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Home , Ares (missile), Endeavour (crater), Space probe, Titan IIIC

Oct. 1, 2008 Vol. 48, No. 20

NASA celebrates 50th Anniversary ct. 1 marks the 50th the STS-125 Hubble Space Anniversary of Director’s Note servicing mission. NASA as it was on Over Hubble’s 18 year O By Bill history, many extraordinary this date in 1958 that the Na- Parsons tional Aeronautics and Space discoveries have been Director, made by what this amazing Administration began opera- Kennedy tions. Over the past 50 years, Space instrument has captured. We the employees of America’s Center also are preparing for the space program have been at upcoming missions to the the forefront of many incred- I mention this historic date International ible accomplishments. because once again we are and preparing for launches Kennedy Space Center preparing to go back to the through the Launch Services has a rich history in the space . This time, we are Program. Our Constellation program having been named going to stay. We will have Program work is moving ahead, and we are preparing an independent NASA a sustained human presence. for the I-X test fl ight installation in 1962. NASA is a forward-looking next year. From the historic launch agency, and this is our future. In the short history of pads here in Florida, we NASA’s 50th NASA, numerous benefi ts to have launched missions Anniversary is a historic society have come through of discovery. Next year, milestone that gives us an the work of America’s we will celebrate the 40th to refl ect on past space program. The anniversary of a human accomplishments, but we scientifi c discoveries and being setting foot on the need to prepare for what’s technological innovations moon. That mission, ahead. that have been made through Apollo 11, launched right We need to stay America’s space program NASA fi le/ 2006 here from our center. Some focused on our mission. give us reason to proud to be Atlantis lifts off 39B on its STS-115 mission on of our employees today were This month, we will launch part of this legacy of space Sept. 9, 2006. The has helped NASA reach many working here at that time. space shuttle Atlantis for exploration. of its milestones throughout the past 50 years.

ELVs Four Great Inside this special edition Observatories

Kurt Debus The 50 years of accomplishments

Page 8 Page 10 Page 4 VIPs at Kennedy Page 2 The Bumper Project The Space Shuttle Space Center and Gemini Program

Page 3 Page 5 Pages 6-7 Page 9 Page 11 Page 2 NEWS Oct. 1, 2008 NACA’s dreams turned into NASA reality By Kate Frakes Spaceport News ince its inception 50 years ago, NASA’s scientifi c and Stechnological excellence has helped power the nation into the 21st century, shaping and improving life. As icons of human achievement, NASA’s enduring accomplishments promise another era of discovery and innovation. Before NASA could stamp its permanent presence in history, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, or NACA, conducted the nation’s aeronautical research. In NASA fi le/1958 response to the advancing European This photo, taken May 26, 1958, shows members of NACA’s Special Committee on , from right, Wernher von Braun, Abe Silverstein, Dale Corson, Hugh Dryden, H. Guyford Stever, Carl Palmer, J.R. Dempsey, Rober Gilruth, H. Julian Allen, Milton Clauser, aeronautical programs in 1915, Samuel Hoffman, W. Randolph Lovelace, Hendrik Bode, left of Lovelace, Abraham Hyatt, Col. Norman Appold, with arm on table, and President Woodrow Wilson cre- Edward Sharp. ated NACA to gain back the U.S. lead. Its fi rst center, known today as On April 2, 1958, the bill for establishing a broad charter for civil- dent John F. Kennedy proposed a NASA’s Langley Research Cen- establishing a National Aeronautics ian aeronautical and . lunar initiative to Congress ter in Hampton, Va., was the fi rst and Space Agency was submitted. Two months later, on Oct. 1, the fi rst that required a new launch facility government facility to coordinate It reinforced the belief that space NASA personnel reported to work. capable of launching larger space- aeronautical research in the civil and should only be used for peaceful After receiving control of the craft. military sectors. purposes and stated that NACA Army’s Missile Firing Laboratory in In 1962, NASA broke away NACA’s peace-oriented opera- would be absorbed into the new 1960, NASA changed the name to from the Launch Operations Di- tions and signifi cant contributions to agency with new development and the Launch Operations Directorate rectorate in Huntsville and desig- aeronautics, throughout its 43-year fl ight operations responsibilities. and formed NASA’s Marshall Space nated Merritt Island Launch Area history, led Congress to organize a On July 29, President Eisen- Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. an independent fi eld installation in national program in space science hower signed into law the National When the Cape Canaveral, Fla., which became formed around NACA. Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958, rose with the Soviet Union, Presi- Kennedy Space Center in 1963.

Debus a forefather of NASA, Kennedy Space Center

By Kate Frakes velopment program, Debus and initiating emergency into space - a fi rst for Amer- Spaceport News helped lay the groundwork scenarios. ican history books, and for human spacefl ight. He Debus’ insistence on the beginning of President To go to the moon overcame problematic re- demonstrated reliability is symbolic of man’s Kennedy’s manned lunar leaving , the entry heating challenges for during the 1961 Mercury- landing challenge. “ long-range missiles and suc- Redstone precursor fl ights After 14 years as opening of a vast new fron- tier.” cessfully launched the fi rst helped NASA attain the con- Kennedy’s center director, Twenty-fi ve years after orbiting object, the Explorer fi dence to launch a manned Debus retired in 1974 and his death, the words of Dr. I Earth . . He believed “at completed his historical ten- Kurt H. Debus continue to With new aspirations, least one unmanned shot ure with words of inspira- challenge future generations NASA turned to Debus and must be obtained with fl aw- tion for the next generation to steadily travel down the his team for help in the race less performance” before the of innovators: path of progress he helped NASA fi le to space. fl ight of one of the Mercury “This is not an ending, map out for space explora- Dr. Kurt H. Debus was director of In 1959, Debus began Seven . but a point of departure. tion. Kennedy Space Center from July converting old launch com- NASA Headquarters I don’t fear overpopula- 1962 until November 1974. Before the creation of plexes into Launch Complex offi cials and the Space Task tion or that the Earth will the National Aeronautics NASA helped turn President 56 to support the Mercury- Group added an extra poison itself with pollution. and Space Act in 1958, John F. Kennedy’s vision of Redstone program for the MR-Booster Development The Earth will fi nd ways to Debus and his colleagues landing man on the moon a fi rst suborbital missions. He fl ight that fl ew with com- become that beautiful island already had taken the fi rst reality. contributed largely to the plete success on March 24, that our astronauts saw technical steps toward Throughout his time development of the com- 1961. Less than two months when they viewed it from the traveling to the moon. Their with the United States plex’s new abort scenarios later, NASA successfully moon … and I can say, ‘I scientifi c contributions to ballistic missile systems de- and techniques for detecting launched Alan Shepherd told you so.’ ” Oct. 1, 2008 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 3

