NASA

Planet Hunting with NASA's Curious Universe Podcast Host Padi Boyd

4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA pilots flew this YF-12C aircraft from 1971 and 1978 to perform airspeed calibrations and collect propulsion system data at numerous flight conditions.Credit: NASA Supersonic flight became a reality in October 1947, when the Bell X-1 rocket plane broke the sound barrier. NASA’s Lewis Research Center in Cleveland (now, NASA Glenn), which had served as the agency’s aeropropulsion leader since it was established in the 1940s, subsequently helped NASA advance the technology needed to make longer supersonic flights possible. A host of military aircraft capable of reaching supersonic speeds followed the Bell X-1. In the 1960s, Lockheed’s family of Blackbirds (the original A-12, the YF-12 interceptor, and the SR-71 reconnaissance vehicle) became the world’s first aircraft able to cruise at supersonic speeds for extended periods. However, the expansion of this capability to larger transport aircraft was difficult, in large part due to the lack of data collected about propulsion systems during longer supersonic flights. To solve problems that weren’t found during design-phase testing of these aircraft and to advance crucial technology, like the supersonic mixed-compression inlet, the military loaned two retired YF-12s to the Dryden Flight Research Center (today, NASA Armstrong) in 1969 as part of a collaborative NASA/Air Force effort. They planned to compare data from YF-12 flights to data collected in wind tunnels at NASA’s Ames, Langley, and Lewis Research Centers. Bobby Sanders (left) and Robert Coltrin check a full-scale YF-12 flight inlet prior to a February 1972 test run in the NASA Lewis Research Center (now NASA Glenn) 10×10 Supersonic Wind Tunnel. Although the 5-foot 9-inch diameter inlet was large for the test section, no problems aroseCredit: NASA/Martin Brown Lewis’ researchers had studied supersonic inlets in wind tunnels since the early 1950s and were in the midst of an extensive evaluation of supersonic nozzles and inlets using an F-106 Delta Dart. In this new effort, Lewis was responsible for testing a full-scale YF-12 inlet in the center’s 10×10 Supersonic Wind Tunnel and analyzing a 32,500-pound thrust Pratt & Whitney J58 engine in the Propulsion Systems Laboratory (PSL). Although mixed-compression inlets, which allowed the engines to operate as turbojets at subsonic speeds and as ramjets at higher Mach numbers, were highly efficient, their design left the engines vulnerable to flow disturbances that often caused “unstarts.” Unstarts produced instantaneous drag that could stall the engine or cause the aircraft to quickly roll or yaw. Lewis researchers tested an actual inlet from a crashed SR-71, which they installed into the 10×10 in November 1971. Over the next year, researchers collected aerodynamic data under different conditions in the wind tunnel. They also tested a new inlet control system patented by Lewis engineers Bobby Sanders and Glenn Mitchell that used mechanical valves to protect the aircraft against unstarts. It was the first time the system was tested on a full-scale piece of hardware. Researchers also studied the relationships between the airframe, inlet, engine, and control system during normal flight conditions and when experiencing realistic flow disturbances. A Pratt & Whitney J58 engine installed in the NASA Lewis Research Center (now, NASA Glenn) Propulsion Systems Laboratory No. 4 facility in November 1973. The center’s technicians had to take great precautions to protect the instrumentation and control systems from the engine’s 1000-degree-Fahrenheit surface temperatures during the testing. Credit: NASA/Martin Brown In the summer of 1973, a full-scale J-58 engine became the first hardware tested in Lewis’ new PSL second altitude chamber. For the next year, researchers captured data under normal conditions and while using mesh inlet screens to simulate in-flight air-flow distortions. The PSL tests also measured the engine’s emissions as part of a larger effort to determine the high-altitude emissions levels of potential supersonic transports. While the YF-12 program was terminated in 1979 as the agency’s aeronautical priorities shifted, a year’s worth of ground testing had already been completed in NASA’s wind tunnels and the YF-12s had completed nearly 300 research flights. The program had expanded to include the development of high-temperature instrumentation, airframe pressure and flow mapping, thermal loads, and the inlet control system. NASA engineers demonstrated that small-scale models could be successfully used to design full-scale supersonic inlets, while the flight data was used to better understand the effect of subscale models and tunnel interference on data. Perhaps most importantly, the program at Lewis led to a digital control system that improved the response of the supersonic inlet to flow disturbances, which nearly eliminated engine restarts. Many of the program’s concepts were integrated into the SR-71’s design in the early 1980s and have contributed to NASA’s continuing efforts over the decades to achieve a supersonic transport aircraft. Additional Resources: NASA Facts: The Lockheed YF-12 Mach 3+ NASA/USAF YF-12 Flight Research, 1969-1979 by Peter Merlin NASA Facts: SR-71 Blackbird Explore More 4 min read NASA Selects University Teams to Explore Innovative Aeronautical Research Article 1 day ago 11 min read 55 Years Ago: Five Months Until the Moon Landing Article 2 days ago 7 min read 30 Years Ago: Clementine Changes Our View of the Moon Article 6 days ago View the full article

