Space Academy Newsletter, Winter 1996
Table of contents
I. Why a Newsletter? - by Mike B. and Jake Y.
II. Jerry enters his second childhood - by Jerry Soffen
III. Planetary Society's Planetfest '97 - by Cindy Hall Atkinson, NAIV
IV. X-Prize update - by Jake Lopata, NAIII
V. How not to get a DDF - by Jake Yates, NAIV
VI. Top Ten List - by NA IV
VII. Malibu Barbi and other writings - by Andrew Gray, SAII
VIII. Where are they now - by SA I
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I. Why a Newsletter by Mike Baine NA I and Jake Yates NA IV
The publishing of a newsletter is a sign that an organization has gotten so big that it has to predigest its own information before disseminating it.
But in all seriousness, a newsletter is an important step in the growth of an organization. It implies unity, fraternity and determination in the goals set out by such an organization. Jake and I hope that this dry run of a newsletter will be the start of a semiannual event. Once in the winter to coincide with the release of the coming years application and during the summer to see how that current academy is doing.
One of the most important things that alumni can do is to recruit talented students into their ranks. An organization full of bright, talented people knows no bounds and can accomplish anything they set their mind to. For reference the deadline for applications is Jan. 31, 1997 and you can help someone find the application at:
http://university.gsfc.nasa.gov/SA/academy.html
The overriding theme of this newsletter is optimism for space. Jerry sets the tone by giving us his take on the Martian Meteorite, Cindy gives us a preview of Planetfest, and Jake fills us in on the X-prize. In conclusion, there is a "Where are they now" section from academy one with a reprint of Mike Lisano's Dan G. encounter. We hope you enjoy reading this as much as we had putting it together. Happy Holidays.
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The Academy is about people and excitement and curiosity. In the four successful years of the Academy we have gone from an idea to an institution. Our idea has spread to MAFC thanks to Dr. Frank Six and now it is about to spread to Ames Research Center (and maybe Dryden Flight Center). A spreading idea is the mark of success!
The other day I was bowled over when Dan Goldin came over to me to shake my hand and thank me for "helping the young people" and "to continue the good work."
Actually Dan G. and I were attending the same meeting at George Washington University which dealt with the impact of the discoveries of the Mars rock. The meeting was called "Life in the Universe: What Might the Martian Fossils Tell Us?" As you may have guessed I have been blown away by the science article in August.
You might like to see my first reaction which was used for a press quote.
Wow- FANTASTIC. Mars Rock with possible microfossils inside! I have to pinch myself to make sure I'm not dreaming. All my adult life I have been thinking about the origins of life (on the earth). I joined NASA to be able to search for life on Mars. And now, right under our nose, in some dusty storage case, comes an almost miracle.
A rock from Mars, formed when Mars was becoming a planet 4 1/2 billion years ago, got knocked off by a great big boulder that hit the planet. 10 to 20 million years ago it landed on Earth at the South pole at the dawn of civilization.
I have spent most of my life (as project scientist for Viking) searching for life on Mars and came up empty handed. Ms. Roberta Score in 1984, on an NFS expedition to Antarctica, finds a 4 pound rock in the blue ice and may have changed scientific history. The movement of Antarctic ice concentrates the meteorite in particular hot spots due to the dynamics and motion of the ice.
Now what's in this rock? For years nobody looked and then in 1992 some folks at JSC discover the composition of the trapped gases match the signature of Mars ( as measured by Viking). That turned it into a Martian rock. As the team spent the next two years examining the rock, they began to turn over clue after clue, including a special electron microscope picture that includes things that look like very small microfossils. Is this ancient life?
Who knows? To a biologist it sure looks interesting. A lot of other data, organic stuff, the shapes of crystalline iron oxide granules, the appearance of segmentation all points towards some kind of primitive ancient microorganisms. It's too much to hope for. This could be the holy grail of questions about other life in the cosmos.
