OSIRIS-REx Landing Highlighted on ‘This Week at NASA’

OSIRIS-REx Landing Highlighted on ‘This Week at NASA’

1 min read

OSIRIS-REx Landing Highlighted on ‘This Week at NASA’

On Sept. 24, the OSIRIS-REx sample return capsule – with samples of rock and dust from asteroid Bennu – made its historic return to Earth, marking the end of NASA’s first sample return mission. The mission is featured in “This Week @ NASA,” a weekly video program broadcast on NASA-TV and posted online.

The next day, the sample return capsule was flown to NASA’s Johnson Space Center, where the sample material inside it will be cared for, stored, and shared with scientists around the world.

OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA’s New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center for the agency’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Read more about Marshall’s role in OSIRIS-REx.

View this and previous episodes at “This Week @NASA” on NASA’s YouTube page.

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Lee Mohon

Ceremony Marks Opening of NASA Educational Display at New Orleans Airport

Ceremony Marks Opening of NASA Educational Display at New Orleans Airport

1 min read

Ceremony Marks Opening of NASA Educational Display at New Orleans Airport

Representatives from NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility joined elected officials and other community leaders for a ribbon-cutting ceremony marking the opening of a NASA educational display Sept. 26 at Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans.

From left, New Orleans Airport Director Kevin Dolliole, New Orleans Director of Economic Development Jeff Schwartz, Space Launch System Stages Element Office Resident Management Office Manager Gregg Eldridge, Congressman Carter’s District Director Demetric Mercadel, Michoud Director Lonnie Dutreix, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell, Judge Michael Bagneris, New Orleans & Co. Executive Vice-President Alice Glenn, New Orleans Business Alliance Interim President Louis David, and GNO Inc. Senior Vice-President of Business Development Josh Fleig cut the ribbon at the NASA educational display ribbon-cutting ceremony at Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans.
From left, New Orleans Airport Director Kevin Dolliole, New Orleans Director of Economic Development Jeff Schwartz, Space Launch System Stages Element Office Resident Management Office Manager Gregg Eldridge, Congressman Carter’s District Director Demetric Mercadel, Michoud Director Lonnie Dutreix, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell, Judge Michael Bagneris, New Orleans & Co. Executive Vice-President Alice Glenn, New Orleans Business Alliance Interim President Louis David, and GNO Inc. Senior Vice-President of Business Development Josh Fleig cut the ribbon at the NASA educational display ribbon-cutting ceremony at Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans.
NASA/Michael DeMocker

The exhibit is a collaboration between NASA, the city of New Orleans, and regional economic development organizations to educate visitors on the role Michoud has played in the production of manned spacecraft and Michoud’s impact on economic development for the region. The exhibit is located near the airport’s baggage claim on the first floor. 

Michoud serves as America’s “rocket factory,” manufacturing and assembling NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) core stages and Exploration Upper Stage, and the Orion crew module. Michoud is managed by NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center.

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Lee Mohon

Fresh Chiles Spice Up Taco Night

Fresh Chiles Spice Up Taco Night

Astronaut Raja Chari is ready for taco night
Astronaut Raja Chari is ready for taco night as he shows off a taco made with fresh chile peppers.
NASA/Kayla Barron

Taco Night on the International Space Station had a little kick to it on Nov. 26, 2021. In this image taken by NASA astronaut Kayla Barron, fellow NASA astronaut and Expedition 66 flight engineer Raja Chari smiles as he shows off a taco that includes fresh chile peppers.

The peppers were harvested from inside the International Space Station’s Advanced Plant Habitat, which started growing four months prior as part of the Plant Habitat-04 experiment. Astronauts on station and a team of researchers at Kennedy worked together to check the peppers’ growth. This was one of the longest and most challenging plant experiments tried aboard the orbital lab.

Starting in late 2015 and going into early 2016, astronauts grew zinnias on station – a precursor to growing longer-duration, fruit-bearing, flowering crops like peppers. Researchers spent two years evaluating more than two dozen pepper varieties from around the world. They narrowed it down and selected the NuMex ‘Española Improved’ pepper, a hybrid Hatch pepper, the generic name for several varieties of chiles from Hatch, New Mexico, and the Hatch Valley in southern New Mexico. This pepper performed well in testing and had the makings of a viable space crop.

