National Aeronautics and Space Administration

HISTORY ISSUE

In the Beginning...

NASA’s Ames Research Center as part of ARPANET, 

a precursor to today’s Internet—September 1971.

IT Talk

July - September 2019 Volume 9 • Issue 3
IT Talk

Jul - Sep 2019 Volume 9 • Issue 3

Office of the CIO

NASA Headquarters

300 E Street, SW

Washington, D.C. 20546

Chief Information Officer

Renee Wynn

Editor & Publication Manager

Eldora Valentine

Graphic & Web Designer

Michael Porterfield

Copy Editor

Meredith Isaacs

IT Talk is an official publication of the 

Office of the Chief Information Officer 

of the National Aeronautics and 

Space Administration, Headquarters, 

Washington, D.C. It is published 

by the OCIO office for all NASA 

employees and external audiences.

For distribution questions or to 

suggest a story idea, email:

eldora.valentine-1@nasa.gov

To read IT Talk online visit:

www.nasa.gov/offices/ocio/ittalk

For more info on the OCIO:

v www.nasa.gov/offices/ocio

v inside.nasa.gov/ocio

 (Internal NASA network only)

v www.nasa.gov/open/

www.facebook.com/NASAcio

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Message from the CIO

Ames Research Center—

80 Years of Contributions 

to Aeronautics

Handheld Digital 

Revolution

2019 TD&I Labs Winners

Moments in IT History

In this Issue
Since NASA first opened its doors in 1958, the Agency has accomplished 

many great scientific advancements in technology, air, and space. 

NASA’s missions have enriched us all here on Earth in countless ways. 

In this issue, we’ll take a stroll down memory lane as we look at the 

history of NASA information technology through the years.

And we’ll take a peek inside Glenn’s Reconfigurable Userinterface and Virtual-reality Exploration (GRUVE) Lab. The 

GRUVE Lab focuses on visual-related data analysis.

NASA Technology, Data & Innovation (TD&I) Labs recently announced its 

2019 class of IT research and development projects. This year, TD&I Labs 

has funded nine projects—one returning and eight new—with a total funded 

cost of $203,000. TD&I Labs empowers NASA’s employees to develop new 

capabilities that will enhance and support NASA’s ongoing needs. Each 

year, TD&I Labs seeks out and develops the best and brightest ideas. 

And finally, this quarter, we are pleased to highlight some prestigious 

industry honors earned in the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s (JPL) Information Technology Directorate. Go, team!

We have a great lineup this issue, so I hope you enjoy what we have in store for you.

OCIO and Center CIO leadership at the CIO Staff Meeting Face-to-Face hosted by 

NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, June 10-14, 2019. 

NASA OCIO IT Talk Jul - Sep 2019 3

Message from the NASA CIO 
Communications Program Face-to-Face

By Sylvester Placid, Communications Strategist,

Marshall Space Flight Center

The Communications Program (CP) held a Communications Subject 

Matter Expert (SME) F2F meeting at the Huntsville Botanical Garden 

in Huntsville, AL, from April 29 to May 2, 2019. CP communications 

SMEs from NASA Centers and CP customers attended the four-day 

event, which included an overview of the Communications Program 

and planned evolution over the coming years, roadmaps for CP service 

lines, network security, and an approach for the upcoming recompete 

of the NASA Integrated Communications Services (NICS) contract. The 

event also provided the opportunity for Comm SMEs to participate in a 

facilitated discussion about their Center priorities, challenges, and how 

CP can enable their Center missions.

The 30th Anniversary of the GVIS Lab:

Exciting Times with Brand-New CAVE Virtual Reality System

By Nora Peterson, Media Specialist, Glenn Research Center

This year marks the 30th anniversary 

since the founding of Glenn Research 

Center’s Graphics and Visualization 

(GVIS) Lab. Since 1989, the Lab has 

been specializing in the exploration and 

implementation of cutting-edge data 

visualization solutions for the benefit 

of the scientific community. Consequently, the Lab has garnered extensive 

experience in the application of computer science and the administration of 

public outreach events and programs. 

In the early days, GVIS housed and 

utilized a state-of-the-art 3D animation 

and video-editing studio to create and 

experiment with renderings of scientific data. Today, GVIS investigates 

new applications of virtual reality and 

augmented reality technologies in the 

realms of natural user interfaces, interactive simulations, and virtual design.

One of the unique pieces of technology 

utilized by the GVIS team is its Cave 

Automatic Virtual Environment (CAVE) 

system. Located in its sister Lab, the 

Glenn Reconfigurable User-interface 

and Virtual-reality Exploration (GRUVE) 

Lab, the CAVE is a multiscreen 3D 

virtual reality environment that permits 

multiple people to view a visualization 

in 3D together. Powerful projectors and 

mirrors, in combination with an infrared 

motion-tracking system and active-shutter glasses, allow viewers to visualize 3D 

models and data in perfect perspective. 

