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National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA September 2005 www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/news/astrogram/2005/05astrograms.html Combined Federal Campaign launches On Sept. 19, NASA Administrator Michael Griffin released the results of the agency's Exploration Systems Ar- chitecture Study - a blueprint for the next generation of spacecraft to take humans back to the moon and on to Mars and other destinations. The study makes specific design recommendations for a vehicle to carry crews into space, a family of launch vehicles to take crews to the moon and beyond, and a "lunar mission architec- ture" for landing on the moon. It also recommends the technologies NASA should pursue in the near term. The study will assist NASA in achieving President Bush's Vision for Space Exploration, which calls for the agency to safely return the space shuttle to flight, complete the International Space Station, return to the moon, and continue exploration of Mars and be- yond. America's next generation space- craft will use an improved, blunt-body crew capsule, and will accommodate up to six people. "This spacecraft and its systems will build upon the foundation of the proven designs and technologies used in the Apollo and space shuttle programs, while having far greater ca- pability," Griffin said. "It will be able to carry larger and heavier cargos into space and allow more people to stay on the moon for longer periods of time." The new spacecraft can be config- ured either to support human explorers or fly unpiloted to carry cargo. Its de- sign allows the flexibility to ferry crews of three astronauts, plus additional sup- plies, to and from the International Space Administrator unveils strategy for space exploration Station, take four crew members to lu- nar orbit, and eventually maintain up to six astronauts on a mission to Mars. Crews and cargo will be carried into orbit by a space shuttle-derived launch system, consisting of a solid rocket booster and an upper stage pow- ered by a shuttle main engine that can lift 25 metric tons. The spacecraft also will be 10 times safer than the space shuttle because of its in-line design and launch-abort system. NASA chose the shuttle-derived option for its launch sys- tem due to its superior safety, cost and its availability. Specifically, the space shuttle's main engines and solid rocket boosters are reliable and rated for human space flight. Much of the industrial base and hard- Members of the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) team hold the CFC banner. Left to right: Former representative for the CFC Bay Area board Herb Finger; deputy chairperson Andy Hocker; Ames campaign chairperson Larry Lasher; loaned executive to the CFC office Dennis Romano and Ames representative for the CFC Bay Area board Don Durston. Acting Deputy Director Steve Zornetzer was unavailable for the picture. NASA photo by Tom Trower continued on page 8 The new ship will be able to ferry crew and supplies to the International Space Station. Plans call for as many as six trips to the outpost a year. In the meantime, robotic missions will lay the groundwork for lunar exploration. In 2018, humans will return to the moon. Here's how a mission would unfold: A heavy-lift rocket blasts off, carrying a lunar lander and a "departure stage" needed to leave Earth's orbit (above left). The crew launches separately (above center), then docks their capsule with the lander and departure stage and heads for the moon (above right). continued on page 6 NASA Ames has an ambitious goal of raising $240,000 for the Com- bined Federal Campaign (CFC) this year to allow it to stand out as an outstanding and generous member and super hero of the community. Ames can be a good neighbor and

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Page 1: Combined Federal Campaign launches - NASA€¦ · Combined Federal Campaign launches ... Travis A. Liggett Contractor Employee ... contributions of the people in the Fluid Mechanics

National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA

September 2005

www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/news/astrogram/2005/05astrograms.html

Combined Federal Campaign launches

On Sept. 19, NASA AdministratorMichael Griffin released the results ofthe agency's Exploration Systems Ar-chitecture Study - a blueprint for thenext generation of spacecraft to take

humans back to the moon and on toMars and other destinations.

The study makes specific designrecommendations for a vehicle to carrycrews into space, a family of launchvehicles to take crews to the moon andbeyond, and a "lunar mission architec-ture" for landing on the moon. It alsorecommends the technologies NASAshould pursue in the near term.

The study will assist NASA inachieving President Bush's Vision forSpace Exploration, which calls for theagency to safely return the space shuttleto flight, complete the InternationalSpace Station, return to the moon, andcontinue exploration of Mars and be-yond. America's next generation space-craft will use an improved, blunt-bodycrew capsule, and will accommodate upto six people. "This spacecraft and itssystems will build upon the foundationof the proven designs and technologiesused in the Apollo and space shuttleprograms, while having far greater ca-pability," Griffin said. "It will be able tocarry larger and heavier cargos into spaceand allow more people to stay on themoon for longer periods of time."

The new spacecraft can be config-ured either to support human explorersor fly unpiloted to carry cargo. Its de-sign allows the flexibility to ferry crewsof three astronauts, plus additional sup-plies, to and from the International Space

Administrator unveils strategy for space explorationStation, take four crew members to lu-nar orbit, and eventually maintain up tosix astronauts on a mission to Mars.

Crews and cargo will be carriedinto orbit by a space shuttle-derived

launch system, consisting of a solidrocket booster and an upper stage pow-ered by a shuttle main engine that canlift 25 metric tons. The spacecraft alsowill be 10 times safer than the space

shuttle because of its in-line design andlaunch-abort system. NASA chose theshuttle-derived option for its launch sys-tem due to its superior safety, cost andits availability.

Specifically, the space shuttle's mainengines and solid rocket boosters arereliable and rated for human space flight.Much of the industrial base and hard-

Members of the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) team hold the CFC banner. Left to right:Former representative for the CFC Bay Area board Herb Finger; deputy chairperson AndyHocker; Ames campaign chairperson Larry Lasher; loaned executive to the CFC office DennisRomano and Ames representative for the CFC Bay Area board Don Durston. Acting DeputyDirector Steve Zornetzer was unavailable for the picture.

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continued on page 8

The new ship will be able to ferry crew and supplies to the International Space Station. Plans call for as many as six trips to the outpost a year. In themeantime, robotic missions will lay the groundwork for lunar exploration. In 2018, humans will return to the moon. Here's how a mission would unfold: Aheavy-lift rocket blasts off, carrying a lunar lander and a "departure stage" needed to leave Earth's orbit (above left). The crew launches separately (abovecenter), then docks their capsule with the lander and departure stage and heads for the moon (above right).

continued on page 6

NASA Ames has an ambitiousgoal of raising $240,000 for the Com-bined Federal Campaign (CFC) thisyear to allow it to stand out as an

outstanding and generous memberand super hero of the community.Ames can be a good neighbor and

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Astrogram September 20052

Technology DevelopmentEdwin F. EricksonRobert E. McMurray

TechnicianKent A. Stednitz

Technical SupportPatricia B. HudsonJohn F. Schipper

Supervisor/ManagerDaniel M. BuftonMark H. KlissEugene L. TuSerdar Uckun

StudentBrooke H. Cole

Scientist/ResearcherWilliam J. BoruckiViktor Stolc

Safety and EnvironmentRichard H. MogfordCheryl M. Quinn

Project ManagerHoward N. Cannonand Stephen E. Dunagan(co-winners)

NASA EmployeeReynaldo J. Gomez (JSC Employee)

MentorChristopher P. McKay

Group/TeamAirspace Concept Evaluation TeamAmes Child Care Center New Facility Project Management TeamAmes Management System Development and Certification TeamNASA Ames Video Production GroupLife Sciences Hyper-G TeamThe New Business Office GroupSystem Evaluation and Assessment Data Analysis TeamUnitary Plan Wind Tunnel - MMA Test Team

EEOTravis A. Liggett

Contractor EmployeeDavid W. Bogdanoff, ELORETNathalie A. Cabrol, SETI InstituteSergio Castellanos, Solution QuestBrian H. Day, Planners CollaborativeCharissa S. Kolar, Muniz Technologies, Inc.Celeste J. Merryman, Lockheed Martin EngineeringPepsi Phounrath, Muniz Technologies, Inc.Michael D. Wong, Raytheon

Community Service/VolunteerKevin L. Jones

Commercialization/Tech Transfer AwardFuture Air-Traffic-Management Concepts Evaluation ToolMeyya Meyyappan and Jun Li

Best First Paper at AmesShannon J. Zelinski

Administrative ProfessionalBetsy RobinsonLupe M. Velasquez

Ames lauds recipients of 2005 Honor Awards

EngineerWayne R. JohnsonJoseph P. Lavelle

NASA Ames Center Director G. Scott Hubbard personally thanked the Ames teams who supportedthe return to flight (RTF) for the monumental effort put forth by the teams to make RTF possible.He addressed them at a reception held in the lobby of Bldg. 200 on Sept. 8 honoring thecontributions of the people in the Fluid Mechanics Laboratory, debris transport team, thermalreentry analysis team, Project Columbia, wind tunnels and public affairs office.

