SWE's Introducing Girls To Engineering!

Today I volunteered my time in being a workshop leader at SWE's annual Introducing Girls to Engineering event. The girls get a full day of workshops related to an engineering field. Some examples of the workshops are programming robots, designing/building roller costers, straw structures, alkaseltzer rockets, and truss bridges. I could go on with the list as there were so many workshops the kids could choose from. I was the leader for the chemistry of lip gloss. The girls made their own lip gloss with different bases, flavoring, and coloring. I made sure every girl knew what hydrogenation meant by the end of the workshops. I had a great time teaching them how chemical engineering tied into making lip gloss and they were so thrilled when they got to take the lip gloss they actually made home in a container. I led 5 workshops, am a little exhausted, and have red food coloring all over my hands which is a little hard to wash off. But overall, it was well worth it!!!

Looking good for a Feb. 7th launch....

Technicians are on pace to finish work Friday on new foam insulation applied over a replaced external wiring connector on space shuttle Atlantis' external fuel tank.

Speaking at Ridley Park High School!

Yesterday I spoke to Ridley Park High School about what I do at Kennedy Space Center. I realized I have visited the school for 3 years now around this time. The kids loved the presentation and here are some pictures from yesterday's talk....

STS-120 crew visits Italy!

Massimo Martini was able to get this shot of the STS-120 crew members when they visited Italy.....but of course home to Paolo Nespoli!!!

In South Philly....

So I visited the Italian Market in South Philly. They had fresh produce on the sidewalks, specialty cheese, meats, and seafood stores..YOU NAME IT! I stopped in at Anthony's Chocolate House and bought some Tiramasu and Kahlua White Chocolate truffle and chocolate-covered strawberries. Of course I indulged in my Philly Cheesesteak at Geno's. I also made a stop by an Italian bakery called Termini's! The BEST cannoli's ever!!! And there was this little band playing "It's Amore" when we walked in! It was awesome!

Had a great time at Merion Elementary!

Today I gave a presentation at Merion Elementary and the kids were so engaged. They asked some great questions and were excited to see the cool demonstrations I had for them. Below is a slide show of the great day I had today. I will definitely make an effort to visit Merion next year!

An update on me....

I was able to fit in a quick run today. When I thought I was going to go skiing during Christmas, I had purchased some hot chillys to keep me warm. Well tonight it's a little cold out and I decided to wear my hot chillys out running....They are absolutely awesome to run in!! (when it's cold out, of course)

Last week I was on 2nd shift and I am back working on 1st shift this week. I received some comments back from some of my colleagues I had asked to review my resume. I've been working on revising a couple of things and adding some info like all my community involvement.

I have a long list of things to work on before March. I need to acquire recommendation letters for the next graduate schools I am applying to, prepare a Statement of Purpose on why I want to pursue an advanced engineering degree, continue working on my resume for the astronaut application, study for the GRE, order transcripts, continue my current graduate research.....and somewhere in there is my job!! HA!

Luckily, I do have things under control and organized. Yikes! I still need to pack for going to Philly this week too!! I can't wait to indulge myself in milkshakes from Nifty Fifty's and Geno's Philly Cheesesteaks! Yummy! I'll probably have to double my run by the time I get back. It's supposed to snow over there this weekend and I don't think I want to run in the snow. :)

Launch Schedule Update!

It looks like Space Shuttle Atlantis (STS-122) will have a next launch attempt on February 7. Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-123) was originally supposed to launch on February 14, but has been delayed to March 13.

Next Stop: Pennsylvania!!!!!!

I am looking forward to next week as I will be traveling to Pennsylvania to talk with Merion Elementary School on Friday. As I am on the Board of Advisors for the Coalition for Space Exploration, I met Penny Glackman, a NASA-trained educator at Merion Elementary, when I visited Washington D.C last year for an annual board meeting. Mrs. Glackman highly incorporates space science into her curriculum for the students.

Then on Tuesday of the following week, I will be speaking with the students of Ridley Park High School. I have been visiting Ridley Park for about two years now and have had such a great experience.

I enjoy visiting students at their schools because they are enthralled with the presentation, and sometimes after my talk, some will ask to speak with me for guidance or merely just to say thank you. It's a great feeling knowing you've inspired and made an impact on a student's life.

One step closer to launching.....