But what if it's only a fluke. A touch of nature to tease the cursed scientist. Ah, that's the way science and nature work!
But what if it's real. Will we ever know? Who has conceived the defining experiment. Oh, what a great time to be alive and in the middle of one of the most intriguing questions of our age. Thanks NASA for a great life.
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III.
On July 4, 1997, one of the biggest events in the United States' space history will occur, the Mars Pathfinder's landing on the Red Planet! You can be an observer of this great event by attending the Planetary Society's Planetfest '97 which will be held this summer in Pasadena, California. On July 4 at approximately 1-2PM, real time Marscape images will be sent to Earth from the Pathfinder lander and the Sojourner microrover, 35 million miles away and will be displayed on a 45-foot video wall at Planetfest.
The three-day exhibition, July 3-6, will focus on the Mars Pathfinder mission, but will also consist of many science- and space-oriented activities such as, a festive parade of floats, astronauts, and Hollywood celebrities through the streets of downtown Pasadena, a book extravaganza featuring science and science-fiction, a discovery symposium featuring speakers from all over the world, and a "Child's Universe, a hands-on experience with science-and space-oriented exhibits and activities for children, parents, and educators.
The exhibition will also consist of a space-related art gallery, a theatre presenting only science and science-fiction movies, and a "Hall of Technology" featuring the latest computer technology and the latest software products used in science and planetary exploration. For example, there will be CD ROM workstations, an electronic bulletin board, and possibly an on line question and answer session between students and scientists, to name a few.
Exciting, you say? Well, why not come and be a part of the Planetfest '97 team? The Planetary Society needs your help! Volunteers are needed primarily in the "Child's Universe" helping children and parents with hands-on activities such as making rockets from soda bottles or film canisters and acting as human rovers. Volunteers are also needed to help with security and with the "Hall of Technology, and to act as runners. If you know you can not make it to Planetfest this summer, volunteers are also needed to collect goods, such as soda bottles and film canisters, for some of the activities.
By volunteering your time and helping children, parents, and educators discover secrets of the Universe, you will get free admission to most of the three-day activities, and the more hours you put in, the more cool stuff you get (i.e., Planetfest t-shirt, etc.). If you are interested in participating, please call me at 818.306.6096 or email me at cynthia.hall@archive.jpl.nasa.gov. If you are only interested in attending Planetfest, contact me or the Planetary Society for a brochure and registration packet.
We look forward to seeing you this summer!
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IV.
As this year comes to an end another one begins and we move ever closer to the day when those of us who desire (and obsess for) the opportunity will be able to fly into space.
1996 has been a productive year for the X Prize Foundation beginning with the press conference and debut gala dinner in St. Louis on May 18 which announced and at the same time celebrated the beginning of this historic race for space. Since then the X PRIZE has generated world wide excitement. This fact is especially evident in the requests for information and registration materials which have been received in our office. They are from such diverse locals as England, the Netherlands, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, Israel, Bahrain, France, Canada, Belgium, Brazil, Spain and Japan. In the intervening months the X PRIZE Trophy was unveiled (see the Sept. 30-Oct. 6 issue of Space News for a picture) and is currently on permanent display at the St. Louis Science Center. The cast bronze trophy stands approximately 5ft tall and weighs 150 lbs. We are also in the process of obtaining a sponsor for the $10 million cash purse. Negotiations are currently underway with a number of individuals and corporations for the entire amount of the prize and it is the hoped that an announcement concerning X PRIZE sponsorship can take place within six months.
Most importantly, as of December 18, the X PRIZE has eight official
competitors! They are all from the United States and have varied
backgrounds. Some are well known and some you will never have hear of
before. The list is as follows:
1) Burt Rutan, Scaled Composites
2) Gary Hudson, HMX Inc. (www.hmx.com)
3) Rick Fleeter, AeroAstro Corp. (www.newspace.com/aeroastro)
4) Robert Zubrin, Pioneer Rocket Plane (www.rocketplane.com)
5) John Bloomer, Discraft Corp.
