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S P A C E T E A M O N L I N EUPDATE # 72 - March 1, 1999 PART 1: Short Notice Don't Miss This! SHORT NOTICE DON'T MISS THIS!
The astronaut pilots have been visiting here at Ames Research Center
training in the Virtual Motion Simulator (VMS). Long-time Space Team
Online participant, Lonnie Moffitt
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/moffitt.html
is out here from Johnson Space Center and has presented us with an
exciting possibility. He has offered to join us live for a webcast from
the VMS (Virtual Motion Simulator) area on Thursday, March 4 at 1:00 p.m.
PST (4:00 p.m. EST). During the webcast, we will be able to catch some of
the visiting astronauts that he works with to answer your questions. Sorry
for the short notice, but their training comes first, and we want to
accommodate their agenda. As usual, we will answer all questions possible,
but, naturally, the well thought out and appropriate questions will be
selected first, so do think through your questions well.
March is Women's History Month, and timing couldn't be better for Female
Frontiers special emphasis. Despite the delayed launch, we are forging
ahead with the live interactions headlined by actress Kate Mulgrew. This
gives me a chance to let you know about a new phenomenon in the NASA Quest
offerings. Kates filming schedule has been unpredictable, and,
therefore,
the time of her scheduled chat has been impossible to predict. She is
still anxious to interact with you so we have scheduled a QuestForum.
Registration and participation is the same as a chat except that the
interaction is not in real time. Forums are held during a designated
period of time. You may submit questions to the Forum/Chat room. The
expert will check in when time permits and will answer as many of these
questions as possible. The answers will be posted to the chat room, and
you may return later or check the archived forum.
Projects from Space was very popular the last go-around, and the
enrollment
filled quickly. Deadline for registering for the April 5 launch of this
interactive project that explores human life in space is March 15. For
more information on this project see:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/events
This note has gotten long so I will wait until next week to begin a
project of my own. We've received some great feedback from our survey and
some questions that I think would be helpful to answer in this open forum,
so we'll start next week. Also next week we will begin a new puzzle that
focuses on STS-93.
Til next week!
Linda
UPCOMING LIVE EVENTS:
->Tuesday, March 2, 1999 -Noon PST (3:00 EST)
David Cox, the lead schedule integration engineer, is responsible for
making
sure that goals for the construction of the International Space Station
(ISS) can be reached. David assists ISS construction companies with
planning and scheduling and communicates scheduling deadlines with
different levels of management. Read his profile and latest journal at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/cox.html
Register at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/chats
->Wednesday, March 3, 1999, 9 a.m. PST (Noon EST)
Keith Zimmerman, operations lead, spends a lot of time in Russia leading
the operations team for NASA at Russia's Mission Control Center, in
Moscow. Read Keith Zimmerman's profile at
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/zimmerman.html
Register at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/chats
->March, 2,1999 All day
Forum with Kate Mulgrew, First female starship captain in the history of
primetime. Read her profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/mulgrew.html
Registration coming soon at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Wednesday, March 3, 1999 - 10:00 a.m. PST (1:00 p.m. EST)
Chat with Julie Mikula, First woman manager of NASA's Simulation
Laboratories (SimLab). See her profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/mikula.html
Register at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Wednesday, March 3 - 11:30 a.m. PST (2:30 p.m. EST)
Female Frontiers Chat with Mae Jemison, First African-American woman to
fly in Space. See her profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/jemison.html
Register at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Thursday, March 4 1:00 p.m. PST (4:00 p.m. EST)
Join the chat with Lonnie Moffitt and the astronauts visiting the VMS for
training. See Lonnie's profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/moffitt.html
Join us at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/ltc/sto/vms/
->Tuesday, March 9, 11:30 a.m. PST (2:30 p.m. EST)
Female Frontiers WebCast with Dee O'Hara, First Nurse to NASA's
First Astronauts. For more information see:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/ltc/sto/frontiers/
->Thursday, March 11,1999 - 11:00 a.m. PST (2:00 p.m. EST)
Chat with Congresswomen Ellen Tauscher, First women to hold seat on New
York Stock Exchange. Registration coming soon at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Tuesday, March 16, 1999 - 11:00 a.m. PST (2:00 p.m. EST)
Chat with Kathryn Sullivan, First American woman to walk in Space
See her profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/sullivan.html
Registration open 3/2/99 at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Tuesday, March 16, 1999, 11:30 AM Pacific Time:
Felix A. Soto-Toro, electrical designs engineer, reviews, designs, builds,
tests and implements engineering designs used in the Shuttle and Payload
Operations Development Laboratories to improve safety. Felix will receive
and answer questions in Spanish and English during this chat. Read Felix
A. Soto-Toro's profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/soto_toro.html
Register at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/chats
->Wednesday, March 17, 10:00 a.m. PST (1:00 p.m. EST)
Tour of the ISS Mockup and Training Facility at JSC
Join us for the on-going tour guide at Johnson Space Center (JSC) in
Houston, Texas for our regularly scheduled tour of the International Space
Station mockup and training facility.
