Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

Shuttle Launch Postponed

181088main_sts-122-jsc2007e212521.thumbnail.jpg

A problem with space shuttle Atlantis’ fuel sensors has prompted a scrub of today’s scheduled launch of the STS-122 mission to the International Space Station. During fueling of the shuttle’s external tank, two of four engine cutoff sensors failed. Engineers are working on fixing the problem and NASA will try to launch again tomorrow, Friday, December 7 at 4:09 pm EST.

Sensors located in the hydrogen portion of the tank “failed wet” during fuel loading this morning. That means the sensors could falsely indicate the tank still contains hydrogen in the last stages of the shuttle’s climb to space when it actually is empty. The engines would continue to run, and without fuel, the engines could ignite and explode.

Problems with the engine cutoff sensors have occurred before during tanking, including the first shuttle mission after the Columbia accident, STS-114 with space shuttle Discovery. The failed sensors caused a one-day delay in the launch and after the flight the problem was traced to a faulty connection in electrical cables. NASA hopes that in emptying the tank and then refueling tomorrow the sensors will reset correctly, as was the case with the STS-114 launch.

This shuttle mission, STS-122, will bring the Columbus science module to the ISS. Columbus is the European Space Agency’s cornerstone contribution to the space station. Two ESA astronauts, Hans Schlegel from Germany, and Leopold Eyharts from France, are part of the shuttle crew, and Eyharts will remain on board the station to lead the activation of the new lab. The other astronauts for the mission are Commander Stephen Frick, pilot Alan Poindexter and mission specialists Rex Walheim, Stanley Love, and Leland Melvin.

STS-122 is expected to be an 11 day mission. It is the 121st shuttle flight and the 24th mission to the ISS.

Original News Source: NASA TV

Posted on by Nancy Atkinson

NASA’s New Look

nasagov1.thumbnail.jpg

NASA unveiled a new look for its website over the weekend, and hopes that blogs, interactive features, and a customizable layout will especially appeal to 18-25 year olds.

A New York Times article reported that NASA is concerned that the social networking generation hasn’t shown enough interest in NASA, and the space agency hopes their new webpage will attract the MySpace crowd. This is the first major overhaul for NASA’s website since 2003, and NASA now hopes to compete with Space.com and CNN’s more chic presentations of space exploration. Numerous rollovers, links, and spectacular graphics can keep a visitor engaged for quite awhile, and readers can now Digg, del.icio.us or StumbleUpon stories that they like or want to share. The “Image of the Day” Gallery also benefited with a much-needed upgrade.

Critical Mass, the company that assisted NASA with the new design, says on their website that NASA’s site will now “inspire, involve and inform” and will unify over 3,500 different sites into a “cohesive information gateway.”

One past criticism of the different NASA webpages is that there was sometimes redundant or conflicting information. Critical Mass and their partner eTouch Systems claim the new site will fuel NASA’s efforts to “reconnect with the public and re-capture significance as one of the world’s most visionary and imaginative organizations.”

Still, Brian Dunbar, Internet Services Manager for NASA estimates that even before the overhaul, NASA’s website received approximately one million unique visitors each month. Not bad for an aging, old-fashioned, 50-year old.

Chime in with your thoughts about NASA’s revamped webpage on the BAUT Forum.

Original Source: New York Times

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Lisa Nowak is Having Her Day in Court

2007-0920nowak.thumbnail.jpg

Remember Lisa Nowak? She’s the ex-astronaut who drove across the US to confront a rival over the love of another astronaut; a spacey love triangle. Well, things are moving forward now. Nowak testified this week in a court in Orlando, Florida, hoping that key evidence will be thrown out.

Nowak was arrested on February 5th, 2007 after she allegedly sprayed her romantic rival with pepper spray, astronaut Colleen Shipman. Police discovered a bunch of items that could be weapons in her car, including a steel mallet, a serrated knife and a loaded pellet gun. They also found a map of Shipman’s home, garbage bags and latex gloves.

During Tuesday’s hearing, Nowak put forth a motion claiming that the police illegally searched her car, as they didn’t have a warrant. She claimed that she didn’t give the police consent to search the car, and actually misunderstood the charges against her; that she was being charged with an attempted carjacking.

She’s currently charged with attempted kidnapping, attempted burglary and battery, and the actual trial is scheduled to start next year. Whether prosecutors get to include this evidence is the big question.

