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More Duplicative PAO Releases

By Keith Cowing

NASA Watch

March 10, 2006

Editor’s note: NASA HQ is apparently powerless to instruct its various field centers as to how things should be done from an agency perspective. Here is another example (and there are more): the weekly expendable ELV status reports from KSC.

There is a difference: someone changes the capitalization of certain words every week – “LAUNCH SITE:” becomes “Launch Site:” (or the other way around). Someone has to take the time to make these changes. Also, George Diller claims he is at the NASA Resident Office Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. but NASA HQ thinks he is at KSC. KSC thought it would be helpful to add local times for a West Coast launch – HQ did not. When I asked the HQ PAO person why they couldnt just direct KSC PAO to do it in a way that HQ deems appropriate for the agency (thus saving the need for someone to do these changes) – the PAO person said simply “we don’t control their budget. In other words, NASA HQ PAO doesn’t even have the ability to direct simple stenographic details of routine release. Here’s an example:

From: [email protected]
Subject: NASA Expendable Launch Vehicle Status Report: E06-009
Date: March 10, 2006 3:07:48 PM EST
To: [email protected]

March 10, 2006

Katherine Trinidad
Headquarters, Washington
(202) 358-3749

George Diller
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
(321) 867-2468

STATUS REPORT: E06-009

NASA EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT: E06-009

Mission: Space Technology 5 (ST5)
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Launch Vehicle: Orbital Sciences Pegasus XL
Launch Date: No earlier than March 14, 2006
Launch Window: 8:57:31 to 10:19:50 a.m. EST
Targeted Drop Time: 9:02 a.m. EST

The Pegasus rocket with ST5 was transported today from the hangar to
the L-1011 ramp area next to the runway on north Vandenberg. The
rocket is being mated to the Orbital Sciences L-1011 carrier
aircraft.

A combined systems test is scheduled for Saturday. The integrated test
between the Pegasus vehicle and the L-1011 will ensure all
connections have been established and all systems are functioning
properly. A state-of-health check of the ST5 is also scheduled.

The Launch Readiness Review is scheduled for March 12. The four-hour,
40-minute countdown for launch is scheduled to begin at 4:20 a.m.
EST, March 14; leading to launch at 9:02 a.m. EST.

Previous status reports are available on the Web at:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/launchingrockets/status/2006

For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/home

From: [email protected]
Subject: Expendable Launch Vehicle Status Report
Date: March 10, 2006 3:31:45 PM EST
To: [email protected]

03.10.06

Katherine Trinidad
Headquarters, Washington
Phone: (202) 358-3749

George H. Diller
NASA Resident Office
Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
Phone: (805) 605-3051

STATUS REPORT: ELV-031006

EXPENDABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE STATUS REPORT

MISSION: Space Technology 5 (ST5)
LAUNCH SITE: Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
LAUNCH VEHICLE: Orbital Sciences Pegasus XL
LAUNCH DATE: No earlier than March 14, 2006
LAUNCH WINDOW: 8:57:31 a.m. to 10:19:50 a.m. EST (5:56:31 a.m. –
7:19:50 a.m. PST)
TARGETED DROP TIME: 9:02 a.m. EST (6:02 a.m. PST)

The Launch Readiness Review is scheduled for March 12. The four-hour,
40-minute countdown for launch is scheduled to begin at 4:20 a.m.
EST, March 14, leading to launch at 9:02 a.m. EST.

For previous status reports on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/kennedy/launchingrockets/status/2006

For information about NASA and agency programs on the Web, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/home