fleming of British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge, England. "Over
60,000 scientists are involved in the global International Polar Year
initiative to understand our world. I have no doubt that polar
researchers will find this mosaic, one of the first outcomes of that
initiative, invaluable for planning science campaigns."

NASA has 14 Earth-observing satellites in orbit with activities that
have direct benefit to humankind. After NASA develops and tests new
technologies, the agency transfers activities to other federal
agencies for vital meteorology and climate satellite services. The
satellites have helped revolutionize the information that emergency
officials have to respond to natural disasters like hurricanes and
wildfires.

The Landsat Image Mosaic of Antarctica is now available on the Web at:

http://lima.usgs.gov

For related images and information about LIMA and the interagency team
on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/lima_press_conf.html 

For educational materials related to the new Antarctic mosaic on the
Web, visit:

http://lima.nasa.gov
 

NASA SELECTS 302 SMALL BUSINESS RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY PROJECTS WASHINGTON - NASA has awarded contracts to 302 small business proposals that address critical research and technology needs for agency programs and projects. The awards are part of NASA's Small Business Innovation Research Program, known as SBIR, and the Small Business Technology Transfer program, known as STTR. The SBIR program selected 276 proposals for negotiation of phase 1 contracts, and the STTR program chose 26 proposals for negotiation of phase 1 contract awards. The selected SBIR projects have a total value of approximately $27.6 million. The selected STTR projects have a total value of approximately $2.6 million. The SBIR contracts will be awarded to 205 small, high technology firms in 31 states. The STTR contracts will be awarded to 24 small high technology firms in 14 states. As part of the STTR program, the firms will partner with 22 universities and research institutions in 15 states. SBIR and STTR are part of the Innovative Partnerships Program Office at NASA Headquarters in Washington, which works with U.S. industry to infuse pioneering technologies into NASA missions and transition them into commercially available products and services. The SBIR program supports NASA's mission directorates by competitively selecting ventures that address specific technology gaps in mission programs and strives to complement other agency research investments. Results from the program have benefited several NASA efforts, including air traffic control systems, Earth observing spacecraft, the International Space Station and the development of spacecraft for exploring the solar system. Research topic areas among this group of selected proposals include: - A simulated test-bed for identifying dynamic air corridors to increase aircraft throughput - Compact, 3-D scanning Light Detection and Ranging for robotic navigation on the lunar surface, known as LIDAR - Regenerative fuel cells for use on the lunar surface - Ultra-high efficiency solar cells designed to operate on spacecraft in extreme environment missions - High-efficiency transmitters for space communications that provide a significant improvement in its power output capability without an impact on the payload size and power The SBIR program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It provides qualified small businesses - including women-owned and disadvantaged firms - with opportunities to propose unique ideas that meet specific research and development needs of the federal government. These contract awards are for Phase 1, which is a feasibility study with as much as $100,000 in funding to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of an idea. The SBIR awards may last as long as six months. The STTR awards may last as long as one year. Phase 2 expands on the results on the development of Phase 1; awards are for as much as $600,000 during as long as two years. Phase 3 is for the commercialization of the results of Phase 2 and requires the use of private sector or non-SBIR federal funding. Contractors submitted 1,500 Phase 1 SBIR proposals and 166 Phase 1 STTR proposals for competitive selection. The criteria used to choose the winning proposals included technical merit and feasibility; experience, qualifications and facilities; effectiveness of the work plan; and commercial potential and feasibility. NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., manages the program for the Innovative Partnership Program office. NASA's 10 field installations manage individual projects. For a list of selected companies, visit: http://sbir.nasa.gov For more information about the Innovative Partnerships Program, visit:

NASA CONDUCTS SECOND TEST OF MAIN PARACHUTE FOR ARES ROCKETS HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - NASA and industry engineers successfully tested the main parachute for Constellation Program rockets during a drop test Thursday at the U.S. Army's Yuma Proving Ground near Yuma, Ariz. The parachute system will allow Ares I and Ares V first stage boosters to be recovered and reused. Thursday's test validated the results of an earlier test conducted in September. "Measuring 150-feet in diameter and weighing 2,000 pounds, this is the biggest chute of its kind that's been tested," said Steve Cook, director of the Ares Projects Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. "With each milestone, we bring ourselves one step closer to further exploring the moon." Exploring the moon and beyond is the focus of the Constellation Program, which is developing a new family of U.S. launch vehicles, spacecraft and related systems for exploration. Booster recovery was the focus of the recent test, the second in a series. Outfitted with a 42,000-pound weight to simulate the load of a rocket's first stage, the main parachute was dropped from a U.S. Air Force C-17 aircraft flying at an altitude of 16,500 feet. The 1-ton parachute and all supporting hardware functioned properly, landing safely approximately three minutes later on the Yuma Proving Ground test range. During the first main parachute test on Sept. 25, the parachute was dropped from a slightly higher elevation of 17,500 feet, giving NASA engineers the opportunity to monitor parachute performance at a dynamic pressure of 86 pounds per square foot. After the drop's completion, engineers spent several weeks reviewing test data - measuring the parachute's peak loads at opening, determining the canopy expansion rate during the early phase of inflation and measuring the parachute's drag area as it drifted down to Earth. The Ares first stage booster recovery system is derived from the system NASA uses to recover the space shuttle's solid rocket boosters after launch. The first stage booster for Ares I is similar to the space shuttle's solid rocket booster but has an added fifth segment of propellant, resulting in a heavier load. The current parachute tests are necessary to allow for differences between the space shuttle's four-segment boosters and the Ares launch vehicles. Testing is scheduled to run through 2010. ATK Launch Systems near Promontory, Utah, is the prime contractor for the first stage booster. ATK's subcontractor, United Space Alliance of Houston, is responsible for the design, development and testing of the parachutes at its facilities at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. The Constellation Program is managed out of NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, and the Ares Projects are managed out of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. Yuma Proving Ground provides the test range, support facilities and equipment. Video of the test will be available Friday on NASA Television's Video File. For NASA TV downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For information about NASA's Constellation Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

NASA-FUNDED STUDY FINDS EXERCISE COULD HELP WOMEN ON BED REST WASHINGTON - Short but intense sessions of exercise may help women on bed rest stay strong and recuperate more quickly, according to a NASA-funded study by researchers at Ball State University, Muncie, Ind. The findings of the first comprehensive bed rest study focusing exclusively on women will help NASA develop more effective countermeasures to mitigate strength and muscle loss in female astronauts on long-duration missions to the International Space Station and, perhaps, someday to Mars. It also may have implications for women on Earth confined to bed rest because of illness, injury or pregnancy. "With NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson commanding the International Space Station now and astronaut Pam Melroy commanding the last space shuttle mission, we're reminded daily that women make up an important segment of our astronaut corps and are taking on more and more leadership roles," said Carl Walz, a former long-duration astronaut and head of NASA's advanced capabilities division in the agency's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, Washington. "It's important that we look at how space travel -- microgravity, radiation, and other factors -- affects women and men differently." Ball State's Human Performance Lab has been working with NASA for more than a decade to examine the impact spaceflight has on humans, according to Scott Trappe, the lab's director. He co-authored the study with fellow lab researcher Todd Trappe, his brother. "Until we completed this study, we had no solid research on how women would adapt to long durations in space," Trappe said. "This information should have a dramatic impact for NASA in the coming years." Conducted in Toulouse, France, the study was sponsored jointly by the European Space Agency, the Canadian Space Agency, the French space agency CNES, and NASA. Results were published recently in the Journal of Applied Physiology and Acta Physiologica. The study examined 24 female participants to determine whether specific exercise regimens or nutritional supplements could prevent the loss of lower body muscle mass and strength. The women spent 60 days on bed rest. They lay with their heads pointing downward at a 6-degree angle, which researchers believe most accurately simulates the weightless conditions of space. One group was put on an exercise regimen. A second group was put on a high-protein diet rich with leucine, an amino acid. The control group did not take part in any exercise or dietary protocols. "When we looked at these women after two months, the difference in the physical condition among the three groups was undeniable," Trappe said. "The women who did not exercise lost nearly half their strength in some cases. What's more, the group who ate a high-protein diet but did not exercise lost even more muscle mass than the control group." The exercise regimen included a 40 to 50 minute aerobic workout two or three times a week and 20-minute strength training sessions two or three days a week. While lying on their backs, the women did multiple sets of thigh and calf exercises using a flywheel device similar to a typical leg press machine at a gym. They also worked out on a vertical treadmill. "The message for women and their doctors is that it really took very little exercise to make an impact," said Trappe. "The total time spent exercising was less than two percent of the time they spent in bed during the entire 60-day period. In the end, a little bit of intense exercise goes a long way." Using a magnetic resonance imaging device, or MRI, researchers measured muscle mass in all of the study subjects after the 60-day period. They found that women in the control group lost 21 percent of the muscle mass in their quadriceps, and the nutrition group lost more than 24 percent, but the exercise group lost none. Results were similar for MRI scans of the calf muscle. The loss of muscle strength was even more significant. Researchers tested strength using the flywheel device. Women who did not exercise during the study lost as much as 33 percent of their strength in squat exercises and 46 percent in calf press exercises. But the women who exercised maintained their strength. NASA's Human Research Program is working to understand the health effects of spaceflight on astronauts in preparation for long-duration missions. "It could take six months to reach the surface of Mars, and we have to make sure our astronauts are healthy when they get there," Walz said. For more on NASA's space exploration plans, visit: www.nasa.gov/exploration

GROUNDBREAKING SIGNALS START OF NASA'S CONSTELLATION FLIGHT TESTS LAS CRUCES, N.M. - With less than a year until flight tests of NASA's Constellation Program, work is under way on a launch pad that will host the first of those tests. Workers broke ground on a pad where the agency will test a launch abort system for the new Orion spacecraft at the U.S. Army's White Sands Missile Range near Las Cruces, N.M. Orion's launch abort system will carry astronauts to safety in the event of a problem on the launch pad or during the spacecraft's climb to orbit. The first of five tests of the system, known as Pad Abort 1 or PA-1, is scheduled for fall 2008. Data from the series will help engineers refine the design of the launch abort system. "Flight tests are where the rubber meets the road. These tests will help validate our designs or correct any flaws," said Skip Hatfield, Orion Project Manager at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. "The goal here is simple: to provide our astronauts a route to safety should anything go wrong at a launch." The first launch abort test will include a mock-up of the Orion capsule on the pad. An abort motor will fire for two seconds, sending the boilerplate crew module to an altitude of one mile. Three 116-foot diameter parachutes will deploy to slow the mock crew capsule for landing. Constellation is developing the Orion spacecraft to send astronauts to the International Space Station and to the moon. Orion will be launched atop an Ares I rocket. The program is also developing a heavy-lift rocket, Ares V, to enable cargo missions to the moon. NASA plans to set up a lunar outpost by 2020, where astronauts will prepare for possible future missions to Mars and other destinations in the solar system. Video of the groundbreaking ceremony will be available Thursday on NASA Television Video File. For NASA TV downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv To learn more about NASA's space exploration plans, visit: www.nasa.gov/exploration

NASA SELECTS USRA TO LEAD NATIONAL EDUCATION INTERNSHIP PROJECT HOUSTON - NASA has selected the Universities Space Research Association of Columbia, Md., to lead the agency's Undergraduate Student Research Project (USRP). The project is a national comprehensive educational initiative designed to provide real-world experience to science, technology, engineering and math students across all 50 states and U.S. territories. The cooperative agreement will have a maximum value of $17 million over five years. The USRP will provide hands-on internships to undergraduates pursuing academic degrees that align with NASA's critical workforce competency needs. The internships will include mentors who are NASA scientists and engineers. The project provides students with challenging technical experiences that enhance their academic pursuits and align with NASA's workforce development strategy. Benefits of this type of experiential learning and mentorship include increased graduation rates, completion of advanced degrees and career placement within the field of study. Students who participate in similar internship programs often graduate with a higher grade point average and demonstrate increased productivity immediately upon entering the workforce. Through this agreement, NASA seeks to extend and strengthen its commitment to educational excellence and university research while highlighting the critical need to increase the nation's undergraduate and graduate science, technology, engineering and math skills base. For information about NASA's education programs, visit: www.nasa.gov/education

SUCCESSFUL ROCKET MOTOR TEST HELPS NASA'S SHUTTLE AND ARES I HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - NASA's Space Shuttle Program successfully fired a four-segment reusable solid rocket motor Thursday, Nov. 1, at a Utah test facility. The two-minute test provided important information for continued launches of the shuttle and for development of the Ares I rocket, a key component of NASA's Constellation Program that will launch the Orion crew vehicle on missions to the moon. The static firing of the full-scale motor was performed at 1 p.m. MDT at ATK Launch Systems Group, a Promontory, Utah-based unit of Alliant Techsystems Inc., where the shuttle's solid rocket motors are manufactured. Preliminary indications are that all test objectives for shuttle and Ares I were met. The test evaluation motor, or TEM-13, burned for approximately 123 seconds, the same time each reusable solid rocket motor burns during a space shuttle launch. The Reusable Solid Rocket Booster Project Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages these tests to qualify any proposed changes to the rocket motor and to determine whether new materials perform as well as those now in use. "Full-scale static testing such as this is a key element of the 'test before you fly' standard and ensures continued quality and performance," said Jody Singer, deputy manager of the Shuttle Propulsion Office at Marshall. One test objective was to demonstrate the thrust vector control system operation using only one of two hydraulic power units. The vector control, part of the flight control system, directs the thrust of the two solid rocket booster nozzles to control shuttle attitude and trajectory during liftoff and ascent. During a shuttle launch, both hydraulic power units run and provide backup power to thrust vector control actuators. The test with only one hydraulic power unit will validate the system's redundancy capability and operating performance data. Another test objective was to measure the external sound or acoustics created when the motor ignites. More than 25 microphones were located near the motor to record the data from the firing. This information will be used to predict the motor's acoustic effects and aid in the final design of the launch structure for Ares I. After final test data are analyzed, NASA will publish results for each objective in a report available later this year. For more information about the Space Shuttle Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle Through the Constellation Program, NASA is working to send astronauts to the moon, where they will set up a lunar outpost to prepare for possible future journeys to Mars and other destinations. The crewed launch of the Orion spacecraft aboard an Ares I rocket is set for no later than 2015. Humans will return to the moon by 2020. For more information about Constellation, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

NASA EXPRESSES CONDOLENCES UPON THE PASSING OF JOAN ROOSA WASHINGTON - NASA's senior leadership Thursday noted with sorrow the passing of Joan Roosa of Gulfport, Miss., the wife of Apollo 14 astronaut Stuart Roosa. Roosa passed away Oct. 30. "We wish to express our sincere condolences to the Roosa family," said NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale, Headquarters, Washington. "Many current and former NASA family members were very close to both Stuart and Joan Roosa and remember her fondly. We at NASA certainly appreciate the dedication of all our astronaut spouses, which Joan Roosa exemplified." A native of Tupelo, Miss., Joan met her future husband at Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, Va., in 1956. They married the following year, and had four children: Christopher, Jack, Alan and Rosemary. Stuart Roosa, who was the Apollo 14 command module pilot, passed away in 1994. Joan Roosa played an active role in her husband's career, encouraging him to apply for the astronaut corps. On Feb. 9, 2006, the 35th anniversary of Apollo 14's successful return from the moon, Roosa represented her late husband when NASA honored him as one of its Ambassadors of Exploration. At the ceremony, the Roosa family presented a lunar sample obtained during the Apollo 14 mission for permanent display at the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame in Florida.

NASA SATELLITE IMAGES SHOW RAPID GROWTH OF CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES WASHINGTON - Images from NASA satellites illustrate how quickly wildfires have spread throughout Southern California. Powerful Santa Ana winds have fueled more than 10 large wildfires stretching from Santa Barbara to San Diego. A pair of NASA images depicts the area around Los Angeles on Sunday. The top image, captured by NASA's Terra satellite at 2:35 p.m. EDT, shows several fires giving off small plumes of smoke. Three hours later, at 5:50 p.m., NASA's Aqua satellite passed overhead, showing large amounts of smoke pouring from blazes northwest of Los Angeles. Actively burning fires are outlined in red. In the bottom image, plumes of smoke captured blowing off the coast indicate the intensity of the winds and the presence of additional fires farther south. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, these blazes have burned more than 84,000 acres since they began over the weekend. Thousands of residents have been evacuated from their homes, and a state of emergency has been issued for seven California counties. To view and download the images and for additional information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/socal_wildfires_oct07.html

NASA ASSIGNS CREW FOR FINAL SOLAR ARRAY DELIVERY TO STATION WASHINGTON -- NASA has assigned the space shuttle crew for Discovery's STS-119 mission, targeted for launch in the fall of 2008. The flight will deliver the final pair of power- generating solar array wings and truss element to the International Space Station. Air Force Col. Lee J. Archambault will command Discovery. Navy Cmdr. Dominic A. Antonelli will serve as the pilot. The mission specialists are Joseph Acaba, Richard R. Arnold II, John L. Phillips and Steven R. Swanson. Antonelli, Acaba and Arnold will be making their first spaceflight. STS-119 will be the second spaceflight for Archambault and Swanson, who flew together on STS-117 in June. Phillips will be making his third spaceflight. Discovery will carry the S6 truss segment to complete the 361-foot-long backbone of the space station. The truss includes the fourth pair of solar array wings and electronics that convert sunlight to power for the orbiting laboratory. Archambault considers Bellwood, Ill., his hometown. He was the pilot for STS-117. He earned a bachelor's and a master's in aeronautical and astronautical engineering from the University of Illinois-Urbana. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998. Antonelli grew up in Indiana and North Carolina. He earned a bachelor's and a master's in aeronautics and astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, and the University of Washington, Seattle, respectively. He has been a CAPCOM, or capsule communicator, during launch and landing of space shuttle missions. He was selected as an astronaut in 2000. Acaba was raised in Anaheim, Calif. He earned a bachelor's and a master's in geology from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the University of Arizona, Tucson, respectively. He has middle school and high school math and science teaching experience. He was selected as an astronaut in 2004. Arnold, raised in Bowie, Md., earned a bachelor's degree in science and completed the teacher certification program at Frostburg State University, Md. He earned a master's in marine, estuarine and environmental science from the University of Maryland, College Park. He has teaching experience at middle schools and high schools around the world. He served as a mission specialist for the 13th NASA Extreme Environments Mission Operations, known as NEEMO, in August 2007. He was selected as an astronaut in 2004. Phillips considers Scottsdale, Ariz., his hometown. He has logged more than 190 days in space, including STS-100 and Expedition 11 on the space station. He earned a bachelor's in mathematics and Russian from the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., a master's in aeronautical systems from the University of West Florida, Pensacola, and a master's and a doctorate in geophysics and space physics from the University of California, Los Angeles. He retired as a Navy reservist captain in 2002. He was selected as an astronaut in 1996. Swanson grew up in Steamboat Springs, Colo. He earned a bachelor's in engineering physics from the University of Colorado, Boulder, a master's in applied science in computer systems from Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, and a doctorate in computer science from Texas A&M University, College Station. He joined NASA as a systems engineer for the shuttle training aircraft in 1987 and was selected as an astronaut in 1998. Members of the STS-119 crew were originally announced in 2002, but as a result of changes in the flight manifest, new crew assignments were necessary. Video of the STS-119 crew members will air on NASA Television's Video File. For downlink and scheduling information and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For complete astronaut biographical information, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttl

NASA EXTENDS OPERATIONS FOR ITS LONG-LIVED MARS ROVERS WASHINGTON - NASA is extending, for a fifth time, the activities of the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity. The decision keeps the trailblazing mobile robotic pioneers active on opposite sides of Mars, possibly through 2009. This extended mission and the associated science are dependent upon the continued productivity and operability of the rovers. "We are extremely happy to be able to further the exploration of Mars. The rovers are amazing machines, and they continue to produce amazing scientific results operating far beyond their design life," said Alan Stern, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The twin rovers landed on Mars in January 2004, 45 months ago, on missions originally planned to last 90 days. In September, Opportunity began descending into Victoria Crater in Mars' Meridiani Planum region. At approximately a half mile wide and 230 feet deep, it is the largest crater the rover has visited. Spirit climbed onto a volcanic plateau in a range of hills that were on the distant horizon from the landing site. "After more than three-and-a-half years, Spirit and Opportunity are showing some signs of aging, but they are in good health and capable of conducting great science," said John Callas, rover project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. The rovers each carry a suite of sophisticated instruments to examine the geology of Mars for information about past environmental conditions. Opportunity has returned dramatic evidence that its area of Mars stayed wet for an extended period of time long ago, with conditions that could have been suitable for sustaining microbial life. Spirit has found evidence in the region it is exploring that water in some form has altered the mineral composition of some soils and rocks. To date, Spirit has driven 4.51 miles and has returned more than 102,000 images. Opportunity has driven 7.19 miles and has returned more than 94,000 images. Among the rovers' many other accomplishments: - Opportunity has analyzed a series of exposed rock layers recording how environmental conditions changed during the times when the layers were deposited and later modified. Wind-blown dunes came and went. The water table fluctuated. - Spirit has recorded dust devils forming and moving. The images were made into movie clips, providing new insight into the interaction of Mars' atmosphere and surface. - Both rovers have found metallic meteorites on Mars. Opportunity discovered one rock with a composition similar to a meteorite that reached Earth from Mars. JPL manages the rovers for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. For images and information about the rovers, visit: www.nasa.gov/rovers

NASA ANNOUNCES AERONAUTICS RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES WASHINGTON - NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate has amended its NASA Research Announcement to solicit research proposals that address the "Integration of Advanced Concepts and Vehicles into the Next Generation Air Transportation System," known as NextGen. The focus of the research effort is to conduct a study that addresses the issues associated with deploying new, advanced vehicles by exploring the tradeoffs among procedures, vehicle characteristics and overall NextGen performance. The study constitutes a major undertaking and will support NASA's entire Aeronautics program portfolio. The effort will establish a framework for an analysis infrastructure to answer questions involving the interaction of air traffic management, vehicle, safety and environmental issues. Specific evaluation criteria, deadlines and points of contact are available in the announcement. For this announcement and additional research topics in other project areas, visit NASA's Research Opportunities Web site at: http://nspires.nasaprs.com

SOFIA OBSERVATORY ENTERS AIRCRAFT TESTING PHASE

EDWARDS, Calif. - NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared
Astronomy, known as SOFIA, began a series of flight tests Thursday of
the highly modified Boeing 747SP aircraft. The tests are the first of
several phases required to verify the aircraft is structurally sound
for future science flights. This phase is scheduled to be completed
by the end of this year.

After finishing flight testing and modifications, NASA plans to begin
using the airborne observatory for "first light" infrared
observations of the universe in 2009. The first light flights will
enable the mission to begin obtaining results several years before
the observatory reaches its full capability in 2014. SOFIA will
collect science data using a variety of specialized instruments
developed by NASA and its German partners.

"SOFIA is making tremendous progress toward the initiation of science
observations in 2009, and this flight testing is another milestone
along the path," said Jon Morse, director of the Astrophysics
Division in the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters,
Washington. "Early observations will have significant science
community involvement to initiate broad use of this unique
astronomical observatory."

When operational, SOFIA's 2.5-meter infrared telescope will conduct
celestial observations while flying at altitudes up to 45,000 feet.
This height will place the instrument above almost 99 percent of the
Earth's atmospheric water vapor, greatly enhancing its ability to
observe the cosmos. The flying observatory is designed to detect the
formation of stars in our galaxy, determine the chemical composition
of the interstellar medium, and peer through the dust that hides the
black hole at the center of the Milky Way.

During mission development, engineers installed a 17-metric-ton
telescope in SOFIA's aft fuselage at L-3 Communications Integrated
Systems facility in Waco, Texas. They also cut a 16-foot-high
telescope door into the fuselage during the telescope installation
process.

After arrival at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards,
Calif., the aircraft was outfitted with test instrumentation critical
for these preliminary flight tests. The aircraft also has been
equipped with a telescope cavity environmental control system
designed to keep the telescope dry when the door is closed and as the
aircraft flies to the altitude required for operation of the
observatory.

NASA is conducting the first series of flight tests with the cavity
door closed. These flights will study the aerodynamics, structural
integrity, stability and control, and handling qualities of the
modified aircraft. Future flights will concentrate on the in-flight
rotational motion and control of the German-built telescope.

After closed-door flight testing is complete, the flying observatory
will undergo installation and integration of the remaining elements
of the observatory before door-open test flights, which are scheduled
to begin in late 2008.

"The largest technical challenges remaining are in 2008, with the
remainder of the mission sub-system installation that will give the
aircraft the ability to fly with the cavity door open," said SOFIA
aircraft project manager John Carter at Dryden.

The program is a partnership of NASA and the German Aerospace Center.
Dryden manages SOFIA with science elements of the program managed by
NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.

For more information about SOFIA, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/sofia


 

EXPLORE EARTH'S POLES AT A MUSEUM NEAR YOU WITH POLAR-PALOOZA

WASHINGTON - The human face of the exploration of Earth's polar
regions is coming to science centers and museums across the United
States. NASA and the National Science Foundation are sponsoring the
Polar-Palooza "Stories from a Changing Planet" tour beginning Oct. 19
in San Diego. The tour will stop in cities across the country in 2007
and 2008.

NASA and the National Science Foundation are funding Polar-Palooza and
other education and outreach activities as part of the International
Polar Year, which began last March and ends in March 2009. The
International Polar Year focuses science and education on Earth's
remote polar regions.

The Polar-Palooza national tour features tales of science and
adventure from polar glaciologists, geologists, climate scientists,
oceanographers, biologists and residents of the Arctic. Each tour
stop includes multimedia shows with high-definition video, school
programs, teacher workshops and briefings for media and business
leaders.

Upcoming tour dates include:
- Oct. 19-21: San Diego area - Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, Scripps
Institution of Oceanography Birch Aquarium, San Diego Museum of
Natural History and other locations
- Oct. 26-28: San Francisco area - Chabot Space and Science Center,
Oakland, and the Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California,
Berkeley
- Oct. 22-24: Albuquerque - New Mexico Museum of Natural History and
Science
- Nov. 8-10: Tampa, Fla. - Museum of Science and Industry
- Nov. 11-13: Atlanta - Fernbank Science Center
- Nov. 15-17: Baton Rouge - Louisiana State University Museum of
Natural Science

Polar-Palooza is produced by Passport to Knowledge, Morristown, N.J.,
as an integral part of the International Polar Year outreach efforts.
The "Stories from a Changing Planet" tour will continue in 2008 with
events planned in Chicago, St. Louis, Denver, Philadelphia, New York,
Houston and several other cities. For more information about
Polar-Palooza and links to the 2007 tour schedule, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/IPY/snow/PolarPalooza.html


-end-
 

NASA SELECTS 120 SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH PROJECTS WASHINGTON - NASA has selected 120 proposals for negotiation of Phase 2 contract awards in the Small Business Innovation Research program, known as SBIR. The selected projects have a total value of approximately $72 million. NASA will award the contracts to 102 small high technology firms in 27 states. NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program - with offices at NASA Headquarters in Washington and all of the agency's field centers - collaborates with U.S. industry to develop pioneering technologies, infuse them into agency missions and transition them into commercially available products and services. The SBIR program supports NASA's mission directorates by working with them to competitively select ventures that address critical research and technology needs for agency programs and projects. The effort addresses specific technology gaps in mission programs and strives to complement other agency research investments. Program results have benefited NASA efforts, including modern air traffic control systems, Earth observing spacecraft, the space shuttle, the International Space Station and rovers on Mars. Some research topic areas among this group of selected proposals include: - The development of more effective multi-disciplinary design, analysis and optimization tools that will benefit flight vehicles ranging from subsonic aircraft to rockets. - A new data architecture that will allow engineers to design software that better quantifies spacecraft data. - Radiation hardened, stackable memory modules that will increase data storage for science missions and enable increased computing and storage capacities for space-based systems. The SBIR program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It provides qualified small businesses - including those owned by women and the disadvantaged - with opportunities to propose unique ideas that meet specific research and development needs of the federal government. Phase 1 is a feasibility study to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of an idea. Awards are for as long as six months in amounts up to $100,000. Phase 2 expands on the results of the development in Phase 1. Awards are for as long as two years in amounts up to $600,000. Phase 3 is for the commercialization of the results of Phase 2 and requires the use of private sector or non-SBIR federal funding. Participants submitted 243 Phase 2 proposals. The criteria used to select the winning proposals included technical merit and innovation, Phase 1 results, value to NASA, commercial potential and company capabilities. NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., manages the program for the Innovative Partnership Program office. NASA's 10 field centers manage individual projects. For a list of selected companies, visit: http://sbir.nasa.gov -end-

NASA TO BE THE FEATURED AGENCY IN 2008 SMITHSONIAN FOLKLIFE FESTIVAL WASHINGTON - NASA and the Smithsonian Institution's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage are partnering for the 2008 Smithsonian Folklife Festival. The festival showcasing NASA will run on the National Mall from June 25 to July 6, 2008. NASA will be only the second featured federal agency in the history of the festival, which annually attracts an audience of more than a million people. The Folklife Festival also will highlight the food and music of the state of Texas and the mountainous Asian nation of Bhutan. An annual survey of tourism agencies and convention and tourism bureaus around the country labeled the Folklife Festival as America's No. 1 tourism event. "We are excited that NASA's participation will give people from throughout our country and the world the opportunity to learn from and interact with our engineers, scientists, astronauts and skilled craftspeople," said Robert Hopkins, NASA chief of Strategic Communications, Headquarters, Washington. "The Folklife Festival's purpose is to introduce visitors to 'the immense breadth of community-based art, skill, knowledge, and wisdom,' and NASA is proud to be one of the few federal agencies in the history of the festival to be celebrated. This will be a tremendous event to showcase NASA's past accomplishments and plans to extend humanity's reach throughout the solar system during our 50th anniversary year." "The Festival looks forward to the opportunity to give the public a glimpse behind the scenes at the agency that literally broadens our horizons," said Diana Parker, director of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival. With an emphasis on audience participation, the festival program will encourage visitors to engage one on one with NASA experts in presentation areas on the Mall. The presentations are tied to NASA's mission goals in aeronautics, space exploration, science and human spaceflight. The NASA program will include live presentations, hands-on educational activities, narrative oral history sessions and demonstrations of the skills, techniques and knowledge of real rocket scientists. Exhibits will explore the spirit of inspiration, innovation, discovery and public service embodied by the agency and its personnel. For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov -end-

BRUNER NAMED HEAD OF LEGISLATIVE AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS WASHINGTON - NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale on Thursday announced the appointment of Bill Bruner as assistant administrator for legislative and intergovernmental affairs. Bruner has served as acting assistant administrator for the office since June. The office of legislative affairs and intergovernmental affairs develops and implements the legislative strategy to carry out NASA initiatives requiring congressional action and state and local government relations. The office also responds to requests and inquiries from congressional committees, individual members of Congress and their staffs. Prior to joining the Bush administration, Bruner had a distinguished career in the U.S. Air Force, retiring at the rank of colonel. He was awarded a Bronze Star for his service in Operation Desert Storm. He then served in several key positions in Washington including on the staff of the secretary of the Air Force; as a military fellow in the office of the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives; and as an office director within the office of the secretary of defense, where he won the Assistant Secretary of Defense Paul H. Nitze Award for Excellence in International Security Affairs. Bruner is a graduate of the National War College in Washington, where he received a master's degree in national security studies. He also earned a master's degree in airpower arts and sciences from the School of Advanced Air and Space Power Studies at Maxwell Air Force Base, Ala., where his thesis topic was "National Security Implications of Inexpensive Space Access." He also is a graduate of the Air Force Fighter Weapons School at Nellis Air Force Base, Nev. His bachelor's degree in astronomy is from San Francisco State University. For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov -end-

NASA WEB FEATURE WINS DESIGN AWARD FROM ADOBE WASHINGTON - NASA's Web site received a significant multimedia award this week when Adobe Systems Inc., of San Jose, Calif., honored the interactive International Space Station Reference Guide with a 2007 Max Award. "The NASA Web team continually is finding new and innovative ways of making NASA more accessible to the world," said Ron Ticker, NASA's manager for space station development and the project's sponsor. "The Interactive ISS Reference Guide and its recognition is another testament to the team's success in that endeavor." With video and interactive elements, the guide explains the basic operations and physical dimensions of the International Space Station. Astronaut Mike Fincke, who spent six months aboard the station, guides users through the multimedia guide. Fincke explains how the crew works and lives in space, and how the station operates. The guide also includes 360-degree views of the inside of several space station modules. It will be updated regularly as new elements are added to the station; the first update will be online Oct. 12. The agency's web presence takes another leap forward later this year with the rollout of a new design that allows Internet visitors to interact with the agency, create personal bookmark collections and playlists, and navigate and search more effectively. The space station's interactive feature can be found at: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA HONORS APOLLO ASTRONAUT ROGER CHAFFEE WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - NASA will honor the late astronaut Naval Lt. Cmdr. Roger B. Chaffee with the presentation of an Ambassador of Exploration Award for his involvement in the U.S. space program. Chaffee's wife Martha will accept the award Saturday, Oct. 6, and present it for display at Purdue University during the halftime show of the Purdue - Ohio State football game. NASA is giving the Ambassador of Exploration Award to the first generation of explorers in the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo space programs for realizing America's vision of going to the moon. NASA also is recognizing several other key individuals who played significant roles in the early space programs. The award is a moon rock encased in Lucite and mounted for public display as inspiration to a new generation of explorers who will help us return humans to the moon and eventually on to Mars and beyond. The award is part of the 842 pounds of samples collected during the six Apollo lunar expeditions from 1969 to 1972. Chaffee received a Bachelor of Science degree in aeronautical engineering from Purdue in 1957. He was one of the third group of astronaut candidates selected October 1963. In March 1966, he was chosen as a crew member for the first Apollo flight. Chaffee died on January 27, 1967, in the Apollo 1 spacecraft fire during a launch pad test at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. For complete biographical information about Chaffee, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/chaffee-rb.html

NASA SELECTS LAUNCH SERVICES PROVIDER FOR EARTH IMAGERY SATELLITE CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's Launch Services Program office at the Kennedy Space Center, Fla., has selected Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services of Littleton, Colo., for launching of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission. The $124 million contract award is a competed firm-fixed-price task order. It includes launch services for an Atlas V model 401 rocket, payload processing, launch vehicle integration, and the necessary tracking, data and telemetry support. The spacecraft is scheduled to be placed into a 428-mile-high polar sun synchronous orbit in July 2011, lifting off from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. The Landsat Data Continuity Mission will extend the more than 30-year record of high-quality land surface measurements from previous Landsat satellites. NASA researchers use these unique data products to study, understand and predict the consequences of land surface changes. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., manages procurement and acquisitions for the Landsat Data Continuity Mission in partnership with the U.S. Geological Survey. The U.S. Geological Survey will manage the satellite after launch and in-orbit checkout. For more information about the Landsat Data Continuity Mission, visit: http://ldcm.gsfc.nasa.gov

NASA SPACECRAFT TO CARRY RUSSIAN SCIENCE INSTRUMENTS WASHINGTON - NASA and the Russian Federal Space Agency Roscosmos have agreed to fly two Russian scientific instruments on NASA spacecraft that will conduct unprecedented robotic missions to the moon and Mars. NASA Administrator Michael Griffin and Roscosmos head Anatoly Perminov signed agreements in Moscow on Oct. 3 to add the instruments to two future missions: the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, scheduled to launch in October 2008, and the Mars Science Laboratory, an advanced robotic rover scheduled to launch in 2009. Russia's Lunar Exploration Neutron Detector on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will search for evidence of water ice and help understand astronauts' exposure to radiation during future trips to the moon. The instrument will map concentrations of hydrogen that may be found on and just beneath the lunar surface. Roscosmos' Dynamic Albedo of Neutrons instrument on the Mars Science Laboratory will measure hydrogen to analyze neutrons interacting with the Martian surface. The principal investigator for both instruments is Igor Mitrofanov of the Institute for Space Research of the Russian Academy of Science. "Russia's contribution to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and Mars Science Laboratory missions continues a rich and long-standing tradition of cooperation between NASA and Russia for scientific research in space," Griffin said. "The Institute for Space Research has a track record of delivering excellent instrumentation, and we are delighted to have international participation on these missions to explore the moon and send a robotic laboratory to Mars." The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter will circle the moon for at least a year, obtaining measurements necessary to identify future robotic and human landing sites. It also will look for potential lunar resources and document aspects of the lunar radiation environment. The Mars Science Laboratory rover is a mobile research platform that will explore a local region of the Martian surface as a potential habitat for past or present life. The rover will carry a suite of highly capable analytic and remote sensing instruments to investigate planetary processes that influence habitability, including the role of water. For more about NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission and the Mars Exploration Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA EXTENDS COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT WITH NSBRI HOUSTON -- NASA's Johnson Space Center has awarded a five-year, $120-million extension of its cooperative agreement with the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, also known as NSBRI, of Houston. Under the extension, the institute and NASA's Human Research Program will continue biomedical research in support of a long-term human presence in space. The base period of the cooperative agreement began April 1, 1997, with a value of $93.6 million. The first five-year extension was exercised in 2002, extending the agreement to Sept. 30, 2007, and increasing its value by $148.5 million. This second five-year option will extend the agreement through Sept. 30, 2012, and increase its value by an additional $120 million, bringing the total value to $362 million. The NSBRI studies the health risks related to long-duration spaceflight and develops countermeasures to mitigate them. NSBRI projects address space health concerns such as bone and muscle loss, cardiovascular changes, infection, balance problems, sleep disturbances, radiation exposure effects, nutrition, physical fitness, rehabilitation, remote-treatment medical technologies and neurobehavioral and psychosocial factors. The institute's science, technology and education projects take place at more than 70 institutions in 26 U.S. states. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov For information about the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, visit: http://www.nsbri.org