Workers are finished soldering the pass-through connector as work continues to make space shuttle Atlantis ready for launch. The connector is undergoing testing and will be waterproofed before being installed on the external fuel tank for Atlantis' STS-122 mission.

Getting my resume ready for the astronaut application.....

Yesterday I updated my resume for the Astronaut Candidate Program. I have not submitted it yet because I have certain colleagues looking it over to give me feedback. I've already ordered my transcripts from Texas A&M, but I will wait until April when I finish my master's program to order the transcripts from Embry Riddle.

Next week I am going to proceed in the continuation of my research for grad school. I will basically begin to distribute my research questionnaire to get the general public's opinion on what they know about space exploration. Once I collect all my data, I will have to start analyzing the data and write the remaining chapters of the research.

I just got back from a good run. I think I am going to stick with running days of Saturday, Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday. On my off days, I am doing more of a muscle target workout at the gym with my friend Nicole. For some time now, I have had a friend rave about how awesome fitday.com is. So starting today, I am giving it a shot. Fitday.com is a good way to log calories, exercise, and help you reach whatever weight goal you are trying for. I have to admit, the program is organized and set up pretty cool. My goal right now is to lose 13 lbs. by March and by using this program I can watch my trend and see how I stick to trying to reach this goal! Just try out tracking one day of eating using fitday.com. You'll get hooked, I promise.

Atlantis to launch late January or early February......

The next launch will be no earlier than January 24th....but with the amount of work that has to be done and other factors in the way, launch could take place either the end of January or in early February. In 7-10 days, a more achievable launch date will be set by NASA managers.

We're actually going to get a "winter" day!

Tomorrow, NASA managers will meet at 10 a.m. EST to decide on actions that will allow them to set a new launch date for Atlantis. At 5 p.m. EST shuttle program manager Wayne Hale will update the status of efforts to launch Atlantis. It's unlikely a new launch date will be set on Thursday, but managers should create a plan for correcting the faulty sensor readings.

In the meantime, we're supposed to get freezing temperatures here tonight! Apparently, the last time it got this cold was in 2003. I guess I'll actually have to dust off my jacket to take it to work tomorrow! To protect Space Shuttle Atlantis from these temperatures on Pad 39A, technicians have prepared heaters that will be activated for the orbital maneuvering system and the solid rocket boosters. Additionally, systems that contain water will be protected by keeping that water flowing so it cannot freeze.

Now, to start off 2008 right, I've created myself an eating plan to make sure I am not going overboard on calories and incorporating more veggies and protein, and less fat. I am about to go running and I already created my little map using WalkJogRun.net. As soon as I get back, I'll have to get back to studying for the GRE.

If you're a runner, jogger, or a walker....

I've stumbled across this nifty online tool that I will begin to use before my runs. WalkJogRun is an online site that allows you to map out running/jogging/walking routes. It lets you save them for later reference and share with others. Similar online tools include theUSA Track and Field and Nike's Plus Program. However, my favorite aspect of WalkJogRun is that after you enter the zip code of interest, you can then filter the routes based on distance, duration, and even difficulty level. You can even tell it your intended walking or running speeds and it recalculates based on that! Very cool tools!!!

Winter hasn't started in Florida....

I'm so jealous of anyone who is having fun in the snow. I wanted to go skiing for the holidays, but with the launch being scrubbed, last minute ski plans are a little costly. I was going to drive up to North Carolina to hit some slopes up there, but after looking at weather reports, they had rain and warmer temperatures. So I decided not to take a chance with slushy snow. I have to go to Seattle in April, so maybe there will still be snow at Crystal Mountain.

I've been off since the 24th and don't have to go back to work until January 2nd. I've had some time to get things organized and start working on my 2008 goals. Today I went to Barnes and Noble and bought the GRE study guide as I will be taking the test in March. After I studied for a bit, I went kayaking at De Leon Springs. I had so much fun and since it's about 80 degrees over here, it was definitely a day to spend outdoor. At the springs, they also have a restaurant called the Old Spanish Sugar Mill. The awesome thing about this place is that they bring two different types of pancake batter and toppings...but you make your own pancakes on the griddle at your table. When I got home, I went for a long bike ride to work off all the pancakes I ate! :)

Update on STS-122 Launch

Yesterday, NASA gave engineers the 'ok' to start removing the components of the suspect feed-through connector built into the wall of Atlantis' External Tank. We are definitely not launching on January 10th, but there is still not a final date set as we are still troubleshooting the problem. The removed components are going to undergo some more cryogenic testing. Aside from cryogenic testing, NASA is additionally looking at a soldering fix Lockheed made a while back to correct a similar sensor issue in the Centaur stage used by unmanned Atlas rockets.

