"General Note - Web sites shall be reviewed yearly for public web sites and every three years for all other web sites by the RNO for the web site. This review shall be reflected by renewal of web site registrations in AWRS. Policy and content reviews shall be performed yearly for public web sites and every three years for all other web sites by Center subject matter experts tracked by AWRS as required by the Agency and LaRC Office of Chief Information Officer (OCIO). Any violations of these policies and content restrictions constitute grounds for removal of the web site from the LaRC Network. The RNO for web sites that do not meet established guidelines will be contacted and informed of necessary changes. Failure to incorporate required changes within 30 days will necessitate removal from the LaRC Network."

Keith's note: Typical NASA: come up with a convoluted multi-step process to develop websites - one that requires many people to complete and approve, tolerates long lag times for compliance, and then allows the websites to sit for years before anyone is required to check to see if they still work.

"NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has transmitted its first images since reaching the moon on June 23. The spacecraft's two cameras, collectively known as the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera, or LROC, were activated June 30. The cameras are working well and have returned images of a region in the lunar highlands south of Mare Nubium (Sea of Clouds). As the moon rotates beneath LRO, LROC gradually will build up photographic maps of the lunar surface.

"Our first images were taken along the moon's terminator -- the dividing line between day and night -- making us initially unsure of how they would turn out," said LROC Principal Investigator Mark Robinson of Arizona State University in Tempe. "Because of the deep shadowing, subtle topography is exaggerated, suggesting a craggy and inhospitable surface. In reality, the area is similar to the region where the Apollo 16 astronauts safely explored in 1972. While these are magnificent in their own right, the main message is that LROC is nearly ready to begin its mission."

"Move An Asteroid 2009" is an International Student and Young Professional Technical Paper Competition. The competition accepts individuals or team (maximum of 3 individuals) under the age of 33 to submit a 3-10 page technically detailed paper on a unique and innovative concept for deflecting an asteroid/comet with at least 50 metre of diameter.Please visit www.spacegeneration.org/asteroid for more information. The deadline for entries is 26th July 2009. The winner will be sponored to attend IAC and SGC '09 in Daejeon, South Korea. The entries should be send to asteroid@spacegeneration.org"

Video below - you've gotta watch this.

"ABC is "Defying Gravity." The network has picked up Fox TV Studios' 13-episode adventure drama starring Ron Livingston. The internationally produced series, also set to air on Canada's CTV, Germany's ProSieben and the BBC, hails from familiar ABC auspices: creator/executive producer James Parriott, who served as an exec producer on ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and "Ugly Betty," and exec producer Michael Edelstein, former exec producer of the network's "Desperate Housewives." "Gravity," whose cast includes Laura Harris, Christina Cox, Malik Yoba and Florentine Lahme, is set in the near future and revolves around eight astronauts from five countries who undertake a mysterious six-year mission through the solar system."

Keith's note: I take my earlier commentary back. Perhaps there is a market for the "writing" that Billy O and "Coll" are trying to market.

Just Go Away - All of You - Please, earlier post

"The Ariane 5's 31st consecutive mission success was another record-setting flight for this workhorse Arianespace launcher - lofting the world's largest commercial satellite, TerreStar-1, from the Spaceport in French Guiana today."

Va. Firm to Offer Pocket-Size Satellite Phone, Washington Post

"To look at it, you wouldn't know it's a satellite phone -- and that's the idea. Reston-based satellite firm TerreStar Networks is gearing up to launch a smartphone and phone service this year that will combine terrestrial wireless service with its upcoming satellite service."

"Taking a different approach to the funding of the human space flight program than did the House, the Senate Appropriations Committee released its report, 111-34, accompanying its FY 2010 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Bill. The House has passed its version of this legislation. The House bill deferred a requested increase in the Exploration budget pending the results of the Augustine committee's review, an approach that Senate appropriators did not take.

The FY 2009 appropriation was $17.782 billion.
The Administration's request was $18.686 billion, an increase of 5.1 percent or $903.6 million.
The House appropriations bill recommended $18.203 billion, an increase of 2.4 percent or $420.9 million.
The Senate appropriations bill recommends $18.686 billion, the Administration's request."

"07.01.2009 - If you were at the June 17 public meeting (or watched it on NASA TV), you heard Chairman Norm Augustine announce that the committee had organized into subgroups in order to accomplish their work. Since that time, we have received several questions about the subgroups. Thus, we have posted a graphic showing the structure and membership of the subgroups.