NASA fi le Mercury 7 astronauts, from left, are Scott Carpenter, L. Gordon Cooper Jr., John H. Glenn Jr., Virgil I. Grissom, Walter M. Schirra Jr., Alan B. Shepard Jr., and Donald K. Slayton. Mercury 7 proved they had the right stuff By Cheryl Mansfi eld the new, uncharted vastness of and added the numeral “7” to sym- American to Earth. Spaceport News space. bolize the team of seven astronauts. His Friendship 7 capsule The Mercury 7 were: Walter The program used two launch launched aboard a Mercury- n October 1958, just six days M. Schirra Jr., Donald K. “Deke” vehicles: a Redstone for subor- , and during his almost fi ve- after NASA formally organized, Slayton, John H. Glenn Jr., Scott bital fl ights and an Atlas for or- hour fl ight he circled Earth three IAmerica’s fi rst human space- Carpenter, Alan B. Shepard Jr., Vir- bital fl ights. Unmanned tests of the times before splashing down in fl ight program was born. Project gil I. “Gus” Grissom and L. Gordon booster and capsule preceded the the Atlantic 800 miles southeast of Mercury’s manned fl ights spanned Cooper. fi rst human fl ight. Bermuda. just two years – from May 1961 to These seven adventurers - and Alan Shepard was chosen for Among the original Mercury 7 May 1963 – making history with its a quiet cape that juts out from the fi rst manned Mercury launch, astronauts, only Slayton didn’t make six missions launched from Cape Florida’s east coast - were destined becoming the fi rst American to fl y in a Mercury fl ight, but he did go on Canaveral. to become the focus of the new space on May 5, 1961. His Freedom to fl y in space as part of the Apollo- The American public fi rst met in which the designation 7 capsule launched from Complex 5 Test Project crew. the seven men chosen to be this of “fi rst” was to become the norm. at Cape Canaveral aboard a Red- Many of the physical reminders country’s fi rst human space voy- The fi rst U.S. spaceship was a stone rocket. The capsule reached of the days have agers on April 9, 1959, at a press cone-shaped, one-man capsule. The an altitude of 116 miles during his disappeared, and mission control conference in Washington, D.C. blunt end was covered with a heat suborbital fl ight and splashed down was moved to Houston early in the The men were dubbed “as- shield to protect it against the 3,000 304 miles out into the Atlantic. Gemini program. But it was the pio- tronauts.” The term was a cross degree heat of re-entry into the The fl ight lasted a little more neering legacy of Project Mercury between “aeronauts,” as ballooning atmosphere. Slowed by parachutes, than 15 minutes. and all those who worked on it that pioneers were called, and “- the capsules were designed to splash Another major fi rst was propelled America’s space program nauts,” the legendary Greeks in down in the ocean allowing recovery achieved during the third Mercury forward to the astounding feat of search of the Golden Fleece. These of the and vehicle by ship. mission on February 20, 1962, when reaching the moon by the summer new explorers prepared to sail into Each astronaut named his capsule John Glenn became the fi rst of 1969.

