Summer 2012 - A Quarterly Publication Huge Crowd at Ames Celebrates Historic Mars Landing b y Ra c h e l ho o v e R A huge crowd of more than 7,000 excited space enthusiasts gathered at NASA’s Ames Research Center Sun- day, Aug. 5, 2012, to witness history in the making as NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory spacecraft carrying the Cu- riosity rover embarked on a new era of Mars exploration. Spread in lawn chairs, sleeping bags, blankets and pacing the pave- ment, the audience paused and held its collective breath to hear the two words they had been waiting for: “Touchdown confirmed.” NASA’s most ambitious planetary rover mission to the surface of the Red Planet had of- ficially begun at 10:32 p.m. PDT. When they heard NASA engineers confirm the spacecraft’s successful en- try and landing, the crowd went wild. “Go NASA!” exclaimed Rosalba NASA photo by Eric James Bonaccorsi, an environmental scientist and SETI Institute principal investiga- More than 7,000 NASA enthusiasts came to Ames to celebrate the Curiosity rover’s landing. continued on page 2 NASA Lands Car-Size Rover Beside Martian Mountain NASA’s most advanced Mars rover Curiosity has landed on the Red Planet. The one-ton rover, hanging by ropes from a rocket backpack, touched down onto Mars on Sunday Aug. 5, 2012 to end a 36-week flight and begin a two-year investigation. The Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft that carried Curiosity succeeded in every step of the most complex landing ever attempted on Mars, including the final severing of the bridle cords and flyaway maneuver of the rocket backpack. “Today, the wheels of Curiosity have begun to blaze the trail for hu- man footprints on Mars. Curiosity, the most sophisticated rover ever built, is now on the surface of the Red Planet, where it will seek to answer age-old questions about whether life ever existed on Mars -- or if the planet can sustain life in the future,” said NASA NASA photo by Dominic Hart Administrator Charles Bolden. “This is an amazing achievement, made pos- The parachute decelerator system for the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) spacecraft un- sible by a team of scientists and engi- derwent extensive testing at Ames in support of the design and flight-qualification of the final neers from around the world and led MSL parachute canopy design. The basic design of the canopy is called the disc-gap band by the extraordinary men and women parachute, dating back to the 1970s, and has been used for all NASA spacecraft planetary of NASA and our Jet Propulsion Labo- entries to date. The MSL parachute is the largest ever built to fly on an extraterrestrial mis- sion. continued on page 2 www.nasa.gov Huge Crowd at Ames Celebrates Historic Mars Landing continued from page 1 ear to ear and giving an enthusiastic sprinkled throughout the crowd, as tor at Ames working with the Natural thumbs-up as the crowd bustled and jubilant mission controllers described and Cultural Resources Management cheered around him. the spacecraft’s successful entry into office of Death Valley National Park in Before the final moments of Curi- the Martian atmosphere. support of a science instrument on Cu- osity’s journey to Mars, visitors were “I was impressed so many people riosity. “For this, it is okay to cry,” she treated to an opportunity to interact came out to see the landing,” said Ivy added while watching the broadcast of with Ames engineers, scientists, Deliz, a software developer at Ames, relieved mission controllers wipe their researchers and developers to learn who worked on the software scientists eyes and brace trembling lips in reac- about their contributions to crucial use to plan Curiosity’s tasks on Mars. tion to the fantastic news. aspects of the mission. Children also “It’s great to see people and specially Moments later, the first image could build Mars rovers out of paper, kids interested in what I think it such taken by one of the rover’s cameras see Mars in 3D, and participate in a an amazing, mind-boggling mission.” appeared on the giant video screens variety of other hands-on activities. As the NASA devotees departed, erected on the lawn – proof that Curi- As the daylight began to fade, “That was so cool” and “When is the osity had safely landed. the crowd’s attention turned to the next mission to Mars?” and “I love “This mission marks the beginning live broadcast of the NASA TV feed NASA!” could be heard among the of the next chapter in Mars explora- from Mission Control at NASA’s Jet homeward bound crowd. It was quite tion,” said Chris McKay, senior scien- Propulsion Laboratory. From then a night and one that won’t be forgot- tist at Ames and co-investigator of two until Curiosity’s landing, bursts of ten. instruments on Curiosity, grinning from excited applause and nervous laughter NASA Lands Car-Size Rover Beside Martian Mountain continued from page 1 - - ratory. President Obama has laid out a bold vision for sending humans to Mars in the mid-2030s, and today’s landing marks a significant step to- ward achieving this goal.” Curiosity landed at 10:32 p.m. Aug. 5, PDT, near the foot of a moun- tain three miles tall and 96 miles in diameter inside Gale Crater. During a nearly two-year prime mission, the rover will investigate whether the re- gion ever offered conditions favorable for microbial life. “The Seven Minutes of Terror has turned into the Seven Minutes of Tri- umph,” said NASA Associate Admin- istrator for Science John Grunsfeld. “My immense joy in the success of this mission is matched only by over- whelming pride I feel for the women NASA photo by JPL-Caltech and men of the mission’s team.” Curiosity returned its first view of This mosaic of the Curiosity rover is made of 20 images, each 1,024 by Mars, a wide-angle scene of rocky 1,024 pixels, taken late at night on Aug. 7, 2012 PDT (early morning Aug. ground near the front of the rover. 8, 2012 EDT). More images are anticipated in the next several days as the mission blends observations of the landing nications relayed by NASA’s Mars tory instruments inside the rover. site with activities to configure the Odyssey orbiter and received by the To handle this science toolkit, Cu- rover for work and check the perfor- Canberra, Australia, antenna station riosity is twice as long and five times mance of its instruments and mecha- of NASA’s Deep Space Network. as heavy as Spirit or Opportunity. The nisms. Curiosity carries 10 science in- Gale Crater landing site places the “Our Curiosity is talking to us struments with a total mass 15 times rover within driving distance of layers from the surface of Mars,” said MSL as large as the science payloads on of the crater’s interior mountain. Ob- Project Manager Peter Theisinger of the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportu- servations from orbit have identified NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in nity. Some of the tools are the first of clay and sulfate minerals in the lower Pasadena, Calif. “The landing takes their kind on Mars, such as a laser-fir- layers, indicating a wet history. us past the most hazardous moments ing instrument for checking elemental The mission is managed by JPL for this project, and begins a new and composition of rocks from a distance. for NASA’s Science Mission Director- exciting mission to pursue its scien- The rover will use a drill and scoop ate in Washington. The rover was tific objectives.” at the end of its robotic arm to gather designed, developed and assembled Confirmation of Curiosity’s suc- soil and powdered samples of rock at JPL. interiors, then sieve and parcel out 2 Astrogram Summer 2012 Ames Public Affairs Summer Intern Shares Her Experience b y De e n a Kh a t t a b In the eight weeks I spent as a Public Affairs Intern, I have come to one very simple conclusion: Ames’ Public Affairs Office is really, really cool. In honor of this whirlwind of a summer at Ames, I thought I would share some of the special moments that made the NASA communications geek inside of me squeal with delight (in no particular order).