Planet Hunting with NASA's Curious Universe Podcast Host Padi Boyd

30 Min Read The Marshall Star for February 21, 2024 Marshall Center Director Holds First Media Event By Jessica Barnett NASA Marshall Space Flight Center’s newest center director, Joseph Pelfrey, took to the podium Feb. 15 in the lobby of Building 4221 to host his first media event since his appointment to the position. Pelfrey, who had been serving as acting center director since August 2023, is the 15th center director for Marshall. He succeeded Jody Singer, who retired in July 2023. Marshall Center Director Joseph Pelfrey, far right, talks to reporters during his first media event since accepting the director position. The event was held Feb. 15 in the lobby of Building 4221. NASA/Charles Beason Appearing before local news cameras and reporters, Pelfrey said he was humbled and honored to receive the call from NASA Administrator Bill Nelson with news of his selection. “The agency is committed to Marshall’s role in supporting what we do as a nation in space exploration,” Pelfrey said. “I am honored that they have confidence in me and our team to continue to lead.” Pelfrey took the opportunity to speak to reporters about upcoming milestones for the center, such as the celebration of 25 years of work with the Chandra X-ray Observatory, Marshall’s 30th year hosting the Human Exploration Rover Challenge, two years since the launches of the James Webb Space Telescope and IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer) observatory, and the recent launch of the LN-1 (Lunar Node 1) navigation beacon. He also discussed the center’s plans to use more of its testing capabilities for habitation systems; build a new Engineering Science Laboratory to replace Building 4487; build the Marshall Exploration Facility where Building 4200 once stood; and continue supporting operations at the International Space Station and for future Artemis missions. Looking to the future, Pelfrey said Marshall is focused on helping NASA expand its missions in deep space and developing the technologies needed to carry astronauts farther than “we’ve ever been before.” A child of the shuttle generation, Pelfrey recalled watching launches and dreaming of a career at NASA. He said he’s honored to follow behind great center leaders, continuing Marshall’s legacy as a leader in space exploration. “As we write the next chapter of our story, I am confident of the bright future we have at Marshall Space Flight Center,” he said. Barnett, a Media Fusion employee, supports the Marshall Office of Communications. › Back to Top Pelfrey Hosts First 2024 All-Hands at Marshall By Celine Smith New NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Director Joseph Pelfrey highlighted the center’s strategy and changing culture during this year’s first all-hands meeting Feb. 8 in Activities Building 4316. The meeting – with the theme “More to Marshall” – was Pelfrey’s first all-hands since NASA Administrator Bill Nelson named him as the center’s 15th director Feb. 5. Pelfrey had served as acting director since Jody Singer’s retirement in July 2023. NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Director Joseph Pelfrey, standing, discusses the direction of Marshall and the center’s upcoming projects and strategies during the first all-hands meeting of 2024. Joining him on stage, from left, are Tia Ferguson, Marshall’s Space Systems Department director in the Engineering Directorate, Associate Center Director Rae Ann Meyer, and Mallory James, an aerospace engineer and management assistant in the office of the center director. NASA/Charles Beason Along with Pelfrey, Tia Ferguson, director of Marshall’s Space Systems Department in the Engineering Directorate, Rae Ann Meyer, associate center director, and Mallory James, an aerospace engineer and management assistant in the office of the center director, gave presentations about the direction of Marshall in 2024. “I see us embracing a transformative shift to a portfolio of more small and medium-sized projects enabled through strategic partnerships while also being a technical solutions provider to NASA and our partners,” Pelfrey said. “I see a very bright future for our center, and I’m excited to write this next chapter with all of you.” Pelfrey commended Marshall team members for submitting 63 proposals to NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, all enabled by partnerships. Marshall submitted and won the most proposals out of all NASA centers. He encouraged team members to continue creating and working on more innovative ideas to support future Agency needs. Pelfrey gave updates on Marshall’s various projects, including Lunar Node-1 using the Huntsville Operation Support Center for its mission and Marshall partnering with the Italian Space Agency to create a multipurpose habitat that could be used on the Moon. The habitat is in the process of becoming a part of the Artemis architecture and would be the first of its kind on the lunar surface. Pelfrey shared that Marshall and industry partners will be leading the development of the engine in collaboration with the Department of the Defense for NASA and DARPA’s DRACO (Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Operations), the first nuclear thermal flight demonstration intended for the mission to Mars. Pelfrey also highlighted the development of the solar sail prototype, which is approximately 4,700 square feet and was recently tested with NASA’s industry partner. The potential for this design has drawn attention from future science missions and the Department of Defense due to its advancements in propulsion. Pelfrey also mentioned that NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility, which is managed by Marshall, is manufacturing parts for Artemis III-V. Pertaining to the Artemis Mission, Pelfrey said the data from Artemis I is being examined to prepare for Artemis II. Flight software testing has been completed for Artemis II as well. The Human Landing System team is continuing to work with lander partner, SpaceX, which is preparing for the next Starship orbital flight test in the next few weeks. Brandon Phillips, a material science engineer, asks a question during the Q&A portion of the all-hands meeting. NASA/Charles Beason According to Pelfrey, Marshall is also expecting two new buildings, the Marshall Exploration Facility, which is tentatively scheduled to break ground in 2026, and an Engineering Science Lab, a replacement for Building 4487. Ferguson followed Pelfrey’s presentation with updates about NASA 2040, an agency strategic initiative propelling NASA into the future. The initiative aims to drive meaningful changes in the present to ensure that, in 2040, NASA remains the preeminent institution for research, technology, and engineering, to lead science, aeronautics, and space exploration for humanity. She went into detail about plans made to optimize the internaloperations of the agency and improving the work environment for team members to achieve mission goals. Meyer discussed how Marshall’s culture reflects the changes and new strategies taking place. Meyer emphasized the investment in centerwide events to strengthen culture at Marshall. James, a mentee of Meyer, gave the last presentation. She discussed the results of the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey and how leadership is moving forward to address concerns expressed from the results. All-hands ended with a Q&A panel with Pelfrey, Ferguson, Meyer, and James. Larry Leopard, associate director, technical, also joined the panel. They answered questions submitted online and from the audience. “With our long history of what we’ve done at the center, there’s so much more to Marshall that we can achieve,” Pelfrey said in his closing remarks. “There’s so much more that we can dare to dream and explore and innovate for the agency and there’s more to gain when we do it together.” Smith, a Media Fusion employee, supports the Marshall Office of Communications. › Back to Top Black History Month Profile: Evolving with Leslie Smith By Celine Smith Ever since Leslie Smith was young, she has liked working with her hands, whether it be arts and crafts or playing the piano. Watching her father weld pieces of scrap metal into something new reinforced her enthusiasm for designing and creating. While working for NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, Smith has been able to pursue her passion of more tactile work while also gaining an array of other skills. Leslie Smith is the task manager of the Sustaining Lunar Development program.MSFC/Emmett Given “Helping put the next man and first woman on the Moon gives me a sense of pride, especially because it could help us get to Mars,” said Smith, who is the task manager of the Sustaining Lunar Development program. “I love knowing I’m helping the next generation and just being a part of the program.” As a young girl, Smith aspired to be an architect, which combined her two favorite skills of designing and building. While in high school, Smith began to co-op at a technical vocational school. Her interest in architecture increased when she was introduced to CAD (computerized-aided design) software in a drafting class. After Smith started at Tuskegee University, a historically Black university in Alabama, her sights changed. “The architecture class seemed more artsy, and not as focused on design or manufacturing, which is what I really wanted to do,” said Smith, who is from Vicksburg, Mississippi. She decided to major in mechanical engineering instead. Before graduating, Smith signed an offer for a co-op opportunity with Marshall during a 2008 Tuskegee job fair, leading to her 15-year career at the center. During Smith’s start, she didn’t get to immediately do the CAD work she originally was drawn to. Smith began working in the Planning and Operations branch within the Mission Ops Lab. She oversaw the countdown timeline for operational tasks and filled out functional objective sheets for the Constellation program’s Ares I. Later, she performed 3D CAD modeling for the main propulsion system and 2D drawings and assemblies for the cryogenic propellant storage and transfer system. The experience served as Smith’s introduction to program management and systems engineering. While her role was not originally in her area of interest, she found a reason to stay. “I stayed because of the people,” Smith said. “They were very friendly and helpful. Also, after taking a tour of Marshall, I saw all capabilities of the center. Marshall’s friction stir welding, 3D printing, the propulsion lab, and the diverse types of engineering intrigued me.” Her first full-time role at Marshall took place after graduating college. She began as a design engineer in the Propulsion Detailed Design branch in 2013. She used her CAD skills to draft a 1 Newton thruster, an adapter for secondary payloads, and a core stage auxiliary power unit among other projects. Smith also did some friction stir welding and additive manufacturing, the processes that interested her during her co-op days. Before becoming a key coordinator for human landing systems, she conducted trade studies for SLS (Space Launch System) components as a systems engineer in 2018. Now, Smith manages human landing system concepts, focused on reducing risk and the advancement of key technologies. “I’m the kind of person who likes to do something different every so often,” she said. “Technology is always evolving so that makes me want to always evolve.” Smith’s passion for engineering is present in her personal life. As a member of the National Society of Black Engineers, she took part in the Arusha Project, started at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Arusha is Swahili for “he makes fly (into the skies).” Smith joined other Black engineers to build a rover for potential Moon and Mars missions. Smith personally worked on the outer shell, window, and chassis. “The project was great because you got to work with other African American engineers and other ethnicities,” she said. “It’s important to be around people who look like you and can relate to similar issues.” In Smith’s free time she volunteers to do STEM outreach. She also enjoys basketball, swimming, and reading. Smith currently lives in Madison, Alabama. Her advice for young engineers at Marshall is to: “learn all you can. Talk to as many people as you can, particularly people who are different from you for a different perspective. Never pass an opportunity to see hardware. Take all the tours and attend mentoring events.” First in a two-part series in the Marshall Star highlighting team members during Black History Month. Smith, a Media Fusion employee, supports the Marshall Office of Communications. › Back to Top Deputy Director of NASA Safety Center Speaker for Feb. 22 Mission Success Forum By Wayne Smith Bob Conway, deputy director of the NASA Safety Center, will be the guest speaker for the Mission Success Is in Our Hands hybrid Shared Experiences Forum on Feb. 22 at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. The 11:30 a.m. event will be in Activities Building 4316 for Marshall team members. Light refreshments will be served. The forum is available to NASA employees and the public virtually via Teams. Mission Success Is in Our Hands is a safety initiative collaboration between NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and Jacobs Engineering. The initiative’s goal to help team members make meaningful connections between their jobs and the safety and success of NASA and Marshall missions. The theme of the forum is “The Impact of Breaking the Silence.” Conway will address the elements and factors that can contribute to organizational silence, including the failure to draw attention to problems that can potentially result in mission failures. He will detail practical tactics and tools to help combat this issue and identify methods of creating organizational excellence from the perspectives of both leadership and front-line employees. Bill Hill, director of Safety and Mission Assurance at Marshall, encourages team members to attend the forum in-person. “Administrator (Bill) Nelson has requested that all NASA civil servants and contractors hear Bob Conway’s organizational silence briefing and learn tools and techniques to avoid the pitfalls of organizational silence,” Hill said. Jeff Haars, Jacobs vice president and program manager for Jacobs Space Exploration Group, said the Shared Experiences Forum is an impactful reminder on safety. “At Jacobs, we put a high priority on safety so it’s very reassuring to have a great safety partner like Marshall,” Haars said. “Working as a team allows us to deliver our work safely while contributing to mission success.” Conway works with the NASA Safety Center’s director to enable more effective and efficient safety and mission assurance support for NASA’s portfolio of programs and projects by managing the safety center’s activities in knowledge sharing and analysis, technical excellence, and assessments and investigations. Prior to assuming this role, Conway worked in the civilian sector as the manager of Quality Engineering for Worldwide Safety and Health at the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida, from 2012 to 2019. Conway was also a member of the NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel from 2012 to 2016. In this role he evaluated various NASA programs and, with his Naval Aviation Safety background, was the lead panel representative to the NASA Aircraft Mission Directorate. After his commissioning as an ensign, Conway served in the U.S. Navy through his retirement in 2012. As part of the forum, Mission Success Is in Our Hands will present the Golden Eagle Award to a Marshall team member. The award promotes awareness and appreciation for flight safety, as demonstrated through the connections between employees’ everyday work, the success of NASA and Marshall’s missions, and the safety of NASA astronauts. The award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to flight safety and mission assurance above and beyond their normal work requirements. Management or peers can nominate any team member for the award. Honorees are typically recognized at quarterly Shared Experiences forums. Smith, a Media Fusion employee and the Marshall Star editor, supports the Marshall Office of Communications. › Back to Top NASA Science Aboard Intuitive Machines Continues Journey to Moon, Landing Coverage set for Feb. 22 After a successful launch Feb. 15, six NASA science instruments and technology demonstrations continue their journey to the Moon aboard Intuitive Machines’ lander named Odysseus. The company confirmed communications contact with its mission operations control in Houston, and its lander continues to perform as expected. As part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign, Intuitive Machines is targeting no earlier than 4:49 p.m. CST on Feb. 22 to land their Odysseus lunar lander near Malapert A in the South Pole region of the Moon. A view of Earth and one of Odysseus’ fuel pressurant tanks aboard the IM-1 mission. Intuitive Machines is a commercial company that has been contracted by NASA to send its science and technology instruments to the Moon. Columbia Sportswear is a commercial payload contracted with Intuitive Machines.Intuitive Machines Live landing coverage will air on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website. NASA TV can be streamed on a variety of platforms, including social media. Coverage will include live streaming and blog updates beginning 3:15 p.m., as the landing milestones occur. Upon successful landing, Intuitive Machines and NASA will host a news conference to discuss the mission and science opportunities that lie ahead as the company begins lunar surface operations. Known as IM-1, Intuitive Machines successfully transmitted its first images back to Earth on Feb. 16. These were captured shortly after separation from SpaceX’s second stage, on Intuitive Machines’ first journey to the Moon. Within an hour of launching, NASA confirmed data was streaming from the agency’s powered science and technology instruments aboard the flight. This means data from these instruments was automatically streaming back to the teams so NASA could monitor the health and status of its instruments. Later, Intuitive Machines successfully commissioned Odysseus’ engine which means they exercised the engine’s complete flight profile, including the throttling required for landing. The engine, which uses liquid methane and liquid oxygen, is the first of its kind fired in space. One of the NASA instruments, the Radio Frequency Mass Gauge is gauging the cryogenic propellants on Odysseus throughout the mission. Data files have been collected and many have been downloaded for analysis. Throughout the propellant loading phase that took place before launch, the instrument collected data, which was downloaded and analyzed in near-real time. Data also is being collected during the microgravity transit phase of the mission. This analysis will continue through landing on the Moon. Another NASA instrument, Lunar Node-1, or LN-1, integrates navigation and communication . LN-1 was developed, built, and tested at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. This science instrument will operate daily during the cruise phase as the landing date draws closer. The radio beacon is designed to support precise geolocation and navigation observations to orbiters, landers, and surface personnel, digitally confirming their positions on the Moon relative to other craft, ground stations, or rovers on the move. The check-out helps prepare to land on the Moon as the navigation demonstrator aims to gather this data throughout the duration of the surface operations phase of the mission. Flight controllers will analyze the data from this procedure to inform preparations for landing Feb. 22. Follow the Artemis blog for updates, or follow along with Intuitive Machines for the latest operational updates on their mission. › Back to Top Rocket Propellant Tanks for NASA’s Artemis III Mission Take Shape With the liquid oxygen tank now fully welded, all the major structures that will form the core stage for NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket for the agency’s Artemis III mission are ready for additional outfitting. The hardware will be a part of the rocket used for the first of the Artemis missions planning to land astronauts on the Moon’s surface near the lunar South Pole. Technicians finished welding the 51-foot liquid oxygen tank structure inside the Vertical Assembly Building at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility on Jan. 8. All the major structures that will form the core stage for NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket for the agency’s Artemis III mission are structurally complete. Technicians finished welding the 51-foot liquid oxygen tank structure, left, inside the Vertical Assembly Building at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility on Jan. 8. The liquid hydrogen tank, right, completed internal cleaning Nov. 14.NASA/Michael DeMocker The mega rocket’s other giant propellant tank – the liquid hydrogen tank – is already one fully welded structure. NASA and Boeing, the SLS core stage lead contractor, are currently priming the tank in another cell within the Vertical Assembly Building area called the Building 131 cryogenic tank thermal protection system and primer application complex. It completed internal cleaning Nov. 14. Manufacturing hardware is a multi-step process that includes welding, washing, and, later, outfitting hardware. The internal cleaning process is similar to a shower to ensure contaminants do not find their way into the stage’s complex propulsion and engine systems prior to priming. Once internal cleaning is complete, primer is applied to the external portions of the tank’s barrel section and domes by an automated robotic tool. Following primer, technicians apply a foam-based thermal protection system to shield it from the extreme temperatures it will face during launch and flight while also regulating the super-chilled propellant within. “NASA and its partners are processing major hardware elements at Michoud for several SLS rockets in parallel to support the agency’s Artemis campaign,” said Chad Bryant, acting manager of the Stages Office for NASA’s SLS Program. “With the Artemis II core stage nearing completion, the major structural elements of the SLS core stage for Artemis III will advance through production on the factory floor.” The two massive propellant tanks for the rocket collectively hold more than 733,000 gallons of super-chilled propellant. The propellant powers the four RS-25 engines and must stay extremely cold to remain liquid. The core stage, along with the RS-25 engines, will produce two million pounds of thrust to help launch NASA’s Orion spacecraft, astronauts, and supplies beyond Earth’s orbit and to the lunar surface for Artemis III. SLS is the only rocket that can send Orion, astronauts, and supplies to the Moon in a single launch. Through Artemis, NASA will send astronauts – including the first woman, first person of color, and first international partner astronaut – to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for crewed mission to Mars. SLS is part of NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration, along with the Orion spacecraft, exploration ground systems, advanced spacesuits and rovers, Gateway, and human landing systems. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center manages the SLS Program and Michoud Assembly Facility. › Back to Top Artemis II Mission Manager: Matthew Ramsey Matthew Ramsey is keenly aware of the responsibility he shoulders to ensure NASA’s missions to the Moon are safe and successful. As the mission manager for Artemis II, NASA’s first crewed mission under Artemis, Ramsey is charged with helping to define the requirements and priorities for the missions and certifying that the hardware and operations needed to support flight are ready. “For me, it’s all about the crew and ensuring their safety as they venture to the Moon and come home,” Ramsey said. “Sending people thousands of miles from home and doing it in a way that sets the stage for long-term exploration and scientific discovery is an incredibly complex task.” Matthew Ramsey is the mission manager for Artemis II. During the Artemis I launch, Ramsey was the SLS Engineering Support Center manager at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.NASA/Brandon Hancock During the leadup to Artemis II, Ramsey is responsible for oversight of the daily preparations as NASA prepares to launch and fly the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket with a crew of four inside the Orion spacecraft. He will adjudicate issues that arise in the weeks and months ahead of the flight test and serve as deputy of the Mission Management Team – a tiger team that forms two days before launch to accept the risks associated with the mission and make decisions during the flight to address any changes or concerns. A native of Hernando, Mississippi, Ramsey pitched for the Mississippi State University baseball team before earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering from the school. “There are a lot of similarities between mission management and pitching,” he said. “You control many aspects of the tempo, and there’s a lot of weight on your shoulders.” Ramsey began his career in the intelligence and defense sectors before joining the space agency in 2002 to work on guidance, navigation, and control for the X-37 Approach and Landing Test Vehicle. Later, he worked on the design of the Ares I and V rockets as part of NASA’s Constellation Program before transitioning in 2010 to the SLS Program in support of the chief engineer at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center. During the Artemis I launch, Ramsey was the SLS Engineering Support Center manager at Marshall, coordinating across engineering teams to provide data and solutions to issues encountered during the multiple launch attempts. He then supported the Mission Management Team during Artemis I in an observational role, preparing for his position as Artemis II mission manager. While NASA and its partners are preparing for Artemis II, work toward other Artemis missions is also underway. Ramsey also will serve as the mission manager for Artemis IV, the first Gateway assembly mission that also will include a lunar landing. “With Artemis II on the horizon, most of my time is focused on making sure we’re ready to fly Reid, Victor, Christina, and Jeremy around the Moon and bring them safely home,” Ramsey said. “For Artemis IV, we’re in the mission concept-planning phase, establishing mission priorities and objectives and defining how we’ll transfer crew between all the hardware elements involved.” As Artemis II nears, Ramsey is blending his operational experience and expertise in design, development, testing, and evaluation so that NASA is primed for what lies ahead: sending humans back to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years and laying the foundation for future missions that will ultimately enable human exploration of Mars. › Back to Top Teams Add Iconic NASA ‘Worm’ Logo to Artemis II Rocket, Spacecraft Art and science merged as teams added the NASA “worm” logo on the SLS (Space Launch System) solid rocket boosters and the Orion spacecraft’s crew module adapter at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center for the agency’s Artemis II mission. The iconic logo was introduced in 1975 by the firm of Danne & Blackburn as a modern emblem for the agency. It emerged from a nearly 30-year retirement in 2020 for limited use on select missions and products. Workers with NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems paint the bright red NASA “worm” logo on the side of an Artemis II solid rocket booster segment inside the Rotation, Processing and Surge Facility at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center on Jan. 30. The Exploration Ground Systems team used a laser projector to mask off the logo with tape, then painted the first coat of the iconic design.NASA/Glenn Benson NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems and prime contractor Jacobs began painting the red logotype onto the segments that form the Moon rocket’s two solid rocket boosters Jan. 22. To do so, crews used a laser projector to first mark off the location of the logo with tape, then applied two coats of paint and finished by adding several coats of clear primer. Each letter of the worm logo measures approximately 6 feet and 10 inches in height and altogether, stretches 25 feet from end to end, or a little less than the length of one of the rocket’s booster motor segments. The location of the worm logo will be moderately different from where it was during Artemis I. While it will still be located on each of the rocket’s 17 story boosters, the modernist logo will be placed toward the front of the booster systems tunnel cover. The SLS boosters are the largest, most powerful solid propellant boosters ever flown and provide more than 75% of the thrust at launch. The Orion spacecraft for NASA’s Artemis II mission received its latest makeover Jan. 28. Teams adhered the agency’s iconic “worm” logo and ESA (European Space Agency) insignia on the spacecraft’s crew module adapter inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy.NASA/Rad Sinyak Around the corner inside the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at Kennedy, personnel adhered the worm logo and ESA (European Space Agency) insignia Jan. 28 on the spacecraft’s crew module adapter. The adapter houses electronic equipment for communications, power, and control, and includes an umbilical connector that bridges the electrical, data, and fluid systems between the main modules. In October 2023, technicians joined the crew and service modules together. The crew module will house the four astronauts as they journey around the Moon and back to Earth on an approximately 10-day journey. The spacecraft’s service module, provided by ESA, will supply the vehicle with electricity, propulsion, thermal control, air, and water in space. NASA is working to land the first woman, first person of color, and first international partner astronaut on the Moon through Artemis. SLS and the Orion spacecraft are central to NASA’s deep space exploration plans, along with advanced spacesuits and rovers, the Gateway space station planned for orbit around the Moon, and commercial human landing systems. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center manages the SLS Program. › Back to Top Chandra: Black Hole Fashions Stellar Beads on A String Astronomers have discovered one of the most powerful eruptions from a black hole ever recorded in the system known as SDSS J1531+3414 (SDSS J1531 for short). This mega-explosion billions of years ago may help explain the formation of a striking pattern of star clusters around two massive galaxies, resembling “beads on a string.” SDSS J1531 is a massive galaxy cluster containing hundreds of individual galaxies and huge reservoirs of hot gas and dark matter. At the center of SDSS J1531, which is located about 3.8 billion light-years away, two of the cluster’s largest galaxies are colliding with each other. SDSS J1531 is a massive galaxy cluster containing hundreds of individual galaxies and huge reservoirs of hot gas and dark matter. In the heart of SDSS J1531, two of the cluster’s largest galaxies are colliding with each other. Surrounding these merging giants is a set of 19 large clusters of stars, called superclusters, arranged in an ‘S’ formation that resembles beads on a string.X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/O. Omoruyi et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI/G. Tremblay et al.; Radio: ASTRON/LOFAR; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk Astronomers used several telescopes to study SDSS J1531 including NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, and LOFAR (Low Frequency Array), a radio telescope. A composite image shows SDSS J1531 in X-rays from Chandra (blue and purple) that have been combined with radio data from LOFAR (dark pink) as well as an optical image from the Hubble Space Telescope (appearing as yellow and white). The inset gives a close-in view of the center of SDSS J1531 in optical light, showing the two large galaxies and a set of 19 large clusters of stars, called superclusters, stretching across the middle. The image shows these star clusters are arranged in an ‘S’ formation that resembles beads on a string. The multiwavelength data provides signs of an ancient, titanic eruption in SDSS J1531, which a team of researchers think was responsible for creation of the 19 star clusters. Their argument is that an extremely powerful jet from the supermassive black holes in the center of one of the large galaxies pushed the surrounding hot gas away from the black hole, creating a gigantic cavity. The evidence for a cavity comes from “wings” of bright X-ray emission, seen with Chandra, tracing dense gas near the center of SDSS J1531. These wings are the edge of the cavity and the less dense gas in between is part of the cavity. LOFAR shows radio waves from the remains of the jet’s energetic particles filling in the giant cavity. These features are highlighted in a labeled version of the image. A labeled version of SDSS J1531.X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/O. Omoruyi et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI/G. Tremblay et al.; Radio: ASTRON/LOFAR; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk The astronomers also discovered cold and warm gas located near the opening of the cavity, detected with the Atacama Large Millimeter and submillimeter Array and the Gemini North Telescope, respectively. A separate graphic shows the optical image with the cold gas added in green (left), and the warm gas added in red (right). The team argues that some of the hot gas pushed away from the black hole eventually cooled to form the cold and warm gas shown. The team thinks tidal effects from the two merging galaxies compressed the gas along curved paths, leading to the star clusters forming in the “beads on a string” pattern. A paper led by Osase Omoruyi of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) describing these results has recently been published in The Astrophysical Journal and is available online here. The authors of the paper are Grant Tremblay (CfA), Francoise Combes (Paris Observatory, France), Timothy Davis (Cardiff University, UK), Michael Gladders (University of Chicago), Alexey Vikhlinin (CfA), Paul Nulsen (CfA), Preeti Kharb (National Centre for Radio Astrophysics – Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, India), Stefi Baum (University of Manitoba, Canada), Christopher O’Dea (University of Manitoba, Canada), Keren Sharon (University of Michigan), Bryan Terrazas (Columbia University), Rebecca Nevin (Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory), Aimee Schechter (University of Colorado Boulder), John ZuHone (CfA), Michael McDonald (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Hakon Dahle (University of Oslo, Norway), Matthew B. Bayliss (University of Cincinnati), Thomas Connor (CfA), Michael Florian (University of Arizona), Jane Rigby (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center), and Sravani Vaddi (Arecibo Observatory). NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center manages the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory’s Chandra X-ray Center controls science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts. › Back to Top New Horizons Detects Dusty Hints of Extended Kuiper Belt New observations from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft hint that the Kuiper Belt – the vast, distant outer zone of our solar system populated by hundreds of thousands of icy, rocky planetary building blocks – might stretch much farther out than we thought. Speeding through the outer edges of the Kuiper Belt, almost 60 times farther from the Sun than Earth, the New Horizons SDC (Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter) instrument is detecting higher than expected levels of dust – the tiny frozen remnants of collisions between larger Kuiper Belt objects, or KBOs, and particles kicked up from KBOs being peppered by microscopic dust impactors from outside of the solar system. Artist’s concept of a collision between two objects in the distant Kuiper Belt. Such collisions are a major source of dust in the belt, along with particles kicked up from Kuiper Belt objects being peppered by microscopic dust impactors from outside of the solar system.Credit: Dan Durda, FIAAA The readings defy scientific models that the KBO population and density of dust should start to decline a billion miles inside that distance and contribute to a growing body of evidence that suggests the outer edge of the main Kuiper Belt could extend billions of miles farther than current estimates – or that there could even be a second belt beyond the one we already know. The results appear in the Feb. 1 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters. “New Horizons is making the first direct measurements of interplanetary dust far beyond Neptune and Pluto, so every observation could lead to a discovery,” said Alex Doner, lead author of the paper and a physics graduate student at the University of Colorado Boulder who serves as SDC lead. “The idea that we might have detected an extended Kuiper Belt – with a whole new population of objects colliding and producing more dust – offers another clue in solving the mysteries of the solar system’s most distant regions.” Designed and built by students at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder under the guidance of professional engineers, SDC has detected microscopic dust grains produced by collisions among asteroids, comets and Kuiper Belt objects all along New Horizons’ 5-billion-mile, 18-year journey across our solar system – which after launch in 2006 included historic flybys of Pluto in 2015 and the KBO Arrokoth in 2019. The first science instrument on a NASA planetary mission to be designed, built and “flown” by students, the SDC counts and measures the sizes of dust particles, producing information on the collision rates of such bodies in the outer solar system. The latest, surprising results were compiled over three years as New Horizons traveled from 45 to 55 AU (astronomical units from the Sun – with one AU being the distance between Earth and Sun, about 93 million miles. These readings come as New Horizons scientists, using observatories like the Japanese Subaru Telescope in Hawaii, have also discovered a number KBOs far beyond the traditional outer edge of the Kuiper Belt. This outer edge (where the density of objects starts to decline) was thought to be at about 50 AU, but new evidence suggests the belt may extend to 80 AU, or farther. As telescope observations continue, Doner said, scientists are looking at other possible reasons for the high SDC dust readings. One possibility, perhaps less likely, is radiation pressure and other factors pushing dust created in the inner Kuiper Belt out past 50 AU. New Horizons could also have encountered shorter-lived ice particles that cannot reach the inner parts of the solar system and were not yet accounted for in the current models of the Kuiper Belt. “These new scientific results from New Horizons may be the first time that any spacecraft has discovered a new population of bodies in our solar system,” said Alan Stern, New Horizons principal investigator from the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder. “I can’t wait to see how much farther out these elevated Kuiper Belt dust levels go.” Now into its second extended mission, New Horizons is expected to have sufficient propellant and power to operate through the 2040s, at distances beyond 100 AU from the Sun. That far out, mission scientists say, the SDC could potentially even record the spacecraft’s transition into a region where interstellar particles dominate the dust environment. With complementary telescopic observations of the Kuiper Belt from Earth, New Horizons, as the only spacecraft operating in and collecting new information about the Kuiper Belt, has a unique opportunity to learn more about KBOs, dust sources and expanse of the belt, and interstellar dust and the dust disks around other stars. The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, built and operates the New Horizons spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. Southwest Research Institute, based in San Antonio and Boulder, Colorado, directs the mission via Principal Investigator Alan Stern and leads the science team, payload operations and encounter science planning. New Horizons is part of NASA’s New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. › Back to Top View the full article