Image Credit: NASA/Kayla Barron

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Monika Luabeya

NASA: Rueda de prensa en Houston con el astronauta que batió un récord

NASA: Rueda de prensa en Houston con el astronauta que batió un récord

Expedition 69 NASA astronaut Frank Rubio is seen outside the Soyuz MS-23 spacecraft after he landed with Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitri Petelin in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan on Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2023.
El astronauta Frank Rubio, de la Expedición 69 de la NASA, es visto fuera de la nave espacial Soyuz MS-23 tras aterrizar junto a los cosmonautas de Roscosmos Sergey Prokopyev y Dmitri Petelin en una zona remota cerca de la ciudad de Zhezkazgan, Kazajstán, el miércoles 27 de septiembre de 2023. El trío regresó a la Tierra tras pasar 371 días en el espacio como miembros de las Expediciones 68-69 a bordo de la Estación Espacial Internacional. Para Rubio, su misión es el vuelo espacial más largo realizado por un astronauta estadounidense en la historia.
NASA/Bill Ingalls

El astronauta de la NASA Frank Rubio, de regreso a la Tierra tras batir el récord del vuelo espacial individual más largo de la historia realizado por un estadounidense, participará en una rueda de prensa el viernes 13 de octubre a las 2 p.m. EDT (hora de verano del Este), en el Centro Espacial Johnson de la agencia en Houston.

La conferencia de prensa (en inglés) se retransmitirá en directo por NASA Television, la aplicación de la NASA y el sitio web de la agencia. Síguelo en línea en:

https://www.nasa.gov/nasatv

La misión extendida de Rubio a bordo de la Estación Espacial Internacional sumó un total de 371 días en el espacio. Las misiones prolongadas brindan a la comunidad científica la oportunidad de observar mejor los efectos de los vuelos espaciales de larga duración en los astronautas, ahora que la agencia vuelve a la Luna mediante las misiones Artemis y se prepara para la exploración de Marte con seres humanos.

Los medios de comunicación interesados en participar en persona en esta rueda de prensa deben ponerse en contacto con la sala de prensa de la NASA en Johnson antes de las 5 p.m. EDT del jueves 12 de octubre, llamando al 281-483-5111 o enviando un correo electrónico a: jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. Los medios de comunicación que deseen participar virtualmente deberán ponerse en contacto con la sala de prensa a más tardar dos horas antes del comienzo del acto. La política de acreditación para medios de comunicación de la NASA está disponible en línea. También se pueden enviar preguntas a través de las redes sociales utilizando #AskNASA.

Rubio despegó el 21 de septiembre de 2022 junto con los cosmonautas de Roscosmos Sergey Prokopyev y Dmitri Petelin. El trío regresó a la Tierra el 27 de septiembre. La misión de 371 días de Rubio es el vuelo espacial más largo realizado por un astronauta estadounidense, récord que hasta ahora ostentaba el astronauta de la NASA Mark Vande Hei, con 355 días.

Rubio completó aproximadamente 5.936 órbitas de la Tierra y un viaje de más de 157 millones de millas durante este vuelo espacial (el primero para él), aproximadamente el equivalente a 328 viajes de ida y vuelta a la Luna. Fue testigo de la llegada de 15 naves espaciales y de la partida de tras 14 astronaves en misiones de carga tripuladas y no tripuladas.

Durante su misión récord, Rubio dedicó muchas horas a actividades científicas a bordo de la estación espacial, realizando tareas variadas que iban desde investigaciones sobre la salud humana a investigaciones con plantas. Un estudio evaluó el manejo de múltiples robots autónomos desde el espacio y los retos que podría plantear el hacer funcionar remotamente a robots en órbita desde tierra. También cultivó tomates espaciales para poner a prueba técnicas de crecimiento hidropónico (a base de agua) y aeropónico (a base de aire) en lugar de tierra u otros medios de crecimiento tradicionales, con el fin de ayudar a identificar formas de producir cultivos a mayor escala para futuras misiones espaciales.

Aprende más sobre las actividades de la estación espacial siguiendo las cuentas en inglés de X @space_station y @ISS_Research, o la cuenta en español @NASA_ES, así como las cuentas en inglés de Facebook  e Instagram de la estación, o las cuentas en español de Facebook e Instagram de la NASA.