Nowak’s lawyer has told the court that he’s planning to argue that the astronaut was temporarily insane during the incident, and that she suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder, partner relational problems and insomnia.

Circuit Judge Marc L. Lubet hasn’t indicated if he’s going to rule on the defense motions yet.

More info, AFP article, ABC News.

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Google Moon Gets a Big Update

2007-0918googlemoon.thumbnail.jpg

When Google Moon was released last year, it was a bit of a joke. Google Earth, but for the Moon. Zoom in far enough and the familiar lunar craters were replaced with swiss cheese. The time for silliness is over, Google Moon has gotten an update, and they’re making it a serious learning tool this time around. The website incorporates photographs from orbiters and the Apollo missions to let you zoom in and out, exploring the Moon.

Head over to Google Moon, and follow along. You can change the view between Charts, Apollo, Visible and Elevation. All of the Apollo landing sites are marked on the map, so you can click each one to get more information.

Zoom in all the way, and you don’t see swiss cheese anymore. Instead you see the most detailed images available from NASA showing high resolution details about the landing sites. Each landing site has more than 10 additional detailed place markers, showing points of interest about the mission.

For example, click on the Apollo 16 mission, and the interface informs you there are 21 additional place markers. Click to zoom in, and you can see all the little markers. Click on any one and you’ll see more details, such as interesting rocks, craters, and landing spacecraft. Some of the detailed views are just photographs, but others are panoramas that you can scroll around to see the landscape from the astronauts’ point of view. Very cool!

There are also some landmarks with audio clips and video clips. All in all, the site feels like an educational CD-ROM.

And that’s part of its problem – it’s not really an atlas of the Moon, and more of a presentation of the Apollo missions. Many of those lunar craters have names. There are plenty more interesting features on the Moon than just the Apollo landing sites. I’d love to see some of that information incorporated as well. They could also bring in images from other spacecraft, like ESA’s SMART-1 to provide better coverage in some areas.

My other concern is that it doesn’t really work if you zoom all the way out. Instead of seeing a nice view of the whole Moon, there’s a confusing set of repeating images showing the same portions of the Moon over and over again. Google Maps does the same thing with the Earth, but still, it should look like you’re zooming into the Moon.

Anyway, enough of my review, check it out at http://www.google.com/moon

Original Source: NASA News Release

Posted on by Fraser Cain

NASA is Looking for New Astronauts

2007-0918station.thumbnail.jpg

Have you got the right stuff? If you’ve got multiple advanced degrees, a body carved from a block of steel, tremendous experience flying jet aircraft, and strong stomach, you might want to consider signing up as a NASA astronaut. NASA announced today that they’re now accepting applications for the 2009 Astronaut Candidate Class. These are the people who will be staffing the International Space Station, and heading back to the Moon.

Don’t think this happens all the time. The last time NASA opened up applications for astronaut candidates (or ascans) was back in 2004. They brought in 11 US candidates and 3 international people out of thousands of applications. This time around, they’re going to be looking to fill 15 positions or so.

The NASA press release links to the USAJOBS website. Here’s the information from that website, including the astronaut salary range: $59,493.00 – $130,257.00 USD per year. Nice money.

Astronaut Candidate
SALARY RANGE:$59,493.00 – 130,257.00 USD per year
OPEN PERIOD: Tuesday, September 18, 2007 to Tuesday, July 01, 2008
SERIES & GRADE: GS-0801-11/14
POSITION INFORMATION: Full-Time – Permanent appointment
PROMOTION POTENTIAL: 15
DUTY LOCATIONS: Few vacancies – Houston
WHO MAY BE CONSIDERED:
This announcement is open to all qualified U.S citizens.

JOB SUMMARY:
NASA, the world’s leader in space and aeronautics is always seeking outstanding scientists, engineers, and other talented professionals to carry forward the great discovery process that its mission demands. Creativity. Ambition. Teamwork. A sense of daring. And a probing mind. That’s what it takes to join NASA, one of the best places to work in the Federal Government.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has a need for Astronaut Candidates to support the International Space Station (ISS) Program.

NASA uses the USAJobs resume as the basic application document. NASA limits resumes to the equivalent of about six typed pages, or approximately 22,000 characters (including spaces). You cannot complete the application process if your USAJobs resume is too long. More information about the NASA application process is also available under the “How to Apply” section of this announcement.