1. When nasaimages.org froze. As I spent a considerable amount of time Best photo ever. photo NASA extracting historic images from our archives and uploading them onto the vast amount of people that had made me star struck. It also is excit- Flickr, I ran into this screen numerous “upvoted”(liked) it. I was amazed that ing, because The Economist’s lack of times. Instead of being frustrated with a single image taken more than 70 bylines makes its staff seem anony- technology (which typically occurs years ago that had sat in the images mous and elusive. Thus, a visit from whenever a website freezes on me), I archive unnoticed for ages, suddenly one of the editors feels to me almost was filled with joy that NASA Images was becoming popular, reminding as rare as finding life on Mars. generate enough viewers to overload people of NASA’s rich history. the server. (In other words, we are 6. Curiosity on Mars: When Curios- popular!) 4. Best Photo Ever: When I uploaded ity landed on Mars, and one out of the onto Flickr what is possibly the most 7,000 people gathered on the lawn 2. Becoming NASA Ames: When beautiful space image anyone has started quietly singing “This Land Is I became NASA Ames Research ever seen. I realize that everyone at Your Land.” This one is self-explanato- Center. Okay, so I did not actually the agency has his or her preferences, ry. Because something actually landed “become” the center, but I was ap- but when I stumbled upon the image in on Mars during my internship, I now pointed as a web administrator for the the archive, my jaw dropped. This pho- can truthfully say that I have had the center’s Facebook page. This was tograph from Apollo 16, taken on April ultimate “NASA experience.” During especially cool because when I went 21, 1971, has the perfect positioning my summer internship at Ames, I got onto the page, my Facebook interface of Astronaut Charles Duke, Jr., beside to witness one of NASA’s greatest suc- had a thin blue banner across the top a moon crater with a parked Lunar cesses in space exploration. that read, “You are now posting, com- Roving Vehicle in the background. Ev- menting, and liking as NASA Ames erything about this photo – the depth 7. Wearing a Flight Suit: When I wore Research Center.” Thus, I virtually of shadows in the crater; the lens a NASA flight suit. On the penultimate stopped being Deena and became flare that creates a multitude of tiny day of my internship, there was a blue NASA Ames instead, which might be rainbows on the left side; the subtle flight suit innocently bundled up on a the most exciting thing ever to happen crosshairs from the camera’s reseau chair in our office, and it just happened to me on the Internet. plate; the golden reflection on Duke’s to be my size. Of course, I did what helmet; and the distinct bootprints in any other space enthusiast would do. 3. Going Viral: When I discovered the foreground – make this the most I immediately donned it while I contin- that one of the NASA Flickr images visually appealing photograph I have ued doing my normal work. I had uploaded went viral on Reddit. ever seen. (The 150-plus Flickr users For those who do not spend all of their that have added this image to their All in all, it has been quite an free time on the Internet, Reddit is a favorites agree with me.) eventful eight weeks and these quality website where users can “upvote” and experiences have been added to my “downvote” Internet content based 5. The Economist: When an editor list of significant life moments. I have on how stimulating they find it. Need- from The Economist came to Ames. gleaned so much knowledge of the less to say, when I discovered that While I actually had no part in the way communications works at the cen- an image I had uploaded to Flickr of aforementioned editor’s visit and have ter, and cannot wait to apply my new “human computers” (female work- met plenty of NBC, CBS, and local skills in the future. ers that crunched data numbers) at newspaper reporters in the past few NASA Langley Research Center in weeks that are quite impressive, the Editor’s Note: Deena Khattab plans the 1940s had gone viral, I freaked fact that someone from what is – in to attend the University of Southern out. The image had made it to the top my opinion – one of the best news California this fall with a double major of Reddit’s History page, based on magazines in the world, visited Ames in journalism and history.