NASA photo by Tom Trower

Ames RTF teams acknowledged

The 2005 Ames Honor Awards werepresented at a recognition ceremony onSept 1. This center-sponsored programfeatures a peer nomination process andis considered one of Ames' most presti-gious honors. Congratulations to allhonorees!

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3Astrogram September 2005

Gathering of Eagles. From left to right: Former NASA Ames Center Director Hans Mark (thirddirector, 1969-1977); former NASA Administrator Dan Goldin; former NASA Ames Center DirectorHenry McDonald (eighth director, 1996 - 2002); Jack Boyd with his grandson Zachery Hovey;former NASA Ames Center Director Sy Syvertson (fourth director, 1977-1984); and former NASAAmes Center Director Bill Ballhaus (fifth director, 1984-1989) at Boyd’s 80th birthday partycelebration bash held at Ames in August.

I would like to thank mymany friends at Ames for anunforgettable 80th birthdayparty. Those who believethey have accomplishedsomething in their livesshould pause for a momentand consider all those whohelped them along the way.I certainly had thatopportunity on my birthday,when you all helped me andmy family to celebrate it. Itwas truly the pinnacle of themany events I havecelebrated at NASA. I amhonored and proud to be apart of this incrediblefamily. I thank you!

-- Ol’ Jack

NASA Ames celebrates historian Jack Boyd’s birthdayFew people have influenced the cul-

ture and ethos of NASA, and especiallyof NASA Ames, as profoundly as JackBoyd.

Throughout his first 58 years of pub-lic service, Boyd's work, words andsmiles have welcomed us all into theAmes family. Perhaps he is like a finewine, that only gets deeper and moreenjoyable with age.

For all that he is, his dedication tothe center has earned him countlesscircles of friends around the center, andthese circles of friends joined together atAmes to celebrate his 80th birthday onAug. 19 in the NASA Ames ConferenceCenter.

Like Boyd's office door, the invita-tion was open to everyone -- to all thosehe has mentored, inspired, advised, re-lied upon, calmed, researched besideand committeed with.

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Several members of NASA Ames'Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team(DART), representing several special-ties, have responded to calls for on-the-scene support of rescue and recoveryefforts in the aftermath of HurricaneKatrina.

Shortly after the disaster occurred,the NASA Ames Emergency OperationsCenter (EOC) was activated and workedwith the NASA Headquarters EOC andwith other EOCs throughout the agencysupporting NASA's hurricane relief ef-forts. Robert J. Dolci, director of emer-gency services at Ames, was called tosupport the Stennis Space Center EOCled by Bill Parsons, who was recentlynamed the new director of Stennis, nearGulfport, Miss.

Both Stennis and the Michoud As-sembly Facility near New Orleans, La.,were hit hard by the hurricane. Ap-proximately 3,500 NASA civil serviceand contractor employees work at thetwo facilities, in addition to some 4,600employees of other federal agencies.

On Aug. 30, DART water rescuespecialist John Preston was deployed aspart of a 14-person flood response teamsent to the hurricane zone by CaliforniaTask Force 3 out of Menlo Park. Theteam returned to the Bay Area on Sept.16.

Ames assists hurricane relief effortsDART rescue specialists Mark

Tangney, Roger Miller, Lynn Bala, PaulBrown, Eric Mueller, Kelly Kasser andErik Rockwell deployed with the 70-person California Task Force 3 on Aug.31 to support the search and rescue andrecovery efforts in the New Orleans area.On Sept. 16, CNN covered the rescue ofa 71-year old man by members of thetask force. Tangney, deputy chief ofDART, reported that the team was ac-companied by the Coast Guard, U.S.Fish and Game, and the National Guard,for security.

A three-person emergency commu-nications team from NASA Ames flewto Huntsville, Ala., to help establish com-munications at Michoud. The team alsoshipped emergency communicationsequipment and purchased $50,000 ofsatellite time to support satellite com-munications. Team members includedBill Notley and Bill Hunt (QSS) of CodeJTN, and Code TN network engineerDave Hartzell. Michael Wright also de-ployed to support the emergency com-munications team in early September.The Ames team quickly and efficientlyset up an emergency satellite/networkand voice communications services atMichoud, providing the first stable com-

continued on page 4

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Astrogram September 20054

More than 40 volunteerdocents and their guests werewelcomed at Chase Park onSept. 14 in appreciation oftheir valuable contributions tothe operation of the AmesExploration Encounter (AEE).Many of the AEE docents alsosupport the Ames ExplorationCenter, JASON Project, AeroExpo, as well as various otherNASA events.

Team NASA holds annual recognition picnic in Chase Park

NASA photo by Astrid Terlep

munications available to local rescuepersonnel.

A water purification team fromAmes - IAP contractors Jill Moudy, MattClapp, Ian Vines and Danny Garo --rolled out the gate on Sept 7, headed forStennis. Their equipment included awater purification unit, supplies for thatunit, water, provisions, medical packetsprovided by the Ames Health Unit andother support equipment. After a 46+-hour drive, the team arrived at Stennis.

The next morning they were escorted bya military convoy to the Michoud As-sembly Facility, where they quickly setto work providing potable water (at 3000gallons per hour) for the many employ-ees working to restore that facility. Theycontinue to purify more than 50,000 gal-lons of potable water every day.

As the area slowly recovers fromthe destruction of Hurricane Katrina,and as Hurricane Rita bears down onthe same area, members of DART stand

continued from page 3

Ames assists hurricane relief effortsready to provide continuing assistancein a variety of areas, as they have follow-ing other natural disasters and terroristattacks. DART members remain onstand-by, and as many as 50 additionalDART members could be deployed ifrequested by the Federal EmergencyManagement Agency.

For more information about DART,visit: http://dart.arc.nasa.gov/index.html

BY ANN SULLIVAN

NASA photo by Jon-Pierre Wiens

NASA transformation creates challenges, opportunitiesDuring an all-hands meeting on

Aug. 26, NASA Ames Research Cen-ter Director G. Scott Hubbard out-lined the changes and challenges fac-ing Ames during NASA's transfor-mation to meet the requirements ofthe Vision for Space Exploration.Hubbard assured employees that"Ames is not closing or being starvedout." Nonetheless, Hubbard alsowarned that some of the effects of thetransformation would be painful forAmes over the next few years as NASAmakes the most sweeping changes in35 years.

Among the challenges facingAmes is a budget shortfall of some$250 million in FY 2007, comparedwith FY 2004. As a result, Ames hasan unfunded work force of about 700people in FY 2006 - 300 civil servantsand 400 contractors, according toHubbard. Although the center didget a very important boost from theagency through the commitment tocreate an agency-wide transition pro-

cess that will help take unfundedcivil servants through FY 2006,Hubbard said Ames will initiate re-ductions in its on-site contractor workforce and begin developing a newtransition work force pool for civilservants.

"We will make every effort tofind new work for our civil servantstaff either at Ames or elsewhere inNASA," Hubbard vowed. He notedthat the centers that are primary ben-eficiaries of the Vision for Space Ex-ploration cannot hire new employ-ees to support the Vision withoutfirst consulting with other centers,like Ames, to see if the work can bedone there.