SHUTTLE DISCOVERY AT LAUNCH PAD; LAUNCH DRESS REHEARSAL NEXT CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - With space shuttle Discovery now at its launch pad at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, the next major milestone for the upcoming STS-120 mission is a full launch dress rehearsal. The shuttle arrived at the pad near noon EDT Sunday on top of a giant vehicle called the crawler-transporter. The crawler-transporter began carrying Discovery out of Kennedy's Vehicle Assembly Building at 6:47 a.m., traveling less than 1 mph during the 3.4 mile journey. Discovery was firmly on the launch pad, or hard down, at 1:15 p.m. Discovery is targeted to launch Oct. 23 on a 14-day mission to the International Space Station. The shuttle's seven crew members will add a module to the space station that will serve as a port for installing additional international laboratories. The crew also will move the station's first set of solar arrays to a permanent location and redeploy them. Discovery's crew members are Commander Pam Melroy, Pilot George Zamka and mission specialists Scott Parazynski, Stephanie Wilson, Doug Wheelock, Daniel Tani and Paolo Nespoli of the European Space Agency. Tani will remain aboard the station and return with the STS-122 crew, targeted to launch Dec. 6. Current station Flight Engineer Clayton Anderson will return to Earth aboard Discovery. The STS-120 astronauts and ground crews will participate in a launch dress rehearsal, known as the terminal countdown demonstration test, or TCDT, from Oct. 7 to 10 at Kennedy. The test provides each shuttle crew with an opportunity to participate in various simulated countdown activities, including equipment familiarization and emergency training. The following are media events associated with the test. All times are Eastern. Oct. 7 - STS-120 Crew Arrival: The crew will arrive at 7 p.m. at the Shuttle Landing Facility and make a statement. The arrival will not be broadcast live but will be part of the NASA TV Video File. Oct. 9 - STS-120 Crew Media Q&A: The crew will take media questions at Launch Pad 39A at 8:15 a.m. The session will be carried live on NASA TV. Oct. 10 - STS-120 Crew Walkout Photo Opportunity: The astronauts will depart from the Operations and Checkout Building at 7:45 a.m. in their flight entry suits in preparation for the countdown demonstration test at the launch pad. The walkout will not be broadcast live but will be part of the NASA TV Video File. Dates and times of events are subject to change. Schedule updates are available at 321-867-2525. New foreign media accreditation for these events is closed. U.S. media without permanent Kennedy Space Center credentials must apply for accreditation online by 4:30 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 4 at: https://media.ksc.nasa.gov To attend crew arrival, reporters must pick up badges by 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 5, at the Pass and Identification Building on State Road 3. For information about covering these events, including proper attire and meeting locations, credentialed media should visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/news/media.html Video b-roll of the terminal countdown demonstration test will be available on the NASA TV Video File. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For information about the STS-120 mission and crew, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA EXAMINES ARCTIC SEA ICE CHANGES LEADING TO RECORD LOW IN 2007 WASHINGTON - A new NASA-led study found a 23-percent loss in the extent of the Arctic's thick, year-round sea ice cover during the past two winters. This drastic reduction of perennial winter sea ice is the primary cause of this summer's fastest-ever sea ice retreat on record and subsequent smallest-ever extent of total Arctic coverage. A team led by Son Nghiem of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., studied trends in Arctic perennial ice cover by combining data from NASA's Quick Scatterometer (QuikScat) satellite with a computing model based on observations of sea ice drift from the International Arctic Buoy Programme. QuikScat can identify and map different classes of sea ice, including older, thicker perennial ice and younger, thinner seasonal ice. Between winter 2005 and winter 2007, the perennial ice shrunk by an area the size of Texas and California combined. This severe loss continues a trend of rapid decreases in perennial ice extent in this decade. Study results will be published Oct. 4 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The scientists observed less perennial ice cover in March 2007 than ever before, with the thick ice confined to the Arctic Ocean north of Canada. Consequently, the Arctic Ocean was dominated by thinner seasonal ice that melts faster. This ice is more easily compressed and responds more quickly to being pushed out of the Arctic by winds. Those conditions facilitated the ice loss, leading to this year's record low amount of total Arctic sea ice. Nghiem said the rapid decline in winter perennial ice the past two years was caused by unusual winds. "Unusual atmospheric conditions set up wind patterns that compressed the sea ice, loaded it into the Transpolar Drift Stream and then sped its flow out of the Arctic," he said. When that sea ice reached lower latitudes, it rapidly melted in the warmer waters. "The winds causing this trend in ice reduction were set up by an unusual pattern of atmospheric pressure that began at the beginning of this century," Nghiem said. The Arctic Ocean's shift from perennial to seasonal ice is preconditioning the sea ice cover there for more efficient melting and further ice reductions each summer. The shift to seasonal ice decreases the reflectivity of Earth's surface and allows more solar energy to be absorbed in the ice-ocean system. The perennial sea ice pattern change was deduced by using the buoy computing model infused with 50 years of data from drifting buoys and measurement camps to track sea ice movement around the Arctic Ocean. From the 1970s through the 1990s, perennial ice declined by about 193,000 square miles each decade. Since 2000, that rate of decline has nearly tripled. Results from the buoy model were verified against the past eight years of QuikScat observations, which have much better resolution and coverage. The QuikScat data were verified with field experiments conducted aboard the U.S. Coast Guard icebreaker Healy as well as by sea ice charts derived from multiple satellite data sources by analysts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Ice Center in Suitland, Md. The new study differs significantly from other recent studies that only looked at the Arctic's total sea ice extent. "Our study applies QuikScat's unique capabilities to examine how the composition of Arctic sea ice is changing, which is crucial to understanding Arctic sea ice mass balance and overall Arctic climate stability," Nghiem said. Pablo Clemente-Col?n of the National Ice Center said the rapid reduction of Arctic perennial sea ice requires an urgent reassessment of sea ice forecast model predictions and of potential impacts to local weather and climate, as well as shipping and other maritime operations in the region. "Improving ice forecast models will require new physical insights and understanding of complex Arctic processes and interactions." Other organizations participating in the study include the University of Washington's Polar Science Center, Seattle, and the U.S. Army Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory, Hanover, N.H.

NASA SATELLITE SEES SOLAR HURRICANE DETACH COMET TAIL GREENBELT, Md. - A NASA satellite has captured the first images of a collision between a comet and a solar hurricane. It is the first time scientists have witnessed such an event on another cosmic body. One of NASA's pair of Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory satellites, known as STEREO, recorded the event April 20. The phenomenon was caused by a coronal mass ejection, a large cloud of magnetized gas cast into space by the sun. The collision resulted in the complete detachment of the plasma tail of Encke's comet. Observations of the comet reveal the brightening of its tail as the coronal mass ejection swept by and the tail's subsequent separation as it was carried away by the front of the ejection. The researchers combined the images into a movie. "We were awestruck when we saw these images," says Angelos Vourlidas, lead author and researcher at the Naval Research Laboratory, Washington. "This is the first time we've witnessed a collision between a coronal mass ejection and a comet and the surprise of seeing the disconnection of the tail was the icing on the cake." Encke's comet was traveling within the orbit of Mercury when a coronal mass ejection first crunched the tail then ripped it completely away. The comet is only the second repeating, or periodic, comet ever identified. Halley's comet was the first. Scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory made the observations using the Heliospheric Imager in its Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation telescope suite aboard the STEREO-A spacecraft. The results will be published in the Oct. 10 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters. Coronal mass ejections are violent eruptions with masses greater than a few billion tons. They travel from 60 to more than 2,000 miles per second. They have been compared to hurricanes because of the widespread disruption they can cause when directed at Earth. These solar hurricanes cause geomagnetic storms that can present hazards for satellites, radio communications and power systems. However, coronal mass ejections are spread over a large volume of space, mitigating their mass and power to create an impact softer than a baby's breath. Scientists have been aware of the disconnection of the entire plasma tail of a comet for some time, but the conditions that lead to these events remained a mystery. It was suspected that coronal mass ejections could be responsible for some of the disconnected events, but the interaction between a coronal mass ejection and a comet never had been observed. Preliminary analysis suggests the disconnection likely is triggered by what is known as magnetic reconnection, in which the oppositely directed magnetic fields around the comet are crunched together by the magnetic fields in the coronal mass ejection. The comet fields suddenly link together, reconnecting, to release a burst of energy that detaches the comet's tail. A similar process takes place in Earth's magnetosphere during geomagnetic storms, powering the aurora borealis and other phenomena. Comets are icy leftovers from the solar system's formation billions of years ago. They usually reside in the cold, distant regions of the solar system. Occasionally, the gravitational tug from a planet, another comet or a nearby star sends a comet into the inner solar system, where the sun's heat and radiation vaporizes gas and dust from the comet to form its tail. Comets typically have two tails: one of dust and a fainter one of electrically conducting gas called plasma. "Even though STEREO is primarily designed to study coronal mass ejections, particularly their impact on Earth, we hope this impact will provide many insights to scientists studying comets," said Michael Kaiser, STEREO project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. STEREO is the third mission in NASA's Solar Terrestrial Probes program, sponsored by NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Goddard manages the mission, instruments, and science center. The Heliospheric Imager was built in the United Kingdom by Rutheford Appleton Laboratory and the University of Birmingham with major contributions from the Naval Research Laboratory and the Centre Spatial de Liege, Belgium. Other international partners in the STEREO mission include the European Space Agency and France, Germany, Hungary and Switzerland.

NASA SEEKS PROPOSALS FOR CONSTELLATION MOON SUIT WASHINGTON - NASA has issued a request for proposals from industry for the design, development and production of a new spacesuit system for Constellation Program voyages to the International Space Station and the moon. The Constellation spacesuit system contract is for design, development, test, evaluation and production of equipment to support astronauts aboard the Orion crew exploration vehicle. Orion will carry astronauts on trips to explore the moon and support the space station in the next decade. NASA expects to award the contract in June 2008. The suit and support systems will enable protection against spacecraft cabin leaks and provide contingency spacewalk capability. For short lunar exploration sorties, the suit also must support a week's worth of moon walks in one-sixth gravity. Potentially, the system will support multiple spacewalks during six-month lunar outpost stays. Suits and support systems will be needed for as many as four moon voyagers per trip or six space station travelers. Prospective contractors are being asked to develop a system that minimizes mass, volume and carry weight; donning time; maintenance requirements; suit logistics; operational overhead; life cycle costs; and operational constraints on the lunar surface in varying geographical, solar and thermal conditions. The same spacesuit system also must maximize pressurized and unpressurized crew comfort, range of motion, reliability and work efficiency throughout multiple suit uses. Designers are being asked to incorporate flexibility and modularity to allow for efficient incorporation of future upgrades. The cost-plus-award-fee contract will include a basic performance period from June 2008 to September 2013. The performance period involves design, development, test and evaluation work leading up to manufacture; assembly and first flight of the suit components needed for Orion; and the initial work on the suit components needed for the lunar surface. Two contract option periods will be available. Option 1 would cover completion of design, development, test and evaluation for the surface suit components. Option 2 would provide for suit production under a firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contract structure and sustaining engineering under a cost-plus-award-fee structure from the end of the basic performance period through September 2018. To view the request for Constellation Spacesuit System proposals, visit: http://procurement.jsc.nasa.gov/csss For information about NASA's Constellation Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

NASA ASSIGNS CREW FOR SPACE STATION ASSEMBLY MISSION WASHINGTON -- NASA has assigned the space shuttle crew for Endeavour's STS-126 mission, targeted for launch in September 2008. The flight will deliver equipment to the International Space Station that will enable larger crews to reside aboard the complex. Veteran space flier Navy Capt. Christopher J. Ferguson will command Endeavour. Air Force Lt. Col. Eric A. Boe will serve as the pilot. The mission specialists are Navy Cmdr. Stephen G. Bowen, NASA astronaut Joan E. Higginbotham, Army Lt. Col. Robert S. Kimbrough and Navy Capt. Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper. Boe, Bowen and Kimbrough will be making their first spaceflight. STS-126 will be the second spaceflight for Ferguson and Stefanyshyn-Piper, who flew together on STS-115 in September 2006. It also is the second flight for Higginbotham, who flew on STS-116 in December 2006. Endeavour will carry a reusable logistics module that will hold supplies and equipment, including additional crew quarters, a second treadmill, equipment for the regenerative life support system and spare hardware. A native of Philadelphia, Ferguson served as pilot of the shuttle Atlantis for STS-115. He has a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from Drexel University, Philadelphia, and a master's degree in aeronautical engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, Calif. He was selected as an astronaut in 1998. Boe was born in Miami and grew up in Atlanta. He has a bachelor's degree in astronautical engineering from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado Springs, Colo., and a master's degree in electrical engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta. He was selected as an astronaut in 2000. Bowen was born in Cohasset, Mass. He has a bachelor's degree from the U.S. Naval Academy, Annapolis, Md., and a master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge. Bowen also was selected as an astronaut in 2000. He was previously named to the STS-124 crew but has been reassigned to STS-126. The change will allow room for the STS-124 mission to rotate a space station resident, who will be named later. A native of Chicago, Higginbotham flew on STS-116. She has a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, and master's degrees in both management and space systems from the Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne. She was selected as an astronaut in 1996. Kimbrough was born in Killeen, Texas, and grew up in Smyrna, Ga. He has a bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering from the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, N.Y., and a master's degree in operations research from the Georgia Institute of Technology. He was selected as an astronaut in 2004. Stefanyshyn-Piper was born in St. Paul, Minn. She conducted two spacewalks on STS-115. She has a bachelor's and master's degrees in mechanical engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. She was selected as an astronaut in 1996. Video of the STS-126 crew members will air on NASA Television's Video File. For downlink and scheduling information and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For complete astronaut biographical information, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

Published in cooperation with NASA, the book features a foreword by Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong, with contributions from Steven Dick, NASA chief historian; Bob Jacobs, deputy assistant administrator for Public Affairs; Constance Moore, NASA lead photo researcher; Anthony M. Springer, lead, communications and education, NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate; and Bertram Ulrich, NASA curator and multimedia manager.) WASHINGTON - As the world remembers the 50th anniversaries of the Space Age in 2007 and NASA in 2008, the historic legacy of the agency is captured in a new and lavishly illustrated book published by Harry N. Abrams, Inc., New York, and available October 4. Titled America in Space, the book is a photographic record of the greatest adventures in the history of exploration and documents NASA's many achievements during the past five decades in aeronautics, science and technology, and human spaceflight. "This book has a wonderful collection of imagery that chronicles the first half-century of NASA," said Shana Dale, NASA deputy administrator, Headquarters, Washington. "As we view the historic achievement of our first generation of space explorers and see how far we have come in 50 years, we also peer over the horizon to a new era of exploration that will provide us with an outpost on the moon and eventually human exploration of Mars." Almost 500 stunning color and black-and-white photographs, including many never published before, were culled from NASA's archives. The images tell the agency's story, from the drama of lift-off, to tension in mission control, to the humor and humanity portrayed in the faces of astronauts, scientists, engineers, and political leaders associated with the program during the past five decades. "Abrams is tremendously proud to have collaborated with NASA to create America in Space, which celebrates some of our nation's greatest achievements and is also a milestone in photographic publishing," said Eric Himmel, Abrams vice president and editor-in-chief. "It was thrilling to see these amazing images materialize from NASA's vast visual archives as the project took shape." Published in cooperation with NASA, the book features a foreword by Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong, with contributions from Steven Dick, NASA chief historian; Bob Jacobs, deputy assistant administrator for Public Affairs; Constance Moore, NASA lead photo researcher; Anthony M. Springer, lead, communications and education, NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate; and Bertram Ulrich, NASA curator and multimedia manager

DAWN SPACECRAFT SUCCESSFULLY LAUNCHED CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's Dawn spacecraft began its 1.7 billion mile journey through the inner solar system to study a pair of asteroids Thursday at 7:34 a.m. EDT. The Delta 2 rocket, fitted with nine strap-on solid-fuel boosters, safely climbed away from the Florida coastline and launch complex 17B at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. "We have our time machine up and flying," said Dawn Principal Investigator Christopher Russell of the University of California, Los Angeles. Dawn is scheduled to begin its exploration of Vesta in 2011 and Ceres in 2015. The two icons of the asteroid belt are located in orbit between Mars and Jupiter and have been witness to so much of our solar system's history. By using the same set of instruments at two separate destinations, scientists can more accurately formulate comparisons and contrasts. Dawn's science instrument suite will measure shape, surface topography and tectonic history, elemental and mineral composition as well as seek out water-bearing minerals. A critical milestone for the spacecraft comes in is acquiring its signal. The launch team expects that to occur in approximately 2-3 hours. For the latest information about Dawn and its mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/dawn

NASA RESEARCH INDICATES OXYGEN ON EARTH 2.5 BILLION YEARS AGO MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - NASA-funded astrobiologists have found evidence of oxygen present in Earth's atmosphere earlier than previously known, pushing back the timeline for the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere. Two teams of researchers report that traces of oxygen appeared in Earth's atmosphere from 50 to 100 million years before what is known as the Great Oxidation Event. This event happened between 2.3 and 2.4 billion years ago, when many scientists think atmospheric oxygen increased significantly from the existing very low levels. Scientists analyzed a kilometer-long drill core from Western Australia, representing the time just before the major rise of atmospheric oxygen. They found evidence that a small but significant amount of oxygen was present in Earth's oceans and atmosphere 2.5 billion years ago. The findings appear in a pair of research papers in the Sept. 28 issue of the journal Science. "We seem to have captured a piece of time during which the amount of oxygen was actually changing -- caught in the act, as it were," said Ariel Anbar, an associate professor at Arizona State University, Tempe, and leader of one of the research teams. The goal of both research teams was to learn more about the environment and life in the oceans leading up to the Great Oxidation Event. The researchers did not expect to find evidence of oxygen earlier than what was previously known. "The core provides a continuous record of environmental conditions, analogous to a tape recording," explained Anbar. He and his research group analyzed the amounts of the trace metals molybdenum, rhenium and uranium. The quantity of these metals in oceans and sediments depend on the amount of oxygen in the environment. The other research group, led by Alan Kaufman of the University of Maryland, College Park, Md., analyzed sulfur isotopes. Its distribution also relies on the abundance of oxygen. "Studying the dynamics that gave rise to the presence of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere deepens our appreciation of the complex interaction between biology and geochemistry," said Carl Pilcher, director of the NASA Astrobiology Institute at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., which co-funded the study. "Their results support the idea that our planet and the life on it evolved together." One possible explanation for the Great Oxidation Event is the ancient ancestors of today's plants first began to produce oxygen by photosynthesis. However, many geoscientists think organisms began to produce oxygen much earlier, but the oxygen was destroyed in reactions with volcanic gases and rocks. "What we have now is new evidence for some oxygen in the environment 50 to 100 million years before the big rise of oxygen," Anbar said. "Our findings strengthen the notion that organisms learned to produce oxygen long before the Great Oxidation Event, and that the rise of oxygen in the atmosphere ultimately was controlled by geological processes." The international project brought together researchers from Arizona State University, the University of Maryland, the University of Washington, the University of California, Riverside, and the University of Alberta. The project received financial support from the NASA Astrobiology Institute and the National Science Foundation. The Geological Survey of Western Australia provided logistical support. Founded in 1998, the NASA Astrobiology Institute is a partnership between NASA, 16 U.S. teams and five international consortia to promote, conduct and lead integrated multidisciplinary astrobiology research and train a new generation of astrobiology researchers. The institute's Astrobiology Drilling Program is an international program aimed at coordinating continental drilling projects of astrobiological significance, especially those concerning Earth's early atmosphere. For more information about the NASA Astrobiology Institute, visit: http://nai.nasa.gov -end-

NASA'S DAWN SPACECRAFT ENROUTE TO SHED LIGHT ON ASTEROID BELT CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's Dawn spacecraft is on its way to study a pair of asteroids after lifting off Thursday from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 7:34 a.m. EDT. Mission controllers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif., received telemetry on schedule at 9:44 a.m. indicating Dawn had achieved proper orientation in space and its massive solar array was generating power from the sun. "Dawn has risen, and the spacecraft is healthy," said the mission's project manager Keyur Patel of JPL. "About this time tomorrow [Friday morning], we will have passed the moon's orbit." During the next 80 days, spacecraft controllers will test and calibrate the myriad of spacecraft systems and subsystems, ensuring Dawn is ready for the long journey ahead. "Dawn will travel back in time by probing deep into the asteroid belt," said Dawn Principal Investigator Christopher Russell, University of California, Los Angeles. "This is a moment the space science community has been waiting for since interplanetary spaceflight became possible." Dawn's 3-billion-mile odyssey includes exploration of asteroid Vesta in 2011 and the dwarf planet Ceres in 2015. These two icons of the asteroid belt have been witness to much of our solar system's history. By using Dawn's instruments to study both asteroids, scientists more accurately can compare and contrast the two. Dawn's science instrument suite will measure elemental and mineral composition, shape, surface topography, tectonic history, and it will seek water-bearing minerals. In addition, the Dawn spacecraft and how it orbits Vesta and Ceres will be used to measure the celestial bodies' masses and gravity fields. The spacecraft's engines use a unique, hyper-efficient system called ion propulsion, which uses electricity to ionize xenon to generate thrust. The 12-inch-wide ion thrusters provide less power than conventional engines but can maintain thrust for months at a time. The management of the Dawn launch was the responsibility of NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. The Delta 2 launch vehicle was provided by United Launch Alliance, Denver. The Dawn mission to Vesta and Ceres is managed by JPL, a division of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The University of California, Los Angeles, is responsible for overall Dawn mission science. Other scientific partners include Los Alamos National Laboratory, N.M.; Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research, Katlenburg, Germany; DLR Institute for Planetary Research, Berlin; Italian National Institute for Astrophysics, Rome; and the Italian Space Agency. Orbital Sciences Corporation of Dulles, Va., designed and built the Dawn spacecraft. To learn more about Dawn and its mission to the asteroid belt, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/dawn

NASA EXTENDS SPACE STATION ENGINEERING SERVICES CONTRACT HOUSTON - NASA has awarded a contract modification to the European Space Agency's Space Technology Center for additional engineering services for the International Space Station Node 2 and 3 modules. The modification is valued at $27.5 million. The contract modification extends the current contract to reflect adjustments made to the station's assembly manifest and to meet increased contract requirements through June 30, 2011. The two-year extension increases the value of the $22 million fixed price contract to $49.5 million. Node 2, also known as the Harmony module, is scheduled for delivery to the space station on the STS-120 mission, currently slated for Oct. 23. Node 3 is still in development. The modules are being built by Alcatel Alenia Space Italia in Torino, Italy, as part of an agreement between NASA and the European Space Agency. Node 2 is a utility hub and will serve as a passageway between three station science experiment facilities: the U.S. Destiny Laboratory, the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module and the European Columbus Laboratory. For more information about the space station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA, NSBRI SELECT 17 PROPOSALS IN SPACE RADIATION RESEARCH WASHINGTON - The crews of future missions to the moon and Mars could face serious health risks from exposure to space radiation. NASA and the National Space Biomedical Research Institute, known as NSBRI, Houston, will fund 17 new research projects that will enable NASA to better understand and reduce those risks. Scientists at universities, research institutions and private companies in eight states will conduct the studies. The goal of NASA's space radiation research is to enable the human exploration of space by understanding and limiting astronaut health risks from space radiation. The health risks of radiation during space travel may include cancer, acute radiation sickness and degenerative tissue damage, including damage to the central nervous system. The new research is designed to deliver products that will help in the development of effective shielding or biological countermeasures for radiation exposure. The 17 projects were selected from 98 proposals received in response to a NASA and NSBRI announcement, Ground-Based Studies in Space Radiation. Scientific and technical experts from academia and government laboratories reviewed the proposals. The total potential value of the selected proposals is about $15 million. NSBRI is a NASA-funded consortium of institutions studying the health risks related to long-duration spaceflight. The institute's science, technology and education projects take place at more than 70 institutions across the United States. A complete list of the selected principal investigators, organizations and proposals is available at: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/news/space_radiation.html For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov For information about NSBRI, visit: http://www.nsbri.org

NASA AWARDS FINANCIAL SERVICES CONTRACT MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - NASA has selected Powertek Corporation of Fairfax, Va., to provide financial support services at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. The contract has a five-year base period and no options. The estimated dollar value of the delivery order contract is $25 million. Powertek Corporation will provide financial management and resources management support services. Financial management support services include voucher examination, file management, data entry, financial reconciliation and reporting, accounts receivable, and reimbursable agreements management. Resources management support services include budget operations, execution and planning. In addition, support services are included for program analysis and control, including cost estimating, earned value management, and scheduling and services related to financial systems implementation, such as data conversion, testing and training. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

IMAX CAMERA RETURNS TO SPACE TO CHRONICLE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE WASHINGTON - IMAX Corporation and Warner Bros. Pictures announced Monday that, in cooperation with NASA, the IMAX 3D camera is scheduled to return to space in 2008 aboard the space shuttle during STS-125 for production of a new film. Set for release in early 2010, IMAX will chronicle the life story of the Hubble Space Telescope. "We are thrilled that people from around the world will experience this vital servicing mission from a front row seat," said Shana Dale, NASA deputy administrator, Headquarters, Washington. "Audiences will be mesmerized as they are transported to the distant galaxies of the universe." IMAX's long-standing partnership with NASA has enabled millions of people to travel into space through a series of award-winning films. The IMAX 3D camera made its first voyage into space in 2001 for the production of "Space Station 3D." The Hubble IMAX 3D film will mark Warner Bros. Picture's first venture into space. Veteran astronaut Scott D. Altman will command the final space shuttle mission to Hubble when the orbiter lifts off in late 2008. Navy Reserve Capt. Gregory C. Johnson will serve as pilot. Mission specialists are veteran spacewalkers John M. Grunsfeld, Michael J. Massimino, and first-time space fliers Andrew J. Feustel, Michael T. Good and K. Megan McArthur. The Hubble servicing mission is an 11-day flight. Following launch, the shuttle will rendezvous with the telescope on the third day of the flight. Using the shuttle's mechanical arm, the telescope will be placed on a work platform in the cargo bay. Five separate spacewalks will be needed to accomplish all of the mission objectives. "A decade ago we made a film that briefly touched on the subject of Hubble, but back then its first images were just coming in," said IMAX producer and director Toni Myers. "Today, we have Hubble's entire phenomenal legacy of data to explore. With IMAX 3D, we can transport people to galaxies that are literally 13 billion light years away. Real star travel is here at last." "Our original IMAX 3D releases have already put audiences in the driver's seat of a NASCAR racecar and taken them swimming with some of the most exotic undersea creatures on earth, and now we look forward to transporting them to the far reaches of the universe," said Dan Fellman, domestic distribution president, Warner Bros. Pictures. "Warner Bros. and IMAX have collaborated on 20 films over the last four years, and we are excited to share our next endeavor - the IMAX 3D space film - with our audience." Among work scheduled during the mission is the installation of two new instruments, the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) and Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). The COS is the most sensitive ultraviolet spectrograph ever flown on Hubble. The instrument will probe the cosmic web, the large-scale structure of the universe whose form is determined by the gravity of dark matter and is traced by the spatial distribution of galaxies and intergalactic gas. WFC3 is a new camera sensitive across a wide range of wavelengths (colors), including infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. It will have a broad capability to study the planets in our solar system, the early and distant galaxies beyond Hubble's current reach, and nearby galaxies with stories to tell about their star formation histories. Other planned work includes installing a refurbished Fine Guidance Sensor that replaces one degrading unit of the three already aboard. The sensors control the telescope's pointing system. An attempt also will be made to repair the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. Installed in 1997, it stopped working in 2004. The instrument is used for high resolution studies in visible and ultraviolet light of both nearby star systems and distant galaxies, providing information about the motions and chemical makeup of stars, planetary atmospheres and other galaxies. Astronauts will attempt to repair the Advanced Camera for Surveys, which stopped working in January 2007. The instrument consists of three imagers that are equipped with a variety of filters and dispersers that detect light from the ultraviolet to the near infrared. It was installed during the March 2002 servicing mission (SM3B). The Hubble Space Telescope is an international cooperative project between NASA and the European Space Agency. For more information about the mission and the Hubble Space Telescope, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/hubble

M07-121 NASA POSTPONES DAWN SPACECRAFT LAUNCH CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The launch of NASA's Dawn spacecraft aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket has been postponed 24 hours. Fueling of the launch vehicle's second stage was unable to be completed on Sunday because of weather conditions at the launch pad. The launch now is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 27, at the opening of a window that extends from 7:20 a.m. to 7:49 a.m. EDT. For reporters planning to establish remote cameras at the launch pad, set up has been rescheduled and will take place at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 26. The prelaunch news conference is scheduled for 1 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 25. Live launch coverage on NASA Television is set to begin Thursday at 5:15 a.m. For NASA TV streaming video, scheduling and downlink information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For more information about Dawn, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/dawn

NASA AWARDS NOAA GOES-R INSTRUMENT CONTRACT WASHINGTON -- NASA, in coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites Program, has awarded an instrument contract to Lockheed Martin Corporation, Bethesda, Md. The contract is for one instrument, with three options for additional instruments. The total estimated value including options is $178 million. The contractor will design and develop the Solar Ultraviolet Imager instrument, which will fly on the next generation of geostationary satellites. The first satellite in the GOES-R series is set to launch in December 2014. The instrument will provide broadband imaging in the extreme ultraviolet wavelength to monitor dynamic features on the sun, from coronal holes to flares. It also will provide better direct measurements of solar features. These data are used for geomagnetic storm forecasts and predictions of solar energetic particle events related to flares. The contractor will provide post-delivery support for the Solar Ultraviolet Imager. Most of the work will be performed at Lockheed Martin's facility in Palo Alto, Calif. NOAA funds, operates and manages the GOES-R Program. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., manages the acquisition of GOES-R instruments for NOAA. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

RESTARTS TELESCOPE MISSION TO DETECT BLACK HOLES WASHINGTON -- NASA has made a decision to restart an astronomy mission that will have greater capability than any existing instrument for detecting black holes in the local universe. The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, will expand our understanding of the origins and destinies of stars and galaxies. NASA had stopped the study effort on the NuSTAR mission in 2006 due to funding pressures within the Science Mission Directorate. "We are very excited to be able restart the NuSTAR mission, which we expect to be launched in 2011," said Alan Stern, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "NuSTAR has more than 500 times the sensitivity of previous instruments that detect black holes. It's a great opportunity for us to explore an important astronomical frontier. We are getting more and more from the science budget we have, and the restart of the highly-valued NuSTAR mission is an example of that." NuSTAR will bridge a gap between the 2009 launch of the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer and the 2013 launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. The spacecraft will map areas of the sky in the light of high-energy X-rays and complement astrophysics missions that explore the cosmos in other regions of the electromagnetic spectrum. "NuSTAR will perform deep observations in hard X-rays to detect black holes of all sizes and other exotic phenomena," said Jon Morse, director of the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. "It will perform cutting-edge science using advanced technologies and help to provide a balance between small and large missions in the NASA astrophysics portfolio." NuSTAR is a part of NASA's Explorer Program. The program provides frequent, low-cost access to space for missions with small- to mid-sized spacecraft. NuSTAR originally was selected from proposals submitted in response to an announcement of opportunity in 2003. Fiona Harrison of the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, is the NuSTAR principal investigator. NASA expects to select three additional Small Explorer missions for flight in the first half of the next decade through a competitive selection within the astrophysics and heliophysics scientific communities. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. manages the NuSTAR mission. The Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., manages the Explorer Program for the Science Mission Directorate. Orbital Sciences Corp., Dulles, Va., is the industry partner for the mission. For more information about the NuSTAR mission, visit: http://www.nustar.caltech.edu For information about NASA's Explorer Program, visit: http://explorers.gsfc.nasa.gov For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA ORBITER FINDS POSSIBLE CAVE SKYLIGHTS ON MARS PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft has discovered entrances to seven possible caves on the slopes of a Martian volcano. The find is fueling interest in potential underground habitats and sparking searches for caverns elsewhere on the Red Planet. Very dark, nearly circular features ranging in diameter from about 328 to 820 feet puzzled researchers who found them in images taken by NASA's Mars Odyssey and Mars Global Surveyor orbiters. Using Mars Odyssey's infrared camera to check the daytime and nighttime temperatures of the circles, scientists concluded that they could be windows into underground spaces. Evidence that the holes may be openings to cavernous spaces comes from the temperature differences detected from infrared images taken in the afternoon and in the pre-dawn morning. From day to night, temperatures of the holes change only about one-third as much as the change in temperature of surrounding ground surface. "They are cooler than the surrounding surface in the day and warmer at night," said Glen Cushing of the U.S. Geological Survey's Astrogeology Team and of Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Ariz. "Their thermal behavior is not as steady as large caves on Earth that often maintain a fairly constant temperature, but it is consistent with these being deep holes in the ground." A report of the discovery of the possible cave skylights by Cushing and his co-authors was published online recently by the journal Geophysical Research Letters. "Whether these are just deep vertical shafts or openings into spacious caverns, they are entries to the subsurface of Mars," said co-author Tim Titus of the U.S. Geological Survey in Flagstaff. "Somewhere on Mars, caves might provide a protected niche for past or current life, or shelter for humans in the future." The discovered holes, dubbed "Seven Sisters," are at some of the highest altitudes on the planet, on a volcano named Arsia Mons near Mars' tallest mountain. "These are at such extreme altitude, they are poor candidates either for use as human habitation or for having microbial life," Cushing said. "Even if life has ever existed on Mars, it may not have migrated to this height." The new report proposes that the deep holes on Arsia Mons probably formed as underground stresses around the volcano caused spreading and faults that opened spaces beneath the surface. Some of the holes are in line with strings of bowl-shaped pits where surface material has apparently collapsed to fill the gap created by a linear fault. The observations have prompted researchers using Mars Odyssey and NASA's newer Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to examine the Seven Sisters. The goal is to find other openings to underground spaces at lower elevations that are more accessible to future missions to Mars. "The key to finding these was looking for temperature anomalies at night -- warm spots," said Phil Christensen of Arizona State University, Tempe, principal investigator for the Thermal Emission Imaging System on Mars Odyssey. That instrument produced both visible-light and infrared images researchers used for examining the possible caves. "No other instrument at Mars could give the thermal information crucial to this research," said the project scientist for Mars Odyssey, Jeffrey Plaut of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "This is a great example of the exciting discoveries Odyssey continues to make." Mars Odyssey reached Mars in 2001, years before any of the other spacecraft currently examining the planet. Its predecessor, Mars Global Surveyor, ended its mission last year. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages Mars Odyssey and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Arizona State University operates the Mars Odyssey's Thermal Emission Imaging System. For additional information about Mars Odyssey and the new findings, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/odyssey

