Founder Institute, the world’s largest pre-seed startup accelerator, partners with NASA Ames to offer startups access to space technology “The Founder Institute, the world’s largest pre-seed startup accelerator, announced this week it signed a partnership agreement with NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, to help startup founders connect to selected NASA software and technologies while providing a robust global network of startup resources. The accelerator also announced open applications for […]

Nissan and NASA partner to jointly Develop and Deploy Autonomous Drive Vehicles by End of Year, (revised with text of NASA Space Act Agreement) Nissan “Nissan Motor Co., through its North American-based organization, and NASA today announced the formation of a five-year research and development partnership to advance autonomous vehicle systems and prepare for commercial application of the technology.” NASA’s Stealth Autonomous Vehicle Partnership, earlier post

Michael Meyer Declines NAI Interim Director Position “Due to unexpected personal conflicts, Dr. Michael Meyer has declined the position of NAI’s Interim Director. Dr. Meyer explains, “Unfortunately, the requirements levied to resolve a conflict-of-interest were unacceptable.” Michael Meyer Selected as Interim Director of NASA Astrobiology Institute, earlier post

The Hackers Who Recovered NASA’s Lost Lunar Photos, Wired “Sitting incongruously among the hangars and laboratories of NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley is the squat facade of an old McDonald’s. You won’t get a burger there, though-its cash registers and soft-serve machines have given way to old tape drives and modern computers run by a rogue team of hacker engineers who’ve rechristened the place McMoon’s. These self-described techno-archaeologists […]

Keith’s note: Silicon Valley sources report that NASA will announce that Google-backed developer Planetary Ventures has been selected to lease Moffett Field and Hangar One. Details to follow. Keith’s update: GSA, NASA Competitively Select Planetary Ventures LLC for Rehabilitation of Hangar One, Use of Moffett Federal Airfield Notice of Intent – Leasing Opportunity – Hangar One and Moffett Federal Airfield, earlier post

No Tax Dollars Went To Make This Space Viking Photo, NPR “The inspector general won’t discuss how much all this cost, but [Ved] Chirayath did a quick calculation, totaling up the number of interviews, multiplied by the work hours, multiplied by the salary of the investigator and others involved. “I came to a lower-end budget of around $40,000, and an upper end of around $600,000,” he says. That’s far more […]

NASA Establishes a Sustainability Base on Earth, Next.gov “It was inconceivable to me that in the 21st century, in the heart of Silicon Valley, NASA would be building a building that could have been built 25 years ago,” [Ames Associate Director Steve Zornetzer] said. “NASA had to build the highest-performing building in the federal government, embed NASA technology inside and make a statement to the public that NASA was giving […]

Congresswoman Eshoo Announces Plan for Hangar One and Moffett Federal Airfield “Following a meeting with Congresswoman Anna G. Eshoo (D-Palo Alto), GSA, NASA, and the White House at the Capitol on Tuesday, February 26, the General Services Administration will issue a Notice of Intent regarding Hangar One and Moffett Federal Airfield, which reflects the following: 1. Moffett Federal Airfield will NOT be excessed. It will remain a restricted Federal Airfield […]

House Renames Flight Center After Neil Armstrong “The House of Representatives today approved a resolution to rename the Dryden Flight Research Center, located in southern California, the “Neil Armstrong Research Center.” H.R. 667 also re-designates the surrounding test range to honor Hugh Dryden, a prominent aeronautical engineer.” House Republicans are over the moon about sequestration, Washington Post “The lone Democrat to speak, Rep. Donna Edwards (Md.), noted the irony in […]

House Chairmen Say NASA May Have Released DOD Secrets To China, Aviation Week “According to sources at Ames and on Capitol Hill, the case involves Ames Center Director Simon P. “Pete” Worden and members of the center’s staff who are not U.S. citizens. … Among the charges mentioned in the congressional letters are allegations that the protected technology information has been disseminated in public conferences overseas “with Chinese and other […]