Positive news included the factthat Ames has been assigned the newRobotic Lunar Exploration Programand will play a major role in NASA'snext lunar mission. In addition,Ames will be on the critical path forthe CEV with respect to thermal pro-tection systems and information tech-

nologies. Hubbard predicted thatother opportunities will follow asAmes demonstrates it can deliver.

"If we all work together, we canmanage our way through this valleyand come out the other side strongerand healthier," Hubbard asserted.

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5Astrogram September 2005

Question:What types of contraband items

are located during random vehicleinspections?

Answer:The following items have been

found during vehicle inspections:Firearms, unlawful knives, unlawfulweapons (brass knuckles, billy clubs,etc.), drugs and drug paraphernalia.

Per the Code of Federal Regula-tions, Title 14, Volume 5,(14CFR1204.1003) “Unauthorized in-troduction of weapons or dangerousmaterials is prohibited on NASA realproperty or installations. Unless spe-cifically authorized by NASA, youmay not carry, transport, introduce,

Ask the ‘Protective Services Wizard’

store or use firearms or other danger-ous weapons, explosives or other in-cendiary devices, or other dangerousinstrument or material likely to pro-duce substantial injury or damage topersom or property.”

Per section 12020 PC, these dan-gerous weapons include: “any canegun or wallet gun, undetectable fire-arm, a firearm which is not immedi-ately recognizable as a firearm, anycamouflage firearm container, ammu-nition which contains or consists offlechette dart, any bullet containingor carrying an explosive agent, ballis-tic knife, multi-burst trigger activator,nun-chaku, short-barreled shotgun,short-barreled rifle, metal knuckles,

belt buckle knife, leaded cane, zipgun, shuriken, unconventional pistol,lipstick case knife, cane sword, shobi-zue, air gauge knife, writing pen knife,metal military practice hand-grenadeor metal replica hand-grenade, or in-strument or weapon of the kind com-monly known as a blackjack slung-shot, billy or sand-club, sap, sandbag,or dirk or dagger.”

Do you have a question for theProtective Services Wizard? Thenforward your security question [email protected]. You canalso visit the Protective Services Website at http://pso.arc.nasa.gov forfurther information.

From Sept. 6 to Sept. 9, NASAAmes observed ‘Security Week,’ aNASA-wide event designed to promoteinformation and physical securityawareness throughout the agency. Insupport of Security Week, Code J CenterOperations sponsored a 2-day, center-wide security event, planned and hostedby subject matter experts from the CodeJT Information Technology (IT) SecurityAwareness team and the Code JP Pro-tective Services Awareness team.

Together, the teams staffed tablesin the Ames Cafeteria, providing secu-rity-related materials, answering ques-tions, showing security videos anddistributing small give-away items tohelp keep everyone mindful of securityon a day-to-day basis. Other NASAcenters also took part in Security Week,hosting their own center-wide eventsfor the week.

Staffing the tables during the two-day event, representing both Protective Services and ITSecurity Awareness Teams are: (seated left to right) Karol Broussard, Elizabeth Mulleda,Tony Damian (standing), Kimberley Walsh, Nicole Le (standing), Suzanne Meyer, HelenStewart and Rosalind Miller. Ames historian Jack Boyd (far right) takes the IT security quizchallenge to win additional give-away items.

‘Security Week’ events hosted at NASA Ames

BY ROSALIND MILLER

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Contraband found during vehicle inspections

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Astrogram September 20056

Green sand found on the big islandof Hawaii resembles olivine crystals inthe icy interior of comet Tempel 1, ac-cording to a NASA Ames astrophysi-cist.

Scientists revealed that they detectedgreen silicate crystals (olivine) in Tempel1 similar to, but smaller than, Hawaiiangreen sand particles, according to ar-

ticles by the researchers in the Sept. 15,2005, issue of the journal Science Ex-press. They made their observationsbefore, during and after the NASA DeepImpact spacecraft's 820-pound 'impac-tor' collided with the comet in early July2005, as planned, so astronomers coulddetermine what is in comets. The papersoutline findings scientists made usinginfrared detectors on the Gemini andSubaru telescopes in Hawaii.

"The silicate crystals are talcum pow-der-size, but they are made of the samematerials as the green sand beaches inHawaii," said Ames' Diane Wooden, aco-author of both papers. The principalauthor of the Gemini Telescope paper isDavid Harker, University of California,San Diego. Seiji Sugita of the Universityof Tokyo is the principal author of thesecond Subaru Telescope paper.

"Following the collision of the cometwith the 'impactor,' there was a short-lived gas geyser associated with theimpact site that carried the crystals fromTempel 1 into space," Wooden said. "TheGemini and the Subaru telescopes aretwo of the biggest in the world, and wewere able to focus in on the green dustparticles in the jet and ejecta - somethingthat most space-borne telescopes couldnot see in infrared light," she noted.

“The insides of comet Tempel 1 lookvery much like the outsides of cometsthat have not been 'cooked' by passagesclose to the sun," Wooden said. She ex-plained that there might be green sili-cates on the surfaces of comets thatswarm in the outer reaches of the solarsystem and are not exposed to intensesunshine.

Another comet, Hale-Bopp, was soactive that it released green silicate crys-tals as it passed close to the sun in 1997,according to Wooden.

"However, the Deep Impactspacecraft's 'impactor' had to blast thegreen silicate crystals from the interiorof the comet Tempel 1 for us to see themwith our ground-based instruments,"she noted.

Tempel 1 travels close to the sunduring part of the comet's orbit, andstrong sunlight hits the comet, causingits surface gases and other particles tofly off into space. These particles arewhat make up a comet's tail, which formsnearer the sun. "In Tempel 1's case, it haspassed near the sun so many times thatit has lost much of its surface gases andparticles," said Wooden.

"What's incredible to me is that thesurface - or maybe the fluffiness of thebody of Tempel 1 -- is protecting theprimitive particles and gases just belowthe surface from being out-gassed," ven-tured Wooden.

"We discovered crystalline silicatesin the dust that flew from the comet afterits collision with the Deep Impact 'im-pactor.' We don't usually see these sili-cates in comets that have been 'cooked'by the sun," Wooden explained.

Digital images of olivine particlesfrom a green sand beach in Hawaii andother images related to this story can befound at:http://www.nasa.gov/cen-ters/ames/multimedia/images/2005/olivine.html

A movie is available on-line thatshows the collision of the comet withDeep Impact's projectile: http://w w w . n a s a . g o v / m o v /121527main_MRI_impact.mov

NASA finds green crystals in Comet Tempel 1

BY JOHN BLUCK

Gemini mid-infrared, false color images of comet Tempel 1 minutes before impact (left), 3 hours after(center) and 24 hours after impact (right.)

Photos courtesy of Gemini Observatory/AURA.

ware to support this option are alreadyin place, which will significantly lowerdevelopment costs. Future lunar explo-ration missions will be supported by aheavy cargo launch vehicle consistingof five space shuttle main engines, andtwo five-segment shuttle solid-propel-lant rocket boosters. This combinationyields a lift capability of 106 metric tonsto low Earth orbit, and 125 metric tons,if it incorporates an Earth-departurestage. Although primarily designed tocarry cargo, this system can be human-rated to carry crew into orbit.

The study lays out a deliberate, mile-stone-driven journey to the moon forNASA. Returning to the moon and sus-taining a presence there will demon-strate that humans can survive on an-

other world, and will build confidencethat astronauts can venture still fartherinto space and stay for longer periods.NASA's return to the moon will openopportunities for fundamental sciencein astrobiology, lunar geology, exobiol-ogy, astronomy and physics.

The journey will start with roboticmissions between 2008 and 2011 to study,map and learn about the lunar surface.These early missions will help deter-mine lunar landing sites and whetherresources, such as oxygen, hydrogenand metals, are available for use inNASA's long-term lunar explorationobjectives.