3D models effectively pop off the screen 

and remain proportional no matter 

where the pair of tracking glasses move 

in the environment. The GVIS team had 

been utilizing an older version of this 

system for almost two decades. Earlier 

this year, a brand-new CAVE system 

was installed in order to dramatically 

enhance the visualization capabilities 

available to the Center.

The most noticeable difference with this 

modern system is that the screens and 

the resolution of the projectors have 

significantly increased. The new GRUVE 

Lab CAVE has one front wall (135 square 

feet), two side walls (96 square feet), and 

a floor (135 square feet). In addition, the 

remote control, infrared tracking system, 

and active-shutter glasses are completely wireless. Because this CAVE is optimized for one pair of tracking glasses, 

spectator glasses are used to provide 

the same perfect perspective for other 

users when they are standing next to 

the tracked pair. The new CAVE features 

four large 4K digital laser projectors that, 

unlike the previous analog projectors, 

do not require the replacement of spent 

bulbs. The entire system is run by a pair 

of powerful computers equipped with 

state-of-the-art video cards. One computer features a Linux operating system, 

and the other features Windows. This 

enables the team to run applications 

developed for either operating system.

The GVIS team plans to use its new 

CAVE for modeling scientific results, 

viewing CAD-type geometries, and visualizing computational fluid dynamics 

(to name a few). Currently, the system 

is being used to visualize the Urban Air 

Mobility Communications Challenges 

project, which aims to overcome the 

hurdles that prevent drones from taxiing people around an urban environment. Within the CAVE, viewers can 

visualize scale models of these drones, 

examine their individual parts, watch 

them fly, and experience visualizations 

more directly. Accessible, user-friendly, 

prolific, and innovative, the new CAVE 

continues the GVIS legacy of sharing 

cutting-edge knowledge and technology at NASA and beyond.

4 www.nasa.gov
2019 TD&I Labs Winners Announced

NASA Technology, Data & Innovation (TD&I) Labs is proud to announce its 2019 class of IT research 

and development projects. TD&I 

Labs empowers NASA’s innovative 

employees to develop new capabilities that will enhance and support 

NASA’s ongoing needs. By leveraging a crowdsourcing/entrepreneurship model and soliciting ideas from 

across NASA’s brilliant workforce, 

NASA is better poised to identify, 

develop, and execute to satisfy both 

near-term and long-term needs.

Each year, TD&I Labs seeks out 

and develops the best and brightest ideas. This year, TD&I Labs has 

funded nine projects, one returning and eight new projects, with a 

total funded cost of $203,000. 

This year’s TD&I Labs Project Challenge Judge Panel included representatives from the Office of the Chief 

Information Officer (OCIO), the Office 

of the Chief Technologist (OCT), the 

Human Exploration and Operations 

Mission Directorate (HEOMD), the 

Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD), and Center Chief 

Technology Officers (CTOs). This panel 

of experts reviewed submissions with 

the challenging task of selecting a 

handful of proposals out of 45 outstanding applications. To read about 

each winning project and view all the 

applications for this year, please visit 

the TD&I Labs Website (https://labs.

nasa.gov/SitePages/Default.aspx). 

Congratulations to the Winners!

Returning Project

Generate Parts List from Controlled 

Drawings Phase 2 (Returning)—

Funded $25,000 

Project Lead: Cuong Q. Nguyen (JSC)

New Projects

Future Light Information Technology 

Enhancement (FLITE)—

Funded $25,000

Project Lead: Joshua Miltier (SSC)

Space System Digital Twin—

Funded $25,000

Project Lead: Lui Wang (JSC)

Automated Data Tagging with 

Machine Learning—Funded $25,000

Project Lead: Truong Le (JSC)

Machine Learning for Materials 

Development—Funded $25,000

Project Lead: Stephen 

M. Casey (LARC)

Transfer Learning for Dynamic 

Ontology Construction—

Funded $25,000

Project Lead: Brian A Thomas (HQ)

Artificial Intelligence for Software 

Testing—Funded $22,000

Project Lead: Scott B. 

Tashakkor (MSFC)

Facial Recognition Applications in 

Security—Funded $25,000

Project Lead: Lui Wang (JSC)

Rapid Model Import Tool (RMIT)—

Funded $6,000

Project Lead: William L. Little (KSC)

NASA IT Strategic 

Plan—Goal #1: 

Excellence 

By Jonathan Walsh, IT Strategic 

Planner, and Meredith Isaacs, 

Communications Specialist, NASA HQ

To achieve excellence in information technology (IT) service delivery, 

NASA’s IT Strategic Plan, Fiscal Years 

2018–2021 begins with the goal to 

partner with customers to consistently 

deliver excellence and enable mission 

success. NASA published this strategic 

plan in 2018 to enable the Agency’s 

complex, multifaceted missions and 

business operations. To achieve our 

vision of managing IT as a strategic 

resource to securely unleash the power 

of data, NASA’s IT community will 

deliver excellence, a data-driven approach, cybersecurity, value, and support and preparation for our people.