Experiences from Gemini paved path for moon visits By Anna Heiney 3, the fi rst human fl ight of and Jim Lovell, and the two tronaut Gene Cernan. NASA Spaceport News the project. The nearly fi ve- crews carried out the fi rst continued to accumulate hour mission demonstrated space rendezvous. extensive experience in ren- n May 5, 1961, Alan the new capsule’s maneuver- The fi rst docking with dezvous, docking, spacewalk Shepard’s Mercury ability in orbit. On Gemini another spacecraft - an Age- and orbital maneuvering fl ight was inked in O 4, astronaut Edward White na rocket stage - took place during the next two fl ights, history books. Twenty days later, President John F. Ken- became the fi rst American to during Gemini 8. When a Gemini 10 and Gemini 11. nedy committed the United venture out of the safe con- stuck capsule thruster caused Gemini 12 brought the States to landing a man on fi nes of a capsule and into the docked vehicles to begin program to a close. During the moon before the close of the vacuum of space. spinning wildly, astronaut the nearly four-day mission, the decade - The following missions Neil Armstrong undocked astronaut Buzz Aldrin set a was the training ground NASA fi le continued the streak of fi rsts. and regained control. spacewalk record, spending for the moon missions of This view of the orbiting Gemini 7 Gemini 5 marked the Gemini 9 rendezvoused more than fi ve hours outside Apollo. was taken from Gemini 6 during fi rst time fuel cells were with an unmanned Augment- the capsule while it was Although the Gemini their rendezvous mission in space. used to provide electrical ed Target Docking Adapter, docked to an Agena booster. program was based at Complex 19 at the Launch power to a spacecraft, allow- but docking was impossible The Gemini missions NASA’s Manned Spacecraft Operations Center in Cape ing an eight-day mission. due to the failed jettison gave the agency crucial ex- Center in Houston, now the Canaveral, Fla. Gemini 6 crew members of the adapter’s docking perience in real-time trouble- Johnson Space Center, each Astronauts Gus Grissom Wally Schirra and Tom Staf- shroud. The three-day mis- shooting and advanced space of the Gemini- vehicles and John Young lifted off ford met up with Gemini 7 sion featured a challenging operations - knowledge that launched from Launch March 23, 1965 on Gemini astronauts Frank Borman two-hour spacewalk by as- paved the way to the moon. Page 4 SPACEPORT NEWS Oct. 1, 2008 Moon likely a hub for , beyond By Rebecca Sprague Spaceport News Milestones e’ve done it be- set tempo for fore, and we’re future NASA Won the brink of spacefl ight doing it again. In 1961, President John During the F. Kennedy said, “I believe Apollo Program, which that this nation should com- spanned from 1961 to mit itself to achieving the 1975, NASA launched goal, before this decade is numerous test mis- sions, as well as out, of landing a man on 11 crewed missions. the moon and returning him The milestones safely to Earth.” reached by NASA Just fi ve months shy of during the program the end of the , NASA include two Earth rose to President Kennedy’s orbiting missions, two challenge. lunar orbiting mis- On July 16, 1969, a sions, a lunar swing- V blasted Apollo 11 by and six moon through the blue sky above landing missions. Kennedy Space Center. The NASA fi le/1969 crew traveled through space, Astronaut Buzz Aldrin, lunar module pilot, walks on the surface of the moon near the leg of the Lunar Module do other things, not because looking back at Earth and “Eagle” during the Apollo 11 mission. Astronaut Neil Armstrong, commander, took this photograph. While they are easy, but because arrived in lunar orbit on astronauts Armstrong and Aldrin explored the Sea of Tranquility region of the moon, astronaut Michael Collins, they are hard.” July 19. command module pilot, remained with the Command and “Columbia” in lunar orbit. In the next decade, Angelo Taiani worked NASA will go to the moon for Kennedy’s ground sup- landing to happen. I knew module, named “Eagle,” and drilling and gathering again, as well as travel to port operations during the how much fuel they had, stepped out onto the moon 46 pounds of moon rocks, Mars and beyond with the Apollo era and recalls the so I thought at any moment and said, “That’s one small which they brought back to Ares and Orion spacecraft. long hours he put in to sup- they were going to abort the step for a man, one giant Earth. And it’s expected to be any- port the Apollo 11 mission. mission. But there was a big leap for mankind.” “I was so darn tired, but thing but easy. “I worked 24 hours sigh of relief for me, as well While Command I stayed up anyway watch- straight the day before as mission control when Module Pilot Michael Col- ing Armstrong and Aldrin liftoff,” Taiani said. “I had we heard the words ‘touch- lins remained in lunar orbit, take their fi rst steps on the nothing to do once they down.’” Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin moon,” Taiani said. “Then, I got into transorbit, but I The world watched spent 21 hours on the moon, fi nally fell asleep.” stayed up for another 17 as Neil Armstrong slowly posting the U.S. fl ag, tak- Taiani is now retired, hours waiting for the lunar climbed out of the lunar ing notes and photographs, but continues to volunteer at Kennedy. He, along with thousands of other NASA alumni, anxiously wait for the day we make history again. “It’s got to be different if we’re going to go to Mars. I was involved with plenty of studies that showed it would take six months to get to Mars and another six months to get back, but the moon is a great taxi hub for the mission,” Taiani said. Today, John F. Ken- nedy’s words continue to inspire NASA employees: NASA fi le/1969 NASA image “We choose to go to the The 363-foot-tall Apollo 11 space Concept image of NASA’a next-generation spacecraft and system, crew launch vehicle, moon. We choose to go to vehicle took off from Launch Pad 39A, as it roars over Cape Canaveral. The Ares I-X test flight is scheduled to launch in 2009. the moon in this decade and at 9:37 a.m., July 16, 1969. Oct. 1, 2008 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 5 Space shuttle shines as an American icon By Steven Siceloff Spaceport News ohn Young and Robert Crippen rode the fi rst Jspace shuttle, Colum- bia, into orbit on April 12, 1981, a few months before IBM introduced its fi rst home computer. It was the same year that MTV debuted, and the year the fi rst Indiana movie, “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” premiered. Columbia fl ew months before Sandra Day O’Connor was nomi- nated by President Ronald Reagan to become the fi rst woman on the U.S. Supreme Court. Since that fi rst launch, the shuttle fl eet has become a picture of versatility and NASA fi le photos stunning longevity colored in by dazzling success dur- Above, space shuttle Discovery rolls out to Launch Pad 39B on May 19, 2006 for its STS-121 mission. Top right, Atlantis returns from its STS-84 mission, to ing 27 years of service to Kennedy Space Center with its drag chute deployed on May 24, 1987. Right, America’s space agency. Columbia soared into space on the STS-1 mission at 7 a.m. April 12, 1981. From performing ex- periments in state-of-the-art Until the space shuttle, to practice space station scope, perched high above cherry picker in the form of laboratories inside a shuttle astronauts – and Russian construction techniques in the distorting effects of the that NASA cargo bay, to erecting a new cosmonauts – only returned the cargo bay. Earth’s atmosphere, would calls the remote constellation of communica- to Earth under billowing In November 1983, go on to rewrite nearly system. tions and building parachutes. Shuttles intro- Columbia became a space everything astronomers The success NASA the largest space station, duced precise on a laboratory for astronauts thought about the universe. enjoyed with its shuttles the space shuttle quickly runway, just like an airplane. who were chosen for their Hubble has required carried a price, though. The became the starting point for With a payload bay research capacity and his- helping hands from several Challenger and Columbia almost everything NASA 60 feet long, a shuttle can tory rather than their pilot shuttle crews along the way. accidents in 1986 and 2003, wanted to do. carry an Apollo, Gemini and skills. The upcoming mission by respectively, cost 14 astro- The spacecraft carried Mercury capsule with plenty Challenger proved Atlantis, STS-125, is to be nauts their lives and sent the the renowned names of of room to spare. in April 1984 that space the last to the orbiting obser- agency into a careful exami- previous exploration ships: Screaming off the shuttles made terrifi c vatory. nation of itself. Each time, Columbia, Challenger, Shuttles placed the launch pad and reaching service stations for orbit- the shuttle fl eet returned to Discovery, Atlantis and Mach 25 in eight minutes, ing satellites. A crew of fi ve Chandra X-ray Observa- space and to its exploration . the shuttle acts like a preci- astronauts used the shuttle tory and Compton Gamma work. The shuttle is signifi - sion sports car. In orbit, the and a jetpack to capture Ray Observatory into orbit NASA’s currency cantly larger than the cap- shuttle takes on a delivery the malfunctioning Solar where they pioneered stud- throughout its 50 years sule-sized spacecraft NASA truck’s role by deploying Maximum research satel- ies on the dynamics and has been progress, and in cut its teeth on. One shuttle communications satellites lite. Spacewalkers replaced history of the universe. fl ight routinely carries seven and planetary probes. faulty components and then The probe the , when the space astronauts into orbit at once, As the American pop returned the satellite to its to and probe shuttles were developed and the size of NASA’s whole culture and political scenes studying mission. to both began their built, progress meant reus- class of original Mercury changed around them, the That experience and ex- successful missions inside a spacecraft designed for astronauts. Challenger set space shuttles went about pertise was called on numer- shuttle cargo bay. a multitude of orbital duties. the single-fl ight record in their designed work. Colum- ous times during the space In 1998, the shuttles be- Twenty-seven years ago 1985 when it carried eight bia lofted its fi rst communi- shuttle’s history, including came the premier work site Columbia ignited its engines astronauts into space for a cations satellites into orbit spectacular work performed above the world as they took for the fi rst space shuttle Spacelab mission. in November 1982. on NASA’s crown jewel, the part in the groundbreaking mission; since then NASA The spacecraft are Discovery launched Hubble . construction of the Interna- has spent more than half its instantly distinguished from three on one fl ight in 1984, Discovery launched the tional Space Station. Unlike lifetime fl ying shuttles and every other crewed space- and the crew still had observatory in April 1990. any other spacecraft, the routinely marking progress craft because of their wings. enough equipment on board The Hubble Space Tele- shuttle even brings its own along the way. Page 6 SPACEPORT NEWS Oct. 1, 2008 Oct. 1, 2008 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 7 A half-century of accomplishments