Intuitive Machines-1 Lunar Landing (Official NASA Broadcast)

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft approaches the International Space Station on May 20, 2022. Credit: NASA As part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program, the agency opened media accreditation for the launch of NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test to the International Space Station. The mission will be the company’s first Starliner spacecraft mission with crew. NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will launch aboard Starliner on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket and dock at the orbiting laboratory, where they will stay for up to two weeks. Liftoff is currently targeted for mid-April 2024 from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. The mission will test the end-to-end capabilities of the Starliner system, including launch, docking, and return to Earth in the desert of the western United States. Following a successful mission, NASA will begin the final process of certifying Starliner and systems for crewed missions to the space station. U.S. media may apply separately for a photo opportunity during the rollout of the Starliner spacecraft from Boeing’s Commercial Cargo and Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The operational activity is scheduled to take place in early April. Media accreditation deadlines are as follows: International media without U.S. citizenship interested in covering the launch must apply by 11:59 p.m., Thursday, March 14 U.S. media interested in a photo opportunity of Starliner rollout must apply by 11:59 p.m., Thursday, March 21 U.S. media interested in covering the launch must apply for credentials by 11:59 p.m., Sunday, April 7 All accreditation requests must be submitted online at: https://media.ksc.nasa.gov NASA’s media accreditation policy is online. For questions about accreditation or special logistical requests, please email: ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov. Requests for space for satellite trucks, tents, or electrical connections are due by Monday, April 15. For other questions, please contact the newsroom at NASA Kennedy: 321-867-2468. Para obtener información sobre cobertura en español en el Centro Espacial Kennedy o si desea solicitar entrevistas en español, comuníquese con Antonia Jaramillo: 321-501-8425, o Messod Bendayan: 256-930-1371. NASA’s Commercial Crew Program is working with the American aerospace industry through a public-private partnership to launch astronauts on American rockets and spacecraft from American soil. The goal of the program is to provide safe, reliable, and cost-effective transportation on space station missions, which will allow for additional research time. For more information about the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew -end- Joshua Finch / Julian Coltre Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1100 joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / julian.n.coltre@nasa.gov Steve Siceloff / Danielle Sempsrott Kennedy Space Center, Florida 321-867-2468 steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov / danielle.c.sempsrott@nasa.gov Leah Cheshier Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 leah.d.cheshier@nasa.gov Share Details Last Updated Feb 21, 2024 LocationNASA Headquarters Related TermsNASA HeadquartersAstronautsCommercial SpaceCommercial Space ProgramsHumans in SpaceJohnson Space CenterKennedy Space Center View the full article

From left, NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Barry “Butch” Wilmore, Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) pilot and commander, respectively, exit the Astronaut Crew Quarters at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a crew validation test on Oct. 18, 2022. The astronauts, with assistance from the Boeing team, successfully completed the validation test during which they suited up and tested out the pressurized crew module to ensure seat fit, suit functionality, cabin temperature, audio system, and day of launch operations.NASA/Kim Shiflett Digital content creators are invited to register to attend the launch of NASA’s Boeing Crew Flight Test (CFT) mission to the International Space Station. The mission will be the first crewed launch of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. Starliner will launch atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, carrying NASA astronauts Barry “Butch” Wilmore and Suni Williams to the orbiting laboratory for a stay of about one to two weeks. Liftoff is targeted for mid-April 2024 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex-41 in Florida. If your passion is to communicate and engage the world online, then this is the event for you! Seize the opportunity to see and share the #Starliner mission launch. A maximum of 50 social media users will be selected to attend this two-day event and will be given access similar to news media. NASA Social participants will have the opportunity to: View a crewed launch of the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket and Starliner spacecraft. Tour NASA facilities at Kennedy Space Center. Meet and interact with CFT subject matter experts. Meet fellow space enthusiasts who are active on social media. NASA Social registration for the CFT launch opens on Wednesday, Feb. 21, and the deadline to apply is at 3 p.m. EST Tuesday, Feb. 27. All social applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis. APPLY NOW Do I need to have a social media account to register? Yes. This event is designed for people who: Actively use multiple social networking platforms and tools to disseminate information to a unique audience. Regularly produce new content that features multimedia elements. Have the potential to reach a large number of people using digital platforms, or reach a unique audience, separate and distinctive from traditional news media and/or NASA audiences. Must have an established history of posting content on social media platforms. Have previous postings that are highly visible, respected and widely recognized. Users on all social networks are encouraged to use the hashtag #NASASocial and #Starliner. Updates and information about the event will be shared on X via @NASASocial and @NASAKennedy, and via posts to Facebook and Instagram. How do I register? Registration for this event opens Wednesday, Feb. 21, and closes at 3 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 27. Registration is for one person only (you) and is non-transferable. Each individual wishing to attend must register separately. Each application will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Can I register if I am not a U.S. citizen? Because of the security deadlines, registration is limited to U.S. citizens. If you have a valid permanent resident card, you will be processed as a U.S. citizen. When will I know if I am selected? After registrations have been received and processed, an email with confirmation information and additional instructions will be sent to those selected. We expect to send the acceptance notifications by March 1. What are NASA Social credentials? All social applications will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Those chosen must prove through the registration process they meet specific engagement criteria. If you do not make the registration list for this NASA Social, you still can attend the launch offsite and participate in the conversation online. Find out about ways to experience a launch here. What are the registration requirements? Registration indicates your intent to travel to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida and attend the two-day event in person. You are responsible for your own expenses for travel, accommodations, food, and other amenities. Some events and participants scheduled to appear at the event are subject to change without notice. NASA is not responsible for loss or damage incurred as a result of attending. NASA, moreover, is not responsible for loss or damage incurred if the event is cancelled with limited or no notice. Please plan accordingly. Kennedy is a government facility. Those who are selected will need to complete an additional registration step to receive clearance to enter the secure areas. IMPORTANT: To be admitted, you will need to provide two forms of unexpired government-issued identification; one must be a photo ID and match the name provided on the registration. Those without proper identification cannot be admitted. For a complete list of acceptable forms of ID, please visit: NASA Credentialing Identification Requirements. All registrants must be at least 18 years old. What if the launch date changes? Many different factors can cause a scheduled launch date to change multiple times. If the launch date changes, NASA may adjust the date of the NASA Social accordingly to coincide with the new target launch date. NASA will notify registrants of any changes by email. If the launch is postponed, attendees will be invited to attend a later launch date. NASA cannot accommodate attendees for delays beyond 72 hours. NASA Social attendees are responsible for any additional costs they incur related to any launch delay. We strongly encourage participants to make travel arrangements that are refundable and/or flexible. What if I cannot come to the Kennedy Space Center? If you cannot come to the Kennedy Space Center and attend in person, you should not register for the NASA Social. You can follow the conversation online using #NASASocial. You can watch the launch on NASA Television or www.nasa.gov/nasatv/. NASA will provide regular launch and mission updates on @NASA, @NASAKennedy, and @Commercial_Crew. If you cannot make this NASA Social, don’t worry; NASA is planning many other Socials in the near future at various locations! Check back here for updates. View the full article

