June 26, 2009 Vol. 49, No. 13 Spaceport News John F. Kennedy Space Center - America’s gateway to the universe www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/news/snews/spnews_toc.html INSIDE . Mission targets uncharted ‘water’ New facility By Steven Siceloff struments to try to find proof coming soon Spaceport News of ice or water vapor before it too slams into the lunar pair of spacecraft is surface to kick up a second heading to the moon plume. to gather informa- A “You see there’s this tion about potential landing strong interplay between sites and to find out whether science and exploration,” water exists on or near the said Mike Wargo, chief lunar surface. The missions lunar scientist for NASA’s are NASA’s first to the Page 2 Exploration Science Mis- moon in 10 years, and come sion Directorate. “We’re go- 40 years after astronauts ing to have a really compre- Crews work on first walked there. hydrogen leak hensive set of data sets that The Lunar Reconnais- NASA needs to return to the sance Orbiter, LRO, and moon.” Lunar Crater Observation The missions build on and Sensing Satellite, or past research of the moon, LCROSS, lifted off together including signs of ice picked atop an Atlas V rocket from up by the Lunar Prospec- Cape Canaveral Air Force tor spacecraft in 1999. Station on June 18 at LCROSS managers intend 5:32 p.m. to crash the spacecraft into Page 3 Although both space- the moon at one of the craft are headed to the Ares I-X update points where the Prospec- moon, their missions are tor saw the best chance for using far different methods water. to study Earth’s closest The places thought to neighbor. have water are at the moon’s LRO entered lunar poles, not the middle orbit Tuesday morning, four regions where the Apollo days after launch. Each of astronauts landed. Those ar- its instruments will survey eas get a lot of sunlight that the surface on their own, would boil any water away. producing a complete map But there are large craters at of the moon’s temperature Page 6 the poles where sun either scales, radiation levels and doesn’t shine much, or the precise elevations. Together, Heritage: crater walls create a large the information should give SSPF dedicated shadow over the floor that mission planners on Earth could protect water. in 1994 what they need to pick out Some of the craters do the best place for a lunar not climb above -200 de- outpost in the future. grees Celsius, said LCROSS The LCROSS mission Project Scientist Tony calls for the satellite to steer Colaprete. the empty 5,000-pound LCROSS has nine Centaur upper stage from instruments on board, NASA/Sandra Joseph -Tony Gray the Atlas V into the moon to including spectrometers and An Atlas V rocket carrying the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter and Lunar Crater blast up a plume of material. several specialized cameras. Observation and Sensing Satellite launches from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Page 7 Canaveral Air Force Station on June 18 at 5:32 p.m. LRO and LCROSS are the LCROSS will fly through first missions in NASA’s plan to return humans to the moon and begin establishing the plume with its own in- See WATER, Page 2 a lunar outpost by 2020. Page 2 SPACEPORT NEWS June 26, 2009 Propellants North Facility to break ground By Linda Herridge Spaceport News ennedy Space Cen- ter soon will break Kground on a new Propellants North Facility in the Launch Complex 39 area that will qualify for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, Platinum designation. It is the highest designation a LEED facility can achieve, and will be the first for the center. According to Center Operations LEED Specialist Frank Kline, the new facility will feature a high- efficiency roof and walls, air conditioning with energy recovery technology; ef- ficient variable frequency motors, variable air volume boxes; high-efficiency light- ing fixtures; smart lighting NASA image controls with step dimming An artist’s rendition shows the proposed Propellants North Facility in Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39 area, which will qualify for the U.S. Green Building and occupancy sensors; Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, Platinum designation. Energy Star appliances; water-conserving bathroom customers,” Kline said. “The ates, Inc. of Titusville, Fla., claimed and processed waste current ASHRAE (American fixtures; and high-velocity construction of this new and Green Building Services concrete from Kennedy’s Society of Heating, Refrig- hand dryers. facility reflects our dedica- of Orlando, Fla., completed demolition projects for facil- erating and Air-Conditioning The facility also will tion to the environment and the design in 2008. ity foundation and