3 Astrogram Summer 2012 Social media enthusiasts share excitement of Curiosity

On Aug. 3, 2012, 24 of NASA Ames’ social media followers joined Ames scientists, engi- neers, leadership and public affairs hosts in real life for a “NASA Social” focused on Ames’ contributions to the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) Curiosity. Throughout the day, partici- pants posted to Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, and more to share their experiences with hundreds of thousands of people in their combined social networks

All photos by NASA / Eric James

George Raiche explains the inner workings of the Arc Jet facilities, which tested elements of MSL’s heat shield.

NASA Social participants share their introduction to Ames’ air traffic management research in Future Flight Central before witnessing the unveiling of a new Mars panorama.

Kepler Mission Deputy Science Team Lead Natalie Batalha discusses the Kepler mission .

The keynote event of the Curiosity-themed day was a tour by David Blake, principal investigator of the Chemical and Mineralogy (CheMin) Brad Bebout hosts followers in his Mars research lab studying instrument on MSL. Blake shared the basics of CheMin and demon- methane production. strated its technology.

4 Astrogram Summer 2012 Ames community celebrates successful Curiosity landing

NASA photo by Eric James As JPL celebrates the successful Curiosity landing, NASA enthusiasts at Ames join the celebration of the historic moment.

NASA photo by Eric James NASA photo by Eric James Ames scientist Chris McKay enjoys the chance to talk with the public. Scientists at NASA Ames made major contributions to MSL.

NASA photo by Eric James Ames scientists love what they do and sharing their enthusiasm with the NASA photo by Eric James The NASA enthusiasts who came to the landing event showed an active public. interest in learning more about MSL and Ames’ involvement with this mission. 5 Astrogram Summer 2012 NASA Ames Researcher Receives Presidential Award knowledge, and their commitment to community service as demonstrated through professional leadership, edu- cation or community outreach. “These talented individuals have already made significant contribu- tions to the agency’s mission at this early stage in their careers,” said NASA Chief Scientist Waleed Abdalati. “We look forward to celebrating their continued success for many years to come.” The 2011 NASA recipients were nominated by the agency’s Science Mission Directorate, Office of the Chief Engineer, and Office of the ChiefTech - nologist. Koehne was recognized for “exceptional dedication to the develop- ment of nano-bio sensing systems for NASA mission needs.” The PECASE awards were cre- ated to foster innovative developments in science and technology, increase NASA photo by Dominic Hart awareness of careers in science Jessica Koehne recently received the 2011 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and and engineering, give recognition to Engineers. the scientific missions of participat- ing agencies, enhance connections b y Je s s i c a cu l l e R in a ceremony scheduled in Washing- ton. between fundamental research and President Obama has named The PECASE awards represent many of the grand challenges facing Ames researcher Jessica Koehne of the highest honor bestowed by the the nation, and highlight the impor- Code TSS as a recipient of the 2011 federal government on scientists and tance of science and technology Presidential Early Career Award for engineers beginning their indepen- for America’s future. Eleven federal Scientists and Engineers (PECASE). dent careers. The award recognizes departments and agencies nominated NASA recipients and 90 other federal scientists and engineers for the 2011 recipients’ exceptional potential for PECASE awards. researchers will receive their awards leadership at the frontiers of scientific Ames Co-Winner of the 2012 NASA Software of the Year The NASA Inventions and Contri- Kepler Science Operations Center aggregated, it is optimized, format- bution Board has selected the NASA (SOC) (2010). ted and then delivered in a very App from Ames Research Center as a The Ames NASA App team in- fast, engaging, well-organized and co-winner of the 2012 NASA Software cludes Jerry Colen, program manager, intuitive application. The NASA App of the Year award sponsored by the John Freitas, software engineer, and makes extensive use of the built-in Chief Engineer, the Chief of Safety Charles Du, a former new media spe- hardware, features and usability of and Mission Assurance and the Chief cialist who left NASA in 2009. each of the mobile devices it supports Information Officer. The NASA App invites the public to offer very compelling yet concise “I am absolutely delighted that to discover a wealth of NASA’s best information in a clear and easy way. the NASA App team has been hon- and most highly requested content With the integrated social media fea- ored with this prestigious award. As a on various mobile platforms i.e. tures (such as Facebook and Twitter), center, we have enjoyed great suc- iPhone, iPod touch, iPad, Android the NASA App makes sharing content cess in previous NASA Software of the phones and tablets. The NASA App easy to further inform, inspire, engage, Year competitions; this award adds to supports all the agency’s programs, and excite the public. our proud legacy,” said Ames Center projects and missions by allowing The NASA App currently has over Director Pete Worden. users to gain a better understanding 8.7 million user installs. It has received Former Ames winners include: and appreciation of NASA’s science, glowing reviews from CNN, Gizmodo, Incompressible Navier-Stokes Flow technology and engineering discover- CNET, Macworld, Wired and The Reg- Solver in Three Dimensions (INS3D) ies. ister. Back-end web server traffic has (1994), Flow Analysis SoftwareToolkit The application uses a collection of also been astonishing, with a current 2 (FAST) (1995), Center TRACON Auto- backend scripts and servers to gather million hits per day average and peaks mation System (1998), Remote Agent and aggregate NASA’s online content of over 8 million. (with JPL, 1999), Cart3D (2002), Fu- and breaking news from thousands of The NASA App shares the 2012 ture Air Traffic Management Concepts non-mobile web pages, image data- NASA Software of the Year Award with Evaluation Tool (FACET) (2006), Data bases, video collections, news and co-winner QuakeSim 2.0 from NASA’s Parallel Line Relaxation Code (DPLR) image feeds, Twitter accounts, etc. Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). (2007), World Wind Java (2009), and As the content is gathered and

