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By NASA
Credit: NASA NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, will host a media teleconference at 1 p.m. EST, Tuesday, Jan. 7, to provide an update on the status of the agency’s Mars Sample Return Program.
The briefing will include NASA’s efforts to complete its goals of returning scientifically selected samples from Mars to Earth while lowering cost, risk, and mission complexity.
Audio of the media call will stream live on the agency’s website.
Media interested in participating by phone must RSVP no later than two hours prior to the start of the call to: dewayne.a.washington@nasa.gov. A copy of NASA’s media accreditation policy is online.
The agency’s Mars Sample Return Program has been a major long-term goal of international planetary exploration for more than two decades. NASA’s Perseverance rover is collecting compelling science samples that will help scientists understand the geological history of Mars, the evolution of its climate, and prepare for future human explorers. The return of the samples also will help NASA’s search for signs of ancient life.
For more information about NASA’s Mars exploration, visit:
https://nasa.gov/mars
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Meira Bernstein / Dewayne Washington
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
meira.b.bernstein@nasa.gov / dewayne.a.washington@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Jan 03, 2025 EditorJessica TaveauLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Mars Sample Return (MSR) Science Mission Directorate View the full article
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By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Heather Seagren grew up near NASA’s Stennis Space Center and visited for field trips as a child. Now, as a financial management specialist, Seagren coordinates work trips for NASA employees at the south Mississippi NASA center. NASA/Danny Nowlin A leap of faith for Heather Seagren eight years ago brought the Gulf Coast native to something new, yet also returned her to a familiar place at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.
Following graduation from Pearl River Community College, Seagren worked as an office manager at a pediatric office. Seagren anticipated a full career in the medical field until an opportunity at the south Mississippi NASA center “kind of fell in my lap,” she said.
The NASA Shared Services Center, located at NASA Stennis, was hiring for its travel department, so Seagren applied.
“There are many different roles here, and my biggest thing was, do not second guess your decisions,” she said. “It was a big change for me, and I made the leap and ended up where I am today, even though it was a completely different career field.”
A new career field, yes, but not a new place. Seagren grew up in Pearlington, Mississippi, less than 10 miles from the nation’s largest propulsion test site. Her grandfather, Grover “Shu-Shu” Bennett, retired from NASA Stennis as a tugboat captain, helping to deliver rocket propellants along the site canal system to the test stands at NASA Stennis.
Just as her grandfather ensured the rocket engine fuel made it to its destination on time, Seagren does the same for NASA employees by coordinating travel plans. She now is in a similar role as a NASA Stennis financial management specialist.
Working with astronauts, engineers, and many other NASA employees, no two trips are alike, which is a part of the job Seagren enjoys.
What is similar is the trips coordinated by Seagren align with NASA’s mission to explore the secrets of the universe for the benefit of all.
The Kiln, Mississippi, resident plays a vital role in the NASA mission by bringing together the details of booking flights, arranging accommodations, and managing schedules.
“The best thing about working at NASA Stennis is getting to experience everything,” she said. “It is always interesting to see what other projects and duties everybody is doing. The process kind of starts with the travel department. … It is a small step, but we are involved, making sure everybody is where they need to be, when they need to be there, so, I think that is pretty cool.”
Learn more about the people who work at NASA Stennis View the full article
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By NASA
“Trying to do stellar observations from Earth is like trying to do birdwatching from the bottom of a lake.” James B. Odom, Hubble Program Manager 1983-1990.
The third servicing mission to the Hubble Space Telescope, placed in orbit in 1990, occurred during the STS-103 mission in December 1999. During the mission, originally planned for June 2000 but accelerated by six months following unexpected failures of the telescope’s attitude control gyroscopes, the astronauts restored the facility to full functionality. During their eight-day mission that featured the first space shuttle crew to spend Christmas in space, the seven-member U.S. and European crew rendezvoused with and captured Hubble, and four astronauts in rotating teams of two conducted three lengthy and complex spacewalks to service and upgrade the telescope. They redeployed the telescope with greater capabilities than ever before to continue its mission to help scientists unlock the secrets of the universe.