paving Engineers) standards,” Kline have natural daylight using the tax payer.” The construction con- subbase materials. said. high windows and correct Kline said currently tract was awarded to HW The roof will be con- The green facility will By Steven Siceloff solar orientation; high-ef- there are only 145 Plati- Davis Construction Inc. of structed of recycled metal house up to 64 managers, Spaceport News ficiency windows; and num-rated facilities in the Orlando. That company’s covered with a rainwater mechanics and technicians sustainable flooring using U.S. and only one other in most recent local project was harvesting system that will who fuel spacecraft at Ken- polished concrete and lami- Florida. the Shuttle Launch Experi- supply restroom fixtures. nedy. An 1,800-square-foot, nated bamboo. “NASA is next,” Kline ence at the Kennedy Space Xeriscape landscaping single-story shop will be set “Center Operations said. Center Visitor Complex. will use native species and aside for cryogenic transfer continually strives for The 10,730-square- The company will recycled crushed crawler- equipment storage. excellence as we develop foot facility will replace old reuse deconstructed Launch way rock for mulch. The new facility is first-rate facilities to support facilities built in the 1960s. Control Center firing room “The building will be 52 scheduled to be complete in our mission programs and Jones Edmunds and Associ- glazing and frames, and re- percent more efficient than late 2010. From WATER, Page 1 if astronauts can count on water stellation Program has identified 50 to map the moon completely. The already waiting at the moon, then potential landing sites that will be readings will be compared through- All will look at the flash and plume they may be able to use it to fuel intensively surveyed by LRO, said out at least a year of observations to from the Centaur’s impact and relay their engines for the return trip Rich Vondrak, project scientist for see how radiation, temperature and the information quickly before the to Earth instead of having to take the mission. sunlight change. spacecraft impacts as well. all their propellants with them at LRO also will be able to tell With all the new information The LRO spacecraft, NASA’s the start. The water also could be which parts of the moon see near- at hand, mission managers and Hubble Space Telescope and Earth- broken down and used as air for the continuous sunlight, another ele- astronauts expect to go much more based observatories will watch astronauts. ment crucial for astronauts hoping safely to the moon than previous debris clouds erupt and search them LRO’s work using seven to deploy solar arrays to power their space crews and go to different for signs of chemicals and water. instruments also is crucial to future lunar systems. places that have never been studied It’s an important study because missions by astronauts. The Con- It will take a month for LRO by astronauts before. June 26, 2009 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 3 Confident crews work to repair GUCP hydrogen leak By Linda Herridge and we’re confident we have Spaceport News a solution that’s going to work and allow us to go fly or the second time safely, then we’ll proceed in less than a week, forward,” Cain said. launch teams scrubbed F While teams at Kennedy space shuttle Endeavour’s work tirelessly to find the STS-127 mission because solution, the STS-127 astro- of a hydrogen gas leak at nauts are back in Houston the Ground Umbilical Car- continuing to train for their rier Plate, or GUCP, during tanking at Kennedy Space 16-day mission to the Inter- Center. national Space Station. Fueling of Endeavour’s The crew is set to deliver external fuel tank with more the final two segments of the than 500,000 gallons of su- Japan Aerospace Exploration per cold liquid hydrogen and Agency’s Kibo laboratory. liquid oxygen stopped at During five spacewalks, as- 1:02 a.m. June 17, while the tronauts will use the shuttle, station and Kibo robotic launch team evaluated the NASA/Tim Jacobs arms to attach platforms to situation. A vent valve was Workers check out and remove the Ground Umbilical Carrier Plate, or GUCP on Launch Pad 39A at Kennedy Space Center. opened and closed several A hydrogen leak during tanking June 12 and again on June 17, pushed the STS-127 mission launch to no earlier than July 11. the Japanese module that times and a fast flow of liq- will allow experiments to be uid hydrogen was restarted. be solved. GH2, flow control valves are The leak was is in a exposed to space. “It was a very chal- Endeavour’s launch was part of the main propulsion location where similar leaks STS-127 Commander lenging day,” said LeRoy officially scrubbed at system on the space shuttle.