06.26.2009 - In case you did not notice, we just implemented a major upgrade to our website. Navigation was improved, new icons were introduced, a Facebook link was added, a bunch of photos were added to our Flickr page, and a video file of the committee's first public meeting in Washington DC was posted. In addition, there is much new content on the "Related Documents" page and more answers to your questions on the "Provide a Question, Get an Answer" page. We hope these upgrades enhance your experience with the website. Feel free to drop us a "Comment or Suggestion" if you like."

"IFPTE applauds Chairperson Mikulski for recognizing the critical need to fully fund the National Aeronautics and Space Administration [NASA] at President Obama's proposed FY10 level. We also commend Senator Mikulski for her continued leadership in protecting the vitality and independence of NASA's civil-servant workforce; her bill provides legislative text that extends the Reduction-In-Force defund as well as report language that requires much greater transparency in NASA's planned use of term positions in FY10 and in the way NASA accounts for civil-servant salary in its FY11 budget submission. IFPTE expects that this accounting change will begin the dismantling of the full-cost recovery policies of the Bush Administration that have systematically and intentionally harmed NASA employees since 2003. IFPTE strongly supports the effort to reverse this wasteful and destructive Bush accounting practice and will work diligently with the conferees to provide President Obama's new Administrator with targeted authority to initiate the healing process even earlier through the FY10 Operating Plan this fall."

"A San Jose scientist who was barred from the NASA research operation in Santa Cruz over security concerns is suing the NASA Ames Research Center and the FBI. In a lawsuit filed last week in U.S. District Court in San Jose, Haiping Su claims that his career and reputation were destroyed by what he contends are false accusations of being a "security threat." The 47-year-old Su had been assigned to NASA Ames' research center at UC Santa Cruz, but was barred from the facility after an FBI-led investigation."

Text of Haiping Su's complaint

Keith's 30 June update: This RFI has been cancelled. Funny how these things happen, eh?

NASA JSC Solicitation: Request for Information on Human Rated Centrifuge Capabilities

"NASA/JSC is hereby soliciting information about potential sources for use of human rated centrifuges that can simulate the Orion spacecraft ascent and entry accelertation environment. Specific information solicited is: The accelerations levels that can be achieved and sustained. The change in acceleration levels (jerk) or the rate of acceleration onset that can be achieved. The ability to produce or accommodate vibrations during the runs including magnitude and frequency limitations. This may include a vibration spectrum that the facility is capable of producing; as well as, the vibrations that could be accommodated if the NASA provided seat system were to generate vibrations...."

Keith's 29 June note: Why is JSC putting this notice out in the first place? Are they not aware of the agency's existing capabilities - a prime example being the 20 G centrifuge at NASA ARC? You can find it using Google. Clearly the folks at JSC know where ARC is - they send astronauts there to fly the VMS all the time.

Check the video below and you can even see it spin!

"They are hedging their bets," agreed Keith Cowing, a former NASA engineer who runs the Nasawatch.com web site, which acts as a watchdog on the space agency. "It clearly reflects some doubts among senior agency folks in the overall veracity of their current approach." NASA spokesman Michael Curie said Shannon was encouraged to make the presentation "in the spirit of sharing the options we've studied in the past." But he added: "NASA believes the best plan is to fully fund the current architecture ... This does not indicate a lack of confidence in or support for the current program."

Keith's note: John Shannon's presentation represents more than just what ESAS "studied in the past". If that was the case, then why not just have Shannon use old ESAS charts? Why have people go off and restudy it and make fancy (expensive) new graphics and animations? Shannon's presentation represented a contemporary analysis of the sidemount shuttle option in the light of what progress Ares has made, the problems that it has encountered, and the current funding and political climate NASA finds itself in.

Video: NASA Shuttle-derived Sidemount Heavy Launch Vehicle Concept, previous post

"NASA is placing RFI NNH09ZDA010L ("Feasibility of using Constellation Architecture for Servicing Existing and Future Observatory-Class Scientific Spacecraft") on hold. The August 10 due date for information in the form of a white paper is cancelled; no new due date is announced at this time. The "Workshop I" described in NNH09ZDA010L will not occur in June; a new date has not been established at this time."

NASA RFI: Feasibility of using Constellation Architecture for Servicing Existing and Future Observatory-Class Scientific Spacecraft, 10 June 2009