Griffin stated that all NASA fieldcenters will participate in the new ex-ploration initiative.

Space exploration strategy unveiledcontinued from front page

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7Astrogram September 2005

Retired NASA scientist finds place in history twiceWhen Dr. Delbert Philpott began

his Ames career in the basement of build-ing 214 in 1964, working on electronmicroscopes, neither he nor his col-

leagues realized Philpott would findhimself in the midst of world events notjust once, but twice.

Philpott eventually went on to headthe electron microscope facility and re-tired in 1990. But long before NASA,Philpott was an Army foot solider inWorld War II when fate put him squarelyin the middle of one of the great turningpoints in 20th century history, 60 yearsago this year.

On April 25, 1945, Russian andAmerican troops joined forces in Torgau,Germany, on the Elbe River. The link-upunified the eastern and western frontsof the war in Europe and effectivelydivided Germany in two. It marked thebeginning of the Cold War. As one of the69th Infantry soldiers gathered there thatday, Philpott was photographed in agroup of American and Russian soldiers( see above photo) happily reaching outto greet each other. This historic mo-ment was captured by camera and ap-peared in newspapers around the world.

Sixty years later, former soldiersfrom 50 countries were invited to Russiafor a grand commemoration of the ‘GreatPatriotic War,’ as the war is known toRussians. Philpott was one of the 10

American veterans believed to partici-pate in a huge celebration in Moscow onMay 9. Philpott felt that this 60th anni-versary gathering would be a great and

heartwarmingexperience. Healso felt someresponsibility inrepresenting theveterans, espe-cially those whowere killed.70,000 troopswere brought infor tightened se-curity in RedSquare. Aftermany speechesby world lead-ers and miles ofmilitary pa-rades, the veter-ans were invitedto the Kremlinfor an officialstate banquet.

Philpott thought he would be sitting at atable with his fellow vets, but uponarriving, he wasasked to sit at the‘Presidents’ Table’with heads ofstates as the repre-sentative of theveterans group.To his surprise,Philpott wasseated alongsidethe presidents ofChina and Russia,as well as Presi-dent Bush. He hadthe pleasure of sit-ting next to FirstLady Laura Bush.

“I turned toMrs. Bush andasked her if shecan do me a fa-vor.” She looked at me with astonish-ment. “Can you pinch me, because Idon’t believe this is happening,” Philpottsaid.

Mrs. Bush was very gracious andeasy to chat with. Philpott was inform-ing her about a book that he and his wife

had edited called ‘Hands Across theElbe,’ and that he had been trying togive a copy to President Bush and Rus-sian President Putin. Mrs. Bush raisedher hand and her assistant ran to her.She stated, “Make sure President Bushand President Putin get a copy of thisbook.”

Philpott then asked Mrs. Bush if itwas possible to get a picture of him withPresident Bush. Mrs. Bush, once again,raised her hand and this time, caughtMr. Bush’s eye. Mrs. Bush let Mr. Bushknow that Philpott wanted to take apicture with him. The president re-sponded “you don’t want a picture withjust one president,” so President Bushasked President Putin to join in the pic-ture. Philpott was ecstatic.

Since retiring from NASA, Philpotthas periodically worked at Ames withvisiting Russian scientists on the Cos-mos program. His space radiation stud-ies were flown on three of the RussianCosmos satellites. Philpott also partici-pated in flying five pocket mice to themoon on Apollo 17 and had experi-ments on several shuttle flights. He and

his wife later edited the ‘Hands Acrossthe Elbe’ book, a collection of some ofthe Russian – American link-up stories.

(Left to right) Delbert Philpott, President Bush and Russian PresidentPutin during Philpott’s visit to Moscow in May for the grandcommemoration of the ‘Great Patriotic War.’

Delbert Philpott, 69th Infantry soldier, second from left, reaches out toRussian soldiers on April 25, 1945.

BY TERRY PAGADUAN AND

KELLY GARCIA

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Astrogram September 20058

Larry Lasher (front, center) CFC chairperson for Ames, at the food bank exhibit in Oakland.

BY LARRY LASHER

2005 CFC CHAIRPERSON

Combined Federal Campaign kick off event held recently at the courtyard of the OaklandFederal Building.

sensitive to those in need around us;Ames has proven in the past to be themost generous government donor in theBay Area - a reputation to live up to. TheAmes campaign will run from Oct. 12 toNov. 1.

There are two important changes inthe way Combined Federal Campaign(CFC) operates this year. For the firsttime, to improve the efficiency of thecampaign, there has been a 2005 CFCmerger by the Santa Clara/San Benitocounties CFC (those canvassed by Ames)with the Greater San Francisco Bay AreaCFC. This will lead to better coordina-tion of the fund-raising efforts and af-ford substantial cost savings in financialaccounting and auditing. The secondbig change is the introduction of eCFC,which enables a simple and private wayof contributing to your favorite charitieselectronically by using WebTADS.

The Combined Federal Campaignallows you to specify the agencies ofyour choice to donate to or you maywish to give to the CFC in general, whichthen distributes the money in propor-tion to the monies received by the chari-ties designated by other donors. TheCFC brochure lists hundreds of agen-cies to consider and can be viewed on

continued from front page

Be a superhero - support CFC

the Inside-Ames Web site. Check foryour favorite agencies by using thesearch engine.

A stirring video on the CFC can beseen on the Web at http://www.cfcsfbaysv.org/

There are several good reasons togive to the CFC:

•Assist the Gulf states hurricaneand flood relief effort;

• Exhibit NASA Ames pride in sup-

Combined Federal Campaign (CFC)

porting the community;• Help the less fortunate; and• Benefit from IRS deduction for

charity donation.If you have any questions, contact

the campaign chairperson, Larry Lasher,at ext. 4-3076 or the deputy chairperson,Andy Hocker at ext 4-4120.

Greater San Francisco Bay Area/Santa Clara and San Benito Counties

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9Astrogram September 2005

Ames Safety Week, Sept. 19-22, featured a number of programs andtraining opportunities to increase employee safety awareness. The weekbegan with a celebration of Ames’ achievement of VPP recertification atthe STAR level for maintaining an excellent safety and health program.In recognition of the accomplishment, Occupational Health and SafetyOrganization (OSHA) Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) managerPauline Caraher presented a plaque to Ames center management andemployee union representatives. Left to right: NASA Ames DeputyCenter Director (acting) Steven Zornetzer, Suzanne Meyer, ChristopherKnight, Pauline Caraher, Michael Dudley, chief, Safety, Environmentaland Mission Assurance Office and Dora Herrera.

NASA photo by Tom Trower

Ames safety week kicks off with VPP STAR recertification

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NASA Research Park event highlights robotics

Students demonstrate speedy,student-built robots.

Guests at the NRP open house enjoy theexhibits.

The NASA Research Park (NRP)Division hosted an open house andNRP lecture at Ames on Sept. 20.The well-attended open house in-cluded exhibits from a variety ofNRP partners and robotics demon-strations from NASA's Robotics Al-liance Project and Carnegie MellonUniversity's West Coast Campus.

The NRP lecture, presented toa standing-room-only crowd, fea-tured famed robotics expert, Dr.William "Red" Whittaker, who dis-cussed 'Racing for the Future,' histeam's efforts to win the $2 millionDARPA Grand Challenge Prize.

"Red" Whittaker describes the GrandChallenge race to be run Oct. 8.

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Astrogram September 200510

Aeronautics Director Leroy ‘Skip’ Fletcher bids farewell to Ames

BY JONAS DINO

Astronomer Cynthia Phillips willgive a non-technical, illustrated talkon: Jupiter’s Tantalizing Moon: Water(and Life?) Under the Ice of Europa.

