National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA

January 2008

www.nasa.gov

Huge crowd turns out for SOFIA’s first visit to Ames

continued on page 4

continued on page 7

by Michael Mewhinney

They came by the thousands 

-- Ames employees, their families, 

members of the news media, aviation 

buffs and others who had worked on 

the project -- to see SOFIA during its 

first visit to Ames Research Center.

It was quite a day. 

NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory 

for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) flew 

up from Dryden Flight Research Facility, where the aircraft is undergoing 

flight tests, on Monday, Jan. 14, arriving mid-day under sunny skies.

 Touching down gently along the 

runway, the world’s largest aerial 

observatory dwarfed its predecessor, the Kuiper Aerial Observatory, 

affectionately known simply as “the 

Kuiper,” parked nearby. 

 Gliding smoothly along the flight 

line, the gleaming white aircraft 

glistened in the sunshine as it slowly 

taxied over to the front of the Airfield 

Operations Building, 158. There, like 

NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) flew up to Ames from Dryden 

Flight Research Facility, where the aircraft is undergoing flight tests, on Monday, Jan. 14, arriving midday under sunny skies.

NASA photo by Carla Thomas, Dryden Flight Research Center

NASA Ames and the Korea 

Advanced Institute of Science and 

Technology, (KAIST), South Korea’s 

premier research and education institution, signed a memorandum for the 

record on Jan. 26, 2008, an important 

milestone in a new relationship under 

development. 

Ames Center Director S. Pete 

Worden and KAIST President Nam 

Pyo Suh have now agreed to initiate 

NASA Ames explores possible collaboration with South Korea

technical discussions on specific areas 

of potential collaboration involving 

small satellite research and development. These potential areas for future 

collaboration include satellite communication, navigation systems, planetary 

exploration, lunar science, rovers, small 

satellites and related technologies.

 “We are exploring a new partnership with South Korea in future satellite research and development,” said 

Worden. “We are looking forward to 

working with the Korea Advanced 

NASA photo by Eric James

President of the Korea 

Advanced Institute of 

Science and Technology, Nam Pyo Suh (left) 

shakes hands with Ames 

Center Director S. Pete 

Worden after they both 

signed a memorandum for 

the record on Jan. 26 at 

Ames. This new relationship initiates technical 

discussions on potential 

collaboration involving 

small satellite research 

and development.

by Michael Mewhinney

Page 2 - Scientists make voyage over Arctic

 to study meteor shower

Page 3 - NASA’s LCROSS mission moves

 closer to launch

Page 7 - Ames celebrates its 68th birthday

Page 8 - Ongoing monthly events

Page 9 - Classifieds

On the Inside . . .
2 Astrogram January 2008

Scientists make voyage over Arctic to study meteor shower

A composite image of the Quadrantid shower with 15 Aurigids observed on Jan. 3 from 

the aircraft by Jeremie Vaubaillon (Caltech). The meteors spanned the period covering the 

return leg of the mission. The aurora was among the first of the new solar cycle, cycle 24.

by Peter Jenniskens

The Quadrantid airborne meteor observing campaign crew members standing in front of the Gulfstream V aircraft that flew the team over the Arctic. From left to right: Danielle Townsend, Ron 

Dantowitz, Jim Albers, Robin Gray, Mike Koop, Jeremie Vaubaillon, Mike Wilson, Jason Hatton, 

Peter Jenniskens, David Nugent, Juergen Wolf, Karsten Schindler and David Holman.

NASA photo by Eric James

continued on back page

On the evening of Jan. 3, 2008, 

NASA Ames hosted an airborne 

observing campaign that took an 

international team of 14 researchers 

above the Arctic Circle in a Gulfstream 

V aircraft for an unprecedented view 

from a lofty altitude of 47,000 feet of a 

mysterious meteor shower called the 

“Quadrantids.” 

The mission departed during one 

of the strongest rain storms in years, 

but when the aircraft emerged from 

the cloud deck, the sky was brilliantly 

clear and remained so throughout the 

flight. The view over the horizonprovided a large surface area for spotting 

Quadrantid meteors, little dimmed 

by the low atmospheric extinction at 

altitude. 

Observers on the ground are often 

plagued by the fact that the Quadrantids are mostly a daytime shower, disappearing from view around midnight 

when the radiant of the shower sinks 

below the horizon, only to appear 

again in the early morning hours. The 

Quadrantids are about eight hours 

wide, at half the peak rate, and the 

shower is impressive only when the 

peak happens to occur in the early 

morning hours. When that happens, 

it can outshine other strongannual 

showers, such as the Perseids and 

Geminids. 

