March 13, 1998 Vol. 37, No. 5 MissionUpdate Shuttle-Mir Spaceport News America’s gateway to the universe. Leading the world in preparing and launching missions to Earth and beyond. John F. Kennedy Space Center Water found on Earth’s moon There is a high probability volume, location and that water ice exists at both distribution. “We are elated at the north and south poles of the performance of the the moon, according to initial spacecraft and its scientific Smooth Sailing: U.S. astronaut payload, as well as the Andy Thomas and new Mir 25 crew scientific data returned by mates Talgat Musabayev and NASA’s Lunar Prospector. resulting quality and Nikolai Budarin are awaiting the The Discovery Program magnitude of information arrival on March 17 of a Progress mission also has produced the about the moon that we resupply vehicle. A spacewalk had already have been able to to be canceled when the two first operational gravity map cosmonauts could not open a of the entire lunar surface, extract,” said Dr. Alan Binder, secondary latch on the airlock which should serve as a Lunar Prospector principal hatch. Another attempt won’t be fundamental reference for all investigator from the Lunar made until after the Progress Research Institute, Gilroy, arrives. Below, Thomas is shown future lunar exploration on Mir during the STS-89 mission. missions, project scientists Calif. announced March 5 at NASA’s The presence of water ice at Ames Research Center. both lunar poles is strongly Just two months after the indicated by data from the LUNAR Prospector (upper) is mated to the launch of the cylindrical spacecraft’s neutron Trans Lunar Injection Module Dec. 18 last spectrometer instrument, year at the Astrotech processing facility in spacecraft, mission scientists Titusville. The Star 37 motor in the module have solid evidence of the according to mission scientists. gave the spacecraft the needed additional existence of lunar water ice, velocity to complete the nearly five-day journey to the moon. including estimates of its (See MOON, Page 6) ARTIST’S AXAF completes concept of TRACE AXAF on critical tests orbit. AXAF’s 33-foot long The Advanced X-ray X-ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF) telescope is the largest program got some good news and most recently when the spacecraft powerful ever completed critical tests. to be built. AXAF was originally TRACE scheduled to arrive in Florida Pegasus XL, Vandenberg AFB March 19 The Transition Region and Coronal (See AXAF, Page 6) Explorer (TRACE) will study the connection between the sun’s magnetic fields and the heating of NASA’s SNOE launched Feb. 25 its corona, complementing data A student-developed The Earth-orbiting satellite from the orbiting Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). spacecraft called the Student was designed and built by a Nitric Oxide Explorer team of students, (SNOE) was launched faculty and engineers Feb. 25 aboard a from the University of Pegasus rocket from Colorado, Boulder. It Vandenberg Air Force is being operated SNOE, shown here during preflight Base, Calif. around the clock by a processing, weighs just 254 pounds.More than 100 students have participated in the SNOE is one of a team based at the project to date. long list of NASA Boulder campus. spacecraft slated for liftoff this SNOE carries instruments to sun, and ultraviolet light from year aboard expendable measure nitric oxide in the the Earth’s aurora. The launch vehicles from both the Earth’s upper atmosphere, the mission is designed to last one West and East Coasts. intensity of X-rays from the year. Page 2 SPACEPORT NEWS March 13, 1998 12 more NASA employees Calling all Oklahomans! The Oklahoma Heritage The association is asking Association is gathering that any current or past NASA take advantage of buyout material about the state’s employee who lived, attended An additional 12 NASA wishing to depart the agency contribution to the space school or was born in civil servants have departed under Early Out authority program. It will be featured in Oklahoma to contact Gini the space center under the must retire by March 31, the a book as part of the Moore Campbell toll-free at 1- Fiscal 1998 separation incen- date the authority ends. Civil association’s popular Horizons 888-501-2059. tive, or buyout, opportunity. servants at least 50 years of Series, one in a series of The book is scheduled to be An additional opportunity age with 20 years of service, publications on Oklahoma’s released in the spring or recently became available to or any age with 25 years of history and heritage. summer of 1999. NASA employees with at service, are eligible to depart least 30 years of federal ser- under the Early Out offer. Disney offers discount to KSC vice and who are at least 55 A closing date of Sept. 30 years old. This latest Optional is still