The Infamous Feed-Through Connector.....

Well at least now we know that the cause from the last couple of scrubs was due to a critical three-part "feed-through" connector. The feed-through connector leads the wires that carries the sensor data from the inside of the liquid hydrogen tank in the cryogenic fluid to the exterior of the tank. We're hoping to find out today how long it would take to fix this issue. Another thing to keep in mind is that our launch window is only open until January 13.

But so far...it has been approved for workers to prepare in removing foam around the connector on the external fuel tank.

ECO Sensor test today

I've been receiving updates on how the test is going. It looks like we have found which sensor is being problematic. Later today we should have a better look on the time required to fix the sensor and see if we can still meet a Jan. 10 launch!

Let's try for January 10th.....

So in efforts allow workers more time off during the holidays, NASA is delaying the launch of Atlantis for January 10.

The delay will allow workers to take time off during Christmas and New Years, which is considered important very important given the high workloads crews have been under during last week's launch scrubs. The delay won't affect plans to conduct a tanking test of the orbiter's External Tank (ET), still scheduled for Tuesday, in an effort to track down the root cause of the sensor problems.

Missions are the kind of events that you really have to plan around. I purposely didn't make plans to be with my family out in Washington this year, thinking I'd be supporting landing by now. But, now that they have called off work....tickets are WAY TOO expensive to purchase now.....and well..me and a couple of buddies are family-less for the holidays. But honestly, this is the way it goes, and it's all worth it in the end when we launch and support the mission in Houston. At least tickets will be cheaper after the holidays for family visits. :)

Hope everyone enjoys the holidays wherever you may be spending it....

Boeing is awarded the Ares I Instrument Unit Avionics (IUA) contract!!!

Today, NASA announced that The Boeing Company has been awarded an initial NASA contract valued at approximately $265 million to produce the Ares I crew launch vehicle's instrument unit avionics (IUA). The award follows Boeing's selection as the Ares I upper stage production contractor in August.

The IUA provides the guidance, navigation and control hardware for the new Ares I crew launch vehicle, serving as the "brains" behind the rocket's ascent. The Ares I launches the Orion crew exploration vehicle, which will join other elements of NASA's Constellation program to help propel astronauts to the moon by 2020.

Boeing will produce three IUA flight test units and six production units, with an option to produce four additional units per year from 2014 to 2016. The first delivery of the avionics unit is expected in 2012 as NASA wants to launch astronauts into orbit and then shoot for the moon by 2020.

Help donate RICE to the hungry!!!!

Ok, this website is for reals and legit...I did my research on it before I posted it on here. You seriously have to check it out! The webiste is: http://www.freerice.com/

For each word you get correct, 20 grains of rice are donated through the United Nations to help end world hunger!

Where we're headed with STS-122

Next Tuesday, December 18th, Atlantis's External Tank (ET) undergo a cryogenics test. The ET will be filled with supercold hydrogen to test the low-level sensors. They're pretty certain that sensor(s) will fail during the test, however, some test instrumentation will be hooked up near a control unit in the shuttle's aft engine compartment to hook up test instrumentation that should help locate any bad wiring or connectors in all the cabling between the control unit box and the sensors at the base of the ET. Launch is still set to no earlier than Janaury 2nd. But we should have a better direction of where we're headed with a fix and a launch date once we determine the root cause from the test.

It's no Space Shuttle....but it's still a launch!

Some pictures of mockup Orion Crew Module

About a week ago or so I posted some pictures I found on a NASA blog of the mockup Orion Crew Module. Here are two more pictures.

NASA Dryden's Fabrication Branch constructed the mockup of the Orion crew module. More simplified than the actual spacecraft, the Orion mockup is the actual size of the real thing, inside and out. Two pad abort and four ascent abort flight tests of the launch abort system are planned, all unmanned, with the first scheduled for 2008 and continuing through 2011.

STS-122 launch postponed to January

"Launch of Atlantis has been postponed to January, NASA officials have decided. The December launch period ends this week and managers do not expect to reach a resolution to the sensor problems by then. The next liftoff attempt could come as early as Jan. 2 around 5:45 a.m. EST."

