Spring 2012 - A Quarterly Publication

www.nasa.gov

NASA is leading the way to a bet- ter quality of life on Earth. Meeting the 

White House challenge to lead by ex- ample, NASA has taken a second look 

at its aerospace technologies and has 

repurposed them in imaginative and 

innovative ways to create a “smart” 

building unlike any other government 

building ever constructed. Designed 

in harmony with its environment, it is a 

highly intelligent, intuitive, new build- ing, called Sustainability Base, located 

at NASA Ames Research Center, Mof- fett Field, Calif.

Sustainability Base is designed to 

be “native to place,” which means it in- corporates surrounding elements into 

its new design. This 50,000 squarefoot, two-story building is oriented to 

take advantage of the sun’s arc and 

the prevailing winds from San Fran- cisco Bay. It is capable of anticipating 

and reacting to changes in sunlight, 

temperature, wind, and occupancy, 

performing automatically and in realtime to these internal and external 

changes. 

NASA Ames Unveils New Energy-Efficient Building

continued on page 5

NASA Ames Research Center Director Pete Worden (center), assisted by (from left to right) 

Associate Center Director for Research Steve Zornetzer, Associate Administrator for Mission 

Support Woodrow Whitlow, U.S. Congressional Representative Zoe Lofgren, D-San Jose, 

Calif., U.S. Congressional Representative Anna Eshoo D-Palo Alto, Calif., California State 

Treasurer Bill Lockyer and William McDonough, the architect of the building, cuts the ribbon 

during a dedication ceremony April 20, 2012 for Sustainability Base. 

by Ruth Marlai

NASA photo by Eric James

NASA’s Kepler Mission Marks Major Milestones

In April 2012, NASA’s Kepler 

mission was approved for extension 

through fiscal year 2016 based on a 

recommendation from the agency’s 

2012 Senior Review of Astrophysics 

Missions. 

The extension provides four ad- ditional years to find Earth-size planets 

in the habitable zone -- the region in 

a planetary system where liquid water 

could exist on the surface of an orbiting planet. 

“Kepler has revolutionized our 

understanding of exoplanets and the 

study of stellar seismology and variability,” said Roger Hunter, Kepler project manager at NASA Ames. “There is 

currently no other mission in development that can replace or surpass the 

precision of Kepler. This extended 

mission will afford Kepler a unique op- portunity to rewrite our understanding 

of the galaxy and our place in it.” 

The Kepler team also marked the 

third anniversary since beginning its 

science operations on May 12, 2009, 

when the spacecraft began collecting 

data.

To celebrate these momentous occasions, the Kepler team, center personnel and invited guests gathered at 

the NASA Exploration Center at Ames 

on May 15, 2012. The team also 

honored William Borucki, Kepler’s 

principal investigator and transit photometry pioneer, who celebrated 50 

years of service at Ames in June 2012.

Launched in March 2009, the mission’s discoveries beyond our solar 

system include the first unquestionably rocky planet; the first multipletransiting planet system; the first small 

planet in the habitable zone; the first 

Earth-size planets; the smallest Marssize planet; and the confirmation of 

a new class of double-star planetary 

systems.

by Michele Johnson

NASA photo by Kim Shiflett 
2

Astrogram Spring 2012 

In the fall of 2010, displays depicting the history and achievements of 

NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory 

for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) were 

installed at three Northern California 

venues – NASA Ames’ Exploration 

Center, the Ames Exploration Encounter, and the Hiller Aviation Museum. 

One year later, more than 150,000 

guests have seen the displays and 

had an introduction to astronomy at 

infrared wavelengths. 

The NASA Ames Exploration 

Center at Moffett Field provides visitors with a glimpse into the science of 

NASA and the research accomplished 

at NASA Ames. Here, more than 

50,000 visitors have seen the SOFIA 

one-fifteenth-scale model used in the 

NASA Ames 14-foot wind tunnel to 

predict properties of airflow over the 

open telescope cavity. This model was 

first used to test the potential of having 

the telescope cavity in the nose of the 

aircraft as it was in SOFIA’s predeces- sor, the Kuiper Airborne Observatory. 

The model was later reconfigured to 

reflect SOFIA’s final design with the 

telescope in the left waist section and 

extensively tested to see how air flows 

over the open telescope cavity. 

In addition to the wind tunnel mod- el, the SOFIA display features a pair of 

cameras that show images of visitors 

in both visible and infrared light. 

“It’s incredible to watch the public 

engage and become excited by this 

display on infrared astronomy and 

SOFIA,” said Cara Dodge, Exploration 

Center manager. “Guests can see and 

understand how SOFIA’s capabilities 

enable scientists to look farther into, 

and learn more about, our universe.”

Along with the SOFIA exhibit, the 

Exploration Center features an International Space Station mock-up, a 

genuine moon rock (recovered during 

Apollo 15’s expedition to the HadleyApennine region), a Mercury Redstone 

1A (MR-1A) space capsule that was 

launched on Dec. 19, 1960, space 

suits, flying helmets, and a 100-seat 

immersive theater with a 14-foot tall 

and 36-foot wide wrap-around screen. 