6 Astrogram Summer 2012 France Honors Former Ames Test Pilot George Cooper b y ap R i l Ga G e In 1945, Cooper was hired as a During a small ceremony held in test pilot at Ames (then known as the French Consulate in San Francis- the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory of co, Consul General Romain Serman the National Advisory Committee for recently presented France’s highest Aeronautics), where he further dis- honor to George Cooper, former head tinguished himself as an exceptional of Ames flight operations and chief test aviator and research engineer. At and research pilot. Ames from 1945 until his retirement in As reported in the San Jose Mer- 1973, Cooper tested more than 135 cury news, the French Consul General aircraft (including 41 kinds of aircraft commended Cooper, along with two carrier planes), routinely pushing them other World War II veterans, for their straight down into hazardous high- “courage, selflessness and dedica- speed maximum dives during test tion” helping to “defend and preserve trials. Flight testing can be fatal but, the independence of France and our Photo by National Adivisory Committee for just as he did in wartime, Cooper sur- common values” as he pinned the Aeronautics (NACA) vived his test flights without a scratch prestigious Legion of Honor medal to (though he did have to crash-land a Cooper’s chest. malfunctioning Douglas SB2D into a Cooper received the commenda- Though several of his colleagues were local prune orchard, to the decided tion for his performance as a U.S. downed, Cooper, and his aircraft, detriment of several trees and the Army Air Force fighter pilot during made it through the war without a aircraft.) World War II, when he flew a P-47 scratch. The intrepid pilot’s death-defying Thunderbolt on 81 missions with the Prior to his military service, testing of aircraft designs was only 412th Fighter Squadron. Cooper studied engineering at Univer- part of his contribution to flight re- Deployed first to England, then in sity of California at Berkeley, focusing search. Cooper helped develop France and Belgium, Cooper support- on mining engineering and working in ways for pilots to contribute to the ed the advance of Allied forces in 1944 California gold mines during summer flight research and design process and 1945 by attacking the German breaks. with greater safety and reliability by ground transportation system. While at Cal, he met and married using, for example, simulators and Cooper’s strafing sorties required classmate Louise Garrod, and joined other mechanisms for translating hu- him to fly the P-47 low to the ground the U.S. Army’s Reserve Officers’ man experience and expertise into while firing a machine gun at targets Training Corps to earn extra money, useful data. One of the best-known such as roads, railways, aircraft, not anticipating the war and his subse- examples of his many efforts in this land, and water vehicles, as well as quent call to active duty. area is Cooper’s Pilot Opinion Rating fuel stockpiles. Routinely deployed After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Scale, a standardized methodology to conduct these highly danger- Cooper completed flight school and he developed for test pilots to effec- ous ground attack missions and not earned a pilot degree, then served tively formulate observations about “top cover” where fighter pilots were as a flight instructor in the Southeast aircraft handling characteristics. The likely to engage in air-to-air combat, Training Command before being system, later adjusted in collabora- Cooper encountered German enemy posted with the Ninth U.S. Army Air tion with Robert Harper and renamed aircraft just three times but managed Force. By March 1945, he was eligible the Cooper-Harper Handling Qualities to shoot down four of them, coming to leave the front and returned home Rating Scale, remains in use as an one plane shy of becoming an ace. to the Saratoga foothills and his wife international standard. Louise. Jack Boyd and Hans Mark Converse as ‘Masters of NASA’ b y Gl e n n bu G o s tales of battles fought, as with devel- lessons learned and best practices. Jack Boyd and Hans Mark share a oping tilt rotor aircraft and massively Lewis Peach, formerly of NASA Ames, friendship dating back to 1969, when parallel supercomputers, and of giving helped organize the event, and Ames Boyd got a request from the Admin- a vision to the agency. Both men are employees generated lots of good istrator to give Mark a tour of NASA known fondly as exceptional men- questions. Links to the video of the Ames as he was being courted to be tors of NASA leadership, and many event are at: http://appel.nasa.gov its third center director. Over many questions revolved around how young Edward J. Hoffman, director of decades, the two men helped shaped people can best grow as leaders of APPEL and the interviewer, recalled NASA, honed each other’s perspective NASA. Boyd recalled his own men- his first meeting with Mark at a recep- on NASA culture, and forged a friend- tors helping him discover what their tion for students interning at NASA. ship. Today their advice is still actively younger colleagues are most passion- Hoffman was pursuing his doctorate in sought. Boyd serves as a historian ate about, then helped them pursue organizational psychology and Mark and senior advisor to the center direc- their goals. asked him, jovially, “Why are you tor and Mark as a professor at the NASA’s Academy of Program/ here?” It was a question they contin- University of Texas Austin. Project and Engineering Leadership ued to explore during the evening, and For an hour on Aug. 13, 2012 they (APPEL) developed Masters with Mas- one Hoffman says a question every- captivated a crowded auditorium with ters as interviews which pair expert one should revisit often. practitioners to share insights, stories,