NASA’s IT excellence will be driven by 

strategic partnerships and the delivery 

of consistent service quality, effectiveness, and productivity. Our relationship 

with our customers will improve when 

they are more integrated throughout 

the IT service planning and delivery 

life cycle. To help accomplish this, we 

will increase our use of agile enterprise 

services and publish clear service 

rules and availability. 

Our IT community will improve customer satisfaction with our services by 

increasing end-to-end service usability 

and effectiveness and by enabling 

responsive, actionable service performance improvement. To help accomplish this, we will develop a continuous 

service-improvement model, implement digital systems that capture realtime performance information, and 

make greater use of data for planning 

and investment decisions.

NASA’s IT Strategic Plan is reviewed 

annually and updated as necessary to 

reflect NASA’s overall strategic direction 

and presidential administration priorities. 

For more information, visit

https://www.nasa.gov/ocio/itsp or

e-mail agency-itsp@mail.nasa.gov.

NASA OCIO IT Talk Jul - Sep 2019 5
6 www.nasa.gov

NASA’s Ames Research Center—80 Years of Contributions 

to Aeronautics on Earth, in the Skies, and in Space!

By Penny Hubbard, ARC CIO Communication Specialist, Ames Research Center

As many of us know, NASA has contributed mightily to the world through technology improvements across its storied 

history. As we move into the stars, 

NASA is now actively ensuring that this 

century’s explorers arrive, survive and 

thrive on the Moon, on Mars, and beyond.1

 NASA’s Ames Research Center, 

located in the heart of California’s Silicon 

Valley, has provided its own share of 

amazing contributions to the world, 

including shepherding in the Internet. 

With regard to technology improvements, who reading this humble article 

recalls the world before the commercial 

internet? Do you recall getting party 

invitations in the mail? Remember road 

trips and actually using paper maps? 

No commercial GPS, no search engines, no online games...no online at 

all. How did we communicate, connect 

and socialize? It wasn’t long ago that 

computers and smartphones didn’t 

exist. Taking a look at Ames’ history reveals some interesting facts, including 

how we participated in ushering in the 

era of the information superhighway. 

Ames was established eight decades 

ago, on December 20, 1939, as part 

of the National Advisory Committee 

for Aeronautics (NACA), and in 1958 

NACA was absorbed into NASA. Joseph Ames (right), a founding member 

of NACA, instituted a research-based 

vision, focusing NACA on aerodynamics. After his death, Ames’s colleagues 

carried on his vision and, during the 

1944 dedication of the lab he helped 

to establish, leaders called him "the 

great architect of aeronautical science.... It is most appropriate that it 

should now be named the Ames Aeronautical Laboratory, for in this laboratory, as in the hearts of airmen and 

aeronautical scientists, the memory of 

Joseph S. Ames will be enshrined as 

long as men shall fly." I wonder if Dr. 

Ames and his colleagues ever envisioned that his aeronautics lab would 

one day become a part of NASA and 

not only fly aircraft, but also support 

space flight; human factors engineering; missions to the Moon, Mars and 

the stars beyond; and facilitate the 

infancy of the Internet here on Earth.

Let’s go back to 1957, when the 

Soviets launched the first artificial 

satellite, Sputnik, into orbit. President 

Eisenhower had a firm grasp of how 

advances in technology helped lead 

the Allies to victory during World War 

II and had taken a keen interest in 

not permitting the Soviets to gain the 

technological upper hand during the 

Cold War. He immediately ordered the 

establishment of the Department of 

Defense Advanced Research Projects 

Agency, or ARPA, with two broad 

missions: missile research (work later 

taken over by NASA (in its development of rockets to launch spacecraft) 

and information technology (what 

would become the internet). Both missions would come to fruition in 1969. 

One would be on the front page of every newspaper everywhere around the 

world (“One small step...”); the other 

would go unnoticed for decades. Both, 

however, revolutionized the world.

Per Eisenhower’s directive, ARPA 

launched the ARPANET,2 an early 

packet-switching network – used for 

breaking information into packets, 

transmitting them to another system, 

then reassembling them – and the first 

network to implement the Transmission Control Program/Internet Protocol 

(TCP/IP) suite, which took all those 

packets and showed them where to 

go. In the early 80’s both technologies became the technical foundation 

of the internet. Four federal agencies 

came together to broaden ARPANET 

for science, aerospace and energy 

applications at their organization: the 

National Science Foundation (NSF), 

NASA, the Department of Energy 

(DOE) and the U.S. Military. 

