www.nasa.gov

March 2006

On the Inside . . .

"There is nothing like a dream to

create the future." -- Victor Hugo, 19thcentury author of The Hunchback of

Notre Dame and Les Misérables

More than a century after they were

written, Hugo's words apply to today's

dreams of advanced human space travel.

What once was only a dream that

envisioned a new spaceship that would

fly astronauts back to the moon and

beyond is now taking small steps toward reality as NASA's Constellation

Program takes shape.

Small-scale models of the new Crew

Exploration Vehicle (CEV) capsule and

its tall rocket -- the Crew Launch Vehicle

(CLV) -- are being tested in NASA wind

tunnels across the nation at NASA

Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala., here at NASA Ames and at

NASA Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.

The tests are supporting the initial

development of NASA's new spaceship,

its hardware and software. Wind tunnels use giant fans or high-pressure airflow to create wind to flow over vehicles, engines, rockets or scale models,

to simulate flight performance. Researchers use such wind tunnel 'flights'

to assess new geometric configurations

before incorporating them into space

vehicle designs.

Dreams are creating a future, new NASA spaceship From Feb. 20 through Feb. 22, Ames

conducted a test of a 0.5 percent scale

model of the CLV and CEV in launch

configuration in

its 11-foot wind

tunnel. From

Feb. 22 through

March 3, engineers tested a

larger model of

the CEV in

Ames' 9-footby-7-foot supersonic wind tunnel and in the 11-

foot wind tunnel

to study re-entry

flight characteristics.

"We think

this test will be

useful for NASA

engineers in

making technical decisions regarding possible configurations for the new vehicle," said

Don Nickison, a NASA Ames engineer

in charge of wind tunnel tests involving

the new spaceship. "I would expect, as

the design matures, that we will be ready

and willing to support validation wind

tunnel tests for heat shields, parachutes

and other systems associated with this

new vehicle."

"It's exciting because it's the kind of

work that NASA is stressing now,"

Nickison added. "We're always very

happy to be of support to the rest of the

team at NASA, including NASA's

Johnson Space Center, Houston and

other NASA centers across the country."

In December, Marshall conducted

the first wind tunnel tests on a 16.5-inch

scale model of the CEV/CLV in a 48-

inch-long, 14-inch-by-14-inch cross section wind tunnel. The tests demonstrated

NASA engineers' ability to 'fly' a craft on

the ground to assess new geometric configurations before designs are incorporated into more sophisticated models.

continued on page 5

continued on page 6

This April 12 marks a historic milestone on two continents in the human

exploration of space. It is the 45th anniversary of the flight of Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, the first human to

orbit the Earth. It also is the 25th anniversary of STS-1, the first orbital flight

of the Space Transportation System, or

space shuttle. This truly remarkable

achievement - hailed by NASA as the

greatest test flight in history -- was the

result of work by thousands of individuals throughout NASA, and by major portions of the aerospace industry

and academia as well.

STS-1 was the first piloted flight

using solid rocket boosters, and the first

U.S. space vehicle to carry a human crew

on its maiden flight. STS-1 and the three

flights following were engineering test

flights to prove the space shuttle system

in launch, orbital and landing operations. STS-l's flight profile was designed

to minimize structural and operational

loads on the spacecraft and its boosters.

Columbia's cargo bay was empty except

Ames’ contributions to STS-1: the

greatest test flight in history

Editor's note: On April 25, NASA will mark the

25th anniversary of STS-1, the first orbital flight of

the space shuttle. The article below originally was

published in the April 9, 2001 issue of the

Astrogram. It has been modified to mark this

year's anniversary

Page 2 - ‘Borg’ collective designs

 conputer antenna

Page 5 - Educator Astronaut returns

 to class

Page 6 -STS-1 Anniversary

 continued

Page 11 - Upcoming Events

Page 12 - Software Award

 Nominations

NASA photo by Tom Trower

On March 7, local media visited Ames' Unitary Wind Tunnel Complex to view

a scale model of the Crew Exploration Vehicle. Left to right: John Fowler,

reporter, KTVU-TV Fox Channel 2 Oakland; Michael Mecham, Northern

California bureau chief/Asia-Pacific bureau chief, Aviation Week & Space

Technology magazine; Thomas Edwards, Ames director of aeronautics; and

James Bell, Code APS.
Astrogram March 2006 2

Like a friendly, non-biological form

of the Borg Collective of science fiction

fame, 80 NASA Ames personal computers, using artificial intelligence (AI), have

combined their silicon brains to quickly

design a tiny, advanced space antenna.

Three of these computer-designed

space antennas began their trip into space

in March, when an L-1011 aircraft took

off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in

California. The airplane dropped a Pegasus XL rocket into the sky high above

the Pacific Ocean. The rocket ignited

and carried three small Space Technology (ST5) satellites into orbit.

Each satellite is equipped with a

strange-looking, computer-designed

space antenna. Although they resemble

bent paperclips, the antennas are highly

efficient, according to scientists.

"This is the first time an artificially

evolved object has flown in space," observed Jason Lohn, who led the project

to design the antennas at NASA Ames.

The three 'microsats,' each no bigger than a typical TV, weigh only about

25 kilograms (55 pounds) each. Slightly

bigger than a quarter, each antenna, able

to fit into a one-inch space (2.5 by 2.5

centimeters), can receive commands and

send data to Earth from the satellites.

Together, the spacecraft are helping scientists study magnetic fields in Earth's

magnetosphere.

The magnetosphere is a region enveloping the Earth. Charged particles

are trapped in the region, which is influenced by Earth's magnetic field.

To design the ST5 space antenna,

the computers started with random antenna designs and through the evolutionary process, refined them. The computer system took about 10 hours to

complete the initial antenna design process.

'Borg' computer collective designs NASA space antenna

BY JOHN BLUCK

One of the small space computer-designed

antennas recently flown aboard the Pegasus

XL rocket.

"The AI software examined millions

of potential antenna designs before settling on a final one," said Lohn. The

software did this much faster than any

human being could do so under the

same circumstances, according to Lohn.

"Through a process patterned after

Darwin's 'survival of the fittest,' the

strongest designs survive and the less

capable do not."

"We told the computer program

what performance the antenna should

have, and the computer simulated evolution, keeping the best antenna designs

that approached what we asked for.

Eventually, it zeroed in on something

that met the desired specifications for

the mission," Lohn said.

"Not only can the software work

fast, but it can adapt existing designs

quickly to meet changing mission requirements," he said. Following the first

design of the ST5 satellite antenna,

NASA Ames scientists used the software to 're-invent' the antenna design in

less than a month to meet new specifications - a very quick turn-around in the

space hardware redesign process.

Scientists also can use the evolutionary AI software to invent and create

new structures, computer chips and even

machines, according to Lohn. "We are

now using the software to design tiny

microscopic machines, including gyroscopes, for spaceflight navigation," he

ventured.

Four NASA Ames computer scientists spent two years developing the AI

evolutionary program. It can operate on

as many as 120 personal computers,

which work as a team. The scientists

wrote the AI software to create designs

faster than a human being could.

"The software also may invent designs that no human designer would

ever think of," Lohn asserted. In addition, the software can plan devices that

are smaller, lighter, consume less power,

are stronger and more robust among

many other things - characteristics that

spaceflight requires, according to Lohn.

The Exploration Systems Mission

Directorate at NASA Headquarters,

Washington, funded development of

NASA evolutionary software. Detailed

information is on the Internet at: http:/

/ic.arc.nasa.gov/projects/esg Space

Technology 5 satellite details are on the

Internet at: http://nmp.jpl.nasa.gov/st5

SpaceWorld reveals future plans

NASA photo by Trish Guerrieri

Seth Shostak, SETI Institute and SpaceWorld Foundation board member, spoke to a crowd of more

than 200 at the SpaceWorld and NASA Ames event held at Ames on March 16. The purpose of the

event was to celebrate the Space Act Agreement under which the SpaceWorld Foundation will create

SpaceWorld at NASA Ames. This event was for the community and presented the concept for

SpaceWorld at NASA, including drawings of the plans for the facility. The theme of SpaceWorld at

NASA will be exploring and mapping the solar system, also the theme of Shostak's talk. SpaceWorld

at NASA plans to open in early 2008.
3 Astrogram March 2006

Ames’ Yvonne Pendleton and Wendy Dolci flank Diane Sims from Stennis.

Katrina survivor shares story of resolve and rebuilding NASA photo by Dale Cruishank

A survivor of last year's devastating

hurricane Katrina that roared across

southern Mississippi and NASA's

Stennis Space Center recently provided

a first-hand account of her experience to

Ames employees.

Diane Sims, an employee in the

Stennis legal office, shared her experiences with a standing-room-only crowd

in the Space Sciences auditorium. Sims

also serves as the Stennis coordinator of

the Families Helping Families effort to

connect interested Ames personnel with

colleagues needing assistance as they

recover from Katrina.

“It's a flip of the coin; it could be us,”

remarked Ames scientist Yvonne

Pendleton in welcoming Sims to Ames.