7 Astrogram Summer 2012 Students Shine at Ames 2012 Summer Poster Symposium b y al e x a n D e R ni c h o l The Office of Education and Public Outreach presented the 2012 Summer Higher Education Poster Symposium Aug. 8, 2012 in Shenandoah Plaza. The event coincided with the Ames Exchange staff BBQ and the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity Diver- sity and Inclusion Day events. This year’s symposium was the biggest on record, featuring a total of 203 posters from individual interns and research groups. The Poster Symposium was attended by an estimated 987 mem- bers of the Ames community, who had the opportunity to learn first-hand about the work that our interns con- ducted over the past ten weeks. Included in the presentations were groups from the joint Environmental Protection Agency/NASA internship program, the Tribal Colleges and Universities program, the DEVELOP program, the NASA Academy for Space Exploration, and the Ames Aeronautics Academy. The event was preceded by a Career Fair, featuring representatives from NASA partners such as Jacobs Technology, Greene R&D, Lockheed Martin, and Intrynsx, who spoke with students about career NASA photo by Dominic Hart opportunities. This year’s event was an improve- Ames Center Director Pete Worden listens to a student discuss what he accomplished during ment over last year’s, in terms of scale his internship. and accessibility. The tent was wider ing branch chiefs, division heads, and Dr. Worden and Deputy Center Direc- and featured fans to help keep the Center Director Pete Worden. The tor Lewis Braxton III. All in all, the inside temperature manageable. The interns assembled outside the tent event was a huge success, and we event was attended by many members mid-symposium to take a photo with look forward to a repeat in 2013. of Ames’ upper management, includ- Ames Hosts Second Annual Diversity and Inclusion Day b y De R e K lo v e On Aug 8, 2012, the Office of Di- versity and Equal Opportunity (ODEO) invited the NASA workforce and the community to participate in the second Annual Diversity and Inclusion Day. This event’s theme focused on the diverse Ames workforce. At 9 am, Ames Center Director Pete Worden provided the opening remarks to kick off the first activity, the Student/Veteran Intern “Speak Out” panel discussion. Panelists included a group of diverse members of Ames’ past and present internship programs. Each member brought different perspectives and experiences to the discussion. The members included Joy Pierre, a former co-op intern, who is deputy director of the Human NASA photo by Dominic Hart Capital Directorate, Jendai Robinson Colorful costumes highlighted Ames’ second annual Diversity and Inclusion Day. a Space Grant program intern, and continued on page 9 8 Astrogram Summer 2012 Planetary Scientists Celebrate Pasts Successes, Bright Future b y Ka R e n Je n v e y a n D te a G u e so D e R m a n On July 17-19,2012, more than 300 lunar enthusiasts came to Ames Research Center to collaborate on moon research and plan for the NASA Lunar Science Institute’s future. The NASA Lunar Science forum, which is sponsored by NLSI, demonstrates the current renaissance in studies of our moon. In recent years, the amount of data available to scientists has skyrocket- ed. Five U.S. spacecraft are currently studying the moon, plus several others completed their missions in recent years. With the new data available, discoveries and advancements are plentiful. “The NLSI catalyzes collaborative research within and among its seven NASA photo by Dominic Hart teams, but also strives to include and support the broader lunar science More than 800 people (500 people in-person and 300 people virtually) attended the 2012 NASA community in a variety of ways,” said Lunar Science Forum. Yvonne Pendleton, director of the NLSI. officials praised the performance of the new era of enhanced collaboration In his summary review of the the current NLSI and announced an between science and exploration. conference, planetary scientist David expansion of the charter to allow ad- One of the greatest accomplish- Kring of NLSI’s Lunar and Planetary ditional emphasis on research that will ments of NLSI has been a resurgence Institute team in Houston said “We support both science and exploration. of young scientists into lunar studies. have made more progress in three In NASA organizational terms, this The NLSI sponsors informal organiza- years with the NLSI than was made in means a closer alliance between the tions of both graduate students and of the previous 30 years of lunar studies, NASA Science Mission Directorate young professionals beginning their but a lot of questions remain unan- (SMD) and the NASA Human Explo- careers in lunar science. swered that require a return to the ration and Operations Directorate At the forum, NASA representa- lunar surface, using both robot and (HEOMD). The joint presentation at tives stressed that we need research- human explorers.” the forum by NASA Associate Admin- ers who are passionate about under- In addition to discussing science istrators John Grunsfeld (SMD) and standing our neighbor the moon, and results, the forum attendees focused William Gerstenmaier (HEOMD) out- who want to improve our understand- their attention on the future. NASA lined their rationale for the expansion ing of our own planet. of the Institute, providing insight into Ames Hosts Second Annual Diversity and Inclusion Day continued from page 8 cultural wear, art, costumes, informa- military veterans Steven Mayo, David tional documents and literature that Franklin, and Raquel Espinoza with showcased their individual culture or the ”Growth Sector” intern program. interest. Visitors began their journey Shelia Johnson, Ames Community receiving a “Culture Passport.” The Relations Coordinator, was the panel participants stopped at each exhibit to moderator. learn interesting facts, such as com- During the discussions, the panel- mon points of interest and how the ists provided information about their exhibitor’s background influenced the internship experiences at Ames; and many facets of their life. Participants shared personal stories related to also recorded their observations in diversity and inclusion. They also their passport and received a jour- relayed positive feedback for future ney stamp from the exhibitor which interns and mentors during the ques- acknowledged their visit. During the tion and answer session. journey, participants experienced each The final activity was the “Culture cultural exhibit, were enriched with Passport” journey that took place knowledge about diversity, and gar- on Shenandoah Plaza. The event NASA photo by Dominic Hart nered the appreciation for the cultural consisted of employees and oth- qualities in others. ers from the Ames workforce and Ames Deputy Center Director Lewis Braxton III gave a certificate of appreciation to The objective of this event was the community who designed and to learn to leverage our differences hosted a cultural exhibit. Each exhibit Jendai Robinson for her participation in student intern “SPEAK OUT” presentation. and similarities in order to optimize contained items such as artifacts, the value that all of us bring to NASA. 9 Astrogram Summer 2012 NASA Collaborative Environment to Advance Earth Science