Access to NSFNET was established 

through Federal Internet Exchanges 

(FIXes), via Internet Exchange Points 

(IXPs).3 Two FIXes were established in 

June 1989: FIX-East at the University 

of Maryland and FIX-West at Ames 

Research Center. Access to the ARPANET was expanded in 1981 when 

the NSF funded national supercomputing centers at several universities 

and provided interconnectivity in 1986 

with the NSFNET project - creating 

network access to the supercomputer 

sites in the United States from research and education organizations. 

The NSF permitted only government 

agencies and universities to use the 

network until 1989, when the first 

commercial internet service provider 

(ISP) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_service_provider) emerged. By 

1991, the NSF had removed restrictions on access, and the commercial 

ISP business grew rapidly into today’s World Wide Web. In the 1990s, 

MAE-West,4 hosted at Ames, was the 

second-busiest exchange point (a 

physical location (e.g., Data Center) 

through which Internet infrastructure 

companies connect with each other). 

on the internet. MAE-West handled, 

by some estimates, as much as 40 

percent of the Nation's Internet traffic. 
NASA OCIO IT Talk Jul - Sep 2019 7

Today, Ames Research Center continues to be involved with the internet, 

operating one of 13 worldwide root 

servers for the Domain Name System 

(DNS). The DNS is how internet applications look up IP addresses associated with text-based domain names – we 

see www.nasa.gov, but our computers 

see something different. Ames not only 

supports the information superhighway, we also contribute with our core 

areas of expertise5, making life better 

through research, applications and 

scientific breakthroughs in astrobiology, 

entry systems, supercomputing, nextgeneration air transportation, air traffic 

management, autonomy, robotics, and 

many more fascinating NASA missions. 

Ames turns 80 this year. Here’s to another 80-years of inspirational science 

for humankind, taking us further into 

space than we could ever imagine! 

• To learn more about NASA’s Ames 

Research Center, visit https://

www.nasa.gov/ames.

• To view an interesting and surprising historical timeline of technology, 

beginning with the invention of paper and continuing through today’s 

high-tech devices, visit www.cybertelecom.org/notes/timeline.htm.

References

1. The Moon to Mars Story – NASA’s 

50th Anniversary; Ames’ Speaker 

Bureau Presentation

2. DARPA: https://en.wikipedia.org/

wiki/DARPA

3. Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.

org/wiki/MAE-West [and FIX, IXP, 

CIX links]

4. MAE is a registered trademark 

of Verizon for internet exchange 

services. 

5. What we do—ARC Core Competencies: https://www.nasa.gov/

centers/ames/research/index.html

NASA Communications Program History

1964: NASA Headquarters defined 

all longline communications operated by NASA as NASA Communications (NASCOM). Responsibility for 

NASCOM was assigned to Goddard 

Space Flight Center (GSFC).

1985: The Program Support 

Communications Network (PSCN) 

contract was awarded for building 

a time-division multiplexing (TDM)-

based voice, video, and data Wide 

Area Network (WAN).

1989: The PSCN Internet (PSCNI) 

network, NASA’s first programmatic 

internet supporting Space Station 

Freedom and Space Shuttle Program development, was created.

1994: Marshall Space Flight Center 

(MSFC) began building networks 

and IT services in Russia to support a newly formed cooperative 

agreement between Russia and 

the United States for building and 

operating the International Space 

Station (ISS).

1995: The NASA Integrated Services Network (NISN) was formed, 

combining NASA’s NASCOM mission and administrative WAN into a 

single organization.

1999: NASA’s backbone transitioned from TDM to Asynchronous 

Transmission Mode (ATM) technology.

2005: A WAN-R upgrade transitioned NASA’s backbone from ATM 

to Synchronous Optical Network 

(SONet) and Dense Wavelength 

Division Multiplexing (DWDM) and 

utilized Carrier Independent Exchange Facilities (CIEFs, or “carrier 

hotels”).

2008: The first connection to Amazon Web Services was established.

2010: The Mission Operations 

Voice Enhancement (MOVE) was 

implemented.

2010: The WANX upgrade increased the backbone’s core 

capacity to OC-192 (10 gigabits per 

second).

2008–10: The General Services 

Administration (GSA) Networx contract was awarded and transitioned.

2011: The NASA Integrated Communications Services (NICS) contract was awarded to consolidate 

Mission and Corporate WAN and 

Center LANs, as well as voice, data 

center, and security infrastructure.

2015: Corporate LAN and WAN 

operations were integrated into the 

Consolidated Network Operations 

Center (CNOC).