Visitor information can be found at: 

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/

home/exploration.html

“Field Trip Favorite”

The NASA Ames Exploration En- counter (AEE) is a unique educational 

program designed to inspire positive 

attitudes about science, technology, 

engineering and math for students in 

the fourth through sixth grades. The 

AEE is located in the old 6-foot by 

6-foot supersonic wind tunnel and is 

a docent-led, field trip experience for 

students. More than 15,000 students 

have experienced the SOFIA display 

since September 2010.

“The SOFIA exhibit is a field trip 

favorite! There are so many students 

(and chaperones) that are completely 

amazed to learn about and experiment 

with the IR universe. Once they under- stand infrared, we then can connect 

the concepts to the unique laboratory 

that is SOFIA, transforming it from 

‘some NASA plane’ to an exhilarating and incredible research tool,” said 

AEE Operations Manager Brenden 

Sanborn.

At the AEE, students experience 

four hands-on educational stations: 

Exploring Physics, Exploring Flight, 

Exploring Space, and Exploring Earth. 

The SOFIA exhibit crosses-over all 

four themes and consists of a looping video about the aircraft and its 

science, a visible light camera paired 

with an infrared camera, and a series 

of educational panels showing the 

infrared spectrum, as well as comparison photos of everyday objects seen 

in visible light and in the infrared. More 

information about field trips to the AEE 

can be found at: http://www.nasa.gov/

centers/ames/education/programs/

encounter/

SOFIA in a 747

The third, and certainly the most 

unusual, display was installed in the 

nose section of a Boeing 747 at the 

Hiller Aviation Museum located less 

than 20 miles north of NASA Ames 

along Highway 101 at the San Carlos 

Airport. The museum features more 

than 50 full-size aircraft ranging from 

an 1869 Avitor steam-powered airship replica, to the Boeing Condor, a 

Students interact with the SOFIA display at the Ames Exploration Encounter during a class field 

trip. Notice how cold items appear in shades of black on the infrared screen (bottle of ice water), 

while warm objects (student’s fingers), are white. These same principles are used to study how 

dust and gas interact in space.

NASA photo by Eric James

continued on page 6

More than 150,000 People Discover Airborne Astronomy

by Nicholas A. Veron
3

Astrogram Spring 2012

NASA recently 

showcased the latest 

research and technology developed 

to grow algae, clean 

wastewater, capture 

carbon dioxide and 

ultimately produce 

feedstock for refining biofuels without 

competing with 

agriculture for water, 

fertilizer, or land. 

NASA’s unique 

floating algae cultivation system, called 

Offshore Membrane 

Enclosure for Growing Algae (OMEGA), 

managed by NASA’s 

Ames Research 

Center, Moffett Field, 

Calif., is now available to transfer to the 

commercial sector. Members of the 

algae-for-biofuel community and industry are invited to take the OMEGA 

concept and further explore its potential commercial applications.

A small-scale OMEGA system was 

developed in seawater tanks at the 

California Fish and Game laboratory 

in Santa Cruz, Calif., and scaled up to 

a 450-gallon system at the Southeast 

Wastewater Treatment facility in San 

Francisco.

The OMEGA system is designed 

to grow freshwater algae in municipal 

wastewater using NASA’s photobiore- actors, which are flexible plastic tubes 

that float in seawater. In the process 

of growing, the algae treat wastewater 

and address environmental problems 

by consuming nutrients from the 

wastewater and carbon dioxide. The 

nutrients, if left unconsumed, would 

otherwise be released into the coastal 

waters contributing to undesired algae 

blooms. Just like shrubs and trees, 

algae have an appetite for the green- house gas, carbon dioxide. The algae 

release oxygen into the air as they 

absorb carbon dioxide, retrieve their 

nutrients from wastewater, and use 

energy from the sun to grow. These 

tiny, single-cell algae are the fastest 

growing plants on the planet.

Depending on the amount of 

sunlight, nutrients, water temperature 

and a few other environmental conditions, algae can 

double their 

numbers every 

day and be 

ready to harvest 

in just three 

to five days. 

Some kinds of 

algae make oil, 

which can be 

converted into 

environmentally 

friendly and sus- tainable biofuels. 

In addition, the 

remains of the algae, after removing 

the oil, can be used to produce other 

products, such as fertilizer, natural 

gas, and animal feed.

Among other research results pub- lished in May, the OMEGA research 

team demonstrated that the floating 

plastic tubes of algae pose no appar- ent threat to marine animals in a set of 

small-scale experiments.

“We have continuous video of 

various prototypes of photobioreactors, day and night, over a six-month 

period. We see birds and sea otters 

interacting with the system, but it does 

not impact their well being,” said 

Jonathan Trent, OMEGA project scientist at NASA Ames. “Preliminary data 

showed that the interactions of these 

animals are not problematic to the 

system or its functions. “

In developing OMEGA, scientists 

were inspired by NASA’s closed-loop 

life support systems used on the International Space Station that optimize 

the use of resources and minimize 

waste. OMEGA focuses on self-sustaining cycles that convert waste from 

one part of the system into assets for 

another part. NASA used its unique 

expertise in life support systems to 

develop the OMEGA technology and 

lower the potential technical risks to 

the private sector looking to pursue 

larger-scale systems.

”We’ve addressed some of the 

more daunting technological problems 

for implementing OMEGA,” said Trent. 

