Johnson Space Center – Page 3

High School Aerospace Scholars Propel STEM Leaders Forward

January 13, 2025 NeRD

NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement at Johnson Space Center in Houston offers students a unique gateway to opportunity through the High School Aerospace Scholars (HAS) program. The initiative provides Texas juniors with hands-on experience in space exploration, working on projects ranging from rocket building to problem-solving in collaborative teams. The stories of HAS alumni highlight the program’s impact, showcasing how it has opened doors to diverse careers in STEM and inspired graduates to empower others. Johnson Community Engagement Lead Jessica Cordero, who served as the manager of the HAS program…

35 Years Ago: STS-32 Returns the Long Duration Exposure Facility

January 9, 2025 NeRD

On Jan. 9, 1990, space shuttle Columbia took off on its ninth flight, STS-32, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Its five-person crew of Commander Daniel Brandenstein, Pilot James Wetherbee, and Mission Specialists Bonnie Dunbar, Marsha Ivins, and David Low flew a then record-breaking 11-day mission to deploy the Syncom IV-F5 communications satellite for the U.S. Navy and retrieve the Long-Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). Astronauts aboard a shuttle mission in 1984 deployed the LDEF and scientists eagerly awaited the return of their 57 experiments to study the effects…

Houston, We Have the Holiday Cookies

January 8, 2025 NeRD

Supporting the International Space Station is an around-the-clock responsibility for NASA and its international partners. This means there is always a team of flight operations and payload personnel working with the orbiting laboratory’s crew – including overnight, on weekends, and during the holidays. At Johnson Space Center’s Mission Control Center (MCC) in Houston, flight directors organize fun activities to help these teams build camaraderie and celebrate holidays while they work, no matter the hour. “Working in mission control is a very rewarding job, but it also demands a lot from…

Astronaut Set to Patch NASA’s X-ray Telescope Aboard Space Station

January 8, 2025 NeRD

4 min read Astronaut Set to Patch NASA’s X-ray Telescope Aboard Space Station NASA astronaut Nick Hague will install patches to the agency’s NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer) X-ray telescope on the International Space Station as part of a spacewalk scheduled for Jan. 16. Hague, along with astronaut Suni Williams, will also complete other tasks during the outing. NICER will be the first NASA observatory repaired on-orbit since the last servicing mission for the Hubble Space Telescope in 2009. Hague and other astronauts, including Don Pettit, who is also currently on the…

NASA to Cover Two Spacewalks, Hold Preview News Conference

January 7, 2025 NeRD

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Thomas Pesquet conduct a spacewalk to complete work on the International Space Station on June 25, 2021. Credit: NASA Two NASA astronauts will venture outside the International Space Station, conducting U.S. spacewalk 91 on Thursday, Jan. 16, and U.S. spacewalk 92 on Thursday, Jan. 23, to complete station upgrades. NASA also will discuss the pair of upcoming spacewalks during a news conference at 2 p.m. EST Friday, Jan. 10, on NASA+ from the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Learn…

NASA Names Adam Schlesinger as Commercial Lunar Payload Services Project Manager

January 6, 2025 NeRD

Official portrait of Adam Schlesinger. NASA/Bill Stafford NASA has selected Adam Schlesinger as manager for CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services). Schlesinger previously served as the Gateway Program habitation and logistics outpost project lead engineer at Johnson Space Center. “I am honored and tremendously excited to take on this new role as NASA continues to enable a growing lunar economy while leveraging the entrepreneurial innovation of the commercial space industry,” Schlesinger said. Schlesinger brings more than 20 years’ experience to NASA human space flight programs. Prior to supporting Gateway, Mr. Schlesinger managed…

High School Aerospace Scholars Launches Dreams, Inspires the Artemis Generation

January 6, 2025 NeRD

To put boots on the Moon—and keep them there—will require bold thinkers ready to tackle the challenges of tomorrow. That’s why NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement at Johnson Space Center in Houston is on a mission to empower the next generation of explorers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Through the High School Aerospace Scholars (HAS) program, Texas juniors have the opportunity to immerse themselves in space exploration through interactive learning experiences. “HAS is such an important program because we introduce students to the multitude of careers and experiences…

Earth to Space Call: NASA Leaders to Speak with Station Astronauts

December 30, 2024 NeRD

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, and NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, react as they are recognized by employees during a NASA agencywide all hands on Dec. 6, 2024, at the NASA Headquarters Mary W. Jackson Building in Washington. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls NASA Administrator Bill Nelson and Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy will speak with NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, and Don Pettit on Monday, Jan. 6, to discuss their mission aboard the International Space Station. The Earth to space call coverage begins at 1:30 p.m. EST on NASA+. Learn…

Station Science Top News: Dec. 20, 2024

December 20, 2024 NeRD

A method for evaluating thermophysical properties of metal alloys Simulation of the solidification of metal alloys, a key step in certain industrial processes, requires reliable data on their thermophysical properties such as surface tension and viscosity. Researchers propose comparing predictive models with experimental outcomes as a method to assess these data. Scientists use data on surface tension and viscosity of titanium-based alloys in industrial processes such as casting and crystal growth. Non-Equilibrium Solidification, Modelling for Microstructure Engineering of Industrial Alloys, an ESA (European Space Agency) investigation, examined the microstructure and…

NASA Names Carlos Garcia-Galan as Gateway Program Deputy Manager

December 19, 2024 NeRD

Official portrait of Carlos Garcia-Galan, deputy manager for the Gateway Program. NASA/Bridget Caswell NASA has selected Carlos Garcia-Galan as deputy manager for the Gateway Program. Garcia-Galan previously served as manager of the Orion Program’s European Service Module Integration Office at Glenn Research Center. “I am tremendously excited to take on this new role and help lead development of humanity’s first outpost in deep space,” Garcia-Galan said. “I’m honored to join a top-class Gateway team around the world, as the first elements of the complex move toward completion.” Garcia-Galan brings more…