B-to-B expo set for Jackson

Representatives from NASA centers will be on hand this week in Jackson, Miss., for the business-to-business expo "Launching Connections." Companies and industry groups will be able to connect with representatives from Stennis Space Center, Miss., Kennedy Space Center, Fla., Johnson Space Center, Texas, Marshall Space Flight Center, Ala., Michoud Assembly Center, La., and the Shared Services Center at SSC. Businesses and contractors will learn through networking about opportunities in NASA programs like rocket propulsion testing, ground system development and operations, Orion and the Space Launch System. There are also moderated panel discussions. The Aug. 27 expo is from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Jackson Convention Complex, 105 E. Pascagoula St. For more information, click here. (Source: multiple, 08/25/14)

NSSC presents awards

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- The NASA Shared Services Center (NSSC) held its eighth annual Honor Awards ceremony at the Stennis Space Center auditorium Tuesday, honoring employees for exceptional performance. NSSC Executive Director Mark Glorioso and NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Lesa Roe presented three individual medals, 13 group achievement awards and six certificates of achievement. (Source: NSSC, 08/21/14)

SSC workers get NASA awards

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- Stennis Space Center Director Rick Gilbrech and NASA Deputy Associate Administrator Lesa Roe presented annual NASA Honor Awards to center employees during an onsite ceremony today. In addition to presenting awards, Gilbrech, a resident of Slidell, La., also received NASA's Equal Employment Opportunity Medal for outstanding leadership qualities in promoting diversity and inclusion at Stennis. Three Stennis employees received NASA's Exceptional Service Medal, awarded to government employees for sustained performance that embodies multiple contributions to NASA projects, programs, or initiatives. (Source: SSC, Mississippi Press, 08/19/14)

Orbital completes cargo mission

DULLES, Va. -- Orbital Sciences today announced the successful completion of its third cargo delivery mission to the International Space Station in the past 10 months, including the initial demonstration flight completed in October 2013 and the first two operational missions under the company's $1.9 billion Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) contract with NASA. The Cygnus spacecraft was launched July 13 atop the company's Antares rocket from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in east Virginia. (Source: Business Wire, 08/18/14) Note: The Antares rocket is powered by AJ-26 engines tested at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

Ocean in Action workshop nears

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- The fourth annual Oceans in Action workshop will be held Aug. 21 in Building 1200 at Stennis Space Center. Sponsored by the Mississippi Enterprise for Technology and Gulf Coast Section of the Marine Technology Society, the workshop highlights agencies at Stennis Space Center that support missions relying on marine technology. Business matchmaking meetings are also scheduled. For additional information, contact Laurie Jugan at 228-688-1192 or e-mail here. (Source: MSET, 08/14/14)

SBC quarterly meeting slated

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – The next general meeting of the Stennis Business Consortium (SBC) is scheduled for Sept. 9 at 1 p.m. in the auditorium of Building 1200 at Stennis Space Center. The meeting will feature and update of NASA Stennis contract activities, programs within the Hancock County Port and Harbor Commission, SAIC's work for the National Center for Critical Information Processing and Storage and more. SBC's mission is to provide a mechanism for federal and state agencies, local institutions, and businesses to exchange information on small business goals, needed and emerging technologies, upcoming procurement requirements and opportunities, and issues dealing with existing procurement regulations. For more information, contact Laurie Jugan at 228-688-1192 or email ssc-mset@mail.nasa.gov. (Source: MSET, 08/11/14)

Orion 'thinks' it has flown

NASA's Orion spacecraft is not ready for liftoff, but the spacecraft thinks it's already flown six missions. Since Orion's crew module was stacked on top of its service module in June, the vehicle has been put through a series of tests designed to verify all the individual systems work on their own in the new configuration and that they'll work together as a functional unit during flight. And the best way to do that is to trick the vehicle into thinking that it's flying, so that it will perform exactly the same functions it will be called upon to perform in December, when Orion launches into space for the first time. (Source: Space Travel, 08/01/14) The Orion capsule was built at Michoud Assembly Facility, New Orleans; Stennis Space Center, Miss., will test the RS-25 engines that will be power the first stage of the Space Launch System, which will eventually be used to launch Orion.