 The flight path was designed to 

compensate for the rotation of Earth, 

and to keep the shower in view 

throughout the mission. We flew north 

when the radiant was about to set, 

and returned south when the radiant 

was rising. This allowed us to observe 

the Quadrantid shower under nearly 

constant viewing conditions the whole 

time the peak was expected to occur. We kept the radiant at elevations 

between 15 and 30 degrees throughout 

the mission. This meant the Quadrantids were entering the atmosphere at a 

shallow angle and created long-lasting 

and slow-moving meteors, some 846 

of which were observed during the 

flight. The video tapes are likely to 

contain many more. 

 The Quadrantid Multi-Instrument 

Aircraft Campaign (MAC) deployed 

25 cameras of various types and purpose. For eight hours, visual observers 

scanned the video feed of intensified 

cameras aimed above the crystal clear 

horizon and counted meteors, the tally 

of which provided a first solid glimpse 

of the fascinating origin and history of 

the Quadrantid meteor shower. They 

found highest rates occurred around 

12 a.m. (PST). This is later than scientists had predicted, 6 p.m. to 11:37 

p.m. (PST), which has caused some 

head scratching among the modelers 

on our team.

The Quadrantid shower is caused 

by a steeply inclined sheet of meteoroids that stretches from Earth’s 

orbit to the orbit of Jupiter, where the 

heavy planet frequently perturbs the 

meteoroid orbits in and out of Earth’s 

path. This can potentially lead to 

large variations in peak activity and 

in peak time. The goal of the mission 

was to disentangle those effects from 

the variations caused by difficult and 

changing observing conditions on the 

ground. 

How much influence Jupiter has 

depends on how much dispersion the 
3 Astrogram January 2008

Cameras and sensors that will look 

for the presence of water on the moon 

have completed validation tests and 

been shipped to 

the manufacturer 

of NASA's Lunar 

CRater Observation and Sensing 

Satellite.

The science 

instruments for the 

satellite, which is 

known as LCROSS, departed NASA 

Ames, for the Northrop Grumman 

Corporation's facility in Redondo 

Beach, Calif., to be integrated with the 

spacecraft. LCROSS is scheduled to 

launch with the Lunar Reconnaissance 

Orbiter aboard an Atlas V rocket from 

Cape Canaveral, Fla., by the end of 

2008.

"The goal of the mission is to confirm the presence or absence of water 

ice in a permanently shadowed crater 

at the moon's south pole," said Anthony Colaprete, LCROSS principal investigator at Ames. "The identification of 

water is very important to the future 

of human activities on the moon."

In 2009, LCROSS will separate into 

two parts and create a pair of impacts 

on the permanently dark floor of one 

of the moon's polar craters. The spent 

Centaur upper stage of the Atlas V 

rocket will hit the moon, causing an 

explosion of material from the crater’s 

surface. The instruments aboard the 

satellite will analyze the plume for the 

presence of water ice or water vapor, 

hydrocarbons and hydrated materials. The satellite then will fly through 

the plume on a collision course with 

the lunar surface. Both impacts will 

be visible to Earth and lunar-orbiting 

instruments.

Northrop Grumman is designing and building the spacecraft. After 

installing the instruments on the satellite, Northrop Grumman will test the 

entire spacecraft system to ensure it is 

flight worthy.

During development of the 

LCROSS payload, Ames engineers 

and scientists built new spaceflight 

hardware and used new testing procedures to take advantage of lower cost, 

by Jonas Dino

NASA’s LCROSS mission moves closer to launch

commercially available instruments. 

The team subjected the commercial 

instruments and NASA-developed 

components to conditions simulating 

the harsh environment of spaceflight. 

Working closely with the commercial 

instrument manufacturers, all safety 

and operational concerns were addressed quickly and efficiently.

"This payload delivery represents 

a new way of doing business for the 

center and the agency in general," 

said Daniel Andrews, LCROSS project 

manager at Ames. "LCROSS primarily is using commercial off-the-shelf 

instruments on this mission to meet 

the mission's accelerated development 

schedule and cost 

restraints."

"This arrangement has proven 

to work very well," 

Andrews added. 

"The vendors work with their products and develop a spaceflight knowledge base, and the LCROSS project 

gets very mature products for deployment on this mission."