“Now the hope is that other organiza- tions and industries will realize the 

potential of the OMEGA technology for 

wastewater treatment and ultimately to 

produce sustainable biofuels.”

by Huong Nguy

The NASA 

OMEGA floating 

photobioreactor 

prototype shown 

in a seawater tank 

at the Southeast 

Wastewater Treatment facility in San 

Francisco. The 

four flexible plastic 

tubes are filled 

with algae and 

wastewater, which 

circulates through 

the system.

NASA’s OMEGA system 

consists of large flexible 

plastic tubes floating in seawater with freshwater algae 

growing in wastewater. The 

algae use energy from the 

sun, carbon dioxide and 

nutrients from the wastewater to produce biomass that 

can be converted into biofuels as well as other useful 

products such as fertilizer 

and animal food. NASA photo by Dominic Hart

NASA photo by Dominic Hart

NASA Showcases Innovative Method to Grow Algae-Based Biofuels
4

Astrogram Spring 2012 

Meteorite fragments were recently 

scattered around Sutter’s Mill in California, the same region where the first 

nugget of gold was found that sparked 

the Gold Rush in 1848. 

Scientists believe the meteorites 

may hold answers to unsolved mysteries about our solar system and the 

origins of molecules necessary for life. 

When the Gold Rush began, people 

headed to California seeking their 

fortune. Now, with this meteorite hunt, 

people once again have flocked to this 

area to search for scientific treasures.

What scientists call the Sutter’s 

Mill Meteorite landed at 7:51 a.m. PDT 

on Sunday, April 22, 2012, outside of 

Lotus, Calif., in a horse pasture located in the Sierra Nevada mountains. 

The de Haas family owns the property.

“It sounded like a sonic boom, but 

longer,” said Alan Ehrgott, who lives 

in the Sutter Mill area. “It seemed to 

last 45 seconds. It stopped me in my 

tracks.”

The de Haas family has generously donated the meteorite to NASA.

Merv de Hass, who owns the 

land where the meteorite was found, 

donated the fragment to NASA. “If I 

could contribute to science in some 

small way, then that would be great,” 

said de Haas. “I’m looking forward to 

the results.”

Eugena de Haas lives on the land 

where the meteorite was found. She 

informed NASA scientists that they 

were approved to search that land. “I 

feel like I have done a service to my 

country,” she said.

“The de Haas family has welcomed 

NASA’s involvement with open arms,” 

said NASA Lunar Science Institute 

(NLSI) Director Yvonne Pendleton. “I 

want to express my personal gratitude 

to them. They should be commended 

for their contribution to scientific discovery.”

This is a very rare type of meteor 

and scientists have precious few 

samples of this kind of material. The 

meteorites are very interesting to scientists from an astrobiology perspec- tive, as they contain molecules related 

to how the building blocks for life on 

Earth may have been delivered from 

outer space. Scientist believe that this 

meteor could hold the answers to the 

origin of life on Earth and the universe. 

By studying the meteor, scientists 

also will learn more about the early 

solar system and the formation of our 

planets.

“This is among the most primitive 

meteorites,” said NLSI Deputy Director 

Greg Schmidt. “It’s like asking ‘how did 

life on Earth begin?’ and then having a 

fossil fall right in your back yard. This 

is exciting stuff — who knows what’s 

inside? The Sutter’s Mill Meteorite 

could be the most profound sample 

collected in over 40 years.”

People who work at NASA had an 

opportunity to participate in the meteor 

hunt. Peter Jenniskens, a meteor 

astronomer with the SETI Institute 

working in collaboration with NLSI, led 

the search. A group of NASA Ames 

employees went to the mountains to 

assist in the search on Thursday, May 

3 and Friday, May 4, 2012.

“It’s heartwarming to see people 

coming together in the name of sci- ence,” said Pendleton.

For Jenniskens, finding this me- teorite is equivalent to winning the 

lottery. Because this discovery is a 

very rare carbonaceous chrondrite that 

decomposes quickly in damp weather, 

the science team covered a large 

amount of terrain to identify possible 

candidate pieces for recovery before 

they decompose.

As Jenniskens found the meteorites, he noted their exact location to 

better understand the meteor’s fall to 

Earth.

“I am grateful this meteorite was 

found quickly,” Jenniskens said. “We 

need to recover as much material as 

possible from the damp environment 

before weather affects the rocks too 

badly.”

Since there was such a large piece 

of land to search in a short amount of 

time, Airship Ventures’ Zeppelin was 

called in to help conduct the search. 

The airship provides an ideal search 

vehicle, due to its ability to fly slowly 

and methodically over an area with a 

group of trained observers aboard to 

relay possible candidate coordinates 

to a ground team for investigation. The 

airship also carries a high definition 

gyrostabilized camera, often used to 

help photograph sporting events. In 

addition to the camera mounted on the 

airship, observers in the ship used bin- oculars and cameras to help spot burn 

patches and potential impact sites.

“I suspect this is the first time in 

history that anyone has searched 

for meteorites with an airship,” said 

Schmidt.

So far, the fragment donated by 

the de Haas family was one of the 

largest meteorites recovered, The 

search for even bigger samples will 

continue over the next few months. 

However, scientists will be studying 

these meteorite samples for many 

years to come. 

Sutter Mill Meteorite Discovery Spurs Hunt For More Pieces

by Karen Jenv

SETI meteor astronomer Peter Jenniskens takes a closer look at the image from the AVS Cineflex 

HiDEF camera mounted on the nose of the Eureka Airship. Mike Coop can be seen in the background checking the map. Further back, other flight members continue to look for potential impact 

sites. 