Date: Oct. 5, 7 p.m.Place: Smithwick Theater Foothill College

El Monte Road and Freeway 280

Los Altos Hills

Silicon Valley Astronomy lecture presents

Mike George (right) deputy director ofAeronautics, presents Skip Fletcher with a windtunnel clock as a farewell momento atFletcher's retirement party. Fletcher started hiscareer at NASA working in the Ames windtunnels.

The event is free and open to thepublic. Parking on campus costs $2.Call the series hotline at (650) 949-7888 for more information.

The event is co-sponsored byNASA Ames, the Foothill College As-tronomy Program, the SETI Instituteand the Astronomical Society of thePacific.

Leroy ‘Skip’ Fletcher

During his six-plus year tenure asAmes' director for aeronautics, Leroy'Skip' Fletcher faced the daunting task ofbalancing the aeronautics traditions andcapabilities developed as a part of the

National Advisory Committee for Aero-nautics with a need to invest in newareas. Under Fletcher's leadership, Amespursued research opportunities in fledg-ling areas of aeronautics.

"When Skip Fletcher came to Ames,he inherited an aeronautics program ina state of transition," said NASA AmesResearch Center Director G. ScottHubbard. "He took on the tough chal-lenge of helping the organization trans-form itself with determination, courage,vision and skill. Skip's hard work andleadership are an inspiration to us all."

"Dr. Fletcher has been a valuableasset to Ames and to the agency duringhis time at Ames. His knowledge offundamental aerodynamics, coupledwith a ready understanding of new are-nas for research such as air traffic man-agement modernization, have helpedmaintain Ames's continued contribu-tions to aeronautics," said Associate Ad-ministrator for Aeronautics Research atNASA Headquarters, J. Victor Lebacqz.Lebacqz served as Ames' deputy aero-nautics director under Fletcher beforetaking his post at headquarters.

Because of these efforts, the FederalAviation Administration (FAA) looksto Ames as the leader in the develop-ment of decision support software and apartner in the transformation of theNational Airspace System. Today, soft-ware tools such as Surface ManagementAdvisor and Multi-Center Traffic Man-agement Advisor are installed at some

of the nation's major airports with fur-ther plans for expansion.

Ames also has actively pursued thedevelopment of remotely controlled andautonomous aircraft and strengthenedthe capabilities of Ames' world-classsimulation facilities.

With advances in computer simula-tion and the implementation of 'full costrecovery,' physical facilities like windtunnels, ballistic ranges and arc jets de-creased in importance for many deci-sion makers. Under Fletcher's leader-ship, Ames was able to maintain muchof that expertise and capability. Amesstrengthened partnerships with tradi-tional aeronautics partners and activelypursued partnerships with other NASAcenters non-traditional partners.

This foresight paid dividends dur-ing the Mars Exploration Rover missionand NASA's Return to Flight efforts.The wind tunnel, ballistic range and arcjets were integral in verifying the com-puter models used in the redesign of thespace shuttle and subsequent missionsupport, including emergency wind tun-nel tests on the shuttle's thermal blanketto determine its safety for re-entry.

In addition to his contributions toAmes, Fletcher has made significant con-tributions to the aeronautics and engi-neering community. He is a member ofnumerous professional organizations in-cluding the American Institute of Aero-nautics (AIAA) and the American Soci-ety of Mechanical Engineers and hasbeen recognized numerous times for hisleadership and accomplishments.

"Through his leadership role in theAIAA and wide range of professionalacquaintances in that regard, he has ex-panded NASA's impact in the aerospacecommunity," said Lebacqz.

As aeronautics director and earlieras a budding engineer in the Ames wind

tunnels, Skip has made a lasting impres-sion.

"I have known Skip for about 50years when we were both a lot youngerworking in Ames wind tunnels," saidJack Boyd, NASA Ames historian. "Eventhen he had the Aggie mentality (TexasA & M) which was 'if it is broken, fix itnow', 'if it is not broken, fix it anywaybecause it probably will be broken bytomorrow'".

"Skip did us a great service by com-ing to Ames and I wish him the best inhis new/different endeavors. Take care,Skip, and 'Hook em Horns'."

Fletcher held the post of Ames di-rector for aeronautics from Feb. 1, 1999to Aug. 28, 2005. He returned to theDepartment of Mechanical Engineeringat Texas A&M to assume his duties asRegents and Thomas A. Dietz professor.

"It has been a real pleasure workingwith the Ames family over the past six-plus years - and my wish is that thecenter will continue to be the exciting,successful center that we have been inthe past," said Fletcher. "It will take team-work under the new paradigm of NASA,but I know that you all can do it!"

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11Astrogram September 2005

An uncommon ‘common’ man diedin Palo Cedro, Calif. Jacob Smith passedaway on June 28, 2005, surrounded byhis wife, his five children, and several

grandchildren, as they sang hymnsaround his bedside. Smith was 91 yearsold, and had been married to his wife for65 years.

Smith was born in Brewton Ala., onJune 3, 1914. His father died when Smithwas very young, and he spent his child-hood being raised by his mother. Lifewas difficult for Smith’s family, but hehad a wonderful relationship with hisbrother, Gordon, and his two sisters,Althea and Vivian. Soon after his gradu-ation from high school, he left Alabamafor Chicago, where he lived briefly be-fore making the trek to California.Shortly after arriving, he met the love ofhis life, Helen Beatrice Evans. And thatlove affair continued until he drew hisfinal breath, as she held his hand. Inother words, when Smith and Helensaid “Til death do us part,” they meantit.

Smith and Helen had been resi-dents of the Redding area since theyretired from Ames, moving from theBay Area to Palo Cedro in 1971. Prior tothat, Smith (his friends called him “Jake”)worked for NASA at the Ames ResearchCenter at Moffett Field, serving as chiefaircraft inspector for more than 30 years.During that time, he traveled all over theworld as part of the Ames Researchteam, doing scientific studies on variousphenomenan in the atmosphere sur-rounding Earth, including the northernlights. Smith loved flying airplanes andscientific expeditions, and he enjoyedtraveling. But working at Moffett Field—and anyone who knew Smith couldtell you this — was not his only love and

passion. Smith’s other real passion, andthe center of his life was his undyinglove for his family … and his God.

During his tenure at Moffett, and inaddition to holding a full-time positionthere, few of the people who workedwith Smith every day knew that he alsoserved as the superintendent of thePeniel Rescue Mission. The skid-rowmission (which is no longer in existence)provided food and clothing for men liv-ing on the streets of San Jose. Andseven-nights-a-week—for 12 1/2 years— Smith directed the caring ministry ofthat mission. Each night, he would go tothe mission, often with his wife and hischildren, and oversee the preparation ofa hot meal, and conduct a gospel servicefor the street people of San Jose. Smithwas not a preacher. He was, however,someone who cared about people. Andthat concern for people was an incred-ible motivating theme throughout hisentire life.

One of the primary reasons Smithmoved to Palo Cedro to “retire” was sohe and his wife could begin a fosterhome for troubled kids. His beautifulhome and acreage in the rolling hillseast of Redding provided a wonderfulsetting for such an endeavor. For sev-eral years after their retirement, Smithand Helen provided a home for troubledkids. They called it ‘Blue Oak Ranch.’

Later in their retirement, workingwith kids and teens became less feasiblefor them, and they decided to focus their

attention on helping small churches.They purchased a motor home and be-came a part of MAPS, a volunteer orga-nization that provides construction as-sistance for churches who need it. Smithand Helen traveled throughout Califor-nia and Oregon, working alongside othervolunteers, bringing encouragement anda helping hand to small or strugglingchurches that needed assistance withremodeling or new construction.

In recent years, Smith and Helenwere a part of Gideons International, aBible distribution organization that pro-vides free copies of the scriptures tohotels and motels, hospitals and those inthe medical profession, and the ArmedForces of the United States. Smith’s caror van always had several copies of theBible handy for distribution to anyonehe might happen to see. Smith loved togo to church on Sundays, and for thepast several years, he and his wife calledBethel Church in Redding their churchhome.