1. Shuttle astronaut Winston Scott conducts the second spacewalk during the STS-87 mission on Dec. 12, 1997. 2. Astronauts, from left, Janet L. Kavandi, Dominic L. Gorie and Mamoru Mohri float 9. Kennedy Space Center’s Industrial Area in 1963. 10. Kennedy Space Center’s Industrial Area in 1975. 11. Kennedy Space Center’s Industrial Area in 1986. 12. The Vehicle As- on Endeavour’s middeck during the STS-99 mission in February 2000. 3. Kennedy Space Center technicians check out the in 2003. 4. Space shuttle Atlantis lifts off sembly Building site as seen from across the Launch Complex 39 Turning Basin in January 1963. 13. The Vehicle Assembly Building under construction with the Launch Control Center from Launch Pad 39B at Kennedy Space Center on Oct. 23, 1989. 5. Missile Row at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in 1964. 6. Attached to the robotic arm, the Hubble Space Telescope is lifted and service towers as seen from across the Launch Complex 39 Turning Basin in January 1965. 14. The Vehicle Assembly Building with the Launch Control Center and service towers as up into the sunlight during the space shuttle’s second servicing mission in February 1997. 7. Against the blackness of space, shuttle astronaut Peter J.K. Wisoff, wearing an extravehicular mobility seen from across the Launch Complex 39 Turning Basin in January 1965. Background. Space shuttle Atlantis as seen from the Russian space station during the STS-71 mission unit, stands on the arm during STS-61 mission in December 1993. 8. Apollo 11, humanity’s first lunar landing mission, lifted off at 9:32 a.m. from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Pad 39A. in June 1995. Page 8 SPACEPORT NEWS Oct. 1, 2008 ELV launches remain Kennedy’s backbone By Linda Herridge vehicles. The Pegasus XL, Spaceport News produced by Orbital Sci- ences, is the only expendable or the past 50 years, launch vehicle carried aloft, NASA has relied Fon the Space Coast attached beneath an Orbital and a fl eet of expendable Sciences carrier aircraft, and launch vehicles to carry the then released for launch. agency’s multitude of scien- Fifty years of rocket tifi c, Earth-observing and launches produced data interplanetary missions into about the universe that space. researchers only dreamed of, In the late 1950s, shortly and future missions will do after NASA was established, the same. the original Naval The fi rst map of the Research Laboratory team boundary between the solar became the Launch Op- NASA fi le/1960 NASA fi le/1971 NASA fi le/1977 system and interstellar space erations Branch of NASA’s An Echo I satellite launched atop a An Atlas- rocket carrying sat atop a Titan Centaur will be created by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center - from Launch Complex the I took off from Launch as it soared from Launch Complex Interstellar Boundary Ex- in Greenbelt, Md. 17A on Aug. 12, 1960. Pad 36B on May 30, 1971. 41 on Sept. 5, 1977. plorer, or IBEX, spacecraft, In 1965, the team Astronomical Observatories than 200 NASA scientifi c, aboard a Pegasus XL. The merged with Kennedy Space missions to Mars and two wind and communications launch is scheduled for later Center. Voyager missions to outer in the 1960s and 70s. The payloads into orbit and on to this year from the Reagan From the earliest Van- launched aboard powerful Atlas-Centaur sent other planets. Delta vehicles Test Site on Kwajalein Atoll guard launch in the 1950’s Titan III-Centaur launch ve- High Energy launched a series of Orbiting in the Republic of the Mar- to the powerful hicles from Launch Complex Observatories into space in 41. Solar Observatories in the shall Islands. launch in 2006 carrying New the late 1970s. Complex 41 later 1960s and 70s from Launch NASA’s Lunar Recon- Horizons to explore , The Atlas-Agena, a became the launch site for Complex 17. naissance Orbiter, or LRO, is NASA’s requirements for much more powerful vehicle the most powerful uncrewed By the 1990s, NASA’s targeted for launch in 2009, expendable launch vehicles than the Thor-Agena, could U.S. rocket at the time, the Expendable Launch Vehicle aboard an Atlas V from continues to evolve. place spacecraft in lunar or Titan IV, developed by Mar- Program was established Launch Complex 41. LRO Explorer spacecraft interplanetary trajectories. tin Marietta for the U.S. Air to oversee the expendable launched primarily aboard The Atlas-Agena sent four will identify safe landing Force. A Titan IV launched launch vehicle fl eet. In 1997, Delta vehicles from Launch Rangers to the moon, fi ve zones that are free of large the spacecraft to Kennedy Space Center Complex 17 at Cape Ca- Lunar Orbiters, and the fi rst boulders and craters for Saturn in 1997. became the program’s lead naveral Air Force Station. Mariner spacecraft to Venus future lunar missions. In the 1970s, the Titan- center for NASA’s acquisi- The Atlas-Centaur was the and Mars. Kennedy’s Launch Ser- Centaur became the most tion and program manage- launch vehicle for Surveyor The Delta launch vices Program is the back- powerful vehicle available in ment of expendable launch I, the fi rst U.S. spacecraft vehicle, produced by bone of the space program in the United States’ unmanned vehicle missions. The to soft land on the moon. Boeing, is referred to as Florida and will continue its space program. The vehicle program later realigned and It, along with several other the workhorse of NASA’s essential role in the oversight was a combination of the was renamed the Launch Surveyors, launched from expendable launch vehicle of rocket launches through- Air Force’s Titan IIIC and Services Program. Complex 36. Two Viking family. It has carried more out NASA’s next 50 years. the more powerful Centaur NASA’s fi rst successful upper stage of the Atlas-Cen- return to Mars after the Vi- taur. NASA used this vehicle king mission was the launch to launch missions to study of the Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and the atop a Delta II in November sun. 1996. The Mars Exploration NASA used the Titan II Rovers, Spirit and Opportu- to launch several National nity, launched aboard Delta Oceanic and Atmospheric II in 2003. In 2005, Administration, or NOAA, a Delta II carried NASA’s weather satellites. A Titan III mission bound sent NASA’s for the . on its journey in 1992. Today, the major- The Atlas-Agena and ity of NASA missions are Thor-Agena launched a launched aboard Delta II,