NASA photo by Andrew Michaelis / Tim Sandstrom First application of NEX: global vegetation density estimates shown at 30-meter resolution (nearly 340 billion pixels) from Landsat satellite data.

b y Ru t h ma R l a i R e This new environment boasts a science data sets, run and share mod- NASA soon will open a new large collection of global data sets and eling algorithms, collaborate on new or chapter of discovery using enhanced analysis tools from NASA and other existing projects and exchange work- Landsat Earth-observing data in a agencies, including surface weather flows and results within and among state-of-the-art, high-performance records, topography, soils, land cover other science communities. computing and data access environ- and global climate simulations. Using Scientists believe costs and time ment called NASA Earth Exchange NEX, scientists now can fit Landsat associated with research develop- (NEX). It is a virtual laboratory that will scenes together like a giant jigsaw ment may be reduced significantly by allow scientists to tackle Earth science puzzle to create snapshots of global allowing NEX members to collaborate challenges with global, high-resolution vegetation patterns containing more instantly in this type of large-scale satellite observations. than a half-trillion pixels in less than 10 supercomputing work environment. After extensive development and hours. These global vegetation prod- For example, NEX may relieve re- testing, NASA is making NEX avail- ucts, referred to as the Normalized Dif- searchers from redundantly retrieving able to the research community for fur- ference Vegetation Index, complement and integrating data sets and building ther research and development. With the more standard products from the modeling analysis codes. the agency’s state-of-the-art Pleiades Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectro- NEX uses Landsat data, which supercomputer, located at the NASA radiometer on NASA’s Aqua satellite, constitutes a large collection of images Advanced Supercomputing facility at but with 10 times higher resolution. collected over 40 years by a series of Ames, researchers can use NEX to “The science community is under satellite sensors. The enhanced col- explore and analyze large Earth sci- increasing pressure not only to study lection of Landsat data gives scientists ence data sets in hours, rather than recent and projected changes in cli- the opportunity to study and under- months. Scientists can produce com- mate that likely impact our global en- stand changes on a planetary scale, plex, interdisciplinary studies of world vironment and natural resources, but looking at one-quarter acre at a time. phenomena and share their findings also to design solutions to mitigate, NASA, in cooperation with the instantly on the NEX platform. or cope, with the likely impacts,” said Interior Department and its science “Because of the large volume of Ramakrishna Nemani, a senior Earth agency, the U.S. Geological Survey, high-resolution Landsat data, scien- scientist at Ames. “We want to change launched the first Landsat satellite in tists who wanted to study the planet as the research paradigm by bringing 1972. The resulting 40-year archive a whole prior to NEX needed to invest large data holdings and supercomput- of Earth observations from the Land- tremendous amounts of time and effort ing capabilities together, so research- sat fleet supports the improvement to develop high-end computational ers have everything they need in one of human and environmental health, methods rather than focus on impor- place.” biodiversity, energy and water man- tant scientific problems,” saidTseng - Developed by a team at Ames, agement, urban planning, disaster dar Lee, high-end computing program NEX combines Earth-system model- recovery and crop monitoring. The manager at NASA Headquarters in ing, remote-sensing data from NASA Landsat program is jointly managed by Washington. “NEX greatly simplifies and other agencies, and a scientific NASA and the Interior Department. researchers’ access to and analysis of social networking platform to deliver a high-resolution data like Landsat.” complete research environment. Users can explore and analyze large Earth