2017: The Communications Service Office (CSO) became the Communications Program (CP).

2018: Enterprise Border Firewalls, 

VPNs, and content filters were deployed at NASA’s Internet perimeter. 

Network Access Control capability 

was deployed across NASA corporate networks.

2018: NASA connected to Microsoft Azure Cloud Services and 

transitioned to O365 e-mail and 

Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).

2019: NASA connected to Google 

Cloud.

2019: NASA began the Enterprise 

Infrastructure Solutions (EIS) transition, including 100-gigabit-per-second backbone circuits.

2021: The NICS follow-on contract 

will begin.

2022: The EIS transition will be 

completed.
8 www.nasa.gov

Early Adoption Leads to Handheld Digital Revolution at NASA

By Whitney Haggins, IT Communication Strategist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

When the iPhone was announced back at the 

end of June 2007, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) IT was in the formulation stage of 

defining how JPL IT could help to lead cultural 

and technological change. IT Chief Technology 

Officer Tom Soderstrom had already debuted 

the first list of IT Trends for the Next IT Decade, 

and number five on the list was Consumerization of IT.

Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) were 

becoming more powerful, and, based on the 

public’s first reaction to the iPhone, indications 

were that this new device from Apple had the 

potential to revolutionize the way we communicate. The JPL OCIO leadership made the 

decision to respond to the industry trend by 

partnering with key users to pilot the iPhone. 

During the lengthy and extensive evaluation 

pilot, users were asked to rate the iPhone’s 

performance as a cell phone, when using JPL 

email, web browser capabilities, and rank 

functions that would be most useful in the 

JPL environment. Cybersecurity performed 

extensive analysis to determine whether the 

device’s security features were sufficient for 

use in the JPL computing environment.

The feedback from the evaluation pilot enabled 

the OCIO to partner with Apple and AT&T on 

features that would be needed for JPL use. JPL 

met with Apple to give feedback on the four 

things that needed to be changed before JPL 

would adopt it. Apple made these changes and, 

in 2009, JPL became the first NASA Center to 

have the iPhone as an allowable PDA device 

(in 2009 there were over 600 Blackberry users 

on Lab). JPL then began working with NASA to 

include the iPhone as an allowable PDA for use 

at other NASA Centers. JPL utilized the same 

strategy and was the first within NASA to introduce the iPad as an allowable device in 2010.

Looking Back To Move Forward: 

ITCD’s Evolution at Goddard Space Flight Center

By Michelle Birdsall, Strategic Communications Specialist, with input from ITCD pioneers Mary Collins, Bob Freitas, April Hildebrand, 

Dwaine Kronser, and Tom Perricone, Goddard Space Flight Center

Taking time to look back as we move forward can provide reassurance, guidance, 

and perspective, especially when the road 

ahead for information technology (IT) promises opportunities and challenges yet to be 

discovered. For Goddard Space Flight Center’s 

Information Technology and Communication 

Directorate (ITCD), ushering in technology that 

brings change involves enabling global science 

and mission work with external partners while 

also creating solutions that ensure NASA’s 

network security. With unique IT requirements, 

Goddard’s ITCD staff must guide customers 

through enterprise-level initiatives that update 

how IT services are provided and managed 

while preserving functions that are critical to 

ongoing partnerships.

In talking about the history of ITCD at Goddard, 

staff who have been part of IT’s evolution at 

the Center for more than 30 years explain that 

managing such change is not new. Several 

ITCD employees can recall a not-so-distant 

past when the Center’s IT services were not 

provided and managed within a dedicated 

directorate and only some employees had access to e-mail. 

In 1985, Goddard began its first microcomputer organization to offer business IT solutions, 

planting the seed for ITCD as employees know 

it today. Computers were running MS-DOS, if 

anyone can remember that far back. Throughout the early 1980s, only a few lucky employees were given an e-mail account, which 

was accessed on a server. Therefore, most 

communication happened either in person or 

over the phone.

It was not until the early 1990s that the Solutions 

for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) contract 

was developed, a Government-wide acquisition 

contract authorized by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget that is managed by NASA and 

resides within Goddard’s ITCD structure. Goddard 

employees reminisce about the arrival of the 

Outsourcing Desktop Initiative for NASA (ODIN), 

the IT leasing services support contract preceding 

Agency Consolidated End-User Services (ACES) 

and NASA End-user Services & Technologies 

(NEST), noting that the Center’s scientists and 

engineers—accustomed to handling their own IT 

needs and budgets within their separate directorates—initially responded with resistance to the 

changes it brought to the way they acquired and 

maintained IT tools. 

When Goddard established the new directorate 

for IT and communications on July 25, 2005, ITCD 

staff faced the challenge of addressing misperceptions and mistrust at Goddard as they began 

providing IT services at the Center level. ITCD 

eventually gained trust, albeit slowly, by continuously providing candid and frequent information, 

outreach, and education.