Pendleton, along with Wendy Dolci, created the Families Helping Families program. She described the aftermath of

hurricane Katrina as “a tragic but uplifting story” that has brought her and other

Ames employees closer to their colleagues at Stennis.

Dolci noted that 45 Ames employees and families have “connected on a

personal basis” with families at Stennis.

She added that while Ames has provided material and emotional support

to the hurricane survivors, the people at

Stennis also “have provided us with a

great perspective” on dealing with and

surviving a catastrophic event.

Sims began her story by noting that

“It is a blessing to work with” the people

of Ames and “the Stennis families. We

are so touched by your benevolence,”

she said. “We hope we never have to

reciprocate, but we will be there if you

need us.”

Sims noted that unlike the earthquakes that menace the Bay Area, hurricanes typically give plenty of warning

of their pending arrival. Three days before Katrina was predicted to make landfall, Sims reviewed her emergency

preparations check-list, bought extra

food, water, fuel and other supplies,

filled up her car's gas tank and got extra

cash from the bank. The next day, she

secured outdoor items that would become airborne when the hurricane hit,

and filled bath

tubs and other

containers with

water to be used

for drinking,

bathing, washing dishes, etc.

With the inevitable outage of

electricity, her

well's pump

would be useless

for pumping water.

Because her

husband was

working overseas, she and her

daughter prepared their home, then

they, Sims' sister and family, all relocated to their parents' home in Picayune, Miss., some 45 miles from the

coast of the Gulf of Mexico, to ride out

the storm.

On Monday morning, Aug. 29,

Katrina was downgraded to a Category

4 storm, although the storm surge was

still at category 5. At 9 a.m., the power

went out, but the family's generators

provided electricity for critical needs.

The winds snapped trees like

matchsticks, and power lines were down

everywhere as the hurricane roared

through the area. At 11 a.m., the eye of

the hurricane passed over Picayune for

45 minutes. Although she was stunned

to see the devastation wrought by

Katrina in her neighborhood, “This was

nothing compared to the devastation

we would see in days to come,” Sims

noted.

Sims recalled that for her, the lack of

communications and the relentless heat

were the most frustrating. Telephone

lines were down, and cell phones worked

only sporadically, most often allowing

only text messaging. She borrowed a

satellite phone to contact the legal office

at Marshall Space Flight Center, asking

colleagues there to let friends and family out of the area know she and her

family were OK.

Meanwhile, Stennis Space Center

was providing emergency shelter to

3,000 employees and evacuees from the

surrounding area. After a tornado damaged the roof of the administration building housing the evacuees, water poured

in. One member of the legal staff almost

single-handedly moved computers, files,

wall decorations and anything else she

could to a lower floor that was still dry.

The legal office didn't return to its usual

quarters until the end of February.

Sims reported that many homes,

which looked to a casual observer to

have escaped unscathed, were found to

have 3-1/2 feet of sewer water in them.

Everything had to be removed and replaced, and the entire interiors gutted.

Homes, churches, businesses, banks -

all were severely damaged or destroyed.

Fortunately, Picayune is far enough from

the coast that it escaped the storm surge

that ravaged areas closer to the sea. But

the winds caused catastrophic damage,

in some cases obliterating entire towns

along the coast.

Because Sims and her family live

near a large lake, they were able to wash

dishes and bathe in the lake, an experience she likened to “the camping trip

from hell.” Nonetheless, she frequently

reiterated how fortunate she and her

family are to have been spared even

worse property destruction. Schools

were closed for at least a month; some

remain closed even now. Some students

were sent to live with relatives in other

states so they could attend school. Sims'

home was without power for 3 1/2

weeks. Although she had generators to

run fans, she said the stifling heat and

humidity were nearly unbearable in an

area heavily dependent on air conditioning.

Throughout her remarks, and despite the damage her home suffered,

Sims recalled that she feels “so blessed”

to live far enough from the coast that she

was able to escape the flood waters. And

she added that “It is a privilege to work

for the federal government.” While many

in the hurricane zone lost their jobs,

Sims said it was “a blessing to know our

paychecks will keep coming” as they

rebuild their homes and their lives after

Katrina.

Last December, Ames employees

shipped seven large containers of supplies - clothes, household items, appliances, tools and Christmas gifts - to their

Stennis families. The Families-HelpingFamilies effort is not a NASA-funded

continued on page 9
Astrogram March 2006 4

Bob Dolci, Ames' chief of protective services, director of emergency services

and chief of the center's Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team

(DART), spent three

weeks at Stennis Space

Center following hurricane Katrina. Recently,

he offered a comparison

between Katrina and the

expected, eventual major

earthquake in the Bay

Area, as well as tips for

preparing for a large

earthquake. Although at first glance Stennis and Ames

seem to be very different

- from locale to natural

disasters and population

size -- lessons learned

from Katrina can help us

prepare for the inevitable

'big one' that will strike

the Bay Area some time

in the future. Ames employees are well-advised

to heed Dolci's suggestions, particularly as we

approach the 100-year anniversary of the April

1906 quake. “The responsibility is yours,” Dolci stressed.

“Don't expect to get help

from the authorities for

several days at a minimum. His message: plan ahead and be

self-sufficient for at least several days. Stennis, like Ames, is a joint-use federal facility with more than 30 resident agencies. Two days after Stennis

was evacuated, NASA was supporting

1,000 NASA employees, 2,300 family

members and 700 local evacuees. Stennis

had generator power, local wells, local

sewers and fuel - things Ames likely

would not have in the aftermath of a

major earthquake. The cafeteria at NASA

Stennis served 9,000 meals/day with

limited supplies, compared with the

normal of less than 1,000 meals/day.

The medical clinic was overwhelmed,

trash management became a major problem and the center was unable to contact

65 percent of its employees during the

first week following the hurricane. Dolci

reported that 1,035 Stennis families were

without livable homes, 200 NASA families had no homes and most lost everything. Similar problems, but on a much

larger scale, are to be expected in the

aftermath of a major earthquake. The population of Mississippi is 2.9 million; the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the MisKatrina and a 1906-magnitude earthquake:

sissippi EMA (MEMA) supported a

population of fewer than 300,000 over a

six-county area. There were fewer than

600 total Katrina fatalities. With a Bay

Area population of 7 million in 10 counties and 60 cities, FEMA, the California

Office of Emergency Services, and local

response agencies probably would be

faced with significantly more fatalities

than those caused by Katrina. Depending on the source, estimates of Bay Area

fatalities range from a high of 6,000 to a

high of 15,000. Those are worst-case scenario figures and are fault rupture and

time of day dependent. The predicted

number of people requiring hospitalization could range from 150,000 to

450,000. Uninhabitable residences would

likely exceed 150,000. Because there is a

strong potential for devastating fires,

the number of residences destroyed

could be far higher. A 7.9 magnitude

earthquake can result in as many as

750,000 individuals being homeless or

without acceptable living conditions.

Millions may be without water, power

or sanitation.

There were minimal hotel/motel

rooms available in the Stennis area, and

three of the four local communities lost

up to 70 percent of their businesses. The

nearby town of Waveland, Miss., suffered a catastrophic damage rate of 80

percent. Gulfport and Biloxi, Miss., fared

only slightly better. Similarly, hotel rooms in the Bay Area,

although more plentiful,

also would be inadequate to house the

number of displaced

residents. And entire

areas are expected to be

wiped out or severely

damaged following a

large earthquake, either

from structural damage

or fires.

Stennis became the

prime logistics staging

area and operational

staging area for six counties, providing support

for some 50,000 people.

It included: 33 commodity distribution centers,

six emergency fuel stations, six disaster medical assistance teams, one

disaster mortuary, 10

emergency shelters and

40 fire stations. Five hundred 18-wheel trucks

delivered millions of

tons of ice, water and

MREs (military meals

ready to eat). In the first

week alone, nearly 20

millions tons of ice, 2.6

million gallons of water and 1.8 million MREs were delivered. A

month later, FEMA and MEMA had

distributed 40 million tons of ice, 5.5

million gallons of water, and 2.75 million MREs. FEMA/MEMA managed

four base camps, an airfield and five

military camps at Stennis, caring for

4,000 emergency responders and 7,000

military responders. So many MREs

were distributed that no more were available, save those always held in reserve

for the U.S. military. Clearly, there will

not be enough MREs to feed all the

people in the Bay Area who will need

food following a huge earthquake. In addition to dealing with prob- lems at Ames/Moffett, we will need to

support the broader relief effort as well.

Ames/Moffett will likely become a local focal point for Bay Area disaster

relief, and the Moffett airfield is likely to

be the only airfield in the Bay Area to

survive a major earthquake. Given the potential magnitude of the damage, “Citizens should not expect much support from municipalities,”

Dolci stressed. Nor should residents

expect support from FEMA for at least

-- comparisons and preparations

continued on page 16

Screenshot of a section of the front page to the Web site https://disasterhelp.gov/

portal/jhtml/index.jhtml
5 Astrogram March 2006

continued from front page

Creating a future, new NASA spaceship

BY JOHN BLUCK

"The first series of tests provided the

first experimental data on the aerodynamic characteristics of the Crew Launch

Vehicle," said Lawrence Huebner, CLV

aerodynamics panel chair. "We are using the data to understand launch performance, as well as for comparison with

computational analyses during ascent

to orbit."