6) Jim Akkerman, Advent Launch Services (www.phoenix.net/~advent)
7) Mickey Badgero
8) William Good, ESTS (Earth Space Transport Systems)
These are indeed exciting times and there is much to look forward to as we move into the next century. Keep an eye out for news on the competition as the New Year progresses.
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V. How not to get a DDF by Jacob Yates
This past November was the Director's Discretionary Fund (DDF) review panel for the 1997 proposals. It was quite enlightening. I found out that many of the proposers who were seeking extensions had an Academy student. In fact, they went out of their way to mention how much the students had contributed to their projects. Of course, I found this most amusing, especially when I recall from summer the following comments that were made either before the poster session or the even before the final presentation...................
"Oh, my God! I have done nothing!"
"#@$&!,....now what the hell am I going to do?!?!?!"
"Is this presentation-thing, required or what?............."
"We have to do what??"
"Hey, maybe I might actually see my PI at this.........."
"Were not being graded on this are we?.....
....whew, I was worried there."
"$%@#-$%#@, I have done absolutely nothing !!"
"Project?......What project....
...oh you mean what we do in lab."
"Man, now I know what 'good enough for government work' means"
........yet somehow, there was tremendous grace under pressure done
on these DDF projects. Because, many of the proposers spent part of the
limited time during their presentation stating some of the beneficial
work that the Academy RA's accomplished and how instrumental their
contributions were.
There was also a 1996 DDF poster presentation that was held at the
behest of Center Director, Joe Rothenberg. And again there was mention
of the NASA Academy there. Some of the presenters had either mug shots
of Academy members or told us how instrumental their RA's were. In fact
one of the PI's [John Vranish] said it would be nice to have some
"flawed people" once in awhile, because he "hates it" when these
"high-calibur" students come in and amaze him and they get lucrative job
offers elsewhere. He said, "Jacob, please send me some people that
aren't so perfect. Give me a few that have an occasional flaw once and
awhile."
The following people were distinctly mentioned: Brett Allard, Cyndi Hall (Atkinson), Lothar Birke, Chris Cousins, Harry Garner, Alberto Gay, Dan Greenspan, Chris Lewicki, Ben Mazin, Greg Richardson, and Chris Wilkinson. Way to go people! If you are interested in which DDF proposals were awarded check out:
http://university.gsfc.nasa.gov/DDF/1997/awards97.html
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VI.
10. "What is the third planet?"
9. "The first transport is AWAY!"
8. "I yield the floor to my colleague from the great state of __________"
7. "BACK OFF MAN!" -The (Sunshine) Bum
6. "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD..." & "ARE YOU ON CRACK?" (tie)
5. "...AFTER A FEW SPACE FLIGHTS, YOU'VE BEEN THERE DONE THAT!"
4. "INTELSAT, INTELSAT, INTELSAT, INTELSAT, INTELSAT"
3. "MARS - got a problem with that? I'll kick your ass!"
2. "Oh my God, it's a SIX!"
1. "Mars F**king Dirt, baby!"