10 Astrogram Summer 2012 Ames Ongoing Monthly Events Calendar Exchange Information African American Advisory Group (AAAG) Ames Green Team (formerly the Green Ames Mtg., last Tuesday of each month, 12 - 1 p.m., Working Group) meetings are held the first Information about products, services and opportuni- Bldg. N255 Rm 101C. POC: Rose King, ext. Tuesday of each month in N237, Room ties provided to the employee and contractor com- 4-3442. 101, from 10:00-11:00 a.m. For information, munity by the Ames Exchange Council. Visit the call Roger Ashbaugh, Ames Environmental web site at: http://exchange.arc.nasa.gov Moffett Aikido Club, Monday and Wednesday Management Division, ext. 4-5660. Beyond Galileo Gift Shop N-235 in the evenings, 6:30 p.m., Bldg. 944. Aikido is a http://environmentalmanagement.arc.nasa. cafeteria , 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., ext. 4-6873 non-competitive, defensive martial art known gov/reports/eo-13514.html as the “Way of Harmony.” POC: Diane Visitor Center Gift Shop (White Tent Pereda (650) 575-9070 or Robert Dean (650) The Hispanic Advisory Committee for N-943-A, Tues-Fri, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sat. 787-1007, email: [email protected] Excellence (HACE) Mtg., first Thursday of - Sun, 12 - 4 p.m., ext. 4--5412 each month, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Bldg. Remember to purchase your baby shower, birthday, Ames Amateur Radio Club, third Thurs., of ea. N-255, Rm. 101C. POC: Jeanette Zamora, holiday gifts at Ames’ two gift shops! month, 12 noon, N-T28 (across from N-255). [email protected]. Mega Bites Cafeteria N-235, 6 a.m. to POC: George Tucker, at ext. 4-2200. 2 p.m., ext. 4-5969/Catering ext. 4-2161 Ames Jazz Band Club, Bldg. 944, 5:30 Ames Bluegrass Club, every Tuesday from p.m. - 7 p.m., POC: Ralph Bach, email: Barcelona Café Bldg. 3, 6:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Bldg. 944. Players of all [email protected] 2 p.m., ext. 4-4948/Catering ext. 4-4948 instruments and all levels are welcome, but we are particularly interested in experienced play- Jetstream Toastmasters, Mondays, 12 p.m. See daily menus at: http://exchange.arc. ers willing to help improve the group’s musical - 1 p.m., Bldg. N-269/Rm.179. POC: Tim nasa.gov/cafe/menu.html skills. POC: Bob Haberle at ext: 4-5494 or Steiger, ext. 4-0195, [email protected]. Moffett Field Golf Club with ‘Tee minus 1’ email: [email protected] Web: http://jetstream.freetoasthost.com Grill and Sports Bar. Catering available. Call (650) 603-8026. Extended Happy Hour Ames Bocce Ball Club, Ames’ newest Ex- Ames Nimble Knitters Club, every Tuesday Thursdays, $5 and $6 pitchers of beer starting change-sponsored club is seeking members. at 11:30 a.m., Bldg. N210/Rm 141. POC: at 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. POC: Mike Lindsay email: michael.c.lindsay@ Rosalyn Jung, [email protected] or Diane nasa.gov Alexander at ext. 4-3140. URL: http://knit.arc. RV Lots Available Call to reserve a space nasa.gov at (650) 603-7100/01. Ames Bowling League, Homestead Lanes Civilian/Contractors, $50/mo; military $25/mo Thursdays at six p.m. Need substitute bowl- Ames Roller Hockey Club, meets daily from NASA Lodge (N-19) 603-7100 ers. Sign up questions: Steve Howard at ext. noon to 1 p.m. at rink on north end of the 80- 4-4884. foot-by-120-foot wind tunnel, Playsers should Where to stay when you’re too tired to drive home? have experience skating and wear protective What about the lodge?! Two types of rooms: Bldg. Ames Contractor Council Mtg., first Weds. of equipment. 19 (43 rooms), rate: $55/night ($5 ea add’l adult); ea. month, 11 a.m., Bldg. N-200, Committee Bldg. 583 (150 rooms), rate: $45/night ($5 ea. add’l adult) Room. POC: Herb Finger at ext. 4-6598. Ames Safety Committee, third Thursday of each month, 10 a.m. - 11 a.m., Bldg. N-237, Ames Swim Center (N-109) 603-8025 Ames Federal Employees Union (AFEU) Rm. 200. POC: John Livacich, jlivacich@ Closed for repairs, for updates visit http://amesex- Mtg, third Wednesday ea. month, noon. Bldg. mail.arc.nasa.gov, ext. 4-3243. change.arc.nasa.gov/swim/index.html N-204, Rm. 101. Guests welcome. Check for The pool is heated year round! The pool is currently occoasional schedule changes at: http://www. Women’s Influence Network (WIN), first available for lap swim, pool parties and special afeu.org. POC: Paul K. Davis, ext. 4-5916. events. POC: Ryan Storms, Pool Manager (650) Wednesday of each month, Bldg. 241 room 603-8025. Memberships: single memberships: 237, 11:30 - 12:30 p.m., POC: Elena Serna, $60/yr. Family memberships: $80/yr. After purchas- Ames Golf Club, Members will have the op- [email protected] ing a membership, there is an entrance fee: daily portunity to play about 13 tournaments per entrance fee - $3/day or lap pass fee - $50 for 20 year at a variety of 18-hole golf courses in the uses. Platinum membership - $380/yr. (no daily Bay and Monterey Area. POC: Barry Sullivan: fee). Special events: include military training, swim [email protected]. team events, kayak role practice, etc. The cost for special events is $75/hr, or $50/hr for military.

