Volume 14 Issue 4 www.nasa.gov/centers/stennis April 2018 Stennis Day at the Capitol Astronaut Stephanie Wilson speaks to Mississippi senators during Stennis Day at the Capitol activities March 21 in Jackson, Mississippi. She is joined (l to r) by state Sens. Angela Burks Hill of Picayune, Jennifer Branning of Philadelphia, Philip Moran of Kiln and state Rep. Timmy Ladner of Poplarville. ‘It was a good year’ Stennis director hosts annual community briefing See page 5 Page 2 LAGNIAPPE April 2018 FORE!!! Sorry – I did not mean to yell so loudly in of good use. Whenever you use the camera on your your ear, but it is that time of year to get back into smartphone, turn to GPS to get yourself “un-lost” or good golfing form. Most golfers head to the driving rest on that memory foam mattress or pillow you love, range to sharpen up their swings after a winter hiatus you are benefiting from NASA technology. from the links. However, when you have a golf swing like mine, it is better to work on getting the vocal NASA technology has contributed to products and chords into good shouting shape for warning fellow processes in such areas as airlines, baby formula, duffers of inevitably errant shots. Ark! search-and-rescue efforts, transportation, construction, water filtration, orthodontics, heart surgery, packaged You may think golf is a funny topic for a NASA pub- foods, physical rehabilitation, even amusement parks. lication, but it turns out the two have quite a partner- ship. NASA development and use of technology has A number of the spinoff technologies have been impacted the world of golf for a number of years developed by and through Stennis, such as the imager and in a number of ways. NASA high-speech video that firefighters around the world use to identify invis- technology helped companies study balls in flight to ible flames and a no-leak valve design now available for determine the best design. Metal mixtures from space licensing and commercial use. shuttle research helped develop a new line of golf clubs. A fabric developed for spacewalking astronauts The list goes on and on. NASA is about so much more even has been used to reduce sweating in socks, which than space, which would be a good thing to point out might just make your golf shoes smell better! to folk as you watch the New Orleans-area Zurich Classic golf tournament later this month. I will be Of course, golf is not the only area of life in which there, hoping to pick up a tip or two to help my swing. NASA had an impact. You almost cannot name an area Maybe this year, I will get something other than the where NASA technology or knowledge has not proven advice I received last year – to switch to bowling. Ark! Lagniappe is published monthly by the Office of Communications at NASA’s John C. Stennis Space Center. Access monthly copies at: www.nasa.gov/centers/stennis/news/publications/index.html Contact info – (phone) 228-688-3749; (email) [email protected]; (mail) NASA OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS, Attn: LAGNIAPPE, Mail code IA00, Building 1100 Room 304, Stennis Space Center, MS 39529 Managing Editor – Valerie Buckingham Editor – Lacy Thompson Staff Photographer – Danny Nowlin Page 3 LAGNIAPPE April 2018 FULFILLING NASA’S EXPLORATION MISSION Stennis signs its 1st Commerical Space Launch Act tennis Space Center has entered into its first-ever Relativity already has a Space Act Agreement with Stennis Commercial Space Launch Act with Relativity for testing its Aeon 1 engine on the E-3 Test Stand. Doz- SSpace, a private company focused on a new ap- ens of tests have been conducted on the engine, and the proach to developing small rocket launch vehicles. company plans to continue the testing as the E-4 facilities are being completed. Relativity Space co-founder and Chief Operating Officer Tim Ellis announced the agreement March 21. It grants The new Commercial Space Launch Act terms are for Relativity exclusive use of the E-4 Test Complex at Sten- a 10-year initial use with an option for a 10-year exten- nis to develop multiple vertical engine test stands, along sion. The 25-acre E-4 complex originally was developed with a second- by NASA with and first-stage multiple test hold-down test cells able to test stand, for testing engines up to its engines and several hundred vehicles. Relativ- thousand pounds ity estimates the of thrust. Full agreement will construction of save them up to the cells were $30 million in not completed, terms of infra- and the existing structure and infrastructure is other testing currently un- facilities they will used. Over time, no longer need to Relativity plans build themselves. to use E-4 to initially qualify “This is an excit- and acceptance ing time for us,” test more than 36 Stennis Director vehicles and 360 Rick Gilbrech engines per year. said. “Signing of our first CSLA Last month, El- agreement with An aerial photos shows the A-1 Test Stand (top right) and the E Test