Marshall engineers continued testing through mid-March. The tests will

serve as a foundation for more rigorous

testing in the spring and summer of the

launch vehicle design. More tests will be

conducted on larger models of the vehicle design in larger wind tunnel facilities at NASA's Langley Research Center

near and at Ames.

For Ames, the tests are among the

first steps in a program to assist in developing a new space travel system.

"NASA Ames is making its resources

and expertise available for development

of the Crew Exploration Vehicle and the

Crew Launch Vehicle," said George

Sarver, Ames' project manager.

"The NASA field centers are working together like we did in the past to

develop the shuttle orbiter aerodynamic

and aero heating databases," said Rob

Calloway of NASA Langley. "Our analytical methods, used in concert with

our wind tunnels, will ensure the flyability and survivability of the humanrated Crew Exploration Vehicle and the

Crew Launch Vehicle."

Langley's tests of a CLV model were

done earlier this month.

The Constellation Program at

Johnson is responsible for developing

the CEV and CLV. The program is also

tasked to develop a new Cargo Launch

Vehicle and related systems aimed at

forming the basis for more ambitious

exploration missions to the moon, Mars

and destinations beyond. The program

combines large and small transportation systems, surface and space-based

infrastructures, and communications,

science and robotic systems, enabling

humans the capability to explore the

solar system.

For more information about

NASA's Constellation Program, visit:

www.nasa.gov

After a two-year hiatus from the

classroom, educator astronaut Dottie

Metcalf-Lindenburger made a triumphant return to the classroom in her first

speaking engagement as one of NASA's

newest astronauts.

In a tailor-made fit, two of NASA's

education programs, educator astronaut

and Explorer Schools, joined forces in

February at Johnson Junior High School

in Cheyenne, Wyo., to inspire students

to reach for their dreams. Johnson Junior High School was selected as a 2005

NASA Explorer School (NES) and began the program last fall.

"Watching Dottie interact with the

students, it was obvious that she is a

teacher," said Tom Clausen, manager

for K-12 education at NASA Ames. "She

knew her audience and delivered a presentation that related directly to the students."

In her presentations, MetcalfLindenburger related how astronaut

training was like going through school.

The past two years as an astronaut candidate were like 'elementary school,'

learning the basics and preparing a solid

foundation for the future. After graduating on Feb. 10, 2006 and earning the

title 'astronaut,' she was now in 'junior

high.' Here she is building on her foundation as she waits for her turn to fly in

space, 'high school.'

Metcalf-Lindenburger talked about

how she learned about the educator astronaut program. Spurred on by a

student's question about how astronauts

go to the bathroom in space, she logged

on to the Web site www.nasa.gov and

learned about the program. The rest is

history.

Thousands of teachers applied for

the program and of the thousand-plus

viable applications reviewed at Johnson

Educator astronaut Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger returns to class

Space Center, Metcalf-Lindenburger

was chosen along with Joseph Acaba

and Richard Arnold.

After lunch, with

a smaller, more intimate group of 25,

Metcalf-Lindenburger

was in her element.

The students were

challenged to design a

vehicle that could

transport a payload of

paperclips using balloons, straws, paper

cups and tape. She engaged the students in

active learning and inquiry and the students

responded with enthusiasm and creative

design solutions.

"Meeting the astronaut was like

meeting a movie star. I really liked doing the rocket and payload experiment,"

said Jennifer, ninth grade student and

essay winner. "It was all awesome."

The last event of a very long day

was a presentation to sixth grade students from Johnson's 'feeder' schools.

For this section, Mic Bowen, aerospace

education specialist, joined MetcalfLindenburger in a dynamic discussion

of science, exploration and the steps

needed to achieve their goals.

"The whole NASA team from Ames

pulled together to create a very exciting

and accessible program for our students.

We had nearly 1,000 students get a taste

of what the future holds, and Dottie

inspired them to believe they could all

be part of it," said Kim Parfitt, NES team

lead at Johnson.

Metcalf-Lindenburger was born in

Colorado Springs, Colo., which was less

than an hour from Johnson. Before being selected to join the astronaut corps,

she taught science and was the cross

country coach at Hudson's Bay High

School, Vancouver, Wash. She currently

lives in Houston with her husband, who

is also a teacher.

Johnson Junior High School is one

of five 2005 NES school teams that are

supported by NASA Ames. Ames supports schools in 10 states throughout the

western region, including Alaska and

Hawaii.

For more information about the

NASA education programs, visit: http:/

/education.nasa.gov BY JONAS DINO

Educator astronaut Dottie Metcalf-Lindenburger spoke recently at

Johnson High School in Cheyenne, Wyo.

NASA photo by Jonas Dino
Astrogram March 2006 6

continued from front page

continued on page 7

for a data collection and recording package and an aerodynamic coefficient identification package.

The primary STS-1 flight objective

was to demonstrate safe launch into orbit and return to landing of Columbia

and its crew. Secondarily, the flight verified the combined performance of the

entire vehicle -- orbiter, solid rocket

boosters and external tank -- through

separation and retrieval of the spent

solid rocket boosters. The flight also

gathered data on the combined vehicle's

aerodynamic and structural responses

to the stresses of launch. At mission end,

similar data were gathered on orbiter

energy characteristics, such as crossrange steering capabilities, structural

loads on entry, and performance of the

silica-tile thermal protection system.

A major portion of the flight and

detailed test objectives was aimed toward 'wringing out' orbiter hardware

systems and their operating computer

software, and toward measuring the

overall orbiter thermal response while

on orbit with payload doors open and

closed. Still other test objectives evaluated the orbiter's attitude and maneuvering thruster systems and the performance of the spacecraft's guidance and

navigation system.

Research at Ames played a key role

in the development and evolution of the

space shuttle program from the very

beginning. The shape of the orbiter has

its roots in the 'lifting body' research

pioneered by "Sy" Syvertson, Ames'

fourth director, and Al Eggers. Once its

1- to 2-week orbital mission is complete,

the shuttle executes a de-orbit burn,

which slows it for its descent into the

atmosphere. Initial entry occurs at about

Mach 25, or 25 times the speed of sound

in air. During the high-speed portion of

the entry, the vehicle holds a high angle

of attack. It executes a 'blunt body entry'

maneuver pioneered by Ames' second

director, H. Julian "Harvey" Allen for

the Mercury/Gemini/Apollo programs.

After a long and fiery entry, the vehicle

continues to dissipate energy through a

series of S-turns. It then goes into subsonic flight and lands, unpowered, either at Dryden Flight Research Center

or, as is most common today, at Kennedy

Space Center (KSC). Astronaut pilots

say the shuttle glides like a 'falling brick,'

so being able to land unpowered is quite

an achievement.

This article describes some of Ames'

major contributions to the early development of the space shuttle leading up

to STS-1, and it mentions a few of the

many Ames employees whose contributions were crucial to the vehicle's development. These include contributions

to the shuttle ascent aerodynamics/aerothermodynamics (a combination of aerodynamics and thermal effects), the thermal protection system (TPS) that prevents the orbiter from burning up during reentry, low-speed approach and

landing technology and simulator research. The center's facilities that enabled these contributions also are briefly

described.

Ames has supported space shuttle

development and advancement for close

to 40 years, beginning with the formation in the 1970s of a Shuttle Project

Office, led by Victor Stevens and his

deputy, Bob Nysmith. They managed

projects at Ames at the request of Johnson

Space Center, the program's lead center.

Hans Mark, Ames' third director, played

a key role in defining and directing Ames'

involvement in the shuttle program.

Various directorates at Ames provided

staff and facilities to execute projects.

Aerodynamics of the Orbiter/Boeing

747 Ferry Configuration

One of Ames' first tasks was to understand the aerodynamics of the specially modified Boeing 747 used to ferry

the orbiter from Dryden to KSC. The

aerodynamics of the mated vehicles and

the interference of flows between the

vehicles had to be well understood prior

to committing to design and flight. Understanding the separation process of

the 747 and the orbiter was another requirement. Testing in Ames' 14-foot

wind tunnel was a major contribution to

the successful flight test of the 747/fullscale orbiter model Enterprise.

Ascent Aerodynamics/Aerothermodynamics

Ames made a huge effort to develop

the aerodynamics and aerothermodynamics for the shuttle. According to Victor Peterson, former deputy director of

Ames, more than 50 percent of the wind

tunnel testing conducted for the shuttle

was done at Ames.

Nearly all the aerodynamic studies

at Ames used the center's extraordinary

collection of wind tunnels, including

the 40-by-80-foot wind tunnel, 12-foot

pressure wind tunnel, the 2-foot, 11-foot

and 14-foot transonic wind tunnels, the

6-by-6 foot, 8-by-7-foot and 9-by-7-foot

supersonic wind tunnels, and the 3.5-

foot hypersonic wind tunnel. More than

10,000 hours of wind tunnel testing took

place even before the award of the shuttle

design and construction contract in 1972.