Schematic showing the Hubble Space Telescope’s major components. Workers inspect the Hubble Space Telescope’s 94-inch diameter primary mirror prior to assembly. Astronauts release the Hubble Space Telescope in April 1990 during the STS-31 mission. The discovery after the Hubble Space Telescope’s launch in 1990 that its primary mirror suffered from a flaw called spherical aberration disappointed scientists who could not obtain the sharp images they had expected. But thanks to the Hubble’s built-in feature of on-orbit servicing, NASA devised a plan to correct the telescope’s optics during the first planned repair mission in 1993. A second servicing mission in 1997 upgraded the telescope’s capabilities until the next mission planned for three years later. But after three of the telescope’s six gyroscopes failed in 1997, 1998, and 1999, mission rules dictated a call up mission in case additional gyroscope failures sent Hubble into a safe mode. NASA elected to move up some of the servicing tasks from the third mission, splitting it into missions 3A and 3B, planning to fly 3A in October 1999 on Discovery’s STS-103 mission primarily to replace the failed gyroscopes. Delays to the shuttle fleet resulting from anomalies during the launch of STS-93 in July 1993 slipped STS-103 first into November and ultimately into December. Technical issues with Discovery itself pushed the launch date to mid-December, and raised concerns about having a shuttle in orbit during the Y2K transition. Once the launch had slipped to Dec. 19, mission planners cut the mission from 10 to eight days, deleting one of the four spacewalks, to ensure a return before the end of the calendar year. The servicing mission couldn’t come soon enough, as a fourth gyroscope failed aboard Hubble in mid-November, with Discovery already poised on the launch pad to prepare for STS-103. Controllers placed Hubble in a safe mode until the astronauts arrived.
The STS-103 crew of C. Michael Foale, left, Claude Nicollier, Scott J. Kelly, Curtis L. Brown, Jean-François A. Clervoy, John M. Grunsfeld, and Steven L. Smith. The STS-103 crew patch. The mission patch for the Hubble Servicing Mission-3A. To execute the third Hubble Servicing Mission, in July 1998 NASA selected an experienced four-person team to carry out a record-breaking six spacewalks on the flight then planned for June 2000. The spacewalkers included Mission Specialists Steven L. Smith serving as payload commander, John M. Grunsfeld, C. Michael Foale, and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Claude Nicollier from Switzerland. The addition in March 1999 of Commander Curtis L. Brown, Pilot Scott J. Kelly, and Mission Specialist ESA astronaut Jean-François A. Clervoy of France rounded out the highly experienced crew with 18 previous spaceflights among them. Brown earned the distinction as only the fifth person to fly in space six times. For Kelly, STS-103 marked his first spaceflight. Smith, Clervoy, and Grunsfeld each had flown two previous missions, Foale four including a long-duration mission aboard Mir, and Nicollier three. Smith participated in three spacewalks during the second Hubble Servicing Mission and Nicollier served as the Remote Manipulator System (RMS) or robotic arm operator during the first.
The STS-103 crew at the traditional prelaunch breakfast at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Suited up, the STS-103 astronauts leave crew quarters for the trip to Launch Pad 39B. Space shuttle Discovery on Launch Pad 39B, awaiting launch. Discovery arrived back to KSC at the end of the STS-96 mission on June 6, 1999, and workers towed it to the Orbiter Processing Facility the same day to begin readying it for STS-103. The vehicle rolled over to the Vehicle Assembly Building on Nov. 4, where workers mated it with its external tank and twin solid rocket boosters, before rolling the stack out to Launch Pad 39B on Nov. 13.
Liftoff of space shuttle Discovery on the STS-103 Hubble Space Telescope servicing mission 3A. The Hubble Space Telescope as Discovery approaches. The STS-103 crew berthing the Hubble into the payload bay. Beginning its 27th trip into space, Discovery lifted off from Launch Pad 39B at 7:50 p.m. EST on Dec. 19 to fix the ailing space telescope. Two days later, Brown and Kelly maneuvered Discovery to within range of Hubble so Clervoy operating the 50-foot-long RMS could grapple the telescope and berth it into the payload bay.