Mission support specialists completing the validation tests on the NASA Lunar CRater Observation and 

Sensing Satellite components (LCROSS) at Ames (top photo) and packaging LCROSS for shipment to 

Northrop Grumman Corportaion in Redondo Beach, Calif (bottom photo.) LCROSS will leave for the 

moon in 2008 to confirm the presence or absence of water ice in a crater at the moon’s south pole, by impacting the moon’s surface, thereby creating particles to emerge. LCROSS’ instruments will then analyze 

the particles.

NASA photos by Dominic Hart
4 Astrogram January 2008

continued from front page

Huge crowd turns out for SOFIA’s first visit to Ames

visiting royalty, SOFIA greeted her 

guests.

 Approximately a dozen local 

reporters gathered to observe the arrival and landing of the unique aerial 

observatory, a converted 747SP aircraft 

that formerly saw service with United 

Airlines. The mood of the crowd 

resembled the excitement of watching 

another famous 747, Air Force One, 

land at Moffett Field on numerous 

previous occasions. 

 Notebooks in hand and hoisting 

their cameras, the reporters ascended 

the steep steps and entered the 

cavernous observatory, where they 

photographed the massive 2.5 meter 

(98.4-inch) infrared telescope and interviewed a variety of SOFIA experts.

 On hand to answer numerous 

questions were SOFIA scientists Tom 

Roellig and Eric Becklin, as well as 

SOFIA science project manager Ed 

Austin and astronomer Dana Backman 

of the SOFIA Education and Outreach 

Office. 

 The story of SOFIA’s visit received 

widespread news coverage. The next 

day, articles and photographs played 

prominently in the Mercury News, 

San Francisco Chronicle and Palo Alto 

Daily News. The story also aired on 

KGO-TV Channel 7, KPIX-TV Channel 

5 and KNTV-TV Channel 11, as well 

as on both KCBS and KGO news radio 

stations.

NASA photo by Jon-Pierre Wiens NASA photo by Jon-Pierre Wiens

A curious 

toddler checks 

out the wheel 

on the aircraft.

Thousands of visitors 

came to see NASA’s 

Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared 

Astronomy aircraft when 

it flew up from Dryden 

to Ames on Jan. 14.

NASA photo by Eric James
5 Astrogram January 2008

Astronomer Dana Backman of the SOFIA Education 

and Outreach Office speaks with visiting VIPs during 

the SOFIA stopover at Ames Research Center.

NASA photo by Eric James

NASA photo by Bill Moede

SOFIA landing at Ames on Jan. 14, 2008.

Visitors check out the SOFIA aircraft during it’s visit to Ames.

NASA photo by Jon-Pierre Wiens

 Next up were local dignitaries and 

community leaders, who also were 

provided tours of the aerial observatory. Then it was the Ames employees’ turn.

 Employees lined up patiently, 

awaiting their turn to tour the aircraft. As the afternoon progressed, the 

crowd grew even larger. By the end 

of the day, NASA officials estimated 

3,500 people came to see and photograph SOFIA.

 Eventually, the line snaked from 

the aircraft through the lobby of Bldg. 

158 through the parking lot and back 

to the flight line, as more people 

showed up for the historic occasion.

NASA photo by Jon-Pierre Wiens

Thousands of visitors consisting of Ames employees with their families and members of the public and news 

media came to see SOFIA during its recent visit to the center.

 Event organizers hailed the visit a 

huge success, made even more memorable by the historical significance of 

the occasion. Positive comments were 

heard many times by those who got a 

chance to see SOFIA for the first time, 

as well as those who had worked on 

the project over the years. 

 The next day, SOFIA departed 

Moffett Field to return to its home at 

Dryden’s newly established Aircraft 

Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif., 

where it will be based during additional development, flight testing and 

its operational lifetime.
6 Astrogram January 2008

John Zuk, an aeronautical engineer 

at NASA Ames whose research and 

studies laid the groundwork for commercial helicopter and tiltrotor short 

haul commuter applications, passed 

away on Jan. 6, 2008. He was a resident of San Jose.

Zuk was employed at NASA from 

1965 until his retirement in July 2007. 

Most recently, Zuk was the Extreme 

Short Take Off and Landing (ESTOL) 

Vehicle sector manager for the Vehicle Systems Program of NASA. The 

ESTOL Vehicle Sector strategically 

directs project activities for near-vertical takeoff and landing research and 

development.

He was born on Oct. 30, 1938 in 

Westhampton, Long Island, New York 

and attended Westhampton Beach 

High School. He graduated from 

Ohio State University with a bachelor 

of mechanical engineering in 1961 and 

later earned a master of science in mechanical and aerospace sciences from 

the University of Rochester in 1965. 