NASA photo by Eric James
5

Astrogram Spring 2012

It is simultaneously a workplace, a 

showcase for NASA technology and a 

living prototype for future buildings. It 

is NASA’s latest mission on Earth.

Recently, the U.S. Green Building 

Council announced it has awarded 

Sustainability Base its highest level 

of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, LEED Platinum. To receive this 

premier rating, the building must 

receive more than 80 out of 100 points 

across five major categories: sustainable sites, water efficiency, energy and 

atmosphere, materials and resources, 

indoor environmental quality, plus additional points for innovation in design 

and regional priority.

“What makes our building different 

than the other NASA LEED buildings 

is that preliminary data are already 

showing a net-energy positive profile. 

The building site contributes more 

energy to the grid than it receives from 

the grid. Ames also repurposed NASA 

aerospace technologies to optimize 

the building’s performance,” said 

Steven Zornetzer, Associate Center 

Director for Research at Ames.

Already reaching reduced-energy 

consumption estimates, this ultragreen 

federal building generates much of its 

own renewable power. It uses photovoltaics (solar panels) and solid oxide 

fuel cell technology from a Bloom Energy Box, an example of repurposed 

NASA space technology for on-site 

energy generation. 

The facility also is expected to 

consume 90 percent less potable 

(drinkable) water than conventionally 

constructed buildings of equivalent 

size. This is partially due to a repurposed water recovery system, derived 

from one that was originally designed 

for the International Space Station. 

Recycled water is cleaned on site and 

then used again to flush toilets and 

urinals. Additionally, the building’s 

landscaping includes California native 

plants and non-invasive, draught-tolerant species. The site’s irrigation water 

will be recycled groundwater obtained 

from another site on the Ames cam- pus.

What really makes this facility 

a “smart” building is the innovative 

application of NASA technologies. 

One such application is the build- ing’s embedded advanced intelligent 

control technology, which was derived 

from software originally developed for 

NASA’s Aviation Safety Program. 

This technology “considers” multiple options and constraints simulta- neously to determine the best strategy 

for meeting performance goals. For 

example in aviation, fuel efficiency is 

a consideration. Data input may be 

estimates of factors that affect ef- ficiency, such as aircraft lift and drag, 

engine performance, aircraft location, 

and orientation. The software helps 

plan the optimal flight path for fuel 

conservation.

Similar intelligent control technology has been developed for the 

building. To determine a high-performance strategy, zones are established 

throughout the building. Each zone 

has sensors strategically located 

that relay real-time data to a central 

controller about the building’s environment. 

Data factors include access to 

weather forecasts, predicted heat load 

from the sun, estimates of body and 

laptop temperatures and occupants’ 

calendars to predict density numbers 

at meetings. With this information, the 

central controller can predict internal 

temperatures, and adjust the heating and cooling systems for human 

comfort.

Another technology given new application is NASA’s advanced Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools 

that are used to simulate, quantify and 

understand the ways fluid flows in a 

given environment. For example, CFD 

examines how air flows through a jet 

engine or around an aircraft, or how 

blood circulates through the body in 

different environmental circumstances. 

This technology has been used by 

NASA for a variety of applications, 

from development of next-generation 

space exploration vehicles to engineering biomedical devices.

In Sustainability Base, CFD is 

used to simulate environmental flows 

in- and outside the building. Simulated 

external flows include seasonal wind 

patterns in varying weather conditions. 

Internal simulations include air circula- tion patterns throughout the building, 

which are used to assess flow-control 

devices, such as automated 

windows and heating, ventilation and 

air conditioning units. Both sets of 

simulation data allow the building’s 

control system to develop strategies 

for maintaining a comfortable, internal 

temperature while minimizing energy 

demands. 

NASA’s new, environmentallyfriendly building was named in honor 

of the first humans to walk on the surface of the moon more than 40 years 

ago. The landing site for the Apollo 

11 spacecraft was named Tranquility 

Base.

Sustainability Base already has 

won prestigious national awards. They 

include the 2010 U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) Award for 

Green Innovation; 2010 San Jose Silicon Valley Structures Award for Best 

Green Public Building; the 2011 White 

House Greengov “Lean Clean and 

Green Award”; and CEIL, the “Leadership in Innovation Award.” 

“We are thrilled to be applying 

NASA aerospace technologies to our 

everyday living and working environments. This building brings NASA 

technologies down to Earth to leverage taxpayer investment and improve 

the quality of life for everyone,” said 

Zornetzer.

continued from page 1

NASA Ames Unveils New Energy-Efficient Building

NASA’s Sustainability Base is unlike any other government building ever created. Using NASA innovations originally engineered for space travel and exploration, the 50,000 square-foot, lunar-shaped 

Sustainability Base is simultaneously a working office space, a showcase for NASA technology and 

an evolving exemplar for the future of buildings.

NASA photo by Eric James
6

Astrogram Spring 2012 

Elliott D. Katzen was born in Bal- timore on April 30, 1920, and earned 

his engineering degree from the 

University of Maryland in 1943 and his 

Masters degree from the University of 

Minnesota in 1947. 