NASA/Kathryn Hansen In this image from July 12, 2011, crew from the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Healy retrieve a supply canister dropped by parachute during the Impacts of Climate on Ecosystems and Chemistry of the Arctic Pacific Environment, or ICESCAPE, mission. ICESCAPE was a multi-year project sponsored by NASA to determine the impact of climate change upon the health of the Arctic Ocean. The bulk of the research took place in the Beaufort and Chukchi seas in summer 2010 and 2011. See more photos from this mission. Image Credit: NASA/Kathryn Hansen View the full article

Galaxy cluster SDSS J1531+3414X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/O. Omoruyi et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI/G. Tremblay et al.; Radio: ASTRON/LOFAR; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk Astronomers have discovered one of the most powerful eruptions from a black hole ever recorded in the system known as SDSS J1531+3414 (SDSS J1531 for short). As explained in our press release, this mega-explosion billions of years ago may help explain the formation of a striking pattern of star clusters around two massive galaxies, resembling “beads on a string.” SDSS J1531 is a massive galaxy cluster containing hundreds of individual galaxies and huge reservoirs of hot gas and dark matter. At the center of SDSS J1531, which is located about 3.8 billion light-years away, two of the cluster’s largest galaxies are colliding with each other. Astronomers used several telescopes to study SDSS J1531 including NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, and the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR), a radio telescope. This composite image shows SDSS J1531 in X-rays from Chandra (blue and purple) that have been combined with radio data from LOFAR (dark pink) as well as an optical image from the Hubble Space Telescope (appearing as yellow and white). The inset gives a close-in view of the center of SDSS J1531 in optical light, showing the two large galaxies and a set of 19 large clusters of stars, called superclusters, stretching across the middle. The image shows these star clusters are arranged in an ‘S’ formation that resembles beads on a string. The multiwavelength data provides signs of an ancient, titanic eruption in SDSS J1531, which a team of researchers think was responsible for creation of the 19 star clusters. Their argument is that an extremely powerful jet from the supermassive black holes in the center of one of the large galaxies pushed the surrounding hot gas away from the black hole, creating a gigantic cavity. The evidence for a cavity comes from “wings” of bright X-ray emission, seen with Chandra, tracing dense gas near the center of SDSS J1531. These wings are the edge of the cavity and the less dense gas in between is part of the cavity. LOFAR shows radio waves from the remains of the jet’s energetic particles filling in the giant cavity. These features are highlighted in a labeled version of the image. Multiwavelength Image of SDSS J1531, LabeledX-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO/O. Omoruyi et al.; Optical: NASA/ESA/STScI/G. Tremblay et al.; Radio: ASTRON/LOFAR; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk The astronomers also discovered cold and warm gas located near the opening of the cavity, detected with the Atacama Large Millimeter and submillimeter Array (ALMA) and the Gemini North Telescope, respectively. A separate graphic shows the optical image with the cold gas added in green (left), and the warm gas added in red (right). The team argues that some of the hot gas pushed away from the black hole eventually cooled to form the cold and warm gas shown. The team thinks tidal effects from the two merging galaxies compressed the gas along curved paths, leading to the star clusters forming in the “beads on a string” pattern. Cold and warm gas located near the opening of the cavity.Optical/Halpha: NASA/ESA/STScI; Radio: ESO/NAOJ/NRAO A paper led by Osase Omoruyi of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) describing these results has recently been published in The Astrophysical Journal and is available online here. The authors of the paper are Grant Tremblay (CfA), Francoise Combes (Paris Observatory, France), Timothy Davis (Cardiff University, UK), Michael Gladders (University of Chicago), Alexey Vikhlinin (CfA), Paul Nulsen (CfA), Preeti Kharb (National Centre for Radio Astrophysics — Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, India ), Stefi Baum (University of Manitoba, Canada), Christopher O’Dea (University of Manitoba, Canada), Keren Sharon (University of Michigan), Bryan Terrazas (Columbia University), Rebecca Nevin (Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory), Aimee Schechter (University of Colorado Boulder), John ZuHone (CfA), Michael McDonald (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Hakon Dahle (University of Oslo, Norway), Matthew B. Bayliss (University of Cincinnati), Thomas Connor (CfA), Michael Florian (University of Arizona), Jane Rigby (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center), and Sravani Vaddi (Arecibo Observatory) NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center manages the Chandra program. The Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory’s Chandra X-ray Center controls science operations from Cambridge, Massachusetts, and flight operations from Burlington, Massachusetts. Read more from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. For more Chandra images, multimedia and related materials, visit: https://www.nasa.gov/mission/chandra-x-ray-observatory/ Visual Description: This is an image of a cluster of galaxies called SDSS J1531+3414 in X-ray, optical, and radio light. The overall scene resembles a colorful display of lights as if viewed through a wet, glass window. Blurry orange dots of different sizes are scattered across a black background. These orange dots are entire galaxies. Near the center of the image, two central galaxies appear as bright, white dots. Star clusters, resembling beads on a string in shades of electric blue, sweep over the galaxy on the left, through the space in between the galaxy pair, and then lightly coil beneath both galaxies. Clouds of blue, X-ray light, and dark pink, radio light, surround the two galaxies. The blue cloud spreads out for thousands of light-years toward the region above the central galaxies. The dark pink cloud, somewhat resembling the shape of an upside down spinning top toy, stretches far below the two galaxies and slightly toward our left. This dark pink cloud represents the remains of a powerful jet, produced by a supermassive black hole within one of the two central galaxies. In the upper right corner of the image, another dark pink cloud is present. This cloud may be the relic of a counter-jet from the same black hole outburst. News Media Contact Megan Watzke Chandra X-ray Center Cambridge, Mass. 617-496-7998 Jonathan Deal Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, Ala. 256-544-0034 View the full article

Dr. Natasha Batalha, an astronomer at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, says collaborating with her teams is one of the best parts of her job.UC Santa Cruz, UC Regents Science is often portrayed as a solitary affair, where discoveries are made by lone geniuses toiling in isolation. But Dr. Natasha Batalha, an astronomer at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley, says solving problems with the people around her is one of the best parts of her job. “Oh, man, working with people is all I do!” said Batalha, whose current research involves using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to study exoplanets, planets outside our solar system that orbit other stars. Batalha’s work explores hot, Jupiter-like exoplanets; smaller, rocky exoplanets more similar to Earth; and brown dwarfs, mysterious objects smaller than a star but huge compared to the biggest planets. A single question has driven her since she was a kid: “Does life exist beyond Earth?” It’s a lofty question, bigger than any one scientist. And that’s the point. “I love being part of a larger community,” she said, “We’re working together to try to solve this question that people have been asking for centuries.” However, the particular joy of belonging wasn’t always present in Batalha’s life. When she was 10, her family moved from Brazil to the U.S., where she was met with culture shock, pressure to assimilate, and a language barrier. She thinks the latter is partly why she gravitated toward the universal language of math. Eventually, her interests and strengths took shape around astronomy. When she chose to study physics in college, followed by a dual PhD in astronomy and astrobiology, her parents – who are also scientists – helped fill in for the community she was otherwise lacking. “In high school, I watched female students drop out of my physics classes,” Batalha said. “The honors physics track in college was devoid of women and people of color. I didn’t feel I had a community in my college classes.” Her mother, Natalie Batalha, is an astronomer who served as project scientist for NASA’s Kepler space telescope– the mission that taught us there are more planets than stars. Natasha’s father is a LatinX physicist. Both her parents had already faced similar challenges in their careers, and having their example to look at of people who had successfully overcome those barriers helped her push on. “I identify as female and LatinX, which are both underrepresented groups in STEM,” she said, “but I also have a ton of privilege because my parents are in the field. That gave me a dual perspective on how powerful community is.” I love being part of a larger community. We’re working together to try to solve this question that people have been asking for centuries. Natasha Batalha NASA Astronomer Since then, empowering her own science community has been a focus of Batalha’s work. She builds open-source tools, like computer programs for interpreting data, that are available to all. They help scientists use Webb’s exoplanet data to study what climates they may have, the behavior of clouds in their atmospheres, and the chemistry at work there. “I saw how limiting closed toolsets could be for the community, when only an ‘inner circle’ had access to them,” Batalha said. “So, I wanted to create new tools that would put everyone on the same footing.” Batalha herself recently used Webb to explore the skies of exoplanet WASP-39 b, a hot gas giant orbiting a star 700 light-years away. She is part of the team that found carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide there, marking the first time either was detected in an exoplanet atmosphere. Now, she is turning to the difficult-to-discern characteristics of smaller, cooler planets. Dr. Natasha Batalha has been hooked on the search for life beyond Earth since elementary school.UC Santa Cruz, UC Regents Batalha says she’s exactly where her 6th-grade self imagined she would be. In elementary school, she read a biography of NASA astronaut Sally Ride and was hooked by an idea it contained: that in 20 years the kids reading those words could be the ones pioneering the search for life on Mars. Today’s youth belong to the Artemis Generation, who will explore farther than people have ever gone before. The Artemis program will send the first woman and first person of color to the lunar surface. Missions over time will build a presence at the Moon to unlock a new era of science and prepare for human missions to Mars and beyond. Along the way, scientists will continue to search for signs of life beyond Earth, an endeavor building on the work of many generations and relying on those in the future to carry on the search. “That’s something really rewarding about my work at NASA,” she said. “These questions have been asked throughout human history and, by joining the effort to answer them, you’re taking the baton for a while, before passing it on to someone else.” View the full article

4 min read Ride the Wave of Radio Astronomy During the Solar Eclipse GAVRT DSS-28 dish at the NASA Deep Space Communications Complex near Goldstone, California. NASA/Russell Torres Students and science enthusiasts are invited to catch a real-time look at radio astronomy as scientists explore magnetic hotspots on the Sun during a live, virtual solar eclipse event on April 8, 2024. A massive, 34-meter telescope once used by NASA’s Deep Space Network to communicate with spacecraft will point towards the Sun during the solar eclipse that day. The Moon’s position in front of the Sun will help the antenna detect radio waves from solar active regions in more detail than is usually possible. The Solar Patrol team at California’s Lewis Center for Educational Research, in partnership with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will remotely operate the Goldstone Apple Valley Radio Telescope (GAVRT) while sharing observations and commentary during an interactive webinar open for the public. Scientists and students regularly use the single-dish GAVRT antenna, located in the Mojave Desert of California, to scan the Sun. They use the observations to build maps of radio waves formed along strong magnetic field lines in the outer atmosphere of the Sun. By studying these images, researchers can measure the strength and structure of those powerful magnetic regions. These observations offer insight into magnetically driven processes on the Sun, like solar flares and coronal mass ejections, which generate space weather events that can interfere with satellite electronics, radio communications and GPS signals, spacecraft orbits, and power grids on Earth. During normal solar observing, GAVRT can only detect and distinguish relatively large features on the Sun. A solar eclipse offers a unique opportunity for GAVRT to capture sharper and more refined information about the magnetic field structure in the solar active regions that are often marked by sunspots. “It’s special during the eclipse because, as the Moon is passing in front of an active region, that really sharp edge of the Moon covers up more and more of the structure in that active region,” says Marin Anderson, a research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and GAVRT Solar Patrol scientist. Anderson explains how, as the Moon blocks a portion of the active region, it’s easier to tell what part of the active region the radio emissions are coming from. “It’s basically a way of probing magnetic field structures in the corona of the Sun in a way that we wouldn’t be able to unless an eclipse was happening.” Anyone in the world can join the live-streamed webinar on April 8 from 1-3:30 p.m. EDT (10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. PDT) and ask the hosts questions as a partial eclipse becomes visible in California. Participants will be able to see the telescope controls, data visualization tools like Helioviewer, incoming radio data, a map of active hot spot regions, and imagery of the eclipsed Sun at radio wavelengths. Eclipse maximum, as observed by GAVRT in radio waves at 6.00 GHz and 8.45 GHz, on October 14, 2023. Click the arrow to see the post-eclipse Sun. NASA/Thangasamy Velusamy Post-eclipse image of the Sun, as observed by GAVRT at 6.00 GHz and 8.45 GHz, on October 14, 2023. One of the active regions monitored by GAVRT during the eclipse is visible as the bright region in the lower left quadrant of the Sun. Click the arrow to see the eclipsed Sun. NASA/Thangasamy Velusamy GAVRT was awarded a NASA grant to carry out observations during both the 2023 and 2024 solar eclipses in the U.S. GAVRT supports an open science framework by making all data and radio maps available for viewing and downloading by the public. Images collected during the eclipse will be posted online with instructions on how to run software and analyze the data. The Solar Patrol team hopes the public webinar inspires people to become active members of the GAVRT program where they can learn to remotely operate the telescope themselves while taking part in data analysis and scientific discovery. “I think one of the really great aspects of GAVRT Solar Patrol is that it connects any participant, but particularly students, with the Sun, beyond what they see and experience every day from the star,” Anderson says. “It’s seeing the Sun at radio wavelengths and being able to connect different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum with unique physics that’s happening on the Sun.” Since its launch in 1997, GAVRT has offered many opportunities to combine science observations with education and outreach. In addition to Solar Patrol, GAVRT is used in campaigns where participants can study Jupiter’s radiation belts, monitor radio emissions from black holes, or search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Anderson says giving students the tools to do science themselves empowers them. “It’s a really hands-on process and I think the way to get kids excited and invested in not only solar science but the scientific process in general.” To register for the GAVRT April 8 eclipse livestream event, visit: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/4920123655757293655 For other ways to get involved in GAVRT, including signing up a classroom to participate in observations, contact: mc@lcer.org or visit gavrt.lewiscenter.org. By Rose Brunning, Communications Lead NASA Heliophysics Digital Resource Library Share Details Last Updated Feb 21, 2024 Related Terms 2024 Solar Eclipse Eclipses Skywatching Solar Eclipses Keep Exploring Discover More on the 2024 Solar Eclipse Shadow Notes Eclipse 2024 Science Eclipse 2024 Citizen Science Safety View the full article