NASA ORBITER PROVIDES INSIGHTS ABOUT MARS WATER AND CLIMATE PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) is examining several features on Mars that address the role of water at different times in Martian history. Features examined with the orbiter's advanced instruments include material deposited in two gullies within the past eight years, polar ice layers formed in the recent geologic past, and signs of water released by large impacts when Mars was older. Last year, discovery of the fresh gully deposits from before-and-after images taken since 1999 by another orbiter, Mars Global Surveyor, raised hopes that modern flows of liquid water had been detected on Mars. Observations by the newer orbiter, which reached Mars last year, suggest these deposits might instead have resulted from landslides of loose, dry materials. Researchers report this and other findings from the MRO in five papers in Friday's issue of the journal Science. "The key question raised by these two deposits is whether water is coming to the surface of Mars today." said Alfred McEwen of the University of Arizona, Tucson, lead scientist for the spacecraft's High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera and co-author of three of the papers. "Our evidence suggests the new deposits did not necessarily involve water." One of the fresh deposits is a stripe of relatively bright material several hundred yards long that was not present in 1999 but appeared by 2004. The orbiter's Compact Reconnaissance Infrared Spectrometer for Mars reveals the deposit is not frost, ice or a mineral left behind by evaporation of salty water. Also, the researchers inspected the slopes above this and five other locations that have bright and apparently young deposits. The slopes are steep enough for sand or loose, dry dust to flow down the gullies. Bright material seen uphill could be the source. Other gullies, however, offer strong evidence of liquid water flowing on Mars within the last few million years, although perhaps at a different phase of repeating climate cycles. Mars, like Earth, has periodic changes in climate due to the cycles related to the planets' tilts and orbits. Some eras during the cycles are warmer than others. These gullies are on slopes too shallow for dry flows, and images from MRO's high-resolution camera show clear indicators of liquid flows, such as braided channels and terraces within the gullies. Another new finding from that camera may help undermine arguments that very ancient Mars had a wet climate on a sustained basis. Landscapes with branched channels and fan-like deposits typical of liquid flows were found around several impact craters. Images show close association between some of those flow features and ponded deposits interpreted as material melted by the impact of a meteoroid into ice-rich crust. This new evidence supports a hypothesis that ancient water flows on the surface were episodic, linked to impact events and subsurface heating, and not necessarily the result of precipitation in a sustained warmer climate. Crater-digging impacts were larger and more numerous during the early Martian era when large drainage networks and other signs of surface water were carved on many parts of the planet. The MRO has examined ice-rich layered deposits near the Martian poles with the ground-penetrating Shallow Subsurface Radar instrument, and other experiments. The radar detected layering patterns near the south pole that suggest climatic periods of accumulating deposits have alternated with periods of erosion, report Roberto Seu of the University of Rome and co-authors. Maria Zuber of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and collaborators used effects of Mars' gravity on the orbiter to check whether layered deposits at the south pole are high-density material, such as rock, or lower-density such as ice. Their observations add to other evidence that the layers are mostly water. Kenneth Herkenhoff of the U.S. Geological Survey, Flagstaff, and others used the high-resolution camera to trace a series of distinctive layers near the north pole. An accompanying paper by Windy Jaeger of the U.S. Geological Survey, Flagstaff, and co-authors uses images from the high-resolution camera to show lava flows completely draping a young Martian channel network called Athabasca Valles This creates ponded lava over an expanse that other researchers had interpreted in 2005 as a frozen sea. Richard Zurek, project scientist for MRO at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif., said, "These latest increases in observational capabilities, individually and in combination, reveal a more complex Mars, a planet with a rich history that we are still learning to read." JPL manages the MRO mission for NASAs Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, is the prime contractor and built the spacecraft. The University of Arizona operates the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera, built by Ball Aerospace & Technology Corp., Boulder, Colo. The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., operates the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer for Mars. The Shallow Subsurface Radar was provided by the Italian Space Agency; its operations are led by the University of Rome, and its data analyzed by a joint Italian-U.S. science team. Images from the new reports are available online at: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/MRO/multimedia/20070920.html Additional information about NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is online at: http://www.nasa.gov/mro

NASA RESEARCHERS EXTEND LIFE OF HOT TEMPERATURE ELECTRONIC CHIP CLEVELAND - NASA researchers have designed and built a new circuit chip that can take the heat like never before. In the past, integrated circuit chips could not withstand more than a few hours of high temperatures before degrading or failing. This chip exceeded 1,700 hours of continuous operation at 500 degrees Celsius - a breakthrough that represents a 100-fold increase in what has previously been achieved. The new silicon carbide differential amplifier integrated circuit chip may provide benefits to anything requiring long-lasting electronic circuits in very hot environments. Such highly durable integrated circuitry and packaging are being developed to enable extremely functional but physically small circuitry for hot sections of jet engines. In the future, such electronics will enhance sensing and control of the combustion process that could lead to improved safety and fuel efficiency as well as reduced emissions from jet engines. Similar benefits are also possible for automotive engines. Additional potential benefits of long-lasting high temperature integrated circuitry extend to oil and natural gas well drilling and anything requiring long lasting electronic circuits in very hot environments, including robotic exploration on the hostile surface environment of Venus. "It's really a significant step toward mission-enabling harsh environment electronics," said Phil Neudeck, an electronics engineer and team lead for this work by the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. "This new capability can eliminate the additional plumbing, wires, weight and other performance penalties required to liquid-cool traditional sensors and electronics near the hot combustion chamber, or the need to remotely locate them elsewhere where they aren't as effective." This successful project is a combined effort of the Aviation Safety and Fundamental Aeronautics programs under NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. For more information, visit: http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/SiC

MARS ROVERS SURVIVE SEVERE DUST STORMS, READY FOR NEXT OBJECTIVES PASADENA, Calif. --Two months after sky-darkening dust from severe storms nearly killed NASA's Mars exploration rovers, the solar-powered robots are awake and ready to continue their mission. Opportunity's planned descent into the giant Victoria Crater was delayed, but now the rover is preparing to drive into the half-mile diameter crater as early as Sept. 11. Spirit, Opportunity's rover twin, also survived the global dust storm. The rovers are 43 months into missions originally planned to last three months. On Sept. 5, Spirit climbed onto its long-term destination called Home Plate, a plateau of layered bedrock bearing clues to an explosive mixture of lava and water. "These rovers are tough. They faced dusty winds, power starvation and other challenges -- and survived. Now they are back to doing groundbreaking field work on Mars. These spacecraft are amazing," said Alan Stern, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Victoria Crater contains an exposed layer of bright rocks that may preserve evidence of interaction between the Martian atmosphere and surface from millions of years ago, when the atmosphere might have been different from today's. Victoria is the biggest crater Opportunity has visited. Martian dust storms in July blocked so much sunlight that researchers grew concerned the rovers' daily energy supplies could plunge too low for survival. Engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., put Opportunity onto a very low-energy regimen of no movement, few observations and reduced communication with Earth. Skies above both rovers remain dusty but have been clearing gradually since early August. Dust from the sky has been falling onto both rovers' solar panels, impeding their ability to collect energy from the sun. However, beneficial wind gusts removed some of the new buildup from Opportunity almost as soon as it accumulated. Opportunity drove to the lip of Victoria Crater in late August and examined possible entry routes. This week, Opportunity has been driving about 130 feet toward its planned entry point. The route will provide better access to a top priority target inside the crater: a bright band of rocks about 40 feet from the rim. "We chose a point that gives us a straight path down, instead of driving cross-slope from our current location," said Paolo Bellutta, a JPL rover driver plotting the route. "The rock surface on which Opportunity will be driving will provide good traction and control of its path into the crater." For its first foray into the crater, Opportunity will drive just far enough to get all six wheels in; it will then back out and assess slippage on the inner slope. "Opportunity might be ready for that first 'toe dip' into the crater as early as next week," said JPL's John Callas, rover project manager. "In addition to the drives to get to the entry point, we still need to conduct checkouts of two of Opportunity's instruments before sending the rover into the crater." The rover team plans to assess if dust has impaired use of the microscopic imager. If that tool is working, the team will use it to observe whether a scanning mirror for the miniature thermal emission spectrometer (Mini-TES) can function accurately. This mirror is high on the rover's camera mast. It reflects infrared light from the landscape to the spectrometer at the base of the mast, and it also can be positioned to close the hole in the mast as protection from dust. The last time the spectrometer was used, some aspects of the data suggested the instrument may have been viewing the inside of the mast instead of the Martian landscape. "If the dust cover or mirror is no longer moving properly, we may have lost the ability to use that instrument on Opportunity," said Steve Squyres of Cornell University, Ithaca, N.Y., principal investigator for the rovers' science instruments. "It would be the first permanent loss of an instrument on either rover. But we'll see." The instrument already has provided extensive valuable information about rocks and soils in the Meridiani region where Opportunity works. "Mini-TES has told us a lot about the rocks and soils at Meridiani, but we've learned that the differences among Meridiani rocks are often too subtle for it to distinguish," Squyres said. "The same instrument on Spirit, at Gusev Crater, has a much more crucial role for us at this point in the mission because there is such diversity at Gusev." Researchers will rely heavily on a different type of instrument, Opportunity's alpha particle X-ray spectrometer, for analysis of rocks at the bright-band target layer in the crater.

NASA AND MAD SCIENCE PARTNER TO PROMOTE SCIENCE EDUCATION WASHINGTON -- NASA and the Mad Science Group of Montreal, Canada, have teamed in an effort to spark the imagination of children, encouraging more youth to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and math. The two organizations recently signed a Space Act Agreement, officially launching the development of the Academy of Future Space Explorers. The organizations have leveraged NASA research, missions and initiatives to develop fun and engaging space-themed activities for elementary school-aged children. Space-inspired activities have been integrated into Mad Science's various enrichment initiatives, including after-school programs, birthday parties, summer camps and community events across the United States and Canada. More than 100,000 children have taken part in the initial launch phase of the program. "Mad Science is noted for its trademark 'edu-tainment' philosophy, which cultivates incredible enthusiasm and a sense of wonder in children," said Joyce Winterton, NASA assistant administrator for Education, Headquarters, Washington. "Our goal with this initiative is to take children on an adventure of discovery, introduce them to the exciting world of space, and above all, to help make learning fun." The Academy of Future Space Explorers will promote children's curiosity about Earth, the moon, Mars and beyond through creative, hands-on experiments and demonstrations. Participants will explore topics including: planets and moons; atmosphere and beyond; space phenomena; sun and stars; rocket science; space travel; space technology; and living in space. "Children are born scientists. They are naturally curious about the world around them, and space is still a mysterious, exciting frontier. We look forward to our continued relationship with NASA to harness that curiosity in today's youth, and to help foster a lifelong love of science, math and learning," said Ariel Shlien, chief executive officer, the Mad Science Group. "The Mad Science Group is thrilled to partner with NASA on this unique initiative, to help change children's perceptions about the sciences, and inspire the next generation of astronauts, physicists and engineers." With this program, NASA continues the agency's tradition of investing in the nation's education programs. It is directly tied the agency's major education goal of engaging Americans in NASA's mission. NASA is committed to building strategic partnerships and links between formal and informal education providers. Through hands-on, interactive educational activities, NASA is engaging students, educators, families, the public and other agency stakeholders to increase Americans' science and technology literacy. For more information about Mad Science, visit: http://www.madscience.org For more information about NASA's education programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/education

NASA'S AMES RESEARCH CENTER AWARDS SUPPORT SERVICES CONTRACT MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. -- NASA has selected Daniel, Mann, Johnson & Mendenhall of Los Angeles to provide on-site architectural and engineering support services at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. The contract includes a one-year base period and four one-year option periods, with a maximum value of $45 million, if NASA exercises all options. The contractor will provide on-site architecture and engineering support services, including information technology-based configuration management and power reliability studies at Ames. For more information about Ames, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ames

NASA AWARDS REUSABLE SOLID ROCKET MOTORS CONTRACT MODIFICATION WASHINGTON - NASA has awarded a contract modification valued at $681 million to ATK Launch Systems of Brigham City, Utah, for continued delivery of space shuttle reusable solid rocket motors. The modification reforms and extends the current contract to align production to new launch schedule requirements through Sept. 30, 2010. The modification reflects adjustments made in the shuttle manifest and makes deliveries consistent with the planned retirement of the space shuttle in September 2010. ATK Launch Systems will provide hardware and sustain engineering support to the Space Shuttle Program through the contract completion date on this cost-plus-award fee contract, which was awarded in October 1998. Work will be performed at the contractor's plants in Brigham City and Clearfield, Utah, along with facilities at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA'S CENTENNIAL CHALLENGES TO ADVANCE TECHNOLOGIES WASHINGTON - From Oct. 19 to 21, more than 20 teams from across the nation and around the world will compete for a total of $1,000,000 from NASA for the development of cutting-edge technologies. The Beam Power Challenge and Tether Challenge, two of NASA's seven Centennial Challenges, will take place at the 2007 Space Elevator Games at the Davis County Event Center in Salt Lake City. "The innovations from these competitions will help support advances in aerospace materials and structures, new approaches to robotic and human planetary surface operations, and even futuristic concepts," said Ken Davidian, program manager for NASA's Centennial Challenges, Headquarters, Washington. The Spaceward Foundation is conducting the challenges as part of the Space Elevator Games at no cost to NASA. The Beam Power Challenge promotes the development of new power distribution technologies that can be applied to space exploration. This competition requires teams to design and build a climber machine that can travel up and down a ribbon while carrying a payload. Power will be beamed from a transmitter to a receiver on the climber. Each climber must scale a height of approximately 330 feet traveling at a minimum speed of 2 meters per second. As many as three teams with the highest qualifying scores could win the competition and share the $500,000 purse. Technologies demonstrated in this competition could have applications for future planetary surface operation with robots or humans. The purpose of the Tether Challenge is to develop very strong, lightweight material. Super-strong tethers could enable advances in aerospace capability, including rocket weight reduction, habitable space structures, solar sails, or tether-based propulsion systems. The challenge will be conducted in two rounds that test the strength of each team's tether. As many as three teams could share the $500,000 prize. The winners must demonstrate a technology at least 50 percent stronger than a baseline, state-of-the-art tether that uses off-the-shelf materials. The space elevator is an Earth-to-space transportation system proposed in the 1960s and enhanced in 2000 by Dr. Bradley Edwards of Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico. The system is comprised of a stationary cable moving in unison with the Earth, with one end anchored to the surface of the planet and the other in space. Electric cars then would travel up and down the cable, carrying cargo and people. For more information about the competitions, visit: http://www.spaceward.org Centennial Challenges, an element of NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program, promotes technical innovation through prize competitions to make revolutionary advances to support NASA's mission, including the return to the moon and journey to Mars. For more information about the Innovative Partnerships Program and Centennial Challenges, visit: http://www.ipp.nasa.gov/cc

NASA AWARDS TECHNOLOGY SERVICES CONTRACT OPTION WASHINGTON - NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., has exercised an option to continue an existing contract with Science Applications International Corporation, or SAIC, of San Diego, to provide information technology services to NASA. The option is valued at $205.9 million. It continues efforts under the Unified NASA Information Technology Services, or UNITeS, contract that was awarded to SAIC on Jan. 1, 2004. This is the second of two priced options and extends performance under the contract through Dec. 31, 2008. Work performed by SAIC and its subcontractors under UNITeS includes support to Marshall in the areas of information technology systems and services support for programs. The option also includes a range of services in support of the entire agency, including the Integrated Enterprise Management Program, wide area network, information technology security and digital television. The UNITeS contract has an approximate total value, including options, of $956 million. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA SELECTS ARES I UPPER STAGE PRODUCTION CONTRACTOR WASHINGTON - NASA on Tuesday selected The Boeing Co., Huntsville, Ala., as the contractor to provide manufacturing support for design and construction of the upper stage of the Ares I rocket. Ares I will launch astronauts to the International Space Station and eventually help return humans to the moon. Boeing will provide support to a NASA-led design team during the design phase and will be responsible for production of the Ares I upper stage. Boeing will manufacture a ground test article, three flight test units and six production flight units to support NASA's flight manifest through 2016. Final assembly of the upper stage will take place at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The contract type is cost-plus-award-fee and the period of performance is Sept. 1, 2007, through Dec. 31, 2016. The estimated contract value for design team support and the manufacture of the test units and six production flight units is $514.7 million. The selection resulted from a full and open competition. Ares I is an in-line, two-stage rocket that will carry to low Earth orbit the crew exploration vehicle Orion, which will succeed the space shuttle as NASA's primary vehicle for human exploration in the next decade. The Ares I upper stage, with an engine and an avionics unit procured separately, will provide the navigation, guidance, control and propulsion required for the second stage of the rocket's ascent. The Ares I first stage will consist of a five-segment solid rocket booster and motor similar to those used on the space shuttle. The second, or upper, stage will consist of a J-2X main engine, a fuel tank for liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellants, and associated avionics. The Ares I upper stage development is managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., for NASA's Constellation Program. For information about NASA's Constellation Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

Findings of Astronaut Health Reviews

NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale said the agency is moving forward to implement many of the recommendations contained in two studies released Friday about astronaut health and behavioral assessments.

The two reviews were made public prior to a news conference in Washington, five months after the agency requested that an independent external committee conduct a comprehensive review of health services available to astronauts. Both studies were initiated in the aftermath of the arrest in February of former astronaut Lisa Nowak.

The first assessment of astronaut behavioral medicine procedures, an internal review, was completed by NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, earlier this week. The second assessment, a broader review by outside experts called the Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee, was organized by NASA Chief Health and Medical Officer Dr. Richard Williams.

"The review committee, chaired by Air Force Col. Richard Bachmann, commander of the U.S. Air Force School of Aerospace Medicine, completed a valuable task on short notice and I would like to acknowledge the group's dedication and time commitment to this important review," Dale said. "We are committed to improving the behavioral care and assessment procedures for astronauts."

"We believe the resulting modifications will be good for the astronaut corps and for NASA."

Dale said NASA immediately will address four primary areas of concern:

NASA Chief of Safety and Mission Assurance Bryan O'Connor, a former astronaut, began an extensive examination Friday focusing on allegations of improper alcohol use. O'Connor will review all existing policies and procedures related to alcohol use and astronaut medical fitness prior to flight. The goal is to ensure that risks to flight safety are dealt with by appropriate authorities, and, if necessary, elevated through a transparent system of senior management review and accountability.

NASA’s Medical Policy Board, made up of senior internal and external medical experts, will further assess the medical and behavioral findings and recommendations in the two reviews. The board will institute behavioral health assessments as a part of annual flight physicals for all astronauts.

The agency will develop an astronaut code of conduct and has engaged NASA's astronaut corps to help develop the formal guidelines. The astronauts already have started to develop an initial set of recommendations and agency leadership will establish a collaborative process to create an official code.

To address organizational culture issues outlined in the reports, NASA will conduct a series of internal assessments, including anonymous surveys to be completed by astronauts and flight surgeons, to provide feedback and gather information. The goal is to improve communications and ensure leadership is responsive to concerns and complaints.

"We are moving as quickly as we can on the recommendations, and Administrator Mike Griffin and I will closely monitor progress on these issues," Dale added. "After the review is completed, it is our intention to share the findings with the public, to the maximum extent possible."

+ Statement From Deputy Administrator Shana Dale (20 Kb PDF) | + Briefing Photos
+ NASA Astronaut Health Care System Review Committee Report to the Administrator (81 Kb PDF)
+ Johnson Space Center Internal Review Findings (236 Kb PDF)
+ Public Medical Review Fact Sheet (32 Kb PDF)
+ Frequently Asked Questions

SCIENTISTS SEE FIRST SIGNS OF LONG-TERM CHANGES IN TROPICAL RAINFALL WASHINGTON - NASA scientists have detected the first signs that tropical rainfall is on the rise, using the longest and most complete data record available. The international scientific community assembled a 27-year global record of rainfall from satellite and ground-based instruments. The researchers found the rainiest years between 1979 and 2005 occurred primarily after 2001. The wettest year was 2005, followed by 2004, 2003, 2002 and 1998. The study appeared in the August 1 issue of the American Meteorological Society's Journal of Climate. The rainfall increase was concentrated over tropical oceans, with a slight decline over land. "When we look at the whole planet over almost three decades, the total amount of rain falling has changed very little. But in the tropics, where nearly two-thirds of all rain falls, there has been an increase of 5 percent," said lead author Guojun Gu, a research scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. Climate scientists predict that a warming trend in Earth's atmosphere and surface temperatures would produce an accelerated recycling of water between land, sea and air. Warmer temperatures increase the evaporation of water from the ocean and land and allow air to hold more moisture. Eventually, clouds form that produce rain and snow. "A warming climate is the most plausible cause of this observed trend in tropical rainfall," said co-author Robert F. Adler, senior scientist at Goddard's Laboratory for Atmospheres. Adler and Gu are now working on a detailed study of the relationship between surface temperatures and rainfall patterns to investigate the possible link further. Obtaining a global view of our planet's rainfall patterns is a challenge. Only since the satellite era have regular estimates of rainfall over oceans been available to supplement the long-term, but land-limited record from rain gauges. Recently, the many different land- and space-based data have been merged into a global record: the Global Precipitation Climatology Project, organized under the World Climate Research Program. Using this global record, the scientists identified a small upward trend in overall tropical rainfall since 1979. To assess whether this pattern was a long-term trend rather than natural year-to-year variability, they removed the effects of the two natural phenomena that change rainfall: the El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation and large volcanic eruptions. El Ni?o is a cyclical warming of the ocean waters in the central and eastern tropical Pacific that generally occurs every three to seven years and alters weather patterns worldwide. Volcanoes that loft debris into the upper troposphere and stratosphere create globe-circling bands of aerosol particles that slow the formation of precipitation by increasing the number of small cloud drops and temporarily shielding the planet from sunlight. The result lowers surface temperatures and evaporation that fuels rainfall. Two such eruptions - El Chicon in Mexico and Mount Pinatubo in the Philippines - occurred during the 27-year period. The scientists found that during El Ni?o years, total tropical rainfall did not change significantly, but more rain fell over oceans than usual. During the two years following each volcanic eruption, overall tropical rainfall was reduced by about 5 percent. With these effects removed from the rainfall record, the long-term trend appears more clearly in the rainfall data both over land and over the ocean. According to Adler, evidence for the rainfall trend is holding as more data come in. The latest numbers for 2006 show another record-high year for tropical rainfall, tying 2005 as the rainiest year. Adler's research group at NASA produces the Global Precipitation Climatology Project's monthly rainfall updates. "The next step toward firmly establishing this initial indication of a long-term tropical rainfall trend is to continue to lengthen and improve our data record," said Adler, who is project scientist of the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM), a joint effort between NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. The satellite's three primary instruments are providing the most detailed view of rainfall ever provided from space. Since 1997, Adler's group has been incorporating the mission's rainfall data into the global rainfall record. NASA plans to extend the success of monitoring rainfall over the tropics to the entire globe with the Global Precipitation Measurement mission, scheduled for launch in 2013. This international project will measure both rain and snow around the world. For related images and more information about this story, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news

NASA'S STENNIS SPACE CENTER MARKS NEW CHAPTER IN SPACE EXPLORATION BAY ST. LOUIS, Miss. - NASA's Stennis Space Center broke ground Thursday for a new rocket engine test stand that will provide altitude testing for the J-2X engine. The engine will power the upper stages of NASA's Ares I and Ares V rockets. NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale was joined by Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, U.S. Sen. Trent Lott and U.S. Rep. Gene Taylor for the landmark occasion. Also participating were NASA Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems Scott Horowitz and Stennis Center Director Richard Gilbrech, recently named to succeed Horowitz, who plans to leave NASA in October. Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne President Jim Maser took part as well. "Groundbreakings are about new beginnings," said Dale. "The first stand was erected at Stennis to test the Saturn V rocket of the Apollo program. Testing of the space shuttle engines began here in the mid 1970s. And today, we're breaking ground for a new test stand, for the new spacecraft of a new era of exploration." The Ares I and Ares V rockets are being developed as part of NASA's Constellation Program. Constellation spacecraft will be used to send astronauts to the International Space Station, return humans to the moon, and eventually journey to Mars. "This is our generation's turn, our time to go to the moon," said Gilbrech. "One of the key steps is building the A-3 test stand. The J-2X engine has a unique set of test requirements. The best way to meet them is with the A-3." The A-3 stand is the first large test stand to be built at Stennis since it opened in the 1960s. The new test stand will be a 300-foot-tall, open steel frame structure located south of the existing A-1 test stand. Its 19-acre site in Stennis' A Complex will include a test control center, propellant barge docks and access roadways. The test stand will allow engineers to simulate conditions at different altitudes by generating steam to reduce pressure in the test cell. Testing on the A-3 stand is scheduled to begin in late 2010. In November 2006, Stennis' existing A-1 stand was handed over to the Constellation Program for testing the J-2X engine. Tests on J-2X components are set to begin later in 2007. "The engines will be assembled here at Stennis, then subjected to rigorous, expert testing," Dale said. "After that, those engines and the rockets they will power will travel to Cape Canaveral. Then the finished spacecraft will lift off, headed for a new destination and a new era of exploration." A graphic of the future A-3 test stand, along with all of the latest information about NASA's Constellation Program, is available at: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

NASA AND INTERNET ARCHIVE TEAM TO DIGITIZE SPACE IMAGERY WASHINGTON - NASA and Internet Archive of San Francisco are partnering to scan, archive and manage the agency's vast collection of photographs, historic film and video. The imagery will be available through the Internet and free to the public, historians, scholars, students, and researchers. Currently, NASA has more than 20 major imagery collections online. With this partnership, those collections will be made available through a single, searchable "one-stop-shop" archive of NASA imagery. "Making NASA's important scientific and space exploration imagery available and easily accessible online to all is a service of tremendous value to America, and we're pleased to partner with the experts at Internet Archive to accomplish this effort," said Robert Hopkins, chief of strategic communications at NASA Headquarters, Washington. NASA selected Internet Archive, a nonprofit organization, as a partner for digitizing and distributing agency imagery through a competitive process. The two organizations are teaming through a non-exclusive Space Act agreement to help NASA consolidate and digitize its imagery archives using no NASA funds. "We're dedicated to making all human knowledge available in the digital realm," said Brewster Kahle, digital librarian and founder of Internet Archive. "The educational value of the images NASA has collected during the course of its five decades of scientific discovery is unprecedented. Digitizing NASA's imagery is a big step in Internet Archive's ongoing efforts to digitize a vast spectrum of content and make it freely accessible to the public in an easily searched online destination." Under the terms of this five-year agreement, Internet Archive will digitize, host and manage still, moving and computer-generated imagery produced by NASA. In the first year, Internet Archive will consolidate NASA's major imagery collections. In the second year, digital imagery will be added to the archive. In the third year, NASA and Internet Archive will identify analog imagery to be digitized and added to this online collection. In addition, Internet Archive will work with NASA to create a system through which new imagery will be captured, catalogued and included in the online archive automatically. To open this wealth of knowledge to people worldwide, Internet Archive will provide free public access to the online imagery, including downloads and search tools. The imagery archive also may include other historically significant material such as audio files, printed documents and computer presentations. For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov For more information about Internet Archive, visit: http://www.archive.org -end-

CONTRACT RELEASE: C07-38 NASA AWARDS NOAA GOES-R INSTRUMENT CONTRACT WASHINGTON - NASA, in coordination with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES-R) Program, has awarded a contract to the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder. The total estimated value is $92 million, including options. The laboratory will build the Extreme Ultra Violet and X-Ray Irradiance Sensors that will fly on the next series of GOES-R. These instruments will help forecast solar disturbances that can affect communications and navigational operations. This satellite series will upgrade existing weather and environmental monitoring capabilities. The first launch of the series is scheduled for December 2014. The design and development of the instruments will be performed at the contractor's facility in Boulder, Colo. The contractor also will provide post-delivery support for GOES-R. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) funds, operates and manages the GOES program. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., manages the acquisition of GOES-R instruments for NOAA. For more information about the GOES-R program, visit: http://osd.goes.noaa.gov

LIFE AND WORK ON THE MOON: WHAT IMAGES COME TO MIND? HAMPTON, Va. - A new NASA contest encourages university art and design students to partner with science and engineering departments to create art representative of living and working on the moon. The goal is for students in the arts, science and engineering to collaboratively engage in NASA's mission to return humans to the moon by 2020, and eventually journey on to Mars and other destinations in the solar system. The Advanced Planning and Partnership Office at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., is sponsoring the "Life and Work on the Moon" contest. Winners will receive cash prizes up to $1,000. Winning artwork also will be exhibited online and across the country. Students in architecture, industrial design, computer design, the fine arts and other disciplines are invited to submit entries in one of three categories: two-dimensional art, three-dimensional art or digital art. To ensure artistic concepts reflect the realities of the harsh lunar environment, art students are strongly encouraged to consult with science and engineering students and use NASA's online resources. A volunteer panel of judges will represent NASA, other government agencies, universities, industry and the professional art community. Judges will evaluate artistic qualities and whether the entry depicts a valid scenario in the context of the lunar environment. In sponsoring the contest, NASA hopes to encourage more collaboration among scientists and engineers and the artistic and creative communities. Such collaboration may generate new ideas for living and working in extra-terrestrial environments, resulting in more successful long-duration space missions. Winners of the contest will be offered the opportunity to exhibit their work in NASA facilities and science museums. An online public gallery will be available through a partnership with NASA's Classroom of the Future, maintained by the Wheeling Jesuit University Center for Educational Technologies in Wheeling, W. Va., and the Christopher Newport University Institute for Science Education in Newport News, Va. Christopher Newport University will provide cash awards for top prizes. Entries are due no later than December 1, 2007, and results will be announced in February 2008. A high school version of this contest is planned for the spring of 2008. For more details about the contest, including NASA's resources about the moon, visit: http://artcontest.larc.nasa.gov For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR CREW RETURNS HOME AFTER SUCCESSFUL MISSION CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - The space shuttle Endeavour and its crew are home after completing a 13-day journey of more than 5.2 million miles in space. Endeavour's STS-118 mission successfully added another truss segment, a new gyroscope and external spare parts platform to the International Space Station. Endeavour's Commander Scott Kelly, Pilot Charlie Hobaugh and mission specialists Tracy Caldwell, Rick Mastracchio, Barbara R. Morgan, Alvin Drew and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Dave Williams landed at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Tuesday at 12:32 p.m. EDT. Williams, Mastracchio and station flight engineer Clayton Anderson, with the help of their crewmates, made four spacewalks to accomplish the construction tasks. The spacewalkers also completed work in preparation for upcoming assembly missions, such as relocating an equipment cart and installing support equipment and communication upgrades. During the mission, a new system that enables docked shuttles to draw electrical power from the station to extend visits to the outpost was activated successfully. Because the system worked, two additional days were added to Endeavour's mission. STS-118 was the 119th space shuttle flight, the 22nd flight to the station, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the second of four missions planned for 2007. Although managers addressed several issues with Endeavour's heat shield, including a small gouge in the protective tile on the orbiter's belly, inspections in orbit revealed no critical damage. Endeavour's thermal protection system was declared safe for re-entry on Monday. The orbiter will be processed immediately for its next flight, targeted for February 2008. With Endeavour and its crew safely home, the stage is set for the next phase of International Space Station assembly. Preparations continue for space shuttle Discovery's scheduled launch in October of the STS-120 mission to deliver the pressurized Node 2 connecting module to the station. For more on the STS-118 mission and the upcoming STS-120 mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

PIONEERING NASA SPACECRAFT MARK THIRTY YEARS OF FLIGHT WASHINGTON - NASA's two venerable Voyager spacecraft are celebrating three decades of flight as they head toward interstellar space. Their ongoing odysseys mark an unprecedented and historic accomplishment. Voyager 2 launched on Aug. 20, 1977, and Voyager 1 launched on Sept. 5, 1977. They continue to return information from distances more than three times farther away than Pluto. "The Voyager mission is a legend in the annals of space exploration. It opened our eyes to the scientific richness of the outer solar system, and it has pioneered the deepest exploration of the sun's domain ever conducted," said Alan Stern, associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. "It's a testament to Voyager's designers, builders and operators that both spacecraft continue to deliver important findings more than 25 years after their primary mission to Jupiter and Saturn concluded." During their first dozen years of flight, the spacecraft made detailed explorations of Jupiter, Saturn, and their moons, and conducted the first explorations of Uranus and Neptune. These planets were previously unknown worlds. The Voyagers returned never-before-seen images and scientific data, making fundamental discoveries about the outer planets and their moons. The spacecraft revealed Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere, which includes dozens of interacting hurricane-like storm systems, and erupting volcanoes on Jupiter's moon Io. They also showed waves and fine structure in Saturn's icy rings from the tugs of nearby moons. For the past 19 years, the twin Voyagers have been probing the sun's outer heliosphere and its boundary with interstellar space. Both Voyagers remain healthy and are returning scientific data 30 years after their launches. Voyager 1 currently is the farthest human-made object at a distance from the sun of about 9.7 billion miles. Voyager 2 is about 7.8 billion miles from the sun. Originally designed as a four-year mission to Jupiter and Saturn, the Voyager tours were extended because of their successful achievements and a rare planetary alignment. The two-planet mission eventually became a four-planet grand tour. After completing that extended mission, the two spacecraft began the task of exploring the outer heliosphere. "The Voyager mission has opened up our solar system in a way not possible before the Space Age," said Edward Stone, Voyager project scientist at the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif. "It revealed our neighbors in the outer solar system and showed us how much there is to learn and how diverse the bodies are that share the solar system with our own planet Earth." In December 2004, Voyager 1 began crossing the solar system's final frontier. Called the heliosheath, this turbulent area, approximately 8.7 billion miles from the sun, is where the solar wind slows as it crashes into the thin gas that fills the space between stars. Voyager 2 could reach this boundary later this year, putting both Voyagers on their final leg toward interstellar space. Each spacecraft carries five fully functioning science instruments that study the solar wind, energetic particles, magnetic fields and radio waves as they cruise through this unexplored region of deep space. The spacecraft are too far from the sun to use solar power. They run on less than 300 watts, the amount of power needed to light up a bright light bulb. Their long-lived radioisotope thermoelectric generators provide the power. "The continued operation of these spacecraft and the flow of data to the scientists is a testament to the skills and dedication of the small operations team," said Ed Massey, Voyager project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Massey oversees a team of nearly a dozen people in the day-to-day Voyager spacecraft operations. The Voyagers call home via NASA's Deep Space Network, a system of antennas around the world. The spacecraft are so distant that commands from Earth, traveling at light speed, take 14 hours one-way to reach Voyager 1 and 12 hours to reach Voyager 2. Each Voyager logs approximately 1 million miles per day. Each of the Voyagers carries a golden record that is a time capsule with greetings, images and sounds from Earth. The records also have directions on how to find Earth if the spacecraft is recovered by something or someone. NASA's next outer planet exploration mission is New Horizons, which is now well past Jupiter and headed for a historic exploration of the Pluto system in July 2015. For a complete listing of Voyager discoveries and mission information, visit the Internet at: http://www.nasa.gov/voyager

SPEEDING BULLET STAR LEAVES ENORMOUS STREAK ACROSS SKY WASHINGTON - NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer has spotted a surprisingly long comet-like tail behind a star streaking through space at supersonic speeds. The star, named Mira after the Latin word for "wonderful," has been a favorite of astronomers for approximately 400 years. It is a fast-moving, older red giant that is shedding massive amounts of surface material. The space-based Galaxy Evolution Explorer scanned the popular star during its ongoing survey of the entire sky in ultraviolet light. Astronomers then noticed what looked like a comet with a gargantuan tail. Material blowing off Mira is forming a wake 13 light-years long, or about 20,000 times the average distance of Pluto from the sun. Nothing like this has been seen before around a star. "I was shocked when I first saw this completely unexpected, humongous tail trailing behind a well-known star," said Christopher Martin of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif. "It was amazing how Mira's tail echoed on vast, interstellar scales the familiar phenomena of a jet's contrail or a speedboat's turbulent wake." Martin is the principal investigator for the Galaxy Evolution Explorer and lead author of a paper appearing about the discovery in the Aug. 15 edition of Nature. To view the outlandish star, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/galex/20070815/a.html Astronomers say Mira's tail offers a unique opportunity to study how stars like our sun die and ultimately seed new solar systems. As Mira hurtles along, its tail sheds carbon, oxygen and other important elements needed to form new stars, planets and possibly even life. This tail material, visible for the first time, has been released during the past 30,000 years. "This is an utterly new phenomenon to us, and we are still in the process of understanding the physics involved," said co-author Mark Seibert of the Observatories of the Carnegie Institution of Washington in Pasadena. "We hope to be able to read Mira's tail like a ticker tape to learn about the star's life." Billions of years ago, Mira was similar to our sun. Over time, it began to swell into what is called a variable red giant - a pulsating, puffed-up star that periodically grows bright enough to see with the naked eye. Mira eventually will eject all its remaining gas into space, forming a colorful shell called a planetary nebula. The nebula will fade with time, leaving only the burnt-out core of the original star, which will then be called a white dwarf. Compared to other red giants, Mira is traveling unusually fast, possibly due to gravitational boosts from other passing stars. It now plows along at 291,000 miles per hour. Racing along with Mira is a small, distant companion thought to be a white dwarf. The pair, also known as Mira A (the red giant) and Mira B, orbit slowly around each other as they travel together in the constellation Cetus, 350 light-years from Earth. In addition to Mira's tail, the Galaxy Evolution Explorer also discovered a bow shock, a type of buildup of hot gas, in front of the star, and two sinuous streams of material emanating from the star's front and back. Astronomers think hot gas in the bow shock is heating the gas blowing off the star, causing it to fluoresce with ultraviolet light. This glowing material then swirls around behind the star, creating a turbulent, tail-like wake. The process is similar to a speeding boat leaving a choppy wake or a steam train producing a trail of smoke. Mira's tail only glows with ultraviolet light, which might explain why other telescopes have missed it. The Galaxy Evolution Explorer is very sensitive to ultraviolet light and also has an extremely wide field of view, allowing it to scan the sky for unusual ultraviolet activity. "It is amazing to discover such a startlingly large and important feature of an object that has been known and studied for more than 400 years," said James D. Neill of the California Institute of Technology. The California Institute of Technology leads the Galaxy Evolution Explorer mission and is responsible for science operations and data analysis. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, also in Pasadena, manages the mission and built the science instrument. The mission was developed under NASA's Explorers Program managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. Researchers sponsored by Yonsei University in South Korea and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES) in France collaborated on this mission