Reservations for Chase Park call ext. 4-4948 Reservations for ARC Park call ext. 4-5969

Ames Cat Network

The Ames Cat Network needs help finding homes for cats trapped at Moffett. They Ames emergency announcements range from feral to abandoned/lost pets. Tested, altered and inoculated. Call Iris at To hear the centerwide status recording, call (650) 604-9999 for information ext. 4-5824 if you or someone you know are announcements and emergency instructions for Ames employees. You can interested in fostering or adopting a cat. also listen to 1700 KHz AM radio for the same information.

11 Astrogram Summer 2012

Protective Services Remembering Neil Armstrong monthly activity A statistical summary of activities of the Protective Service Division’s Security / Law Enforcement and Fire Protection Services units for the month of July 2012 is shown below. Security / Law Enforcement Activity

NASA photo by Lee Jones In February 1964, Armstrong climbing out of the cockpit of an airplane at Ames with Hangar One in the background. Neil Armstrong, the first but of all time,” President man to walk on the moon Barack Obama said via during the 1969 Apollo 11 Twitter. “Thank you, Neil, Fire Protection Activity mission, died on Aug. 25, for showing us the power of 2012, following complica- one small step.” tions resulting from cardio- “Neil was not only a vascular procedures. He friend, but a superb NACA was 82. research pilot, a quiet and Armstrong’s words incredibly competent NASA “That is one small step for astronaut, and a person who (a) man, one giant leap for enhanced all of our lives. He mankind,” spoken on July can never be replaced,” said 20, 1969, as he became Jack Boyd, NASA Ames the first person ever to step senior advisor for history. onto another planetary body, Armstrong is survived instantly became a part of by his wife, two sons, a history. stepson, a stepdaughter, 10 “Neil Armstrong was grandchildren, and a brother a hero not just of his time and a sister.

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You can reach the Astrogram Office at: astrogram @mail.arc.nasa.gov or by phone at (650) 604- 4789. Astrogram Web site: http://www.nasa.gov/ PLEASE RECYCLE ames/astrogram. Printed on recycled and recyclable paper with vegetable-based ink. Astrogram NP-2012-08-03-ARC 12 Astrogram Summer 2012