Complex (foreground facilities) lis was selected at Stennis Space Center. The E-4 test area to be developed by Relativity Space is the small cluster Relativity Space of facilities and unfinished test cells at the top left, indicated by the red square. to serve on the opens yet another National Space avenue for com- Council’s Users’ mercial customers to perform cost-efficient engine test- Advisory Group, a select group of private, public and ing at Stennis.” non-governmental stakeholders to advise the council as it seeks to foster close coordination, cooperation, and Ellis agreed. “Our partnership with Stennis is an impor- technology and information exchange across the nation’s tant milestone for Relativity,” he said. “We are an emerg- space enterprise. Relativity is the only early-stage commer- ing leader in America’s commercial space industry and, as cial space company represented on the advisory group. the company moves into its next phase of growth, this agreement gives us the certainty and flexibility we need Relativity is seeking to create an entirely new process to to develop our vehicle in the most efficient way possible. build and fly rockets. The company has created the world’s Our team and the path-breaking technology they have largest metal 3D printer to 3D print their own rockets and developed are reimagining the way rockets are built and launch satellites into space. Relativity’s process aims to flown, and this partnership will help us make our vision cut rocket part count by 100 times and to enable rockets a reality. Relativity Space looks forward to serving the to be built in days instead of years. Based in Los Angeles, rapidly growing market for launch services, and we are California, Relativity is privately funded by Social Capital, grateful to the entire Stennis team for their support.” Y Combinator Continuity and Mark Cuban. Page 4 LAGNIAPPE April 2018 Site leaders visit Mississippi Capitol to share Stennis story with state officials Astronaut Stephanie Wilson, Stennis Space Cen- ter leaders and Stennis resident agency repre- sentatives visited Jackson, Mississippi, on March 21 to host Stennis Day at the Capitol activities for state legislators. Members of the visiting delega- tion addressed members of the state Senate and House of Representatives, visited with individual Mississippi leaders and provided information on Stennis Space Center and its range of work. (Top left) Astronaut Stephanie Wilson stands with Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant. (Top right) Astronaut Stephanie Wilson appears before members of the Mississippi House of Representatives. She is joined (l to r) by Mike McDaniel of Aerojet Rocketdyne, Stennis As- sistant to the Director Darryl Gaines, Speaker of the House Philip Gunn of Clinton, Stennis Deputy Director Randy Galloway, Stennis Legislative Affairs Liaison Anne Peek, Stennis Strategic Business Development Manager Don Beckmeyer and Speaker Pro Tempore Greg Snowden of Meridian. (Bottom left) Astronaut Stephanie Wilson speaks with a group of students during Stennis Day at the Capitol activities March 21. (Bottom right) Stennis Advanced Technology and Technology Transfer Branch Manager Duane Armstrong shares information about his work at Stennis with an exhibit visitor during recent Sten- nis Day at the Capitol activities. Page 5 LAGNIAPPE April 2018 ‘Lot of exciting work on the books’ – Stennis hosts area leaders for annual site briefing Both NASA and Stennis recorded good years in 2017 and are focused on continuing to move for- ward, Stennis director Rick Gilbrech (left) indicated in his annual site report to community leaders April 5. The Stennis federal city is alive and thriving, Gilbrech told Gulf Coast leaders gathered for the annual director’s briefing event, hosted this year by Partners for Stennis and Michoud at the Northshore Harbor Center in Slidell. ”There is a lot of exciting work on the books and a lot of challenges to meet,” the Stennis leader said. Gilbrech reported that Stennis conducted 209 rocket engine/component tests on seven separate test stands in 2017 and is continuing preparations for testing the core stage of NASA’s new Space Launch System in the first half of 2019. In addition to Gilbrech, briefing attendees heard from Todd May (top right), director of Mar- shall Space flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and Bill Burnett, technical director of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command at Stennis. May updated participants on SLS rocket work under way at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, which is operated by Marshall. “This rocket is real, ...” May said. “It’s exciting to see all that hardware (being built at Michoud).” The three leaders fielded questions following their presentations and spoke with media members, as did Mike McDaniel (below right), site manager for Aerojet Rocketdyne at Sten- nis and Partners for Stennis and Michoud chair.