As NASA transitions to the new NEST contract for 

IT support services, implements the enterprise’s 

Mission Support Future Architecture Program, and 

supports employees as they reap the benefits 

from the recent Office 365 migration, it helps to 

remember how far we have come as an IT community. Having ITCD staff who remember how 

they assisted customers in adapting to a world 

with increasing IT capabilities will guide the next 

generation through the continuing evolution of IT 

throughout NASA.
NASA OCIO IT Talk Jul - Sep 2019 9

DOUG – An Enduring Innovation

By Jaumarro Astran Cuffee, IRD Communications Strategist, Johnson Space Center

Information technology advances at a speed all 

of its own. An IT-decade has been described as 

about three years, and an IT-minute passes in 

barely more than a blink of an eye. The reality 

of this speed means one IT innovation quickly 

gives way to the next. However, one Virtual 

Reality innovation has proved to be timeless – 

Dynamic Onboard Ubiquitous Graphics (DOUG).

Developed in the early 1990s, DOUG has 

added elements of safety to human spaceflight 

–accommodating the complicated and crucial 

graphics for training simulations. Following 

its first flight aboard a Space Shuttle in 2001, 

DOUG was on all but one of the remaining 

Space Shuttle missions through the end of 

the Shuttle era in 2011. DOUG supported 

Extravehicular Activity (EVA) or spacewalk 

simulations, Simplified Aid for EVA Rescue 

(SAFER) training, and International Space 

Station (ISS) assembly using Space Station 

Robotic Arm for both training and situational 

awareness to avoid the arm coming into 

contact with other parts of ISS. As ISS 

continues its presence in low Earth orbit, 

DOUG is there maintaining a 3D model of ISS 

for continued training and activities.

Since DOUG was developed, many commercial 

advances have been made in the area of 

graphics and simulations. Although some 

commercial game engines have come into 

the picture, DOUG is still needed. According 

to Virtual Reality Technical Discipline Lead, 

Eddie Paddock, “There are many capabilities 

in DOUG for ISS and EVA training and onboard 

use that will take some time and resources to 

develop in these commercial game engines, so 

for now we need DOUG.”

DOUG has served NASA well for Shuttle 

and ISS, but its work is far from over. DOUG 

continues to have a place in the future of 

spaceflight, including commercial activities. 

Considering ORION, Moon 2024, Artemis, 

and Gateway, Paddock says, “DOUG, as well 

as its companion tool EDGE (Engineering 

DOUG Graphics for Exploration), are being 

used for simulating 3D graphics visualization 

requirements, including Out the Window, 

Camera, Birds Eye views, and VR immersion. 

These simulations and DOUG graphics 

applications are used for design evaluations, 

analysis of vehicle performance and 

subsystems, flight software and avionics 

testing, and training for Orion, Gateway and 

Lunar missions including lander, EVA, and 

rovers...DOUG is used for 3D graphics and 

simulation requirements in SpaceX and Boeing 

commercial crew programs as well as cargo – 

[H2 Transfer Vehicle], Dragon, and Cygnus.”

In a time where change is the only certainty, 

DOUG has proved time and again to be 

a timeless, adaptable, and invaluable IT 

innovation.

NASA Libraries

By Claire Little, IMPLibrary Lead and Dr. Jacob Cohen, Ames Chief Scientist, Ames Research Center; and Bob Sherouse, Library Program Manager, 

NASA Headquarters 

NASA’s library program is a key tool for accomplishing the goal of returning to the lunar 

surface in 2024. In support of Chief Scientist 

Dr. Jim Green, Chief Information Officer Renee 

Wynn, and Library Program Manager Bob 

Sherouse, the Information Management Program (IMP) is committed to providing technical 

solutions that standardize user experience and 

provide improved access and discoverability of 

disparate reference collections. 

Currently, most journal subscriptions are procured by NASA’s libraries at the Center, facility, 

or program office level, leading to duplication 

and inefficiency and causing user access to 

vary significantly across the Agency. To support the library’s efforts to broaden content 

access and decrease subscription costs, the 

IMP is building a Journal Subscription Usage 

Dashboard to aggregate journal usage data. 

With this information, the library program will 

be able to consolidate subscriptions and provide access to the widest variety of research 

materials at the lowest cost to NASA. Built in 

Tableau, Phase I of the dashboard will visualize 

network traffic to ten high-priority subscription 

providers, along with procurement activities 

for those providers. Later phases will add more 

subscription providers and data sources. 