Upon graduation, Zuk joined 

NASA Lewis (now Glenn) Research 

Center as an aerospace engineer 

specializing in propulsion research 

where he remained until 1977, when 

he transferred to NASA Ames. During his tenure at NASA Lewis, Zuk 

also earned a doctorate of engineering 

from Case Western Reserve University 

in 1972.

At Ames, Zuk had extensive 

experience in a wide variety of aeronautical vehicles including helicopters, 

tiltrotors, powered lift and subsonic 

aircraft. Prior to becoming the ESTOL 

Vehicle Sector manager, Zuk served 

as chief of the Advanced Tiltrotor 

In memory of...

John Zuk, an aeronautical engineer/inventor at Ames

Technology Office and concurrently 

as manager for the Short Haul Civil 

Tiltrotor Project of the NASA Capacity 

Program at Ames. 

Zuk’s career spanned the full 

spectrum from research investigator, 

system studies performer, branch and 

office chief, to technical, project and 

program management. He was an active member of the American Helicopter Society, AIAA (American Institute of 

Aeronautics and Astronautics) and the 

Society of Automotive Engineers.

During his government career, Zuk 

received numerous awards including 

the Collier Trophy Award as a team 

member of the Industry/NASA Propfan team, the Research and Development 100 Award and the NASA 2000 

Turning Goals Into Reality (TGIR) 

Award for tiltrotor noise reduction, to 

name just a few. Zuk is the author of 48 

technical publications and is a co-inventor of an environmentally friendly 

anti-icing Q fluid.

He is survived by his wife of 25 

years, Maureen, and his two daughters 

Barbara Boissevain-Villela and Melanie Moya. He has five grandchildren, 

Sophia, Giselle, Sylvia, Cielo and Luc.

The funeral mass was held in Long 

Island, New York, followed by internment at Westhampton Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, Maureen requests 

donations be made to charities in 

memory of John Zuk.

Randall Marion Chambers, 80, 

died suddenly Dec. 6, 2007. Chambers, 

a true space pioneer, was one of the 

world’s leading authorities in many 

areas of space human factors research. 

He helped NASA develop and implement astronaut training programs 

for the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo 

missions, and worked on the human 

factors and life support systems of 

Skylab and the space shuttle. 

After receiving a Ph. D. from 

Case Western Reserve University in 

1954, Chambers served in the U.S. Air 

Force. While at the U.S. Navy Aviation 

Medical Acceleration Laboratory of 

the Naval Air Development Center in 

Johnsville, (Warminster) Pa., from 1958 

to 1968, he directed the development 

of countermeasures for crew operations under the hypergravity conditions of launch and re-entry, notably 

having trained the original Mercury 

7 astronauts how to perform in such 

environments.

Chambers served as chief life 

scientist and head of human factors 

engineering at NASA Langley Research Center from 1968 to 1972, when 

he joined the faculty of Georgia Tech. 

Upon leaving Georgia Tech in 1977, 

he continued conducting important 

human factors research at the Army 

Research Laboratories in Lawton 

Okla., until 1980, and then in Washington D.C. until 1988. 

Randall Chambers, a lead 

authority in space human factors

Chambers had a second academic 

career as a distinguished professor of 

industrial engineering at Wichita State 

University, beginning in 1988. He was 

the author of several hundred scientific articles, and with his wife, Mary 

Jane, was co-author of a book about 

the early space program, “Getting Off 

The Planet,” published by Apogee in 

2006.

Over his long and distinguished 

career, Chambers received numerous 

awards and honors for his work. He 

was a fellow of several scientific organizations, including The American 

Psychological Association, the Human 

Factors and Ergonomic Society, the 

American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Washington Academy of Science. 

Randall Chambers

John Zuk

NASA photo by Tom Trower
7 Astrogram January 2008

A GREEN seminar entitled ‘The Future of Transportation: What’s NASA’s Role?’ was held at the center in 

mid January. The seminar featured presentations by 

noted evolutionary transportation technology experts.

NASA photo by Dominic Hart

On Dec. 20, 1939, ground was broken for the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory. Ames personnel have been 

accomplishing great things ever since. Ames employees were invited to celebrate the center’s birthday with 

a slice of cake at lunchtime in the Ames Mega Bites Cafe on Dec. 20, courtesy of the Ames Exchange. Jack 

Boyd, senior advisor to the center director (right), discusses Ames’ history with an Ames employee at the 

cake-cutting event.

