Jet MARCH Propulsion 2011 Laboratory VOLUME 41 NUMBER 3 NASA budget tight, but JPL missions proceed NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Mars Science Laboratory and NuSTAR— Garver spoke to JPL staff at an all- are fully funded, as is Dawn’s scheduled hands meeting Feb. 16 to discuss the encounter with asteroid Vesta in July. In administration’s FY12 budget request. addition, all flight projects in development The $18.7-billion NASA plan for FY12 remain fully funded in the budget request: includes $5 billion for science, which Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2, the Soil includes the vast majority of JPL’s work. Moisture Active & Passive mission, Mars Of that total, JPL is proposed to have ’16, a Grace follow-on and the Surface a base NASA budget of $1.195 billion, Water and Ocean Topography Mission. augmented by awards from competitive “The FY12 request for NASA science programs such as Discovery and New is pretty good, but it’s flattened out over Frontiers, and in technology. the next five years, which eliminates a lot “Despite austere times, the FY12 of the growth we were hoping for,” noted Richard Hasegawa / JPL Photo Lab budget request clearly shows the com- Richard O’Toole, executive manager of the NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver addresses JPL staff in the Building 321 auditorium. mitment by the administration to space Office of Legislative Affairs. “The good By Mark Whalen exploration,” said NASA Deputy Admin- news is that funding for science is up istrator Lori Garver, who spoke to JPL from the actual FY10 level to $5 billion, The White House announced a fiscal year begins in October. Congress, employees on Feb. 23. “We recognize which is what the president originally Fiscal Year 2012 budget request for however, has yet to approve a final bud- that the increases we asked for in the asked for in FY11 but never got through NASA on Feb. 14 that would flatten get for FY11 currently underway, leaving FY11 budget were not able to be sus- the system.” the space agency’s spending on sci- the federal government operating under tained in the FY12 budget request; we JPL was also directed to receive $93 ence—fully funding JPL missions a continuing resolution that will expire know tough choices had to be made … million in the Space Technology category currently preparing for launch, but March 18. Due to tighter budget projec- We’re doing reasonably well, but there of the budget, which will go to strategical- leaving questions for flight projects tions, JPL recently announced layoffs of are some challenges.” ly guided projects aligned with the Lab’s and programs later in the decade. up to 250 employees to bring costs in All of the Lab’s scheduled launches expertise in communications, navigation, The proposed budget now goes to line with available funding for the year. through FY12—Aquarius, Juno, Grail, and entry, descent and landing. Congress for consideration before the Continued on page 2 Stardust-NExT achieves all objectives, provides surprises By Mark Whalen JPL’s Stardust spacecraft’s Feb. 14 scar resulting from that impact and also flyby of comet Tempel 1 achieved all showed the comet has a fragile and weak of its objectives in comparing new nucleus. images of the comet today to how it A key feature noted is the rate of looked following a controlled colli- change of the surface of the nucleus as sion by JPL’s Deep Impact spacecraft it passes close to the sun, said JPL’s Ken in 2005. Klaasen, the imaging team leader. “Our Joe Veverka of Cornell University, images will allow us to quantify that and principal investigator for Stardust- to identify what kinds of surface struc- The left-hand image of comet Tempel 1 is a composite made from images obtained by Deep Impact in July 2005. The NExT, the extended investigation of tures and materials erode away fastest,” right-hand image shows the same region as viewed by Stardust Feb. 14. Tempel 1 initiated by Deep Impact, he said. “We may also learn more about declared the mission “1,000 percent the nature of the outer layers of the “But that was certainly not the case. I quite different than the side seen by Deep successful.” nucleus from the results of the crater- am also surprised that the evidence of Impact, with some geologic structures In addition to observing surface ing experiment, but that will take a lot of the Deep Impact crater is as subtle as it such as protrusions and multi-level layer- features that changed in areas previ- analysis and modeling work.” has turned out to be. The changes seen ing showing up.” ously seen by Deep