Katzen started at Ames in 1944, 

and his first major project was work- ing with Jack Boyd and Charlie Frick 

in the 6-foot-by-6-foot wind tunnel on 

supersonic airflows over the 63 degree 

swept wing airfoil, which became a 

standard experimental model. He 

was part of one of the most dynamic 

groups ever in aerodynamics. Walter 

Vincenti was his branch chief and 

Harvey Allen his division chief. Al 

Eggers, Dean Chapman, R.T Jones, 

Doris Cohen, Milton van Dyke, John 

Spreiter, and Wally Davis were among 

the giants of that Ames High-Speed 

Research Division. In the early 1950s, 

Katzen did a series of tests, collaborating with Jack Nielsen and George 

Kaatari in the 1-foot-by-3-foot supersonic wind tunnel on interference at 

supersonic speeds between aircraft 

bodies and triangular wings of varying 

planforms. 

This work provided, at the birth 

of supersonic flight, the same sort 

of aerodynamic parameter-variation 

catalog that the NACA airfoil series 

had so crucially provided at the birth of 

low-speed flight. In 1955, he presented research conducted with Leland 

Jorgensen about the aerodynamics 

of missiles employing very thin “arrowhead” wings, work that provided a 

theoretical and empirical foundation for 

the design of new air-to-air and other 

short-range missiles. One of his wing 

planforms, refined in his work with R.T. 

Jones, was a highly swept shape that 

provided maximum lift-to-drag ratio 

at Mach 3. It was represented as the 

red chevron across the NASA logo 

to show that the new agency merged 

both aeronautics and space. 

In the early 1960s, Katzen worked 

on lifting bodies, computing their 

trajectories as they might enter Earth’s 

atmosphere to modulate their lift or 

drag for optimum performance. He 

then moved into technical management, serving from 1962 to 1965 as 

Assistant Chief of the Gasdynamics 

Branch with Brad Wick, from 1966 

to 1971, as Chief of the Hypersonic 

Aerodynamics Branch managing the 

3.5 foot hypersonic wind tunnel and 

the Mach 50 helium tunnel. There he 

led a group conducting experiments 

on the aerodynamics of delta wing 

spacecraft during reentry that paved 

the way for the success of the space 

shuttle orbiter. In 1971, he filed a 

patent with two colleagues in Cleveland for an aeroshell encapsulating 

a plutonium-238 source that made 

radioisotope thermoelectric generators 

safe to launch into space. 

This design was used on most 

NASA missions requiring nuclear 

power as a long-term electrical source. 

In the early 1970s, as Ames was the 

discerning place within aerodynamics 

for the new discipline of computational 

fluid dynamics at Ames, Katzen served 

as Technical Assistant to Astronautics 

Directors Glen Goodwin and Dean R. 

Chapman. Katzen retired in July 1975 

after a 31-year career at Ames and 

passed away on Feb. 28, 2012. 

He leaves behind an adored and 

adoring family: his wife Helene FertigKatzen, children Phillip, Sandra and 

Sheila, stepchildren Karen, Eric and 

Heidi, and ten grandchildren. 

continued from page 2

In memorium

More than 150,000 People Discover Airborne Astronomy

super-secret robotic spyplane from the 

1980s. The Condor has a wingspan 

more than 200-feet-wide, which is 

larger than that of a 747. In addition to 

the aircraft, the Hiller Aviation Museum 

features other aviation technologies, 

such as engines and rotorcraft, and offers many great educational programs.

Through a series of large donations to the Hiller Aviation Museum, 

enough money was raised to acquire 

the double-deck nose section of a 

former British Airways Boeing 747. 

The aircraft was in storage in Roswell, 

N.M., where the nose was removed 

from the fuselage, sectioned to enable it to travel cross-country on a 

wide-load trailer, and delivered to the 

museum in San Carlos. There it was 

reassembled and restored by museum 

volunteers and skilled tradespeople 

from United Air Lines.

The SOFIA display is located in 

the seating area in the front of the 

former business class section of the 

747. Here visitors see an overview 

video that details SOFIA’s history and 

the types of objects the observatory 

studies while in flight. There are also 

panels about the electromagnetic 

spectrum, why NASA built a flying 

observatory, the observatory’s interior 

layout, how SOFIA inspires educators 

and the next generation of students 

through its Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors program, and information 

on other special-use 747s. 

“The SOFIA interpretive station 

is an integral part of the museum’s 

Boeing 747 exhibit,” said Jon Welte, 

Hiller’s Education Programs director. 

“It provides an easy-to-understand 

description of both the SOFIA aircraft 

and infrared astronomy, and illustrates 

a unique application of the Boeing 747 

that is being used today as an important tool of scientific research.”

To date, more than 75,000 visitors and 11,000 school students have 

seen the SOFIA exhibit inside the 

747 cockpit. Details about the Hiller 

Aviation Museum, its collection, and its 

educational programs can be found at: 

www.hiller.org.

Educational Opportunities

SOFIA offers a number of resources and programs for schools and 

educators, ranging from classroom 

speakers, to downloadable presentations and posters on the electromagnetic spectrum and SOFIA science, to 

the Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors 

program where educators are able to 

participate in SOFIA science during 

flights. Details on SOFIA’s free educational resources can be found at www.

sofia.usra.edu under the Education 

and Public Outreach tab.
7

Astrogram Spring 2012

The discovery that planets orbit 

the sun in ellipses, rather than circles, 

was made by 16th century math- ematician and astronomer Johannes 

Kepler using only the observations of 

his predecessors and his own unique 

calculations—without the aid of the 

yet-to-be-invented telescope and 

long before modern computers were 

dreamed of.