I am sure we will be able to fix all issues in time for a January launch. Hopefully we will not have weather issues during that time.

Engine Cut-Off Sensors

It looks like Saturday will be the earliest attempt for the next launch. We will definitely know a decision by this afternoon. For those who aren't familiar with the Engine Cut-Off (ECO) sensors, here's a brief overview on how critical they are.

Sensors can "fail wet" or "fail dry." Failing in the wet state is considered acceptable since the shuttle is launched with more propellant than is actually required. If the sensors fail wet, the engines would continue to run and the shuttle's flight computer system presumably would shut the sensors down based on meeting orbital requirements.

However, if two sensors fail in a dry state, the flight computers would be misled into believing the tank was nearly empty and the main engines would be ordered to shut down early. Unless it happened extremely late in the climb to space, that could trigger a dangerous, untried abort scenario. A launch could end in an extreme tragedy if engines cut out too early to too late.

Here's a good schematic of the ECO sensors and their locations:

STS-122 Launch Scrubbed for today! :(

"NASA officials are assessing their options for a future launch attempt of Atlantis to deliver the European Space Agency's Columbus science laboratory module to the space station. The current plan calls for another try tomorrow, after further troubleshooting on the fuel sensor system. Tomorrow's launch time would be 4:09 p.m. EST."

Today was a perfect day for weather too!! Tomorrow and the day after looks like we have a 40% chance of weather prohibiting launch! Well, lets hope for the best!

Happy Launch Day! Go Atlantis!

Final Debris Walkdown before launch!!

I am just getting back from helping out with the final debris walkdown at the launch pad. At around 8:30, the Rotating Service Structure (RSS) was rolled back from around Space Shuttle Atlantis. I had the most incredible view of the Shuttle once the RSS retracted.

So here are some pictures from tonight. The first one is an awesome picture of Space Shuttle Atlantis. We performed the debris walkdown on the Mobile Launch Platform (MLP) and then moved on to the pad surface. In the next picture is me picking up whatever type of foreign object debris I found. The following picture is from when I was down inside the FLAME TRENCH!! Not a place anyone would want to be in tomorrow! Enjoy the rest of the pictures in the slide show. Now I'm going to bed so I can be well rested to support launch tomorrow!! More pictures to follow!

Watch this AWESOME "Earth-rise" and "Earth-set"!

Ok, so footage like this is what sparked my interest in wanting to become an astronaut in the first place. Check out this video from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK) taken by the HD camera of the KAGUYA, a lunar explorer. Watching this video sure makes me want to be up there.

Video 1: EARTH-RISE

Video 2: EARTH-SET

Can't wait for March!

I'm in such a great mood today. I bought a Christmas tree and decorated it tonight. I'll at least get to enjoy it for a little while before I have to leave for Houston next week for mission imagery support. HOPEFULLY, I will get to enjoy the tree for Christmas as well. I'm on landing support for Atlantis. If we do not have favorable weather in Florida for landing, the orbiter could land at Edwards Air Force Base in California if they have acceptable landing conditions. So there is a possibility that I may need to work close to the holiday break.

The next highlight of my day was registering for my SCUBA certification class! The place I went to had a holiday special I couldn't turn down. The classes last four weeks but I won't be starting until March. I had to pick a month where I didn't already have travel/missions going on because you really don't want to miss the classes. So January and February were out for me. I'm very excited for this potential new hobby!

Back to being BUSY!!!!

Well, I hope everyone had an enjoyable holiday. I completely finished all revisions to my research proposal and incorporated comments from my committee chairman. It looks like I will be registering for MY LAST CLASS at Embry Riddle in January! I also received the application for graduation form from my advisor, so I am well on track to graduate with my first Master's in May 2008!!

So in the meantime, I have been thinking..WHAT NEXT!? Well, I have been looking at some other graduate schools and am currently eyeballing University of Southern California's Masters in Biomedical Engineering and University of Washington's Masters in Aerospace Engineering. They offer both degrees through a distance learning network and that seemed to have worked out very well for my current Masters. I'm still not decided on what degree track I want to pursue, but I have at least until next February to completely decide. Since I haven't taken the GRE yet, I scheduled it yesterday for March 1, 2008.

So...I will currently be working on studying for the GRE, my final research for graduation, getting SCUBA certified, AND working on my resume for the Astronaut Candidate Program!!