More than 25,000 hours of wind tunnel

testing occurred after this. Key contributors to the subsonic - supersonic elements of the activity included Richard

(Pete) Peterson, Jake Drake, Dan Petroff,

Jim Monford, Jack Bronson, Len Roberts

and Jack Boyd.

Testing for the ascent stack (the orbiter, external tank and solid rocket

boosters) aerodynamics and exhaust

plume interactions was carried out in

the 9-foot-by 7-foot supersonic section

of Ames' Unitary Plan wind tunnel.

Ames’ STS-1 contributions: greatest test flight in history

STS-1 launched from KSC on April 12, 1981.
7 Astrogram March 2006

continued from page 6

continued on page 8

These tests helped engineers ensure that

the aft portions of the vehicle were properly designed, and that they would safely

function during ascent.

Other specialized aspects of Ames'

wind tunnels were very helpful in the

shuttle's development. A special rig in

the center's 14-foot tunnel was used to

study the aerodynamics of an abort

maneuver implemented at transonic

mach numbers. This rig also was used in

the study of the mated/separating configurations between the Enterprise and

the 747 carrier aircraft.

One of the most heavily used tunnels for shuttle testing was the 3.5-foot

hypersonic wind tunnel, which was capable of simulating flight at Mach 5, 7

and 10. This facility provided about 47

percent of the total hours of wind tunnel

testing at Ames. Many personnel were

involved in this work, including Joe

Marvin, Mike Horstman, Marvin

Kussoy, Bill Lockman and Tom Polek. A

1.5 percent ascent stack configuration in

the 3.5-foot hypersonic wind tunnel test

section was tested at Mach 5. Another

configuration tested in the 3.5-foot tunnel was secured to the sting by its tail, so

the effects of protruding main engines

and the orbital maneuvering system

could be assessed. These studies led to

the understanding of many different

complex phenomena, including dynamics of shock-shock interactions caused

from the proximity of the elements of

the stack configurations, and the effects

of split body flap deployments and turbulent flows.

Entry Aerodynamics and Aerothermodynamics

Before the space shuttle, most entry

vehicles were relatively simple, blunt

shapes with no aerodynamic control

surfaces. The shuttle was to become the

first airplane-like entry vehicle with

movable control surfaces.

The 3.5-foot hypersonic wind tunnel contributed equally to both ascent

and entry aerodynamics and entry aerothermodynamics. The figure above

shows a shadowgraph of the side view

of the orbiter at Mach 7. The fine lines

enveloping the side view outline the

front of a bow shock layer that forms

over the vehicle. At higher Mach numbers, the bow wave is highly swept as

shown in the figure, and the gases in this

wave are shock-heated to very high temperatures. These shock-heated gases create an environment that would melt the

surface of the vehicle were it made of

materials such as aluminum or composites found in modern aircraft. Data and

analyses from Ames' wind tunnel simulations later were used to refine methods for estimating the heating over the

full-scale shuttle.

The entry aero/aerothermodynamics of the shuttle were performed before

the advent of modern 3-dimensional

real-gas computational fluid dynamics,

a later accomplishment led by Ames. In

the 1970s, personnel including John

Howe, Chul Park, Dave Stewart, John

Rakich and Mike Green, working under

the leadership of Dean Chapman, Vic

Peterson and Howard Larson, used

clever, approximate analytical tools, experimental results and engineering judgment to model the aerodynamic forces,

heating rates and heating loads to understand the shuttle entry flow environment. This knowledge was required for

the development of the shuttle TPS, another area of key contribution by Ames.

Thermal Protection System Contributions

The shuttle's thermal protection system prevents the vehicle from burning

up from the searing heat of hot gases

that exist within a bow shock layer that

envelops the vehicle as it re-enters Earth's

atmosphere. These gases reach temperatures as high as 25,000 degrees F, and

heat the surface of the vehicle to as much

as 3,000 degrees F. The vehicle enters the

atmosphere at an angle of attack of about

40 degrees. Key participants in this research included Howard Goldstein, Dan

Leiser, Marnel Smith and Dave Stewart.

In the early 1970s, Ames and JSC

evaluated a large number of candidate

TPS materials for the space shuttle orbiter in their arc jet facilities. Among

these new types of heat shield materials

was the LI-900 silica tile system developed by Robert Beaseley and his team at

Lockheed Missiles and Space Company

(LMSC), Sunnyvale, and several other

conceptually similar systems developed

by other companies. In order to understand why the various tile materials performed as they did in arc jet testing,

Ames began a tile analysis research program, which rapidly turned into a tile

development program. When the LI900 tile system was chosen as the baseline

in 1973, Ames had already begun to

make significant contributions to the

rapidly improving technology.

Ames showed in that same year how

the purity of the silica fibers used in the

tiles controlled their temperature capability and lifetime. In 1975, Ames invented the black borosilicate glass coating called Reaction Cured Glass that

was adopted by LMSC and the shuttle

program in 1977 and that now covers

two-thirds of the orbiters' surface. This

coating provides a thermally stable highemmitance surface for the tiles, which

serves to radiate away heat and allows

the tiles to be manufactured to the demanding tolerance required. The coating covers the tile, which is made by

bonding pure silica high temperatureresistant fibers. The finished tile substrate is similar in appearance and density to Styrofoam, but its thermal properties are such that the surface can be

glowing white hot at over 2,300 degrees

F and the back face of the tile never

exceeds 250 degrees F, only a few inches

below the surface. These remarkable

heat-resistant tiles enable the space

shuttle orbiter, which is essentially an

aluminum airplane, to fly at hypersonic

speeds.

In 1974, Ames invented the tile now

known as LI-2200, which is stronger

than LI-900 and contains silicon carbide

to provide improved temperature capability. Adopted in 1978, this new tile

replaced about 10 percent of the baseline

LI-900 tile system on the first orbiter,

Columbia, when a critical tile strength

problem was encountered. Later, in 1977,

Ames invented a new class of tiles called

Fibrous Refractory Composite Insulation (FRCI 12). In 1980, it replaced about

10 percent of the earlier LI-2200 and LI900, providing a more durable TPS and

saving about 500 pounds of the overall

TPS weight.

Hot gas flow between the tiles during atmospheric entry was considered a

serious problem during orbiter development. In response, Ames developed a

Ames’ STS-1 contributions: greatest test flight in history

Shadowgraph of flow about the shuttle orbiter

at Mach 7 showing the bow shock wave.
Astrogram March 2006 8

continued from page 7

gap filler, which consists of a ceramic

cloth impregnated with a silicone polymer that was adopted as a solution to

the gap heating for Columbia. The Ames

gap filler was so successful that it was

adopted as a permanent solution to the

gap flow problems on all the orbiters.

More than 10,000 are now used on each

vehicle.

On the leeward side of the orbiter,

gases are much cooler during entry. At

first a low- temperature, reusable surface insulation (LRSI) tile developed by

LMSC was used. Ames (with Johns

Manville) developed a flexible silica

blanket insulation called Advanced Flexible Reusable Surface Insulation (AFRSI)

that replaced most of the LRSI on the last

four orbiters (Challenger, Atlantis, Discovery and Endeavour) and was retrofitted to Columbia.

Arc Jet Facilities Simulate Entry

Heating

Ames has a long heritage in the

development of arc jets, tracing to the

earliest days of NASA. These facilities

are used to simulate the entry heating

that occurs for locations on the body

where the flow is brought to rest (the

stagnation point, typically on the nose

cap, wing leading edges and on the acreage of the vehicle). Simulations have to

run from a few minutes to tens of minutes to understand the TPS materials'

response to the hot gas flow environment. To support shuttle development,

Dean Chapman and others led the effort

to upgrade Ames' capability. Ames' facilities group, including Howard Stein,

Warren Winnovich and Frank

Centolanzi, implemented the upgrades.

Ames' 60- megawatt Interaction Heating Facility was brought on line in the

mid-1970s. High-pressure air passes

through the constricted arc heater (invented by Ames), where a 'standing

lightning bolt' is created and about 50

percent of this energy is deposited as

heat into the flowing gas. The heated

gases are expanded through either conical nozzles for stagnation point and wing

leading edge testing, or through semielliptical nozzles for acreage tests. Ames'

capability of being able to test a 2-footby 2-foot section of the acreage tile field in conditions

duplicating aeroconvective

heating and reacting boundary layer chemistry during

simulated entry conditions

was a critical element in the

development of the shuttle

TPS.

Low-Speed Descent Aerodynamics

Early shuttle concepts

had orbiters that would have

exhibited less than ideal aerodynamic characteristics upon

return to Earth. This could

have lead to poor handling

qualities, especially during

approach and landing. Personnel at Ames with expertise in guidance and control tackled the challenge

of developing concepts that might compensate for deficient aerodynamics and

ensure adequate handling qualities.