Impact, Stardust- Klaasen was surprised that the changes in the impact location are very muted— Klaasen also noted the success of the NExT also met its goals to image new on the surface of Tempel 1 were so like the ejecta all fell back on top of the onboard camera, which was designed terrain and look at the crater gen- minimal. “I was somewhat afraid go- impact site and blanketed it. We don’t as a navigation tool for Stardust but for erated when the mission propelled ing in that things might have changed see the traditional bowl-shaped crater NExT became the primary science instru- an impactor at the comet about six so much we couldn’t recognize anything like we see on the moon. Finally, the ment. “While the camera was not built to years ago. The new images showed a that we saw with Deep Impact,” he said. previously unseen side of Tempel 1 looks Continued on page 2 2 However, upon arrival in Aswan, four ing moments—and quite a bit of good days into the demonstrations, the group fortune. Vacation becomes learned that the police had been under “We had a great travel agency that had attack and had been recalled. Indeed, by all the infrastructure in place,” said Judd. history in the making this time, demonstrations were also in For example, when the Internet was un- niverse U By Mark Whalen force in Luxor and Alexandria. available they were able to contact staff As scheduled, the tour group transferred all over Egypt, in Jordan and New York. The hotel overlooked Tahrir Square, a key to a different cruise ship that would take The evacuation to Jordan gave the group meeting point for demonstrators in Cairo them on to Luxor. “This boat had TV ac- the unexpected benefit of seeing some during the recent uprising. cess, so we were watching Al Jazeera, world-class sites, including the rock city Luckily their experienced tour guide BBC and CNN—we were shocked,” said of Petra and ancient Jerash. “In the end successfully negotiated with police to let Judd. The group quickly rescheduled a sail we came out well with relatively little the passengers out so they could walk to on the Nile so they could catch the sun- stress,” said Kurt, a system engineer and the hotel. “He told us that if we couldn’t set that night rather than try the sunrise instrument builder in the Deep Space immediately get off the bus we wouldn’t the next morning, and jumped onboard a Tracking Systems Group. have been able to get back to our hotel sailboat. Soon, however, they saw a large As events escalated and the eyes of the that night,” said Judd. group of demonstrators along the banks world turned to Egypt, family members Shortly arriving in their rooms they of the river, getting closer to their moored and co-workers became concerned. But Paulett (left) and Kurt Liewer and Michele Judd at began to witness the escalating uproar. ship. Then, suddenly a large tear gas they soon learned the trio was safe. the Sphnix. First it was loud chanting, followed by cloud filled the air, along with smoke from Judd’s parents and the Liewers’ son swarms of people streaming from sur- two fires. The cruise ship unmoored to were contacted by the tour company, For several years, JPLers Paulett and rounding streets toward the square. Police escape the gas and headed downstream, which told them the three were on a char- Kurt Liewer, along with their good friend responded by firing from a water cannon away from their sailboat headed in the op- ter flight and that everything was taken Michele Judd, had discussed plans for high into the air, as a warning that more posite direction. “On the sailboat they told care of. Also, JPL’s Legislative Affairs and a visit to Egypt. Their trip to experience was to come, which it soon did, barreling us the trip was over,” said Paulett. Im- Human Resources offices were aware of the ancient desert land, its culture and through the crowd. “Later it was tear gas,” mediately, the tour launched rescue boats their whereabouts, as was the office of its people, proceeded in late January. said Judd. that brought them back to the cruise ship, Congressman Adam Schiff, which offered So much to see: the Sphinx, the Nile, Not exactly the evening the Liewers had where they were soon told all tourist sites assistance in case the group couldn’t the Pyramids … the revolution? planned for their 42nd wedding anniver- were being closed and that they weren’t leave the country. Clearly, the trio got quite a bit more sary. allowed off the boat until they reached The experiences of Egypt and its trea- than they bargained for. Paulett, manager of the Astrophysics Luxor. sures will no doubt linger for the trio.