Ames celebrates its 68th birthday 

NASA photo by Dominic Hart

Ames ‘GREEN’ team drives down ‘green highways and skyways’

Alternatives to dependence 

on fossil fuels to power personal 

vehicles and pubic transportation 

systems were among the topics discussed during an ‘green transportation’ seminar entitled, “The Future 

of Tranportation, What’s NASA’s 

Role?” held at Ames in January. 

Sponsored by the Global 

Research into Energy and the 

Environment at NASA, (GREEN), 

the conference featured presentations by several noted experts in 

the field of evolutionary transportation technology.

 Fred Keeley, chair of the Santa 

Cruz Transportation Task Force, 

discussed governmental policy 

challenges for “Green” Transportation. Michael D. Jackson, senior 

director for Transportation Technology, TIAX LLC, demonstrated a 

technology roadmap for achieving 

California’s emission reduction goals. 

Jackson illustrated how the use of 

various bio-fuels, such as corn, sugar 

cane, methane and other products, 

could be used to propel vehicles and 

reduce air pollution.

 Christopher Perkins, co-founder 

of Unimodal Systems, a company that 

is developing an alternative rapid 

transportation network powered 

by a series of magnets along a track 

throughout a city. The system resembles a subway comprised of individual 

pods that can carry up to two people. 

The pods are suspended from elevated 

tracks and can be self-propelled off the 

main highway track to transfer to local 

stops. According to Perkins, “the idea 

is to eliminate the use of cars in urban 

areas. Infinite cars and gas will result 

in infinite congestion.” So, even if the 

price of oil significantly comes down, 

cities will still be plagued by gridlock.

Institute of Science and Technology 

to advance future space exploration,” 

Worden added.

 "I am delighted with this outcome. 

This potential collaboration is a historic 

event for KAIST as well as for NASA 

Ames,” said Suh.

 KAIST’s research team, led by 

professor Soon-dal Choie, launched 

Korea’s first small satellite ‘Uribyeol 1’ 

in 1992. Since then, Korea has launched 

10 small satellites. The most advanced 

of these, Arirang 2, began operations in 

July 2006, and can distinguish objects 

as small as 39.37 inches (one meter) 

wide on Earth’s surface.

KAIST, established in 1971, currently has 442 professors teaching approximately 8,000 students. Located in the 

Daedeok Research Complex 90 miles 

south of the capital city of Seoul, KAIST 

has eight research institutes specializing in bio-engineering, information 

technology, eco-energy and selected 

interdisciplinary areas.

Ames/South Korea

collaboration

continued from front page

by Deborah ‘Robin’ Cro
8 Astrogram January 2008

Ames emergency 

announcements

To hear the centerwide status record- ing, call (650) 604-9999 for informa- tion announcements and emergency 

instructions for Ames employees. You 

can also listen to 1700 KHz AM radio 

for the same information.

Ames Ongoing Monthly Events Calendar

Security/Law Enforcement Activity

Fire Protection Activity

A statistical summary of activities of the Protective Services Division’s 

Security/Law Enforcement and Fire Protection Services units for the month 

of December 2007 is shown below.

Protective Services monthly activity

 Safety Data 

 NASA-Ames Occupational

 Illness-Injury Data for 

 Calendar Year-to-Date 2007

 Jan. 1, 2007 - Dec. 31, 2007

 Civil Contractors

 Servants

 

 First aid cases 13 15

 Lost Workday cases 0 2

 Recordable cases 2 4

 Restricted duty days 0 2

 Above data are as of Dec. 31, 2007. 

 May be subject to slight adjustment in

 the event of a new case or new informa- 

 tion regarding an existing case.

Ames Amateur Radio Club, third Thurs., of 

ea. month, 12 noon, N-T28 (across from N-255). 

POC: Michael Wright, KG6BFK, at ext. 4-6262. 

Ames Ballroom Dance Club, Classes on 

Tuesdays. Beginning classes meet at 5:15 p.m. 

Higher-level class meets at 5:50 p.m. Held in 

Bldg. 944, the Rec. Center. POC: Helen Hwang 

at helen.hwang@nasa.gov, ext. 4-1368.

Ames Bicycling Club, every third Wednesday 

of each month, 12 noon - 1 p.m., Bldg. N-245 

Auditorium. POC: Julie Nottage at jnottage@

mail.arc.nasa.gov, ext. 4-3711. 

Ames Bowling League, Homestead Lanes on 

Thursday nights at 6:20 p.m. Seeking substitute 

bowlers. Questions to sign up: Mike Liu at ext. 

4-1132. 

Ames Child Care Center Board of Directors 

Mtg., every other Monday, 1 - 2:30 p.m., Bldg. 