I will also be doing some school presentations in January for Ridley Park High School and Merion Elementary School in Pennsylvania.

Orion Crew Module Test Article

I recently visited a NASA blog and Chris from NASA Edge posted these pictures of the Orion crew module test article that is currently being built.

"In September 2008, NASA will be conducting the first Pad Abort flight test. They are calling it Pad Abort 1. This will take place in White Sands, New Mexico. The primary objective is to test the Launch Abort System or LAS. The LAS will be the most expensive part of the Orion spacecraft that hopefully will never be used. The LAS essentially covers the Orion crew module. Pad Abort 1 will simulate how the LAS will function in case something happens to the Ares 1 launch vehicle at the pad. The Pad Abort 1 test will consist of the Orion crew module flight test article and the launch abort system."

Should we go to the moon and Mars?

On November 9th, 2007, the Orlando Sentinel posted a Friday Forum question of "Should we go to the moon and Mars?"

It was a question of determining if our space program was heading in the right direction. I felt the need to give my feedback and the response was published today at: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/letters/orl-myword1707nov17,0,5366252.story

I highly encourage you to watch the video and read some of the comments others left, and think of what your answer may be to this question.

Boeing to ship Orion developmental heat shield to NASA

Advanced Network and Space Systems material and process engineer Elizabeth Chu inspects the Thermal Protection System Manufacturing Demonstration Unit developed for NASA’s Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle project. Advanced Systems was awarded a contract last year to develop a prototype heat shield to protect NASA astronauts from extreme heat during re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere upon returning from lunar and low-Earth-orbit missions. The work was performed at Boeing's facility in Huntington Beach, California.

Shuttle Atlantis Rolls Out Tomorrow!

Tomorrow, the shuttle stack rolls out to the launch pad around 4:00 am!!!!

Discovery gets ready to go into OPF 3

After a successful STS-120 mission, Discovery prepares to enter Orbiter Processing Facility 3. It will undergo many inspections and procedures in preparation of the vehicle's next flight in April 2008!

Discovery (STS-120) Lands at KSC!!!

NASA 50th Anniversary Essay Contest for Students

The NASA 50th Anniversary Essay Competition for middle and junior high school students is now accepting entries. The competition consists of two separate topics, each with a limit of 500 words. The first topic challenges students to describe how they benefit in their everyday lives from space technologies built by NASA over the last 50 years. The second topic requires students to imagine how their everyday lives will have changed because of NASA space technology in the next 50 years.

Students may submit two separate essays, each responding to a separate topic. Participants must be U.S. students in grades 5-9 and under the age of 15. An optional notice of intent is due on Dec. 7, 2007. Final entries are due on or before Jan. 7, 2008.

WEBSITE:http://www.nasa.gov/audience/foreducators/5-8/features/F_Essay_Competition.html

Any U.S. student enrolled in an accredited middle school, junior high school or home school (under the age of 15) in the U.S. or its territories is eligible to enter the competition for cash prizes. Non-U.S. citizens and students in international locations can enter as well, but they are not eligible for cash prizes. Trophies and certificates will be awarded to each winner, regardless of citizenship.

First prize: $5,000 college scholarship and four VIP trips to the Kennedy Space Center in Florida to watch the STS-125 shuttle launch.
Second prize: $2,500 college scholarship.
Third prize: $1,000 college scholarship.
Ten regional winners will receive "Regional Winner" trophies.

Atlantis leaves for the VAB!

This morning at 7:04 am, Atlantis left for the VAB in preparation of assembling the shuttle stack!

Videos from today at the Shuttle Landing Facility

Day 1 of the 2007 World Space Expo

I have been volunteering some of my time in preparation of the events of World Space Expo and today was the first day of the spectacular event! Below are some of the highlights of my day. I can't wait for tomorrow's aerial Salute to 50 Years in Space.

I met Lt. Col. Kevin Robbins who is the commander/leader of the USAF Thunderbirds! Below is a photo of him with his F-16 Thunderbird "parked" at the Shuttle Landing Facility. Then there were the two F-22 Raptors. My favorite!!! I got to get upclose to the aircraft and meet the pilots!! There was a major cool factor seeing the aircraft at the Shuttle Landing Facility and I know the pilots are excited about flight over Kennedy Space Center. I will upload some videos later tonight of some of the aircraft coming in on the runway.