NASA Administrator to Discuss Science With Crew Aboard Station

4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) This staged scene and illustration represents what you might see when NASA’s University Innovation project awards teams of students with funds to conduct real-world aeronautical research that will help the agency transform aviation for the 21st century. NASA /Lillian Gipson / Getty Images NASA has selected another five university teams to participate in real-world aviation research challenges that could help transform flight in the skies above our communities. Research topics range from safeguarding automated aircraft from cyberattacks to finding ways to help aircraft operations across the nation more quickly recover from delays due to major storms or technical problems. “The idea is to give students, faculty and their partners the chance to conduct research – both physical and digital – that helps us realize our vision for 21st century aviation that is sustainable and offers more diverse air travel options,” said Koushik Datta, University Innovation project manager for NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. The University Innovation project includes two efforts through which universities are invited to submit research proposals and from which teams are then selected: the University Leadership Initiative (ULI) and the University Student Research Challenge (USRC). A key ULI goal is for faculty-led student teams to gain experience by participating in aeronautics research on a multidisciplinary team made up of partners from other universities and industry, including faculty and student populations who are underrepresented or have not applied their skills to aviation problems. Meanwhile, in addition to conducting technical research, student-led USRC teams help them develop skills in entrepreneurship and public communication. Each team of students selected receives a USRC grant from NASA – and the additional challenge of raising funds from the public through student-led crowdfunding. ULI makes selections once a year, while USRC manages multiple selection cycles each year, with proposals for the next selection cycle due by 5 p.m. EDT on March 21. Visit the NASA Aeronautics Solicitations page for more information. For ULI, three teams were selected resulting in a total of $18 million in awards during the next three years. For each team, the proposing university will serve as lead. The new ULI selections are: University of California, Berkeley The team will test ideas for improving the ability of the National Airspace System to become more resilient to reduce the disruptive impact major storms, facility outages, and other technical issues can have on airline flight operations. Team members include University of Maryland, University of Michigan, Morgan State University, University of Pennsylvania, Elizabeth City State University, United Airlines, Patty Clark Aviation Advisors, ATAC Corporation, Mead and Hunt, American Airlines, Vaughan College of Aeronautics and Technology, The Federal Aviation Administration, Lansing Community College, Community College of Philadelphia, and City College of San Francisco. Ohio University The team will seek to solve technical challenges associated with the ability of large drones to safely taxi, take off, and land at airports using automated navigation systems. Team members include Illinois Institute of Technology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Tufts University, Stanford University, Veth Research Associates LLC, Reliable Robotics Corporation, Boeing, and Virginia Tech Transportation Institute. The George Washington University The team will investigate measures that can be taken to safeguard autonomous aircraft flying in high-density urban airspace from cyberattacks that could disrupt safe operations. Team members include Vanderbilt University, Purdue University, Tennessee State University, University of California, Irvine, The University of Texas at Austin, Collins Aerospace, Northern Virginia Community College, Cyber Security and Privacy Research Institute at The George Washington University, Skygrid (a Boeing Company), and the Secure Resilient Systems and Technology Group at MIT Lincoln Laboratory. For USRC, NASA selected two new university student teams to participate in this cycle with a USRC grant that can be up to $80,000. The new USRC selections are: Cornell University The team’s project is titled “Learning Cooperative Policies for Adaptive Human-Drone Teaming in Shared Airspace” and will work to enable new coordination and communication models for smoother, more efficient and robust air traffic flow. The student team members are: Mehrnaz Sabet (lead), Aaron Babu, Marcus Lee, Joshua Park, Francis Pham, Owen Sorber, Roopak Srinivasan, and Austin Zhao. Faculty mentors are Sanjiban Choudhury and Susan Fussell. University of Washington, Seattle The team’s project is titled “Investigation on Cryogenic Fluid Chill-Down Time for Supersonic Transport Usage” and will investigate using vortex generators to reduce the boil-off of cryogenic fluids in pipes. Student team members are Ryan Fidelis (lead), Alexander Ala, and Robert Breidenthal. The faculty mentor is Fiona Spencer. About the AuthorJim BankeManaging Editor/Senior WriterJim Banke is a veteran aviation and aerospace communicator with more than 35 years of experience as a writer, producer, consultant, and project manager based at Cape Canaveral, Florida. He is part of NASA Aeronautics' Strategic Communications Team and is Managing Editor for the Aeronautics topic on the NASA website. Facebook logo @NASA@NASAaero@NASA_es @NASA@NASAaero@NASA_es Instagram logo @NASA@NASAaero@NASA_es Linkedin logo @NASA Explore More 3 min read NASA Collaborates in an International Air Quality Study Article 1 week ago 2 min read NASA Releases STEM Toolkit for Advanced Air Mobility Article 3 weeks ago 4 min read NASA Autonomous Flight Software Successfully Used in Air Taxi Stand-Ins Article 4 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Aeronautics STEM Black History Month NASA History Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate Share Details Last Updated Feb 21, 2024 EditorJim BankeContactJim Bankejim.banke@nasa.gov Related TermsAeronauticsAeronautics Research Mission DirectorateFlight InnovationTransformative Aeronautics Concepts ProgramUniversity InnovationUniversity Leadership InitiativeUniversity Student Research Challenge View the full article

1 min read Become a SunSketcher, and Help Measure the Shape of the Sun! Baily’s Beads, tiny slivers of sunlight that pass through the valleys on the surface of the moon, seen during the eclipse of 2 July 2019. Register now for the SunSketcher project to use Baily’s Beads to measure the Sun. Credit P. Horalék/ESO What shape Is the Sun? Hint: it’s not perfectly round! Knowing precisely how the Sun’s shape deviates from a sphere can teach us about its interior and test theories of gravity. You can help measure the Sun’s shape by joining the SunSketcher project! During the total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, we need help from volunteers from along the eclipse’s path of totality – the region from Texas to Maine where the Moon will completely block the Sun’s light – to help create a movie of the eclipse. Using the free SunSketcher smartphone app, you’ll capture views of the eclipse and trace tiny slivers of sunlight that pass through the valleys on the surface of the Moon. The science team will combine your images with precision maps of the Moon collected by NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter to measure the Sun’s size and shape precisely. Are you planning to watch the April 8 total eclipse? Check out the SunSketcher website for information about eclipses and the SunSketcher project. Make your travel plans now. Register as a SunSketcher to receive regular updates on the progress of this exciting citizen science experiment! Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 Related Terms Citizen Science Heliophysics Explore More 5 min read NASA-Funded Science Projects Tuning In to ‘Eclipse Radio’ Article 5 hours ago 4 min read Sense the Solar Eclipse with NASA’s Eclipse Soundscapes Project Article 1 week ago 2 min read Do NASA Science LIVE on February 21! What’s it mean to be cool? Article 1 week ago View the full article

Intuitive Machines is targeting Thursday, Feb. 22, for the landing of their Odysseus lunar lander on the surface of the Moon as part of NASA’s CLPS initiative and Artemis campaign.Intuitive Machines As part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign, Intuitive Machines is targeting no earlier than 5:49 p.m. EST Thursday, Feb. 22, to land their Odysseus lunar lander near Malapert A in the South Pole region of the Moon. Live landing coverage will air on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agency’s website. NASA TV can be streamed on a variety of platforms, including social media. Coverage will include live streaming and blog updates beginning 4:15 p.m., as the landing milestones occur. Upon successful landing, Intuitive Machines and NASA will host a news conference to discuss the mission and science opportunities that lie ahead as the company begins lunar surface operations. In May 2019, the agency awarded a task order for scientific payload delivery to Intuitive Machines. Odysseus launched at 1:05 a.m., Feb. 15, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA is working with several U.S. companies to deliver science and technology to the lunar surface through the agency’s CLPS initiative. This pool of companies may bid on task orders for end-to-end delivery services, which includes payload integration and operations, launching from Earth, and landing on the surface of the Moon. NASA’s CLPS contracts are indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts with a cumulative maximum contract value of $2.6 billion through 2028. Through the Artemis campaign, commercial robotic deliveries will perform science experiments, test technologies, and demonstrate capabilities to help NASA explore the Moon in advance of Artemis Generation astronaut missions to the lunar surface, and ultimately crewed missions to Mars. Watch, engage on social media Let people know you’re following the mission on X, Facebook, and Instagram by using the hashtag #Artemis. You can also stay connected by following and tagging these accounts: X: @NASA, @NASA_Johnson, @NASAArtemis, @NASAMoon Facebook: NASA, NASAJohnsonSpaceCenter, NASAArtemis Instagram: @NASA, @NASAJohnson, @NASAArtemis For more information about the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative, see: https://www.nasa.gov/clps -end- Karen Fox / Alise Fisher Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1600 karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov Nilufar Ramji / Laura Sorto Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 nilufar.ramji@nasa.gov / laura.g.sorto@nasa.gov Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 LocationNASA Headquarters Related TermsCommercial SpaceArtemisCommercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS)Johnson Space CenterMissionsNASA Headquarters View the full article

5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) When a physical condition limits mobility, getting around is easier with EyeGaze Edge. The eye-tracking technology integrates with the Ability Drive application used with motorized mobility devices, enabling hands-free control of a wheelchair’s motion. Credit: EyeGaze Inc. Communicating when a traumatic brain injury, stroke, or disease has made speech impossible can be daunting. Specialized eye-tracking technology uses eye movement to enable people living with disabilities to connect one-on-one, over the phone, or via the internet. Eye-tracking systems for computers pinpoint a person’s gaze – where the eye is looking at a screen – by reflecting infrared light off the cornea and capturing it with a camera, using image-processing software to determine the eye’s orientation. The technology isn’t new, but it has become much more widely accessible, thanks in part to a collaboration between NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California and a Fairfax, Virginia-based company called Eyegaze Inc. When the company built the first model in 1988, its computers were bulky, requiring three shipping boxes for equipment and a company staff member to set up the system. That cost limited access, and the learning process could be intimidating. In 1998, NASA and Eyegaze entered a public-private partnership via Congressional funding to make the hardware smaller, more portable, and affordable without compromising efficiency. It also reduced the weight of the original system by six times and its volume by nearly the same factor. Other advancements served as a springboard for two more decades of development. By collaborating with JPL, the two entities were able to miniaturize and improve the company’s Eyegaze Edge system and lower costs, eliminating barriers to ownership of this communications technology. “Working with NASA, we were able to make the device less bulky,” said Preethi Vaidyanathan, an engineer with Eyegaze. “Since then, we integrated the external components into a small camera.” It mounts above or below a standard computer screen and requires less than 15 seconds to calibrate to an individual’s gaze. Visual Surfing Minesweeper and other video games adapted to use eye-tracking technology are just one form of entertainment made possible by EyeGaze for people living with disabilities.Credit: EyeGaze Inc. As personal electronic devices and internet access became commonplace, Eyegaze customers wanted to do more than type. The company’s work with NASA and other government partners put it in a position to meet that demand. Eyeworld integrates with computers, mobile phones, and tablets, allowing the Eyegaze camera to function as an external mouse and keyboard. By enabling almost any computer function, it lets users chat online, post to social media, send emails, text, or make phone calls. It’s also possible to change room lighting, adjust thermostat settings, and operate other environmental controls using Amazon Echo and Google Home via pages of specialized buttons with one-glance button controls. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Eyegaze integrated communications programs such as Zoom and WhatsApp to allow people to connect with their family and friends. To help combat a sense of isolation, the company added meditation apps and Window Swap, which stream the views from different windows worldwide. Virtual museums take the viewer on guided tours. A music streaming service syncs to favorite music apps and offers the International Radio Garden app to sample music from other cultures. Access to online gaming communities provides another way to connect. “We are constantly thinking about what the customers want. One thing is freedom of movement, so controlling a wheelchair gives them that to some extent,” said Vaidyanathan. Eyegaze Edge integrates with the Ability Drive application used with motorized mobility devices. Looking at a specific button enables hands-free control of a wheelchair’s motion. The Right to Speak Eye-tracking hardware and software make it possible for a person to communicate using the movement of their eyes. This keyboard screen is one of many Eyegaze developed for people with a full range of eye motion. A vertical keyboard is available for those who can only look up and down. Credit: EyeGaze Inc. Numerous medical conditions can lead to the kind of physical paralysis making it impossible to speak. Well-publicized brain and spinal cord injuries in athletes have led to broader awareness. But there are a host of other causes, such as cerebral palsy, ALS, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, and spinal muscular atrophy. These conditions can result in locked-in syndrome, which paralyzes all voluntary muscles except those that control eye movement. Eye-tracking software is a lifeline for patients, using what may be their only remaining voluntary movement, but even that can be impeded. Eyegaze Edge measures several eye features, making it possible for the tracker to work even when less of the pupil is visible. The company employs clinical specialists who can troubleshoot issues that may prevent customers from using the system, eye conditions like cataracts, dry eyes, and eyelids that droop, partly covering the pupil. The company now serves individuals in 44 countries, including nations in Southeast Asia and Africa. Adults, children as young as 18 months old, military veterans, and others can communicate using only their eyes. If only vertical eye movement is possible, Eyegaze Edge offers a special vertical keyboard screen. Pages of commonly used phrases communicate a statement with a single glance. Large, easy-to-use buttons allow patients to communicate directly with healthcare providers and caregivers for everyday needs. Clinicians use Eyegaze Edge and teach their patients how to communicate using the technology. In some cases, Vaidyanathan said, this technology even allows people to share their final thoughts with family and friends. “NASA helped us get our technology to the size of a laptop – small and sleek. But we continue to investigate and design our solutions to meet ongoing needs. Communication is a key right, so we must accommodate these different challenges,” she said. NASA has a long history of transferring technology to the private sector. The agency’s Spinoff publication profiles NASA technologies that have transformed into commercial products and services, demonstrating the broader benefits of America’s investment in its space program. Spinoff is a publication of the Technology Transfer program in NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD). For more information on how NASA brings space technology down to Earth, visit: spinoff.nasa.gov By Margo Pierce NASA’s Spinoff Publication Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 Related TermsSpinoffsSpace Technology Mission DirectorateTechnology TransferTechnology Transfer & Spinoffs Explore More 4 min read Solver Spotlight: Shobhana Gupta Article 4 days ago 3 min read NASA Experiment Sheds Light on Highly Charged Moon Dust Article 5 days ago 4 min read NASA Solar Sail Technology Passes Crucial Deployment Test Article 1 week ago Keep Exploring Discover Related Topics Missions Humans in Space Climate Change Solar System View the full article

