Societal Benefits: Web Articles
2nd Annual NASA STEM Educators Workshop Series - AESP
"Calling all teachers in the Charlotte area. NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools are inviting educators to take part in free workshops Feb. 23-25. The second annual NASA STEM Educator Workshop Series will showcase science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education resources relating to studying the NASA mission to return to the moon."
This announcement is from a NASA-sponsored Aerospace Education Services Project (AESP) located at Penn State. STEM education for teachers flows into our classrooms and helps stimulate creation of our future workforce, that includes commercial space enterprises.
Monitoring peatland from Earth and space | R&D Mag
"A team of UK scientists led by Dr. Karen Anderson (University of Exeter) has developed a new technique for monitoring the condition of peatlands. It could help monitor the damage that is being done to peatlands through human activity. Such disruption is contributing to global warming, as peatlands can release the carbon they absorb and store if they are damaged by drainage or peat extraction processes.
The team used a combination of images captured from Earth and space to measure spatial patterning in peatland surfaces as an indicator of their condition. This new method uses a novel coupled approach, using satellite images from space and airborne laser scanning data, and has resulted in improved peatland mapping products."
The End of Magical Climate Thinking | Foreign Policy
"The Obama administration succumbed, like many others, to a sort of magical climate thinking that promised a painless and even prosperous transition to a low-carbon future with the tools already at hand. The only official within his administration to accurately grasp the technology challenges faced, Energy Secretary Steven Chu, was sidelined at crucial moments. Here is the back story of how the Obama administration dramatically raised and then dashed America's -- and the world's -- hopes that 2009 would be a pivotal year for remaking our collective energy future." This article places blame on both government and green energy advocates for "magical thinking" about what will surely at minimum be a tough, expensive, decades-long slog. The importance of space infrastructure advancements, especially by the private sector, to developing innovative lower-cost solar power and biospheric and climate monitoring systems will be major. Earth and its environment are increasingly understood as one evolving macro-ecosystem traveling through space over eons.
Cockroaches offer inspiration for running robots | R&D Mag
"The sight of a cockroach scurrying for cover may be nauseating, but the insect is also a biological and engineering marvel, and is providing researchers at Oregon State Univ. with what they call “bioinspiration” in a quest to build the world’s first legged robot that is capable of running effortlessly over rough terrain."
"The latest findings—just published in the professional journal Bioinspiration and Biomimetics—outline how animals use their legs to manage energy storage and expenditure, and why this is so important for running stability. The work is being supported by the National Science Foundation." The authors note the potential applications of this research to space exploration and we note that space commerce will likely be partnered with NASA in such an endeavor.
Surprise! - A NASA Overhaul Needed | Houston Chronicle
"NASA's brightest potential future is one where it serves as an enabler, standards-setter and coordinating body for the more entrepreneurial activity needed to bring the cost of spaceflight down. Still needed is a “Moore's Law of Space Travel” in which a clear trend for capability in spaceflight at constant cost may be projected out. The big idea here is to work toward a balance between agile, entrepreneurial models found in the technology sector with the requirements of NASA's future programs. This will mean a gross revision of how the agency does its business. As NASA transitions to a new, younger workforce in the next decade, let us hope it begins rewriting its rules to inspire these individuals to achieve the sort of successes the X Prize winners are achieving at a fraction of the cost of those working in government."
Masten Building On X-Prize | AVIATION WEEK
"Masten Space Systems, fresh from a million-dollar win in the NASA-sponsored Lunar Lander X-Prize Challenge, hopes to use its vertical-takeoff-and-landing rocket technology to launch a commercial enterprise by the middle of next year.
Dave Masten, founder and CEO of the five-year-old Mojave, Calif., company, said Nov. 6 the company will use the $1.15 million it won by taking first place in the Level 2 lander competition and second place in Level 1 to upgrade its Xoie (pronounced "Zoey") vehicle for higher and faster flight (Aerospace DAILY, Nov. 4)." Masten intends to fly payloads to the edge of space and not humans.
Orbital super-sensor to observe space weather | R&D Mag
"Launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V launch vehicle, Oct. 18, 2009, the Special Sensor Ultraviolet Limb Imager (SSULI) developed by NRL's Space Science Division and Spacecraft Engineering Department offers a first of its kind technique for remote sensing of the ionosphere and thermosphere from space. "
Lunar Lander Competition Awards $2 Million in Prizes | On Orbit
"The race for the $2 million Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander X PRIZE Challenge (NGLLXPC) incentivized prize purse, funded by NASA and presented by the X PRIZE Foundation, has come to an exciting finish. Masten Space Systems, led by David Masten, will be awarded the top $1 million prize on Nov. 5 in Washington D.C. at the Rayburn House Office Building. This is the largest incentivized prize awarded by the X PRIZE Foundation since the 2004 Ansari X PRIZE competition." Three cheers for those great prizes and may they continue to leverage R&D progress in entrepreneurial space commerce.
Space-Age Safety: How GPS Satellites Could Help Prevent Auto Accidents | GPS Daily
"Researchers have found potential for a GPS satellite to act as an early warning system that detects when a vehicle is about to lose control and communicate with the vehicle's stability control systems and other safety features to prevent a rollover or other serious accident." Ford Motor Company's investment in university R&D is paying off.
Open Letter to NÅSA Administrator From Bigelow Aerospace | SpaceNews.com
"We appreciated the fact that you and Deputy Administrator Lori Garver took the time to meet with commercial space executives and, as we expressed during that meeting, Bigelow Aerospace remains a strong supporter of commercial crew transportation. However, in that discussion last month, and in subsequent public appearances, you have consistently voiced a concern and a question. Specifically, you have often commented on the importance of commercial space transportation providers proving themselves via cargo delivery, and have asked the question what is the definition of “commercial space.” I hope we can help you to address both of these issues (in this letter)..."