Still glowing red hot from its highspeed entry, the orbiter slows and descends into the supersonic/transonic/

subsonic regime of its return. Again,

Ames' wind tunnels played a key role in

defining shuttle aerodynamics and design of the orbiter. The 2-foot transonic

wind tunnel, with its capability up to

Mach 1.4, was used to study potentially

troublesome panel flutter problems. The

12-foot pressurized wind tunnel was

used to investigate the orbiter's lowspeed handling characteristics.

Ames' efforts demonstrated that

unpowered landings could be made at

speeds of at least 200 knots without significant problems. The 12-foot wind tunnel was used to define the aerodynamics of a specially modified Gulfstream 2

(G2) business jet with direct-lift flaps

and side force generators. This vehicle

was used for flight tests and astronaut

training. Ames' Convair CV 990 and the

G2 aircraft were used to prove that the

orbiter did not need a subsonic engine

for fly-around landing capability, an important finding that avoided having to

pay the weight penalty of hauling a

landing engine, its fuel and supporting

subsystem to orbit and back. The

Gulfstream, now known as the STA

(Shuttle Training Aircraft), is used to

this day by pilot astronauts for in-flight

proficiency training.

Finally, an awesome 36 percent scale

model of the orbiter, 44 feet long, was

fabricated and tested in Ames' 40- by 80-

foot wind tunnel. This model and the 40-

foot-by-80-foot wind tunnel could create Reynolds numbers slightly higher

than the 12-foot pressurized wind tunnel. An important purpose of the 40-by80-foot testing was to identify the influence of the TPS on the orbiters' lowspeed aerodynamics. This model still

exists, painted with the striking black

underbelly and white top. It is proudly

displayed in front of the former Ames

Visitor Center, near the 40-foot-by-80-

foot wind tunnel where it was so intensely tested.

Approach/Landing Systems Development: FSAA

Landing simulation research for the

shuttle orbiter began in the very early

1970s, using the Flight Simulator for

Advanced Aircraft (FSAA). The large

motion envelope of the FSAA provided

many of the vital cockpit accelerations

that enabled pilot astronauts to experience a truer 'feel' of the g-forces of the

orbiter during approach and landing.

These simulations were conducted for

that portion of the shuttle's flight from

supersonic (following re-entry) to approach and landing.

For many years, prior to first flight,

all the pilot astronauts who would eventually fly the orbiter spent many hours

in the FSAA, identifying handling qualities that needed improvement, and control system shortcomings. In this process, the pilots gained invaluable training in the skills needed to successfully

land the orbiter. It was in the FSAA that

investigations were conducted that determined the need for the Heads-UpDisplay (HUD), and its alphanumeric

symbology that became the primary

guidance system for orbiter landing.

A pilot-induced oscillation (PIO)

problem arose on the first approach and

landing test program flight in July 1977,

with pilots Fred Haise and Gordon Fullerton. A PIO is a longitudinal

'porpoising' that worsens due to pilot

over-control. It is generally not a piloting technique problem so much as a

continued on page 14

Ames’ STS-1 contributions: greatest test flight in history

The successful landing of Columbia at Dryden Flight

Research Center April 14, 1981.
9 Astrogram March 2006

Ames’ 14-foot wind tunnel is slated

for demolition, starting this summer.

This tunnel is part of the N218 complex

and its features are plainly seen from the

cafeteria, behind the volleyball courts.

This work is part of the ‘renovation by

replacement’ effort in which older structures are demolished to create room for

new structures. It's part of Ames' effort

to minimize maintenance costs, clean

up our environment, and to move forward with new facilities that better support the center's research efforts. The

total demolition may take three years

based on funding availability. The

project is therefore divided into three

phases.

Phase 1 is for the demolition of the

tunnel structure visible from the cafeteria and demolition of the concrete structure facing ‘C lane.’ This is the work

scheduled for 2006. The construction

site will be enclosed in a perimeter fence.

Construction access will be from Durand

Road. Phase 1 work will have a duration

of eight to 11 months, depending on

how much work is awarded. The site,

and the perimeter area, will be monitored for air quality, storm water runoff,

and other environmental and safety concerns. A primary concern for the project

team has been to define environmental

and safety issues. Demolition methods

will be selected by the contractor performing the work. Contract award will

BY PETER GOLDSMITH

Fourteen-foot wind tunnel at Ames to be demolished

be by ‘best value’ evaluation to assure

the government that the contractor performing the work is highly qualified.

The-14 foot wind tunnel was originally constructed with a 16-foot test section. It opened in

December 1941

as the third wind

tunnel at Ames.

The tunnel design was a fairly

conventional

closed-throat,

single- return design, but it was

big for its speed.

It operated close

to the speed of

sound, and its

27,000 horsepower electric

motor was then

the most powerful tunnel drive

system anywhere. During

the war, the tunnel was in operation

almost constantly, notably testing new

fighter aircraft like the Lockheed P-38,

the Bell P-39, the Curtiss P-40 and the

Republic P-47. The tunnel quickly

proved its value in tests validating the

NACA low-drag or laminar flow airfoils and in solving a duct rumble problem with the North American P-51. A

virtual copy of the Ames 16- foot tunnel

was soon built at Langley and there

used mostly for propulsion tests.

Following a decade of service, modifications began in 1952 to push its speed

into the transonic range. Its power was

quadrupled to 110,000 horsepower, and

it incorporated a flexible nozzle that

could be adjusted to attain speeds between Mach 0.6 and 1.2. Most important, the test section was ventilated on

all four sides to attenuate the reflection

of shock waves. The 16-foot had cost

less than $2 million to build in 1941, and

the conversion cost more than $9 million

by the time the tunnel reopened in late

1955. However, as a transonic tunnel it

never regained its original usefulness.

In part it was eclipsed, technologically,

by the Unitary Plan wind tunnels that

opened that same year. As the 14-foot

tunnel, it was put to use solving problems of air inlets in supersonic aircraft

and in tests of full scale missiles entering

America's arsenal. The tunnel was

mothballed in 1990, though reopened

briefly in 1997 for some tests of the

SOFIA.

The demolition project is being managed by Code PFE with design support

by DMJMH+N, environmental surveillance by Code QE, safety monitoring by

Code QH, and contract administration

by Code JAZ.

Questions concerning this project

can be addressed to Peter Goldsmith at

Peter.T.Goldsmith@NASA.Gov.

program; it is based on one-on-one connections between individuals. Even the

shipping costs were covered by private

funds. “It was so emotional to see those

cartons come off the truck,” Sims said.

“The Stennis recipients were so excited”

to receive those expressions of support

from people they had never met. Her

presentation included pictures of many

of the Stennis employees taking part in

the program.

Sims noted that of the 4,500 employees at Stennis, one-third have no home

or an extensively damaged home. Many

are living in cramped FEMA trailers as

they rebuild their homes in their free

time.

She concluded her presentation by

reiterating the importance of having an

emergency checklist and of being prepared, and she offered the audience tips

as to what to include in a personal emergency kit.

For more information about the

Families Helping Families program, go

to http://spacescience.arc.nasa.gov/

katrina/ For more information about

emergency preparedness, see the accompanying article.

continued from page 3

BY ANN SULLIVAN

Katrina survivor shares story

of resolve and rebuilding

The 14-foot wind unnel, part of the building N218 complex at NASA

Ames. The wind tunnel is slated for demolition this summer.

NASA photo
Astrogram March 2006 10

Ask the ‘Protective Services Wizard’

Question:

What are the roles and responsi- bilities of the NASA Ames Fire Department and the NASA Ames Fire

Prevention Office?

Answer:

The NASA Ames Fire Depart- ment consists of 41 contract career

firefighters. They operate daily with

an emergency response force of 13

personnel, staffing an engine company, a two-piece truck company, a

two-piece aircraft rescue fire-fighting company and a command vehicle. They deliver structural and

aircraft fire-fighting services, emergency medical services, technical rescue services and hazardous materials

response services on center. The

NASA Ames Fire Department is also

part of the Santa Clara County Local

Fire Services and Rescue Mutual Aid

Plan, for responding to off-center

emergencies and receiving assistance

at major on-center emergencies. The NASA Ames Fire Prevention

Office conducts fire/life safety inspections including permit issuance and

facility fire and evacuation drills. It

also provides fire/life safety analysis/evaluation, including plan review. The office also works as consultants and conducts investigations for

determining the origin and cause of

fires at on-center facilities.

The Fire Prevention Office pro- vides public fire safety education and

awareness. Furthermore, the Fire Prevention and Protection Program supports both the NASA Ames Fire Department and the NASA Ames Occupational Safety, Health and Medical

Services Branch.

If you have any questions regard- ing the NASA Ames Fire Department

or the NASA Ames Fire Prevention

Office, visit the Code JP Web sites

for more information and points

of contact: http://jp.arc.nasa.gov/

ES/Ames_Fire.html and also http://

jp.arc.nasa.gov/ES/

Fire_Prevention.html

Do you have a question for the Protective Services Wizard? Then

e-mail your question to

kwalsh@mail.arc.nasa.gov.