NASA fi le/1975 series of Orbiting Geo- NASA fi le/1996 Atlas V or Pegasus XL NASA fi le/1996 A Titan III-Centaur 4 rocket carrying physical Observatories in the A Delta II carrying the Mars Global expendable launch vehicles. An Atlas V carrying the Viking I took off from Launch 1960s, and the Atlas-Centaur Surveyor took off from Launch The Delta IV and Atlas V are Deep shot from Launch Complex 36B on Aug. 20, 1975. launched a series of Orbiting Complex 17A on Nov. 7, 1996. evolved expendable launch Complex 41 on Jan. 19, 2006. Oct. 1, 2008 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 9 Bumper Project led to birth of a moonport By Kay Grinter ware needed, existed only nedy Space Center by an Reference Librarian in the imaginations of their Executive Order signed by creators. President Lyndon B. Johnson revard County’s In September, NASA on November 29, 1963, fi ve introduction to the asked Congress to authorize days after the death of Presi- Space Age came in B the acquisition of a tract of dent Kennedy. October 1949, when Presi- land on Merritt Island to The launch pads at dent Harry S. Truman estab- build a moonport. lished the Joint Long Range Complex 39, designed to While space center support the rockets, Proving Grounds from Cape planners drew up the require- Canaveral to Ascension Is- saw the Apollo Program ments, the U.S. Army Corps through to its end in 1972. land in the Atlantic. of Engineers created a new The and Apollo Kennedy Space Center’s management offi ce - the Ca- Soyuz Test Project missions origins reach back to the naveral District - to supervise NASA fi le/1950 also lifted off from these Army Ballistic Missile Agen- construction contracts for The Bumper V-2 was the fi rst missile launched from Cape Canaveral on pads. cy’s Missile Firing Laborato- July 24, 1950. NASA. ry in Alabama, headed by Dr. Clearing of the land After modifi cations, After NASA was estab- became Launch Complex Kurt Debus, a key member and dredging for a barge these stalwart facilities lished, the launch team be- 39 and Industrial Area were of Wernher von Braun’s canal and turn basin began launched 124 space shuttle came the Launch Operations undeveloped and overgrown renowned rocket team. in 1962. The independent missions and will be The fi rst launch by the Directorate of the Marshall with reeds and palmettos. Launch Operations Center, transformed, once more, to team from Cape Canaveral Space Flight Center. In May of 1961, when or LOC, was established on support the Ares rockets for was of a modifi ed German Planning got under President John F. Kennedy July 1, with Debus as its fi rst the Constellation Program, V-2 on July 24, 1950. The way for what was called the challenged America to land director. re-establishing Kennedy rocket reached an altitude of Merritt Island Launch Area, men on the moon, the launch The LOC’s name was Space Center as the preemi- 10 miles. or MILA. At that time, what facilities and fl ight hard- changed to the John F. Ken- nent moonport.