Today, with the help of one of 

NASA’s largest space telescopes and 

its most powerful supercomputer, 

scientists are analyzing observational 

data gathered from that pioneering as- tronomer’s modern-day namesake—

the Kepler mission spacecraft—to 

search the skies for Earth’s sister 

planets and make new astronomical 

discoveries.

Launched in March 2009 with the 

goal to explore the structure and diver- sity of planetary systems and search 

for other life-supporting planets, the 

Kepler spacecraft continuously moni- tors more than 150,000 stars in the 

Milky Way constellations of Cygnus 

and Lyra. Kepler’s custom-designed 

photometer, a highly precise light 

sensor, will continue recording data 

from this single group of stars over the 

entire life of the mission.

“The Kepler Mission has already 

transformed our understanding of how 

planetary systems work,” said Todd 

Klaus, lead software engineer in the 

Kepler Science Operations Center 

(SOC) at NASA’s Ames Research 

Center, Mountain View, Calif. NASA’s 

Pleiades supercomputer, operated by 

the NASA Advanced Supercomputing 

(NAS) Division at Ames, is an “essential component to make these planet 

searches possible,” Klaus said.

As of Feb. 27, 2012, the Kepler 

team has found 2,321 planet candidates—so called because they have 

not yet been confirmed as true planets—orbiting 1,790 stars. Of these, 

61 have been confirmed as bona fide 

planets.

The team has identified well over 

200 Earth-size planet candidates and 

more than 900 that are smaller than 

twice Earth-size (super Earths). Of the 

46 potential “sister planets” found in 

the habitable zone, the region in the 

planetary system where liquid water 

could exist, ten of these are nearEarth-size.

In September 2011, the team 

discovered the extraordinary existence 

of a planet orbiting two stars, called a 

circumbinary planet. Then, in January 

2012, the team announced the discovery of two more double-star worlds, 

Kepler-34b and Kepler-35b. With the 

discovery of these three worlds, Kepler has also established a new class 

of planetary system.

Since then, the Kepler mission has 

discovered the first Earth-size planets 

(Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f ) orbiting a 

sun-like star outside our solar system. 

While they are too close to their star to 

be in the habitable zone, they are the 

smallest exoplanets ever confirmed 

around a star like our sun. And just 

last month, astronomers using Kepler 

mission data discovered the three 

smallest planets yet detected orbiting 

a single star (called KOI-961) beyond 

our sun. The smallest of these planets 

is about the size of Mars.

Groundbreaking findings such as 

these are made possible by a 95-

megapixel digital camera residing in 

the Kepler photometer—the largest 

digital camera to ever fly in space. 

Pixels are downloaded once a month 

and transferred to the SOC, where 

they are calibrated, combined to form 

light curves, corrected for systematic 

errors introduced in the photometer, 

and then searched for the signatures 

of transiting planets. When a planet 

passes (or transits) in front of its host 

star, it blocks a small fraction of the 

light from that star that appears as a 

tiny, repeating pulse or beat. “By measuring the frequency of these beats 

and the amount of light blocked, we 

can detect the planets and calculate 

their size and orbital distance,” Klaus 

explained.

This is where the computational 

power of the 112,896-core Pleiades 

supercomputer comes in. After the 

light curves are corrected, automated 

copies of the data are transmitted 

between the Kepler science processing and data analysis pipeline and 

Pleiades to run the transiting planet 

search and data validation, which are 

the most computationally intensive 

portions of the analyses.

“Pleiades has enabled us to do the 

computationally intensive planetary 

transit search on Kepler light curves 

for more than 200,000 observed stars 

in less than a day,” said Klaus, noting that the same search would take 

more than a month to complete on 

Kepler computers. “Three years into 

the mission, each of these light curves 

already contains over 30,000 individual data points, which represent a 

significant computational challenge for 

the transit search. Pleiades makes this 

search possible,” added Klaus.

by Jill Dunba

This artist’s concept depicts a small planetary system. Astronomers using data from NASA’s Kepler 

mission and ground-based telescopes recently confirmed that the system, called KOI-961, hosts the 

three smallest exoplanets known so far to orbit a star other than our sun. An exoplanet is a planet 

that resides outside of our solar system. 

Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA’s Pleiades Supercomputer Collaborates with Kepler Mission
8

Astrogram Spring 2012 

NASA’s Ames Research Center, 

Moffett Field, Calif., has won the 2011 

NASA Government Invention of the 

Year award.

Ames received the award for 

developing Toughened Uni-piece Fibrous Reinforced Oxidation-Resistant 

Composite (TUFROC), a low-cost, 

lightweight, two-piece, thermal protection system (TPS) for use on space 

vehicles during atmospheric re-entry 

at hypersonic speed. TUFROC, a patented technology invented by David A. 

Stewart and Daniel B. Leiser of Ames, 

has been successfully demonstrated 

on the X-37B Reusable Launch Vehicle.

The technology consists of a hightemperature, impregnated carbona- ceous cap mechanically attached 

to a lightweight fibrous silica-base 

material. The key innovations enable 

the integration of the surface treated 

carbon cap with the silica base insula- tion, which otherwise would fail from 

mechanical, chemical or thermal fac- tors. TUFROC is the first lightweight, 

low-cost, flight-proven, reusable TPS 

with sustained operational capabilities 

at temperatures above 3,000 degrees 

Fahrenheit.

