NASA internships available

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - Undergraduates in communities surrounding John C. Stennis Space Center are invited to participate in NASA's Undergraduate Student Research Program (USRP). Applications are being accepted through Oct. 31. USRP offers undergraduates mentored internship experiences at NASA centers and research support facilities. The program is designed to give students experience for careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. For information.(Source: NASA, 07/30/10)

Shared Services Center awarded

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - The NASA Shared Services Center has been awarded the LEED Silver Certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. LEED, an internationally recognized green building certification system, provides third-party verification of the use of best practices in energy savings, water efficiency, CO2 emissions reduction and indoor environmental quality. The service center performs financial management, human resources, information technology, and procurement services for all 10 NASA centers. (Source: NASA, 07/28/10)

EDA reviewing grant process

The U.S. Economic Development Administration, a longtime funder of business incubators, is reviewing its grant process to ensure that the agency continues to meet the needs of American communities. In order to create a system that works best for its stakeholders, EDA is inviting comments and suggestions on the proposed new process. Comments can be made at the following site. (Source: NBIA, 07/26/10) Note: Mississippi Enterprise for Technology is a business incubator at Stennis Space Center.

SBT-22 gets new commander

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - Cmdr. Francis G. Franky replaced Cmdr. Robert W. Lyonnais as commander of Special Boat Team 22 during a ceremony July 15. About 300 people attended the change-of-command. Lyonnais' next assignment is at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, R. I. Franky is a prior enlisted SEAL who attended the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., earning a bachelor's in computer science and a master's in defense analysis. Stennis-based SBT-22 is the only command in the Department of Defense designated to conduct special operations in a riverine environment. (Source: SBT-22 Public Affairs, 07/21/10)

StenniSphere alters hours for a day

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - StenniSphere, the visitor center at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center, will open July 24 at 11 a.m., one hour later than normal, for planned maintenance work. StenniSphere regularly is open to the public 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday, and is closed on major holidays. (Source: NASA, 07/21/10)

July issue of Lagniappe available

The July issue of Lagniappe, a monthly newsletter about NASA activities at Stennis Space Center, is now available for download. This issue includes a story about the death of Roy Estess, former director at SSC, and an update on test stand A-3. Other items in the newsletter: A-1 test stand readied for future testing; SSC workers join Feds Feed Families effort; the visit by shuttle crews to SSC; a recap of an IT expo and more. (Source: Lagniappe, July 2010)

Latest issue of MsET newsletter available

The July issue of the Mississippi Enterprise for Technology newsletter is now available. This issue features a story about some of the work MsET companies are doing to respond to the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Also featured is a column by Charlie Beasley, MsET president. (Source: MsET, July 2010)

Aerojet engine arrives

An Aerojet AJ26 rocket engine was delivered to NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center on Thursday. It's the first of a series of Taurus II engines that will be tested at SSC to include acceptance testing of flight engines. Stennis will provide propulsion system acceptance testing for the Taurus II space launch vehicle being developed by Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va. The first Taurus II mission will be flown in support of NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services cargo demonstration to the International Space Station. Orbital's Taurus II design uses a pair of Aerojet AJ26 rocket engines to provide first stage propulsion for the new launch vehicle. (Source: NASA, 07/15/10)

Legislators tour services center

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - Members of the Legislature and the Mississippi Bureau of Building, Grounds and Real Property Management recently toured the NASA Shared Services Center at Stennis Space Center. As part of a state-wide facilities tour, the visitors spent time with the NSSC's management and facilities personnel, getting a hands-on look at the NSSC's daily operations within the $33 million state-owned facility. (Source: NASA, 07/15/10)

Oil flow stopped

BP says oil has stopped leaking into the Gulf for the first time since April. BP has been slowly dialing down the flow as part of a test on a new cap. Engineers are now monitoring the pressure to see if the busted well holds. (Source: Sun Herald, 07/15/10)

Fleet Survey Team shows capabilities

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - Four members of the Navy's Fleet Survey Team recently returned from Indonesia where they held an expeditionary hydrography demonstration June 2-19. The team spent the two and a half weeks in the Strait of Malacca in the North Sumatra region familiarizing the Indonesian Department of Oceanography and Hydrography on technology and techniques for very shallow water surveying in beach areas. The Fleet Survey Team is a rapid-response team with capabilities to conduct quick-turnaround hydrographic surveys anywhere in the world. (Source: NNS, 07/11/10)

Web page highlights SSC

Anyone interested in learning more about NASA's centers can do so at NASA's Cultural Resources GIS page. The history office has recently added one displaying the history of John C. Stennis Space Center. To see the information, documents, photos and other multimedia for various historic sites and buildings at Stennis, click here.