After 25 years of international collaboration operating the largest and most technologically advanced laboratory in low Earth orbit, the current decade of research results has seen thousands of researchers around the world completing their investigations, analyzing their data, and publishing their findings. Through close examination of station client feedback obtained since 2002, station program managers, administration personnel, and technical staff have improved their processes and software tools to enhance communication with research teams for better in-flight data collection and sample return. These refinements affect experiment results and the conclusions researchers draw. The enhanced planning and coordination of investigation launch, stowage, crew time allocation, accessibility to station’s research capabilities (i.e., facilities), and data delivery are critical to the effective operation of scientific projects for accurate results to be shared with the scientific community, sponsors, legislators, and the public. Over 3,700 investigations have operated since Expedition 1, with more than 250 active research facilities, the participation of more than 100 countries, the work of more than 5,000 researchers, and over 4,000 publications. The growth in research (Figure 1) and international collaboration (Figure 2) has prompted the publication of over 560 research articles in top-tier scientific journals with about 75 percent of those groundbreaking studies occurring since 2018 (Figure 3). Figure 1 . Bibliometric mapping of station research growth over time. Count of the keyword microgravity co-occurring at least five times with other research keywords at different time periods. A) 1999-2005: n=11; B) 2006-2011: n=49; C) 2012-2017 n=69; D) 2018-Sep. 2023: n=115. The node size represents the number of publications containing the research keywords (larger nodes = more publications), the distance between nodes represents relatedness between research keywords, and the colors represent different research areas. Figure 1-A) 1999-2005: n=11 Figure 1-B) 2006-2011: n=49 Figure 1-C) 2012-2017 n=69 Figure 1-D) 2018-Sep. 2023: n=115 Bibliometric analyses conducted through VOSviewer1 measure the impact of space station research by quantifying and visualizing networks of journals, citations, subject areas, and collaboration between authors, countries, or organizations. Using bibliometrics, a broad range of challenges in research management and research evaluation can be addressed. The network visualizations, stacked charts, and line graphs provided in this introduction demonstrate the growth and influence of station research. Figure 2. Bibliometric mapping of station collaboration growth over time. Measurement of co-authorship strength (i.e., total line thicknesses) between the United States and other countries in the network at different time periods. A) 1999-2005: total link strength = 19 B) 2006-2011: total link strength = 74; C) 2012-2017: total link strength = 150; D) 2018-Sep. 2023: total link strength = 442. Nodes represent the number of publications for each country. Distance and color are not relevant indicators in this chart. Figure 2-A) 1999-2005: total link strength = 19 Figure 2-B) 2006-2011: total link strength = 74 Figure 2-C) 2012-2017: total link strength = 150 Figure 2-D) 2018-Sep. 2023 Figure 3. Count of publications reported in journals ranked in the top 100 according to global standards of Clarivate. A total of 567 top-tier publications through the end of FY-23 are shown by year and research category. In this year’s edition of the Annual Highlights of Results, we report findings from a wide range of topics in biology and biotechnology, physics, human research, Earth and space science, and technology development – including investigations about plant root orientation, tissue damage and repair, bubbles, lightning, fire dynamics, neutron stars, cosmic ray nuclei, imaging technology improvements, brain and vascular health, solar panel materials, grain flow, as well as satellite and robot control. The findings highlighted here are only a small sample representative of the research conducted by all the participating space agencies – ASI (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana), CSA (Canadian Space Agency), ESA (European Space Agency), JAXA (Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency), Roscosmos, and NASA – on station in the past 12 months. Many more studies in fiscal year (FY)-23 revealed remarkable results, such as finding reduced fat accumulation in the bone marrow (MARROW), identifying gene mutations that preserve muscle (Molecular Muscle), improving optical beams…detecting bacterial antibiotic resistance during spaceflight (Plazmida), observing abnormal cell division of human neural stem cells (STaARS Bioscience-4), among others. A full list of all the publications collected in FY-23 can be found at the end of this report. A publicly accessible database of space station investigations and publications can be found in the Space Station Research Explorer (SSRE) website, and all editions of the Annual Highlights of Results from the International Space Station can be found through the Past Annual Highlights of Results from the Space Station Research Results Library. Between Oct. 1, 2022, and Sept. 30, 2023, we identified a total of 330 articles associated with station research. Of these 330 articles, 268 appeared in peer-reviewed journals, 59 in conference proceedings, and 3 in gray literature such as books, magazines, technical reports, or patents. Articles are also categorized based on how authors obtained their results. There were 204 publications that reported direct implementation of the science aboard station (i.e., Results), 37 that reported development of the payload prior to operation on station (i.e., Flight Preparation), and 89 that emerged as follow-ups to station science (i.e., Derived). Because derived articles are new scientific studies generated from shared data, derived science is an additional return on the investment trusted to station science. For FY-23, this return on investment was 27 percent. Full definitions of these publication types (i.e, Results, Flight Preparation, and Derived) categories can be found on page 10 of this report. Figure 4. Count of publications by agency and station research category. A total of 330 articles were collected in FY-23. Figure 4 shows a stacked chart with the count of articles collected in FY-23 broken out by space agency and research category. In summary, we found three articles for CSA, 43 articles for ESA, 58 articles for JAXA, 10 articles for Roscosmos, and 216 articles for NASA. Of the 330 articles collected in FY-23, 66 were articles published prior to Oct. 1, 2022. Measuring Space Station Impacts The significant impact of sustained international multidisciplinary research in microgravity can be observed through the findings published in world-class scientific journals that adhere to a rigorous scientific peer-review process. With the assistance of Clarivate, a global database that collects publication and journal information for annual journal ranking and metrics, we identified the top findings produced by station researchers. One parameter, the journal’s Eigenfactor Score2, ranks each journal based on readership and influence, including the different citation standards of each discipline. From Oct 1, 2022, to Sept 30, 2023, 78 articles appeared in top-tier journals. Of those 78 articles, 26 were reported in top 20 journals (see Table 1). Table 1. A total of 78 articles were published in top-tier journals in FY-23: 21 articles in top 20 (green) and 57 articles in top 100 (yellow). Data ranked according to Clarivate Journal Citations Reports (JCR) Eigenfactor score. In addition to the research diversity and top-tier results obtained from station, a comparison of station science to global and US standards of category-normalized citation impact (i.e., adjusted impact of a publication based on its research area) shows greater influence of station science since 2010 compared to other research endeavors taking place domestically or internationally. The authority of station research was particularly prominent in 2019, and it continues to hold its place in the scientific community to date. Figure 5 illustrates this important comparison. Figure 5. Citation impact (normalized by research area) of station science publications compared to national and global standards. The high impact of space station is in great part attributed to the researchers who conduct transformative science in low Earth orbit. As shown in Table 2, four studies published in FY-23 have already received much acclaim from others in their field. Table 2. List of articles published in FY-23 that have been widely recognized in a short period of time. *NICER reported two additional FY-23 publications with over 10 citations. Advancements in technology and research on station have inspired students all over the world to pursue STEM careers, encouraged researchers to explore bold questions, and incentivized economies through the initiation of businesses in the space industry. While some of the most decisive steps toward space commercialization are recent, researchers from small and large companies, academic institutions, and government agencies have been conducting experiments in space since 2005 through the International Space Station National Lab. Today, the hard work is paying off. In FY-23, we collected 39 publications from investigations sponsored by National Lab with fascinating results in droplet behavior for the improvement of condensing systems (Drop Vibration), the reliable use of a genome examination and editing tool (Ax-1 CRSPR), the identification of specific gut bacteria involved in bone loss (Rodent Research-5), the use of neural networks for improved image analysis (Spaceborne Computer-2), and much more. In addition to the accomplishments of the International Partners and NASA on space station, National Lab’s alternative route to send investigations to space have demonstrated that new paths can be explored to expand research in microgravity for the advancement of science and benefit of humanity. Evolution of Space Station Results The archive of space station investigations went online in 2004. Since that time, changes to methods for tracking investigations and publications have been implemented, including increased differentiation between research disciplines and a re-characterization of publication fields. Currently, the following publication types are included in the Program Science Toolbox: Flight Preparation Results – publications about the development work performed for an investigation, facility, or project prior to operation on space station. Station Results – publications that provide information about the performance and results of an investigation, facility, or project as a direct implementation on station or on a vehicle to space station. Derived Results – publications that use data from an investigation that operated on station, but the authors of the article are not members of the original investigation team. Derived Results articles have emerged as a direct outcome of the open-source data initiative, which gives access to raw data for new researchers to analyze and publish innovative results, expanding global knowledge and scientific benefits. Patents – applications filed based on the performance and results of an investigation, facility, or project on station, or on a vehicle to space station. Related – publications that lead to the development of an investigation, facility, or project. Linking Space Station Benefits Space station research results lead to benefits for human exploration of space, benefits to humanity, and the advancement of scientific discovery. This year’s Annual Highlights of Results from the International Space Station includes descriptions of just a few of the results that were published from across the space station partnership during the past year. Space station investigation results have yielded updated insights into how to live and work more effectively in space by addressing such topics as understanding radiation effects on crew health, combating bone and muscle loss, improving designs of systems that handle fluids in microgravity, and determining how to maintain environmental control efficiently. Results from the space station provide new contributions to the body of scientific knowledge in the physical sciences, life sciences, and Earth and space sciences to advance scientific discoveries in multi-disciplinary ways. Space station science results have Earth-based applications, including understanding our climate, contributing to the treatment of disease, improving existing materials, and inspiring the future generation of scientists, clinicians, technologists, engineers, mathematicians, artists, and explorers. Citations: 1Van Eck NJ, Waltman L. Software survey: VOSviewer, a computer program for bibliometric mapping. Scientometrics. 2010; 84(2):523-538. DOI: 10.1007/s11192-009-0146-3. 2West JD, Bergstrom TC, Bergstrom CT. The Eigenfactor Metrics™: A Network approach to assessing scholarly journals. College and Research Libraries. 2010;71(3). DOI: 10.5860/0710236. Keep Exploring Discover More Topics Latest News from Space Station Research Space Station Research and Technology ISS National Laboratory Opportunities and Information for Researchers View the full article

The 2023 Annual Highlights of Results from the International Space Station is now available. This new edition contains bibliometric analyses, a list of all the publications documented in fiscal year 2023, and synopses of the most recent and recognized scientific findings from investigations conducted on the space station. These investigations are sponsored by NASA and all international partners – CSA (Canadian Space Agency), ESA (European Space Agency), JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and the State Space Corporation Roscosmos (Roscosmos) – for the advancement of science, technology, and education. These new peer-reviewed publications include insights that advance the commercialization of space and benefit humankind. Over 4,000 scientific publications have been collected from more than 5,000 investigators during the life of the space station. Between Oct. 1, 2022, and Sept. 30, 2023, more than 300 publications were reported, most of them undergoing rigorous scientific review before release and dissemination. An in-depth bibliometric analysis of station science shows that the citation impact of these publications has been above national and global standards since 2010. This impact demonstrates that space station science continues to produce groundbreaking results for investigators around the world to further explore. Some of the findings presented in this edition include: Improved measurement of cosmic particles (Italian Space Agency) New ultrasound technologies for detection of physiological changes (CSA) Enhanced understanding of coordinated function in brain activity (ESA) Development of better semiconductor materials (NASA) Impacts of spaceflight on connective tissue for improved tissue remodeling (ROSCOSMOS) Understanding the behavior of granular materials for better spacecraft design (JAXA) The content in the Annual Highlights of Results from the International Space Station has been reviewed and approved by the Program Science Forum, a team of scientists and administrators from the international partnership of space agencies dedicated to planning, improving, and communicating the research operated on the space station. See the list of Station Research Results publications here and read more about the space station’s annual highlights of results and accomplishments here.   Keep Exploring Discover More Topics Space Station Research Results Space Station Research and Technology ISS National Laboratory Opportunities and Information for Researchers View the full article