“It’s truly an honor to win NASA’s 

Government Invention of the Year 

award again in 2011,” said Ames 

Director Pete Worden. “I am extremely 

proud of our advances in thermal protection systems. This award not only 

exemplifies the major contributions in 

TPS research at Ames over the past 

five decades, but signals that Ames 

will continue to lead the way in advancing entry systems for future NASA 

and commercial spacecraft.”

Stewart and Leiser will be honored 

at the NASA Project Management 

Challenge Conference early next year.

Each NASA field center submits 

nominations for the awards, which 

are evaluated by NASA’s Inventions 

and Contributions Board. The board 

determines which nominations qualify 

for each category, ranks the nominees, 

and makes recommendations to the 

NASA Office of the General Counsel 

for review and approval.

Ames previously won the NASA 

Government Invention of the Year 

award in 2007 for the invention of 

PICA and SIRCA Low-Density Resin 

Impregnated Ceramics. Ames also 

received the award in 2008 for the 

invention of a high-speed 3-D laser 

scanner with real-time processing, 

and in 2010 for inventing aircraft traffic 

management methodologies which 

are implemented in the Future ATM 

(Air Traffic Management) Concepts 

Evaluation Tool, or FACET software 

that creates simulations for managing 

air traffic scenarios. Ames also won 

NASA Commercial Invention of the 

Year in 2010 for the Powder Handling 

Device for Analytical Instruments.

by Lubna Shir

Young innovators from around the 

world came to solve the challenges 

of the 21st century by creating breakthrough technologies for the Conrad 

Foundation’s 2012 Spirit of Innovation Challenge. Competition finalists 

traveled to the Innovation Summit 

March 29-31, 2012 at NASA’s Ames 

Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. 

This year’s categories for team entries 

were: aerospace exploration, clean 

energy, and health and nutrition. 

The Spirit of Innovation Challenge is an annual Conrad Foundation 

competition challenging students to 

solve real-world problems by creating commercially viable science and 

technology-based solutions to global 

challenges.

Fifteen finalist teams and their 

teachers were joined by well-known 

entrepreneurs, industry leaders, scientists and government officials for a 

three-day collaborative forum featuring 

student presentations, fireside chats, 

NASA tours, and interactive workshops, such as refurbishing a rocket. 

The event concluded with a ceremony 

awarding the coveted Pete Conrad 

“Spirit of Innovation Award.”

Supporters at the event included 

Director of NASA Ames Pete Worden, 

Google representative Vint Cerf, 

Apollo astronaut / entrepreneur Rusty 

Schweickart, entrepreneur, author and 

columnist for The Washington Post 

and BusinessWeek Gina Rudan, Chief 

executive officer of Flight of the Century, Inc. Chip Yates, ePilot and Chief 

Technologist, IDEO Rickson Sun, and 

Senior Director of Sustainable Development PepsiCo, Inc. Dan Bena.

NASA photo by Dominic Hart

(From Left) Dave Stewart, Daniel Leiser and Kristina Skokova pose with the Toughened Uni-piece 

Fibrous Reinforced Oxidation-Resistant Composite (TUFROC) model.

Ames Honored for 2011 NASA Government Invention of the Year

NASA Hosts Conrad Foundation’s 2012 Spirit of Innovation Summit

by Ruth Marlai
9

Astrogram Spring 2012

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.

Ames Cat Network

Ames Ongoing Monthly Events Calendar

African American Advisory Group (AAAG) 

Mtg., last Tuesday of each month, 12 - 1 p.m., 

Bldg. N255 Rm 101C. POC: Rose King, ext. 

4-3442. 

Moffett Aikido Club, Monday and Wednesday 

evenings, 6:30 p.m., Bldg. 944. Aikido is a 

non-competitive, defensive martial art known 

as the “Way of Harmony.” POC: Diane 

Pereda (650) 575-9070 or Robert Dean (650) 

787-1007, email: mfaikido@aol.com

Ames Amateur Radio Club, third Thursday, 

of each month, 12 noon, N-T28 (across from 

N-255). POC: George Tucker, at ext. 4-2200. 

Ames Bluegrass Club, every Tuesday from 

11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in Bldg. 944. Players of all 

instruments and all levels are welcome, but we 

are particularly interested in experienced players willing to help improve the group’s musical 

skills. POC: Bob Haberle at ext: 4-5494 or 

email: robert.m.haberle@nasa.gov

Ames Bocce Ball Club, Ames’ newest Exchange-sponsored club is seeking members. 

POC: Mike Lindsay email: michael.c.lindsay@

nasa.gov

Ames Bowling League, Homestead Lanes 

Thursdays at six p.m. Need substitute bowlers. Sign up questions: Steve Howard at ext. 

4-4884.

Ames Contractor Council Mtg., first Wednesday of each month, 11 a.m., Bldg. N-200, 

Committee Room. POC: Herb Finger at ext. 

4-6598.

Ames Federal Employees Union (AFEU) Mtg, 

third Wednesday each month, noon. Bldg. 

N-204, Rm. 101. Guests welcome. Check for 

occoasional schedule changes at: http://www.

afeu.org. POC: Paul K. Davis, ext. 4-5916.