During the first spacewalk, astronauts John M. Grunsfeld, left, and Steven L. Smith replacing one of the Rate Sensor Units containing two gyroscopes. Smith gives a thumbs up with his image reflected in the Hubble Space Telescope. Smith and Grunsfeld conducted the mission’s first spacewalk on Dec. 22, the flight’s fourth day in space. The duo, aided by Clervoy operating the RMS from inside Discovery, completed two of mission’s highest priority objectives. They replaced the failed gyroscopes, installing three new Rate Sensor Units, each containing two gyroscopes, to return control to the ailing telescope. They also installed six Voltage/Temperature Improvement Kits to prevent the telescope’s batteries from overheating as they aged. The excursion lasted eight hours 15 minutes, at the time the second longest spacewalk.
During the second spacewalk, astronauts C. Michael Foale, left, and Claude Nicollier during the changeout of the fine guidance sensor. Foale at the end of the Remote Manipulator System services the Hubble Space Telescope. The next day, Nicollier and Foale conducted the mission’s second spacewalk. The main task for this excursion involved installing a new computer aboard Hubble, replacing the original 1970s vintage unit. The new radiation-hardened system ran 20 times faster and carried six times more memory while using one-third the electrical power. They also installed a fine guidance sensor before concluding the eight-hour 10-minute spacewalk.
Astronauts Steven L. Smith, left, and John M. Grunsfeld begin their servicing activities during the third spacewalk. At the end of the third and final spacewalk, Grunsfeld, left, and Smith provide closing comments about the work the mission accomplished to service the Hubble Space Telescope. Smith and Grunsfeld ventured outside for a second time to complete the flight’s third and final spacewalk on Dec. 24, the first spacewalk conducted on Christmas Eve day. First, they replaced an old reel-to-reel tape recorder with a solid state unit providing a 10-fold increase in recording capability and replaced a failed data transmitter. They installed seven new covers on Hubble’s electronics bay doors for added protection of the telescope’s insulation. This third spacewalk lasted eight hours eight minutes.
The first space shuttle crew to celebrate Christmas in space, the STS-103 astronauts pose wearing Santa hats. The Hubble Space Telescope shortly after the STS-103 crew released it. The next day, the STS-103 astronauts earned the distinction as the first space shuttle crew to spend Christmas Day in space. Clervoy grappled Hubble, lifted it out of the payload bay and released it to continue its mission. Hubble Space Telescope Program Manager John H. Campbell said after the release, “The spacecraft is being guided by its new gyros under the control of its brand new computer. [It] is now orbiting freely and is in fantastic shape.” After deploying Hubble, the astronauts enjoyed a well-deserved Christmas dinner, with Clervoy providing French delicacies. The crew spent Dec. 26 readying Discovery for its return to Earth, including testing its reaction control system thrusters and aerodynamic surfaces and stowing unneeded gear.
Astronauts Steven L. Smith, left, Claude Nicollier, and John M. Grunsfeld complete their fluid loading protocol and put on their launch and entry suits prior to reentry. Space shuttle Discovery makes a perfect night landing at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The crew welcome home ceremony at Ellington Field in Houston. On Dec. 27, the astronauts donned their launch and entry suits and prepared for the return to Earth. They closed the payload bay doors and fired Discovery’s engines to bring them out of orbit. Just before landing, Kelly lowered the craft’s landing gear and Brown guided Discovery to a smooth night landing at KSC, concluding a flight of seven days, 23 hours, 11 minutes. They circled the Earth 119 times. The flight marked Discovery’s last solo flight as all its subsequent missions docked with the International Space Station. Workers at KSC began readying it for its next mission, STS-92 in October 2000.
The Hubble Space Telescope continues to operate today, far exceeding the five-year life extension expected from the last of the servicing missions in 2009. Joined in space by the James Webb Space Telescope in 2021, the two instruments together continue to image the skies across a broad range of the electromagnetic spectrum to provide scientists with the tools to gain unprecedented insights into the universe and its formation.
