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By NASA
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Jacquelyn Shuman visually assesses a prescribed fire at Ft. Stewart in Georgia, working with partner organizations as part of the Department of Defense Ft. Stewart 2024 Fire Research Campaign. USFS/Linda Chappell Jacquelyn Shuman, FireSense Project Scientist at NASA Ames Research Center, originally wanted to be a veterinarian. By the time she got to college, Shuman had switched interests to biology, which became a job teaching middle and high school science. Teaching pivoted to finance for a year, before Shuman returned to the science world to pursue a PhD.
It was in a forest ecology class taught by her future PhD advisor, Herman “Hank” Shugart, that she first discovered a passion for ecosystems and dynamic vegetation that led her into the world of fire science, and eventually to NASA Ames.
While Shuman’s path into the world of fire science was not a direct one, she views her diverse experiences as the key to finding a fulfilling career. “Do a lot of different things and try a lot of different things, and if one thing isn’t connecting with you, then do something different,” Shuman said.
Diving into the World of Fire
Shuman’s PhD program focused on boreal forest dynamics across Russia, examining how the forest changes in response to climate change and wildfire. During her research, she worked mainly with scientists from Russia, Canada, and the US through the Northern Eurasia Earth Science Partnership Initiative (NEESPI), where Shugart served as the NEESPI Chief Scientist. “The experience of having a highly supportive mentor, being a part of the NEESPI community, and working alongside other inspiring female scientists from across the globe helped me to stay motivated within my own research,” Shuman said.
After completing her PhD, Shuman wanted to become involved in collaborative science with a global impact, which led her to the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR). There, she spent seven years working as a project scientist on the Next Generation Ecosystem Experiment NGEE-Tropics) on a dynamic vegetation model project called FATES (Functionally Assembled Terrestrial Ecosystem Simulator). As part of the FATES team, Shuman used computer modeling to test vegetation structure and function in tropical and boreal forests after wildfires, and was the lead developer for updating the fire portion of the model.
This figure shows fire characteristics from an Earth system model that uses vegetation structure and interactive fire. The FATES model captures the fire intensity associated with burned land and grass growth in the Southern Hemisphere. Shuman et al. 2024 GMD Fire has also played a powerful role in Shuman’s personal life. In 2021, the Marshall Fire destroyed neighborhoods near her hometown of Boulder, Colorado, causing over $513 million of damage and securing its place as the state’s most destructive wildfire. Despite this, Shuman is determined to not live in fear. “Fire is part of our lives, it’s a part of the Earth system, and it’s something we can plan for. We can live more sustainably with fires.” The way to live safely in a fire-inclusive ecosystem, according to Shuman, is to develop ways to accurately track and forecast wildfires and smoke, and to respond to them efficiently: efforts the fire community is continuously working on improving.
The Fire Science Community
Collaboration is a critical element of wildland fire management. Fire science is a field that involves practitioners such as firefighters and land managers, but also researchers such as modelers and forecasters; the most effective efforts, according to Shuman, come when this community works together. “People in fire science might be out in the field and carrying a drip torch and marching along in the hilltops and the grasslands or be behind a computer and analyzing remote sensing data,” Shuman said. “We need both pieces.”
Protecting communities from wildfire impacts is one of the most fulfilling aspects of Shuman’s career, and a goal that unites this community. “Fire research poses tough questions, but the people who are thinking about this are the people who are acting on it,” Shuman said. “They are saying, ‘What can we do? How can we think about this? What information do we need? What are the questions?’ It’s a special community to be a part of.”
Looking to the Future of Fire
Currently at NASA Ames Research Center, Shuman is the Project Scientist for FireSense: a project focused on delivering NASA science and technology to practitioners and operational agencies. Shuman acts as the lead for the project office, identifying and implementing tools and strategies. Shuman still does ecosystem modeling work, including implementing vegetation models that forecast the impact of fire, but also spends time traveling to active fires across the country so she can help partners implement NASA tools and strategies in real time.
FireSense Project Scientist Jacquelyn Shuman stands with Roger Ottmar (United States Forest Service), surveying potential future locations for prescribed burns in Fishlake National Forest. NASA Ames/Milan Loiacono
“Right now, many different communities are all recognizing that we can partner to identify the best path forward,” Shuman said. “We have an opportunity to use everyone’s strengths and unique perspectives. It can be a devastating thing for a community and an ecosystem when a fire happens. Everyone is interested in using all this collective knowledge to do more, together.”
Written by Molly Medin, NASA Ames Research Center
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Last Updated Oct 17, 2024 Related Terms
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By NASA
Researchers verified that 3D micro-computed tomography scans can map the orientation of plant roots in space and used the method to demonstrate that carrots grown in actual and simulated microgravity both had random root orientation. These findings suggest that simulated microgravity offers a reliable and more affordable tool for studying plant adaptation to spaceflight.
MULTI-TROP evaluated the role of gravity and other factors on plant growth. Plant roots grow downward in response to gravity on Earth, but in random directions in microgravity, which is a challenge for developing plant growth facilities for space. Results from this investigation could help address this challenge, advancing efforts to grow plants for food and other uses on future space missions as well as improving plant cultivation on Earth.