Emergence of a Marsport the next logical step By Kay Grinter Project Offi ce at Kennedy. ones used during the Apollo Reference Librarian “We are already developing Program - may be modifi ed detailed fl ight and ground to support the . xcitement is in the operations concepts to Changes to Launch Pad air at Kennedy Space support the lunar phase of 39B have already begun to Center as planning E the Constellation Program. support the test of the Ares gets under way to support While the initial focus for I-X in 2009. NASA’s new Constellation this effort is focused on lunar Pad 39A will go through Program, the space trans- missions, applicability to a metamorphosis of its own portation system for the future Mars missions is con- to support Ares V launch op- next generation of explorers. sidered in the evaluation of Kennedy will take the lead erations after the last shuttle different architectures. Even- liftoff. Modifi cations to Pad in ground operations, as well tually, what we are doing to A will include demolition of as launch and recovery op- return humans to the moon the existing shuttle fi xed and erations for the initiative. will be used for the fi rst hu- rotating service structures, Kennedy’s focus for its NASA image man missions to Mars.” as well as adding additional next 50 years is to establish The Space Station Concept image of the Altair lunar undergoing ground processing. cryogenic storage capacity “a program to develop a Processing Facility will be will undergo processing at sustained human presence return to the moon by 2020. called into service for off- required by the Ares V. A Kennedy, including the Ares on the moon, including a A sustained human presence line processing of Altair. new fl ame defl ector also is robust precursor program I crew launch vehicle, the on the moon eventually will The Vehicle Assembly planned to be built. to promote exploration, Ares V heavy-lift launch lead to a and Building high bays will As the fi rst steps are science, commerce and U.S. vehicle, the Orion crew pave the way for future hu- support mating of Orion to taken to transform Ken- preeminence in space, and as exploration vehicle and the man and robotic missions to the Ares I rocket, as well as nedy into a true Marsport a stepping stone to future ex- Altair lunar lander. Apollo Mars and other destinations. integration of Altair onto the to support NASA’s next 50 ploration of Mars and other and shuttle heritage facilities “I am 100 percent Ares V. years, Griffi n expressed the destinations,” as described in and hardware will provide convinced that we will go to New mobile launchers dreams of employees across the NASA Authorization Act the foundation. Mars some day,” said Shawn will be built for the Ares the agency, “I believe that we of 2005. NASA’s goal is to devel- Quinn, future elements man- I, but the existing shuttle will, one day, fi nd a civiliza- Elements of the project op and fl y Orion by 2015 and ager for the Constellation launch platforms - the same tion on Mars. Ours.” Page 10 SPACEPORT NEWS Oct. 1, 2008 Great Observatories view light as time

By Steven Siceloff some questions while leading to Spaceport News profound new ones. “Nobody really expected dark ant to know what you’re energy to be discovered,” Livio made of? Look into space. Focus on that neb- said. “When I studied astrophysics, W nobody studied dark energy because ula where an opaque disk of cosmic dust points to a brilliant light. That nobody expected it to be there. Now, light is a young , and its birth has everybody studies dark energy.” fi lled space with atoms that make up Before the Great Observatories, the fundamental elements of planets, McDowell said the prevailing theory stars, galaxies and even people on among astronomers was that nuclear Earth. fusion, which makes the sun burn, Carbon-based life, which is was the chief powerhouse for the what all of us are, began as atoms universe. Now, they have found that created in the gravity and fi re of a gravity is every bit as important as star’s birth. fusion. “We can look back to see where “In terms of miles per gallon, so we came from,” said Jonathan to speak, you get much more from McDowell, an astrophysicist at the gravity than from fusion,” McDowell Harvard-Smithsonian Center for As- NASA fi le/2003 said. trophysics, which operates the Chan- This picture, often called the “Eye of God,” is a blend of NASA Hubble Space Telescope All the discoveries are ones that images and the wide view of the Mosaic camera at Kitt Peak National Observatory near dra X-ray Observatory. “It’s giving will be studied by astronomers who Tucson, Ariz. Astronomers call the trillion-mile-long tunnel of glowing gasses the Helix Nebula. us evidence of where we came from. have not yet been born. It explains why iron is common and universe was relatively young. “It’s not just that we see a “If you open any new book is rare. You can trace it directly The Compton Gamma Ray different set of stars, we’re seeing on astronomy, it is basically full of back.” Observatory came next in 1991 to fundamentally different faces of the Hubble images,” Livio said. We didn’t know that with cer- evaluate pulsars, quasars and neutron universe,” McDowell said. The images Hubble creates are tainty until NASA launched four spe- stars, the sources of the strongest For example, the Compton not limited to astronomy. They also cialized called the Great energies found in the universe. could pick up signs of intense energy are used as album covers and hung in Chandra launched in 1999, to Observatories. Three rode into orbit on its own and make groundbreak- art museums. focus on the beams of X-rays pro- ing discoveries. But adding a Hubble aboard space shuttles from Kennedy “Hubble has taken this beauty Space Center, and one was lofted duced throughout space. Its obser- observation to the mix gave astrono- of the cosmos and brought it in the on the top of a Delta II rocket from vations proved that black holes not mers the chance to turn Hubble’s homes of people,” Livio said. “This Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. only exist, but are plentiful. Many lens on the place the energy came has been a complete shift in the way Each was designed to look at of them are so large they require from so astronomers could fi nd out non-scientists see the universe.” a different kind of light, much of two adjectives to explain them: what caused the energy. The observations by the four which is invisible to the human eye, super-massive black holes. “Imagine that you could only but critical in explaining why the The Spitzer Space Telescope, see yellow,” said Mario Livio of the telescopes are being stored in large universe acts as it does and how it which looks for infrared light, com- Space Telescope Science Institute, digital libraries that researchers are got there in the fi rst place. pleted the suite of space-borne ob- which runs the Hubble observa- expected to consult for decades to “There’s all this important stuff servatories in 2003. It found that the tions. “Then you get to extend (your come. going on that is completely invis- materials which are basic ingredients vision) to the rest of the visible This is due in part to the precise ible,” McDowell said. for human life are sprinkled through- spectrum. You would see a lot more instruments that produce exquisite The Hubble Space Telescope out areas where planets and in the world.” images which hold more information was the fi rst, launched in 1990. are thought to be forming. Dark energy was discovered in than even their users can explain. Hubble sees the universe much as the Although each observatory has much the same manner, by focusing Future astronomers can look again human eye does, looking at the same made signifi cant fi ndings on its own, multiple instruments on the same and again at the images and make light we can see, plus portions of the the real strength of the program is the part of space at about the same time. new discoveries. ultraviolet spectrum. Its images re- ability to use the facilities together to The discovery has been arguably the “These studies will keep going vealed galaxies as they were created study a single part of the sky in detail most dramatic fi nd of the Great Ob- on long after the observatories have some 13 billion years ago, when the and see all that is going on there. servatories program. It has answered shut down,” McDowell said.

