NASA Solicits Ideas for International Space Station Research “NASA wants to know how you can improve the International Space Station as a technology test bed. NASA’s International Space Station National Laboratory and Technology Demonstration offices are asking for proposals on how the space station may be used to develop advanced or improved exploration technologies. NASA also is seeking proposals about how new approaches, technologies and capabilities could improve the unique […]

Obama nixes federal swag, Politico “On Wednesday, Obama signed an executive order that will direct government agencies to, among other things, “stop using taxpayer dollars to buy swag.” What exactly falls under the category of “swag”? Plaques, “nonessential items used for promotional purposes” like clothing, pens and mugs, and “other unnecessary promotional items that agencies purchase,” according to the White House, which did not respond to multiple requests for more […]

Keith’s note: I have posted questions for Beth Beck at HEOMD, sent email requests, and yet no one has responded. Based on previous dysfunctional interactions with HEOMD (SOMD and ESMD) I have to conclude that my requests are being ignored – on purpose. Yawn. Oh well, this is not exactly a new behavior on NASA’s part. So much for the openness and transparency policies established by the White House that […]

Keith’s note: Several months ago Assistant Associate Administrator for the International Space Station Mark Uhran had been telling people that he was going to leave NASA on or around 1 October. Those plans have apparently changed. Former Deputy Associate Administrator for NASA Exploration Systems Mission Directorate Laurie Leshin’s departure led to a change in the new HEOMD management structure (due to the fusion of ESMD and SOMD) and Uhran is […]

Don’t Miss Out on Creating the Future, NASA TechBriefs “Time is running out to enter the 2011 “Create the Future” Design Contest. Entries for the ninth annual contest are due by June 30th. Click here to submit your design idea. Sponsored by COMSOL, Creo – a PTC product, and Tech Briefs Media Group, the contest recognizes outstanding innovations in product design, awarding a Grand Prize of $20,000 USD. New this […]

Keith’s note: SOMD AA Bill Gerstenmaier made a presentation to the 16 June Space Council meeting. The last slide (larger image) from his presentation (the rest of it is just pretty pictures) titled “Capability Driven Exploration” offers some insight into where a combined SOMD/ESMD exploration plan might be headed. Alas, this chart (and the path it suggests) is “notional” – like just about everything NASA says about its future plans […]

Keith’s note: According to the ISS National Lab Management Entity CAN the “anticipated selection announcement” was 31 May 2011. That day came and went last week. Nothing was announced. Given that it took decades for NASA to get this far – and that they only did so after Congressional direction – one can expect that they will drag their feet on this process as long as they can. Remarks by […]

NASA Announcement of Partnership Opportunity for Notification Tool for International Space Station Sightings, NASA SOMD “Currently, NASA has several ways the public can learn about ISS sighting opportunities, including NASA SkyWatch. However, NASA’s websites do not disseminate this information to the public- the public must seek it out proactively instead. NASA seeks to increase public awareness of the ISS, its visibility, and mission by making ISS sighting information, including personalized […]

Keith’s note: Looks like Beth Beck has finally decided to fix some major problems with NASA Buzzroom. When you visit now you get this message: “We’re in the process of making Buzzroom better for our users. We appreciate your patience. Please check back in the future.” The sad thing is that it took people outside the agency to notice these problems and bring them to NASA’s attention before they took […]

Keith’s note: Yesterday I made note of a broken website – NASA Buzzroom’s video page. One feature of this site is to grab videos posted on YouTube – automatically – and post them on a nasa.gov webpage and add a comment feature. Nice idea – it lets people see what others think about NASA. One small problem – humans are not in the loop at NASA. At one point I […]