KEY REQUIREMENTS:
* Position subject to pre-employment background investigation
* U.S. citizenship is required
* This is a drug-testing designated position
* Frequent travel may be required
* Selectee must pass a pre-employment medical examination

So, unlike previous years, this one’s only open to US citizens. I guess that rules me out.

Click here to access the job posting.

Hilariously, the press release lists the possible destinations you might travel to: “Texas, Florida, California, Russia, Kazakhstan, the International Space Station and the moon.” Good to know.

The deadline to apply is July 1, 2008, so head out there and update your resume. Include the fact that you read Universe Today, that’s got to be a big positive.

Original Source: NASA News Release

Posted on by Fraser Cain

NASA is Certain There Were No Drunk Astronauts

2007-0831briefing2.thumbnail.jpg

Now what should we believe? A NASA safety review released on Wednesday says that there’s no evidence that astronauts were drunk when they flew into space. The review was conducted by NASA chief of Safety and Mission Assurance Bryan O’Connor, who looked into the last 20 years of NASA spaceflights.

As you may remember, the news of drunken astronauts first came out about a month ago, when an internal safety review turned up two incidents where astronauts were intoxicated just before their launch into space. In one case, a shuttle launch was scrubbed. And in another case, an astronaut went into space aboard a Soyuz rocket.

This new 45-page report by safety chief Bryan O’Connor, a former astronaut himself and one of the Columbia accident investigators, was requested by NASA chief Mike Griffin after the allegations came out.

According to O’Connor, “I was unable to verify any case in which an astronaut spaceflight crewmember was impaired on launch day.” He also didn’t find any situation where a manager disregarded warnings from a NASA employee that an astronaut was unsafe to fly.

Despite the lack of evidence, O’Connor still suggested that NASA doctors should play a stronger oversight role during launch day, and that NASA should add excessive drinking to its list of risky activities.

In a recent press conference, NASA administrator Mike Griffin noted that there was a 1991 law that directed the space agency to come up with a policy for alcohol testing, but they hadn’t implemented it yet. So, now they’ll probably get going to put something in place.

You can read the full report here.

Original Source: NASA News Release

Posted on by Fraser Cain

NASA Mulls Orbital Shuttle Repair

shuttle.thumbnail.jpg

As it was approaching the International Space Station, the space shuttle Endeavour performed a back flip maneuver to expose its underside to the station residents. The astronauts captured high-resolution images of the shuttle’s underbelly, and uploaded them to NASA analysts to see how the shuttle fared during takeoff. Not well, apparently.

NASA engineers back on Earth are studying a gouge made in the shuttle’s protective tile system by a chunk of foam that fell during launch. The gouge was carefully measured by a laser and camera system attached to the shuttle’s robotic arm. The gash runs all the way through a tile on the underside of Endeavour, exposing bare metal. Engineers will perform a series of heat tests to understand the thermal properties of the damage. Tiles with a physical mockup of the damage will be exposed to similar conditions that Endeavour will face during reentry to understand the risks involved.

Once they understand the extent of the damage, and the potential risk to the shuttle, NASA will make a decision if and how the astronauts will repair the damage. They have three options: paint the section, screw in a protective plate, or fill the hole with a special protective goo.

Now, onto the actual mission. Their first spacewalk was on Saturday, August 11th. Rick Mastracchio and Dave Williams stepped outside to install the new starboard truss segment to the end of the International Space Station. Their entire trip outside lasted 6 hours and 17 minutes, and was hassle free, except for a computer shutdown in NASA’s Destiny laboratory. This forced backup computers to take over the operations of the module, but had no impact on the spacewalk.

The second spacewalk begins on Monday. This time, Mastracchio and Williams will step outside the station again, but this time to replace a broken gyroscope that the station uses to keep itself oriented. This spacewalk will also last approximately 6.5 hours. While the station can maintain its orientation with just two gyroscopes, it’s preferable to have all 4 working, to help spread the load of all the additional modules being added.

Source:NASA Status Report

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Endeavour is Off to the Space Station

sts.thumbnail.jpg

Thanks to the improved weather, the space shuttle Endeavour blasted off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral on Wednesday right on schedule, at 2236 UTC (6:36 pm EDT). Within minutes, the shuttle had released its solid rocket boosters and external fuel tank, and was drifting right on target towards Friday’s encounter with the International Space Station.