Bill would roll back NASA changes

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation is moving toward an authorization bill that would reverse much of the president's proposed changes to NASA's human space flight program. The bill lays out the direction of the space program for the next three years. It would add another space shuttle flight, speed development of a heavy-lift rocket and move ahead with building a spacecraft to venture beyond low-Earth orbit. It would also require companies to demonstrate their capabilities before receiving large contracts for delivering astronauts to the International Space Station. (Source: New York Times, 07/08/10)

Startups key to growing jobs

For policymakers focused on creating jobs, a Kauffman Foundation study has the answer: startups. The study, The Importance of Startups in Job Creation and Job Destruction, is based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau. It shows that, both on average and for all but seven years between 1977 and 2005, existing firms are net job destroyers, losing 1 million jobs net combined per year. By contrast, in their first year, new firms add an average of 3 million jobs. "These findings imply that America should be thinking differently about the standard employment policy paradigm," said Robert E. Litan, vice president of Research and Policy at the Kauffman Foundation. "Policymakers tend to focus on changes in the national or state unemployment rate, or on layoffs by existing companies. But the data from this report suggest that growth would be best boosted by supporting startup firms." Job-creation policies aimed at luring larger, established employers will inevitably fail, said the study's author, Tim Kane, Kauffman Foundation senior fellow in Research and Policy. (Source: Kauffman Foundation, 07/07/10) Note: The Mississippi Enterprise for Technology is a business incubator at John C. Stennis Space Center.

StenniSphere closed July 10

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - StenniSphere, the visitor center at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center, will be closed July 10 to perform planned maintenance work. The center will reopen July 14 and resume normal operating hours. StenniSphere is open to the public 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday, and is closed on major holidays. Public tours run throughout each day from the Launch Pad at the Hancock County Welcome Center, Interstate 10, Exit 2. (Source: NASA, 07/07/10)

"Lunch and learn" set for July 8

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. - The Mississippi Enterprise for Technology has scheduled this month's "MsET Lunch and Learn" for July 8. The speaker is Jeff Corbin, director of QinetiQ's Slidell Research and Development Center. He'll discuss technologies and programs of QinetiQ North America and business opportunities with the company. Mississippi Enterprise for Technology is a business incubator and technology transfer operation at SSC. The lunch and learn series is a forum for participants to learn more about products and services represented within the MsET community. For information on the event, contact Pamela Street at 228-688-3372, or email her at pamela.s.street@nasa.gov. (Source: MsET, 07/02/10)

July issue of Messenger available

The July issue of Michoud Messenger, a monthly newsletter about activities at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, is now available for download. This issue includes an item on the MAF Transition Team being recognized for outstanding achievement during a ceremony at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. Other items in the newsletter: hurricane safety; the visit to Michoud by the STS-132 crew; the third-year kickoff of the Michoud Education Fellow program and more. (Source: Michoud Messenger, July 2010)

Shuttle missions rescheduled

NASA is targeting Nov. 1 for the launch of space shuttle Discovery's STS-133 mission and Feb. 26, 2011, for the liftoff of shuttle Endeavour's STS-134 flight from the Kennedy Space Center, Fla. The target dates were adjusted because critical payload hardware for STS-133 will not be ready in time to support the previously planned Sept. 16 launch. With STS-133 moving to November, STS-134 cannot fly as planned, so the next available launch window is in February. All target launch dates are subject to change. (Source: NASA, 07/01/10) Stennis Space Center, Miss., tested the main engines for the shuttle program. Previous story

Last external tank completed

NEW ORLEANS, La. - NASA and Lockheed Martin Space Systems will hold a ceremony at 9 a.m. CDT on July 8 at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to commemorate 37 years of tank deliveries and the final external tank's rollout. The tank was completed June 25 by Lockheed Martin workers at Michoud, some 40 miles from Stennis Space Center, Miss. The external tank will travel by barge to Kennedy Space Center in Florida, 900 miles away. The last shuttle flight, STS 134, is slated for February 2011. (Source: NASA, 06/30/10)