Ames Fire Department and Fire Prevention Office roles

Ames welcomed NASA's Freedom

of Information Act (FOIA) officers and

staff to the annual agency-wide gathering in March. Seventeen access professionals from NASA Headquarters and

the field centers met to review the latest

practices and policies relating to the information disclosure law that aims to

shed light on the government's activities. The meeting coincided with the

American Society of Access Professionals (ASAP) training conference held in

San Jose earlier in the week.

A key topic discussed by conference

participants was a recent presidential

order. Late last year, President Bush

signed Executive Order 13392, entitled

NASA Ames hosts NASA information access meeting

'Improving Agency Disclosure of

Information.' The goal of the order,

which all federal agencies must follow,

is to improve FOIA-related service and

performance, increase efficiency in the

agency's information disclosure process,

strengthen compliance under the statute and minimize potential litigation.

Executive Order 13392 accentuates

how important access laws are to the

functioning of our constitutional democracy. The new executive order is a prime

example of 'citizen-centered' and 'results-oriented' policy. The order calls

upon all federal agencies to discharge

their FOIA responsibilities in an efficient, results-oriented manner and to

achieve tangible measurable improvements when processing FOIA requests

received from the public. The underlying principle is to ensure that the federal

government's activities are held accountable to the tax-paying public.

Each federal agency has been tasked

to appoint a chief FOIA officer at the

administrator's level and to submit a

report on this FOIA processing to the

Department of Justice explaining how

this executive order will be implemented

at that particular agency.

The report will include improvements that need to be made to the

agency's FOIA processing, along with

milestones and timelines for each improvement.

NASA has appointedAssistant Administrator for Public Affairs David

Mould as the agency chief FOIA officer.

The agency has formed an ad-hoc team

to compile the report with each field

center given an opportunity to submit

ideas and suggestions. Their report is

due to the Justice Department in June

2006.

Ames is striving to improve FOIA

handling and its response to the public,

and the center's FOIA staff will be seeking your help to make Ames' operations

more efficient and compliant with the

executive order. For questions and suggestions regarding FOIA at Ames, please

contact the center's FOIA coordinator

Kelly Garcia, at ext. 4-3273.

BY KELLY GARCIA AND TERRY PAGADUAN

NASA access professionals pose for group photo at annual agency-wide meeting held

recently at Ames.

NASA photo by Dominic Hart
11 Astrogram March 2006

Upcoming events

Topic: News from the Distant Past:

 How Galaxies Tell Their Stories

Speaker: Astronomer Ron Marzke

 of San Francisco State

 University will give this

 non-technical,

 illustrated talk

Date: Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Time: 7 p.m.

Place: Smithwick Theater

 Foothill College

Topic: Recycling at Ames

 and Beyond

Date: April 6, 2006

Time: 9:00 a.m.- 10:00 a.m.

Place: Building 218 training room (2nd floor)

Hosted by: Ames Environ-

 mental Services

 Division and

 Ames Logistics

The AIB Express will host its

semi-annual free customer appreciation lunch.

Date: April 20

Time: 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Place: Building 255

In celebration of Earth Day, which

is April 22 of each year, the EnvironThe renowned environmental and

corporate responsibility advocate

Jeffrey Hollender will present at NASA

Ames in April in celebration of Earth

Day.

Date: April 18, 2006

Time: 2:00 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Place: NASA Ames Conference

 Center (Building 3)

 Ballroom

Registration is required. Please

register on the Web at http://

environment.arc.nasa.gov/

pub_events.php

Seventh Generation Inc. is a leading brand of non-toxic and environmentally friendly household cleaning

and personal care products. Hollender

has risen to success by building a company based on the concept of corporate responsibility. Like NASA, Seventh Generation has a mission, budget constraints and stakeholders to

The Silicon Valley Astronomy

Lecture Series presents:

 El Monte Road and

 Freeway 280,

 in Los Altos Hills

Cost: Free and open to the public.

Parking on campus costs $2.

Call the series hot-line at

(650)949-7888 for more

information and driving directions.

Founder of Seventh Generation Inc.

to speak at Ames for Earth Day

Celebrate Earth Day 2006 with AIB Express

and Environmental Services Division

mental Services Division will host its

annual environmental event in conjunction with the AIB lunch.

‘Green,’ or environmentallyfriendly, companies will be on hand to

share information describing ways in

which you can make more sustainable

choices every day at home and at work.

March Environmental

Forum set

please. Yet Hollender has shaped his

business to fit with the evolving consensus that a new standard is needed

to measure and reward business performance. Hollender’s talk will explore the fundamental change that is

occurring in our corporate culture that

is making responsible business behavior an imperative rather than

something a handful of ‘nice’ businesses choose to do. He will discuss

how there is growing evidence that

responsibility, transparency and accountability are becoming the new

cultural and business norm. If done

successfully, the process introducing

corporate responsibility into a business brings disparate groups of investors and customers into a unique form

of synchronization. The result is a corporate community of stakeholders that

creates truly long-term value not just

for shareholders, but also for all.

NASA photo

Steve Robinson

to visit Ames

NASA Astronaut Steve

Robinson will be at Ames on April

12 to mark the celebration of the

25th Anniversary of STS-1, the first

orbital flight of the space shuttle. He

will make a presentation to the Ames

employees in the afternoon and give

an evening talk to the general public. Check Ames centerwide

announcements for more details.

Robinson, a former Ames employee, flew on STS-114 Discovery

(July 26-Aug. 9, 2005), the ‘Return to

Flight’ mission. In the above photo,

he is seen grabbing a piece of gap

filler from between tiles on the

shuttle orbiter during a space walk

on Aug. 3. An inspection revealed

that two pieces of fabric that plugs

gaps between shuttle tiles were protruding about an inch. NASA decided to try to remove them after an

analysis showed they could threaten

the craft's safe return to Earth. The

operation marked the first time

NASA has tried to repair the shuttle's

exterior in orbit.
Astrogram March 2006 12

This is the official call for nominations for the 13th annual NASA Software of the Year Award. This prestigious award is designed to give recognition to developers of exceptional software created for or by NASA (must be

owned by NASA). Every NASA center

and facility is invited to participate in

this competition. The award includes

the NASA Software Medal, a certificate

signed by the NASA administrator and

up to $100,000.

The NASA Inventions and Contributions Board Web site is located at:

http://icb.nasa.gov. It contains information about the last 12 competitions,

the required forms (NF1329 and the Summary Evaluation Document), criteria and BY LISA WILLIAMS

NASA Software of the Year - call for nominations

other general information about the

award. Contact NASA Ames Space Act

Award liaison officer Elizabeth

(Betsy) Robinson at e-mail

Elizabeth.T.Robinson@nasa.gov or ext.

4-3360 to discuss possible candidates.

Excellence in software is vital to the

agency's leadership role in developing

aeronautics and space technologies and

transferring them to government and

industry. The NASA Software of the

Year Award competition allows us to

recognize and appreciate the NASA

team members that set high standards

for significant software that is creative,

usable, transferable and possesses inherent quality.

This year the award is sponsored by

NASA's chief engineer, chief safety and

mission assurance officer and chief information officer.

Nominations are to be submitted

electronically to Elizabeth Robinson in

the Ames Technology Partnerships Division by COB April 14, 2006.

NASA Ames won this award in 2002

with ‘Cart3D: A Package for Automated

Cartesian Grid Generation and Aerodynamic Database Creation.’ Other Ames

winners include Remote Agent (1999),

Center TRACON Automation System

(1998), Flow Analysis Software Toolkit

(1995) and Incompressible NavierStokes Flow Solver in Three Dimensions

(INS3D) (1994).

The System for Administration,

Training and Educational Resources for

NASA (SATERN) is a new, federally

mandated system that will replace

NASA's current learning systems:

AdminSTAR and SOLAR.

Employees and supervisors will be

able to take advantage of existing online NASA courses moving over from

SOLAR such as IT security training and

safety training. SATERN also will provide all NASA staff with access to Webbased course registration for center and

agency courses offered during the year.

The new SATERN Web site will enable employees to view Ames and NASA

course catalogs directly from their desktops. Employees will enroll in courses,

schedule training and view their training history on the Web. In addition,

employees can launch online Web-based

courses and access commercially available e-learning courses through

SATERN, if purchased by NASA.

Please take note of the important

dates provided for you below:

May 8 - Scheduled ‘Go-Live’

Late April through June

 - Training for supervisors

 and learners

April 26 - SOLAR shuts down

 permanently

Considering the SOLAR shut down

date, all mandatory bankcard and IT

security training should be completed

before April 25 to ensure employees

have recorded completion of the training.

For more information, contact Susan Kalb at ext. 4-5624 or Barbara Chenier

at ext. 4-6986 or visit the Web at http://

As part of the ‘e-Gov’ initiative,

NASA will be automating the processing of awards across the agency. The

new NASA Automated Awards System

(NAAS) will allow supervisors to initiate and track cash and time-off awards

for their employees. In addition, the

NAAS will provide supervisors reporting capabilities and real-time data on

On line SATERN system to replace AdminSTAR and SOLAR

NAAS to help initiate, track employee awards

BY BARBARA A. CHENIER

employee award histories via the Web

site. ‘Go-Live’ is currently scheduled

for June 2006.