Mission STS-118 has begun.

Over the course of the next 11-14 days, Endeavour will link up with the station and transfer over a cargo hold full of food, water, air, fuel, equipment, and experiments. It’s also carrying a starboard truss section that astronauts will bolt onto the station’s backbone, enhancing its size and capacity.

Once the shuttle docks, the astronauts will carry out a series of 3 spacewalks to connect the truss, and replace one of the station’s gyroscopes. They’ll also install an external stowage platform. An additional 4th spacewalk is also a possibility, to attach a new camera boom that future missions could use to inspect their spacecraft for damage to heat tiles. That’s what would extend the mission from 11 to 14 days.

This is the first time that Endeavour has launched since the Columbia disaster killed 7 astronauts back in 2003. NASA has taken the time to give the shuttle a complete overhaul, upgrading almost every part of the orbiter. It’s also been equipped with a new gadget that will let it connect to the International Space Station’s power grid conserving its own batteries, and allowing it to operate longer.

Original Source: NASA News Release

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Martian Skies are Starting to Clear

spitir.thumbnail.jpg

The dire condition of the Mars Exploration Rovers has improved a bit in the last few days. That series of dust storms circling the planet has eased off a little, and the skies are started to clear up. This is giving both Spirit and Opportunity a much needed boost to their solar powered electrical systems.

On August 6th, 2007 Spirit’s solar arrays collected a total of 295 watt hours; Opportunity gathered 243 watt hours. This is a significant improvement over the last few weeks, when the dust storms dropped Spirit down as low as 261 watt hours, and Opportunity down to 128. At those levels, engineers were worried that the rovers might not be able to even keep their sensitive electronics heated overnight.

With the skies clearing up, Spirit even has enough energy to start doing some science again. Operators will command the rover to move its robot arm for the first time in three weeks. Its job will be to position its microscopic imager to take a series of photographs of two soil targets and a rock target. Opportunity will stay put, but make observations of the Martian atmosphere.

The increased sunlight has allowed both rovers to fully recharge their batteries, and the night time temperatures have warmed up a little, decreasing the risk of freezing their electronics.

NASA managers are still pretty wary, though, and have a cautious take on the situation:

“Conditions are still dangerous for both rovers and could get worse before things get better,” said John Callas, rover project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

“We will continue our cautious approach to the weather and configure the rovers to maintain a high state of charge on the batteries. Communication sessions with both rovers will remain limited until the skies clear further.”

Sounds like a good idea.

Original Source:NASA News Release

Posted on by Fraser Cain

Weather Looks Good For Endeavour’s Wednesday Launch

endeave1.thumbnail.jpg

Weather in Florida this time of year can be dramatic. Thunderstorms, rain and lightning can appear at any time – and that’s not good for launching space shuttles. Fortunately, a heat wave has swept across the area around Cape Canaveral, holding off the typical thunderstorm conditions, and improving Endeavour‘s chances for blasting off on Wednesday.

If all goes well, Endeavour will lift off from Pad 39A on Wednesday, August 8th at 2236 UTC (6:36 pm EDT), beginning mission STS-118 to continue the construction of the International Space Station. Endeavour is carrying supplies, spare parts, experiments, and a new starboard-side truss element that will be bolted onto the station’s backbone-like main truss.

Endeavour will have the usual 7-crew compliment, led by veteran astronaut Scott Kelly. Also on board will be teacher Barbara Morgan. If you recall back to the space shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986, one of the crew members of that ill-fated mission was Christa McAuliffe. Barbara Morgan was her backup. Now 22 years after the disaster, NASA is ready to continue its “Teachers in Space” program.

As I mentioned, weather in this area can get nasty this time of year. But NASA’s official weather officer, Kathy Winters raised Endeavour‘s chances of an on-time launch to 80 percent. The drier air and hot temperatures causing a heat wave in Florida is good news for the shuttle.

Because of the good weather, controllers will retract the Rotating Service Structure that’s protecting the shuttle from bad weather tonight. And then they’ll begin filling up the external fuel tank with liquid oxygen and hydrogen tomorrow morning.

Original Source:NASA Shuttle