in effect for civil ser- KSC employees have until Monday through Friday. The Retirement election closes vants in the Quality Assur- April 5 to take advantage of a tickets are not available at the April 3. April 3 also is the ance and Occupational discount for admission to front gate of any of the three deadline for resignations in Health Specialist fields to take Disney’s The Magic Kingdom, theme parks. conjunction with the separa- advantage of the original Epcot or Disney-MGM Studios. Purchase of a ticket also tion incentive. Employees buyout opportunity. Price of admission has been entitles the employee to reduced by more than $10 to purchase a Pleasure Island Resignations $31.50 per person. The tickets ticket at 50 percent off the Quear, Anita L. OP 01/09/98 can be purchased at a KSC regular gate price, also Gordon, Kathleen B. LO-SOD-1 01/20/98 NASA Exchange Store, through April 5. Corne, Karen E. BD-C 01/23/98 Moore, Gregory B. AA-A 01/30/98 Credit union elects board Rosato, Mark S. LO-DEP 01/30/98 Woodcock, Wendolyn M. EI-F 01/30/98 The KSC Federal Credit elected is Sandra Kennedy. Union recently held an Appointed to the credit Retirements election for the 1998 Board of union’s Supervisory Armstrong, Cheryl A. MK-MIO 01/31/98 Directors. Re-elected to the Committee were Barbara Gibson, Gerald L. PZ-B2 01/31/98 board were Lonnie Blocker LeDuke, John Styles and Lackie, Warren PK-D2 01/31/98 and Marilyn Cherubini. Newly Joanne Wilson. McCalman, James R. FF-R-B 01/31/98 Michel, Virginia K. GG-B4 01/31/98 Stevens, Joyce A. FF-S2-D 01/31/98 Employees of the Month Aerospace environmental technology conference set for June 1-3 in Huntsville The third Aerospace the field of evolving Environmental Technology replacement and clean Conference will be held at the propulsion technologies. Marshall Space Flight Center, For registration Huntsville, Ala., June 1 – 3. information, contact Rhonda The three-day conference will Chaney, tel. 205 890-6372, or provide a forum for materials 1-800-448-4035. For exhibit and processes engineers, information, contact Bob scientists and managers to Cothran, tel. 205 890-6372, or describe, review and assess 1-800-448-4035. International Space Station Amazing fact HONORED in March were (from left, sitting): Gisele Altman, Administration Office; Donald Carnes, Payload Carriers Program Office; Susan Wall, Procurement • By the time International Space Station 220 miles. It will orbit the Earth 18 times Office; Arthur Beller, Shuttle Processing Directorate; (from left, standing) Andy (ISS) assembly gets under way, each 24 hours and will have a view of Finchum, Logistics Operations Directorate; Tim Lewis, Shuttle Processing cumulative on-orbit time of the Space 85 percent of the Earth’s surface. Directorate; David Barker, Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate; Maria Shuttle will be around the 800-day mark • The International Space Station will be Littlefield, Engineering Development Directorate; Anthony Killiri, Payload and U.S. astronauts will have spent more 360 feet end-to-end and and 290 feet in Processing Directorate; and Robert Cummings, Biomedical Operations Office. than 950 days working and living aboard length. It will weigh 470 tons. Not shown are Tom Nguyen, Checkout and Launch Control System; Lori Jones, the Russian Space Station Mir. — NASA ISS Research Plan Installation Operations; and Wanda Henderson, Chief Financial Officer’s Office. • Average altitude of the station will be and Boeing fact sheet March 13, 1998 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 3 Clinics offer packets KSC takes part in UCF expo on controlling anger KSC TOOK PART in the student-produced 1998 University of Central Florida Area medical clinics have packets Engineering Expo on Feb. 19 in Orlando. available this month on the topic of Lisa Kestel (second from left) helped staff controlling feelings of an exhibit on NASA. The NASA Technology Transfer Office had an adjacent exhibit in anger. While most of us conjunction with the Southern Technology can control our anger, Applications Center (STAC, NASA’s there are times when the southeast region technology transfer emotion becomes partner). The two exhibits earned high marks at an awards ceremony later the unmanageable. The same day, with the NASA exhibit taking first packets provide place in the Professional Exhibit category. information on understanding anger, and The NASA-STAC exhibit won third place in techniques for expressing it the Educational Exhibit category. constructively and redirecting it in a positive way. Vanguard 1 marks 40th anniversary It doesn’t get a lot of recognition, but Geophysical Year, Vanguard 1 provided the Vanguard 1 satellite achieved a the most accurate determination of the number of successes that are still Earth’s shape, including its equatorial noteworthy today.