As journal subscriptions are consolidated, we 

will also streamline journal access. Instead 

of visiting multiple subscription providers’ 

Websites or a local Center library page, users 

will be able to make single searches in a new 

Journal Access Portal that returns results from 

all subscription providers. This will standardize 

the user experience, improve content access, 

and provide important usage analytics. Users 

will also be able to easily request journals not 

yet available to them via the interlibrary loan 

service. Through integration with authentication systems, the portal will allow us to implement tokenized access and better control what 

kind of usage data subscription companies 

collect about NASA’s users.

The final component of simplified access 

to library resources is a centralized Library 

Landing Page. Unlike current IP-gated Center 

library pages, the new Landing Page will be 

accessible to anyone on the NASA network 

and will be a one-stop shop for viewing journal 

content, requesting interlibrary loans, submitting questions to librarians, and more. Though 

this system will present a single NASA library 

user experience, each Center will still be able 

to customize content to advertise local events 

and functionality.

Keep an eye out for these new and expanded 

library services as the Information Management Program works with NASA Library Program Manager Bob Sherouse and the Office of 

the Chief Scientist to provide broader access 

to critical research reference collections!
These moments of NASA’s IT history are revealed on p. 13

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10 www.nasa.gov NASA OCIO IT Talk Jul - Sep 2019 11
2019 Industry Honors for JPL IT Directorate,

Tom Soderstrom 

By Whitney Haggins, IT Communication Strategist, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s 

(JPL) IT Directorate and JPL IT Chief 

Technology and Innovation Officer Tom 

Soderstrom were recently recognized 

with industry honors. 

Soderstrom received the Los Angeles 

Business Journal’s 2019 Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Lifetime Achievement Award April 22 in Los Angeles. 

The CTO Awards celebrate the inventiveness and technological achievements of women and men in the space 

technology industry. Soderstrom 

was recognized for his body of work, 

including his technology expertise, 

his ability to forge strong partnerships 

with academia, industry, and other IT 

partners; leadership and mentoring, 

speaking to audiences around the 

globe, and his never-ending pursuit of 

experimentation with new and emerging technologies. 

On May 1, JPL was named to the 2019 

CIO 100 by IDG’s CIO magazine. The 

CIO 100, now in its 32nd year, honors 

100 organizations that have distinguished themselves through their innovative use of technology in creating 

business value. The selection is JPL’s 

eighth consecutive appearance on the 

CIO 100. The honorees will be celebrated at the annual CIO 100 Symposium & Awards in Colorado Springs, 

August 19-21, and they will be profiled 

in the August issue of CIO magazine.

On June 17, JPL was named one of 

the Best Places to Work in IT 2019 by 

IDG’s Computerworld magazine and 

ranked number 18 among large companies. This is JPL’s seventh consecutive appearance on the prestigious 

list, a ranking of the top 100 work 

environments for information technology professionals from Computerworld

magazine, now in its 26th year. The list 

is compiled based on a comprehensive employee questionnaire regarding company offerings in categories 

such as benefits, career development, 

training, and retention. In addition, 

Computerworld conducts extensive 

surveys of IT workers, and their responses factor heavily in determining 

the rankings.

JPL Chief Information Officer Jim Rinaldi said of the recent honors, “Having the OCIO and Tom receive these 

prestigious awards is a fantastic honor 

and one I appreciate and don’t take for 

granted. This type of recognition is vital for all of us in IT because it emphasizes the importance of being mindful 

of caring for our IT workforce and 

highlights individual team members 

and the OCIO’s innovative support of 

the JPL mission.”

JPL IT Expo: Where IT and the Users Met

JPL hosted its annual IT Expo on the 

JPL Mall on May 29. The theme of the 

Expo was Open Universe, a celebration and exploration of the many ways 

we utilize our data. It was a perfect 

Southern California day as more than 

3,000 people visited the IT Expo, stopping by the “big white tent” on the Mall 

and the HR tent to learn more about 

the products, services, and applications available for use from the OCIO 

and IT partners. With over 70 exhibitors, attendees took part in a range of 

activities at the Digital Transformation 

booth, learned about the future of 

identity services, stopped by to learn 

how conference room capabilities 

are changing, viewed products from 

vendors like Apple, HP, Microsoft, and 

Dell; and learned about news apps 

and services at the HR tent. The Expo 

is also an opportunity for meaningful 

conversations between IT and user 

communities, building new relationships, enabling the exchange of ideas, 

and providing feedback or some onthe-spot training to help improve user 

experience. Expo was most definitely 

where IT was happening.