N-262/Rm 180. POC: Sally Miller, ext. 4-5411.

Ames Contractor Council Mtg., first Wednesday of ea. month, 11 a.m., Bldg. N-200, Committee Room. POC: Kathleen Starmer, ext. 4-6959

Environmental Forum, first Thursday every 

other month, 9 a.m. - 10 a.m., T20-G conference 

Rm. 129. URL: http://q/qe/events/EHSseries/ POC: Stacy St. Louis, ext. 4-6810.

Ames Federal Employees Union (AFEU) Mtg, 

First Wednesday of November (7th), noon. 

First Wednesday of December (5th), noon. 

Bldg. N-247, Rm. 109. Beginning 2008, third 

Wednesday each month, same location. Guests 

welcome. Info at: http://www.afeu.org. POC: 

Paul K. Davis, ext. 4-5916. 

The Hispanic Advisory Committee for 

Excellence (HACE) Mtg., first Thursday of each 

month, 11:45 a.m. - 12:45 p.m., Bldg. N-255, Rm. 

101C. POC: Eric Kristich, ext. 4-5137 and Mark 

Leon, ext. 4-6498.

Jetstream Toastmasters, Mondays, 12 p.m. 

- 1 p.m., Bldg. N-269/Rm.179. POC: Miwa 

Hayashi, ext. 4-1397, mhayashi@mail.arc.nasa.

gov. Web: http://jetstream.freetoasthost.com

Ames Mac Support Group Mtg., third Tuesday 

of each month, 11:30 a.m.to 1 p.m., Bldg. N-262, 

Rm 180. POC: Tony ext. 4-0340.

Ames Model Aircraft Club, flying radio-controlled aircraft at the north end of Parsons Ave. 

on weekend mornings. POC: Mark Sumich, 

ext. 4-6193.

Native American Advisory Committee Mtg., 

fourth Tuesday each month, 12 noon - 1 p.m., 

Bldg. 19, Rm 1096. POC: Mike Liu, ext. 4-1132.

Ames Nimble Knitters Club, every Tuesday 

at 11:30 a.m., Bldg. N-241/Rm 237. POC: 

Rosalyn Jung, knitfan2@yahoo.com or Diane 

Alexander at ext. 4-3140. URL: http://knit.arc.

nasa.gov

Ames Safety Committee, third Thursday of 

each month, 10 a.m. - 11 a.m., Bldg. N-237, 

Rm. 201. POC: John Livacich, jlivacich@mail.

arc.nasa.gov, ext. 4-3243 or Terry Reichert, 

treichert@mail.arc.nasa.gov, ext.-4-0375.

Ames Sailing Club Mtg., second Thursday 

of each month (March through Nov), from 

12 p.m. - 1 p.m., Bldg. N-262, Rm. 100. URL: 

http://sail.arc.nasa.gov/. POC: Becky Hooey, 

ext. 4-2399.
9 Astrogram January 2008

The Fifth Annual NASA Project Management 

(PM) Challenge speaker schedule is now available at: http://pmchallenge.gsfc.nasa.gov/

program.htm Be sure to register at: http://

pmchallenge.gsfc.nasa.gov/registration2008.

htm 

PM Challenge speaker 

schedule is available

Ames Classifieds Exchange Information

Beyond Galileo Gift Shop N-235 in 

the cafeteria , 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., ext. 4-6873

Don’t forget to purchase your baby shower, birthday, holiday gifts at Ames’ two gift shops!

Mega Bites Cafeteria N-235, 6 a.m. to 

2 p.m., ext. 4-5969/Catering ext. 4-2161

Visitor Center Gift Shop N-943 

M-F, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., ext. 4-5412

NASA logo merchandise, souvenirs, toys, gifts and 

educational items. 

Ongoing Vacation Opportunities

Information about products, services and opportunities provided to the employee and contractor 

community by the Ames Exchange Council. Visit 

the web site at: http://exchange.arc.nasa.gov

NASA Lodge (N-19) 603-7100

Tickets, etc... N-943 outside the main gate, 

10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., ext. 4-5412 and Beyond 

Galileo, 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. ext. 4-6873

See daily menu at: http://exchange.arc.nasa.gov

The pool is heated year round! The pool is currently available for lap swim, pool parties and 

special events. POC -Chana Langley, Pool Manager 

(650) 603-8025. Memberships: single memberships: $40/yr. Family memberships: $60/yr. After 

purchasing a membership, there is an entrance fee: 

daily entrance fee - $3/day or lap pass fee - $40 for 

20 uses. Platinum membership - $360/yr. (no daily 

fee). Special events: include military training, swim 

team events, kayak role practice, etc. The cost for 

special events is $50/hr.