NASA COMPETITION INVITES STUDENTS TO IMAGINE THE FUTURE OF AVIATION WASHINGTON -- NASA announced Thursday its aeronautics competition for high school and college students during the 2007-2008 academic year. Students are asked to imagine and write an essay or design a next generation aircraft that could join the commercial fleet in 2058. High school students should prepare a well-informed essay describing how transportation of goods and passengers might be revolutionized in the 21st century as it was in the 1930s and 1940s by the introduction of the DC-3. Essays are limited to 12 pages and should address environmental impacts, including reduced noise and emissions, improved operating costs, the use of alternative fuels, passenger and cargo loads, and use of existing general aviation runways. College students are challenged to design the next generation aircraft. Design considerations should include environmental impact, daily operations on short runways, passenger and cargo limits, structure and materials, propulsion, and cost analyses for production and operation. Proposals should provide details on three or more valid operational scenarios. University-level research papers are limited to 25 pages. Teams or individuals may enter in either category. Winners may be invited to a student forum sponsored by NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate and receive offers of student internships or other prizes, including cash, depending on available funds. Only U.S. citizens are eligible for cash prizes or NASA-funded internships. NASA uses this competition to foster the next generation of skilled scientists and engineers critical to the future of NASA aeronautics and the broader aeronautics community. For contest information and submission, visit: http://aero.larc.nasa.gov/competitions.htm

NASA NAMES WINNERS OF PERSONAL AIR VEHICLE CHALLENGE WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded $250,000 to participants of the Personal Air Vehicle competition, one of the seven NASA Centennial Challenges. The competition promotes the use of self-operated, personal aircraft for fast, safe, efficient, affordable, environmentally-friendly, and comfortable on-demand transportation as a future solution to America's mobility needs. Four teams competed for overall best performance and prizes for noise reduction, handling, efficiency, short takeoff, and top speed. The contest took place Aug. 4-12 at Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport in Sonoma, Calif. At no cost to NASA, the Comparative Aircraft Flight Efficiency Foundation, known as the CAFE Foundation, administers the challenge. The foundation is a nonprofit group of flight test engineers in Santa Rosa, Calif. The award recipients are: - Vantage Prize, $100,000: Vance Turner of Rescue, Calif., owner of a short-wing Pipistrel piloted by Michael Coates - Noise Prize, $50,000: Dave and Diane Anders of Visalia, Calif., owners and pilots of a RV-4 aircraft - Handling Qualities Prize, $25,000: John Rehn of Santa Rosa, Calif., owner of a Cessna 172, piloted by Jeff Stocks - CAFE Efficiency Prize, $25,000: Vance Turner - Short Runway Prize, $25,000: Vance Turner - Top Speed, First Prize, $15,000: Dave and Diane Anders - Top Speed, Second Prize, $10,000: Vance Turner The challenge will continue annually for four more years. This year's competition establishes baselines for more difficult standards next year, when the total prize money will increase to $300,000. The total prize money provided by NASA for all five years is $2 million. Centennial Challenges is an element of NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program. The challenges promote technical innovation through prize competitions to support NASA's plan to return to the moon and journey to Mars. For more information about the Innovative Partnerships Program and Centennial Challenges, visit: http://www.ipp.nasa.gov/cc For more information about NASA and other agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA NEWS NEW NASA SOFTWARE MONITORS SPACE STATION GYROSCOPES HOUSTON - NASA has added a new computer program to help monitor the four gyroscopes that keep the International Space Station properly oriented without the use of rocket fuel. During a spacewalk on Monday, two astronauts from the space shuttle Endeavour removed and replaced a gyroscope that failed in late 2006. Computer scientists at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., designed the new software for the space station. The Inductive Monitoring System will be added to a group of existing tools to identify and track problems related to the gyroscopes. "If the system does something unexpected, the software alerts ground controllers that something is different, an anomaly, and that allows them to analyze the situation and take preventive measures as necessary," said David Iverson, the computer scientist at Ames who spearheaded the five year-effort to develop the software. During its development, researchers used the software to analyze several months of normal space station gyroscope data collected by the International Space Station Mission Control Center at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. In these tests, problems with the gyroscopes were noticed long before the previous system flagged glitches. NASA started using the software earlier this year. The software program also has been used in F-18 fighter planes and by the space shuttle's leading edge impact detection system, as well as for electric power plant and water quality monitoring. For more information about the International Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

ASTRONAUT ED LU LEAVES NASA HOUSTON - Veteran International Space Station astronaut and space shuttle flyer Ed Lu has left NASA to accept a position in the private sector. Lu flew on two shuttle missions and lived six months aboard the station as a member of the orbiting laboratory's seventh crew. "Ed has done an exceptional job as an astronaut during his twelve years of service," said Chief of the Astronaut Office Steve Lindsey. "He contributed greatly to the construction and operations on the International Space Station, particularly in the very difficult period after the Columbia tragedy. Additionally, his involvement in development of the Crew Exploration Vehicle will help NASA tremendously as we look forward to exploring our solar system. He will be missed by the Astronaut Office and NASA. We wish him the very best in his future endeavors." Lu's experience includes more than six hours spacewalking. He was the first American to launch as flight engineer of a Russian Soyuz spacecraft as well as the first American to both launch and land on a Soyuz. He has visited two space stations on his missions. Selected as an astronaut in 1994, Lu first flew in May 1997 aboard Atlantis for the STS-84 mission, the sixth shuttle mission to visit the Russian space station Mir. He next flew in 2000 on mission STS-106, also aboard Atlantis, performing a spacewalk during that flight to help outfit the Zvezda module of the International Space Station, the outpost's living quarters. Launching on the Soyuz, Lu returned to the International Space Station in 2003 as flight engineer and NASA science officer of Expedition 7, the first two-person resident crew. For more biographical information about Lu, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/htmlbios/lu.html

REGISTRATION OPENS FOR NEW NASA ENGINEERING DESIGN CHALLENGE WASHINGTON - As space shuttle Endeavour and 10 million cinnamon basil seeds are set to launch on a mission to the International Space Station, NASA has opened registration for the Lunar Plant Growth Chamber challenge. Students participating in the challenge will design and build their own greenhouse chambers to analyze and study plant growth from the space-flown seeds following their return to Earth. Students will conduct classroom experiments that may help NASA find new ways to grow and sustain plants in space and on the moon - a critical need for future space exploration. Educators may learn more and register for the challenge at: http://www.nasa.gov/education/plantchallenge Seeds will be available to the first 100,000 registrants for the Lunar Plant Growth Chamber challenge. Registrants must be kindergarten through 12th grade educators who are residents of the United States or U.S. territories and outlying areas. The challenge is a highlight of the flight of NASA's first educator astronaut, mission specialist Barbara R. Morgan, who will travel to the space station on space shuttle Endeavour. The challenge is part of NASA's Engineering Design Challenge program. The program connects kindergarten through 12th grade students with the challenges faced by NASA engineers who are designing the next generation of space vehicles, habitats and technologies. These hands-on classroom experiments help students achieve national goals in science, math and analytical skills. NASA and the International Technology Education Association co-sponsor this engineering design challenge. -end-

NASA DEVELOPS WIRELESS TILE SCANNER FOR SPACE SHUTTLE INSPECTION MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - A new space shuttle tile inspection method using NASA-built, wireless scanners is replacing manual inspection. The new process begins with the upcoming shuttle mission, STS-118. Endeavour is scheduled to launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, Aug. 8 at 6:36 p.m. EDT. Technicians have been using six new scanners to look for cracks and other imperfections in some of the 24,000 tiles that cover space shuttle Endeavour. The agency designed and built the new tools at NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif. In the past, workers at Kennedy visually analyzed tiles and measured dings and cracks with small hand-held scales. "The new method is much faster and more accurate because the depth and volume measurements of the flaws and their locations are wirelessly transmitted into a computer database," said Joe Lavelle, a senior engineer and project manager at Ames. "This tool allows the inspectors to determine with very high confidence whether a shuttle tile needs to be replaced or just repaired." "When they made the measurements manually with the scales, they had to estimate the volume of flaws to a worst-case value because they could not precisely measure the volume with any accuracy," Lavelle explained. "With this scanner, they will actually save tiles and the time-consuming process of replacing them." The thermal tiles on the space shuttle protect it from the extreme heat generated during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. After each shuttle lands, technicians go through a very rigorous and lengthy process to assess the surface of the tiles for any damage. Each scanner weighs approximately 2.9 pounds and is about the size and shape of a small teapot. Technicians place the machine on the tile's flaw to scan it. In about three seconds, the data are computerized and archived. Engineers can scrutinize computerized 3-D pictures of the flaws. The images show the length, width and depth of the flaws on the surface of the tiles. Although engineers designed the instrument to scan space shuttle tiles, it also could scan reinforced carbon-carbon material used on the leading edges of the shuttle's wings. Engineers developing a heat shield system for NASA's new spaceship Orion already are using a larger, desktop version of the scanner to study heat shield samples tested at Ames. NASA is building a second desktop scanner for use at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The unit should be completed in about two months. For high-resolution images of the scanner, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/news/wireless_scanner.html For more information and the space shuttle and upcoming mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA SOLICITS INPUT FOR COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANSPORTATION SERVICES WASHINGTON - On Tuesday NASA issued a Request for Information soliciting ideas and feedback to help shape the plan to procure safe, cost effective, and reliable logistics services to the International Space Station and other payload launch services. Sponsored by NASA's Space Operations Mission Directorate, this request seeks input from companies that are working to provide commercial transportation services to space. This information will be used to help structure future commercial launch services contracts as well as the second phase of the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services initiative to acquire commercial cargo services to the station after the space shuttle's retirement in 2010. Responders are asked to provide information and feedback, including: - a description of the service provider's current and planned capability, - existing NASA policies on certification and oversight of launch vehicles, - any improvements NASA can make in commercial transportation services contract structures that would provide incentives, and - recommendations on commercial contract terms and conditions. Comments should be sent to Celeste Dalton at celeste.m.dalton@nasa.gov by Sept. 7. To view the Request for Information, visit: http://prod.nais.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/synopsis.cgi?acqid=126269

NASA, MICROSOFT LAUNCH COLLABORATION WITH IMMERSIVE PHOTOGRAPHY WASHINGTON - On Monday, NASA and Microsoft Corporation of Redmond, Wash., released an interactive, 3-D photographic collection of the space shuttle Endeavour preparing for its upcoming mission to the International Space Station. Endeavour is scheduled to launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Wednesday, Aug. 8 at 6:36 p.m. EDT. For the first time, people around the world can view hundreds of high resolution photographs of Endeavour, Launch Pad 39A, and the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy in a unique 3-D viewer. NASA and Microsoft's Live Labs team developed the online experience using hundreds of photographs and a photo imaging technology called Photosynth. Using a click-and-drag interface, viewers can zoom in to see intimate details of the shuttle booster rockets or zoom out for a more global view of the launch facility. The software uses photographs from standard digital cameras to construct a 3-D view that can be navigated and explored online. The NASA images can be viewed at Microsoft's Live Labs at: http://labs.live.com "This collaboration with Microsoft gives the public a new way to explore and participate in America's space program," said William Gerstenmaier, NASA's associate administrator for Space Operations, Washington. "We're also looking into using this new technology to support future missions." "With Photosynth, we take pictures of an environment and knit them together into an experience that people can move through like a 3-D video game," said Microsoft Live Labs Architect Blaise Aguera y Arcas. "NASA provided us with some outstanding images, and the result is an experience that will wow anyone wanting to get a closer look at NASA's missions." The NASA collections were created in collaboration between Microsoft's Live Lab, Kennedy and NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. "We see potential to use Photosynth for a variety of future mission activities, from inspecting the International Space Station and the Hubble Space Telescope to viewing landing sites on the moon and Mars," said Chris C. Kemp, director of Strategic Business Development at Ames. Photosynth was created in collaboration between Microsoft and the University of Washington. The software combines hundreds or thousands of regular digital photos of a scene to present a detailed 3-D model of a subject, giving viewers the sensation of smoothly gliding around the scene from every angle. A collection can be constructed using photos from a single source or multiple sources. The NASA Photosynth collection also includes the return of the space shuttle Atlantis to the Kennedy Shuttle Landing Facility from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., in July. Microsoft Live Labs is an applied research organization focused on the incubation of innovative, Internet technologies to improve and accelerate the next evolution of Microsoft's Internet products and services. For more information about space shuttle Endeavour's STS-118 mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA EXTENDS SPACE SHUTTLE MAIN ENGINE CONTRACT WASHINGTON - NASA has signed a $975 million contract extension with Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne Inc., of Canoga Park, Calif., to maintain the agency's fleet of space shuttle main engines until the orbiter is retired in 2010. The contract began on April 1, 2006. It is scheduled to conclude Sept. 30, 2010. The $975 million contract extension brings the total value of the cost-plus-award/incentive fee contract to slightly more than $2.05 billion. Pratt and Whitney Rocketdyne supports the Shuttle Propulsion Office at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.; the Space Shuttle Program Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston; and the Space Operations Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. The contract includes maintenance and refurbishment of existing shuttle main engines at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Each space shuttle is powered by three of the sophisticated engines, the world's only reusable rocket engines. During launch, each of the 7,750-pound engines burns liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, fed from the shuttle's external tank. Each engine generates approximately 400,000 pounds of thrust, which works with the shuttle's twin solid rocket boosters to power the spacecraft to orbit. For more information about NASA's Space Shuttle Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

CASSINI FINDS POSSIBLE ORIGIN OF ONE OF SATURN'S RINGS WASHINGTON - Cassini scientists may have identified the source of one of Saturn's more mysterious rings. Saturn's G ring likely is produced by relatively large, icy particles that reside within a bright arc on the ring's inner edge. The particles are confined within the arc by gravitational effects from Saturn's moon Mimas. Micrometeoroids collide with the particles, releasing smaller, dust-sized particles that brighten the arc. The plasma in the giant planet's magnetic field sweeps through this arc continually, dragging out the fine particles, which create the G ring. The finding is evidence of the complex interaction between Saturn's moons, rings and magnetosphere. Studying this interaction is one of Cassini's objectives. The study is in the Aug. 2 issue of the journal Science and was based on observations made by multiple Cassini instruments in 2004 and 2005. "Distant pictures from the cameras tell us where the arc is and how it moves, while plasma and dust measurements taken near the G ring tell us how much material is there," said Matthew Hedman, a Cassini imaging team associate at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., and lead author on the Science paper. Saturn's rings are an enormous, complex structure, and their origin is a mystery. The rings are labeled in the order they were discovered. From the planet outward, they are D, C, B, A, F, G and E. The main rings -- A, B and C-from edge-to-edge, would fit neatly in the distance between Earth and the moon. The most transparent rings are D -- interior to C -- and F, E and G, outside the main rings. Unlike Saturn's other dusty rings, such as the E and F rings, the G ring is not associated closely with moons that either could supply material directly to it -- as Enceladus does for the E ring -- or sculpt and perturb its ring particles -- as Prometheus and Pandora do for the F ring. The location of the G ring continued to defy explanation, until now. Cassini images show that the bright arc within the G ring extends one-sixth of the way around Saturn and is about 155 miles wide, much narrower than the full 3,700-mile width of the G ring. The arc has been observed several times since Cassini's 2004 arrival at the ringed planet and thus appears to be a long-lived feature. A gravitational disturbance caused by the moon Mimas exists near the arc. As part of their study, Hedman and colleagues conducted computer simulations that showed the gravitational disturbance of Mimas could indeed produce such a structure in Saturn's G ring. The only other places in the solar system where such disturbances are known to exist are in the ring arcs of Neptune. Cassini's magnetospheric imaging instrument detected depletions in charged particles near the arc in 2005. According to the scientists, unseen mass in the arc must be absorbing the particles. "The small dust grains that the Cassini camera sees are not enough to absorb energetic electrons," said Elias Roussos of the Max-Planck-Institute for Solar System Research, Germany, and member of the magnetospheric imaging team. "This tells us that a lot more mass is distributed within the arc." The researchers concluded that there is a population of larger, as-yet-unseen bodies hiding in the arc, ranging in size from that of peas to small boulders. The total mass of all these bodies is equivalent to that of a 328-foot-wide, ice-rich small moon. Joe Burns, a co-author of the paper from Cornell University and a member of the imaging team, said, "We'll have a super opportunity to spot the G ring's source bodies when Cassini flies about 600 miles from the arc 18 months from now." The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at the laboratory. The imaging team is based at the Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colo. The magnetospheric imaging instrument team is based at Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, Md. G ring movies and images are available on the Internet at: http://www.nasa.gov/cassini

NASA SELECTS PENN STATE TO LEAD NATIONAL EDUCATION INITIATIVE HAMPTON, Va. - NASA has selected the Pennsylvania State University's Center for Science and Schools in University Park to lead the agency's Aerospace Education Service Project, a comprehensive educational program designed to reach out to all 50 states and U.S. territories. The cooperative agreement has a maximum value of $27.5 million over five years. The project is the longest-running kindergarten through 12th grade effort in NASA's education history. Under the agreement, Penn State will use NASA's many educational assets to aid America's formal and informal education communities in promoting science, technology, engineering and math. A professional development program, the project provides educators and students with tools, experiences and opportunities to further their education through educator workshops, classroom demonstrations, parent programs and classroom resources. The goal is to attract and retain students in science, math and related disciplines vital to the nation's space program. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA STARTS SPACE SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR COUNTDOWN AUG. 4 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA will start the launch countdown for space shuttle Endeavour's STS-118 mission at 9 p.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 4, at T-43 hours. The countdown includes 27 hours, 3 minutes of built-in hold time leading to a preferred launch time at 7:02 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 7. The launch window extends an additional five minutes. During the 11-day mission to the International Space Station, Endeavour's crew will add another truss segment to the expanding station, install a new gyroscope and add an external spare parts platform. The flight will have at least three spacewalks. It also will debut a new system that enables docked shuttles to draw electrical power from the station to extend visits to the outpost. If this system functions as expected, three additional days will be added to the STS-118 mission. A detailed list of launch countdown milestones and times is available at: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/news/index.html This mission is the 119th space shuttle flight, the 20th flight for Endeavour and the 22nd U.S. flight to the International Space Station. The mission will be Endeavour's first flight in more than four years. The shuttle has undergone extensive modifications, including the addition of safety upgrades already added to shuttles Discovery and Atlantis. For more information about the STS-118 crew and mission to the space station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle -end-

NASA SELECTS LIGHTNING PROTECTION SYSTEM CONTRACTOR CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA has selected Ivey's Construction Inc. of Merritt Island, Fla., to build a new lightning protection system for Launch Pad 39B at the Kennedy Space Center. The system will support launches of the Constellation Program's Ares I rockets. The lightning protection system is designed to reduce the probability of a direct lightning strike to the Ares I and associated launch equipment during processing and other activities prior to flight. Under the contract, the company will provide all labor and materials to fabricate and construct three 600-foot, self-supporting structural steel towers and an overhead wire system with associated conductors. Ivey's Construction Inc. will receive a fixed-price contract for $27,915,000. The system is expected to be complete by March 2010. For more on NASA's Constellation Program, including an image and animation of the lightning protection system, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

X-48B BLENDED WING BODY RESEARCH AIRCRAFT TAKES FIRST FLIGHT (The previous headline on this release was incorrect. Please use the corrected headline with this news release.) EDWARDS, Calif. -- NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center in Edwards, Calif., provided critical support for the first flight July 20 of the X-48B. The 21-foot wingspan, 500-pound remotely piloted test vehicle took off for the first time at 8:42 a.m. PDT and climbed to an altitude of 7,500 feet before landing 31 minutes later. The Boeing Co. of Seattle developed the blended wing body research aircraft. "Friday's flight marked yet another aviation first achieved by a very hard-working Boeing, NASA and Cranfield team," said Gary Cosentino, Dryden's Blended Wing Body project manager. "The X-48B flew as well as we had predicted, and we look forward to many productive data flights this summer and fall." NASA's participation in the blended wing body effort is focused on fundamental, advanced flight dynamics and structural concepts of the design. It is a Subsonic Fixed Wing project managed by NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, Washington. In addition to hosting the X-48B flight test and research activities, NASA provided engineering and technical support -- expertise garnered from years of operating cutting-edge air vehicles. NASA assisted with the hardware and software validation and verification process, the integration and testing of the aircraft's systems and the pilot's ground control station. NASA's range group provided critical telemetry and command and control communications during the flight, while flight operations provided a T-34 chase aircraft and essential flight scheduling. Photo and video support completed the effort. Boeing's Phantom Works designed the X-48B flight test vehicles in cooperation with NASA and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, to gather detailed information about the stability and flight-control characteristics of the blended wing body design, especially during takeoffs and landings. The Boeing blended wing body design resembles a flying wing, but differs in that the wing blends smoothly into a wide, flat, tailless fuselage. This fuselage blending provides additional lift with less drag compared to a circular fuselage, translating to reduced fuel use at cruise conditions. Since the engines mount high on the back of the aircraft, there is less noise inside and on the ground when it is in flight. Three turbojet engines enable the composite-skinned, 8.5 percent scale vehicle to fly up to 10,000 feet and 120 knots in its low-speed configuration. The aircraft is flown remotely from a ground control station in which the pilot uses conventional aircraft controls and instrumentation while looking at a monitor fed by a forward-looking camera on the aircraft. Up to 25 flights are planned to gather data in these low-speed flight regimes. Then the X-48B may be used to test the aircraft's low-noise and handling characteristics at transonic speeds. NASA long has supported the development of the blended wing body shape and concept, participating in numerous collaborations with Boeing on vehicle design and analysis, as well as several wind tunnel entries of various sizes and design models. NASA is interested in the potential benefits of the aircraft: increased volume for carrying capacity, efficient aerodynamics for reduced fuel burn and possibly significant reductions in noise due to propulsion integration options. In these initial flights, the principal focus is to validate the research on the aerodynamics and controllability of the shape, including comparisons of the flight data with the extensive wind-tunnel database. Later studies will be conducted to provide a detailed understanding of this unique aircraft shape and a knowledge database to enable a future full-scale design. Two X-48B research vehicles were built by Cranfield Aerospace Ltd., in Bedford, England, in accordance with Boeing requirements. The vehicle that flew on July 20 is Ship 2, which also was used for ground and taxi testing. Ship 1, a duplicate, completed extensive wind tunnel testing in 2006 at the Full-Scale Tunnel at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va. Ship 1 will be available for use as a backup during the flight test program. For more information about the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, visit: http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov

NASA ANNOUNCES NEXT UNDERSEA EXPLORATION MISSION DATES AND CREW WASHINGTON - NASA will send three astronauts and a Constellation Program aerospace engineer into the ocean depths off the Florida coast from Aug. 6 to 15. They will test lunar exploration concepts and a suite of medical objectives for long-duration spaceflight. NASA veteran space flyer and aquanaut Nicholas Patrick will lead the 10-day undersea mission aboard the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Aquarius Underwater Laboratory. NASA astronaut Richard Arnold, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Satoshi Furukawa and systems integration engineer Christopher Gerty complete the crew. During the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations 13 (NEEMO 13), the crew will conduct a variety of undersea "moon walks." They will test concepts for future lunar exploration using advanced navigation and communication equipment. "This crew will work much more independently from the mission control team than on previous missions," said NEEMO Project Manager Bill Todd of the United Space Alliance at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. "This autonomous mode of operation will encourage the crew to make real-time decisions about daily operations similar to what we think will be necessary for lunar and Mars missions. The idea is to show how procedures and training for future missions can be adapted, considering the reduced direct communication with mission control those crews will encounter," Todd said. During the extended undersea simulated moon walks, the crew will construct a communications tower, practice techniques for lunar sample collection and manipulation, and perform a series of tasks investigating future spacesuit design. The crew also will participate in research designed to answer questions on the physiology and human behavior aspects of living in extreme environments. Jim Buckley and Larry Ward of the University of North Carolina at Wilmington will provide engineering support for the submerged habitat. The university operates Aquarius on behalf of NOAA as part of NOAA's Undersea Research Program. The NEEMO missions are a cooperative project among NASA, NOAA and the university. This will be the 13th NEEMO undersea mission. NASA Flight Surgeon Sean Roden will serve as a backup crew member. Similar in size to the International Space Station's living quarters, Aquarius is the world's only permanent underwater habitat and laboratory. The 45-foot-long, 13-foot diameter complex is three miles off Key Largo in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, about 62 feet beneath the surface. A surface buoy provides connections for power, life support and communications. A shore-based control center monitors the habitat and crew. For more information about NEEMO and Aquarius, including a virtual dive to the underwater habitat, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/neemo

NASA ROBOTS PRACTICE MOON SURVEY IN THE ARCTIC CIRCLE MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. -- Two NASA robots are surveying a rocky, isolated polar desert within a crater in the Arctic Circle. The study will help scientists learn how robots could evaluate potential outposts on the moon or Mars. The robots, K10 Black and K10 Red, carry 3-D laser scanners and ground-penetrating radar. The team arrived at Haughton Crater at Devon Island, Canada, on July 12 and will operate the machines until July 31. Scientists chose the polar region because of the extreme environmental conditions, lack of infrastructure and resources, and geologic features. Additionally, Haughton Crater is geographically similar to Shackleton Crater at the South Pole of the moon. Both are impact craters that measure roughly 12.4 miles in diameter. "We are learning about the awesome potential of human and robot teams," said S. Pete Worden, director of NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., where the group conducting the survey is based. "Studying how humans and robots can maximize scientific returns in sites such as Devon Island will prepare us to walk on the moon and Mars." NASA is planning to send astronauts back to the moon by 2020. Prior to establishing a lunar outpost, the agency must conduct detailed surveys at a variety of locations to produce maps, look for minerals and water, and learn other details. NASA plans to accomplish its surveys with an automated orbiting spacecraft, not a robotic lander, but the agency still has a keen interest in advancing the laser scanning technology. Most of the lunar sites are on harsh terrain and in permanently shadowed areas. It is not unusual for site surveys to require thousands of measurements and hundreds of hours to complete. A robot can reduce mission cost and improve mission effectiveness by allowing ground control to conduct surveying tasks. "A typical scenario involves multiple rovers autonomously surveying a region while humans supervise and assess data from a remote location," said Terry Fong, director of the Intelligent Robots Group at Ames. The robots are using different techniques than the goal-directed traverses and isolated sampling tasks that Mars scientific rovers have used to explore the Red Planet. K10 Black and K10 Red are using a mix of information previously obtained by aerial and satellite imaging and data that the robot survey team is gathering. The 3-D laser scanner can map topographic features as far as 3,280 feet away. The ground-penetrating radar, which NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., developed, can map below ground as deep as 16.4 feet. "The robots are covering the area in lawnmower-like paths at human walking speeds to systematically map above and below ground," said Fong. The practice survey in Haughton Crater is taking place at an area called Drill Hill. The robots are covering approximately 120 acres of terrain. Researchers are commanding the robots remotely from the Haughton-Mars base camp more than two miles away from Drill Hill. The robots navigate using the Global Positioning System, stereo cameras, laser scanners and sun trackers. Each of the four-wheel-drive machines weighs 165 pounds and can carry a payload up to 110 pounds. A key objective of the Drill Hill survey is to test the instruments and software on the robots as well as the equipment and software that humans will use at lunar outposts and ground control to supervise the robots. Engineers at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston will assess advanced robot driving techniques using a multi-screen cockpit. Ames will test software that makes high-resolution maps for interactive display in 3-D. NASA's Exploration Technology Development Program sponsors the robotic site survey at Haughton Crater. For more information, including an updated blog, visit: http://haughton2007.arc.nasa.gov

NASA MARS ROVERS BRAVING SEVERE DUST STORMS PASADENA, Calif. - Having explored Mars for three-and-a-half years in what were missions originally designed for three months, NASA's Mars rovers are facing perhaps their biggest challenge. For nearly a month, a series of severe Martian summer dust storms has affected the rover Opportunity and, to a lesser extent, its companion, Spirit. The dust in the Martian atmosphere over Opportunity has blocked 99 percent of direct sunlight to the rover, leaving only the limited diffuse sky light to power it. Scientists fear the storms might continue for several days, if not weeks. "We're rooting for our rovers to survive these storms, but they were never designed for conditions this intense," said Alan Stern, associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. If the sunlight is further cut back for an extended period, the rovers will not be able to generate enough power to keep themselves warm and operate at all, even in a near-dormant state. The rovers use electric heaters to keep some of their vital core electronics from becoming too cold. Before the dust storms began blocking sunlight last month, Opportunity's solar panels had been producing about 700 watt hours of electricity per day, enough to light a 100-watt bulb for seven hours. When dust in the air reduced the panels' daily output to less than 400 watt hours, the rover team suspended driving and most observations, including use of the robotic arm, cameras and spectrometers to study the site where Opportunity is located. On Tuesday, July 17, the output from Opportunity's solar panels dropped to 148 watt hours, the lowest point for either rover. On Wednesday, Opportunity's solar-panel output dropped even lower, to 128 watt hours. NASA engineers are taking proactive measures to protect the rovers, especially Opportunity, which is experiencing the brunt of the dust storm. The rovers are showing robust survival characteristics. Spirit, in a location where the storm is currently less severe, has been instructed to conserve battery power by limiting its activities. "We are taking more aggressive action with both rovers than we needed before," said John Callas, project manager for the twin rovers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. By Opportunity's 1,236th Martian day, which ended Tuesday, driving and all science observations had already been suspended. The rover still used more energy than its solar panels could generate on that day, drawing down its battery. "The only thing left to cut were some of the communication sessions," Callas said. To minimize further the amount of energy Opportunity is using, mission controllers sent commands on Wednesday, July 18, instructing the rover to refrain from communicating with Earth on Thursday and Friday. This is the first time either of the rovers has been told to skip communications for a day or more in order to conserve energy. Engineers calculate that skipping communications sessions should lower daily energy use to less than 130 watt hours. A possible outcome of this storm is that one or both rovers could be damaged permanently or even disabled. Engineers will assess the capability of each rover after the storm clears. NASA will provide mission updates as events warrant. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory manages the rover project for the Science Mission Directorate. For more information about the rovers, visit: http://marsrovers.jpl.nasa.gov

NASA LAUNCHES INTERACTIVE ONLINE TOUR OF THE SPACE STATION WASHINGTON -- The International Space Station is now accessible in cyberspace. On Thursday, NASA launched its Interactive Space Station Reference Guide, a new tool that features an in-depth look inside and outside of the orbiting laboratory that has never before been seen. It is available online at: http://www.nasa.gov/station The guide provides an up-to-date interactive overview of the station's complex configuration, design and component systems. It includes a video introduction and narration by NASA astronaut Mike Fincke, who lived aboard the station for six months as an Expedition 9 science officer and flight engineer. Other features on NASA's new interactive guide include: - How space station crews live in space: how they eat, sleep and exercise while in orbit. - How the station complex is built and operates, including a reference guide for learning about each of the station's components. - A 360-degree tour of the station with a view of each of the station's pressurized modules. - A library of printable fact sheets providing up-to-date information about the station. The station's assembly and maintenance in orbit, long-duration spaceflight experience gained aboard the complex, and research into the effects of long spaceflights contribute to NASA's plans for future missions to return to the moon and travel beyond. For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

SPACECRAFT TANDEM PROVIDE NEW VIEWS OF VENUS WASHINGTON - NASA's Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry, and Ranging spacecraft, known as Messenger, and the European Space Agency's Venus Express recently provided the most detailed multi-point images of the Venusian atmosphere ever seen. The images result from a June 5 flyby of Venus by Messenger during its long journey to Mercury. Venus Express already was in orbit at the planet. The two spacecraft carry sets of instruments employing different observation techniques that complement each other. Messenger made its closest approach to Venus at a distance of approximately 210 miles on the night side of the planet. At the same time, Venus Express was behind the horizon, almost above the planet's South Pole, at approximately 21,750 miles. Scientists from both missions are continuing analysis of the images and accompanying data. Data included several instruments studying Venus' cloud deck and surface, plasma environment, magnetic fields, and atmosphere. More results from this joint observation campaign are expected by the end of the year. Messenger launched on Aug. 3, 2004, and swung by Venus first on Oct 24, 2006, and for the second time in June. Messenger will enter Mercury's orbit in March 2011. Venus Express, the European Space Agency's first mission to Venus, launched on Nov. 9, 2005, and reached the planet on April 11, 2006.