Wednesday, March 17, 8:30 a.m. PST (11:30 a.m. EST)
Chat with Jean Bartik, First programmers started out as
"computers." See her profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/bartik.html
Registration coming soon at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Tuesday, March 23 10:00 a.m. PST (1:00 p.m. EST)
Chat with Sally Ride, First American woman in Space. See her profile at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/ride.html
Registration coming soon at:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
->Wednesday, March 24, 10:00 a.m. PST (1:00 p.m. EST)
Space Team Online Presents "ISS Behind the Scenes"
Join us for the continuing series of broadcasts from the Kennedy Space
Center ISS program. This month we feature the Space Station Processing
Facility. http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/ltc/sto/iss/series2.html
For continuing Female Frontiers schedule see:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/frontiers/schedule.html
For March Space Team Online chats see:
http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/chats
[Editor's note: Luis describes his new job below. The journal online at: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/journals/delgado/02-19-99.html provides additionally a pictorial view of Pegasus Launch Operations ] PEGASUS EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/delgado.html Interviewer: Brandt Secosh February 19, l999 After working on the Spacelab project and the Shuttle Payloads Division of NASA for nearly 14 years, I am having a great time with my new job with the Expendable Launch Vehicles (ELV) Division. My new job has me involved with the Pegasus rocket, which is used to launch small payloads into space from an aircraft. The Pegasus rocket is built by Orbital Sciences Corporation (Orbital). Orbital purchased a former passenger L1011 aircraft and modified it for launching the Pegasus rocket. NASA buys launch services from Orbital just like any other commercial satellite customer. My job is to make sure that the NASA payload and the Pegasus rocket are ready to go. Most of the preparation for the launch takes place at Vandenberg Air Force Base. This is where the Pegasus rocket is put together, the payload is integrated, and the prelaunch operations take place. But, since our "launch pad" has wings, we can launch from just about anywhere there is a range safety and tracking facilities. Orbital has current launch sites at NASA facilities in Wallops Island, Virginia, Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, and Cape Canaveral Air Station in Florida. In addition, Orbital has launched commercial payloads from international sites like Brazil and Spain. No matter where the launch site is, the integration and testing still takes place at Vandenberg. Then, a few days before launch, the L1011 aircraft "ferry flies" the Pegasus (with the payload already in it) crosscountry to the launch site. After a couple of days and a few additional tests, the L1011 flies out to the launch area over open water and launches the Pegasus on its way to orbit. During the "captive carry" portion of the flight, the L1011 is flown to the "launch box" at an altitude of approximately 39,000 feet. During captive-carry, the Pegasus is monitored and controlled by two Launch Panel Operators (LPO). The LPOs are Orbital engineers onboard the L1011. The Pegasus LPO is responsible for monitoring all the flight parameters of the Pegasus rocket and makes sure it is ready to fly. The Payload LPO monitors the status of the payload and makes sure it is also ready to fly. Even though the LPOs and the rest of the Pegasus launch team make most decisions on whether to launch or not, it is the L1011 pilot-in-command who has to press the "launch button" to "drop" the Pegasus. The Pegasus is designed to carry small payloads into space. The maximum weight for a Pegasus payload is 1,000 pounds, and it must fit inside the 84 inch tall by 46 inch diameter payload fairing. Many of the satellites that have been launched on Pegasus have been in support of space technology validation, Earth science and space-physics experiments, hypersonic flight research, Earth imaging, communications, and planetary exploration. To find out more about the payloads that Pegasus has placed into space, please visit Florida Today Space Online at http://www.flatoday.com/space/explore/uselv/pegasus.htm The main thing I do as a NASA Pegasus mechanical engineer in this process is to verify that the rocket is ready to deliver the NASA payload into space. We have an engineering organization that reviews all of the integration procedures for Pegasus and the payload. We make sure all of the specific engineering issues are addressed and resolved within the specifications and contract requirements. I travel to Vandenberg Air Force Base often, usually from two weeks before launch. We follow the rocket from payload integration in the assembly building through transportation and mate to the L1011 and all the tests between aircraft, rocket and payload. If we are satisfied that everything is in good working order, we give the NASA Engineering GO FOR LAUNCH and the Pegasus flies! What I like best about Pegasus is the novelty of launching a rocket from an airplane! The first stage of the flight is the L1011 flight to 39,000 feet. Also, the Pegasus is a new and innovative rocket designed for the specific purpose of launching small payloads into orbit. It utilizes off-the-shelf components and relies on state of the art technology. It's truly a solid-state, digital rocket! I also get to travel and work with some great people. We have a very full schedule this year for the ELV program and a lot of exciting missions on different types of rockets. [Editor's note: Keith is works as an operations lead in the International Liaison Office at Johnson Space Center. We have enjoyed several of his journals as he takes his turn leading the operations team for NASA at Russia's Mission Control Center in Moscow. The online journal includes pictures: http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/journals/zimmerman/02-22-99.html ] THE END OF THE BEGINNING http://quest.arc.nasa.gov/space/team/zimmerman.html February 22, 1999 When I last wrote, I was still in Russia. The first Shuttle mission to the new International Space Station had just landed, and