For more information, contact

project lead Christiana Woodward at

ext. 4-1599 or deputy project lead Lynette

Forsman at ext. 4-5267. The functional

sponsor is Gail James, the incentive

awards program manager.

Updates on supervisory and employee training information will be provided for both SATERN and NAAS via

Astrogram articles, human resources

and training Web sites and centerwide

announcements.

ameshr.arc.nasa.gov/SATERN/

index.html

In March, the Ames mail room

moved to a new location (Bldg. N255B),

located next to the AIB store. Customers should enter on the north side of

Bldg. N255 to gain access to the new

mail room building. Parking is available along the right side of Bldg N255B. Due to a large

number of delivery trucks, please take

precautions when entering or leaving

the gate. The mail room hours are Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30

a.m. and from 12:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. All service requirements/time frames will remain the same.

 If you have any questions about

Ames mail services center has moved

NASA photo by Steve Perry

large volume mailings, overnight delivery, certified mailings, etc., please

contact the mail room at ext. 4-5994.

The Ames Mail Room, now located in Bldg.

255B next to the AIB Store.

BY BARBARA A. CHENIER
13 Astrogram March 2006

Edward C. Hook was a great friend, co-worker and senior software engineer.

He passed away on Feb. 21, 2006. He

was 60 years old. Hook worked in the NASA Advanced Supercomputing (NAS) Division

at Ames for the past 15 years and made

many significant contributions including the maintenance and support of the

portable batch system, used to schedule

and run jobs on NASA's fastest

supercomputer, Columbia. Hook was

also extremely dedicated to assisting

supercomputing users and it was not

uncommon to find him covering the

phones over the weekends answering

their questions. Hook received a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Georgetown University in 1966 and earned his PhD from

the University of Virginia in 1970 (also

in mathematics). In addition to receiving numerous computer support awards

throughout his career, Hook delivered

presentations at computer conferences,

developed and presented training

classes and taught at the Massachusetts

Institute of Technology and Fordham

In Memory of...

University. He also contributed to the

Control Data Corporation at Von

Neumann Supercomputing Center at

Princeton University. Known for his quirky sense of hu- mor, kindness and wittiness, Hook will

be sorely missed in the halls of NAS. He

is survived by wife Margaret Hook and

his two daughters Karen and Elizabeth.

Remember the fun you had as a kid when you rode your bicycle? Capture

that feeling again with the Ames Bicycling Club. The club is forming team(s)

to participate in the National Bike Commute Month Team Bike Challenge. This

contest, sponsored by http://511.org/

(follow the links under bicycling, bike

to work day, team challenge), encourages existing bicycle commuters to share

their joy in bicycling by recruiting their

colleagues, friends, neighbors and local

honorary figures to bicycle to work,

school, errands, or play during the

month of May, which is National Bike

Commute Month.

Participants in the Team Bike Chal- lenge will form teams consisting of five

individuals. Each team must include at

least two new or leisure cyclists and as

many experienced bike commuters as it

takes to complete the team. Additionally, the team can accumulate additional

bonuses if it contains one honorary member (elected official, CEO, journalist, etc). The team(s) will register (registra- tion is underway) so they can track their

trips made by bike as they compete

against other teams during the entire

month of May. New or leisure cyclists

on a team get double points while honorary team members get triple points

for every trip taken by bike! At the end

of the challenge the team with the most

points will win a grand prize! Interested individuals are encouraged to contact Ted Roush at ext. 4-3526

BY TED ROUSH

Enjoy the fun of bicycling - join Ames’

Bicycle Commute Team(s)

or e-mail troush@mail.arc.nasa.gov or

Julie Nottage ext. 4-3711 or e-mail

jnottage@mail.arc.nasa.gov.

Edward C. Hook

BY HOLLY A. AMUNDSON

The Ames outreach program supported a visit

by astronaut Colonel Chris Hadfield to the

Menlo Park School space event on March 2.

NASA Ames provided a space suit, moon rock,

shuttle model and other items for the event.

Hadfield shared his experiences of walking in

space, flying on the space shuttle and working

with a robotic arm to fix the space station.

The event drew an audience of over 400

students, parents and the surrounding

community.

Astronaut speaks

at local event

NASA photo by Larry Lasher

The Ames family bid farewell to former Ames Center Director G. Scott Hubbard on Feb. 24 in the

NASA Ames Conference Center. Hubbard’s years and leadership at Ames were celebrated during

the event. The Ames Jazz Band played, as did Hubbard himself playing a guitar. Hubbard

announced in February of this year that he had accepted a new position as the Carl Sagan Chair

for the Study of Life in the Universe at the SETI Institute.

Ames bids adieu to Hubbard

NASA photo by Dominic Hart
Astrogram March 2006 14

Security/Law Enforcement Activity Fire Protection Activity

A statistical summary of activi- ties of the Protective Services

Division's Security/Law EnforceProtective Services monthly activity

Ames Ongoing Monthly Events Calendar

Ames Amateur Radio Club, third Thursday of each

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 3rd Wednesday of the

month 11:00 a.m. to12:00 p.m. in Building 245

auditorium. POC: Julie Nottage at

jnottage@mail.arc.nasa.gov or ext. 4-3711. By-laws of

Ames Bicycling Club can be found at: http://

zen.arc.nasa.gov, the link is under the picture.

Ames Bowling League, Palo Alto Bowl on Tuesday

nights. Seeking full-time bowlers and substitutes.

Questions to sign up: Mike Liu at ext. 4-1132.

Ames Child Care Center Board of Directors Mtg,

every other Thursday (check Web site for meeting dates:

http://accc.arc.nasa.gov), 12 noon to 1:30 p.m., N-210,

Rm. 205. POC: Cheryl Quinn, ext 4-5793.

Ames Contractor Council Mtg, first Wednesday

each month, 11 a.m., N-200, Comm. Rm. POC: Linda

McCahon, ext. 4-1891.

Ames Diabetics (AAD), 1st & 3rd Weds, 12

noon to 1 p.m., at Ames Mega Bites, Sun room.

Support group discusses news affecting diabetics.

POC: Bob Mohlenhoff, ext. 4-2523/e-mail at:

bmohlenhoff@mail.arc.nasa.gov.

Ames Federal Employees Union (AFEU) Mtg,

third Wednesday of ea. month, 12 p.m. to 1 p.m.,

Bldg. 221, Rm 104. Guests welcome. Info at: http://

www.afeu.org. POC: Marianne Mosher, ext. 4-4055.

Ames Mac Support Group Mtg, third Tuesday of

ea. month, 11:30 a.m.to 1 p.m., Bldg. N262, Rm 180.

POC: Tony ext. 4-0340.

Ames Model Aircraft Club, flying radiocontrolled aircraft at the north end of Parsons Ave. on

weekend mornings. POC: Mark Sumich, ext. 4-6193.

Ames Sailing Club Mtg, second Thursday of ea.

month (Feb through Nov), from 12:00 p.m. -1:00

p.m. in Bldg. N-262, Rm 100. URL: http://

sail.arc.nasa.gov/. POC: Becky Hooey, ext. 4-2399.

Environmental Forum, first Thursday of each

month, 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m., Bldg. 221/Rm 155.

URL: http://q.arc.nasa.gov/qe/events/EHSseries/

POC: Stacy St. Louis at ext. 4-6810.

The Hispanic Advisory Committee for

Excellence (HACE) Mtg, first Thurs of month in

N255 room 101C from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.

POC: Eric Kristich at ext. 4-5137 and Mark Leon at

ext. 4-6498.

Jetstream Toastmasters, Mondays, 12 p.m. to 1

p.m., N-269/Rm.179. POC: Bob Hilton at ext. 4-

2909, bhilton@mail.arc.nasa.gov.

Native American Advisory Committee Mtg,

fourth Tues each month, 12 noon to 1 p.m., Bldg. 19,

Rm 1096. POC: Mike Liu at ext. 4-1132.

ment and Fire Protection Services units

for the month of Feb. 2006 is shown

below.

BY JIM ARNOLD AND ANN SULLIVAN, WITH

CONTRIBUTIONS FROM HOWARD GOLDSTEIN,

TOM ALDERETE AND JACK BOYD

Ames’ STS-1 contributions: greatest test flight in history

continued from page 8

control system problem. On this first

flight, as the oscillation began to diverge

dangerously close to the ground, Haise

had enough confidence and simulator

training to simply let go of the controls

and allow the oscillation to damp itself

out.

Following that, a major investigation was conducted in the FSAA to reevaluate the control systems gains, in

order to minimize the possibility of future PIO problems. In addition, work

was conducted for several years in the

simulator to investigate the terminal area

energy management concepts designed

by engineers at JSC.

Development support for the space

shuttle, prior to the first flight, also included approach/landing control system and handling qualities, heads-up

display concept, speed brake scheduling, astronaut training, flight techniques

for failure recovery, and landings of the

shuttle from atop the 747 carrier aircraft.

Vertical Motion Simulator

In 1980, Ames' new Vertical Motion

Simulator (VMS) began operation. It

wasn't long before the VMS earned a

reputation as the best simulator anywhere for the continuation of engineering design and shuttle pilot training.