4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Renee King calls herself Goddard Space Flight Center’s conscience: She helps make sure that at NASA Goddard, there truly is space for everyone. Name: Renee King Title: Deputy Director of Equal Opportunity Formal Job Classification: Supervisory, Equal Employment Opportunity Specialist Organization: Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity (Code 120) Renee King is the Deputy Director of Equal Opportunity at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.Courtesy of Renee King What do you do and what is most interesting about your role here at Goddard? How do you help support Goddard’s mission? I provide oversight and manage the Equal Opportunity (EO) program, which consists of the complaints, reasonable accommodation, Affirmative Employment (MD 715) and special emphasis programs. I serve as the conscience of the center, ensuring fairness and equity for all employees. My most interesting role here at the center is building relationships with the people and forming partnerships with community, local and national groups, and organizations, while I support the mission of attracting and developing a talented and diverse workforce. What is your educational background? What attracted you to EO? I have a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Maryland, Eastern Shore. I value people and processes and believe in equality and fairness. Being part of something that is bigger than me, as I love to help people and want to be the change agent that empowers DEIA – diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility – and it’s the right thing to do. What brought you to Goddard? I came to Goddard because it was ranked the number one agency to work for in their category. I started as an EEO specialist and evolved in 2022 into my current position. What are your goals for Goddard’s EO programs? I want to ensure that we are acknowledging the underrepresented groups and understanding the data around these groups and how they represent Goddard. For example, if there is a lack of women engineers at Goddard, we can look at the data and do more outreach to encourage more women engineers to work at Goddard. We are focused now on identifying and collecting data about these unrepresented groups. How do you use the data to implement change? We effect change through outreach to build awareness. One way is to look at more diverse universities and colleges, such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, and tribal universities, to see how they could assist us in the goal of getting more diverse talent in the workplace. What is your involvement with Goddard’s employee resource groups (ERGs)? I oversee the Women’s ERG, which addresses issues surrounding women at Goddard and in general. The group allows us to promote education and training through observances, mentoring, and program activities. I also oversee the program managers for most of Goddard’s ERGs to include the African Diaspora ERG, the Equal Accessibility ERG, the Hispanic Advisory Committee for Employees (HACE) ERG, the Native American ERG, and the Asian American ERG. All of the ERGs are vital to the center and the people. How do you communicate Goddard’s EO program needs to management? I assist the Goddard Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity director as a consultant, and as an adviser to the center director, deputy center directors, associate center director, and other management officials on all equal opportunity matters. Partially related to DEIA, I meet bi-weekly with senior management, which allows me to feel connected with and believe that they deeply care about our program. EO has a definite place in Goddard’s organization and we feel very supported. I thank Veronica Hill, Goddard’s EO director, for putting our office in a place where we are seen and heard. I thank senior management for listening and caring. Who inspires you? My mom! She is the strongest woman I know. I stand on the shoulders of three generations of strong black women. She was the matriarch of our family. I saw her strength and her will as she fought for everything that she thought was right, even against her cancer. The lesson I learned is to never give up. Family is everything. What are your hobbies? I like shopping. I enjoy home decorating. I also love event planning, especially family reunions. What is your “six-word memoir”? A six-word memoir describes something in just six words. Resilient. Loyal. Diligent. Professional. Kind. Supportive. By Elizabeth M. Jarrell NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. Conversations With Goddard is a collection of Q&A profiles highlighting the breadth and depth of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center’s talented and diverse workforce. The Conversations have been published twice a month on average since May 2011. Read past editions on Goddard’s “Our People” webpage. Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 EditorMadison OlsonContactRob Garnerrob.garner@nasa.govLocationGoddard Space Flight Center Related TermsPeople of GoddardGoddard Space Flight CenterPeople of NASA Explore More 7 min read Sislyn ‘Pauline’ Barrett: Procuring the Perfect Engineering Services Article 2 weeks ago 6 min read Bethany Theiling: Researching Oceans on Earth and Beyond Bethany Theiling is a planetary research scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt,… Article 3 months ago 7 min read PACE Mission’s Sujung Go: Helping Humanity and the Environment Article 1 week ago View the full article

Following the success of the Apollo 8 circumlunar mission, NASA believed that it could achieve a Moon landing by the summer of 1969 and meet President John F. Kennedy’s goal. Much work remained to accomplish that objective. Three crews and their backups trained for the next three Apollo missions while workers at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida prepared the spacecraft and rockets for those flights. With Apollo 9 in the home stretch to test the Lunar Module (LM) in Earth orbit in early March, preparations also continued for Apollo 10 in May, a lunar orbit test of the LM that served as a dress rehearsal for the Moon landing, and for Apollo 11, the landing mission itself planned for July. Apollo 8 Left: Apollo 8 astronaut Frank Borman and his wife Susan, at left, meet the Royal family at Buckingham Palace during the London stop of their European tour. Middle: Borman, left, meets with French President Charles de Gaulle and U.S. Ambassador to France R. Sargent Shriver during the Paris stop of the tour. Right: In Brussels, Borman, left, presents a model of the Saturn V rocket to Jean Rey, president of the European Commission. Left: In Den Haag, The Netherlands, Apollo 8 astronaut Borman, right, describes the Lunar Module to Queen Juliana. Middle: At The Vatican, Borman, left, presents a photograph of the Moon from Apollo 8 to Pope Paul VI. Right: The Bormans, Frank, left, Susan, and sons Edwin and Frederick, hold a press conference in Lisbon, the last stop of their European tour. As President Richard M. Nixon announced on Jan. 30, Apollo 8 astronaut Frank Borman, his wife Susan, and their two children Frederick and Edwin, set off on their European goodwill tour on Feb. 2, flying aboard a presidential Air Force jet. Borman’s Apollo 8 crewmates James A. Lovell and William A. Anders could not participate in the tour because they had already begun training as part of the Apollo 11 backup crew. The Bormans’ 19-day tour took them to London, Paris, Brussels, Den Haag, Bonn, West Berlin, Rome, Madrid, and Lisbon. They met with royalty, politicians, scientists, and Pope Paul VI, gave lectures during which Borman narrated a film from his flight, and held numerous press conferences. Apollo 9 Left: Apollo 9 astronauts Russell L. Schweickart, left, James A. McDivitt, and David R. Scott pose in front of the control panel for the spacecraft simulators. Middle: Fisheye lens view of Schweickart, left, and McDivitt in the Lunar Module simulator. Right: A technician poses in the Apollo A7L spacesuit, including the Portable Life Support System backpack used for the first time during Apollo 9. Apollo 9 astronauts James A. McDivitt, David R. Scott, and Russell L. Schweickart planned to conduct the first crewed test of the LM during their 10-day Earth orbital mission. They and their backups Charles “Pete” Conrad, Richard F. Gordon, and Alan L. Bean spent many hours in the spacecraft simulators and training for the spacewalk component of the mission. The planned spacewalk, the first and only one before the Moon landing mission, would not only test the spacesuit and its Portable Life Support System but also demonstrate an external crew transfer should a problem arise with the internal transfer tunnel or hatches. McDivitt, Scott, and Schweickart provided details of their mission to reporters during a press conference on Feb. 8 at the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC), now NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. They explained that during the mission phase when the two vehicles fly separately, they will use the call signs Spider for the LM and Gumdrop for the Command Module (CM), lighthearted references to the shapes of the respective spacecraft. Left: Apollo 9 astronauts Russell L. Schweickart, left, James A. McDivitt, and David R. Scott during the preflight crew press conference at the Manned Spacecraft Center (MSC), now NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Right: Senior NASA management assembled for the Apollo 9 Flight Readiness Review at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC): Associate Administrator for Manned Flight George E. Mueller, left, Apollo Program Director Samuel C. Phillips, KSC Director Kurt H. Debus, MSC Director Robert R. Gilruth, and Marshall Space Flight Center Director Wernher von Braun. Senior NASA managers met at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida for Apollo 9’s Flight Readiness Review the first week of February. At the end of the meeting, they set the launch date for Feb. 28. The following week, engineers in Firing Room 2 of KSC’s Launch Control Center conducted the Countdown Demonstration Test (CDDT), essentially a dress rehearsal for the actual countdown. On Feb. 12, McDivitt, Scott, and Schweickart participated in the final portion of the CDDT, as they would on launch day, by donning their spacesuits and climbing aboard their spacecraft for the final two hours of the test. Engineers began the countdown to launch on Feb. 26 but had to halt it the next day when the astronauts developed head colds. Managers reset the launch date to March 3, and the countdown restarted on March 1. Left: The Apollo 9 Saturn V at Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida during the Countdown Demonstration Test (CDDT). Middle: Engineers in the Launch Control Center’s Firing Room 2 monitor the rocket and spacecraft during the CDDT. Right: Apollo 9 astronauts Russell L. Schweickart, left, David R. Scott, and James A. McDivitt pose in front of their Saturn V following the CDDT. Apollo 10 Stacking of the Apollo 10 vehicle in High Bay 2 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Left: The three stages of the Saturn V stacked on Mobile Launcher-3. Middle left: The Apollo 10 spacecraft, the Command and Service Modules and the Lunar Module (LM) encased in the Spacecraft LM Adapter, arrives from the Manned Spacecraft Operations Building. Middle right: Workers lift the spacecraft for stacking onto the rocket, the footpads of the LM’s folded landing gear visible. Right: Workers lower the spacecraft onto the Saturn V rocket’s third stage. With Apollo 9 on Launch Pad 39A and almost ready to launch, workers in High Bay 2 of KSC’s Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) completed stacking of the Apollo 10 launch vehicle. The spacecraft, consisting of the Command and Service Modules atop the LM encased in the Spacecraft LM Adapter, arrived from the Manned Spacecraft Operations Building (MSOB) on Feb. 6 and VAB workers stacked it on the Saturn V rocket the same day. Engineers began to conduct integrated tests on the launch vehicle in preparation for rollout to Launch Pad 39B in mid-March. Apollo 10 astronauts Thomas P. Stafford, John W. Young, and Eugene A. Cernan and their backups L. Gordon Cooper, Donn F. Eisele, and Edgar D. Mitchell spent much time in spacecraft simulators and testing their spacesuits in vacuum chambers. Apollo 11 Left: Apollo 11 astronaut Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin, left, confers with support astronauts Ronald E. Evans and Harrison H. “Jack” Schmitt, the only geologist in the astronaut corps at the time, during training for deployment of the Early Apollo Science Experiment Package (EASEP). Right: Astronaut Don L. Lind, suited, practices deploying the EASEP instruments as Aldrin, in white shirt behind the dish antenna, oberves. With their historic mission only five months away, the Apollo 11 prime crew of Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin and their backups James A. Lovell, William A. Anders, and Fred W. Haise busied themselves training for the Moon landing. Although the primary goal of the first Moon landing mission centered on demonstrating that the Apollo spacecraft systems could safely land two astronauts on the surface and return them safely to Earth, the surface operations also included collecting lunar samples and deploying experiments. During their two-and-a-half-hour surface excursion, Armstrong and Aldrin planned to deploy three instruments comprising the Early Apollo Surface Experiment Package (EASEP) – a passive seismometer, a laser ranging retro-reflector, and a solar wind composition experiment. On Jan. 21, 1969, astronauts Harrison H. “Jack” Schmitt, the only geologist in the astronaut corps, and Don L. Lind conducted a simulation of the EASEP deployment in MSC’s Building 9. Aldrin observed the simulation, obviously with great interest. Left: Apollo 11 astronauts Edwin E. “Buzz” Aldrin, left, and Neil A. Armstrong during geology training at Sierra Blanco, Texas. Right: Apollo 11 backup astronauts Fred W. Haise, left, and James A. Lovell at the Sierra Blanco geology training session. Generic instruction in geology, including classroom work and field trips, became part of overall NASA astronaut training beginning in 1964. Once assigned to a crew that had a very good chance of actually walking on the lunar surface and collecting rock and soil samples, those astronauts received specialized instruction in geology. On Feb. 24, 1969, the two prime moonwalkers Armstrong and Aldrin, along with their backups Lovell and Haise, participated in their only trip specifically dedicated to geology training. The field exercise in west Texas took place near Sierra Blanca and the ruins of Fort Quitman, about 90 miles southeast of El Paso. Accompanied by a team from MSC’s Geology Branch, the astronauts practiced sampling the variety of rocks present at the site to obtain a representative collection, skills needed to choose the best sample candidates during their brief excursion on the lunar surface. Left: Workers mount the S-IC first stage on its Mobile Launcher in the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Middle: Neil A. Armstrong stands in front of the Lunar Module simulator at the Lunar Landing Research Facility (LLRF) at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Right: Aerial view of the LLRF at Langley. By mid-February, all three stages of the Apollo 11 Saturn V had arrived in the VAB, and on Feb. 21, workers stacked the S-IC first stage on its Mobile Launcher in High Bay 1. They finished assembling the rocket in March. In an altitude chamber in the nearby MSOB, on Feb. 10, engineers conducted a docking test between the CM and the LM. Five days later, they mated the ascent and descent stages of the LM for further testing. With the Lunar Landing Training Vehicle (LLTV) still grounded following its December 1968 crash, the Lunar Landing Research Facility (LLRF) at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, remained as the only high-fidelity trainer for the descent and landing of the LM on the Moon. Armstrong practiced landings in the LLRF on Feb 12. Lunar Receiving Laboratory and Mobile Quarantine Facility To minimize the risk of back contamination of the Earth with any possible lunar microorganisms, NASA designed and built the 83,000-square-foot Lunar Receiving Laboratory (LRL), residing in MSC’s Building 37. The facility isolated the astronauts, their spacecraft, and lunar samples to prevent any Moon germs from escaping into the environment, and also maintained the lunar samples in as pristine a condition as possible. The Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) provided isolation for the returning astronauts from shortly after splashdown until their delivery to the LRL, an activity that required transport of the MQF on a cargo jet aircraft. On Feb. 6, following its return from sea trials, workers placed the MQF inside Chamber A of MSC’s Space Environment Simulation Facility. The test in the large vacuum chamber checked out the MQF’s emergency oxygen supply during a simulated aircraft pressure loss. Three test subjects successfully completed the test. Left: Workers truck the Mobile Quarantine Facility (MQF) into the Space Environment Simulation Laboratory (SESL) at the Manned Spacecraft Center, now NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Middle: Workers install the MQF in Chamber A of the SESL for a test of the emergency oxygen system. Right: Test subjects inside the MQF prepare for the emergency oxygen system test in the SESL. To be continued … News from around the world in February 1969: Feb. 3 – Ibuprofen launched in the United Kingdom as a prescription anti-inflammatory analgesic. Feb. 5 – The population of the United States reaches 200 million. Feb. 7 – British band The Who record their song “Pinball Wizard.” Feb. 7 – Diane Krump becomes the first woman jockey at a major U.S. racetrack (Hialeah, Florida). Feb. 8 – The Allende meteorite weighing nearly two tons explodes in mid-air and fragments fall on Pueblito de Allende, Chihuahua, Mexico. Feb. 9 – First flight of the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet from Everett, Washington. Feb. 21 – First launch of U.S.S.R.’s N-1 Moon rocket, not successful. Feb. 24 – U.S. launches Mariner 6 to fly-by Mars. Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 Related TermsNASA HistoryApollo Explore More 7 min read 30 Years Ago: Clementine Changes Our View of the Moon Article 4 days ago 3 min read NASA Goddard’s Beginnings in Project Vanguard Article 4 days ago 8 min read 55 Years Ago: President Nixon Establishes Space Task Group to Chart Post-Apollo Plans Article 1 week ago View the full article