12 www.nasa.gov
Moments in IT History—Pictures on Pages 10-11

A. The 2007 workstation of Christel Van Arsdale. (Credit: NASA/Dominic Hart) 

B. The BetaCom 700H computer graphic systems are shown at Ames Research Center in 1978. (Credit: NASA/George Olczak)

C. Attendants work on the UNIVAC 1103 computer for the 10- by 10-foot Supersonic Wind Tunnel at Lewis Flight Propulsion Laboratory in 1955 

(now NASA John H. Glenn Research Center at Lewis Field). (Credit: NASA)

D. Doris Baron handles Bell computer manometer tape for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the precursor to NASA, in 

1953. (Credit: NASA)

E. The NAS Origin 2000 Computer System for Ames Research Center’s Data Assimilation Office is shown in 1999. (Credit: NASA/Tom Trower)

F. Robotic maneuver practice at a workstation aboard the International Space Station in 2018 with astronauts Ricky Arnold & Drew Feustel. (Credit: NASA)

G. Dr. Paul Kutler used this 1978 IBM terminal for his work on computational fluid dynamics. (Credit: NASA/Emerson Shaw)

H. A 3D printer renders a rocket at a 2017 pop-up makerspace, supported in part by NASA, in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, VA. 

(Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

I. Harnessing the power of the Cray and SP-2 Supercomputers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in 1996. (Credit: NASA/Quentin Schwinn)

J. Developed at Glenn Research Center, the multilevel interconnected silicon carbide integrated circuit chip with co-fired ceramic package and 

circuit board can withstand high temperatures. (Credit: NASA)

K. An iPhone was used to make a nanosensor device for cellphone integration and a chemical-sensing network in 2009. (Credit: NASA/Dominic Hart) 

L. During a 2017 prelaunch demonstration, Skip Owen of NASA Launch Services shows a mobile application launch simulation of the Tracking 

and Data Relay Satellite (TDRS)-M satellite on an Atlas V rocket. (Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett)

M. Astronaut Dave Williams uses virtual reality hardware in 2007 to practice for work aboard the International Space Station. (Credit: NASA)

N. The 1994 Space Station Data Systems Advance Portable Workstation features NASA’s retired “worm” logotype. (Credit: NASA)

O. Engineers use laptops and computer workstations in 2019 to conduct Space Launch System rocket testing in preparation for Exploration Mission-1. (Credit: NASA/Cory Huston)

P. Control Data Corporation computers at Ames Research Center are shown in 1980. (Credit: NASA/Tom Trower)

Q. Advancements in Earth science are aided by the 15K computer processors in the NASA Center for Climate Simulation’s Discover Supercomputer. (Credit: NASA/Pat Izzo)

R. Flight control consoles and Flight Director Robert Castle on his laptop during a 1993 spacewalk servicing the Hubble Space Telescope. (Credit: NASA)

The 300 block of E St. 

SW in Washington, 

DC, in front of NASA 

Headquarters, has 

been designated 

"Hidden Figures Way." 

NASA Administrator 

Jim Bridenstine, US 

Senator Ted Cruz, 

DC Council Chairman 

Phil Mendelson, and 

"Hidden Figures" 

author Margot Lee 

Shetterly dedicated 

the street on 

June 12, 2019. 

NASA OCIO IT Talk Jul - Sep 2019 13
National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Office of the Chief Information Officer

300 E Street, SW

Washington, DC 20546

https://www.nasa.gov

NASA

Agency Honor Awardees

By Meredith Isaacs, Communications Specialist, NASA Headquarters 

Two teams from the Office of the Chief 

Information Officer (OCIO) were recently 

recognized for their outstanding 

achievements with 2019 Agency Honor Group 

Achievement Awards. This award is given to 

groups whose accomplishments meet three of 

six criteria: substantial contributions 

to NASA’s mission through a wide impact, 

effective management of cost and schedule, 

customer satisfaction, capacity for future 

contributions, development of innovative 

approaches and a contribution toward lessons 

learned; and success in responding to 

unforeseen crises. 

The OCIO Diversity and Inclusion Team 

was honored for their work in expanding 

opportunities for collaboration and 

teamwork, including establishing regular 

events to provide spaces for sharing and 

diversity awareness among colleagues. The 

honorees are Dan Conway, Tereda Frazier, 

Leigh Anne Giraldi, Lara Petze, John 

Sprague, and Liz Weber. 

Also receiving the Group Achievement 

Award are the 156 members of the NASA 

Personal Identity Verification (PIV) Team. 

This complex undertaking across Centers, 

missions, mission support organizations, 

and IT services achieved 89 percent 

compliance of PIV smartcard enforcement, 

eclipsing an 85 percent target. Driven 

by the Federal Information Security 

Modernization Act (FISMA), Cross Agency 

Priority (CAP) Goals, and the Office 

of Management and Budget (OMB), this 

achievement also positively impacts NASA’s 

cybersecurity and risk management. 

Congratulations to both the Diversity 

and Inclusion and PIV Teams for their 

incredible accomplishments and Agency Honor 

Awards! 

NASA

IT Talk