Landing systems and flight rules are

done on the VMS with astronaut crews

and JSC engineers. Ames' SimLab and

VMS have supported the shuttle program on a continuing and scheduled

basis ever since.

Conclusion

On April 14, 1981, commander John

Young and pilot Robert Crippen brought

space shuttle Columbia to a safe landing

at Dryden Flight Research Center. STS1's mission duration of 2 days, 6 hours,

20 minutes and 53 seconds included 37

orbits of the Earth.

This first, brief mission proved the

capability of the world's first and only

reusable space vehicle. It successfully

tested the Space Transportation System's

major systems and demonstrated the

safe launch into orbit and safe return of

the orbiter and crew. It also verified the

combined performance of the entire

shuttle vehicle - orbiter, solid rocket

boosters and external tank.

Ames played a critical role in making the space shuttle 'happen,' especially

in the areas of aero/aerothermodynamics, thermal protection systems and piloted flight simulation areas. It is one

element of the center's heritage that

should be a source of pride to everyone

at Ames.

As it has nearly 40 years, the talented professionals at Ames are continuing to provide essential skills and

facilities to support the human space

program. Current projects and tasks

consist of work on the crew exploration

vehicle (CEV) thermal protection system, CEV aerosciences analysis, CEV

integrated system health management,

crew cabin and cockpit display development, CEV guidance, navigation and

control software verification and validation, crew launch vehicle (CLV) simulation assisted risk analysis, and CLV

integrated system health management.
15 Astrogram March 2006

Ames Classifieds Exchange Information

Beyond Galileo N-235 (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)

ext. 4-6873

Ask about NASA customized gifts for special

occasions.

Mega Bites Mega Bites N-235 (6 a.m. to 2 p.m.)

ext. 4-5969

Visitor Center Gift Shop N-943

(10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ext. 4-5412

NASA logo merchandise, souvenirs, toys, gifts and

educational items.

Open 7 days a week, 7:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. Rates

from $40 - $50.

Vacation Opportunities

Check web site for discounts to local attractions,

http://exchange.arc.nasa.gov and click on tickets.

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... Tickets, etc...(N-235, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)

ext. 4-6873

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

Housing

Miscellaneous

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.

Ames Swim Center, 25 meter swimming pool open

and heated year round. (80-82 degrees) Lap swim: Mon,

Weds, Fri, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 3-6 Tues to Thurs 10

a.m. to 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Seasonal recreation

swim; swim lessons. Locker rooms w/sauna and shower

facility. Open to all civil servants and contractors.

Location: Bldg. 109 across the street from the tennis

courts. Fees vary depending on activity. POC: Tana

Windhorst, ext. 3-8025; e-mail: tw4lsb@aol.com

Ames Swim Center 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 the weekend or holiday,

then the following business day becomes the deadline.

For Astrogram questions, contact Astrid Terlep at the aforementioned e-mail address or ext. 4-3347.

Automotive

Lake Tahoe-Squaw Valley Townhouse, 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

South Lake Tahoe cottage w/wood fireplace, hot

tub. Rates $50 to $130 per night. Call (650) 967-7659.

Vacation rental, Bass Lake, 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.

Tahoe Donner vacation home, 2 bd/2ba. trees,

deck. Access to pools, spa, golf, horseback riding, $280

wkend, $650 week. Call (408) 739-9134.

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.

Disneyland area vacation rental home, 2 bd/1ba.

Nearing completion completely remodeled w/new

furniture. Sleeps 6 (queen bed, bunk beds, sleeper

sofa). Air hockey and football tables. Introductory rate

$600/wk, once completed rate will be $1000/wk.

Security deposit and $100 cleaning fee required. Call

(925) 846-2781.

New York, 5th Ave. One fully furnished bedroom in

24 hour security bldg. overlooking Washington Square

Park, $1,000/wk or $3,000/mo. negotiable. Call (650)

349-0238.

Paris/France: Fully furnished studio, 5th Arr, Latin

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

negotiable. Call (650) 349-0238.

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).

West Maui vacation at Kahana Falls, across street

from beach. Thanksgiving week 19-26 Nov 05, $630/

wk. 1bd/2 ba, w/d, fk. For 2 adults, 0 to 2 kids. Call

(650) 962-1314 after Aug 7.

Vacation rental. Ferndale - The Victorian Village.

Victorian home on Main Street a short stroll to the

Village which has been designated as a state historical

landmark. Enjoy the many holiday activities which

include a Christmas parade and lighting of America's

tallest living Christmas tree. Four bedrooms (sleeps

approx. six), two full baths, large kitchen, dining room,

parlor w/fireplace, enclosed desk w/hot tub. For info call

(707) 983-9514.

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. $500/wkend, $200/addl night, including

cleaning by the maid service when you depart. Call

(408) 252-7260.

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

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!

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.

Baby blue woman's O'Neil surf shorts, 100% polyester

size 8, near perfect condition. $10.00. Call (408) 234-0025.

Room available for rent in house in mid town Palo Alto,

with kitchen, laundry, and pool, $500 plus $50 toward

utils, for a quiet, neat, stable and conscientious person or

couple. E-mail jims@eos.arc.nasa.gov; ham call wb6yoy.

Looking for a roommate, female prof’l preferred, to

share a 2bd/2ba new condo in Mtn. View downtown begin

May 1. Spacious (~1400 sq ft). New kitchen appliance, W/

D inside. Garage parking. One block from Castro, close to

MV library, Cal train station. Very spacious bedroom (at

least 10x20 ft), two bay windows. $1,200/mo. E-mail

jingmei007@yahoo.com

‘92 Harley Davidson Softail Custom - $8,500 or

B/O. Call Barry Cunningham (510) 793-4457, email: EZrdrdad@comcast.net

Safety Data

 Civil Contractors

 Servants

First aid cases 3 2

Lost-time cases 0 0

Recordable cases 0 1

Lost workdays 0 0

Restricted duty days 0 0

Above data is as of 2/28/06. May

be subject to slight adjustment in the

event of a new case or new information regarding an existing case.

 NASA-Ames Occupational

 Illness-Injury Data for Calendar

 Year-to-Date 2006

 Feb. 1, 2006 - Feb. 28, 2006
Astrogram March 2006 16

National Aeronautics and Space

Administration

Ames Research Center

Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000

PLEASE RECYCLE

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

FIRST-CLASS

U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

PERMIT NO. 85

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA

The Ames Astrogram is an official publication of

Ames Research Center, National Aeronautics and

Space Administration.

Editor-in-Chief.............................. Laura Lewis

Managing Editor..........................Ann Sullivan

Editor, Layout and Design...........Astrid Terlep

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/centers/ames/news/astrogram/

2006/06astrograms.html

five days. Similarly, Ames cannot depend on external support for at least five

days after a catastrophic earthquake.

Even then, support will have to come

from the federal government (FEMA),

not from local or state agencies. Even

when federal support is mobilized, it

will take two to three days for rescue

teams to arrive, and three to six days for

commodity distribution and sheltering.

Supplies will not be readily available, as

FEMA will immediately purchase all

available supplies. If a major earthquake strikes during business hours, the center will do its

best to care for its on-site employees, as

well as providing available information

about traffic conditions, damage, relief

efforts, and other pertinent issues. The

federal government is obligated to support the community, and support to federal agencies is not a priority, Dolci explained. The most important thing we as in- dividuals can do is to prepare an emergency plan and emergency kit for ourselves and our families, Dolci stressed.

His suggestions:

• Have five days of food and

 water, prescription

 medications, etc., at home.

• Have several days of clothing

 at Ames (and water and food).

• Store water and extra

 clothing in your car.

• Purchase or make the best

 emergency kit you can afford.

• Consider a portable generator.

• Don't forget to plan and

 provide for your pets,

 as they are not allowed

 in emergency shelters.

• Learn advanced first aid

 and CPR (free classes are

 offered at Ames).

• Keep at least a two-week

 supply of your prescription

 medications on hand

• Have a three-to-five day

 supply of medication at work

 or in your car.

• If your community has a

 citizen emergency response

 team, join it!

• Store some supplies

 remotely, in case your home

 is destroyed and inaccessible.

• Have a plan for temporary

 shelter and sanitation issues.

• Have a supply of cash

 available, as ATMs won't

 work without electricity

 and banks may be closed

 or damaged.

Ultimately, how well we fare in the aftermath of a catastrophic earthquake

or other major disaster depends on how

well we prepare. For more information

about earthquake preparedness, go to

https://disasterhelp.gov/portal/

jhtml/index.jhtml

Katrina and a 1906-magnitude earthquake

-- comparisons and preparations

BY ANN SULLIVAN

continued from page 4

NASA photo by Tom Trower

The Education Associates Program held a

poster presentation in the Ames Mega Bites

café in March. The poster presentation

included work from education associates at

varied academic levels from undergraduates

thorough post-docs in Codes A through Y.

The program offers college and university

students and faculty the opportunity to

experience science and technology in the

unique environment of NASA.

Education

Associates host

poster session