Most people may not be aware thatone out of a hundred people in the UnitedStates has ‘Smith’ as a last name. Butmake no mistake about it. Jake Smithwasn’t one in a hundred. He wasn’teven one in a thousand, or one in amillion. An uncommon ‘common’ mandied this summer in Palo Cedro. Andthe best epitaph that can be written abouthis life is a four-word phrase, ‘He was,quite simply: ‘One of a kind.’

‘One of a kind’ Jacob Smith passes away in Palo Cedro

BY KEN JONES

Jacob Smith

Festival patrons ‘travel to Mars’

NASA photo by Astrid Terlep

Throngs of visitors stopped bythe NASA tent at theMountain View Art and WineFestival on the weekend ofSept. 10 to Sept. 11 to learnmore about NASA and for achance to appear that theyhad visited Mars. The AmesPublic Affairs and Life SciencesDivisions organized the exhibitthat featured a photo boothwith a mock Mars landscapebackground. Photos of over1,100 prospective 'Marsastronauts' were snapped overthe two day festival.

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Astrogram September 200512

Interns get rare opportunity to solve shuttle problem

Students who participated in NASA's Return-to-Flight efforts (left to right) Derrick Chu,Amela Zanacic, Kurt Long (advisor), Kristi Stavros and Teresa Quinliven.

BY JENNIFER KREMER

After the first scrubbed launch onJuly 13, 2005, the world waited for thego-ahead to launch space shuttle Dis-covery and her crew into orbit for thefirst time in two-and-a-half years. Whatthe world didn't see, were the manyfactors involved in getting the greenlight for “all systems go.”

In July, James Ross, chief of theExperimental Aero-Physics Branch, wasbriefed about frozen water droplets thathave been accumulating and then drop-ping off the space shuttle orbiter duringascent. No wind tunnel tests had everbeen conducted on the drag characteris-tics of such ice particle shapes. As aresult, the team conducting computa-tional fluid dynamics (CFD) on the tra-jectory of these ice particles had to relyon estimates for the drag characteristics.This aspect of the analysis had a criticalbearing on whether, and if so, where,the particles may impact the orbiter.Ross approached US Navy flight testengineer Kurt Long to gather a team toconduct a wind tunnel test of ice particleeffects on the shuttle test.

Later that same day, five studentinterns from Ames' Educational Associ-ates (EA) program and Summer HighSchool Apprenticeship Research Pro-gram (SHARP) in the Fluid MechanicsLaboratory (FML), were diligently work-ing on their summer projects using windtunnels when Long presented them withan opportunity of a lifetime: to teamtogether and provide support forNASA's shuttle return-to-flight efforts.

“The team required just over fivehours to plan, design/construct hard-ware, stop existing wind tunnel testing,reconfigure the wind tunnel, calibrateinstrumentation, collect data, analyzedata and then provide the data to thesponsor,” explained Long. “We hadwind tunnels available since the stu-dents have been working on projects inthem; however, the challenge for thistest was to figure out which wind tunnelto use,” he added.

"We decided on the FML's test cellnumber two wind tunnel and beganreconfiguring it for this test," said AmelaZanacic, a student from Cal Poly SanLuis Obispo. The team decided to usethis tunnel because of its ease of

reconfiguration, ability to acquire forceand moment data, and its ability to rep-resent the full-scale aerodynamic char-acteristics of the ice particles.

As the project got underway, therewas a clear sense of urgency. “The whole

process was chaotic. We were told to getsome tools - it didn't matter what kind oftools, just get any tools! And when theybegan drilling holes in the floor of thewind tunnel, it really freaked us out,”explained Zanacic. The holes wereadded to the wind tunnel floor plate tofacilitate rapid model mounting andreconfiguration for this effort; since mostwind tunnel models employ standard-ized mounting lugs, this step is rarelyemployed. “Scrambling was a lot offun,” she laughed.

The team cut a two-and-half-inch-diameter acrylic sphere into quarters tosimulate the shape of the ice particlesaffixed to the orbiter. The quarter spherewas then attached to an eight-inch sting,a mounting device with a very sensitivebalance that would measure forces andmoments on the object in three differentorientations relative to the flow direc-tion. The model and balance were theninstalled within the wind tunnel testsection, and the tunnel was run at vari-ous speeds to measure the resultantforces on the ‘ice particle.’ The resultantdata were analyzed to ensure accuracy,and then provided to NASA shuttle pro-gram personnel, to help predict the iceparticle trajectories during the shuttle'sascent. The data also were used in a

briefing to shuttle program personnelduring a shuttle go/no go launch meet-ing the very next morning (a Saturday).

“The experience reinforced what Iam doing and studying in order to be-come an engineer. Engineering is excit-

ing!” exclaimed Kristi Stavros, a stu-dent from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.

“It is great to work with studentinterns. It allows us to teach the nextgeneration and receive fresh, new ideas.This project brought the students out ofthe realm of theory and provided themwith real-world applicability and a feel-ing of self-satisfaction,” said Long.

“When you work at NASA, you al-ways hear about the 'glory days ofNASA,' referring to the 60s and 70s. Asinterns, we were able to get a taste of thatfeeling from the past and experience thefeeling of teamwork,” said Zanacic. “In-terns never think they would get a chanceto work on this type of project. Theydream of this moment,” added TeresaQuinliven, a student from Cal Poly SanLuis Obispo, who missed this opportu-nity due to her first flight lesson towardher helicopter pilot's license.

Along with Ross, Long, Zanacic, andStavros, the other interns and employ-ees who participated in this project wereSHARP student Derrick Chu, MattDaniels from USRP, Dan Dzoan fromthe Ohlone College Summer Intern Pro-gram, and engineers Dennis Acosta andDave Yaste.

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13Astrogram September 2005

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Migrant students explore space, science and technology at Ames

Migrant students who recently visited NASA Ames, seen here at theAme Exploration Encounter participating in the interactive exhibits.

Students of migrant families listen attentivelyto a science lesson in the Ames ExplorationEncounter.

To inspire the next generation ofexplorers…as only NASA can. This isthe task to which we have been assignedin the Ames Exploration Encounter.From September through June, the AmesExploration Encounter is filled with stu-dents from all over California and Ne-

vada. Students from public schools,private schools and home schools havethe opportunity to visit a world-classfacility and to immerse themselves inthe study of space, science and technol-ogy.

There is one group of students whoseeducation is not a first priority, as theirparents are forced to travel from field tofield, their lives ruled by growing sea-sons that don't match the school calen-dar. These children miss weeks ormonths of school. Most face an addi-tional challenge because they don't speakEnglish. These are the children who havemoved more times than the years theyhave been alive. These are the migrantstudents.

Migrant students are among theneediest students in California schools.Migrant families move frequently as theyfollow work in the agriculture, fishing,dairy or logging industry. Under the NoChild Left Behind Act (NCLBA), sup-port is provided to help reduce the edu-cational disruption and other problemsthat result from repeated moves. Thelaw states that migrant education ser-vices are a priority for those studentswhose education has been interruptedduring the current school year and whoare failing, or are most at risk of failing tomeet state content and performance stan-dards.

Through a collaborative partnershipbetween NASA Ames Exploration En-counter and San Jose Unified SchoolDistrict Migrant Education Program,more than 125 students attended the

Ames Exploration Encounter. Under theleadership of San Jose Unified SchoolDistrict Migrant Education DirectorAmelia Romero and Principal AlbertMoreno the students were provided ahigh-quality and comprehensive edu-cational program for migratory children

this summer.Before their

visit to the AmesExploration En-counter, AEE op-erations managerLorraine Ruiz andvolunteer docentRenato Piombi pre-sented the programin Spanish to thestudents at theirschool. Excitementwas high, as thestudents had beenwatching televi-sion and heardabout the Discov-ery mission. Manyof them had heardabout astronautcandidate Jose

Hernandez, who also was the son ofmigrant parents. Their goal was to visitNASA and meet a “real space celeb-rity”!