5 min read NASA-Funded Science Projects Tuning In to ‘Eclipse Radio’ On April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will cross parts of the United States. For millions of people along the path of totality, where the Moon will completely cover the Sun, it may feel like an eerie daytime darkness has descended as temperatures drop and wind patterns change. But these changes are mild compared to what happens some 100 to 400 miles above our heads in an electrically conductive layer of our atmosphere known as the ionosphere, where the “false night” of an eclipse is amplified a hundredfold. Three NASA-funded experiments will investigate the eclipse’s effects on the ionosphere through the power of radio, a technology well suited to studying this enigmatic layer of our atmosphere. The Aug. 21, 2017, total solar eclipse douses Umatilla National Forest in shadow, darkening the sky and rimming the horizon with a 360 degree sunset. NASA/Mara Johnson-Groh Whether you’ve heard of the ionosphere or not, you’ve likely taken advantage of its existence. This electric blanket of particles is critical for long-distance AM and shortwave radio. Radio operators aim their transmitters into the sky, “bouncing” signals off this layer and around the curvature of Earth to extend their broadcast by hundreds or even thousands of miles. The ionosphere is sustained by our Sun. The Sun’s rays separate negatively charged electrons from atoms, creating the positively charged ions that the ionosphere is named for. When night falls, over 60 miles of the ionosphere disappears as ions and electrons recombine into neutral atoms. Come dawn, the electrons are freed again and the ionosphere swells in the Sun’s illumination – a daily cycle of “breathing” in and out at a global scale. A total solar eclipse is a scientific goldmine – a rare chance to observe a natural experiment in action. On April 8 the three NASA-funded projects listed below are among those “tuning in” to the changes wrought by a blotted-out Sun. SuperDARN The Super Dual Auroral Radar Network, or SuperDARN, is a collection of radars located at sites around the world. They bounce radio waves off of the ionosphere and analyze the returning signal. Their data reveals changes in the ionosphere’s density, temperature, and location (i.e. movement). The 2024 eclipse will pass over three U.S.-based SuperDARN radars. A team of scientists led by Bharat Kunduri, a professor at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, have been busy preparing for it. An aerial view of a SuperDARN radar site outside Hays, Kansas. Credit: Fort Hays State University “The changes in solar radiation that occur during a total solar eclipse can result in a ’thinning’ of the ionosphere,” Kunduri said. “During the eclipse, SuperDARN will operate in special modes designed to monitor the changes in the ionosphere at finer spatiotemporal scales.” Kunduri’s team will compare SuperDARN’s measurements to predictions from computer models to answer questions about how the ionosphere responds to a solar eclipse. HamSCI While some experiments rely on massive radio telescopes, others depend more on people power. The Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation, or HamSCI, is a NASA citizen science project that involves amateur or “ham” radio operators. On April 8, ham radio operators across the country will attempt to send and receive signals to one another before, during, and after the eclipse. Led by Nathaniel Frissell, a professor of Physics and Engineering at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, HamSCI participants will share their radio data to catalog how the sudden loss of sunlight during totality affects their radio signals. Students work with Dr. Frissell in the ham radio lab on campus. Simal Sami ’24 (in orange), who is part of Scranton’s Magis Honors Program in STEM; Dr. Frissell; and Veronica Romanek ’23, a physics major. Photo by Byron Maldonado courtesy of The University of Scranton This experiment follows similar efforts completed during the 2017 total solar eclipse and the 2023 annular eclipse. “During the 2017 eclipse, we found that the ionosphere behaved very similar to nighttime,” Frissell said. Radio signals traveled farther, and frequencies that typically work best at night became usable. Frissell hopes to continue the comparison between eclipses and the day/night cycle, assessing how widespread the changes in the ionosphere are and comparing the results to computer models. RadioJOVE Some radio signals don’t bounce off of the ionosphere – instead, they pass right through it. Our Sun is constantly roiling with magnetic eruptions, some of which create radio bursts. These long-wavelength bursts of energy can be detected by radio receivers on Earth. But first they must pass through the ionosphere, whose ever-changing characteristics affect whether and how these signals make it to the receiver. This radio image of the Sun was made with a radio telescope by astronomer Stephen White (University of Maryland). The radio emission was detected with the Very Large Array radio telescope at a wavelength of 4.6 GHz. The image shows bright regions (red and yellow) of million-degree gas above sunspots. Credit: Courtesy NRAO / AUI / NSF The RadioJOVE project is a team of citizen scientists dedicated to documenting radio signals from space, especially Jupiter. During the total solar eclipse, RadioJOVE participants will focus on the Sun. Using radio antenna kits they set up themselves, they’ll record solar radio bursts before, during, and after the eclipse. During the 2017 eclipse, some participants recorded a reduced intensity of solar radio bursts. But more observations are needed to draw firm conclusions. “With better training and more observers, we’ll get better coverage to further study radio propagation through the ionosphere,” said Chuck Higgins, a professor at Middle Tennessee State University and founding member of RadioJOVE. “We hope to continue longer-term observations, through the Heliophysics Big Year and beyond.” Find out more about the April 8, 2024, solar eclipse on NASA’s eclipse page. By Miles Hatfield NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. View the full article

NASA astronaut Tracy Dyson poses for a portrait at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Credits: NASA NASA astronaut Tracy C. Dyson is available in limited opportunities to discuss her mission beginning at 8 a.m. EST on Monday, Feb. 26. The interviews will take place ahead of Dyson launching to the International Space Station in March. The virtual interviews will stream live on NASA+, NASA Television, and the agency’s website. Learn how to stream NASA TV through a variety of platforms including social media. Interested media must submit a request to speak with Dyson no later than 12 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, to the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston newsroom at 281-483-5111 or jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. Dyson is scheduled to launch aboard the Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft Thursday, March 21, and will spend approximately six months aboard the space station. She will travel to the station with Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy and spaceflight participant Marina Vasilevskaya of Belarus, both of whom will spend approximately 12 days aboard the orbital complex. During her expedition, Dyson will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations that help prepare humans for future space missions and benefit people on Earth. Among some of the hundreds of experiments ongoing during her mission, Dyson will continue to study how fire spreads and behaves in space with the Combustion Integrated Rack, as well as contribute to the long-running Crew Earth Observations study by photographing Earth to better understand how our planet is changing over time. After completing her expedition, Dyson will return to Earth this fall with Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub on the Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft. Learn more about International Space Station research and operations at: https://www.nasa.gov/station -end- Joshua Finch / Claire O’Shea Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1100 joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / claire.a.o’shea@nasa.gov Courtney Beasley Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 courtney.m.beasley@nasa.gov Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 LocationNASA Headquarters Related TermsHumans in SpaceAstronautsInternational Space Station (ISS)Johnson Space CenterMissionsNASA HeadquartersSpace Operations Mission DirectorateTracy Caldwell Dyson View the full article

NASA/Brandon Torres NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Casey Swails views a demonstration on screen in the Airspace Operations Laboratory at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. Researchers presented the diverse, long-running efforts in aeronautics at Ames that have helped lay the foundation for agency work related to wildfire response. These include a project to help integrate drones into the airspace with Unmanned Aircraft Systems Traffic Management, their application to disaster response with the Scalable Traffic Management for Emergency Response Operations project, and how those informed NASA’s newest effort to make wildfire response more targeted and adaptable, the Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations project. Michael Falkowski, program manager for the Applied Sciences Wildland Fire program at NASA Headquarters presented wildfire efforts happening under NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, such as the FireSense project, led out of Ames. The importance of collaborations within NASA and with partner agencies was also highlighted. Wildfires are complex phenomena and tackling their challenges will require the work of many, for the benefit of all. NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Casey Swails, left, and Jeff Homola, NASA research engineer, discuss aeronautics projects at Ames that support the agency’s work to optimize wildfire response efforts in collaboration with its partners. NASA/Brandon TorresView the full article

4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) New observations from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft hint that the Kuiper Belt – the vast, distant outer zone of our solar system populated by hundreds of thousands of icy, rocky planetary building blocks – might stretch much farther out than we thought. Artist’s concept of a collision between two objects in the distant Kuiper Belt. Such collisions are a major source of dust in the belt, along with particles kicked up from Kuiper Belt objects being peppered by microscopic dust impactors from outside of the solar system.Credit: Dan Durda, FIAAA Speeding through the outer edges of the Kuiper Belt, almost 60 times farther from the Sun than Earth, the New Horizons Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter (SDC) instrument is detecting higher than expected levels of dust – the tiny frozen remnants of collisions between larger Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) and particles kicked up from KBOs being peppered by microscopic dust impactors from outside of the solar system. The readings defy scientific models that the KBO population and density of dust should start to decline a billion miles inside that distance and contribute to a growing body of evidence that suggests the outer edge of the main Kuiper Belt could extend billions of miles farther than current estimates – or that there could even be a second belt beyond the one we already know. The results appear in the Feb. 1 issue of the Astrophysical Journal Letters. “New Horizons is making the first direct measurements of interplanetary dust far beyond Neptune and Pluto, so every observation could lead to a discovery,” said Alex Doner, lead author of the paper and a physics graduate student at the University of Colorado Boulder who serves as SDC lead. “The idea that we might have detected an extended Kuiper Belt — with a whole new population of objects colliding and producing more dust – offers another clue in solving the mysteries of the solar system’s most distant regions.” Designed and built by students at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the University of Colorado Boulder under the guidance of professional engineers, SDC has detected microscopic dust grains produced by collisions among asteroids, comets and Kuiper Belt objects all along New Horizons’ 5-billion-mile, 18-year journey across our solar system – which after launch in 2006 included historic flybys of Pluto in 2015 and the KBO Arrokoth in 2019. The first science instrument on a NASA planetary mission to be designed, built and “flown” by students, the SDC counts and measures the sizes of dust particles, producing information on the collision rates of such bodies in the outer solar system. The latest, surprising results were compiled over three years as New Horizons traveled from 45 to 55 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun – with one AU being the distance between Earth and Sun, about 93 million miles or 140 million kilometers. These readings come as New Horizons scientists, using observatories like the Japanese Subaru Telescope in Hawaii, have also discovered a number KBOs far beyond the traditional outer edge of the Kuiper Belt. This outer edge (where the density of objects starts to decline) was thought to be at about 50 AU, but new evidence suggests the belt may extend to 80 AU, or farther. As telescope observations continue, Doner said, scientists are looking at other possible reasons for the high SDC dust readings. One possibility, perhaps less likely, is radiation pressure and other factors pushing dust created in the inner Kuiper Belt out past 50 AU. New Horizons could also have encountered shorter-lived ice particles that cannot reach the inner parts of the solar system and were not yet accounted for in the current models of the Kuiper Belt. “These new scientific results from New Horizons may be the first time that any spacecraft has discovered a new population of bodies in our solar system,” said Alan Stern, New Horizons principal investigator from the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder. “I can’t wait to see how much farther out these elevated Kuiper Belt dust levels go.” Now into its second extended mission, New Horizons is expected to have sufficient propellant and power to operate through the 2040s, at distances beyond 100 AU from the Sun. That far out, mission scientists say, the SDC could potentially even record the spacecraft’s transition into a region where interstellar particles dominate the dust environment. With complementary telescopic observations of the Kuiper Belt from Earth, New Horizons, as the only spacecraft operating in and collecting new information about the Kuiper Belt, has a unique opportunity to learn more about KBOs, dust sources and expanse of the belt, and interstellar dust and the dust disks around other stars. The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, built and operates the New Horizons spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. Southwest Research Institute, based in San Antonio and Boulder, Colorado, directs the mission via Principal Investigator Alan Stern and leads the science team, payload operations and encounter science planning. New Horizons is part of NASA’s New Frontiers program, managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2024 EditorBill Keeter Related TermsNew HorizonsThe Kuiper Belt View the full article

Credit: NASA/Brandon Hancock Matthew Ramsey is keenly aware of the responsibility he shoulders to ensure the agency’s missions to the Moon are safe and successful. As the mission manager for Artemis II, NASA’s first crewed mission under Artemis, Ramsey is charged with helping to define the requirements and priorities for the missions and certifying that the hardware and operations needed to support flight are ready. “For me, it’s all about the crew and ensuring their safety as they venture to the Moon and come home,” said Ramsey. “Sending people thousands of miles from home and doing it in a way that sets the stage for long-term exploration and scientific discovery is an incredibly complex task.” During the leadup to Artemis II, Ramsey is responsible for oversight of the daily preparations as NASA prepares to launch and fly the agency’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket with a crew of four inside the Orion spacecraft. He will adjudicate issues that arise in the weeks and months ahead of the flight test and serve as deputy of the Mission Management Team — a tiger team that forms two days before launch to accept the risks associated with the mission and make decisions during the flight to address any changes or concerns. A native of Hernando, Mississippi, Ramsey pitched for the Mississippi State University baseball team before earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees in aerospace engineering from the school. “There are a lot of similarities between mission management and pitching,” he said. “You control many aspects of the tempo, and there’s a lot of weight on your shoulders.” Ramsey began his career in the intelligence and defense sectors before joining the space agency in 2002 to work on guidance, navigation, and control for the X-37 Approach and Landing Test Vehicle. Later, he worked on the design of the Ares I and V rockets as part of NASA’s Constellation Program before transitioning in 2010 to the SLS Program in support of the chief engineer at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. During the Artemis I launch, Ramsey was the SLS Engineering Support Center manager at Marshall, coordinating across engineering teams to provide data and solutions to issues encountered during the multiple launch attempts. He then supported the Mission Management Team during Artemis I in an observational role, preparing for his position as Artemis II mission manager. While NASA and its partners are preparing for Artemis II, work toward other Artemis missions is also underway. Ramsey also will serve as the mission manager for Artemis IV, the first Gateway assembly mission that also will include a lunar landing. “With Artemis II on the horizon, most of my time is focused on making sure we’re ready to fly Reid, Victor, Christina, and Jeremy around the Moon and bring them safely home,” Ramsey said. “For Artemis IV, we’re in the mission concept-planning phase, establishing mission priorities and objectives and defining how we’ll transfer crew between all the hardware elements involved.” As Artemis II nears, Ramsey is blending his operational experience and expertise in design, development, testing, and evaluation so that NASA is primed for what lies ahead: sending humans back to the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years and laying the foundation for future missions that will ultimately enable human exploration of Mars. View the full article