[Ed. Note: At the beginning of the summer, there was a big "WELCOME" sign in one of the stairwells, with a well-know quote at the top, "To boldly go where no one has gone before......" and thus we began to log the notable quotes of the 1996 NASA Academy:]
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VII. THE D.C.GROUP'S CHRISTMAS CHAOS CAROL By Andrew Gray, NA II
Most of you know that myself(NAII), Brian Roberts(NAII), Mike Baine(NAI), Jane Thorpe(NAIII) and Jacob Yates(NAIV) live in a townhouse not far from GSFC and Jim Brice(NAII-IV), Gene Fujji(NAII), and Jake Lopata(NAIII) all live only four houses away. It is not clear how it started, but a rigorous competition is currently underway to see which group can aquire and exhibit the most elaborate Christmas decorations. I thought this was going to lead to trouble when Brian proposed at our last house meeting to raise our house Christmas decoration budget from $40.00 to $275.00. As of the printing of this letter, there is a 7 foot inflatable psudo-Santa Clause in full costume, complete with 24 hour lighting being proudly displayed on the roof of our two story townhouse. The reason I say psuedo-Santa, it that he is actually an inflatable Frankenstein doll. At over 7 feet tall with that extremely boxy figure I'm afraid we have not fooled many of the children in our neighborhood. I am unsure whether the look of horror on there faces whenever they pass our decorated house is from this FrankenClause or the fact that someone in our house attempted to go to work in his underware last week. This unfortunately happened as all the children were walking from there houses to the school bus stop near our house. A clear description of the individual was not possible as he ran rather quickly to my car and returned quickly to the house upon discovering he had no keys. I'm thankful such things only happen to me in my dreams. Anyway, the competition between the two groups is growing more fierce every day. The two houses look like giant fireballs when viewed from the street at night. I believe our group is clearly ahead right now, but Gene has threatened to step in as Santa and stand on that groups roof complete with gifts for the kids. Of course there is also a wildcard in that group. As we all know very well, Jim Brice has a "dangerous mind.
In other local news, Mike and myself failed in an attempt to get a kite to fly at an altitude of 2.5 miles (an altitude goal actually set by Brian) but did get a 72" wingspan kite to an altitude of .6 miles before the line snapped. The kite is still missing and presumed dead. We will try again over christmas break along with some strange model rocketry experiments advocated by Jacob Yates.
Well, that s the gossip that the local academy would let me talk about. Have a happy holiday season. Remember if you are in the area to look us up. Some, if not all of us will try to get together with you and have fun (within the bounds of the law of course).
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VIII. Where are they now by Space Academy I (SAI) - Summer 1993
Mark Wilkinson mark@solkan.cache.net http://solkan.cache.net/~mark Hughes Space and Communications I'm currently working at Hughes on the Modular Communications Programs. The program I am working is a satellite bus for the government. Some friends, my wife, and I are building a LOX/kerosene rocket. We are targeting 20,000+ ft. My brother, a good friend, and I are attempting to publish a science fiction book. It's about 1200 pages. We have three interested publishers but no contract, yet. In my *snicker* free time, I am a Webelos Den Leader for the Cub Scout Pack chartered by my church.
Troy Savoie savoie@mail.utexas.edu Institute for Advanced Technology, U.of Texas, Austin Since Academy I: BSME, Louisiana State University, Spring 1994 Worked 1 year for Applied Materials (semiconductor processing equipment manufacturer) in Austin, Texas. Fall, 1995 - Began grad school in ME (controls) at UT/Austin. Spring, 1997 - Will receive MSME from UT/Austin. Current Position: Graduate Research Assistant at the Institute for Advanced Technology. I develop component and system models for system-level studies of Hybrid Electric Combat Vehicles that contain Pulsed Power Weapons (= HEV tank with a railgun). My thesis is concerned with the development of control strategies for different power system architectures for these vehicles.
Warren Brown wbrown@cfa.harvard.edu Harvard University Cambridge, MA I'm a second year grad student in astronomy at Harvard University. I am amazingly content with life right now, but will be very glad when my last classes are over with this year! I'm taking this very cool electronics course with Paul Horowitz (principle author of _The Art of the Elctronics_), and am teaching a rather fun astronomy lab where we actually take pictures of stars and other hands-on stuff. But I am getting very tired of the homework and test routine, as I barely have 10 hours a week to put in on my research project. It is only a second year project, but I have observed on the Mt. Hopkins 48" telescope in Arizona four times already! I mainly study photometry and spectra of Centaurs--comets whose orbits keep them between Saturn and Neptune--but also dabble in finding and looking at these very faint & distant Kuiper Belt comets that hang out beyond Neptune's orbit (just smaller Plutos--most are in similar 3:2 orbital resonances with Neptune). My future plans are to start working on my thesis project this coming summer. I want to build a camera for a ground-based telescope, and use it on something I have no idea about right now. If you have interesting ideas, let me know. Also, if my thesis committee tells me my ideas stink, my plans call for laughing in their faces and going to live in Yosemite National Park again. I miss hiking REAL mountains, and feeling the sun on my skin for most of the constantly-cold year here. I also plan on saying "Hi!" to Rob more than once a semester, seeing how he is only a couple miles down the street at MIT, though we're both busy. And Larry--I don't hear much from you! I hope all is well with everyone!