NASA AWARDS CONTRACT FOR SUPERCOMPUTING SUPPORT SERVICES MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - NASA has selected Computer Sciences Corporation of Lanham, Md., to provide supercomputing support services at NASA's Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. The contract has a potential value of approximately $600 million. The 10-year, cost-plus-award-fee contract consists of a two-year base period and eight one-year priced options, with a maximum value of $597,083,422 if all options are exercised. Computer Sciences Corporation will support the supercomputing services provided by the NASA Advanced Supercomputing Division at Ames. The division operates some of the largest, most advanced supercomputers in the world and is the lead supercomputing facility for High Performance Computing for NASA. The company also may provide supercomputing support to the NASA Center for Computational Sciences facility at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., and additional high performance computing support to other NASA field centers as needed, if those options are exercised. For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA READIES MARS LANDER FOR AUGUST LAUNCH TO ICY SITE WASHINGTON - NASA's next Mars mission will look beneath a frigid arctic landscape for conditions favorable to past or present life. Instead of roving to hills or craters, NASA's Phoenix Mars Lander will claw down into the icy soil of the Red Planet's northern plains. The robot will investigate whether frozen water near the Martian surface might periodically melt enough to sustain a livable environment for microbes. To accomplish that and other key goals, Phoenix will carry a set of advanced research tools never before used on Mars. First, however, it must launch from Florida during a three-week period beginning Aug. 3, then survive a risky descent and landing on Mars next spring. "Our 'follow the water' strategy for exploring Mars has yielded a string of dramatic discoveries in recent years about the history of water on a planet where similarities with Earth were much greater in the past than they are today," said Doug McCuistion, director of the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters, Washington. "Phoenix will complement our strategic exploration of Mars by being our first attempt to actually touch and analyze Martian water -- water in the form of buried ice." NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter found evidence in 2002 to support theories that large areas of Mars, including the arctic plains, have water ice within an arm's reach of the surface. "Phoenix has been designed to examine the history of the ice by measuring how liquid water has modified the chemistry and mineralogy of the soil," said Peter Smith, the Phoenix principal investigator at the University of Arizona, Tucson. "In addition, our instruments can assess whether this polar environment is a habitable zone for primitive microbes. To complete the scientific characterization of the site, Phoenix will monitor polar weather and the interaction of the atmosphere with the surface." With its flanking solar panels unfurled, the lander is about 18 feet wide and 5 feet long. A robotic arm 7.7 feet long will dig to the icy layer, which is expected to lie within a few inches of the surface. A camera and conductivity probe on the arm will examine soil and any ice there. The arm will lift samples to two instruments on the lander's deck. One will use heating to check for volatile substances, such as water and carbon-based chemicals that are essential building blocks for life. The other will analyze the chemistry of the soil. A meteorology station, with a laser for assessing water and dust in the atmosphere, will monitor weather throughout the planned three-month mission during Martian spring and summer. The robot's toolkit also includes a mast-mounted stereo camera to survey the landing site, a descent camera to see the site in broader context and two microscopes. For the final stage of landing, Phoenix is equipped with a pulsed thruster method of deceleration. The system uses an ultra-lightweight landing system that allows the spacecraft to carry a heavier scientific payload. Like past Mars missions, Phoenix uses a heat shield to slow its high-speed entry, followed by a supersonic parachute that further reduces its speed to about 135 mph. The lander then separates from the parachute and fires pulsed descent rocket engines to slow to about 5.5 mph before landing on its three legs. "Landing safely on Mars is difficult no matter what method you use," said Barry Goldstein, the project manager for Phoenix at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "Our team has been testing the system relentlessly since 2003 to identify and address whatever vulnerabilities may exist." Researchers evaluating possible landing sites have used observations from Mars orbiters to find the safest places where the mission's goals can be met. The leading candidate site is a broad valley with few boulders at a latitude equivalent to northern Alaska. Smith leads the Phoenix mission, with project management at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the development partnership located at Lockheed Martin, Denver. International contributions are provided by the Canadian Space Agency, the University of Neuchatel, Switzerland, the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, the Max Planck Institute, Germany, and the Finnish Meteorological Institute. Additional information on the Phoenix mission is available online at: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix

NASA MISSION TO ASTEROID BELT RESCHEDULED FOR SEPTEMBER LAUNCH WASHINGTON - The launch of NASA's Dawn spacecraft, a mission that will explore the two largest objects in the asteroid belt in an effort to answer questions about the formation of our solar system, has been rescheduled to September. The decision was made Saturday to move the launch to September after careful review by NASA's Science Mission Directorate officials, working with Dawn mission managers, the Dawn principal investigator, and with the concurrence of the NASA Administrator. Primary reasons for the move were a combination of highly limited launch opportunities for Dawn in July and the potential impact to launch preparations for the upcoming Phoenix Mars Lander mission, set for early August. A September launch for Dawn maintains all of the science mission goals a July launch would have provided. NASA will hold a news briefing at 11:30 a.m. EDT on Monday, July 9, to preview the launch of the Phoenix Mars Lander. Prior to the Phoenix presentations, media will have the opportunity to learn in more detail about the rescheduled Dawn launch. The briefing will originate from the NASA Headquarters auditorium, 300 E St., S.W., Washington. It will air live on NASA Television and be streamed online at: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv The Phoenix mission, scheduled for liftoff in early August from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., will examine whether the icy soil on Mars could have been a habitable environment for microbial life. For more information about the Phoenix mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/phoenix For more information about Dawn, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/dawn

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-31 HOUSTON - On Wednesday, the Expedition 15 crew completed the second spacewalk in eight days and continued preparations for space shuttle Atlantis' arrival at the International Space Station. Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and Flight Engineer Oleg Kotov opened the hatch on the Pirs docking compartment at 9:23 a.m. CDT to begin a spacewalk lasting 5 hours and 37 minutes. The cosmonauts installed sample containers on the Pirs module for a Russian experiment. The experiment, called Biorisk, looks at the effect of space on microorganisms. Next, the spacewalkers strung a section of Ethernet cable on the exterior of the Zarya module. This completed the installation of a remote computer network that will enable commanding of the station's Russian segment from the U.S. segment, if necessary. Yurchikhin and Kotov later moved to the primary task on the agenda, putting up 12 debris shield panels on the conical section of the Zvezda module. Five panels were installed last week, and six others were installed in 2002 to improve the module's protection from micrometeroid debris strikes. The aluminum panels each measure approximately 2 feet by 3 feet and are 1 inch thick. Almost two and a half hours into the spacewalk, Russian controllers noticed unusual readings in Pirs and asked Yurchikhin to return to the module where he verified that the pressurized oxygen bottles were closed properly. Mission Control Moscow subsequently determined that a small amount of oxygen was flowing from a fluid umbilical that had not closed fully when it was disconnected from the spacesuit at the beginning of the spacewalk. Controllers closed the flow of oxygen to that umbilical to preserve the supply and restarted it during repressurization of Pirs after the spacewalk concluded. The spacewalk ended at 3 p.m. when the hatch on Pirs was closed. Both cosmonauts now have 11 hours and 2 minutes experience in the Russian Orlan spacesuits. This was the 83rd spacewalk in support of station assembly and maintenance, the 55th conducted from the station, and the 22nd conducted out of Pirs. During Wednesday's spacewalk, Flight Engineer Suni Williams remained aboard the station monitoring the spacewalk, exercising and conducting experiment activities. Earlier this week, she and her crewmates prepared the Quest airlock for the spacewalks planned during Atlantis' mission. They also packed her personal items and experiment results for her return to Earth aboard Atlantis. Early in the morning of June 16, Williams will exceed astronaut Shannon Lucid's mark for the longest spaceflight ever by a woman, 188 days and 4 hours. Commander Rick Sturckow and the crew of shuttle Atlantis are in Florida preparing for their scheduled launch Friday, June 8, at 7:38 p.m. EDT. STS-117, due to dock to the station at 2:49 p.m. CDT Sunday, June 10, delivers a new set of solar array wings and a new station flight engineer, NASA astronaut Clay Anderson. For more about the crew's activities and station sighting opportunities, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA TECHNOLOGY HELPS DETECT AND TREAT HEART DISEASE AND STROKES PASADENA, Calif. - NASA space technology is helping doctors diagnose and monitor treatments for hardening of the arteries in its early stages, before it causes heart attacks and strokes. Hospitals and doctors around the country are using ArterioVision software initially developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif., along with a standardized, painless, non-invasive ultrasound examination of the carotid artery, which carries blood from the heart to the brain. A standard carotid ultrasound measures plaque and blood flow within the artery. When an ultrasound is used with the software, the test measures the thickness of the inner two layers of the carotid artery - the intima and media. Medical Technologies International, Inc. (MTI) of Palm Desert, Calif., patented the ArterioVision software. Arterial thickening provides the earliest evidence of atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, the beginning stage of a disease process that leads to heart disease and stroke. Doctors can use this carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) measurement to calculate the age of the patient's arteries, which does not always match the patient's calendar age. "You may look and feel one way on the outside, but your arteries actually could be much older than one realizes," said Dr. Howard N. Hodis of the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. "Once patients see how thick their arteries are, there is much more incentive for them to change their lifestyle with dietary modification and exercise," he said. "Physicians also can use the test to monitor and change current medications." The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the new diagnostic tool, called the ArterioVision CIMT procedure. Robert Selzer, MTI chief engineer, worked in JPL's Image Processing Laboratory for 15 years, where the technology was developed that ultimately led to the software used in ArterioVision. "This is such a precise method of examining the carotid artery. It can distinguish between 256 shades of gray at a subpixel level," Selzer said. "You need that kind of detail to help catch heart disease as early as you can, often before there are any outward symptoms." During the test, a patient lies on an examination table while a technician applies gel to the neck to image the carotid arteries, located on both sides of the neck near the skin's surface. The technician uses an ultrasound machine while following a patented protocol to capture specific images of the carotid artery wall. Using the ArterioVision software, the physician generates a CIMT measurement and a report that identifies the patient's risk profile when compared to people of the same gender and age. JPL's Image Processing Laboratory was created in 1966 to receive and make sense of spacecraft imagery. In the lab, the NASA-invented Video Imaging Communication and Retrieval software has been used to process pictures from numerous space missions, including the Voyagers and Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Periodic upgrades of the imaging software have enabled greater accuracy and improved knowledge of our solar system, and have laid the groundwork for understanding images of all kinds. The ArterioVision test was developed with JPL's Innovative Partnerships Program, designed to bring benefits of the space program to the public. "It is exciting to see this NASA-funded technology grow in sophistication over the years and help in the battle against one of the nation's leading health issues," said Ken Wolfenbarger, Innovative Partnerships Program manager at JPL. The American Heart Association says heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, while strokes are third, behind all forms of cancer. Gary F. Thompson, chairman and chief executive officer of MTI, says the test is near and dear to his heart - literally and figuratively. "I was the first male in my family to reach 50, so I decided to celebrate by running the Los Angeles marathon, but I had a heart attack halfway through it and couldn't finish," Thompson said. "None of the non-invasive tests that I had prior to the marathon detected my silent heart disease, and I knew there had to be something better out there." The California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, which manages JPL for NASA, licensed the ArterioVision device to MTI. For more information about ArterioVision, visit: http://www.i-mti.com

NASA SHUTTLE ENGINE UPGRADES IMPROVE SAFETY AND RELIABILITY HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - A main engine computer upgrade developed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., will fly on space shuttle Atlantis during the STS-117 mission, targeted for launch June 8. The upgrade is part of NASA's continuing efforts to improve space shuttle safety and reliability. The Advanced Health Management System, or AHMS, will provide new monitoring and insight into the performance of the two most critical components of the space shuttle main engine: the high-pressure fuel turbopump and the high-pressure oxidizer turbopump. This latest improvement is to the controller, the on-engine computer that monitors and controls all main engine operations. The improvement allows an engine to shut down during launch if vibration levels exceed safe limits. AHMS consists of advanced digital signal processors, radiation-hardened memory and new software. AHMS first flew on Discovery's STS-116 mission in December 2006 with a single controller on one engine, but in monitor-only mode, meaning AHMS collected and processed vibration data but could not shut down the engine. AHMS will operate in active mode - the ability to shut down an engine if an anomaly is detected - on a single engine during the upcoming STS-117 mission and is scheduled to fly in active mode on all three engines during the STS-118 mission later this year. In the event of an engine shut down, the shuttle has several options available to abort the ascent. They include returning to the launch site, a transatlantic abort landing, landing at an alternate site in the United States or rendezvous with the International Space Station. Each scenario would depend on when an engine shuts down during flight, the mission trajectory and mission specific requirements, such as payloads. The system uses data from three existing sensors, or accelerometers, mounted on each of the high pressure turbopumps. It measures how much each pump is vibrating. High-pressure fuel and high-pressure oxidizer turbopumps rotate at approximately 34,000 revolutions per minute and 23,000 revolutions per minute, respectively. To operate at such extreme speeds, the turbopumps are equipped with highly specialized bearings and precisely balanced components. Output data from the accelerometers is routed to the new digital signal processors installed in the main engine controller. These processors analyze the sensor readings 20 times each second, looking for vibration anomalies that are indicative of impending failure of rotating turbopump components such as blades, impellers, inducers and bearings. If the magnitude of any vibration anomaly exceeds safe limits, the upgraded main engine controller would shut down the unhealthy engine immediately. "The Space Shuttle Main Engine Project has, for many years, pursued a reliable means to monitor high-pressure turbomachinery health in real time," said Tim Kelley, deputy manager of the Space Shuttle Main Engine Project Office. "AHMS provides that capability and significantly improves shuttle flight safety." AHMS is the sixth major upgrade to space shuttle main engines since the first shuttle flight in 1981. The series of shuttle main engine enhancements have increased safety and reliability through such improvements as the addition of a two-duct powerhead, a single-coil heat exchanger, a new high-pressure oxidizer turbopump, a large-throat main combustion chamber and a new high-pressure fuel turbopump. The shuttle's three main engines start approximately 6.5 seconds prior to lift-off. Once running, the solid rocket boosters ignite, and lift-off occurs. During ascent, the solid rocket boosters burn for approximately 120 seconds and are then jettisoned. The shuttle, still attached to the external tank with three main engines running, continues ascent until main engine cut-off at 510 seconds, or eight and one-half minutes after liftoff - long enough to burn more than 500,000 gallons of fuel. The engines shut down just before the shuttle, traveling at about 17,000 mph, reaches orbit. The three main engines are never restarted during the mission, re-entry or landing. The shuttle returns to Earth as a glider. Space shuttle main engines operate at greater temperature extremes than any mechanical system in common use today. These powerful engines are clustered at the aft end of the shuttle and have a combined thrust of more than 1.2 million pounds. Each is 14 feet long, is seven and one-half feet in diameter at the nozzle exit, weighs approximately 7,750 pounds and generates more than 12 million horsepower. For information about the space shuttle program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA STARTS SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS COUNTDOWN JUNE 5 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA will start the launch countdown for space shuttle Atlantis' STS-117 mission at 9 p.m. EDT Tuesday, June 5, at the T-43 hour point. The countdown includes 27 hours, 32 minutes of built-in hold time leading to a preferred launch time at approximately 7:38 p.m. EDT Friday, June 8. The launch window extends an additional five minutes. During the 11-day mission, Atlantis' crew will resume construction of the International Space Station, working with the station crew to install the girder-like S3/S4 truss segment, unfold a new set of solar arrays and retract one array on the starboard side of the station. A detailed list of launch countdown milestones and times is available at: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/news/index.html This mission is the 118th space shuttle flight, the 28th flight for Atlantis and the 21st U.S. flight to the International Space Station. STS-117 is scheduled to land at NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on Tuesday, June 19. Atlantis' last mission was STS-115 in September 2006. For the upcoming STS-117 mission, Atlantis rolled out to Launch Pad 39-A from Kennedy's Vehicle Assembly Building on May 15. Atlantis originally was targeted for launch in March, but a hail storm damaged foam insulation on the shuttle's external fuel tank and forced managers to roll the spacecraft back into the Vehicle Assembly Building to make repairs. With the refurbishment of Pad 39-A, this launch will be the first from the pad in four years. STS-117 Commander Rick Sturckow, Pilot Lee Archambault and mission specialists Jim Reilly, Patrick Forrester, Steven Swanson, John "Danny" Olivas and Clayton Anderson are scheduled to arrive at the Kennedy Space Center on June 4. Expedition 15 Flight Engineer Sunita Williams will return to Earth from the space station aboard Atlantis. The flight will carry Expedition 15/16 Flight Engineer Clayton Anderson to the station. He will return home aboard space shuttle Discovery on mission STS-120. For more information about the STS-117 crew and mission to the space station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA GIVES "GO" FOR SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH ON JUNE 8 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - On Thursday, NASA senior managers selected June 8 as the official launch date for space shuttle Atlantis. Commander Rick Sturckow and his six crewmates are scheduled to lift off at 7:38 p.m. EDT on the STS-117 mission to the International Space Station. During the 11-day mission and three spacewalks, the crew will work with flight controllers at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, to install a 17-ton segment on the station's girder-like truss and deploy a set of solar arrays. The mission will increase the International Space Station's power capability in preparation for the arrival of new science modules from the European and Japanese space agencies. Atlantis' launch date was announced at the Flight Readiness Review. During the two-day meeting, top NASA and contractor managers assess any risks associated with the mission and determine whether the shuttle's equipment, support systems and procedures are ready for flight. The first Flight Readiness Review for STS-117 was held Feb. 27-28. A hail storm on Feb. 26, however, damaged Atlantis' external fuel tank and delayed the planned mid-March launch. "While we cannot control the weather, this team can ensure that when we do launch, it will be as safely as possible," said Associate Administrator for Space Operations Bill Gerstenmaier, who chaired the meetings. "This second Flight Readiness Review was as thorough as the first. The discussions were open, healthy, and are evidence of a team that is ready for a complicated and important station assembly mission." Joining Commander Sturckow on STS-117 will be Pilot Lee Archambault and mission specialists Patrick Forrester, Steven Swanson, John "Danny" Olivas, Jim Reilly and Clayton Anderson. Anderson will replace current station crew member Sunita Williams, who has lived on the station since December. Williams will return to Earth on Atlantis. For more information about the STS-117 mission, including images and interviews with the crew, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

NASA, 13 SPACE AGENCIES RELEASE EXPLORATION STRATEGY FRAMEWORK WASHINGTON - NASA and 13 space agencies from around the world are releasing the latest product of their Global Exploration Strategy discussions. The document, "The Global Exploration Strategy: The Framework for Coordination," reflects a shared vision of space exploration focused on solar system destinations where humans may someday live and work. The framework document allows for the establishment of a voluntary, non-binding mechanism by which space agencies can exchange information on their respective space exploration plans. This coordination mechanism will play a key role in helping to identify gaps, overlaps and synergies in the space exploration plans of participating agencies. The framework document is an important step in an evolving process toward a comprehensive global approach to space exploration. Although the document is non-binding, its contents are consistent with ongoing bilateral and multilateral discussions that NASA intends to lead to cooperative agreements for specific projects. In addition to NASA, representatives from agencies in Australia, Canada, China, the European Space Agency, France, Germany, Great Britain, India, Italy, Japan, Russia, the Republic of Korea and Ukraine participated in the Global Exploration Strategy discussions. Many participants are meeting this week in Spineto, Italy, to discuss the development of the coordination mechanism and other issues. The framework document is available at: http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/178109main_ges_framework.pdf To learn more about NASA's future space exploration plans, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/exploration

STATEMENT IN RESPONSE TO INQUIRIES RELATED TO NPR PRESS RELEASE NASA Administrator Michael Griffin responded Wednesday to inquiries related to a National Public Radio press release. The radio network's release contained excerpts from an interview that included comments on global climate change. "NASA is the world's preeminent organization in the study of Earth and the conditions that contribute to climate change and global warming. The agency is responsible for collecting data that is used by the science community and policy makers as part of an ongoing discussion regarding our planet's evolving systems. It is NASA's responsibility to collect, analyze and release information. It is not NASA's mission to make policy regarding possible climate change mitigation strategies. As I stated in the NPR interview, we are proud of our role and I believe we do it well." For additional information about NASA and its programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA UPDATES AERONAUTICS RESEARCH ANNOUNCEMENT WASHINGTON - NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate has amended its NASA Research Announcement to seek additional research topics. NASA is soliciting research in several new topic areas for the Airspace Systems Program's Next Generation Air Transportation System Airportal Project and the Fundamental Aeronautics Program's Supersonics Project. The Airportal Project will investigate innovative new technologies, approaches and procedures with the goal of enabling capacity enhancements at airports and terminals. These efforts will help meet the Next Generation Air Transportation System goals. The Supersonics Project is a broad based effort designed to develop knowledge, capabilities and technologies that support all vehicles that fly at supersonic speeds. Specific evaluation criteria, deadlines and points of contact for these research topics and other project areas are available in the announcement at: http://nspires.nasaprs.com For more information about NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, visit: http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-28 HOUSTON - Expedition 15 Commander Fyodor Yurchikhin and Flight Engineer Oleg Kotov prepared this week for two spacewalks while Flight Engineer Suni Williams prepared for her return to Earth. In preparation for her successor's arrival, Williams' downlinked a 10-minute video tour for Clayton Anderson, who will travel to the station on the upcoming space shuttle flight. Mission managers gave a "go" for a May 30 Russian spacewalk to install orbital debris protection panels on the Zvezda service module and a GPS antenna cable associated with Automated Transfer Vehicle navigation systems. This will be the 18th Russian spacewalk in support of station assembly and maintenance. The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 1:20 p.m. CDT and last approximately six hours. NASA Television coverage will begin at 12:30 p.m. First-time spacewalkers Yurchikhin and Kotov checked out the spacesuits and the Pirs airlock, prepared their tools, and closed the hatch to the Progress resupply vehicle docked to Pirs. Williams, who will help coordinate the spacewalk from inside the station, also prepared U.S. tools that will be used. During the spacewalk, the cosmonauts will retrieve a package, known as the "Christmas tree," which contains three bundles of debris panels. They were temporarily stowed on Pressurized Mating Adapter 3 during the STS-116 mission last December. After transferring the panels to Zvezda, Yurchikhin and Kotov will install the panels from one bundle. The others will be installed during their June 6 Russian spacewalk. Mission managers this week conducted a preliminary review of that spacewalk. Williams this week installed updated software on the station's laptop computers, replaced the elastic "flex packs" in two Resistive Exercise Device canisters used to simulate weightlifting in the absence of gravity, and worked out on a stationary bicycle while medical experts on the ground measured her oxygen intake as part of a periodic fitness evaluation. The crew members also prepared for the arrival of space shuttle Atlantis, targeted to launch on June 8. Yurchikhin and Kotov reviewed a recent digital photography practice session with shuttle imagery specialists, and Williams assembled a spacewalk tool to be used by shuttle astronauts who will retract the P6 starboard solar array. Along with filming the station video, Suni Williams also spoke with Clayton Anderson to help him prepare for his mission. It will begin officially when his specially-fitted Soyuz seat liner is transferred from Atlantis to the station during the STS-117 mission. On Wednesday, Russian flight controllers executed an orbit adjustment burn, increasing the station's speed about one mile an hour and putting it in the proper orbit for Atlantis' arrival. The Expedition 15 crew also participated in interviews with WBZ Radio, CBS Radio, ABC News and MSNBC. For more about the crew's activities and station sighting opportunities, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA SPACECRAFT AIDS IN FORECAST OF SOLAR RADIATION STORMS WASHINGTON - NASA's Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) now enables scientists to forecast solar radiation storms, giving future astronauts, traveling to the moon and Mars, time to seek shelter and ground controllers time to safeguard satellites. The new method for the first time offers as much as one hour advance notice when a storm is approaching. "Solar radiation storms are notoriously difficult to predict. They often take us by surprise, but now we've found a way to anticipate these events," says Arik Posner, a physicist in NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Posner is on temporary assignment to NASA from Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio. Posner developed the technique. His study appears in a recent issue of the journal Space Weather. Solar radiation storms are swarms of electrons, protons and heavy ions accelerated to high speed by explosions on the sun. On Earth, humans are protected from these particles by Earth's atmosphere and magnetic field. Astronauts in Earth orbit also are protected since Earth's magnetic field extends far enough to shield them. Solar radiation storms are a potential risk factor for astronauts working on the surface of the moon or Mars since neither has a substantial magnetic field. "A one hour warning would reduce the odds of being caught in a solar storm outside of a lunar habitat, where astronauts are most vulnerable," says Francis Cucinotta, chief scientist for the NASA Space Radiation Program at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. Spacecraft and satellites would also benefit. Subatomic particles striking computer processors and other electronics can cause onboard computers to suddenly reboot or issue nonsense commands. If a satellite operator knows that a storm is coming, the craft can be placed in a protective "safe mode" until the storm passes. The type of particle most feared by safety experts is the ion, an atom that has lost one or more of its charge-balancing electrons. Energetic ions can damage tissue and break strands of DNA, an effect not fully understood in terms of human disease. The goal of researchers is to forecast when the ions will arrive. "The key is electrons. They are always detected ahead of the more dangerous ions," says Posner. While this has been known for years, only recently has this research turned the "electrons first" aspect of radiation storms into a tool for forecasting. Every radiation storm is a mix of electrons, protons and heavier ions. The electrons, being lighter and faster than the others, race out ahead. By measuring the "rise time and intensity of the initial electron surge" Posner could predict how many ions were following and when they would arrive. The key to the breakthrough was the Comprehensive Suprathermal and Energetic Particle Analyzer (COSTEP) instrument on board the observatory. COSTEP counts particles coming from the sun and measures their energies. Posner looked at hundreds of radiation storms recorded by COSTEP between 1996 and 2002, and was able to construct an empirical, predictive matrix that involved plugging an electron data into the matrix, and an ion forecast emerging. After testing the results, the matrix was used on COSTEP data gathered in 2003, a year not yet analyzed and which formed no part of the matrix itself. The matrix was applied to the electron data and as a result, it successfully predicted all four major ion storms of 2003 with advance warnings ranging from 7 to 74 minutes. "While the method is not yet perfect, I'd like to improve that," Posner says. Improvements will come as Posner works his way through even more of COSTEP's dataset. "Launched with SOHO in 1995, COSTEP has been operating through an entire solar cycle including the recent solar maximum in 2001, and it is still going strong," says Prof. Bernd Heber, COSTEP's principle investigator at the University of Kiel, Germany. The method is being considered by planners at the Johnson Space Center in their design of future lunar missions. "Posner's technique reduces the odds of exposure by more than 20 percent compared to current methods, allowing astronauts to venture farther from their outpost. That's good for both science and exploration," says Cucinotta. "NASA's Vision for Space Exploration will lead humans away from Earth's protective magnetic cocoon and into the unprotected seas of outer space," says Posner. "New scientific knowledge concerning basic processes of space will ensure safe, effective achievement of NASA's future space exploration activities." SOHO is a project of international cooperation between the European Space Agency and NASA. For more information on NASA's study of the solar system, visit:

NASA FINDS EXTREMELY HOT PLANET, MAKES FIRST EXOPLANET WEATHER MAP WASHINGTON - Researchers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have learned what the weather is like on two distant, exotic worlds. One team of astronomers used the infrared telescope to map temperature variations over the surface of a giant, gas planet HD 189733b, revealing it likely is whipped by roaring winds. Another team determined that gas planet HD 149026b is the hottest yet discovered. Both findings appear May 9 in Nature. "We have mapped the temperature variations with longitude across the entire surface of a planet that is so far away, its light takes 60 years to reach us," said Heather Knutson of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass., lead author of the paper describing HD 189733b. The two planets are "hot Jupiters" - sizzling, gas giant planets that zip closely around their stars. Roughly 50 of the more than 200 known planets outside our solar system, called exoplanets, are hot Jupiters. Visible-light telescopes can detect these strange worlds and determine certain characteristics, such as their sizes and orbits, but not much is known about their atmospheres or what they look like. Since 2005, Spitzer has been revolutionizing the study of exoplanets' atmospheres by examining their infrared light, or heat. In one of the new studies, Spitzer set its infrared eyes on HD 189733b, located 60 light-years away in the constellation Vulpecula. HD 189733b is the closest known transiting planet, which means that it crosses in front and behind its star when viewed from Earth. It races around its star every 2.2 days. Spitzer measured the infrared light coming from the planet as it circled around its star, revealing its different faces. These infrared measurements, comprising about a quarter of a million data points, were then assembled into pole-to-pole strips, and, ultimately, used to map the temperature of the entire surface of the cloudy, giant planet. The observations reveal that temperatures on this balmy world are fairly even, ranging from 1,200 F on the dark side to 1,700 F on the sunlit side. HD 189733b, and all other hot Jupiters, are believed to be tidally locked like our moon, so one side of the planet always faces the star. Since the planet's overall temperature variation is mild, scientists believe winds must be spreading the heat from its permanently sunlit side around to its dark side. Such winds might rage across the surface at up to 6,000 mph. The jet streams on Earth travel at 200 mph. "These hot Jupiter exoplanets are blasted by 20,000 times more energy per second than Jupiter," said co-author David Charbonneau, also of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. "Now we can see how these planets deal with all that energy." Also, HD 189733b has a warm spot 30 degrees east of "high noon," or the point directly below the star. In other words, if the high-noon point were in Seattle, the warm spot would be in Chicago. Assuming the planet is tidally locked to its parent star, this implies that fierce winds are blowing eastward. In the second Spitzer study, astronomers led by Joseph Harrington of the University of Central Florida in Orlando discovered that HD 149026b is a scorching 3,700 F, even hotter than some low-mass stars. Spitzer was able to calculate the temperature of this transiting planet by observing the drop in infrared light that occurs as it dips behind its star. "This planet is like a chunk of hot coal in space," said Harrington. "Because this planet is so hot, we believe its heat is not being spread around. The day side is very hot, and the night side is probably much colder." HD 149026b is located 279 light-years away in the constellation Hercules. It is the smallest and densest known transiting planet, with a size similar to Saturn's and a core suspected to be 70 to 90 times the mass of Earth. It speeds around its star every 2.9 days. According to Harrington and his team, the oddball planet probably reflects almost no starlight, instead absorbing all of the heat into its fiery body. That means HD 149026b might be the blackest planet known, in addition to the hottest. "This planet is off the temperature scale that we expect for planets," said Drake Deming, a co-author of the paper, from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages the Spitzer Space Telescope mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Science operations are conducted at the Spitzer Science Center at the California Institute of Technology, also in Pasadena. For more information about the Spitzer Space Telescope, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/spitzer

NASA EXHIBITS CELEBRATE PUBLIC SERVICE RECOGNITION WEEK WASHINGTON - NASA will display a full scale model of the agency's next generation space telescope and host exhibits that showcase the many faces of NASA during Public Service Recognition Week. NASA's exhibits are free and open to visitors of all ages May 10-11 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT and May 12 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The exhibits will be on the National Mall between 7th and 4th streets, NW. The agency also will provide opportunities to speak with experts. One of the exhibit's biggest attractions will be the model of the James Webb Space Telescope. The model, approximately 80 feet long, 40 feet wide and 40 feet tall, will give visitors a better understanding of the size, scale and complexity of this orbiting infrared observatory that will complement and extend the discoveries of the Hubble Space Telescope. The telescope is targeted for launch in 2013 and is built by Northrop Grumman, Los Angeles. On Thursday, May 10 at 10 a.m., NASA will join Northrop Grumman at the display for a news conference that will explore the telescope's cutting-edge capabilities. In addition to the telescope, NASA will be exhibiting an array of out-of-this-world technology and space exploration assets. At NASA's tent, visitors can learn about the NASA Balloon Program, the International Space Station, and the Cassini Mission to Saturn. They also will see the Mars Exploration Rovers and giant inflatable models of the space shuttle, the Orion crew exploration vehicle, and the Ares I rocket. Orion is the next generation human spacecraft, and the Ares I is the launch vehicle that will lift future astronauts into space. Visitors can see how Earth looks from space on a "Magic Planet" where satellite data is projected on a sphere. They can experience Astro Camp, featuring a moon phaser and a lunar landing, and kids can go on a NASA scavenger hunt. Young and old alike can discover how NASA is pioneering new flight technologies, developing state-of-the art technologies and exploring the Earth, moon, Mars and beyond. The NASA "Vision for Space Exploration Experience," an interactive traveling exhibit, will allow visitors to slip the confines of our planet. Holographic and 3-D imagery shows "explorers" what it might be like to visit various destinations in space. Visitors can manipulate their environment and explore simulated lunar and Martian landscapes as well as travel to one of Saturn's moons. Thursday through Saturday, NASA will hold 15-minute "Story Time" for kids. Thursday Story Time runs from 11 a.m. to noon, and topics include: "The Air We Breathe," "National Security," and "Weather." On both Friday and Saturday, Story Time runs from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and features "Can You Hear Me Now?" "Weeding the Nation's Garden," "Sandbox in the Air," "NASA Fights Fires," "Earth's Frozen Assets," "Natural Disasters," and "Finding Ebola With Satellites." NASA's Super Cell Rock Band will give free concerts on Friday from 3:00- 3:40 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 12:00-12:40 p.m. A group of singers from NASA's Astrophysics division also will perform. NASA joins 100 federal civilian and military agencies and programs for the weeklong celebration of excellence in public service. For more information about Public Service Recognition Week, visit: http://www.excelgov.org/psrw For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA AND FAA TEAM TO ENCOURAGE AVIATION AND SPACE CAREERS WASHINGTON - NASA and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding to foster the development of students' skills in science, technology, engineering and math. The agreement supports the FAA's mission to provide the safest, most efficient aerospace system in the world and NASA's mission to pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research. "This is a perfect example of collaboration that complements and supports each organization's educational goals," said Dr. Joyce Winterton, NASA associate administrator for Education, Headquarters, Washington. "Joint outreach efforts like this will contribute to NASA and FAA goals for a diverse, qualified aviation and space workforce for the future." The partnership includes a broad range of cooperative outreach activities. The agencies' initial focus is on a NASA curriculum called "Smart Skies." Smart Skies is an online air traffic control simulator for students in fifth through ninth grades. It offers a fun and exciting way to learn math and skills central to air traffic control while providing multiple modes of problem solving for students who learn in different ways. The agreement unites the strengths of both agencies to provide the best of aviation-related educational products and experiences to the widest possible population of students and educators. "The synergy of this relationship will promote joint endeavors that motivate students to further develop their skills for careers in aviation and aerospace," said Ruth Leverenz, FAA associate administrator for Region and Center Operations, Washington. Smart Skies' unique approach also exposes students to high-technology careers related to aviation. NASA developed the program with help from air traffic controllers at FAA's Oakland, Calif., facility. For more information about Smart Skies, visit: http://www.atcsim.nasa.gov For information about NASA educational programs, visit: http://education.nasa.gov

NASA SELECTS NEW MEMBERS OF ASTROBIOLOGY INSTITUTE MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. - NASA is awarding five-year grants to four research teams that will become new members of the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI). The new multidisciplinary teams are led by the University of Wisconsin, Madison; the California Institute of Technology, Pasadena; Montana State University, Bozeman; and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge. For the first 18 months of research, teams will receive $350,000 in funding. The five-year average grant size is approximately $7 million per team. "These teams have proposed exciting research that is complementary to work being done by other NAI members," said NAI Director Carl Pilcher, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. "The selection of these teams forms an excellent foundation for entering the institute's second decade." Astrobiology is the study of the origin, evolution, distribution and future of life in the universe. In 1998, NASA founded the Astrobiology Institute, a virtual research institution based at Ames, to stimulate and support this multidisciplinary field of research and education as part of NASA's overall science portfolio. The University of Wisconsin team, headed by Clark Johnson, proposes to study organic and mineralogical signatures and environments of life on Earth and other planets. This team's work focuses on technologies for the detection of microbial life from its subtle effects on rock chemistry. These technologies will examine ancient rocks on Earth, paving the way for eventual instruments to search for signatures of life on Mars. The California Institute of Technology team, led by Victoria Meadows, will extend research done within the NAI from 2001 to 2006. This team has developed a Virtual Planetary Laboratory to explore the habitability and biosignatures of extrasolar, Earth-like planets. These scientists use computer models of planets with different sizes, temperatures and atmospheres to investigate how the presence of life on such planets could be detected telescopically. The Montana State University team is headed by John Peters. Its focus is on the origin of life, investigating the role of iron-sulfide compounds in the transition from the non-living to the living world. This work will support the mission of NASA in the area of prebiotic chemistry and the development of signatures for terrestrial and extraterrestrial life. Roger Summons leads the MIT team. The team will investigate requirements for the development of multicellular life in Earth's ancient past. They will concentrate on organic biosignatures preserved in the rock record and the state of the Earth's early atmosphere, and will investigate the critical genetic pathways that constrained and supported early life while multicellularity developed. "Each of these teams brings something important to NASA's overall portfolio in astrobiology, and to the future success of missions in planetary science, astronomy and Earth science," said Colleen Hartman, deputy associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, Washington. The addition of these new teams brings the membership of the NASA Astrobiology Institute to 16, selected with staggered 5-year terms. The astrobiology teams are widely distributed throughout nearly 150 universities and other research institutions, including numerous international affiliates. More than 500 research scientists work in these teams, and there is a strong focus on public education and the training of the next generation of astrobiologists. The basic research carried out in the institute directly supports many NASA missions, such as exploration of Mars and the search for planets around other stars, including investigations of the habitability of other worlds. For more information a bout the NASA Astrobiology Institute, visit: http://nai.nasa.gov For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA ANNOUNCES AERONAUTICS RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES WASHINGTON - NASA has amended its "Research Opportunities in Aeronautics" announcement to solicit research in several new topic areas in the Aviation Safety Program's Aircraft Aging and Durability Project. This research will enhance the safety of the nation's air transportation system by taking a proactive approach to address safety challenges of new and legacy vehicles. NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate Aviation Safety Program conducts long-term, cutting-edge research to produce tools, methods, concepts and technologies to improve the intrinsic safety attributes of current and future aircraft. These developments help to overcome safety technology barriers that would otherwise constrain the full realization of the Next Generation Air Transportation System. The Aircraft Aging and Durability Project addresses hazards that can develop in aging aircraft. The project develops advanced diagnostic and prognostic capabilities to detect and mitigate hazards before they become critical. The research and technologies to be pursued will greatly improve vehicle safety by decreasing the susceptibility of aircraft and onboard systems to premature deterioration. The project will emphasize new material systems and fabrication techniques and address the potential hazards associated with aging-related degradation. The project takes a proactive approach to incorporate aging mitigation technologies and processes into the design and maintenance of aircraft operating in the Next Generation Air Transportation System. Specific evaluation criteria, deadlines and points of contact for this and additional research topics in other project areas are available in the announcement at: http://nspires.nasaprs.com For more information about NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, visit: http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov

PLUTO-BOUND NEW HORIZONS PROVIDES NEW LOOK AT JUPITER SYSTEM WASHINGTON - NASA's New Horizons spacecraft has provided new data on the Jupiter system, stunning scientists with never-before-seen perspectives of the giant planet's atmosphere, rings, moons and magnetosphere. These new views include the closest look yet at the Earth-sized "Little Red Spot" storm churning materials through Jupiter's cloud tops; detailed images of small satellites herding dust and boulders through Jupiter's faint rings; and of volcanic eruptions and circular grooves on the planet's largest moons. New Horizons came to within 1.4 million miles of Jupiter on Feb. 28, using the planet's gravity to trim three years from its travel time to Pluto. For several weeks before and after this closest approach, the piano-sized robotic probe trained its seven cameras and sensors on Jupiter and its four largest moons, storing data from nearly 700 observations on its digital recorders and gradually sending that information back to Earth. About 70 percent of the expected 34 gigabits of data has come back so far, radioed to NASA's largest antennas over more than 600 million miles. This activity confirmed the successful testing of the instruments and operating software the spacecraft will use at Pluto. "Aside from setting up our 2015 arrival at Pluto, the Jupiter flyby was a stress test of our spacecraft and team, and both passed with very high marks," said Science Mission Directorate Associate Administrator and New Horizons Principal Investigator Alan Stern, NASA Headquarters, Washington. "We'll be analyzing this data for months to come; we have collected spectacular scientific products as well as evocative images." Images include the first close-up scans of the Little Red Spot, Jupiter's second-largest storm, which formed when three smaller storms merged during the past decade. The storm, about half the size of Jupiter's larger Great Red Spot and about 70 percent of Earth's diameter, began turning red about a year before New Horizons flew past it. Scientists will search for clues about how these systems form and why they change colors in their close observations of materials spinning within and around the nascent storm. "This is our best look ever of a storm like this in its infancy," said Hal Weaver, New Horizons project scientist from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), Laurel, Md. APL built and operates the New Horizons spacecraft. "Combined with data from telescopes on and around Earth taken at the same time New Horizons sped past Jupiter, we're getting an incredible look at the dynamics of weather on giant planets." Under a range of lighting and viewing angles, New Horizons also grabbed the clearest images ever of the tenuous Jovian ring system. In them, scientists spotted a series of unexpected arcs and clumps of dust, indicative of a recent impact into the ring by a small object. Movies made from New Horizons images also provide an unprecedented look at ring dynamics, with the tiny inner moons Metis and Adrastea appearing to shepherd the materials around the rings. "We're starting to see that rings can evolve rapidly, with changes detectable during weeks and months," said Jeff Moore, New Horizons Jupiter Encounter science team lead from NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. "We've seen similar phenomena in the rings of Saturn." Of Jupiter's four largest moons, the team focused much attention on volcanic Io, the most geologically active body in the solar system. New Horizons' cameras captured pockets of bright, glowing lava scattered across the surface; dozens of small, glowing spots of gas; and several fortuitous views of a sunlit umbrella-shaped dust plume rising 200 miles into space from the volcano Tvashtar, the best images yet of a giant eruption from the tortured volcanic moon. The timing and location of the spacecraft's trajectory also allowed it to spy many of the mysterious, circular troughs carved onto the icy moon Europa. Data on the size, depth and distribution of these troughs, discovered by the Jupiter-orbiting Galileo mission, will help scientists determine the thickness of the ice shell that covers Europa's global ocean. Already the fastest spacecraft ever launched, New Horizons reached Jupiter 13 months after lifting off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., in January 2006. The flyby added 9,000 miles per hour, pushing New Horizons past 50,000 miles per hour and setting up a flight by Pluto in July 2015. The number of observations at Jupiter was twice that of those planned at Pluto. New Horizons made most of these observations during the spacecraft's closest approach to the planet, which was guided by more than 40,000 separate commands in the onboard computer. "We can run simulations and take test images of stars, and learn that things would probably work fine at Pluto," said John Spencer, deputy lead of the New Horizons Jupiter Encounter Science Team, Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colo. "But having a planet to look at and lots of data to dig into tells us that the spacecraft and team can do all these amazing things. We might not have explored the full capabilities of the spacecraft if we didn't have this real planetary flyby to push the system and get our imaginations going." More data are to come, as New Horizons completes its unprecedented flight down Jupiter's long magnetotail, where it will analyze the intensities of sun-charged particles that flow hundreds of millions of miles beyond the giant planet. New Horizons is the first mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program of medium-class spacecraft exploration projects. Stern leads the mission and science team as principal investigator; APL manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. The mission team also includes Ball Aerospace Corp., Boulder, Colo; the Boeing Company, Chicago; NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.;NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.; Stanford University, Palo Alto, Calif.; KinetX, Inc., Simi Valley, Calif.; Lockheed Martin Corp.; Denver; University of Colorado, Boulder; the U.S. Department of Energy, Washington; and a number of other firms, NASA centers, and university partners. To view the new images visit: www.nasa.gov/newhorizons

NASA TO ROTATE STATION ASTRONAUTS ON NEXT SHUTTLE MISSION HOUSTON

 - After several months working aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Suni Williams will come back to Earth aboard the space shuttle Atlantis, targeted for launch June 8. That shuttle mission, STS-117, will carry her successor, astronaut Clay Anderson, to the station to begin his duty as an Expedition 15 flight engineer. The exchange of Anderson and Williams was originally planned for the STS-118 mission, now targeted for launch in August. However, that flight, first set to fly in June, had to be postponed after an unexpected hail storm damaged Atlantis' external fuel tank and delayed STS-117. NASA managers approved the crew rotation Thursday morning after a more detailed review determined there would be no impact on space station operations or future shuttle mission objectives. Since an earlier crew rotation was possible, NASA managers decided it would be prudent to return Williams and deliver Anderson sooner rather than later. With the new plan, Williams' mission on the station will be approximately the same length as originally anticipated. Williams, a Massachusetts native, launched to the station Dec. 9, 2006, aboard the space shuttle Discovery as part of the STS-116 mission. During her stay, she set a record for spacewalks by a female astronaut by conducting four excursions for a total of 29 hours and 17 minutes. Upon Williams' return, she will have accumulated more time in space than any other woman. Anderson, a Nebraska native, makes his first spaceflight when he joins Expedition 15. Discovery is scheduled to bring him home during the STS-120 mission, targeted for launch Oct. 20. For additional biographical information about Williams and Anderson and more information on the space station, visit: http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/index.html http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA'S AIM MISSION SOARS TO THE EDGE OF SPACE VANDENBERG, Calif.

- NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) spacecraft, the first mission dedicated to the exploration of mysterious ice clouds that dot the edge of space in Earth's polar regions, successfully launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., at 1:26 p.m. PDT on Wednesday, April 25. The mission will study clouds that are noctilucent, meaning they can be seen from the ground only at night, when they are illuminated by sunlight no longer visible from the Earth's surface. "The successful AIM launch initiates an exciting new era in understanding how noctilucent clouds form and why they vary," said Principal Investigator James M. Russell, III, of Hampton University in Hampton, Va. "The coordinated AIM measurements will provide the first focused and comprehensive data set needed to unravel the mysteries of these clouds." Noctilucent clouds are increasing in number, becoming brighter and are occurring at lower latitudes than ever before. "Such variations suggest a connection with global change," said Russell. "If true, it means that human influences are affecting the entire atmosphere, not just the region near the Earth's surface." The Stargazer L-1011 aircraft released a Pegasus XL rocket at a drop point over the Pacific Ocean, 100 miles offshore west-southwest of Point Sur, Calif. AIM was launched at an azimuth of 192.5 degrees into a circular polar orbit of 375 miles with an inclination of 97.7 degrees. At approximately 1:36 p.m., communications from a Tracking Data and Relay Satellite confirmed spacecraft separation, and the solar arrays deployed autonomously soon thereafter. The spacecraft was declared operating nominally at approximately 2:44 p.m., when it passed over the Svalbard, Norway, ground station. Spacecraft bus commissioning activities will be performed during the next six days while controllers verify satisfactory performance of all spacecraft subsystems. Throughout a 30-day check-out period, all the spacecraft subsystems and instruments will be evaluated and compared to their performance during ground testing to ensure satisfactory operation in the space environment. The instruments will maintain their protective covers to shield the near pristine optical surfaces from contamination while the spacecraft outgases volatile materials. Fourteen days after launch, the optical covers will be removed in sequence by ground commands, and the instruments will begin scientific operations. During the next two years, AIM scientists will methodically address each of six fundamental objectives that will provide critical information needed to understand cloud formation and behavior. "This mission has many firsts, including that Hampton University is the first historically black college and university to have the principle investigator and total mission responsibility for a NASA satellite mission," said Program Executive Victoria Elsbernd, NASA Headquarters, Washington. NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla., is responsible for launch vehicle/spacecraft integration and launch countdown management. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., is responsible for the overall AIM mission management in collaboration with Hampton University, the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg. Orbital Sciences Corporation, Dulles, Va., is responsible for providing the Pegasus XL launch service to NASA. AIM is the ninth small-class mission under NASA's Explorer Program, which provides frequent flight opportunities for world-class scientific investigations from space within the heliophysics and astrophysics science areas. For more information about NASA and the AIM mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/aim

SPACE STATION CREW LANDING MOVED TO SATURDAY

WASHINGTON - The 14th crew of the International Space Station, Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria and Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin, along with Spaceflight Participant Charles Simonyi, will land at 8:30 a.m. EDT Saturday, April 21 in Kazakhstan. The return of the Soyuz spacecraft was delayed a day, and the landing site was moved farther south. The Russian Federal Space Agency, Roscosmos, made the decisions to avoid wet conditions at the original landing site that could have interfered with recovery helicopter operations. NASA Television will air highlights of the crew's return Saturday. - 1:30 a.m. - coverage begins with hatch closure and a replay of farewells - 4:45 a.m. - coverage resumes for the Soyuz undocking, planned for 5:11 a.m. - 7:15 a.m. - coverage resumes for the deorbit burn and landing - 7:42 a.m. - the Soyuz will fire its engines to begin its descent to Earth

NASA FINDS ARCTIC REPLENISHED VERY LITTLE THICK SEA ICE IN 2005

WASHINGTON - A new NASA study has found that in 2005 the Arctic replaced very little of the thick sea ice it normally loses and replenishes each year. Replenishment of this thick, perennial sea ice each year is essential to the maintenance and stability of the Arctic summer ice cover. The findings complement a NASA study released in fall 2006 that found a 14-percent drop in this perennial ice between 2004 and 2005. The lack of replenishment suggests that the decline may continue in the near future. Perennial ice coverage fluctuates seasonally for two reasons: summer melting and the transport of ice out of the Arctic. When perennial ice, which is 10 or more feet thick, is lost in these ways, new, thinner, first-year seasonal ice typically replaces it. Some of this seasonal ice melts in the following summer, and some is thick enough to survive and replenish the perennial ice cover. "Recent studies indicate Arctic perennial ice is declining seven to 10 percent each decade," explained Ron Kwok of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "Our study gives the first reliable estimates of how perennial ice replenishment varies each year at the end of summer. The amount of first-year ice that survives the summer directly influences how thick the ice cover will be at the start of the next melt season." Using satellite data from NASA's QuikScat and other data, Kwok studied six annual cycles of Arctic perennial ice coverage from 2000 to 2006. The scatterometer instrument on QuikScat sends radar pulses to the surface of the ice and measures the echoed radar pulses bounced back to the satellite. These measurements allow scientists to differentiate the seasonal ice from the older, perennial ice. Kwok found that after the 2005 summer melt, only about four percent of the nearly 965,000 square miles of thin, seasonal ice that formed the previous winter survived the summer and replenished the perennial ice cover. That was the smallest replenishment seen in the study. As a result, perennial ice coverage in January 2006 was about 14 percent smaller than the previous January. Kwok examined how movement of ice out of the Arctic affected the replenishment of perennial sea ice in 2005. That year, the typically small amount of ice that moves out of the Arctic in summer was unusually high - about seven percent of the perennial ice coverage area. Kwok said the high amount was due to unusual wind conditions at Fram Strait, an Arctic passage between Antarctic Bay in Greenland and Svalbard, Norway. Troughs of low atmospheric pressure in the Greenland and Barents/Norwegian Seas on both sides of Fram Strait created winds that pushed ice out of the Arctic at an increased rate. The effects of ice movement out of the Arctic depend on the season. When ice moves out of the Arctic in the summer, it leaves behind an ocean that does not refreeze. This, in turn, increases ocean heating and leads to additional thinning of the ice cover. These findings suggest that the greater the number of freezing temperature days during the prior season, the thicker the ice cover, and the better its chances of surviving the next summer's melt. "The winters and summers before fall 2005 were unusually warm," Kwok said. "The low replenishment seen in 2005 is potentially a cumulative effect of these trends." Kwok also examined the 2000-2006 temperature records within the context of longer-term temperature records dating back to 1958. He found a gradual warming trend in the first 30 years, which accelerated after the mid-1980s. "The record doesn't show any hint of recovery from these trends," he stated. "If the correlations between replenishment area and numbers of freezing and melting temperature days hold long-term, its expected the perennial ice coverage will continue to decline." Kwok points to a possible trigger for the declining perennial ice cover. In the early 1990s, variations in the North Atlantic Oscillation, a large-scale atmospheric seesaw that affects how air circulates over the Atlantic Ocean, were linked to a large increase in Arctic ice export. It appears the ice cover has not yet recovered from these variations. "We're seeing a decreasing trend in perennial ice coverage," he said. "Our study suggests that, on average, the area of seasonal ice that survives the summer may no longer be large enough to sustain a stable perennial ice cover, especially in the face of accelerating climate warming and Arctic sea ice thinning." Data from the 2005-2006 season have not yet been analyzed. The study appeared March 2 in Geophysical Research Letters. For more information about QuikScat, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/jpl/missions/quickscat.html

NASA COMPLETES KEY REVIEW OF ORION SPACECRAFT WASHINGTON

- NASA has established a requirements baseline for the Orion crew exploration vehicle, bringing America's next human spacecraft a step closer to construction. The Orion Project completed its system requirements review in cooperation with its prime contractor, Lockheed Martin, March 1. The review marked the first major milestone in the Orion engineering process and provided the foundation for design, development, construction and safe operation of the spacecraft that will carry explorers to Earth orbit, to the moon, and eventually to Mars. The detailed requirements established in this review will serve as the basis for ongoing design analysis work and systems testing. "This is a significant step in the development of a space transportation system that will expand our horizons to include other worlds," said Skip Hatfield, Orion Project manager at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. The Orion review followed an overall review of requirements for the Constellation Program that was completed in November. Similar reviews are planned later this spring for ground and mission operations systems that will support Constellation launch systems and space flight operations ground infrastructure. "We have now completed program-wide launch vehicle and human spacecraft system requirements reviews," said Constellation Program Manager Jeff Hanley. "These are important pieces of a management and engineering puzzle that will allow us to accomplish the goal of putting humans back on the moon." The Orion requirements data set was reviewed by agency and contractor scientists and engineers from across the country. More than 1,700 topics covering all aspects of vehicle performance, design and qualification were discussed during the course of the formal review. Once all project-level reviews are complete, the Constellation Program will hold another full review to update baseline requirements. A lunar architecture systems review of equipment associated with surface exploration and science activities on the moon is expected in the spring of 2009. For more information about NASA's Constellation Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation For information about NASA and agency programs, visit: http://www.nasa.gov

STATEMENT REGARDING THE STATUS OF LISA NOWAK

HOUSTON - U.S. Navy Capt. Lisa Nowak's detail as a NASA astronaut has
been terminated, effective March 8, by mutual agreement between NASA
and the U.S. Navy.

Nowak, an active duty naval officer, began her detail with NASA
following selection as a member of the astronaut class of 1996. She
flew one mission, STS-121 in 2006.

NASA requested an end to the detail because the agency lacks the
administrative means to deal appropriately with the criminal charges
pending against Nowak. Because Nowak is a naval officer on assignment
to NASA, rather than a NASA civil servant, she is not subject to
administrative action by NASA.

Nowak will receive her next assignment from the U.S. Navy.

NASA's decision to terminate Nowak's detail does not reflect any
position by NASA on the criminal charges pending in Florida.

 


-end-

 

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-11

HOUSTON - The International Space Station's Expedition 14 crew
continued work this week on scientific experiments, station
maintenance and clean up following a Feb. 22 Russian spacewalk.

An altitude reboost engine firing planned for Friday was postponed
following the launch delay of Space Shuttle Atlantis earlier this
week. The STS-117 mission was targeted for liftoff on March 15. The
shuttle mission was put on hold following a hail storm Monday. The
storm caused damage requiring repair to the shuttle's external fuel
tank foam.

Russian flight controllers now plan two engine firings on March 16 and
28 to increase the station's altitude, which will place the station
in the desired orbit for arrival of a Soyuz spacecraft due to launch
April 7. The Soyuz will bring Expedition 15 Commander Fyodor
Yurchikhin, Flight Engineer Oleg Kotov and spaceflight participant
Charles Simonyi to the station. Docking to the station is due April
9. Expedition 14 Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria, Flight Engineer
Mikhail Tyurin and Simonyi plan to land in Kazakhstan April 19.

Space station managers are reviewing the work planned aboard the
station for the remaining weeks of Expedition 14 and for Expedition
15 in light of the shuttle launch delay. The review seeks to optimize
use of the crews' time due to the shuttle's delay.

The station crew Thursday was awakened briefly by a caution signal
when the starboard Thermal Radiator Rotary Joint (TRRJ) experienced a
dropout in commands from the Rotary Joint Motor Controller. The TRRJ
automatically defaulted to another command link, and there was no
impact to operations. Engineers are analyzing what may have caused
the problem. The rotary joint turns the radiator to provide the best
possible cooling.

Flight Engineer Suni Williams practiced on a laptop computer
simulation Wednesday to maintain her skill in using the station's
Canadarm2 robotic arm. She also joined her fellow crewmates in the
Test of Reaction and Adaptation Capabilities (TRAC) experiment to
gather hand-eye coordination data before, during and after their
mission. TRAC Principal Investigator Dr. Otmar Bock of the German
Sport University in Cologne, Germany, hopes to better understand how
the brain adapts during spaceflight. The experiment will be performed
during both Expedition 14 and Expedition 15.

For more about the crew's activities and station sighting
opportunities, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station

 

NASA RECEIVES AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

WASHINGTON - NASA was honored Thursday for achievement in successfully
conducting a broad range of technology transfer activities. The
International Marketplace and Conference for Technology Transfer
(IPTEC), St. Albans, England, presented the award to NASA during its
conference in Cannes, France. NASA's Director of the Innovative
Partnerships Program Doug Comstock accepted the award on behalf of
the agency.

"When we collectively engage in space exploration, we invest not only
in the successful navigation of the unknown but also the innovations
that improve our very quality of daily life," said NASA Deputy
Administrator Shana Dale. "We congratulate our program's
accomplishments of contributing to the high quality technology
transfers that benefit exploration while complimenting American
industry's ability to provide benefits for our entire society."

During its annual conference, IPTEC presents three awards, one each to
the public, private and academic sectors. IPTEC's advisory board,
comprised of representatives from corporations such as General
Electric, Microsoft and Ericsson, recommended the recipients of the
awards. At the IPTEC conference, many of the world's leading experts
in technology transfer discuss the latest corporate and government
technology transfer strategies and learn about successful licensing
programs and practices.

"This is an important recognition for NASA because we take seriously
the transfer of technology from our unique space and aeronautics
missions into productive societal use," said Comstock.

Recent examples of NASA's innovative practices in technology transfer
include a water filtration system that provides safe, affordable
drinking water throughout the world and advancement in aviation that
provides pilots with a synthetic vision system to improve flight
safety. To learn more about the Innovative Partnerships Program,
visit:

http://www.ipp.nasa.gov
 

NASA SPACECRAFT GETS BOOST FROM JUPITER FOR PLUTO ENCOUNTER

LAUREL, Md. - NASA's New Horizons spacecraft successfully completed a flyby of Jupiter early this morning, using the massive planet's gravity to pick up speed for its 3-billion mile voyage to Pluto and the unexplored Kuiper Belt region beyond. "We're on our way to Pluto," said New Horizons Mission Operations Manager Alice Bowman of Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), Laurel, Md. "The swingby was a success; the spacecraft is on course and performed just as we expected." New Horizons came within 1.4 million miles of Jupiter at 12:43 a.m. EST, placing the spacecraft on target to reach the Pluto system in July 2015. During closest approach, the spacecraft could not communicate with Earth, but gathered science data on the giant planet, its moons and atmosphere. At 11:55 a.m. EST mission operators at APL established contact through NASA's Deep Space Network and confirmed New Horizons' health and status. The fastest spacecraft ever launched, New Horizons is gaining nearly 9,000 mph from Jupiter's gravity - accelerating to more than 52,000 mph. The spacecraft has covered approximately 500 million miles since its launch in January 2006 and reached Jupiter faster than seven previous spacecraft to visit the solar system's largest planet. New Horizons raced through a target just 500 miles across, the equivalent of a skeet shooter in Washington hitting a target in Baltimore on the first try. New Horizons has been running through an intense six-month long systems check that will include more than 700 science observations of the Jupiter system by the end of June. More than half of those observations are taking place this week, including scans of Jupiter's turbulent atmosphere, measurements of its magnetic cocoon, surveys of its delicate rings, maps of the composition and topography of the large moons Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto, and a detailed look at volcanic activity on Io. "We designed the entire Jupiter encounter to be a tough test for the mission team and our spacecraft, and we're passing the test," says New Horizons Principal Investigator Alan Stern from the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colo. "We're not only learning what we can expect from the spacecraft when we visit Pluto in eight years, we're already getting some stunning science results at Jupiter - and there's more to come." While much of the close-in science data will be sent back to Earth during the coming weeks, the team also downloaded a sampling of images to verify New Horizons' performance. The outbound leg of New Horizons' journey includes the first-ever trip down the long "tail" of Jupiter's magnetosphere, a wide stream of charged particles that extends more than 100 million miles beyond the planet. Amateur backyard telescopes, the giant Keck telescope in Hawaii, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and Chandra X-Ray Observatory and other ground and space-based telescopes are turning to Jupiter as New Horizons flies by, ready to provide global context to the close-up data New Horizons gathers. New Horizons is the first mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program of medium-class spacecraft exploration projects. The Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md., manages the mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The mission team also includes NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.; NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.; the U.S. Department of Energy, Washington; Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colo.; and several corporations and university partners. For the latest news and images from the New Horizons mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/newhorizons

HAIL DAMAGE FORCES SHUTTLE ATLANTIS OFF LAUNCH PAD

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA decided Tuesday to roll the space shuttle
Atlantis off its launch pad and back inside the Vehicle Assembly
Building at the Kennedy Space Center. Managers made the decision
after a hail storm Monday damaged the orbiter's External Tank. A new
target launch date has not been determined, but teams will focus on
preparing Atlantis for liftoff in late April.

On Monday, a severe thunderstorm with golf ball-size hail caused what
could be 1,000 to 2,000 divots in the giant tank's foam insulation
and minor surface damage to about 26 heat shield tiles on the
shuttle's left wing. Further evaluation of the tank is necessary to
get an accurate accounting of foam damage and must be done in the
Vehicle Assembly Building, where the entire tank can be more easily
accessed. The shuttle is expected to be moved off the pad by early
next week.

Once an up-close look at the damage is complete, the type of repair
required and the time needed for that work can be determined.
Atlantis' flight, STS-117, to the International Space Station will be
scheduled sometime after a Russian Soyuz spacecraft returns from the
station. The Soyuz is delivering new station crew members and
returning others back to Earth in late April. Adequate time is needed
between the Soyuz undocking and the shuttle's arrival to the station.


STS-117 Commander Rick Sturckow, Pilot Lee Archambault and mission
specialists Jim Reilly, Patrick Forrester, Steven Swanson and John
"Danny" Olivas will continue training at NASA's Johnson Space Center,
Houston, as they await a new target launch date. During the 11-day
mission, the astronauts will work with the station crew and ground
teams to install a new truss segment, unfold a new set of solar
arrays and retract one array on the starboard side of the station.

Space Shuttle Program managers are gathered at the Kennedy Space
Center for the traditional Flight Readiness Review for the mission.
During the two-day meeting, NASA managers and engineers assess any
risks associated with the mission and determine whether the shuttle's
equipment, support systems and procedures are ready for flight. The
meeting, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, will continue as
planned.

For information about the STS-117 crew and mission, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

 

NASA COMPLETES CONTRACT AWARD FOR SPACE PROGRAM OPERATIONS

WASHINGTON - NASA has completed a modification to convert the letter
contract with United Space Alliance (USA), LLC, of Houston, to a
fully defined contract covering space shuttle and International Space
Station program operations for a base period from Oct. 1, 2006,
through Sept. 30, 2010. The contract is valued at $6.34 billion.

The contract includes five, one-year options, thereafter totaling a
potential period of performance of nine years to 2015.

Efforts under the Space Program Operations Contract include work and
support for mission design and planning; software development and
integration; astronaut and flight controller training; system
integration; flight operations; vehicle processing, launch and
recovery; vehicle sustaining engineering; and flight crew equipment
processing. It is a cost reimbursement contract, with provisions for
award and performance fees.

Work in support of this contract is performed at NASA's Johnson Space
Center, Houston, Kennedy Space Center, Fla., Marshall Space Flight
Center, Huntsville, Ala., and other subcontractor locations USA deems
appropriate to complete the work.

For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

INDEPENDENT SPACE STATION TASK FORCE RELEASES FINAL REPORT

WASHINGTON - The International Space Station Independent Safety Task
Force's final report is now available online. The report was released
simultaneously Tuesday to Congress, NASA and the public.

The Congressionally-mandated task force was chartered last year under
Section 1281 of the NASA Authorization Act of 2005. It was charged
with reviewing the International Space Station program to assess
potential vulnerabilities that could threaten the station or its crew
or lead to it being prematurely abandoned.

"I wish to thank the members of the International Space Station
Independent Safety Task Force for their hard work," said NASA
Administrator Michael Griffin. "At NASA no activity is more important
than safely conducting our space missions, including our
expeditionary missions onboard the International Space Station. I
look forward to reading the task force's report. "

To view the report online visit the task force and main space station
Web sites at:

https://onemis.nasa.gov/iss_safety

http://www.nasa.gov/station
 

WASHINGTON - NASA will send a flight surgeon, two astronauts and a
Cincinnati doctor into the ocean depths off the Florida coast May
7-18 to test space medicine concepts and moon-walking techniques. It
is the first undersea mission to include a NASA flight surgeon.

Veteran space flyer Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper will lead the 12-day
undersea mission aboard the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) Aquarius Underwater Laboratory. NASA Flight
Surgeon Josef Schmid, NASA Astronaut Jose Hernandez and Dr. Tim
Broderick of the University of Cincinnati complete the crew.

During the NASA Extreme Environment Mission Operations 12 (NEEMO 12),
the crew will conduct a variety of advanced medical technology
experiments, including robotic telesurgery on simulated patients.

"Schmid's unique experience in space medicine will benefit the mission
itself as well as the future development of crew care techniques for
long-duration human spaceflight missions," said NEEMO Project Manager
Bill Todd of NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Hands-on telesurgery demonstrations and robotic telesurgery technology
developed and refined within this mission will help surgeons overcome
interplanetary communication lag time. Technologies such as
surgeon-guided automatic robot function could improve the care of
astronauts on future missions to the moon and Mars.

The crew will conduct simulated undersea "moon walks" to test concepts
for future lunar exploration. During these simulated moon walks, they
will construct an undersea structure with the help of a remotely
operated vehicle, similar to what the next travelers to the moon may
do. The crew also will practice collecting geological samples to help
develop tools and techniques for collecting lunar samples as well as
train future lunar explorers to be geologists.

Scientists and school children also will be able to move two remotely
controlled surgical robots in Aquarius.

James Talacek and Dominic Landucci of the University of North Carolina
at Wilmington will provide engineering support for the submerged
Aquarius habitat. The University of North Carolina at Wilmington
operates Aquarius on behalf of NOAA as part of NOAA's Undersea
Research Program. The NEEMO missions are a cooperative project among
NASA, NOAA and the university.

This will be the 12th NEEMO undersea mission. NASA Astronaut Richard
Arnold and NASA Flight Surgeon Sean Roden will serve as backup crew
members. It is the second NEEMO mission including the University of
Cincinnati and Broderick as a crew member; the first, NEEMO 9, took
place in April 2006.


Similar in size to the International Space Station's living quarters,
Aquarius is the world's only permanent underwater habitat and
laboratory. The 45-foot long, 13-foot diameter complex is three miles
off Key Largo in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, about 62
feet beneath the surface. A surface buoy provides connections for
power, life support and communications. A shore-based control center
monitors the habitat and crew.

For more information about the NEEMO 12 crew, its mission and
Aquarius, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/neemo

http://www.uncw.edu/aquarius

 

NASA AND DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE PARTNER FOR AERONAUTICAL TESTING WASHINGTON - NASA

 and the Department of Defense recently signed an agreement to develop an integrated national strategy for managing their respective aeronautical test facilities. NASA Administrator Michael Griffin and Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Kenneth Krieg signed the National Partnership for Aeronautical Testing (NPAT) agreement. The agreement expands the dialogue beyond the test and evaluation communities to include industry, academia and the science and technology interests from both agencies. Aeronautical test facilities are used for testing vehicles (e.g., aircraft, missiles or space vehicles) or for related scientific and engineering studies. They include wind tunnels, propulsion test facilities, simulation facilities and open-air ranges. The agreement also established an NPAT council responsible for the development of projects that streamline and economize the management of aeronautical test facilities. It is co-chaired by Lisa Porter, associate administrator of NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, and John Foulkes, director of the Department of Defense's Test Resource Management Center. The partnership is one element of both agencies' response to the National Aeronautics Research and Development Policy President Bush signed in December 2006. For more information about NASA's aeronautics program, visit: http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov http://www.nasa.gov

CONTRACT RELEASE: C07-07 NASA AWARDS TURBINE PUMP ASSEMBLY CONTRACT FOR ARES I CLEVELAND -

 NASA has selected Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International Inc. of Rockford, Ill., to design, develop, fabricate, test and deliver engineering models of a turbine pump assembly for the Ares I upper stage thrust vector control subsystem. The cost-plus-fixed-fee contract - a competitive award - has a two-year period of performance with a maximum value of $5,009,388. NASA's Glenn Research Center is the agency's lead for the Ares I upper stage thrust vector control subsystem, part of NASA's Constellation Program. For more information on the Web about Glenn's roles and responsibilities for Ares I, visit: http://exploration.grc.nasa.gov/Exploration/Constellation/Launch For more information on the Web about NASA's Constellation Program, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/constellation

NASA ISSUES ARES I UPPER STAGE PRODUCTION REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL WASHINGTON

- Friday NASA issued a request for proposal for the Ares I launch vehicle upper stage element. Ares I is the launch vehicle that will transport the Orion crew exploration vehicle and its crew and cargo to low Earth orbit. The upper stage proposals are due to Marshall Space Flight Center no later than 1 p.m. CST April 13, 2007. The request for proposal states the procurement approach for obtaining the upper stage element. The selected contractor will produce the required Ares I upper stage and provide support to a NASA-led design team during the design phase. The contract will provide for the manufacture and assembly of test articles, flight test units, and the operational upper stage elements to support NASA's flight manifest through 2016. Final manufacturing and assembly will take place at NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility in Louisiana. The Ares I upper stage, with a separately procured upper stage engine and a separately procured instrument ring, will provide the navigation, guidance, control and propulsion required for the second stage of the Ares I ascent. The first stage will consist of a single reusable solid rocket booster and motor similar to those used on the space shuttle but with a fifth motor segment attached. The contract to manufacture and assemble the Ares I upper stage element will be awarded through a full and open competition and managed by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. A selection will be made in August 2007. For more information about the draft request for proposal on the Web, visit: http://www.exploration.nasa.gov For information about NASA's Ares Projects on the Web, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ares

NASA, VIRGIN GALACTIC TO EXPLORE FUTURE COOPERATION MOFFETT FIELD

, Calif. - NASA officials signed a memorandum of understanding Tuesday with a U.S. company, Virgin Galactic, LLC, to explore the potential for collaborations on the development of space suits, heat shields for spaceships, hybrid rocket motors and hypersonic vehicles capable of traveling five or more times the speed of sound. Under the terms of the memorandum, NASA Ames Research Center, located in California's Silicon Valley, and Virgin Galactic LLC, a U.S.-based subsidiary of Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, will explore possible collaborations in several technical areas employing capabilities and facilities of NASA's Ames Research Center. "As we constantly seek to build upon the advances made by explorers who have come before us, we now embark upon an exciting time in space exploration history that realizes the unlimited opportunities presented by a commercial space economy," said Shana Dale, NASA's deputy administrator. "By encouraging such potential collaborations, NASA supports the development of greater commercial collaboration and applications that will serve to strengthen and enhance the future benefits of space exploration for all of mankind." Dale is a longtime supporter of commercial space development. As the former staff director of the U.S. House of Representatives Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics, she was instrumental in the passage of the Commercial Space Act of 1998. This legislation encourages commercial space development in a variety of areas, including launch vehicles, the International Space Station and the acquisition of space and Earth science data. "This understanding with Virgin Galactic affords NASA an opportunity to work with an emerging company in the commercial human space transportation industry to support the agency's exploration, science and aeronautics mission goals," said S. Pete Worden, director of NASA Ames Research Center. "Our location in California's Silicon Valley provides a dynamic research and development platform for future potential collaborations with other such companies in support of a robust commercial space industry." "We are excited to be working with NASA and look forward to future collaborations in exploration and space travel," said Alex Tai, vice president of operations for Virgin Galactic. The agreement with Virgin Galactic was negotiated through NASA's Space Portal, a newly formed organization in the NASA Research Park at Ames, which seeks to engage new opportunities for NASA to promote the development of the commercial space economy. "This new type of private-public partnership can benefit the agency while helping to foster a new industry," said Dan Coughlin, NASA's lead for the Virgin Galactic agreement. The memorandum of understanding will be in effect for two years and stipulates that neither NASA nor Virgin Galactic will be required to pay any fees or provide funds to support the areas of possible collaboration. For information about NASA and agency programs, please visit: http://www.nasa.gov

NASA'S SPITZER FIRST TO CRACK OPEN LIGHT OF FAR AWAY WORLDS WASHINGTON

- NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has captured for the first time enough light from planets outside our solar system, known as exoplanets, to identify signatures of molecules in their atmospheres. The landmark achievement is a significant step toward being able to detect life on rocky exoplanets and comes years before astronomers had anticipated. "This is an amazing surprise," said Spitzer project scientist Michael Werner of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif. "We had no idea when we designed Spitzer that it would make such a dramatic step in characterizing exoplanets." Spitzer, a space-based infrared telescope, obtained the detailed data, called spectra, for two different gas exoplanets: HD 189733b is 370 trillion miles away in the constellation Vulpecula, and HD 209458b is 904 trillion miles away in the constellation Pegasus. Just as a prism disperses sunlight into a rainbow, Spitzer uses an instrument called a spectrograph to reveal a spectrum by splitting light from an object into different wavelengths. The process uncovers "fingerprints" of chemicals making up the object. The exoplanets Spitzer observed are known as "hot Jupiters" because they are gaseous like Jupiter but orbit much closer to their stars. The data indicate the two planets are drier and cloudier than predicted. Theorists thought hot Jupiters would have lots of water in their atmospheres, but were surprised when none was found around HD 209458b or HD 189733b. In addition, one of the planets, HD 209458b, showed hints of tiny sand grains, called silicates, in its atmosphere. This could mean the water is present in the planet's atmosphere but hidden under high, dusty clouds unlike anything seen around planets in our own solar system. "The theorists' heads were spinning when they saw the data," said Jeremy Richardson of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. "It is virtually impossible for water, in the form of vapor, to be absent from the planet, so it must be hidden, probably by the dusty cloud layer we detected in our spectrum," he said. Richardson is lead author of a paper appearing in the Feb. 22 issue of Nature that describes a spectrum for HD 209458b. A team led by Carl Grillmair of NASA's Spitzer Science Center at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, Calif., captured the spectrum of HD 189733b. A team led by Mark R. Swain of JPL focused on the same planet in the Richardson study and came up with similar results. Grillmair's results will be published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters. Swain's findings have been submitted to the Astrophysical Journal Letters. "With these new observations, we are refining the tools that we will one day need to find life elsewhere if it exists," said Swain. "It's sort of like a dress rehearsal." Spitzer teased out spectra from the feeble light of the two planets through the "secondary eclipse" technique. In this method, the telescope monitors a planet as it transits, or circles behind its star, temporarily disappearing from view. By measuring the dip in infrared light that occurred when the planets disappeared, Spitzer's spectrograph was able to obtain spectra of the planets alone. The technique will work only in infrared wavelengths, where the planet is brighter than in visible wavelengths and stands out better next to the overwhelming glare of its star. In previous observations of HD 209458b, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope measured changes in the light from the star, not the planet, as the planet passed in front. Those observations revealed individual elements, such as sodium, oxygen, carbon and hydrogen, which bounce around the very top of the planet. "When we first set out to make these observations, they were considered high risk because not many people thought they would work," said Grillmair. "But Spitzer has turned out to be superbly designed and more than up to the task." JPL manages the Spitzer Space Telescope mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. The Spitzer Science Center at the California Institute of Technology conducts mission science operations

NASA'S THEMIS MISSION LAUNCHES TO STUDY GEOMAGNETIC SUBSTORMS

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - NASA's THEMIS mission successfully launched
Saturday, Feb. 17, at 6:01 p.m. EST from Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral
Air Force Station, Fla.

THEMIS stands for the Time History of Events and Macroscale
Interactions during Substorms. It is NASA's first five-satellite
mission launched aboard a single rocket. The spacecraft separated
from the launch vehicle approximately 73 minutes after liftoff. By
8:07 p.m. EST, mission operators at the University of California,
Berkeley, commanded and received signals from all five spacecraft,
confirming nominal separation status.

The mission will help resolve the mystery of what triggers geomagnetic
substorms. Substorms are atmospheric events visible in the Northern
Hemisphere as a sudden brightening of the Northern Lights, or aurora
borealis. The findings from the mission may help protect commercial
satellites and humans in space from the adverse effects of particle
radiation.

THEMIS' satellite constellation will line up along the sun-Earth line,
collect coordinated measurements, and observe substorms during the
two-year mission. Data collected from the five identical probes will
help pinpoint where and when substorms begin, a feat impossible with
any previous single-satellite mission.

"The THEMIS mission will make a breakthrough in our understanding of
how Earth's magnetosphere stores and releases energy from the sun and
also will demonstrate the tremendous potential that constellation
missions have for space exploration," said Vassilis Angelopoulos,
THEMIS principal investigator at the University of California,
Berkeley. "THEMIS' unique alignments also will answer how the
sun-Earth interaction is affected by Earth's bow shock, and how
'killer electrons' at Earth's radiation belts are accelerated."