Para más información (en inglés) sobre la Estación Espacial Internacional, su investigación y su tripulación, visita:

https://www.nasa.gov/station

-fin-

Maria-jose Vinas
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
maria-jose.vinasgarcia@nasa.gov

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Roxana Bardan

Marshall Wins Award for Most Funds Raised During 2022 Combined Federal Campaign

Marshall Wins Award for Most Funds Raised During 2022 Combined Federal Campaign

3 min read

Marshall Wins Award for Most Funds Raised During 2022 Combined Federal Campaign

By Jessica Barnett

NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center was recently awarded for raising more funds than any other large federal agency in the Greater Tennessee Valley Zone during the 2022 CFC (Combined Federal Campaign).

The CFC serves as the federal government’s only sanctioned charity fundraiser event, with civilian, military, contract, and postal employees all encouraged to contribute to the charity of their choice during the annual campaign.

Erin Richardson, center, chair of the 2022 Combined Federal Campaign at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, holds Marshall’s award for raising more funds than any other large federal agency in the Greater Tennessee Valley Zone during the campaign. Standing with her, from left, are Marshall Associate Director, Technical, Larry Leopard and Marshall Associate Director Rae Ann Meyer.
Erin Richardson, center, chair of the 2022 Combined Federal Campaign at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, holds Marshall’s award for raising more funds than any other large federal agency in the Greater Tennessee Valley Zone during the campaign. Standing with her, from left, are Marshall Associate Director, Technical, Larry Leopard and Marshall Associate Director Rae Ann Meyer.

Marshall kicked off the 2022 campaign last October with a charity fair, giving potential donors a chance to learn about some of the charities that benefit from CFC donations.  Erin Richardson, a materials science manager at Marshall who served as chair of the 2022 campaign, said the goal was more than just raising funds – it was about raising awareness of CFC and increasing participation in the campaign.

“We ended up contributing the most out of any large agency in the Greater Tennessee Valley, which is our CFC zone,” Richardson said, adding the win came as a surprise given some of the obstacles they faced.

Those obstacles included inflation and economic concerns among potential donors, balancing virtual and in-person campaigning after the pandemic, and it being the first time Richardson and many of her co-campaigners had served as CFC leaders at Marshall.

Looking back on it now, she said, there were certainly some lessons learned. Richardson said she’s optimistic for the 2023 campaign, which will be chaired by Angela Lovelady, a lead budget analyst at Marshall.

“Angela is a step above,” Richardson said. “She has an intense passion and heart for it, and I think she’ll be a great lead for CFC.”

Marshall team members raised more funds than any other large federal agency in the Greater Tennessee Valley Zone during the 2022 Combined Federal Campaign. Overseen by the Office of Personnel Management, CFC is the official workplace giving campaign for federal employees, contractors, and retirees.
Marshall team members raised more funds than any other large federal agency in the Greater Tennessee Valley Zone during the 2022 Combined Federal Campaign. Overseen by the Office of Personnel Management, CFC is the official workplace giving campaign for federal employees, contractors, and retirees.
NASA

Marshall team members who wish to match that enthusiasm will have plenty of ways to do so when the 2023 campaign kicks off Oct. 17. Donors can contribute financially via credit or debit card payment or PayPal, with some team members able to donate a portion of their paycheck during the campaign period. Donors can also contribute their time at a participating charity, with each volunteer hour counted toward the overall fundraising goal.

All campaigns start after Sept. 1 and end before mid-January of the following year. Each donation must be designated for a specific participating charity. In the Greater Tennessee Valley Zone, there are 69 charities currently listed as active CFC participants, from community health clinics and animal rescues to veteran and social justice groups.

By participating in CFC each year, Marshall can show its support to the people all over the world, including the millions of U.S. taxpayers who make NASA’s mission possible, Richardson said.

“We benefit so much as federal employees from taxpayers,” she said. “Some people will never get the opportunity to come through Gate 9 or see a launch or understand what we do, but we wouldn’t be able to do the job we are doing without them.”

Learn more about CFC and see the list of participating charities in your community by visiting https://cfcgiving.opm.gov.

Barnett, a Media Fusion employee, supports the Marshall Office of Communications.

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Lee Mohon