Mike Baine mbaine@ucsd.edu Naval Research Lab, Washington DC I have spent the better part of a year living in Maryland working on my Ph.D. thesis at the Naval Research Laboratory. For those interested, I have been building a Laser Synchrotron Source for generating tunable, monochromatic, short pulsed x-rays. The idea is to scatter laser light off of an electron beam. From the rest frame of the electron the incoming light is Doppler up shifted, making an IR wavelength look like an x-ray wavelength. Thus the subsequent scattered light is in the form of an x-ray. I should be finished by June'98, and then I can move above the poverty line. I am most anxious to get back to sunny California but I have a sinking feeling that I will be forced to stay here longer for a post doc.
Rob Bayt bayt@mit.edu MIT, Boston, MA I am continuing to chug along the PhD track at MIT. I am finishing up the computational simulation of a micronozzle, and will actually fabricate micronozzles in the January timeframe. I got together with the academy alums this summer at the reunion as well as at the GSRP symposium. I am anxiously awaiting the Veterans day bash. I dont think Boston will be able to handle it.....
Dr. Aprille Ericsson-Jackson GSFC, NASA My Softball Team, The Hardrock Senators has done it again. This year at the NSA Worlds Coed Softball in Atlanta we placed higher than last year. We placed 4th and recieved a huge trophy. Last year we placed 5th in Columbus, OH. The year before that we placed 7th in Atlanta,GA. We are on our way to Euless, Tx for the USSSA Worlds Coed Softball. Last year we played in Phoenix, AZ and placed 14. On a more technical note, I am being awarded at the National Technical Association (NTA) conference in Cleveland, OH for Top Women in the Science, Engineering And Technology on Oct. 18, 1996.
Lawrence K. McGovern lmcgovern@draper.com C.S.Draper Laboratory Somerville, MA M.S. - MIT 1996, Aeronautical/Astronautical Engineering Beginning Fall of 1997, I will be returning to MIT to begin a doctoral program. Until then, I am working across the street at Draper Lab, continuing my research in feedback control.
Matthew P. Lowry lowrymp@physics.purdue.edu http://london.physics.purdue.edu/~lowrymp/homepage.html Well, after two years of grad school, I received my Masters degree in physics in May; upon gaining my degree, I've decided to enter into a teaching career. Unfortunately, this means two MORE years of school to get my public teaching certificate. In the interim, I'm still working at Purdue and I have a part-time position at a local community college. Carmen (my wife) is facing having to write her Master's thesis soon, so I'll have to anchor her over the next year or so. She, the cat, and my-self are all doing relatively well here in the Land of the Corn.
Heather Thomas cima021@cima.it Firenze, Italia I am now an art history student at Lorenzo de'Medici in Florence, Italy. I will be studying here until May. Trying to see how old I can be before I have to get a real job
Srimal Wangu wangu@rocket.sanders.lockheed.com I'm working for Lockheed Martin, at Sanders, in Nashua, NH. Right now I'm doing systems engineering for the X-33's Vehicle Health Management System.