The Mission Operations Center at the University of California,
Berkeley, will monitor the health and status of the five satellites.
Instrument scientists will turn on and characterize the instruments
during the next 30 days. The center will then assign each spacecraft
a target orbit within the THEMIS constellation based on its
performance. Mission operators will direct the spacecraft to their
final orbits in mid-September.

During the mission the five THEMIS satellites will observe an
estimated 30 substorms in process. At the same time, 20 ground
observatories in Alaska and Canada will time the aurora and space
currents. The relative timing between the five spacecraft and ground
observations underneath them will help scientists determine the
elusive substorm trigger mechanism.

"I am proud to manage the fifth medium class mission of the Explorer
Program," said Willis S. Jenkins, the THEMIS program executive. "As
we seek the answer to a compelling scientific question in geospace
physics, we are keeping up the tradition that began with Explorer I."

NASA's Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center was
responsible for the launch of THEMIS aboard a Delta II rocket. The
United Launch Alliance, Denver, provided launch service.

For additional information about THEMIS, news media should contact
Cynthia O'Carroll, Goddard Space Flight Center, Md., at 301-286-4647
or Robert Sanders, University of California, Berkeley, at
510-643-6998.

The Explorer Program Office at Goddard manages the NASA-funded THEMIS
mission. The Space Sciences Laboratory at the University of
California, Berkeley, is responsible for project management, space
and ground-based instruments, mission integration, mission operations
and science. Swales Aerospace, Beltsville, Md., built the THEMIS
probes. THEMIS is an international project conducted in partnership
with Germany, France, Austria and Canada.

For more information about the THEMIS mission and imagery on the Web,
visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/themis
 

NASA MOVES APOLLO 1 CAPSULE TO NEW STORAGE FACILITY

HAMPTON, Va. - NASA moved the Apollo 1 capsule and related materials
approximately 90 feet to a newer, environmentally-controlled
warehouse at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., on
Saturday, Feb. 17. The move provides better protection for the
spacecraft.

Despite routine repairs made throughout the years, the original secure
storage container where the vehicle was housed has been
deteriorating. NASA officials determined that, due to its age, the
container could not be maintained effectively to preserve the
capsule.

Astronauts Lt. Col. Virgil I. Grissom, Lt. Col. Edward H. White, and
Roger B. Chaffee died when a flash fire swept through the spacecraft
during a launch pad test at Cape Canaveral, Fla., on Jan. 27, 1967.
Originally known as the AS-204 mission, it was renamed Apollo 1 in
honor of the crew.

As directed by the Apollo 204 Review Board, the capsule has been
maintained at Langley. The review board's accident report made
recommendations that led to design and engineering changes and
increased the overall safety for future Apollo missions and six
successful lunar landings.

For more information on the Internet about Apollo 1, visit:

http://history.nasa.gov/Apollo204/
 

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-09 HOUSTON

- This week, the Expedition 14 crew continued to focus on preparation for their final planned spacewalk ahead of the space shuttle Atlantis' arrival in March. This comes following Sunday's unexpected circuit breaker trip on the International Space Station and subsequent resetting of affected equipment. As Atlantis was moved to the launch pad this week, station Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria and Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin conducted leak checks of the Russian Orlan spacesuits they will wear for their Feb. 22 venture outside the station. They installed some additional equipment on the suits, including lights that will assist in their tasks. Friday, the crew verified the suits' readiness by conducting telemetry and communications checks with flight controllers in Russia at the Mission Control Center in Korolev. The spacewalk will be the fifth by the Expedition 14 crew, a record for a station crew. It will be the fourth spacewalk conducted from the space station in the past three weeks. The spacewalk, scheduled to begin at approximately 4 a.m. CST, is expected to last six hours. NASA Television and www.nasa.gov will broadcast the event live, beginning at 3 a.m. The spacewalkers will attempt to free a stuck antenna on the Progress 23 cargo craft that is docked at the aft end of the station. The antenna did not properly retract when the supply vessel docked in October. Securing or removing the antenna is necessary to allow the Progress to undock in April. Additionally, they will survey docking navigation systems for the European Automated Transfer Vehicle, a cargo spacecraft scheduled to make its maiden voyage this summer. The spacewalk will be the 10th for Lopez-Alegria, a record for a U.S. astronaut. Also this week, robotics ground controllers in Houston commanded the station's mobile transporter rail car to move to the starboard side of the station's truss in preparation for the arrival of Atlantis, which will bring a new, school bus-sized truss segment with a third set of U.S. solar arrays for the complex, and batteries and other electronics. The crew will spend Monday inside the Destiny laboratory training on the operation of the station's Canadarm2 robotic arm. For more about the crew's activities and station sighting opportunities, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA COMMERCIAL SPACE PARTNERS COMPLETE MILESTONES

HOUSTON - Two companies that are receiving NASA Commercial Orbital
Transportation Services funds achieved significant milestones this
month in their efforts to develop and demonstrate space cargo launch
and delivery systems.

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) completed a preliminary design
review for its first orbital demonstration mission. Rocketplane
Kistler completed a system requirements review for its cargo services
system. The two companies want to offer commercial delivery services
for cargo, and possibly crews, to the International Space Station in
the future. In August 2006, NASA and the companies signed Space Act
Agreements that established a series of milestones and criteria for
assessing progress toward their individual goals.

"These milestones demonstrate genuine progress toward a new way of
doing business for NASA and pave the way for the commercial purchase
of transportation services needed to maintain the International Space
Station," said Alan Lindenmoyer, manager of the Commercial Crew and
Cargo Program Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. "If
these companies can continue this rapid pace, the first demonstration
launches are right around the corner."

On Feb. 8 SpaceX, of El Segundo, Calif., received NASA approval of a
preliminary design review for the first orbital demonstration of its
Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon reusable spacecraft. That flight, planned
for September 2008, will be the first of three outlined in NASA's
agreement with SpaceX. The company completed a project management
review for the mission in September 2006 and a system requirements
review in November 2006. SpaceX delivered its preliminary design
review data to NASA Jan. 22. The critical design review is set for
this summer.

On Feb. 6, Rocketplane Kistler of Oklahoma City established the
requirements for interfaces between its two-stage K-1 reusable cargo
transportation system and the International Space Station. The
requirements review was the third of numerous milestones NASA will
use to measure the company's progress toward a full demonstration of
its launch capability. Both the first and second stages completed
critical design reviews before Rocketplane Kistler joined the
Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Project. Those vehicle
components are being transported to NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility
in New Orleans to begin the assembly phase.

Rocketplane Kistler achieved its first two program milestones,
completion of a program implementation plan and an initial round of
private financing, in September and November 2006, respectively.
Preliminary and critical design reviews of a new cargo module are
planned later this year.

SpaceX and Rocketplane Kistler both won a 2006 competition to share up
to $485 million in NASA funding to help finance their activities.
Earlier in February, NASA signed unfunded agreements to work with two
other companies with similar goals - Transformational Space Corp.
(t/Space) of Reston, Va., and PlanetSpace Inc. of Chicago.

The overarching goals of NASA's Commercial Crew and Cargo Program are
to stimulate commercial enterprises in space; facilitate U.S. private
industry development of reliable, cost-effective access to low-Earth
orbit; and create a market environment in which commercial space
transportation services are available to government and private
customers.

Once industry has demonstrated safe and reliable capabilities, NASA
may choose to purchase transportation services from commercial
providers to support the International Space Station under a second
phase of the Commercial Orbital Transportation Services Project.

For more information on NASA on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov

 

JOINT NASA STUDY REVEALS LEAKS IN ANTARCTIC 'PLUMBING SYSTEM'

WASHINGTON - Scientists using NASA satellites have discovered an
extensive network of waterways beneath a fast-moving Antarctic ice
stream that provide clues as to how "leaks" in the system impact sea
level and the world's largest ice sheet. Antarctica holds about 90
percent of the world's ice and 70 percent of the world's reservoir of
fresh water.

With data from NASA satellites, a team of scientists led by research
geophysicist Helen Fricker of the Scripps Institution of
Oceanography, La Jolla, Calif., detected for the first time the
subtle rise and fall of the surface of fast-moving ice streams as the
lakes and channels nearly a half-mile of solid ice below filled and
emptied. Results were presented Thursday at the annual meeting of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in San
Francisco. The study will be published in the Feb. 16 issue of
Science magazine.

"This exciting discovery of large lakes exchanging water under the ice
sheet surface has radically altered our view of what is happening at
the base of the ice sheet and how ice moves in that environment,"
said co-author Robert Bindschadler, chief scientist of the Laboratory
for Hydrospheric and Biospheric Sciences at NASA's Goddard Space
Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

"NASA's state-of-the-art satellite instruments are so sensitive we are
able to capture an unprecedented three-dimensional look at the system
beneath the thick ice sheet and measure from space changes of a mere
3 feet in its surface elevation. That is like seeing an elevation
change in the thickness of a paperback book from an airplane flying
at 35,000 feet."

The surface of the ice sheet appears stable to the naked eye, but
because the base of an ice stream is warmer, water melts from the
basal ice to flow, filling the system's "pipes" and lubricating flow
of the overlying ice. This web of waterways acts as a vehicle for
water to move and change its influence on the ice movement. Moving
back and forth through the system's "pipes" from one lake to another,
the water stimulates the speed of the ice stream's flow a few feet
per day, contributing to conditions that cause the ice sheet to
either grow or decay. Movement in this system can influence sea level
and ice melt worldwide.

"There's an urgency to learning more about ice sheets when you note
that sea level rises and falls in direct response to changes in that
ice," Fricker said. "With this in mind, NASA's ICESat, Aqua and other
satellites are providing a vital public service."

In recent years, scientists have discovered more than 145 subglacial
lakes, a smaller number of which composes this "plumbing system" in
the Antarctic. Bindschadler and Fricker; Ted Scambos of the National
Snow and Ice Data Center in Boulder, Colo.; and Laurence Padman of
Earth and Space Research in Corvallis, Ore.; observed water
discharging from these under-ice lakes into the ocean in coastal
areas. Their research has delivered new insight into how much and how
frequently these waterways "leak" water and how many connect to the
ocean.

The study included observations of a subglacial lake the size of Lake
Ontario buried under an active area of west Antarctica that feeds
into the Ross Ice Shelf. The research team combined images from the
Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument
aboard NASA's Aqua satellite and data from the Geoscience Laser
Altimeter System (GLAS) on NASA's Ice Cloud and Land Elevation
Satellite (ICESat) to unveil a multi-dimensional view of changes in
the elevation of the icy surface above the lake and surrounding areas
during a three-year period. Those changes suggest the lake drained
and that its water relocated elsewhere.

MODIS continuously takes measurements of broad-sweeping surface areas
at three levels of detail, revealing the outline of under-ice lakes.
ICESat's GLAS instrument uses laser altimetry technology to measure
even the smallest of elevation changes in the landscape of an ice
sheet. Together, data from both have been used to create a multi-year
series of calibrated surface reflectance images, resulting in a new
technique called satellite image differencing that emphasizes where
surface slopes have changed.

For more information online about NASA and agency programs, visit:

www.nasa.gov
 

GODDARD ENGINEERS PROVIDE TRAINING FOR HUBBLE ASTRONAUTS

 GREENBELT, Md. - Astronauts selected for the next space shuttle servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope are at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., this week for their first formal crew orientation. Goddard engineers and managers are briefing the crew about Hubble operations, facilities and hardware and discussing the mission's five scheduled spacewalks. Astronauts will install two new science instruments and perform upgrades to the observatory. "While Johnson Space Center provides underwater training for the astronauts in its Neutral Buoyancy Lab, Goddard offers them hands-on experience using high fidelity mock-ups of Hubble and the specialty tools required for the tasks that lie ahead," said Preston Burch, associate director and program manager for Hubble at Goddard. "Together, we help ensure a flawless servicing mission." During their visit, astronauts will split their time between classroom activities and exercises inside Goddard's Class 10,000 cleanroom, which houses exact replicas of Hubble's electrical and equipment bays and actual flight hardware. This will be the first space flight for three of the seven astronauts, and this introduction will be their first look at the tools and techniques they will be mastering. Veteran astronaut Scott Altman will command the final shuttle mission to Hubble. Navy Reserve Capt. Gregory C. Johnson will serve as pilot. The mission specialists are veteran spacewalkers John Grunsfeld and Mike Massimino and first-time space fliers Andrew Feustel, Air Force Col. Michael Good and flight engineer and robotic arm operator Megan McArthur. The two new instruments being delivered to Hubble are the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph (COS) and Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3). The COS is the most sensitive ultraviolet spectrograph ever flown on Hubble. The instrument will probe the large-scale structure of the universe, which is traced by the distribution of galaxies and intergalactic gas observed by Hubble. It also will explore the nature and distribution of the mysterious dark matter that sculpts that structure. Dark matter is an invisible form of matter whose total mass in the universe is more than five times that of "normal" matter (i.e., gas, dust, stars, etc.) and which only can be studied by observing its influence on the distribution of normal matter in our universe. WFC3 is a new camera sensitive across a wide range of wavelengths, including infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. The camera will undertake a broad range of studies. It will examine the planets in our solar system, nearby galaxies with stories to tell about the formation of their stars, and early and distant galaxies beyond Hubble's current reach. Other planned work on the mission includes installation of a refurbished Fine Guidance Sensor that replaces one degrading unit of the three already onboard. The sensors control the telescope's pointing system. An attempt also will be made to repair the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. Installed in 1997, the instrument stopped working in 2004. The instrument is used for high resolution studies in visible and ultraviolet light of both nearby star systems and distant galaxies, providing information about the motions and chemical makeup of stars, planetary atmospheres, and other galaxies. The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. The Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, conducts Hubble science operations. The Institute is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Inc., Washington. For more about upcoming space shuttle missions, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/hubble

NASA ANNOUNCES THREE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION CREWS

WASHINGTON - NASA and its international partners have named the crews
that will live and work aboard the International Space Station for
the next two years. The crew members make up three expeditions to the
station and represent four space agencies.

The assignments include the first long-duration station flight for a
Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut and the second
long-duration station flight for an astronaut from the European Space
Agency (ESA). The JAXA and ESA astronauts will work on the
installation and checkout of the Japanese Experiment Module Kibo and
European Columbus laboratories on the station.

NASA astronaut and veteran station crew member Peggy A. Whitson will
command Expedition 16, set to begin in fall 2007. The flight
engineers for the mission include cosmonaut and Russian Air Force
Col. Yuri I. Malenchenko, ESA astronaut and French Air Force Brig.
Gen. Leopold Eyharts and NASA astronaut Garrett E. Reisman.

Malenchenko will command the Russian Soyuz spacecraft that will carry
him and Whitson to the station and return them to Earth in spring
2008. They will join NASA astronaut Daniel M. Tani aboard the
station.
Eyharts will fly to the station on space shuttle mission STS-122,
which is expected to deliver the Columbus lab this fall. Eyharts will
remain on the station to oversee activation and checkout of the
laboratory, while Tani takes the shuttle home.
Reisman will fly on shuttle Endeavour's STS-123 mission to replace
Eyharts. Reisman will remain on the station for about six months and
return on shuttle mission STS-119, targeted for summer 2008.
Russian Air Force Lt. Col. Sergei Volkov will command Expedition 17.
Expedition 17 flight engineers include cosmonaut Oleg D. Kononenko
and NASA astronaut Sandra H. Magnus.

Kononenko will command the Soyuz spacecraft that will carry him and
Volkov to the station in spring 2008 and bring them home in fall
2008.
Magnus will arrive on STS-119 and remain aboard the station. Magnus
will return on the STS-126 mission targeted for summer 2008.
NASA astronaut and station veteran Air Force Lt. Col. E. Michael
Fincke will command Expedition 18. Expedition 18 flight engineers
include cosmonaut and veteran station crew member Russian Air Force
Col. Salizhan S. Sharipov, JAXA astronaut Koichi Wakata and NASA
astronaut Gregory E. Chamitoff.

Sharipov will command the Soyuz that will carry him and Fincke to the
station in fall 2008 and back to Earth in spring 2009.
Wakata will fly to the station on STS-126 to replace Magnus. Magnus
will return to Earth on STS-126.
Chamitoff will fly to the station on the STS-127 mission, targeted for
winter 2008, the third and final flight for assembly of the Japanese
Kibo lab. Wakata will return to Earth on STS-127. Chamitoff will
return home on a later shuttle or Soyuz mission.
Expedition 16 backup crew members:

Fincke for Whitson
Sharipov for Malenchenko
ESA astronaut Frank DeWinne for Eyharts
NASA astronaut Army Lt. Col. Timothy L. Kopra for Reisman.
Expedition 17 backup crew members:

Cosmonaut and veteran station crew member Sergei Krikalev for Volkov
Cosmonaut Russian Air Force Col. Maxim V. Suraev for Kononenko
NASA astronaut Nicole P. Stott for Magnus.
Expedition 18 backup crew members:

NASA astronaut Dr. Michael R. Barratt for Fincke
Cosmonaut Russian Air Force Lt. Col. Yuri V. Lonchakov for Sharipov
JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi for Wakata
NASA astronaut Army Col. Timothy J. Creamer for Chamitoff.
Video of the prime crew members will air on NASA TV's Video File. For
NASA TV downlink, streaming video and scheduling information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For complete crew biographies, visit:

http://www.jsc.nasa.gov/Bios/astrobio.html

For more about upcoming space shuttle missions, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle

 

NASA STUDY FINDS WARMER FUTURE COULD BRING DROUGHTS

NASA scientists may have discovered how a warmer climate in the future
could increase droughts in certain parts of the world, including the
southwest United States.

The researchers compared historical records of the climate impact of
changes in the sun's output with model projections of how a warmer
climate driven by greenhouse gases would change rainfall patterns.
They found that a warmer future climate likely will produce droughts
in the same areas as those observed in ancient times, but potentially
with greater severity.

"These findings strongly suggest that greenhouse gases and long-term
changes in solar activity both can have major influences on climate
via similar processes," said Drew Shindell, NASA Goddard Institute
for Space Studies, New York. Shindell is lead author of a paper that
appeared in the Dec. 27, 2006, issue of the American Geophysical
Union's "Geophysical Research Letters."

"There is some evidence that rainfall patterns already may be
changing," Shindell added. "Much of the Mediterranean area, North
Africa and the Middle East rapidly are becoming drier. If the trend
continues as expected, the consequences may be severe in only a
couple of decades. These changes could pose significant water
resource challenges to large segments of the population."

Using the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies climate model,
researchers found that changes in solar output in the ancient past
increased surface warming and altered atmospheric moisture and
circulations. These changes likely led to the severe droughts seen in
paleoclimate records.

The same model showed that greenhouse-gas warming has similar effects
on the atmosphere, suggesting drier conditions may become more common
in the subtropics. Rainfall could decrease further in already
water-stressed regions such as the southwest United States, Mexico,
parts of North Africa, the Middle East, and Australia. Meanwhile,
precipitation may increase across the western Pacific, along much of
the equator and in parts of southeast Asia.

The computer model considers changes in the oceans, weather, and
chemistry of the atmosphere, like ozone concentrations, and
accurately reproduced the broad rainfall shifts toward regionally
drier or wetter conditions during the past several hundred years.
Sunspot and ice core data also link the historical rainfall shifts to
variations in the amount of energy released by the sun. Since the
size of solar changes is uncertain, the study focused on the location
and pattern of precipitation shifts, not their precise amount.

Increases in solar output break up oxygen molecules, raising ozone
concentrations in the upper atmosphere. This adds to upper
atmospheric heating that leads to shifts in circulations down to the
surface. In turn, surface temperatures warm, and the Earth's basic
rainfall patterns are enhanced. For instance, in wet regions such as
the tropics, precipitation usually increases, while dry areas become
more prone to drought since rainfall decreases and warmer
temperatures help remove the small amount of moisture in the soil.

"Precipitation is hard to predict because it is so highly variable,
but these results increase our confidence that continued warming will
be associated with large-scale changes in rainfall," said Shindell.

Researchers also considered numerous tree-ring, fire, and lake
sediment records from across the Americas, including Mexico, Peru,
and the Yucatan Peninsula. These data are reliable indicators of
historical climate and confirm a pronounced increase in drought
frequency in the southern United States, Mexico, and other
subtropical locations during periods of increased solar output in the
past 1,200 years. This long-term record of solar output is based on
chemical isotopes whose production is related to the sun's
brightness. Conversely, in parts of the tropics, ocean sediment data,
key indicators of precipitation changes, reflect increased rainfall.

According to the researchers, the same processes identified by this
new research very likely also affected past civilizations, such as
the Pueblo people of New Mexico and Arizona who abandoned cities in
the 1300s.

For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/home
 

SPACECRAFT SET TO REACH MILESTONE, REPORTS TECHNICAL GLITCHES WASHINGTON

- NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter spacecraft this month is set to surpass the record for the most science data returned by any Mars spacecraft. While continuing to produce data at record levels, engineers are examining why two instruments are intermittently not performing entirely as planned. All other spacecraft instruments are operating well and continue to return science data. Since beginning its primary science phase in November 2006, the orbiter has returned enough data to fill nearly 1,000 CD-ROMs. This ties the record for Mars data sent back between 1997 and 2006 by NASA's Mars Global Surveyor mission. In late November 2006 the spacecraft team operating the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment camera on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter noticed a significant increase in noise, such as bad pixels, in one of its 14 camera detector pairs. Another detector, that developed the same problem soon after launch, has worsened. Images from the spacecraft camera last month revealed the first signs of this problem in five other detectors. While the current impact on image quality is small, there is concern as to whether the problem will continue to worsen. In-flight data show that more warming of the camera's electronics before taking an image reduces or eliminates the problem. The imaging team aims to understand the root cause of the worsening over time and to determine the best operational procedures to maximize the long-term science benefits. The camera continues to make observations and is returning excellent images of the Martian surface. The second instrument concern aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is related to an instrument designed to routinely scan from the surface across the atmosphere above Mars' horizon. The Mars Climate Sounder maps the temperature, ice clouds and dust distributions in the atmosphere on each of nearly 13 orbits every day. In late December, the sounder appeared to skip steps occasionally, so that its field of view was slightly out of position. Following uplink of new scan tables to the instrument, the position errors stopped and the instrument operated nominally. In mid-January, the position errors reappeared. Although still intermittent, the errors became more frequent, so the instrument has been temporarily stowed while the science team investigates the problem. The rate of data return is expected to increase over the coming months as the relative motions of Earth and Mars in their orbits around the sun shrink the distance between the planets. By the conclusion of its first science phase in 2008, the mission is expected to have returned more than 30 terabits of science data, enough to fill more than 5,000 CD-ROMs. Observations will be used to evaluate potential landing sites for future missions and to increase our understanding of Mars and how planets change over time. The mission is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington. Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, Colo., is the prime contractor and built the spacecraft. Additional information about the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter is available on the Web at: http://www.nasa.gov/mro

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-07 HOUSTON - With all scheduled tasks accomplished, International Space Station Commander Mike Lopez-Alegria and Flight Engineer Sunita Williams ended a nearly seven hour spacewalk at 2:06 p.m. CST Thursday. It was the last in a series of three spacewalks in nine days from the Quest airlock. Major tasks of this spacewalk included removing and jettisoning two large shrouds and installing an attachment for cargo carriers. Lopez-Alegria and Williams moved from the airlock out to Crew Equipment Transfer Aid carts on the rails of the main truss. Pushing one cart with their equipment, including a foot restraint, they moved to the Port 3 truss segment. Their first job was to remove two thermal shrouds, one from each of two Rotary Joint Motor Controllers on P3. Next, they removed two large shrouds from P3 Bays 18 and 20. The shrouds, larger than king-size bed sheets, provide thermal shading. With the station in its present orientation, they are no longer needed and are being removed to avoid trapping heat. Lopez-Alegria jettisoned them toward the rear of the station. Afterward, the Unpressurized Cargo Carrier Assembly Attachment Systems on the upper face of the P3 truss was deployed. That was done in preparation for attachment of a cargo carrier during a future shuttle mission. While Lopez-Alegria finished work on the assembly attachment system, Williams moved to the end of the P5 truss to remove two launch locks in preparation for the relocation of the P6 truss. The final scheduled task of the spacewalk was connecting four cables of the Station to Shuttle Power Transfer System to Pressurized Mating Adapter-2 (PMA-2) at the forward end of the Destiny laboratory where shuttles dock. This will allow visiting shuttles to take power from the station to extend their missions. Work began on the system during the Jan. 31 spacewalk, and two of the cables were routed and connected to PMA-2 on the Feb. 4 spacewalk. The last four cables were connected to the PMA Thursday. The astronauts did complete one get-ahead task to photograph a suspect connector on the outboard end of PMA-2. It carries station shuttle communications when the shuttle is docked but hatches are closed. Communications have been intermittent during recent shuttle missions. Throughout the spacewalk, Chris Looper in Johnson Space Center's Mission Control advised Lopez-Alegria and Williams and monitored their tasks. Looper is the chief engineer for the Astronaut Office Spacewalk Branch. Approximately 3 hours, 50 minutes into his ninth spacewalk, Lopez-Alegria set a record for cumulative spacewalk time by a U.S. astronaut at 61 hours, 22 minutes. Jerry Ross previously held the title with 58 hours, 32-minutes accumulated during nine spacewalks. The three spacewalks from the Quest airlock in U.S. spacesuits and a Russian spacewalk on Feb. 22 are the most ever done by station crew members during such a short period. Starting from scratch, it takes crew members about 100 hours to prepare for a spacewalk. By doing the U.S. spacewalks just a few days apart, considerable crew time can be saved by not having to repeat some of the preparation. Thursday's spacewalk was the 80th for station assembly and maintenance. It was the 52nd from the station and the 32nd from Quest. It was the fourth for Williams, the most for any woman. During the Feb. 22 spacewalk, Lopez-Alegria and Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin will wear Russian Orlan suits to work on an antenna on the Progress 23 cargo ship docked at the aft port of the Zvezda service module. The antenna did not properly retract when that spacecraft docked in October. The spacewalkers will try to secure or remove the antenna to avoid any interference with the undocking of a Progress in April. The spacewalk will be the 10th for Lopez Alegria and will set a new record. For more about the crew's activities and station sighting opportunities, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station

NASA AWARDS SOFIA DEVELOPMENT, ENGINEERING TO L-3 COMMUNICATIONS

EDWARDS AFB, Calif. - NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center has awarded a contract to L-3 Communications Integrated Systems, L.P., of Waco, Texas, for continued developmental and engineering work on the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). The cost-plus-award-fee contract could be worth up to $26 million over a five-year period if all options are exercised. The contract takes effect Feb. 9, 2007, with a 23-month base period extending through Dec. 31, 2008. Three one-year option periods could extend the agreement from Jan. 1, 2009 through Dec. 31, 2011. The tasks that remain for completion of the SOFIA airborne observatory platform involve two major parts, the Airborne System and the Cavity Door Drive System. L-3 Communications will be responsible for completing development and testing of the Airborne System, including modification, fabrication, installation, integration, and verification of various systems to meet SOFIA mission requirements. In addition, L-3 is also tasked with providing engineering support and technical representation to NASA as necessary to support transition from development to operations. The SOFIA program includes a high-altitude airborne observatory consisting of a 2.5-meter (100 inch) infrared telescope mounted in a cavity in the rear fuselage of a highly modified Boeing 747SP jetliner. Scientific instruments mounted in the observatory will be capable of celestial observations ranging from visible light through the sub-millimeter far-infrared spectrum. SOFIA is being developed jointly by NASA and the Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft und Raumfahrt (German Aerospace Center). For more details on SOFIA and its mission o the Web, visit: www.sofia.usra.edu

NASA SOLICITS IDEAS FOR CONSTELLATION GROUND WORK NASA

 has issued a request for information soliciting ideas on ground processing services for its Constellation Program and the next generation of space vehicles. The request seeks input from industry to assist NASA in planning for the acquisition of ground processing, assembly, integration, test, launch and recovery services at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. These services will support the Orion crew exploration vehicle, the Ares I crew launch vehicle and the Ares V cargo launch vehicle beginning with the first Constellation Program flight tests and continuing with actual missions to the International Space Station and the moon. NASA hopes to issue a draft request for proposals in Spring 2008 and to award a contract in Summer 2009. The Constellation family of spacecraft is being developed by NASA's Exploration Systems Mission Directorate. For information about the Exploration Systems Mission Directorate and the Request for Information, visit: http://exploration.nasa.gov

NASA PRESENTS QUALITY AWARDS TO TELEDYNE AND BARRIOS WASHINGTON

 - NASA presented its highest honor for quality and technical performance, the George M. Low Award, to two companies committed to innovative management, process quality and customer service. The awards, containing a medallion alloyed with material flown to the moon on Apollo 11, were presented Tuesday at NASA's fourth annual Project Management Challenge Conference in Galveston, Texas. Teledyne Brown Engineering, nominated by NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., received the large business service award. Barrios Technologies, nominated by NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, received the small business service award. Three finalists also were acknowledged - Honeywell Technology Solutions Incorporated, Columbia, Md., Arcata Associates, Las Vegas, Nev., and Delaware North Companies Parks and Resorts, Kennedy Space Center, Fla. Senior managers and engineers from government and industry attend the Project Management Challenge Conference. The conference is a forum for NASA and its contractor partners to exchange ideas, success stories and lessons learned. It provides participants the opportunity to learn about quality management and improved communication practices to apply in their own organizations. Established in 1985, NASA's Excellence Award for Quality and Productivity recognizes those in the contractor community whose quality management practices can be a global benchmark for excellence. In 1990, the award was renamed in memory of George M. Low, an outstanding NASA leader who contributed greatly during his 27 year tenure and was deputy administrator from 1969-1976. Low was a leader in the early development of NASA's space and manned space flight programs. For more information about the George M. Low Award, visit: www.hq.nasa.gov/office/codeq/gml/ For more information about George M. Low, visit: http://history.nasa.gov/Biographies/low.html

STATEMENT REGARDING THE STATUS OF LISA NOWAK

The following is a statement from Michael Coats, director of NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, regarding the status of astronaut Lisa Nowak. "We are deeply saddened by this tragic event. The charges against Lisa Nowak are serious ones that must be decided by the judicial system. She is officially on 30-day leave and has been removed from flight status and all mission-related activities. We will continue to monitor developments in the case."

NASA MOON-IMPACTOR MISSION PASSES MAJOR REVIEW

WASHINGTON - NASA's drive to return astronauts to the moon and later
probe deeper into space achieved a key milestone recently when agency
officials approved critical elements of a moon impact mission
scheduled to launch in October 2008. NASA's unmanned Lunar Crater
Observation and Sensing Satellite, known as LCROSS, will strike the
moon near its south pole in January 2009. It will search for water
and other materials that astronauts could use at a future lunar
outpost.

Scott Horowitz, associate administrator of the agency's Exploration
Systems Mission Directorate, led a confirmation review panel that
recently approved the detailed plans, instrument suite, budget and
risk factor analysis for the satellite.

NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, Calif., manages the
mission. The mission is valued at $79 million, excluding launch
costs. The mission will help NASA gain a new foothold on the moon and
prepare for new journeys to Mars and beyond.

The confirmation review authorized continuation of the lunar impactor
project and set its cost and schedule. Another mission milestone, the
critical design review, is scheduled for late February. That review
will examine the detailed Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing
Satellite system design. After a successful critical design review,
the project team will assemble the spacecraft and its instruments.

"The Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite project represents
an efficient way of doing business by being cost capped, schedule
constrained and risk tolerant," said Daniel Andrews, project manager
at Ames for the lunar impactor mission.

The lunar impactor will share a rocket ride into space with a second
satellite, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. After the orbiter
separates from the Atlas V launch vehicle for its own mission, the
LCROSS will use the spent Centaur upper stage of the rocket as a
4,400-pound lunar impactor, targeting a permanently shadowed crater
near the lunar South Pole.

According to scientists, the Centaur's collision with the moon will
excavate about 220 tons of material from the lunar surface. The Lunar
Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite will observe the plume of
material with a suite of six instruments to look for water ice and
examine lunar soil. The satellite will fly through the plume, also
impacting the lunar surface. That second impact will be observed from
Earth.

The prime contractor for the satellite is Northrop Grumman Space
Technologies of Redondo Beach, Calif.

For information about the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing
Satellite on the Web, visit:

http://lcross.arc.nasa.gov
 

COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANSPORTATION CAPABILITIES AGREEMENTS SIGNED

On Wednesday, NASA agreed to cooperate with PlanetSpace Inc. of Chicago and Transformational Space Corp. (t/Space) of Reston, Va., to facilitate the commercialization of low-Earth orbit as they develop capabilities to transport goods and people to orbital destinations. The non-reimbursable Space Act agreements signed by NASA and the two companies involve no agency funding to the companies. The pacts establish milestones and objective criteria by which the companies can gauge their own progress, as part of the agency's Commercial Crew and Cargo Program. Under the agreements, NASA will share information that will help the companies understand projected requirements for space station crew and cargo transportation launch vehicles, spacecraft and NASA human rating criteria. PlanetSpace and t/Space will work to develop and demonstrate the vehicles, systems and operations needed to transport crews and cargo to and from a low-Earth orbit destination. NASA will acknowledge the companies' milestone accomplishments. "NASA is proud to reach agreements with two more private companies dedicating their own resources toward establishment of a robust commercial launch industry," said Scott Horowitz, NASA associate administrator for Exploration Systems. "By stimulating the growth of commercial space enterprise, NASA will free itself to focus on long-range exploration of the moon and Mars." "The importance of these agreements is that they demonstrate the willingness of entrepreneurs to invest their own resources with NASA's commitment to help develop a whole new sector of the commercial space industry," said Alan Lindenmoyer, manager of the Commercial Crew and Cargo Program Office at Johnson Space Center, Houston. The program administers NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services project. Its overarching goals are to stimulate commercial enterprises in space; facilitate U.S. private industry development of reliable, cost-effective access to low-Earth orbit, and to create a market environment in which commercial space transportation services are available to government and private customers. Last year, NASA signed funded agreements with Space Exploration Technologies of El Segundo, Calif., and Rocketplane Kistler of Oklahoma City. t/Space was a finalist in that competition. Once industry has demonstrated safe and reliable capabilities, NASA plans to enter the next phase of the Commercial Crew and Cargo Program and may purchase transportation services from commercial providers to support the International Space Station. For more information on NASA, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/home

NASA ANNOUNCES AERONAUTICS RESEARCH OPPORTUNITIES

WASHINGTON - NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate has
amended its NASA Research Announcement to solicit additional research
proposals. The "Research Opportunities in Aeronautics" announcement
solicits research in several new topic areas for the Intelligent
Flight Deck Technology Project, Subsonic Rotary Wing Project and the
Supersonics Project.

The long-term goal of the Intelligent Flight Deck Technology Project
is to advance knowledge by developing tools, methods, principles,
guidelines and technologies for revolutionary adaptive flight deck
systems that improve safety. This includes developing technologies
that mitigate operator-, automation- and environment-induced hazards
for future operational concepts.

The challenge of the Subsonic Rotary Wing Project is to develop
validated physics-based multidisciplinary design and analysis tools
for rotorcraft, integrated with technology development, enabling
rotorcraft with advanced capabilities to fly as designed for any
mission.

The Supersonics Project is a broad-based effort designed to develop
knowledge, capabilities and technologies that support all vehicles
that fly in the supersonic speed regime.

NASA plans to announce additional research topics in other project
areas in the near future. For updates, check NASA's Research
Opportunities Web site at:

http://nspires.nasaprs.com

NASA expects that educational institutions, nonprofit organizations
and industry engaged in foundational research will be the primary
award recipients for this announcement. Specific evaluation criteria,
deadlines and points of contact are available in the announcement.
For more information about NASA's Aeronautics Research Mission
Directorate, visit:

www.aeronautics.nasa.gov
 

ENGINEERS INVESTIGATE ISSUE ON ONE OF HUBBLE'S SCIENCE INSTRUMENTS

GREENBELT, Md. - NASA engineers are examining a problem related to the
Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) aboard the agency's Hubble Space
Telescope.

On Jan. 27, the observatory entered a protective "safemode" condition
at 7:34 a.m. EST. An initial investigation indicates the camera has
stopped functioning, and the input power feed to its Side B
electronics package has failed.

The instrument had been operating on its redundant electronics since
June 30, 2006, when NASA engineers transitioned from the primary,
Side A, electronics package due to a malfunction. Engineers currently
are assessing the option to return ACS science operations to the
primary electronics so that observations could resume in a reduced
mode.

Hubble was recovered from safemode around 2 a.m. EST on Jan. 28, and
science observations will resume this week using the remaining Hubble
instruments: Wide Field Planetary Camera 2, Near Infrared Camera
Multi-Object Spectrograph, and the Fine Guidance Sensors.

In November 2006, the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore
selected a set of backup non-ACS science programs for use in case of
a future ACS anomaly. These programs now will be inserted into the
science schedule to maintain a highly productive observing program.