Ames Golf Club, Members will have the opportunity to play about 13 tournaments per year 

at a variety of 18-hole golf courses in the Bay 

Area and Monterey area. POC: Barry Sullivan: 

Barry.T.Sullivan@nasa.gov.

Ames Green Team (formerly the Green Ames 

Working Group) meetings are held the first 

Tuesday of each month in N237, Room

101, from 10-11 a.m. For information, call 

Roger Ashbaugh, Ames Environmental 

Management Division, ext. 4-5660.

http://environmentalmanagement.arc.nasa.

gov/reports/eo-13514.html

The Hispanic Advisory Committee for 

Excellence (HACE) Mtg., first Thursday of 

each month, 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m., Bldg. 

N-255, Rm. 101C. POC: Jeanette Zamora, 

jeanette.zamora-ortega-1@nasa.gov.

Ames Jazz Band Club, Bldg. 944, 5:30 

p.m. - 7 p.m., POC: Ralph Bach, email: 

ralph.e.bach@nasa.gov

Jetstream Toastmasters, Mondays, 12 p.m. 

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

Steiger, ext. 4-0195, tim.steiger@nasa.gov. 

Web: http://jetstream.freetoasthost.com

Ames Nimble Knitters Club, every Tuesday 

at 11:30 a.m., Bldg. N210/Rm 141. POC: 

Rosalyn Jung, knitfan2@yahoo.com or Diane 

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

nasa.gov

Ames Roller Hockey Club, meets daily from 

noon to 1 p.m. at rink on north end of the 

80-foot-by-120-foot wind tunnel, Players 

should have skating experience and wear 

protective equipment. POC: Alex Nichol, 

alexander.p.nichol@nasa.gov 

Ames Safety Committee, third Thursday of 

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

Rm. 200. POC: John Livacich, jlivacich@

mail.arc.nasa.gov, ext. 4-3243.

Women’s Influence Network (WIN), first 

Wednesday of each month, Bldg. 241 room 

237, 11:30 - 12:30 p.m., POC: Elena Serna, 

elena.serna@nasa.gov

Ames Emergency Announcements

To hear the centerwide status recording, call (650) 604-9999 for information 

announcements and emergency instructions for Ames employees. You can 

also listen to 1700 KHz AM radio for the same information.

Exchange Information

Beyond Galileo Gift Shop N-235 in the 

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

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

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

ext. 4-2161

Barcelona Café Bldg. 3, 6:30 a.m. to 

2 p.m., ext. 4-4948/Catering ext. 4-4948

See daily menus at: http://exchange.

Visitor Center Gift Shop (White Tent 

N-943-A, Tues-Fri, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sat. 

- Sun, 12 - 4 p.m., ext. 4--5412

Remember to purchase your baby shower, 

birthday, holiday gifts at Ames’ two gift shops!

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

Closed for repairs, for updates visit http://

amesexchange.arc.nasa.gov/swim/index.html

The pool is heated year round! The pool is 

currently 

Ames Swim Center (N-109) 603-8025

RV Lots Available Call to reserve a space 

at (650) 603-7100/01.

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. Catering 

available. Call (650) 603-8026. Extended 

Happy Hour Thursdays, $5 and $6 pitchers of beer starting at 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

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

Reservations for Chase Park call ext. 4-4948

Reservations for ARC Park call ext. 4-5969
10

Astrogram Spring 2012 

The Ames Astrogram is an official publication of 

Ames Research Center, National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration.

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

Editor, Layout and Design................Karen Jenvey

You can reach the Astrogram Office at: astrogram 

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

4789. Astrogram Web site: http://www.nasa.gov/

ames/astrogram.

National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration

PLEASE RECYCLE

Printed on recycled and recyclable paper with vegetable-based ink.

FIRST-CLASS

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

PERMIT NO. 85

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA

Ames Research Center

Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000

A statistical summary of activities of the Protective 

Service Division’s Security / Law Enforcement and Fire 

Protection Services units for the month of March 2012 

is shown below.

Protective Services 

monthly activity

Security / Law Enforcement Activity

Fire Protection Activity

Ames Hosts Inaugural Small 

Business Counseling Session

The Ames Contractor Council, in conjunction with the Ames Small 

Business Office, recently 

held its inaugural Small 

Business Joint Initiative 

Counseling Session. 

The event showcased 

woman-owned small 

businesses specializing in 

physical engineering, life 

sciences, environmental 

activities, financial activities, high-end computing, 

networking, and construction. 

It also provided an 

opportunity to network and 

learn about NASA Ames’ 

and Small Business 

Administration’s programs. 

Audience members 

included civil servants and 

representatives from prime 

contractors who had the 

opportunity to meet with 

39 woman-owned small 

businesses. 

During their presentations, Ames Associate 

Center Director Deb Feng 

and Ames Procurement 

Officer Kelly Kaplan 

encouraged the fostering 

of relationships between 

large and small businesses. 

San Francisco Small 

Business Administration 

(SBA) Procurement Center Representative Paul 

Chann also was a featured 

presenter at the meeting. 

Attendees listened to 

company presentations 

and visited information 

booths highlighting each 

company’s capabilities 

and qualifications. 

The Ames Contractor 

Council Small Business 

Committee is looking 

forward to hosting another 

event in August 2012 focusing on veteran-owned 

and HubZone small businesses.

by Greg H

Astrogram NP-2012-05-01-ARC