June 2024 – Page 7 – NeRDs Moonbase

Hypersonic Technology Project Overview

June 21, 2024 NeRD

2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) A steel model of a hypersonic vehicle and sensor in front of a window in a wind tunnel labeled the 20 inch Mach 6 Tunnel. Vehicles that travel at hypersonic speeds fly faster than five times the speed of sound. NASA studies the fundamental science of hypersonics to understand it better and applies this understanding to enable point-to-point and space access hypersonic vehicles. These vehicles would use airbreathing engines, which utilize oxygen in the atmosphere. In the long term,…

Hypersonics Technical Challenges

June 21, 2024 NeRD

2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Launch of the Hypersonic International Flight Research Experimentation Program (HIFiRE) Flight 2 sounding rocket, a joint NASA-Air Force Research Laboratory flight experiment, May 1, 2012. Credit: AFRL Technical Challenges (TCs) are finite-duration research and development endeavors supporting the strategic goals of NASA. The Hypersonic Technology project’s Technical Challenges include estimation of uncertainty for hypersonic research problems and vehicle systems, testing controls for switching engines mid-flight, and researching more efficient fuel combustors for large ramjets, which will be needed by…

Hypersonic Research Topics

June 21, 2024 NeRD

2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) A wireframe image of an aircraft being designed. NASA The Hypersonic Technology project is divided into four research topic areas. The first research topic is system-level design, analysis, and validation, which explores the impacts of technologies on vehicle performance. The second and third topics focus more specifically on propulsion technologies and vehicle technologies enabling hypersonic flight. The fourth topic area explores material technology that can survive and be reused in high-temperature hypersonic flight. System-Level Design and Analysis The System-Level…

NASA’s ELaNa 43 Prepares for Firefly Aerospace Launch

June 21, 2024 NeRD

A Satellite for Optimal Control and Imaging (SOC-i) CubeSat awaits integration at Firefly’s Payload Processing Facility at Vandenberg Space Force Base, California on Thursday, June 6, 2024. SOC-i, along with several other CubeSats, will launch to space on an Alpha rocket during NASA’s Educational Launch of Nanosatellites (ELaNa) 43 mission as part of the agency’s CubeSat Launch Initiative and Firefly’s Venture-Class Launch Services Demonstration 2 contract. NASA NASA is readying for the launch of several small satellites to space, built with the help of students, educators, and researchers from across…

NASA Invites Public to Share Excitement of NOAA GOES-U Launch

June 21, 2024 NeRD

Crews transport NOAA’s (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-U) from the Astrotech Space Operations facility to the SpaceX hangar at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida beginning on Friday, June 14, 2024, with the operation finishing early Saturday, June 15, 2024. NASA/Ben Smegelsky NASA invites the public to participate in virtual activities and events leading up to the launch of the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) GOES-U (Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-U) mission. NASA is targeting a two-hour window opening at 5:16…

Contracts and Acquisition Integrity Law

June 21, 2024 NeRD

About In its functional leadership role, the Contracts and Acquisition Integrity Law Practice Group supports policy-level interactions with other elements of Government; provides specialized guidance and advice to the Offices of the General Counsel at NASA Field Centers regarding contract award, administration and litigation matters; and develops and coordinates NASA legal policy in these areas. As a functional office to the NASA Administrator, the Contracts and Acquisition Integrity Law Practice Group provides legal advice regarding Headquarters-level contract selection, administration and termination decisions; drafts or comments on proposed legislation, regulations and…

Acquisition Integrity Program

June 21, 2024 NeRD

In its functional leadership role, the Acquisition and Integrity Program (AIP) supports policy-level interactions with other governmental agencies combating procurement fraud. This Program provides specialized guidance and advice to the Office of the Chief Counsel at NASA Field Centers regarding procurement fraud matters; advises on affirmative litigation in the recovery of monies resulting from fraudulent activity on behalf of the Agency; and develops and coordinates NASA legal policy in these areas. As a functional office to the NASA Administrator, the Acquisition Integrity Program provides legal advice regarding suspected fraud and…

The Predator lands in Wakanda in new ‘Predator vs Black Panther’ series

June 21, 2024 NeRD

Now that 20th Century Studios (formerly 20th Century Fox) is under the protective umbrella of The Walt Disney Company, which is also the corporate parent of Marvel Comics, expect to see more crossovers of franchise characters making the leap from film and TV into the comic book universe. After the savage intergalactic hunter fought the adamantium-clawed X-Men last fall in “Predator vs Wolverine,” it’s time to take a ringside set to another heavyweight matchup for the ages in the footsteps of next month’s “Aliens vs. Avengers” title by Jonathan Hickman and…

When a dangerous asteroid threatens Earth, humanity will have to work together, NASA says

June 21, 2024 NeRD

A threatening asteroid could bring Earth’s oft-squabbling nations together, at least for a while. Dealing with a big, dangerous asteroid that appears to have our planet in its crosshairs will require a healthy dose of international cooperation, experts say — and it’s best to start thinking about that scenario now, while we have enough time to lay out a potential response framework. The United Nations (UN) has developed “procedures for responding to tsunamis and other big events,” Leviticus “L.A.” Lewis, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) detailee to NASA’s Planetary…

Coordinating an Airborne Lab Across the Globe with NASA’s Earth Science Project Office

June 21, 2024 NeRD

ASIA-AQ DC-8 aircraft flies over Bangkok, Thailand to monitor seasonal haze from fire smoke and urban pollution. Photo credit: Rafael Luis Méndez Peña. Tracking the spread of harmful air pollutants across large regions requires aircraft, satellites, and diverse team of scientists. NASA’s global interest in the threat of air pollution extends into Asia, where it works with partners on the Airborne and Satellite Investigation of Asian Air Quality (ASIA-AQ). This international mission integrates satellite data and aircraft measurements with local air quality ground monitoring and modeling efforts across Asia. Orchestrating…