The Hubble Space Telescope launched in 1990 The Compton Gamma Ray Observatory launched in The Chandra X-ray Observatory launched in 1999 The Spitzer Space Telescope launched in 2003 aboard shuttle Discovery on the STS-31 mission. 1991 aboard shuttle Atlantis on the STS-37 mission. aboard shuttle Columbia on the STS-93 mission. aboard a Delta II rocket from CCAFS. Oct. 1, 2008 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 11 Kennedy has hosted VIPs since inception By Elaine M. Marconi Spaceport News

ings, queens, presi- dents, politicians, Kmovie stars, musi- cians and tens-of-millions of everyday people from all over the world have fl ocked to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center to experience Ameri- ca’s space program.

President John F. Ken- NASA fi le/2001 nedy, for whom the center Margaret Thatcher, former Prime was later named, was the fi rst Minister of Great Britain, visited American president to visit Kennedy Space Center in 2001. in 1962. NASA fi le/1962 Through the years, roy- Corp. at the center’s Shuttle alty including Prince Philip President John F. Kennedy inspects the interior of the Friendship 7 Mercury capsule with astronaut Col. John Landing Facility. In fl ight, Glenn, Jr. while touring Cape Canaveral in February 1962. of England, Queen Beatrix of Hawking was able, with the the Netherlands and former center for authentic scene covery on its historic Return the cramped cabin sitting support of his team, to fl oat Prime Minister of Great shoots. to Flight mission, STS-114, atop hundreds of gallons of around the cabin for a few Britain Margaret Thatcher, Television journalists in July 2005. fuel. brief minutes, releasing him just to name a few, toured the and fi lm crews from TV In February 2006, pilot Although suffering from from the bonds of gravity. center. series such as “Modern Mar- Steve Fossett soared into amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Kennedy Space Center, The fi lming of space- vels,” “Dirty Jobs,” and the record books when he took also known as Lou Gehrig’s through NASA’s fi rst 50 related movies like “Apollo History and Discovery Chan- off from Kennedy’s Shuttle disease, physicist Dr. Stephen years, not only has served 13,” “Contact,” “Space nels are a few that have come Landing Facility in a Virgin Hawking traveled to Ken- as a launch platform to the Cowboys,” “Armaged- to Kennedy to cover space Atlantic’s single seat, Global nedy in April 2007 to realize universe, but has brought the don” and “The Right Stuff” shuttle launches, landings Flyer aircraft. Establishing a a long-lived dream - to expe- universe closer to Earth for brought movie stars, directors and to fi lm documentaries. new aviation non-stop fl ying rience . all to appreciate, study and and producers such as Tom First lady Laura Bush, record of more than 25,000 Hawking boarded a enjoy. Hanks, Bruce Willis, Ron only the third fi rst lady to miles, Fossett endured modifi ed Boeing 727, man- Howard, Steven Spielberg attend a launch, watched the 76 hours and 45 minutes in aged by the Zero Gravity and George Lucas to the liftoff of space shuttle Dis-

NASA fi le/2007 NASA fi le/2005 NASA fi le/2006 Physicist Stephen Hawking enjoys zero gravity during a fl ight aboard Laura Bush, the third fi rst lady to visit Kennedy Space Center, and former In 2006, Steve Fossett, right, fl ew a modifi ed Boeing 727 aircraft April 26, 2007. Hawking suffers from Florida Governor Jeb Bush watched as shuttle Discovery launched in the a record 25,766 miles after taking amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. Space Shuttle Program’s Return to Flight on July 26, 2005. off from Kennedy Space Center.