Watch the STS-103 crew narrate a video of their Hubble servicing mission.
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By NASA
An artist’s concept of the Earth, Moon, and Mars.Credit: NASA As NASA develops a blueprint for space exploration throughout the solar system for the benefit of humanity, the agency released several new documents Friday updating its Moon to Mars architecture. The roadmap sets NASA on course for long-term lunar exploration under the Artemis campaign in preparation for future crewed missions to Mars.
Following an Architecture Concept Review, the 2024 updates include a revision of NASA’s Architecture Definition Document which details technical approaches and processes of the agency’s exploration plans, an executive overview, and 12 new white papers on key Moon to Mars topics.
“NASA’s Architecture Concept Review process is critical to getting us on a path to mount a human mission to Mars,” said NASA Associate Administrator Jim Free. “We’re taking a methodical approach to mapping out the decisions we need to make, understanding resource and technological trades, and ensuring we are listening to feedback from stakeholders.”
One newly released white paper highlights NASA’s decision to use fission power as the primary source of power on the Martian surface to sustain crews — the first of seven key decisions necessary for human Mars exploration. Fission power is a form of nuclear power unaffected by day and night cycles or potential dust storms on Mars.
New additions this year also include a broader, prioritized list of key architecture decisions that need to be made early in NASA’s plans to send humans to the Red Planet. Two new elements are now part of the agency’s Moon to Mars architecture — a lunar surface cargo lander and an initial lunar surface habitat. The lunar surface cargo lander will deliver logistics items, science and technology payloads, communications systems, and more. The initial surface habitat will house astronauts on the lunar surface to extend the crew size, range, and duration of exploration missions and enable crewed and uncrewed science opportunities.
The newest revision of the Architecture Definition Document adds more information about NASA’s decision road mapping process — how the agency decides which decisions must be made early in the planning process based on impacts to subsequent decisions — and a list of architecture-driven opportunities that help technology development organizations prioritize research into new technologies that will enable the Moon to Mars architecture.
“Identifying and analyzing high-level architecture decisions are the first steps to realizing a crewed Mars exploration campaign,” said Catherine Koerner, associate administrator, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Each yearly assessment cycle as part of our architecture process is moving us closer to ensuring we have a well thought out plan to accomplish our exploration objectives.”
NASA’s Moon to Mars architecture approach incorporates feedback from U.S. industry, academia, international partners, and the NASA workforce. The agency typically releases a series of technical documents at the end of its annual analysis cycle, including an update of the Architecture Definition Document and white papers that elaborate on frequently raised topics.
Under NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will establish the foundation for long-term scientific exploration at the Moon, land the next Americans and first international partner astronaut on the lunar surface, and prepare for human expeditions to Mars for the benefit of all.
For NASA’s Moon to Mars architecture documents, visit:
https://www.nasa.gov/moontomarsarchitecture
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Rachel Kraft / Kathryn Hambleton
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov / kathryn.a.hambleton@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Dec 13, 2024 EditorJessica TaveauLocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate Artemis Earth's Moon Mars View the full article
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By NASA
1 Min Read 2024 NESC Technical Update
Annual Report of NESC Technical Activities
On behalf of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC), I am pleased to provide you with the 2024 NESC Technical Update. This annual report summarizes the technical work, engineering advancements, and knowledge capture efforts we made in FY24. With support provided by members of our NASA community from across the centers, we focused our efforts on performing value-added independent testing, analysis, and assessments of NASA’s high-risk projects to ensure safety and mission success.
This report contains summaries of technical assessments requested by our stakeholders and the technical bulletins and innovative techniques that resulted from that assessment work. Several of the NASA Technical Fellows provide summaries of accomplishments in their respective disciplines, and expertise drawn from across the Agency is featured on the Center Pages.
We appreciate the opportunity to share our progress and highlight the accomplishments of our technically and culturally diverse, multidisciplinary, multigenerational teams. All NESC knowledge products are available at nasa.gov/nesc. As always, we value your feedback and engagement. Thank you for your continuing support of the NESC.
Timmy R. Wilson
Director, NASA Engineering and Safety Center
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