Dr. Mike Lisano
JSC, NASA Houston TX
(reprint of an earlier message)
Well, this morning I had the distinct pleasure of meeting Dan Goldin,
Buzz Aldrin, and T. K. Mattingly in one fell swoop. The occasion for
this was my listening to Dan Goldin speak at the AIAA/MTS Sea Space
Symposium, across the street at the Clear Lake Hilton. No one stopped
me, so I just walked up to the front row like I owned the place, sat in
one of the front row seats, and listened to what he had to say about his
topic: a vision of the future of space exploration. I wish you all could
have been here with me; for Dan Goldin gave a marvelous talk, which I'm
still "ringing" from hours later. (I realize many of the Academy alums,
particularly in classes of more recent years, have had the to meet with
Goldin, but back in the first summer of NASA Academy (or, as it was
called then, Space Academy) we hadn't yet obtained the "visibility" to
get his attention. So today's encounter was, personally, a real treat
for me.)
When Goldin took the podium after being introduced, he looked like a
man who had something on his mind. His eyes flashed as he spoke, in a
New York accent that made him stand out among us Texans (he did,
however, wear cowboy boots with his suit, a nice touch we all thought).
He started his talk in a hushed tone of voice, saying "On this November
6, at about 2:00 in the morning, the human race will begin to go to
Mars." He then talked for the next hour about the flotilla of Mars
exploratory probes that we and the Russians will be sending between now
and 2005 to Mars; about the Space Station and the importance of human
weightlessness research; about the potential for life having existed on
Mars and Europa (of course, he talked about "The Rock"), and the
technical challenges of exploration (yes, including human exploration)
of these places; and about the technical challenges of
building an orbiting interferometer for viewing planets around other
stars (restricted to the stars within 100 light years of here).
His excitement grew as he spoke; it was plainly visible that the top
guy of NASA is as much of an enthusiast about humanity's exploration of
space as any one of us. The point he led up to was this: we are not
there yet, it is true. There are many technical challenges and holes in
our knowledge we must overcome. But after we send all these probes and
orbiters to Mars, do a sample return mission or maybe two, then "we"
("we" being NASA, and anyone else who buys into this vision) go to the
White House and say "We did our homework. We also know how to sustain
human life in space. It's time to send people to Mars." So THIS is what
Dan Goldin has on his mind!
The technical content of his talk was not particularly surprising
for anyone who's been keeping abreast of the latest news. But what
really gave me a charge was this: Here was NASA's administrator, laying
out a step-by-step roadmap, a very specific roadmap, which points to a
sustainable human presence, gradually but ultimately, on other worlds.
It really is a breathtaking vision of the future that he presented; I am
glad that NASA's leader has a bold, but realizable, vision in addition
to his infectious enthusiasm and respectable political savvy.
Then he was asked a question about the NASA budget. He answered in a
very to-the-point manner: "NASA's problem is not its budget. NASA's
problem is its attitude. There have been times when our budget was much
larger than it is now, and we did much, much less. Budget is NOT the
problem." He was emphatic about the future of NASA's role in space
exploration. The operational side of space exploration will be more and
more handed over to the commercial sector, he said. NASA will evolve
into an agency which does long-term research and development, to carry
out the above vision, as a service to the American taxpayer, should the
American taxpayer continue to perceive it all as worthwhile.
Goldin's speech was met with sustained, loud applause from the
audience, which included aerospace engineers, aerospace company
officials, astronauts, as well as our sea-faring counterparts, the deep
sea explorers, oil company engineers and executives.
I met Goldin after his talk (he was out in the foyer chatting with
Buzz Aldrin and T. K. Mattingly, so I kind of butted in and said "Hi
Dan, I'm Mike Lisano." (The other guys took my interruption in stride,
very kindly.) I told him that I was an alumnus of Jerry Soffen's NASA
Academy (you'll get my bill, Jerry). He reacted with some surprise. I
then explained that I am the Houston NASA Academy alumni association,
and told him that I would send a note to all the Academy members about
what he told us this morning. He smiled and said "Send 'em all the same
message I just gave you."