Ames Swim Center (N-109) 603-8025

Astrogram deadlines

Please submit articles, calendar and 

classified advertisements to astrogram@mail.arc.nasa.gov no later than 

the 10th of each month. If this falls on 

a weekend or holiday, then the following business day becomes the deadline. For Astrogram questions, contact 

Astrid Olson at the aforementioned 

e-mail address or ext. 4-3347. 

Ads for the next issue should be sent to astrogram@

mail.arc.nasa.gov and must be resubmitted for each 

issue. Ads must involve personal needs or items; (no 

commercial/third-party ads) and will run on a spaceavailable basis only. First-time ads are given priority. 

Ads must include home phone numbers; Ames extensions and email addresses will be accepted for carpool 

and lost and found ads only. Due to the volume of 

material received, we are unable to verify the accuracy 

of the statements made in the ads. Caveat emptor! 

RV Lots Available Call to reserve a 

space at (650) 603-7100/01.

 Civilian/Contractors, $50/mo; military $25/mo

Where to stay when you’re too tired to drive home? 

What about the lodge?! Two types of rooms: Bldg. 

19 (43 rooms), rate: $55/night ($5 ea add’l adult); 

Bldg. 583 (150 rooms), rate: $45/night ($5 ea. add’l 

adult) 

Moffett Field Golf Club with ‘Tee minus 

1’ Grill and Sports Bar. Call (650) 603-8026.

Lake Tahoe-Squaw Valley Townhse, 3bd/2ba, View 

of slopes, close to lifts. Per night: $250, plus $145 

cleaning fee. Two night minimum. Includes linens, 

propane fireplace, fully equipped. Call (650) 968-

4155, DBMcKellar@aol.com.

Bass Lake vacation rental, 4 mls south of Yosemite. 

3bd/1.5 ba, TV, VCR, MW, frplc, BBQ, priv. boat 

dock. Sleeps 8. $1,050/wk. Call (559) 642-3600 or 

(650) 390-9668.

Big Sur vacation rental, secluded 4bd/2ba house 

in canyon setting. Fully eqpd kitchen. Access to 

priv. beach. Tub in patio gdn. Halfway between 

Carmel and Big Sur. $175/night for 2; $225 for 4 

and $250 for more, plus $150 cleaning dep. Call 

(650) 328-4427.

Pine Mountain Lake vacation home. Access to golf, 

tennis, lake, swimming, horseback riding, walk 

to beach. Three bedrooms/sleeps 10. $100/night. 

Call (408) 799-4052 or (831) 623-4054.

Incline Village, Forest Pines, Lake Tahoe condo, 3 

bdrms/2 ba, sleeps 8, fireplace, TVs/VCR/DVD, 

stereo w/CD player, microwv, W/D, jacuzzi, 

sauna, outdoor pool. Walk to lake. Close to ski 

areas. Visit web site for pictures: http://www.

ACruiseStore.com $135/night spring and fall, 

$173/night summer and winter (holidays higher) 

plus $125 cleaning fee and 12 percent Nevada 

room tax. Charlie (650) 743-8990.

New York, 5th Ave., one fully furnished bedroom 

apt. in 24 hour security fbldg. overlooking

Washington Square Park, $1,000/week or

3,000/month, negotiable. Call (650) 430-6977.

Paris/France: Fully furnished studio. 5th arr, Latin 

Quarter, Notre Dame and Lie-St. Louis, $1,400/

week, negotiable.Call (650) 430-697

Santa Cruz townhouse, 2 bedrooms plus study, 

2 baths, decks, totally furnished, 3 blocks from 

beach, available July, August, September; $1,600 

per month. Call (831) 423-5777 (H) or (831) 277-

8476 (C).

Lake Tahoe cabin rental in Agate Bay, North Shore. 

4bd/3ba tri-level, AEK, cable TVs, fireplace, BBQ, 

deck, sleeps 10. Closest skiing is Northstar, Alpine 

and Squaw. Rates are $375 a weekend, $1,000 a 

week. Call (408) 867-4656.

Florida west coast vacation in St. Petersburg, 

beautiful 2bd/2ba condo, fully equipped kitchen 

and furnished, sunset views, 1/4 mile from St. Pete 

Beach, monthly or 2 week minimum rentals only. 