NASA fi le/1997 NASA fi le/1994 The cast of “Armageddon,” from left, Ben Affl eck, Liv Tyler, Ken Hudson Campbell, Billy Bob Director Ron Howard, wearing head phones, and actor Tom Hanks fi lmed scenes at Thornton, Bruce Willis and Steve Buscemi, fi lmed at Kennedy Space Center in late 1997. Kennedy Space Center for the movie “Apollo 13” in 1994. Page 12 SPACEPORT NEWS Oct. 1, 2008 Diverse work force brings success to KSC By Anita Barrett in Systems Engineering with Florida Spaceport News Space Shuttle Operations, has been a member of SWE for 10 years. he House Committee on Science and Technology in Inspired by a joint SWE-University TWashington, D.C., held a of Central Florida conference in hearing July 30 to celebrate NASA’s Orlando to bring awareness of career 50th Anniversary by reviewing its choices in math and science to high accomplishments and examining its school girls, Floyd decided to work future opportunities and challenges. in SWE to bring similar exposure to Space and Aeronautics Subcom- Brevard County and include girls in mittee Chairman Mark Udall said, “I third through ninth grades. think we owe a debt of appreciation Floyd says a benefi t of SWE to all the men and women of NASA, NASA fi le involvement is how “management its contractors, and the universities Former Center Director Roy Bridges stops to pet one of the dogs that serves with Canine looked at me differently – they con- and research institutions that have Companions for Independence, a vendor displaying its capabilities at the Disability Awareness made it all possible.” and Action Working Group’s 1999 Technology Fair at Kennedy Space Center. sidered it important to work in SWE Achievements at Kennedy Space and appreciated how active I was at members for Florida’s Space Coast Center happen because of a supe- both the local and national level.” Section. rior work force characterized by its She adds, “I enjoy the ability to net- SWE’s mission is to inform the diversity. work with other women in SWE for community of opportunities open to The diversity of Kennedy’s work personal and professional reasons.” force includes job titles, culture, women in engineering and encour- age women to enter and grow in The Disability Awareness and ethnicity, gender and disabilities. Action Working Group, known as As Kennedy’s Space Shuttle engineering and the sciences. Of the DAAWG, is an advocate for hiring Program and Launch Services 143 members in the section, 58 are Program matured, its work force from Kennedy. Seven of the charter individuals with disabilities and dis- expanded. In 1968, Kennedy had members remain active: Kathleen abled veterans. DAAWG enhances more than 25,000 employees, 2,921 F. Harer, Judith A. Kersey, Merri awareness of their capabilities and of which were NASA civil servants. Anne Stowe, Charlotte L. Ort, Joan value throughout the center, remov- Kennedy’s work force now numbers NASA fi le M. Wenaas, Katherine M. Gay and ing barriers that hinder employees around 14,950. That includes 2,197 At Kennedy Space Center’s annual Black Monique P. Butler. from working at their full potential, Employee Strategy Team’s African-American civil servants and students, and SWE gives awards to deserv- and providing a forum for discussion History Month luncheon, Erin Parrish, left, ing women engineers annually, such 10,937 contractor employees. and resolution of issues concerning displays a plaque she received from Elaine as Outstanding Woman Engineer Ten years ago, there were 1,985 Johnson that names her the recipient of the people with disabilities. civil servants at Kennedy: of the Year, the Distinguished New Evelyn Johnson Scholarship in 2006. The group hosts a special event 61 percent in scientifi c and engi- Engineer of the Year and Woman En- annually, frequently including ven- neering positions, 21 percent in The Black Employee Strategy gineer Technical Achievement. Since professional administration, nearly Team, or BEST, is an organization 2003, the society has recognized dors demonstrating mobility, hearing, 10 percent in technical support and of the center’s African-American 18 women, eight awards going to vision and silent disability assistive eight percent in clerical. employees. Kennedy employees. technology that assist people with Of the 2,197 civil servants in Wanda Harding, mission man- Susan Floyd, a senior manager various disabilities in the workplace. 2007, 62 percent were scientifi c and ager of the Flight Projects Offi ce engineering, 27 percent administra- of the Launch Services Program, tion, 7 percent technical and said, “BEST represents a voice of John F. Kennedy Space Center 4 percent clerical. conscience that the opportunities for In 1983, minorities made up less African-Americans to serve across than 10 percent of the civil servant all levels of responsibility and leader- Spaceport News work force. That increased to more ship at KSC remain uncompromised. than 17 percent between 1995 and BEST is therefore not only interested Spaceport News is an offi cial publication of the Kennedy Space Center and in keeping the pipeline populated, is published on alternate Fridays by External Relations in the interest of KSC civil 1996. In 2007, minorities made up service and contractor employees. 23 percent of NASA’s civil servants. but in the growth and development of Contributions are welcome and should be submitted three weeks before Reinforcing Kennedy’s diversity those employees to remain competi- publication to the Media Services Branch, IDI-011. E-mail submissions can be sent to goals are more than eight affi nity tive and ready to serve at the highest KSC-Spaceport-News@mail..gov groups and professional organiza- levels.” Harding is a member of the Managing editor ...... Candrea Thomas tions that seek to improve working BEST Steering Committee. Editor ...... Frank Ochoa-Gonzales conditions and opportunities at the In 1989, the National Society of Copy editor ...... Rebecca Sprague Graphic design ...... Chris Chamberland center. They provide networking and Women Engineers or SWE, chartered Library technician ...... Barbara mentoring opportunities for career the Space Coast Section in Florida development and also seek to dimin- for women engineers in the Brevard, Editorial support provided by InDyne, Inc. Writers Group. Spaceport News is on the internet at www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/news/snews/spnews_toc.html ish any barriers that might prohibit Indian River and Volusia Counties. USGPO: 733-049/600142 that development. Kennedy provided 25 of the charter