An Anomaly Review Board was appointed on Jan. 29, to investigate the
ACS anomaly. The board will perform a thorough investigation and
assessment to decide the best course of action. The board is
scheduled to present their findings and recommendations by March 2.

"It is too early to know what influences the ACS anomaly may have on
Hubble Space Telescope Servicing Mission-4 planning" said Preston
Burch, associate director/program manager for the Hubble Space
Telescope. "It is important that the review board conduct a thorough
investigation that will allow us to determine if there are any
changes needed in the new instruments that will be installed on the
upcoming servicing mission so that we can be sure of maximizing the
telescope's scientific output. We are continuing to make excellent
progress in our preparations for the servicing mission, which is
presently targeted to fly in September 2008."

The Advanced Camera for Surveys is a third-generation instrument
consisting of three electronic cameras, filters and dispersers that
detect light from the ultraviolet to the near infrared. The
instrument was installed during a March 2002, servicing mission. It
was developed jointly by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Md., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore; Ball Aerospace,
Boulder, Colo.; and the Space Telescope Science Institute.

The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation
between NASA and the European Space Agency. The Space Telescope
Science Institute conducts Hubble science operations. The Institute
is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research
in Astronomy, Inc., Washington.

For information about the Hubble Space Telescope, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/hubble
 

NASA'S SPACE STATION ASTRONAUTS TO "SWEAR IN" NAVY SAILORS

NASA astronauts on the International Space Station will link up
Monday, Jan. 29, with sailors on the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower for a
special re-enlistment ceremony. The Eisenhower is the Navy's flagship
for the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group,

The special call is set for 4:20 a.m. CST. It can be seen on NASA
Television at 10:30 a.m. Aboard the space station, Expedition 14
Commander and Naval Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria, assisted by his
Flight Engineer and fellow Naval Commander Suni Williams, will
conduct the long-distance re-enlistment of 16 sailors. At the time,
the station should be flying about 220 miles above the southern
Indian Ocean.

Lopez-Alegria has been in orbit since September 2006 and will return
to Earth in April. Williams has been aboard the orbiting laboratory
since December 2006 and will return to Earth in July. Both are
graduates of the U.S. Naval Academy and Navy pilots.
 

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-04

HOUSTON - This week, the crew aboard the International Space Station
prepared for an unprecedented series of spacewalks. NASA astronauts
Mike Lopez-Alegria and Suni Williams are scheduled to begin a
6.5-hour spacewalk from the station around 9 a.m. CST on Wednesday,
Jan. 31. It will be the first of a record four spacewalks planned
during the next month.

Lopez-Alegria and Williams will conduct other spacewalks on Feb. 4, 8
and 22. The first three spacewalks will originate from the station's
Quest airlock and the astronauts will use U.S. spacesuits.
Lopez-Alegria and cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin will use Russian
spacesuits for the last spacewalk and will exit the station from the
Pirs airlock.

The three U.S. spacewalks will rearrange the station's cooling system,
bringing online new portions of the system that were activated during
a shuttle mission in December 2006. The Russian spacewalk will free a
stuck antenna on the ISS Progress 23 cargo craft docked to the aft
end of the station, ensuring that craft can safely undock in April.

The crew began the week unloading some of the more than 2.5 tons of
food, fuel and supplies that were delivered to the station on Jan. 19
by the ISS Progress 24 cargo craft, which included fresh produce,
gifts from home, new clothing, spare parts, oxygen and water.

The crew's attention quickly turned to preparations for the upcoming
spacewalks. On Monday, the crew began working with the U.S.
spacesuits. Batteries for the suits were charged, and the suit
cooling systems were cleaned.

On Tuesday, Lopez-Alegria and Williams trained using an onboard,
laptop computer-based simulation. The training refreshed their skills
operating the Simplified Aid for Extravehicular Activity Rescue, or
SAFER, jetpack that is worn on spacesuits. The backpack allows
spacewalkers to fly back to the station in the event they become
separated from the complex.

On Thursday, ground controllers in Houston commanded the station's
robotic arm to maneuver into the position it will occupy for the
start of the spacewalk. Aboard the station, the crew reviewed the
plans for the first spacewalk.

Lopez-Alegria and Williams continued checks of their spacesuits and
checks of the SAFER backpacks Friday. The SAFER backpacks are
propelled by compressed nitrogen gas, and, during the checkout, the
harmless gas was released, depleting the nitrogen in one unit below
the usable quantity. Two other usable SAFER backpacks remain onboard,
however, and the loss of the third unit does not affect plans for the
upcoming spacewalks.

The crew took time during their work on Monday to speak with
television host Martha Stewart. Crew members also took time to field
questions by amateur radio from two schools, one in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and another in Winnebago, Neb.

For more about the crew's activities and station sighting
opportunities, visit:
 

INCORPORATING SPACE INTO OUR ECONOMIC SPHERE OF INFLUENCE

Good evening. Thank you for inviting me to speak tonight. It is not
often that an aerospace engineer is invited to speak to an economic
forum. However, I took a business degree along with my engineering
and physics coursework, and I appreciate the economic impact that
space has on our society, especially practical applications like
communications, navigation, weather and remote sensing satellites as
well as the economic, national security and scientific benefits. And
this says nothing of the less-quantifiable benefits of intellectual
inspiration.

Some of us gathered here tonight grew up during the Apollo era of the
1960s, NASA's apotheosis. We watched science fiction movies and
television shows that made us believe that we -- all of us and not
simply a few astronauts -- could become space travelers. Arthur C.
Clarke's and Stanley Kubrik's masterpiece of science fiction "2001: A
Space Odyssey" projected onto the screen of our collective human
consciousness a future for us where, by now, hundreds of people would
be living and working in space stations orbiting the Earth and
outposts would exist on our moon. We would be journeying to other
planets in our solar system, just as our European forbears came to
America looking for new beginnings. This space age vision of our
future proved illusory for our generation for two fundamental
reasons: the limitations of our economic resources and the
limitations of technology. Neil Armstrong's "giant leap for mankind"
was not a journey that could be sustained without a more concerted
investment of time, resources and energy than followed his seminal
achievement on July 20, 1969.

But I believe that there are economic and technological reasons why we
can now begin to afford and sustain this Vision for Space Exploration
in a fashion where we "go-as-we-pay," and why the nations of the
world making such investments of time, resources and energy will find
that the benefits far outweigh the costs and risks involved. We have
the technology and economic wherewithal to incorporate the benefits
of space into our sphere of influence -- to exploit the vantage point
of space and the space environment, and the natural resources of the
moon, Mars, and near-Earth asteroids. Space exploration is not simply
this century's greatest adventure; it is an imperative that, if not
pursued with some concerted effort, will have catastrophic
consequences for our society. I realize this is a bold statement, so
allow me to explain.

On the day before he was assassinated in Dallas, President John F.
Kennedy was in San Antonio, where he spoke about space exploration.
He invoked Irish writer Frank O'Connor, who told the story of "how,
as a boy, he and his friends would make their way across the
countryside, and when they came to an orchard wall that seemed too
high, and too doubtful to try, and too difficult to permit their
voyage to continue, they took off their hats and tossed them over the
wall -- and then they had no choice but to follow them." The United States,

the European Union, Russia, China, Japan, India, and others
have tossed our caps over the wall of space exploration.

In that same speech, President Kennedy recited several technical
advances from NASA's space program, explaining that "our effort in
space is not, as some have suggested, a competitor for the natural
resources that we need to develop the Earth. It is a working partner
and a co-producer of these resources." And he finished this speech
with the recognition of the costs and risks involved with space
exploration: "We will climb this wall with safety and with speed --
and we shall then explore the wonders on the other side."

Even an emotionless engineer can be moved by President Kennedy's
poetic framing of the issues of space exploration, but since this is
an economic forum, let me now turn to the "dismal science." When
President Kennedy spoke those words in 1963, the Gross Domestic
Product of the United States was approximately $2.8 trillion, in
FY2000 dollars. In 2005 it was approximately $11 trillion in those
same FY2000 dollars -- four times larger. In 1963, the U.S. federal
government spent approximately $600 billion, again in FY2000 dollars,
with NASA's allocation representing 2.3 percent of that amount. At
the spending peak of the Apollo program, NASA represented 4.4 percent
of the federal budget. Today, with a U.S. federal budget of almost
$2.5 trillion, NASA's budget represents about 0.6 percent of that.

Clearly our economy has grown, our society has changed, and our
priorities for government spending have changed since 1963. Thus, in
the latter half of the 1960s and early 1970s, our nation's leadership
decided that we should not sustain such a high percentage of
investment in the space program. In these years, the priorities of
the U.S. federal budget changed to accommodate the escalating costs
of the war in Vietnam, defense spending for the Cold War, and Great
Society programs. Today, the costs of the Global War on Terrorism,
Hurricane Katrina recovery, Social Security, and Medicare/Medicaid
dominate our federal government spending. The costs of our nation's
entitlement programs alone are projected to double in the next 10
years, from more than $1 trillion per year today to more than $2
trillion per year, as the baby boomers like me begin to retire. By
comparison, NASA's budget of $16.2 billion for this year is somewhere
in the realm of what engineers call rounding error, at 0.6 percent of
all federal spending.

Because of the magnitude of these changes over the last four decades,
it is important to view our nation's investment in our civil space
and aeronautics research program from this larger economic
perspective, because some critics have questioned the value
proposition of even the current investment in NASA. I believe that we
must recognize that the development of space is a strategic
capability for our nations, and that we must bring the solar system
into our economic sphere of influence. And equally, I believe that
NASA must leverage the great economic engine of our nation and world.
Thus, the companies and countries that many of you represent can take
advantage of the trails we plan to blaze as we explore space, just as
we leverage the capabilities you create.

As a U.S. federal agency, NASA expects only inflationary growth in our
annual budget. Thus, we have adopted a "go-as-we-pay" approach for
space exploration, science missions and aeronautics research. Thus,
the primary pacing item for new ventures is our nation's ability to
afford such capabilities.

Over the next three years, our highest priority is to complete
assembly of the International Space Station and honor our agreements
to our Russian, European, Japanese and Canadian partners in this
venture. It will not be easy. The International Space Station is the
world's greatest engineering project, akin to such feats as the Great

Wall of China, the pyramids of Egypt, the Panama and Suez canals, or
the sea walls of Venice. Friends of mine who worked on the Apollo
program have conveyed to me their belief that the construction of the
International Space Station is just as tough a job.

There are many critics of this space station, just as there were
critics of President Kennedy who called the Apollo program a
"moondoggle." But I believe that the greatest achievement of the
International Space Station partnership is the partnership itself,
and that's a tough thing to criticize. For over six years, astronauts
and cosmonauts have been living and working together onboard the
space station. For the United States, the station is a national
laboratory in space, where we will conduct research to make future
exploration to other planets in our solar system possible. I hope
this partnership will reap even greater dividends as we explore space
together over many future generations. The unifying vision that
forged this partnership during the 1990s, prompted by the
Gore-Chernomyrdin Commission, is what we endeavor to carry forward
today.

Our partnership has endured some hardships along the way, not least of
which was the Columbia accident. I hope and believe that those
hardships have built stronger bonds between us.

With the proper goals in mind, I believe the benefits of space
exploration far outweigh the risks. Among the most practical of these
is our work with hurricane-monitoring satellites, aircraft and
sensors that allow meteorologists to track such storms and predict
their severity and impact. Many people today do not even realize that
their weather forecasts rely on information from space assets.

Broader misconceptions exist. NASA spinoff technologies were never
Tang, Teflon or space pens. But while we actually can cite tens of
thousands of legitimate technology spinoffs, including medical
devices, fuel cells and batteries and even cordless tools, I would
like to discuss a more seminal point. I want people to realize the
key areas where NASA's space endeavors have created entirely new
industrial capabilities that improve our fundamental way of life.

For example, NASA is one of the major consumers of liquid hydrogen to
fuel our space shuttle and other rocket engines. Liquid hydrogen is
also used in the manufacturing of metals, glass, electronics and even
foods. When you hear the term "hydrogenated fats" applied to baked
goods like pastries and bread, it means that liquid hydrogen was one
of the ingredients. NASA is such a large consumer of liquid hydrogen
that after Hurricane Katrina, we returned several hundred thousand
gallons to the nation's reserve and delayed several space shuttle
rocket engine tests to alleviate a national shortage when our
nation's liquid hydrogen production facilities and supply lines were
disrupted. Likewise, we are a major consumer of liquid oxygen. Our
huge demand market for these propellants sparked fundmental
improvements in the production and handling of these volatile
substances. Today, the ready availability of liquid oxygen allows
firefighters, emergency response teams and nursing homes to carry on
their backs or in suitcases portable, hand-carried oxygen tanks. In
the 1960s, only select hospitals could supply oxygen, in hazardous
oxygen tents.

I am sure that many of you would agree with me that the greatest
revolution in our productivity and way of life has been the
development of the personal computer, internet and various handheld
communication devices. Thirty-five years ago, engineers like me used
three pieces of wood and a piece of plastic that moved -- the slide
rule -- to make calculations. Thirty years ago, 1,000 transistors
could fit on a silicon chip; today, it's 100 million. The cost of
such chips has dropped by a factor of 100,000. Few people know that
the development of the first microprocessors was born of a
competition between Fairchild and Intel in the 1960s, to build
components small enough to fit in NASA spacecraft. This
straightforward NASA technical requirement spawned a whole new
industry that grew in ways few, except perhaps Gordon Moore, could
predict. Necessity is the mother of invention, and I believe that we
are at our most creative when we embark on bold ventures like the
space program.

So, with the economic growth and technology development we have seen
since the 1960s, I believe that we are now entering a Renaissance
period of space exploration where we can realize the vision that
eluded us earlier. And as in the Renaissance, wealthy individuals
will play a role in advancing the work of our architects, engineers
and technicians. These will be entrepreneurs who have made their
wealth in other endeavors -- Jeff Bezos from Amazon, Bob Bigelow from
Budget Suites, Richard Branson from Virgin and Elon Musk of Paypal
fame are examples. These gentlemen and others have put their personal
time, resources and energy behind the notion that many more people
can have personal experience in space than do so today. It is one
thing to view pictures of Earth from the vantage point of space, even
on an IMAX screen, but it is another thing entirely to see it with
one's own eyes. Many friends of mine have spoken of the epiphany they
experienced from this.

But let me be clear. NASA's job is not to sponsor space travel for
private citizens. That is for private industry. My hope is the
reverse; that when the public can purchase rides into space, NASA can
leverage this capability. Likewise, I hope that one day NASA can
leverage the expertise of companies not unlike FedEx or UPS today, to
meet our cargo needs for the space station and future lunar outposts.
And one day, maybe, astronauts onboard our Orion crew exploration
vehicle on their way to the moon and Mars can top off on liquid
hydrogen from commercially available orbiting fuel stations.

In the process of building these new space capabilities, these
entrepreneurs, along with NASA and other companies, are hiring more
aerospace engineers. I believe that a key measure of a society's
economic growth is the extent to which we are educating a technically
literate people who can build the infrastructure to advance that
society. It is deeply troubling to me when education statistics for
the United States indicate there are more bachelor's degrees in
psychology being awarded than engineering degrees. I am sure that
even the economics majors here can appreciate my concern!

Again, NASA hopes to leverage, to the maximum extent possible, the
capabilities that space entrepreneurs hope to create. A few years
ago, when I was in the private sector working at InQTel, I helped
fund a small software company seeking a better approach to
visualizing satellite imagery. Over the years, that company grew into
the backbone for Google Earth. Now, we hope to "spin-in" that
capability to visualize imagery from other planets in our solar
system, like the moon and Mars, using data from various NASA
satellites and the Mars rovers. By invoking such commercial
capabilities, NASA can leverage the funding of other investors to our
mutual benefit.

In conclusion, I would like to leave you with a final thought as to
what might happen if we do not explore space, if we do not follow the
cap we tossed over the wall in the 1960s. Last month in the journal
Science, researchers examining the primordial material returned by
NASA's Stardust space probe found that some of that material could
not have come from the Kuiper Belt in the outer reaches of our solar
system, but instead could only have come from our sun's core. Some of
that material was even older than our own sun. The history of life on
Earth is the history of extinction events, with evidence for some
five major such events in the history of the Earth. The last of these
occurred approximately 65 million years ago, when the dinosaurs that
dominated the Earth for over 160 million years suffered a
catastrophic extinction. It is believed that this event was caused by
a giant asteroid which struck Earth in the Gulf of Mexico, triggering
tsunamis, tectonic shifts and radically changing Earth's climate.

The brief history of humans is next to nothing compared to the history
of other life on Earth, and even less so compared to the age of our
solar system or of the universe. Our species hasn't been around long
enough to have experienced a cataclysmic extinction event. But they
will occur, whether we are ready for them or not.

In the end, space exploration is fundamentally about the survival of
the species, about ensuring better odds for our survival through the
promulgation of the human species. But as we do it, we will also
ensure the prosperity of our species in the economic sense, in a
thousand ways. Some of these we can foresee, and some we cannot. Who
could claim that he or she would have envisioned the Boeing 777,
after seeing the first Wright Flyer? And yet one followed the other
in the blink of an historical eye.

For this and many other economic and scientific reasons, we must
explore what is on the other side of that wall, walk in the
footprints of Neil Armstrong, and make that next giant leap for
mankind.

Thank you.
 

NASA AND WOODS HOLE LINKUP CONNECTS SPACE AND SEA EXPLORERS

Two extreme explorers will connect in a unique call Friday, Jan. 26,
linking the depths of the ocean with the heights of Earth orbit. NASA
and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Mass., will host the
ultra-long distance call between International Space Station
astronaut Sunita "Suni" Williams and marine biologist Tim Shank in
the Alvin research submersible.

The call will take place at 1:45 p.m. CST, and will be broadcast
tape-delayed on NASA Television between 2 p.m. to 2:45 p.m.,
immediately following the conclusion of a station status media
briefing from NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston. Williams,
orbiting 220 miles overhead, and Shank, conducting research two miles
undersea in the Alvin submersible, will compare notes on science and
exploration. Additionally, they will field questions submitted by
students and educators.

Williams, a Massachusetts native and commander in the U.S. Navy,
served as a diver and helicopter pilot prior to being selected as an
astronaut. Williams was a member of a NASA crew in 2002 that lived
underwater for nine days in the Aquarius habitat off the Florida
coast. She boarded the space station on Dec. 11, 2006, as a flight
engineer for the Expedition 14 crew, joining Commander Michael
Lopez-Alegria and fellow Flight Engineer Mikhail Tyurin. Williams
will spend six months on the complex.

Shank, a marine biologist in the Woods Hole's Department of Biology,
is currently conducting research diving in the Alvin at the
hydrothermal vent field on the East Pacific Rise. He is leading a
National Science Foundation-funded research expedition as part of the
RIDGE2000 program. Alvin is owned by the Navy and operated by Woods
Hole as a part of the National Deep Submergence Facility.
 

NASA CREATES MICROSCOPIC TECHNOLOGY FOR WEBB SPACE TELESCOPE

GREENBELT, Md. - NASA engineers and scientists building the James Webb
Space Telescope have created a new telescope technology called
"microshutters." Microshutters are tiny doorways the width of a few
hairs that will allow the telescope to view the most distant stars
and galaxies humans have ever seen.

The microshutters will enable scientists to mask unwanted light from
foreground objects so the telescope can focus on the faint light of
the first stars and galaxies that formed in the universe. Only the
Webb Telescope has this technology. The Webb Telescope will launch in
the next decade.

In December 2006, the microshutters passed crucial environmental
testing to demonstrate that they can withstand the rigors of
launching and placement in deep space. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., designed, tested and built the instrument
technology. The microshutters will work in conjunction with the
telescope's Near Infrared Spectrograph that is being built by the
European Space Agency.

"To build a telescope that can peer farther than the Hubble Space
Telescope can, we needed brand new technology," said Murzy Jhabvala,
chief engineer of Goddard's Instrument Technology and Systems
Division. "We've worked on this design for more than six years,
opening and closing the tiny shutters tens of thousands of times to
perfect the technology."

Each of the 62,000 shutters measures 100 by 200 microns, or roughly
the width of three to six human hairs. The shutters are arranged in
four identical grids that have a layout of 171 rows by 365 columns.
These shutter grids are in front of an eight million-pixel infrared
detector that records the light passing through the open shutters.
The detector itself represents a technology breakthrough.

Astronomers using ground-based telescopes first take a picture of the
sky and map all the objects in which they are interested. They then
create a mask resembling a sieve to place on the telescope so that
only the light from areas of interest can reach the telescope's
detectors.

In space, the Webb Telescope will have a wide field of view, and its
deep, long observation of the sky will contain millions of light
sources. Microshutters allow scientists to remotely and
systematically block out light that they do not want, allowing the
large-format detector to measure infrared spectra optimally.
Previously, masks of space telescopes only covered large regions of a
field of view at any one time.

"The microshutters provide a conduit for faint light to reach the
telescope detectors with very little loss," said Harvey Moseley, the
Microshutter Principal Investigator at Goddard. "The shutters allow
us to perform spectroscopy on up to 100 targets simultaneously. We
will be able to see deeper in less time."

Each shutter grid array is etched from a single piece of silicon,
leaving a sculpture of cavities and doorframes with microscopic
hinges and moving doors. The tiny shutters are laced with magnetic
cobalt-iron strips.

A passing magnet will open all the doors, pulling them down into the
cavity. While the doors are opened, engineers can apply a combination
of voltages to keep the selected microshutters open. The remainder
close when the magnet moves away.

The microshutters must perform at a temperature of minus 388 degrees
Fahrenheit (40 Kelvin, -233 degrees Celsius), which is the
temperature of the Near Infrared Spectrograph.

The microshutters are needed for observing distant, faint sources.
Hubble's Ultra-Deep Field provides the deepest view of the universe,
an image containing tens of thousands of light sources. Some of these
light sources are relatively close and some are from an era just
after galaxies and stars formed. To go deeper, scientists need to
mask the brighter, closer sources and focus only on the most distant.
The same microshutter technology also will efficiently reveal faint
features in relatively nearby star fields, where scientists will
analyze multiple sources at once.

"The microshutters are a remarkable engineering feat that will have
applications both in space and on the ground, even outside the realm
of astronomy in biotechnology, medicine and communications," said
Moseley.

For diagrams and images of the microshutters, visit:
 

NASA SPACECRAFT EN ROUTE TO PLUTO PREPARES FOR JUPITER ENCOUNTER

WASHINGTON - NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is on the doorstep of the
solar system's largest planet. The spacecraft will study and swing
past Jupiter, increasing speed on its voyage toward Pluto, the Kuiper
Belt and beyond.

The fastest spacecraft ever launched, New Horizons will make its
closest pass to Jupiter on Feb. 28, 2007. Jupiter's gravity will
accelerate New Horizons away from the sun by an additional 9,000
miles per hour, pushing it past 52,000 mph and hurling it toward a
pass through the Pluto system in July 2015.

"Our highest priority is to get the spacecraft safely through the
gravity assist and on its way to Pluto," says New Horizons Principal
Investigator Alan Stern, of the Southwest Research Institute,
Boulder, Colo. "We also have an incredible opportunity to conduct a
real-world encounter stress test to wring out our procedures and
techniques, and to collect some valuable science data."

The New Horizons mission team will use the flyby to put the probe's
systems and seven science instruments through the paces of more than
700 observations of Jupiter and its four largest moons. The planned
observations from January through June include scans of Jupiter's
turbulent, stormy atmosphere; a detailed survey of its ring system;
and a detailed study of Jupiter's moons.

The spacecraft also will take the first-ever trip down the long "tail"
of Jupiter's magnetosphere, a wide stream of charged particles that
extends tens of millions of miles beyond the planet, and the first
close-up look at the "Little Red Spot," a nascent storm south of
Jupiter's famous Great Red Spot.

Much of the data from the Jupiter flyby will not be sent back to Earth
until after the spacecraft's closest approach to the planet. New
Horizons' main priority during the Jupiter close approach phase is to
observe the planet and store data on its recorders before orienting
its main antenna to transmit information home beginning in early
March.

"Since launch, New Horizons will reach Jupiter faster than any of
NASA's previous spacecraft and begin a year of extraordinary
planetary science to complement future exploration activities," says
Jim Green acting director, Planetary Science Division, NASA
headquarters, Washington.

New Horizons has undergone a full range of system and instrument
checkouts, instrument calibrations, flight software enhancements, and
three propulsive maneuvers to adjust its trajectory.

After an eight-year cruise from Jupiter across the expanse of the
outer solar system, New Horizons will conduct a five-month-long study
of Pluto and its three moons in 2015. Scientific research will
include studying the global geology, mapping surface compositions and
temperatures, and examining Pluto's atmospheric composition and
structure. A potential extended mission would conduct similar studies
of one or more smaller worlds in the Kuiper Belt, the region of
ancient, rocky, icy planetary building blocks far beyond Neptune's
orbit.

New Horizons is the first mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program of
medium-class spacecraft exploration projects. The Applied Physics
Laboratory, Laurel, Md., manages the mission for NASA's Science
Mission Directorate, Washington. The mission team also includes
NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.; NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.; the U.S. Department of
Energy, Washington; Southwest Research Institute, Boulder, Colo.; and
several corporations and university partners.

For more information on New Horizons on the Internet, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/newhorizons



 

THEMIS MISSION TO PROVIDE NEW UNDERSTANDING OF SUBSTORM LIFE CYCLE

WASHINGTON - NASA's THEMIS, the Time History of Events and Macroscale
Interactions during Substorms mission, is set to venture into space
and help resolve the mystery of what triggers geomagnetic substorms.
For the first time, scientists will get a comprehensive view of the
substorm phenomena from Earth's upper atmosphere to far into space,
pinpointing where and when each substorm begins.

Substorms are atmospheric events visible in the northern hemisphere as
a sudden brightening of the Northern Lights. THEMIS also will provide
clues about the role of substorms in severe space weather and
identify where and when substorms begin.

THEMIS' five identical probes will be the largest number of scientific
satellites NASA has ever launched into orbit aboard a single rocket.
This unique constellation of satellites will line up along the
sun-Earth line, collect coordinated measurements every four days, and
be ready to observe more than 30 substorms during the two-year
mission. Data collected from the five probes will pinpoint where and
when substorms begin, a feat impossible with any previous
single-satellite mission.

"For more than 30 years the source location of these explosive energy
releases has been sought after with great fervor. It is a question
almost as old as space physics itself," said Vassilis Angelopoulos,
THEMIS' principal investigator at the University of California,
Berkeley's Space Sciences Laboratory. "A substorm starts from a
single point in space and progresses past the moon's orbit within
minutes, so a single satellite cannot identify the substorm origin.
The five-satellite constellation of THEMIS will finally identify the
trigger location and the physics involved in substorms."

Researchers have long known that the sudden brightening of the Aurora
Borealis, or Northern Lights, is generated when showers of high-speed
electrons descend along the magnetic field lines to strike Earth's
upper atmosphere. These lights are the visible manifestations of
invisible energy releases, called geomagnetic substorms.

Scientists want to learn when, where, and why solar wind energy stored
within Earth's magnetosphere is explosively released to accelerate
electrons into the Earth's upper atmosphere. To find the answer, the
five THEMIS probes will magnetically map the North American continent
every four days for approximately 15 hours. At the same time, 20
ground stations in Alaska and Canada with automated, all-sky cameras
and magnetometers will document the auroras and space currents from
Earth.

"Many of NASA's future science missions will be constellations of
satellites that will provide simultaneous, three-dimensional views of
nature. THEMIS will give us a deeper understanding of the impact of
the solar wind on the Earth and provide vital data for our manned
explorations as they travel to the moon and beyond," said Frank Snow,
THEMIS project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Md.

THEMIS is set to launch in mid-February aboard a Delta II rocket from
Launch Complex 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. For
launch information, news media should contact George Diller, Kennedy Space Center, Fla., public affairs, at 321-867-2468 or Robert
Sanders, University of California, Berkeley, at 510-643-6998.

THEMIS is the fifth medium-class mission under NASA's Explorer
Program, which provides frequent flight opportunities for world-class
scientific investigations from space within the heliophysics and
astrophysics science areas.

The Explorer Program Office at Goddard manages the NASA-funded THEMIS
mission. The University of California, Berkeley's Space Sciences
Laboratory is responsible for project management, science and
ground-based instruments, mission integration and post launch
operations. Swales Aerospace, Beltsville, Md., built the THEMIS
probes.
 

COLORADO NATIVE FLYING ON NEXT SHUTTLE

HOUSTON - NASA astronaut and Steamboat Springs, Colo., native Steven
R. Swanson, a crew member of the Space Shuttle Atlantis' STS-117
mission, is available for interviews by satellite Jan. 17. The
STS-117 mission is targeted for launch in March.

This will be the first space flight for Swanson. He will conduct one
spacewalk and operate the shuttle and International Space Station
robotic arms during the mission. Atlantis' crew will deliver a third
set of huge solar arrays, batteries and associated electronics to the
station, setting the stage for additional international laboratories
to be added later this year.


Swanson was born in Syracuse, New York and raised in Steamboat
Springs. He graduated from Steamboat Springs High School, received a
bachelor's from the University of Colorado, a master's from Florida
Atlantic University and a doctorate from Texas A&M University.

For NASA TV downlink, schedule and streaming video information, visit:


http://www.nasa.gov/ntv
For more information about STS-117 and its entire crew, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle
 

INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION STATUS REPORT: SS07-02

HOUSTON - After a three-day holiday to celebrate the Russian Orthodox
Christmas, astronauts on the International Space Station spent the
week packing trash into the Progress 22 cargo craft and unpacking
items delivered by Progress 23 as they prepared for the arrival of
new supplies.

Packed with discarded items no longer needed on the outpost, Progress
22 will undock from the station's Pirs Docking Compartment next
Tuesday at 5:28 p.m. CST. Its engines will be fired three hours later
to send it back into the atmosphere, where it will burn up.

The station crew, Commander Michael Lopez-Alegria and Flight Engineers
Mikhail Tyurin and Suni Williams, geared up for the docking of ISS
Progress 24 at Pirs, which is slated for Friday, Jan. 19 at 9 p.m.
CST. Progress 24 will launch on Wednesday, Jan. 17, from the Baikonur
Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 8:12 p.m. CST.

The new Russian cargo ship will bring about 2.5 tons of food, fuel,
oxygen and supplies to the complex, including clothing and spacewalk
hardware for the next resident crew that will arrive at the station
in April.

In preparation for the undocking of Progress 22, Tyurin disassembled
and removed the docking mechanism in the hatchway between the cargo
craft and the docking compartment. The mechanism will be returned to
Earth on Space Shuttle Atlantis' mission to the complex in March.

During the week, the crew worked for several hours in the Zvezda
Service Module on a major systems replacement task, trained on the
Robotics Onboard Trainer and relocated it to a new rack in the
Destiny lab. They also repaired and tested a Russian exercise
machine.

Tyurin also performed maintenance on a Russian ergometer and removed
the volatile organic analyzer from the Crew Health Care Systems rack
to prepare it for routine maintenance. The analyzer is used to
identify and quantify a targeted list of organic compounds in the
station atmosphere. He spent time on two Russian experiments, one
that studies locomotor system disorders in weightlessness and one
that studies the effect of spaceflight on the growth and development
of plants.

Also during the week, Lopez-Alegria completed taking samples and
documented his daily diet for his mid-mission session on a renal
stone experiment. This experiment examines the risk of renal, or
kidney stone formation in crew members pre-flight, in-flight and
post-flight. In this study, potassium citrate tablets are
administered to astronauts, and multiple urine samples are taken
before, during and after spaceflight to evaluate the risk of renal
stone formation. Lopez-Alegria is the final subject to complete the
experiment.

Lopez-Alegria and Williams took the WinSCAT, a cognitive test battery
used during space missions. The WinSCAT helps to assess the effects
on performance of behavioral stress induced by workload demands.

The astronauts also tested emergency light power supplies onboard. In
addition, Williams swapped power supplies on one of the station's
laptop computers, completed some modifications on the umbilical
interface assembly in the Quest airlock, and configured and trained
on the station's Robotic Onboard Trainer. She also worked in the
Minus Eighty Degree Laboratory Freezer for the International Space
Station, or MELFI, replacing the desiccant, a material that absorbs
moisture, in Dewar 4, and checked to make sure the nitrogen pressure
was within acceptable range.

For more about the crew's activities and station sighting
opportunities, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station
 

NASA has formed an internal review board to look more
indepth into why NASA's Mars Global Surveyor went silent in November
2006 and recommend any processes or procedures that could increase
safety for other spacecraft.

Mars Global Surveyor launched in 1996 on a mission designed to study
Mars from orbit for two years. It accomplished many important
discoveries during nine years in orbit. On Nov. 2, the spacecraft
transmitted information that one of its arrays was not pivoting as
commanded. Loss of signal from the orbiter began on the following
orbit.

Mars Global Surveyor has operated longer at Mars than any other
spacecraft in history and for more than four times as long as the
prime mission originally planned.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages Mars Global
Surveyor for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, developed and operates the
spacecraft.

Information about the mission is available on the Internet at:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mgs/index.html

PANEL WILL STUDY MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR EVENTS

WASHINGTON - NASA has formed an internal review board to look more
indepth into why NASA's Mars Global Surveyor went silent in November
2006 and recommend any processes or procedures that could increase
safety for other spacecraft.

Mars Global Surveyor launched in 1996 on a mission designed to study
Mars from orbit for two years. It accomplished many important
discoveries during nine years in orbit. On Nov. 2, the spacecraft
transmitted information that one of its arrays was not pivoting as
commanded. Loss of signal from the orbiter began on the following
orbit.

Mars Global Surveyor has operated longer at Mars than any other
spacecraft in history and for more than four times as long as the
prime mission originally planned.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., manages Mars Global
Surveyor for the NASA Science Mission Directorate, Washington.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, developed and operates the
spacecraft.

Information about the mission is available on the Internet at:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/mgs/index.html
 

NASA SELECTS PROPOSALS FOR FUTURE MARS MISSIONS AND STUDIES

WASHINGTON - On Monday, NASA selected for concept study development
two proposals for future robotic missions to Mars. These missions
would increase understanding of Mars' atmosphere, climate and
potential habitability in greater detail than ever before.

In addition, NASA also will fund a U.S. scientist to participate in a
proposed European Mars mission as well as fund instrument technology
studies that could lead to further contributions to future Mars
missions.

"These mission selections represent unprecedented future research that
will lead to further advancing our knowledge and understanding of the
Red Planet's climate, and atmospheric composition," said Mary Cleave,
associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, NASA
Headquarters, Washington.

Each Mars mission proposal will receive initial funding of
approximately $2 million to conduct a nine-month implementation
feasibility study. Following these detailed mission concept studies,
NASA intends to select one of the two proposals by late 2007 for full
development as a Mars Scout mission. The mission developed for flight
would have a launch opportunity in 2011 and cost no more than $475
million.

The selected Mars mission proposals are:

* Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution mission, or MAVEN: The
mission would provide first-of-its-kind measurements and address key
questions about Mars climate and habitability and improve
understanding of dynamic processes in the upper Martian atmosphere
and ionosphere. The principal investigator is Bruce Jakosky,
University of Colorado, Boulder. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Md., will provide project management.

* The Great Escape mission: The mission would directly determine the
basic processes in Martian atmospheric evolution by measuring the
structure and dynamics of the upper atmosphere. In addition,
potentially biogenic atmospheric constituents such as methane would
be measured. The principal investigator is Alan Stern, Southwest
Research Institute, Boulder, Colorado. Southwest Research Institute,
San Antonio, will provide project management.

NASA has selected Alian Wang of Washington University, St. Louis, to
participate as a member of the science team for the European Space
Agency's ExoMars mission. Wang will receive approximately $800,000 to
study the chemistry, mineralogy and astrobiology of Mars using
instrumentation on the ExoMars mission, scheduled for launch in 2013.


NASA also has selected two proposals for technology development
studies that may lead to further NASA contributions to ExoMars or
other Mars missions. The two technology development studies, funded
for a total of $1.5 million, are:

* Urey Mars Organic and Oxidant Detector: The Urey instrument would
investigate organics and oxidant materials on Mars using three
complementary detection systems. The principal investigator is
Jeffrey Bada, University of California at San Diego.

* Mars Organic Molecule Analyzer, or MOMA: The instrument would
investigate organic molecular signatures and the environment in which
they exist using a mass spectrometer and gas chromatograph. The
principal investigator is Luann Becker, University of California at
Santa Barbara.

These selections were judged to have the best science value among 26
proposals submitted to NASA in August 2006 in response to an open
announcement of opportunity.

NASA's Mars Exploration Program seeks to characterize and understand
Mars as a dynamic system, including its present and past environment,
climate cycles, geology and biological potential. The Mars
Exploration Program Office is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., for the Mars Exploration Program,
Science Mission Directorate, Washington.

For information about NASA and agency programs, visit:



http://www.nasa.gov