They certainlywere not disappointedas they had an oppor-tunity to meet NASAAmes’ very own JolenFlores, Ph.D. They allasked for a copy of theJune/July 2005 issue of‘Hispanic Engineer’magazine so that theycould have a copy ofFlores ‘ article abouthow he was namedone of the ‘Top His-panics in Technologyand Business.’ Floresgave students an out-standing presentationon his career at NASAAmes.

We are very fortu-nate to have a group ofdocents that volunteerin the AEE who tooktime out of their sum-mer vacations to jointhe migrant studentsvisit to the Ames Ex-ploration Encounter.For the first time sinceits inception, the AmesExploration EncounterProgram was pre-sented in a bilingual/English/Spanish for-

mat.With the support and encourage-

ment of the education division manage-ment, Mark Leon and Laura Shawnee,as well as Planners Collaborative volun-teer manager Barbara Patterson, opera-tions manager Lorraine Ruiz and assis-tant manager Lorraine Wentz, 125 Span-ish-speaking students were given theopporutnity to become NASA’s nextgeneration of scientists, engineers andastronauts. Perhaps some day we willsee one or more of them on the cover ofHispanic Engineer magazine.

BY LORRAINE RUIZ

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Astrogram September 200514

Events CalendarAmes 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 classmeets at 5:50 p.m. Held in Bldg. 944, the Rec. Center.POC: Helen Hwang at [email protected], ext. 4-1368.

Ames Bowling League, Palo Alto Bowl on Tuesdaynights. 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 eachmonth, 11 a.m., N-200, Comm. Rm. POC: LindaMcCahon, ext. 4-1891.

Ames Diabetics (AAD), 1st & 3rd Weds, 12 noon to1 p.m., at Ames Mega Bites, Sun room. Support groupdiscusses news affecting diabetics. POC: Bob Mohlenhoff,ext. 4-2523/e-mail at: [email protected].

Ames Federal Employees Union (AFEU) Mtg, thirdWednesday 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 radio-controlledaircraft at the north end of Parsons Ave. on weekendmornings. 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. inBldg. 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 forExcellence HACE Mtg, first Thurs of month in N255room 101C from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. POC: EricKristich at ext. 4-5137 and Mark Leon at ext. 4-6498.

Jetstream Toastmasters, Mondays, 12 p.m. to 1p.m., N-269/Rm.179. POC: Becky Brondos at ext. 4-1959, [email protected] or Bob Hilton atext. 4-1500, [email protected].

Nat'l Association of Retired Federal Employees,(NARFE). Former and current federal employees. Youronly contact with Congress. Join to protect yourfederal retirement. Chptr #50 will then meet on thefirst Fri. of each month at HomeTown Buffet, 2670 ElCamino (at Kiely), S. Clara, 11 a.m. lunch. POC EarlKeener (408) 241-4459 or NARFE 1-800-627-3394.

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.

A statistical summary of activi-ties of the Protective ServicesDivision's Security/Law Enforce-ment and Fire Protection Servicesunits for the month of August 2005 isshown below.

Protective Servicesmonthly activity

Ames emergencyannouncements

To hear the centerwide statusrecording, call (650) 604-9999 for in-formation announcements and emer-gency instructions for Ames employ-ees. You can also listen to 1700 KHzAM radio for the same information.

Discussions of current environ-mental events at NASA Ames pre-sented by the Environmental ServicesOffice will be held as follows:

OctoberTitle:Groundwater Hydrogeology and Remedial Technology Used for Groundwater Clean-up at NASA AmesPresenter: Don Chuck, restoration specialist, NASADate: Oct. 6Time: 8:30 a.m. - 9:30 a.m.Location: Building 221, Room 155

NovemberTitle: Storm Water Regulations at NASA AmesPresenter: Christy Ray-Hagenau, environmental compliance specialist, ISSiDate: Nov. 3Time: 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.Location: Building 221, Room 155

Environmental Forums scheduled

DecemberTitle: Vapor Intrusion Study at AmesPresenter: Tom Anderson, conservation compliance canager, ISSi and Sandy Olliges, deputy director, Office of Safety, Environmental and Mission Assurance, AmesDate: Dec. 1Time: 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.Location: Building 221, Room 155

To learn more about any of thesepresentations, Stacy St. Louis [email protected] or ext. 4-6810.

Security/Law Enforcement Activity

Fire Protection Activity

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15Astrogram September 2005

Ames ClassifiedsAds for the next issue should be sent to

[email protected] and must be resubmitted foreach issue. Ads must involve personal needs or items; (nocommercial/third-party ads) and will run on a space-available basis only. First-time ads are given priority. Adsmust include home phone numbers; Ames extensions andemail addresses will be accepted for carpool and lost andfound ads only. Due to the volume of material received,we are unable to verify the accuracy of the statementsmade in the ads. Caveat emptor!

Exchange InformationExchange InformationExchange InformationExchange InformationExchange Information

Beyond GalileoBeyond GalileoBeyond GalileoBeyond GalileoBeyond Galileo N-235 (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873

Ask about NASA customized gifts for specialoccasions.

Mega Bites Mega Bites Mega Bites Mega Bites Mega Bites N-235 (6 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (6 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (6 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (6 a.m. to 2 p.m.)N-235 (6 a.m. to 2 p.m.)ext. 4-5969ext. 4-5969ext. 4-5969ext. 4-5969ext. 4-5969

Visitor Center Gift ShopVisitor Center Gift ShopVisitor Center Gift ShopVisitor Center Gift ShopVisitor Center Gift Shop N-943 N-943 N-943 N-943 N-943(10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ext. 4-5412(10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ext. 4-5412(10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ext. 4-5412(10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ext. 4-5412(10 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) ext. 4-5412

NASA logo merchandise, souvenirs, toys, gifts andeducational items.

Open 7 days a week, 7:00 a.m. to 10 p.m. Ratesfrom $40 - $50.

Vacation OpportunitiesVacation OpportunitiesVacation OpportunitiesVacation OpportunitiesVacation Opportunities

Check web site for discounts to local attractions,http://exchange.arc.nasa.gov and click on tickets.

Information about products, services andopportunities provided to the employee and contractorcommunity by the Ames Exchange Council. Visit theweb site at: http://exchange.arc.nasa.gov

NASA LodgeNASA LodgeNASA LodgeNASA LodgeNASA Lodge (N-19) 603-7100 (N-19) 603-7100 (N-19) 603-7100 (N-19) 603-7100 (N-19) 603-7100

Tickets, etc...Tickets, etc...Tickets, etc...Tickets, etc...Tickets, etc...(N-235, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)(N-235, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)(N-235, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)(N-235, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)(N-235, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.)ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873ext. 4-6873

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

MiscellaneousThe Ames Cat Network needs help finding homes for

cats trapped at Moffett. They range from feral toabandoned/lost pets. Tested, altered and inoculated. CallIris at ext. 4-5824 if you or someone you know areinterested in fostering or adopting a cat.

Christmas Belles 27th Annual Holiday Boutique: 10/19- 10/22. Address: 530 Pamlar Avenue, San Jose, CA95128. 10/19 open from 12 noon to 8 pm; 10/20 & 21open from 10 am to 6 pm; and 10/22 open frm 9 am to 5pm. Treat yourself to originality with your gifts anddecorations this year! For 27 years, the Christmas BellesBoutique brings together Bay Area artists offeringhandcrafted gifts and decorations for Christmas,Thanksgiving, Halloween and many other holidays. Withevery purchase of $25 or more, spin a prize wheel fordiscounts or other prizes. Contact person: Karen Davis.Phone Number: 408-287-9256

Sears 12" radial arm table saw. Variety of bladesavailable. Best offer. Call (408) 732-4587.

