SLS update provided

NEW ORLEANS -- NASA provided businesses an update on the Space Launch System during a seminar at Michoud Assembly Facility last week. It drew about 150 people -- 90 businesses from 10 states and the District of Columbia. The core stage of the 70-ton SLS, designed to carry astronauts into deep space, will be built at Michoud by Boeing. The engines that will power two stages will be tested at Stennis Space Center, about 40 miles away in Mississippi. An unmanned test of SLS is scheduled for 2017. (Sources: New Orleans Times Picayune, 10/24/12, Baton Rouge Advocate, 10/28/12) Previous

Blue Origin tests thrust chamber

BE-3 test. NASA photo

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- Blue Origin successfully fired the thrust chamber assembly for its new 100,000 pound thrust BE-3 liquid oxygen, liquid hydrogen rocket engine. As part of the company's Reusable Booster System, the engines are designed eventually to launch the biconic-shaped space vehicle the company is developing. The test took place early this month on the E-1 test stand. Blue Origin engineers powered the thrust chamber to its full power level. Blue Origin of Washington is one of the companies developing commercial space transportation systems. (Source: NASA, 10/15/12)

MSU center to open

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- Mississippi State University will open its $9 million science and technology center Tuesday. Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., is the scheduled speaker. The center will be home of the Northern Gulf Institute, MSU's Geosystems Research Institute, NOAA's National Coastal Data Development Center and an engineering branch of NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service. The building was funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. (Source: AP via Mississippi Press, 10/15/12)

ONR honored for STEM work

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) earned accolades as a national "pacesetter" during an Oct. 8 ceremony for its efforts to promote education in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. ONR's executive director, Dr. Walter F. Jones, accepted the ASM Materials Education Foundation's 2012 Pacesetter Award at a leadership luncheon at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, Pa. The recognition highlights the Navy's efforts to address a critical shortage in the science and engineering workforce. Among its efforts to boost STEM education, ONR has funded a series of summer camps along the Gulf Coast to train middle and high school teachers in physics and materials science, electronic engineering, chemistry and polymer science. The Naval Research Laboratory detachment at Stennis Space Center, Miss., worked with the foundation to organize the program, which could expand to other parts of the country as the Navy seeks to double its STEM investments by fiscal year 2015. (Source: NNS, 10/09/12)

SLS industry day set

NEW ORLEANS -- NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center will host a Space Launch System Industry Day at Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans on Oct. 24. The event will begin with registration at 7:00 a.m., and adjourn at 2:00 p.m. to be followed by a tour of MAF. For those interested, there will be another tour of the Stennis Space Center, Miss., some 30 miles away, on the morning of Oct. 25. Those in attendance will be provided SLS Program updates, and will be afforded an opportunity to network with SLS prime contractors, NASA and Huntsville, Ala.'s, MSFC procurement and technical personnel, and representatives from federal and state organizations throughout the day. To register, click here. (Source: Space Ref, 10/09/12)

Beasley designated CEcD

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – The president and CEO of Mississippi Enterprise for Technology, Charlie Beasley, has earned the designation of Certified Economic Developer (CEcD). The national recognition denotes a mastery of principal skills in economic development, professional attainment and a commitment to personal and professional growth. With nearly 15 years of economic development experience, Beasley has spent the past four years in his current position at MSET facilitating regional economic development efforts by leveraging the resources of Stennis Space Center to foster business opportunities among public and private entities. The CEcD exam was administered by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) on Sept. 29 and 30 in Houston.(Source: MSET, 10/05/12)