Christmas was approaching. Christmas in Russia is different from in the USA. First, they celebrate on a different day. The Russian church uses an older calendar and so Christmas occurs on January 7th in Russia. Second, they don't exchange gifts or have family gatherings. They do that on New Year's Day instead. The reason is that for most of this century the Communists tried to eliminate religion in the Soviet Union. Christmas was essentially canceled so most of the activities that you and I do on Christmas were moved and now occur on January 1 in Russia. Now that the Communists are not in charge anymore, Christmas is starting to come back. Our group celebrated on December 25, just like the rest of you. Our management agreed to let us have that day off. One family had a big party on Christmas Eve, and everybody had a great time. Then on Christmas Day, our group went out to dinner together to get Chinese food. As always, we had to work in Mission Control every day to help monitor the new Space Station. At the moment, there is no crew onboard so things occur at a slower pace. It gives our team time to catch up on other work -- like planning for the next Shuttle flight and updating our technical documents with things we learned during the last mission. In addition, it gives us time to train for the next mission and participate in simulations. Each day a complete American team is in our Mission Control (in Houston) for about three or four hours, and then they go back to their office. The rest of the day, a single person is there to watch and make sure nothing goes wrong. If it does, then his/her job is to call in the specialists. The Russians are in their own Mission Control (in Moscow) for about 10 hours each day, and then they go back to their office for another 14 hours. Each Russian team works for 24 straight hours and then gets three days off while other teams come in and work. The American teams usually work an eight- or nine-hour shift every day. Our group acts as an interface between the two Mission Controls and so we need to be there anytime either of the American or Russian control center is manned. That means we usually have to cover most of the day so we split the day into two or three shifts of 9 to 11 hours each. Typically, we get one day off each weekend. Each person on our team also gets one full weekend off each month. That all translates into an average of 60 hours of work each week for the people in our group. My replacement arrived in Moscow on December 28th, and we began our "handover". This meant that my trip (and the first phase of the new Space Station) was coming to an end. For the next two weeks, I taught him about all the recent activities and everything that had changed since the last time he had been in Russia. I also introduced him to the key Russian managers that he would be working with during his tour of duty. The biggest Russian holiday of the year is New Years. They celebrate it for about four or five days. As each Russian team finished their last work day of the year, they usually invited us to a champagne toast to celebrate the successes of the previous year and to wish everybody well in the next one. The Russian families all get together and there are many celebrations, special family dinners, and gift exchanges (just like Americans do on Christmas). On New Years Eve, our group went out to Red Square to celebrate the changing of the year. There were thousands of people there and many had brought their own fireworks. They were shooting them off for over an hour, and the fireworks were flying in every direction. We even had to duck out of the way a few times. It was the most fun I have ever had on New Years Eve. Since my replacement was in town, I finally had the chance to take off both Saturday and Sunday. It was the first full weekend I had off since mid-November. Two of my coworkers and I decided to take the overnight train up to the city of St. Petersburg for the weekend. We spent two days doing the usual tourist things like going to museums, seeing churches, eating out, taking lots of photos, etc. It was a very busy but relaxing two days (and boy did I need it). My trip to Russia finally ended on January 9 when I flew home to Houston. Overall, the trip can be summarized (in one sentence): We worked very hard for long hours on a complex project in a foreign country, and, in return, I was present at the beginning of a new era of space exploration, and I had the opportunity for some special cultural events like an embassy reception with the ambassador, a concert by a world famous musician, and a weekend in St. Petersburg. It was definitely worth it, and I look forward to my next trip. Since my return to Houston, I have been participating in simulations every week to get ready for my next mission (STS-96) and my next trip to Russia. In addition, my boss has asked me to revise our groups training plan based on what we learned during the first mission. I will be deleting those classes that we don't need and adding new ones that cover topics we now need to learn. I have also just been named as the leader of our group in Moscow for the next Shuttle mission to the Space Station (STS-96). That means I will spend time working with the flight directors and other specialists to help plan the mission. It will all keep me quite busy, and I only have a few weeks to get ready. My next trip to Russia starts on March 23. Finally, I just volunteered to do an online chat on March 3. I look forward to talking to some of you. Until then...........Syevo Horoshyevo (which means I wish you all the best). STATUS OF COLUMBIA PROCESSING
Below, we provide reports on the processing of Shuttle Columbia taken from the detailed daily reports found at the NASA Shuttle Status web site at http://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/status/status.htm. At times these reports will contain jargon and unfamiliar terms; our intent is not to confuse you but to provide a glimpse at all the steps involved. Columbia is jacked and leveled in VAB high bay 2 undergoing routine system observation during a temporary storage period. Columbia will remain in the VAB until mid-April, when Shuttle Discovery rolls out of OPF bay 1. Columbia will then be transferred to OPF bay 1 to complete STS-93's orbiter pre-launch preparations.
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