GE 31” color TV. $45. Call (408) 295-2160.

Kenwood home theater A/V receiver, Dolby Digital 5.1;100 [w/ch]. $75. Call (408) 295-2160.

Starter PC: Windows2000, 333MHz, 164MRAM, 15GBHD, 52x CD-ROM, USB, keyboard, mouse and speakers (nomonitor). Perfect for first computer. $75. Call (408) 295-2160.

Sears 12" radial arm table saw. Variety of bladesavailable. B/O. Call (408) 732-4587.

Changing table and crib in exc. condition. Both arereal wood with natural/clear finish. Changing table is a Pali($100), and crib is a Simmons wi/dual slide-down panels($150). See in person. Call (408) 295-2160.

Astrogram deadlinesSubmit articles and photographs

to [email protected] nolater than the 10th of each month. Ifthis falls on the weekend or holiday,then the following business day be-comes the deadline. If you want a pho-tographer to cover an event you’responsoring, it’s very important thatyou submit a service request to theVideo and Photographic ServicesGroup at least 5 days in advance of theactivity. Every effort will be made to

Safety Data

Civil Contractors Servants

First aid cases 22 13

Lost-time cases 0 8

Recordable cases 3 15

Lost workdays 0 158

Restricted duty days 0 88

Above data is as of 9/14/05. Maybe subject to slight adjustment in theevent of a new case or new inform-ation regarding an existing case.

NASA-Ames Occupational Illness-Injury Data for Calendar Year-to-Date 2005 Jan. 1, 2005 – Aug. 31, 2005

accommodate your request when-ever it’s submitted, but please un-derstand that photographers may notbe available for last-minute requests,so best to plan ahead!For Astrogramquestions, contact Astrid Terlep atthe aforementioned e-mail addressor ext. 4-3347. For information aboutphotography or video services, con-tact Ed Schilling at [email protected] orext. 4-1307.

3 bd/1 ba house in Menlo Park. Close to Stanford, andSRI, and Palo Alto. Home (650) 591-4840.

Housing

Lake Tahoe-Squaw Valley Townhse, 3bd/2baequipped, balcony view, horseback riding, hiking, biking,river rafting, tennis, ice skating and more. Summerrates. Call (650) 968-4155 or [email protected]

South Lake Tahoe cottage w/wood fireplace, hottub. Rates $50 to $130 per night. Call (650) 967-7659or (650) 704-7732.

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 incanyon setting. Fully eqpd kitchen. Access to priv.beach. Tub in patio gdn. Halfway between Carmel andBig Sur. $175/night for 2; $225 for 4 and $250 formore, plus $150 cleaning dep. Call (650) 328-4427.

Tahoe Donner vacation home, 2 bd/2ba. trees,deck. Access to pools, spa, golf, horseback riding, $280wkend, $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, 3bd/2ba, sleeps 8. Fireplace, TV/VCR/DVD, MW, W/D,jacuzzi, sauna, pool. Walk to Lake, close to ski areas.Visit Web page for pictures: http://www.ACruiseStore.com. $120/night low season,$155/night high season (holidays higher) plus $156cleaning fee and 12% Nevada room tax. Charlie (650)366-1873.

Disneyland area vacation rental home, 2 bd/1ba.Nearing completion completely remodeled w/newfurniture. Sleeps 6 (queen bed, bunk beds, sleepersofa). Air hockey and football tables. Introductoryrate $600/wk, once completed rate will be $1000/wk.Security deposit and $100 cleaning fee required. Call(925) 846-2781.

Ski Park City Utah, NASA Ski Week XIV, Feb 5 - 12,2005. Space limited. E-mail Steve at [email protected] or call (408) 432-0135.

New York, 5th Ave. One fully furnished bedroomin 24 hour security bldg. overlooking WashingtonSquare Park, $1,000/wk or $3,000/mo. negotiable.Call (650) 349-0238.

Paris/France: Fully furnished studio, 5th Arr, LatinQuarter, Notre Dame and Ile-St. Louis., $1,400/wk.negotiable. Call (650) 349-0238.

Santa Cruz townhouse, 2 bedrooms plus study, 2baths, 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 streetfrom 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.

San Francisco, Donatello Hotel, small, deluxehotel, one block from Union Square, 4 nights availableto be scheduled either together or individually, $150per night. Call Barry Cunningham (510) 793-4457 ore-mail [email protected]

Vacation rental. Ferndale - The Victorian Village.Victorian home on Main Street a short stroll to theVillage which has been designated as a state historicallandmark. Enjoy the many holiday activities whichinclude a Christmas parade and lighting of America'stallest living Christmas tree. Four bedrooms (sleepsapprox. six), two full baths, large kitchen, diningroom, parlor w/fireplace, enclosed desk w/hot tub. Forinfo call (707) 983-9514.

Monterey Bay vacation rental at Pajaro Dunes, 20miles south of Santa Cruz, 3bd/2ba beach house withdistinctive architecture. Beautiful ocean and valleyviews, only 150 ft from the beach, first-class tenniscourts. $500/wkend, $200/addl night, includingcleaning by the maid service when you depart. Call(408) 252-7260.

Page 16: Combined Federal Campaign launches - NASA€¦ · Combined Federal Campaign launches ... Travis A. Liggett Contractor Employee ... contributions of the people in the Fluid Mechanics

Astrogram September 200516

National Aeronautics and SpaceAdministration

Ames Research CenterMoffett Field, CA 94035-1000

PLEASE RECYCLEPrinted on recycled and recyclable paper with vegetable-based ink.

FIRST-CLASSU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDPERMIT NO. 85

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA

The Ames Astrogram is an official publication ofAmes Research Center, National Aeronautics andSpace Administration.

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

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

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

You can reach the Astrogram Office at:[email protected] or by phone at(650) 604-3347.

FOIA helps shed light on government opennessJames Madison once argued that

openness in government will assist citi-zens in making informed choices neces-sary to a democracy. The Freedom ofInformation Act, or FOIA, is a uniqueway to keep citizens informed about

their government.FOIA was passed by Congress in

1966 so citizens can have access to gov-ernment records. Any member of thepublic may obtain these records main-tained and controlled by the executivebranch agencies.

A FOIA request can be made by anyperson, for any reason whatsoever, theydo not have to explain or justify theirrequests. Requests have to be made inwriting through mail, fax, electronicallyor hand delivered.

By law, an initial determination mustbe made on a FOIA request within 20working days. If an extension is needed,the FOIA officer and requester deter-

mine an agreed amount of time for theextension. Fees are based on categoriesof requesters. Fees can be charged forsearch, review and reproduction.

It is the policy of NASA to makerecords available to the public to the

greatest extent possible, in keeping withthe spirit of the FOIA, while at the sametime protecting sensitive informationthat may be withheld, pursuant to oneof the FOIA exemptions:

•Exemption 1: National Defense- Classified•Exemption 2: Internal Rules and Practices•Exemption 3: Exempted by another Law•Exemption 4: Commercial and Trade Secrets•Exemption 5: Inter and Intra Agency Privileged Documents

•Exemption 6: Personal Privacy•Exemption 7: Law Enforcement Records•Exemption 8: Financial Institutions•Exemption 9: Geological and Geophysical

NASA's FOIA policy and proce-dures are publicly published in the Codeof Federal Regulations, 14 CFR 1206.We rely on the custodians of our NASArecords, the ‘subject matter experts’ tolocate and conduct thorough searches ofrecords under their direct control, makecopies of the responsive record, and sub-mit to the FOIA Office in a timely man-ner to meet the 20 working day deadlinefor our initial determination. Since ourinitial determination may be appealedto NASA Headquarters and thereafterto a United States District Court if we donot provide all the records that the re-quester was seeking, or if we do notprovide the initial determination itselfin a timely manner, managers asked toprovide records for review by the FOIAOffice should regard that task as a prior-ity.

BY KELLY GARCIA