Preflight image of the BIOKON facility used to grow carrots for MULTI-TROP. Kayser Italia For climate model simulations, researchers developed four parameters of electrical discharges from thunderclouds that produce visual emissions known as Blue LUminous Events or BLUEs. BLUEs are thought to affect regional atmospheric chemistry and climate. The parameters reported by this study could inform models that help test the global and regional effects of thunderstorm corona discharges, including how their geographic distribution and global occurrence rate will change as the atmosphere warms.
ASIM, an investigation from ESA (European Space Agency), studies high-altitude lightning in thunderstorms and the role it plays in Earth’s atmosphere and climate. Scientists need to understand processes occurring in Earth’s upper atmosphere to determine how lightning is connected to Earth’s climate and weather so they can develop better atmospheric models to guide weather and climate predictions.
Lightning in a thunderstorm off the coast of Africa as seen from the International Space Station. NASA/Matthew Dominick A technique to detect sounds generated by the inner ear could be used as a non-invasive tool for monitoring changes in fluid pressure in the head during spaceflight. Increased fluid pressure in the head that occurs in microgravity can cause visual impairment and may also affect the middle and inner ear. Insight into fluid pressure changes could help scientists develop ways to protect astronauts from these effects.
The ESA and ASI investigation Acoustic Diagnostics monitored hearing function in astronauts on long-term missions using otoacoustic emissions (sounds generated by the inner ear in response to specific tones). Researchers compared these measurements before and during flight to indirectly detect changes in fluid pressure in the head. Different body position and fit of the ear probes affected results of the test and the authors note that these issues need to be addressed.
NASA astronaut Drew Morgan participates in a hearing test for the Acoustic Diagnostics investigation. ESA (European Space Agency)/Luca ParmitanoView the full article
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By NASA
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Orbital Mining Corporation took second place in NASA’s Watts on the Moon Challenge. Left to right: Rob Button, deputy chief of NASA Glenn’s Power Division; three members of the team; Mary Wadel, NASA director of Technology Integration and Partnerships; and NASA astronaut Stephen Bowen. Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna Great Lakes Science Center, home of the visitor center for NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, hosted the final phase of NASA’s Watts on the Moon Challenge on Sept. 20. NASA astronaut Stephen Bowen attended to help acknowledge the top winners.
NASA awarded a total of $1.5 million to two U.S. teams for their novel technology solutions addressing energy distribution, management, and storage as part of the challenge. The innovations from this challenge aim to support NASA’s Artemis missions, which will establish a long-term human presence on the Moon.
This two-phase competition challenged U.S. innovators to develop breakthrough technologies that could enable long-duration Moon missions to advance the nation’s lunar exploration goals.
The winning teams are:
First Prize ($1 million): Team H.E.L.P.S. (High Efficiency Long-Range Power Solution) from University of California, Santa Barbara , won the grand prize for their hardware solution, which featured the lowest mass and highest efficiency of all competitors. Second prize ($500,000): Orbital Mining Corporation, a space technology startup in Golden, Colorado, earned the second prize for its hardware solution that also successfully completed the 48-hour test with high performance. Four teams were invited to refine their hardware and deliver full system prototypes in the final stage of the competition, and three finalist teams completed their technology solutions for demonstration and assessment at NASA Glenn.
The University of California (UC), Santa Barbara, took first place in NASA’s Watts on the Moon Challenge. Left to right: Mary Wadel, NASA director of Technology Integration and Partnerships; Rob Button, deputy chief of NASA Glenn’s Power Division; UC Santa Barbara team members; and NASA astronaut Stephen Bowen. Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna NASA Glenn’s Mary Wadel, director of Technology Integration and Partnerships, recognized the work involved to bring this challenge to its conclusion. Rob Button, deputy chief of Glenn’s Power Division and his team of experts, formulated and executed the challenge and oversaw testing.
The technologies were the first power transmission and energy storage prototypes to be tested by NASA in a vacuum chamber mimicking the freezing temperature and absence of pressure found at the permanently shadowed regions of the Lunar South Pole.
The Watts on the Moon Challenge is a NASA Centennial Challenge led by NASA Glenn. As the agency’s lead center for power systems technologies, NASA Glenn has been involved in the Watts on the Moon Challenge from its inception.
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By NASA
1 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
The Harvest Moon refers to the nearest full Moon to the autumnal equinox. The Moon appeared full for about three days last month from the evening of Monday, Sept. 16, through Thursday morning, Sept. 19. The brightest Moon was on Sept. 17.
NASA’s Glenn Research Center photographers captured images of this supermoon as it shone across Cleveland. Here’s how they described it:
“Complex.” Sara Lowthian-Hanna captured this composite image of the Moon above a Guardians of Traffic statue near downtown Cleveland. The Sept. 17 Harvest Moon had a lot going on: it was full, a supermoon, and experienced a partial lunar eclipse (when the Earth’s shadow falls upon the Moon’s surface). Credit: NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna “Shy.” Quentin Schwinn patiently waited for the Moon to peek out from behind clouds above the hangar at NASA’s Glenn Research Center. He took this shot just as a plane whizzed in front of the face of the Moon. Credit: NASA/Quentin Schwinn “Epic.” Jef Janis captured this shot of the Moon above the colorfully illuminated Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in downtown Cleveland. Credit: NASA/Jef Janis “Dramatic.” Jordan Salkin took this up-close image of wispy aircraft contrails crossing the face of the Moon. Credit: NASA/Jordan Salkin Return to Newsletter Explore More
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