Call (703) 299-8889 or e-mail: jdgoehler@aol.com

Monterey Bay vacation rental at Pajaro Dunes, 20 

miles south of Santa Cruz, 3bd/2ba beach house 

with distinctive architecture. Beautiful ocean and 

valley views, only 150 ft from the beach, first-class 

tennis courts. $700/wkend, $2,100/wk including 

cleaning by the maid service when you depart. 

Call (408) 252-7260.

South Lake Tahoe large cabin surrounded by 

protected forest, 8 miles from Stateline Sleeps 12 

comfortably, 4 bd/3ba. Hot tub/pool table/65” TV 

Matt (408) 482-5286

South Lake Tahoe cozy home backs up to large 

open meadow, 1 mile from Heavenly Valley. Sleeps 

11, 3 bd/2.5 ba. Large deck with hot tub. Matt (408) 

482-5286.

Miscellaneous

The Ames Cat Network needs help finding 

homes for cats trapped at Moffett. They range 

from feral to abandoned/lost pets. Tested, 

altered and inoculated. Call Iris at ext. 4-5824 

if you or someone you know are interested in 

fostering or adopting a cat.

Wooden desk and chair sets (2) like new. For 

children (ages 3 - 11). $30 each. Call (408) 

425-8081.

‘95 Toyota Camry, emerald green exterior, 4dr, 

5-speed manual transmission. 187,500 miles, 

great condition, runs smoothly, gives 26mpg, has 

recent smog certificate and complete maintenance records since 1995! $3,000. Anupa (650) 

862-2869

Transportation
10 Astrogram January 2008

Scientists make voyage over Arctic to study meteor shower

continued from page 2

NASA photo by Eric James

Dave Holman (left) and Robin Gray (right), experienced meteor observers, 

count Quadrantid meteors by clicking a computer mouse while watching 

a video taken by one of the cameras filming meteors out the windows of the 

aircraft. Their tally was used to measure the meteor shower’s peak in nearreal time. 

The Ames HAZMAT team 

conducted an emergency 

drill on Jan. 18 at the center. 

A mock hazardous waste 

scenario was created with 

emergency services personnel 

taking care of the ‘victims’ at 

the scene.

NASA photos by Dominic Hart

Ames HAZMAT team conducts hazardous waste spill drill

Top left photo: Dr. David Kaye 

(right) and Teri Castrejon work to 

save the accident victim who allegedly had a heart attack. Above: Firefighters work to rescue a victum (a dummey) in 

need of medical help during the recent HAZMAT drill.

Above photo: Alan Dunn and Erik Rockwell 

from the Environmental Office meet with David 

King to discuss response options during the drill.

Above photo: Mark Washington (right) from Safety Office 

discusses with security officer Robert Dean the emergency 

and how best to investigate the accident.

Quadrantid orbits have accumulated 

over time, which also depends on the 

age of the shower and how the stream 

was created. Like most of our meteor 

showers, the stream appears to have 

been created in a breakup, instead of a 

slow and gradual oozing out of water 

vapor. The massive stream can not be 

much older than 500 years. In 1490-91 

A.D., Chinese observers reported 

a comet moving in the same plane 

as that of the Quadrantids. We are 

investigating whethercomet C/1490 

Y1 represents the moment in time the 

Quadrantid parent body broke and 

created the massive stream. In 2003, 

we discovered that a minor planet 

called “2003 EH1” moves among the 

meteoroids. This now dormant remnant of the breakup provides justification to investigate the origin and 

evolution of the stream. The current 

models that predict how the stream 

will manifest 500 years later are insufficient, which is why we also made 

an effort to collect other evidence into 

the origin of the 

stream. We measured spectra for 

the main element 

composition of the 

dust, light curves 

to investigate how 

the grains break 

upon entering the 

atmosphere, and 

meteoroid size 

distributions

to understand 

the fragmentation 

processes during 

formation of the 

stream. 

 The mission unfolded as 

planned due to the 

tremendous support and generous 

contributions received. The Quadrantid MAC team thanks all that made 

the mission possible. Once we have 

figured out what happened in the 2008 

Quadrantid shower, we all hope to do 

this again some time in the future. 

First impressions, images and 

predictions are posted at: http://

quadrantid.seti.org .

Editor’s note: Peter Jenniskens is the principal 

investigator for the Quadrantid shower mission.

The Ames Astrogram is an official publication of 

Ames Research Center, National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration.

Managing Editor......................Michael Mewhinney

Editor, Layout and Design...................Astrid Olson

You can reach the Astrogram Office at: astrogram@

mail.arc.nasa.gov or by phone at (650) 604-3347. 

Astrogram Web site: http://www.nasa.gov/

ames/astrogram.