SBC focuses on contracts

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – The next general meeting of the Stennis Business Consortium is scheduled for March 31 at 1 p.m. in the auditorium of the StenniSphere, Building 1200. At the meeting there will be a special presentation on the upcoming NASA-Stennis procurement under the Multiple-Award Construction Contracts (MACCs). Under the contract, NASA selected 10 companies that would be responsible for major construction projects at SSC for a five-year period. The MACC will be eligible for re-compete in less than two years. Also at the meeting, representatives of the Marine Industries Science and Technology cluster, Naval Oceanographic Office, NASA Shared Services Center and others will speak. For information, click here. (Source: MSET, 02/25/15)

SSC won't test AJ-26 replacement

Orbital Sciences does not plan to do acceptance tests of the RD-181 engines at Stennis Space Center, Miss. That's according to a story in Aviation Week about the engines Orbital Sciences chose to replace the Russian-built NK-33 engines. Those engines, modified by Aerojet as the AJ-26, had been tested at SSC before being used to power Orbital's Antares rocket on resupply missions to the International Space Station. The switch to Russian-built RD-181s followed the October 2014 failure of an Antares launch vehicle seconds after lifting off from Wallops Island, Va. The first shipment of the engines to Orbital ATK will be this summer. (Source: Aviation Week, 02/24/15)

Rolls-Royce NA getting new leader

Marion Blakey is leaving the Aerospace Industries Association to become the CEO and president of Rolls-Royce North America, both organizations announced Tuesday. She's replacing James Guyette, who retires from Rolls-Royce May 31. Blakey, an Alabama native, has been with AIA, an industry organization, for eight years. Rolls-Royce North America has more than 8,000 workers in 26 U.S. states, six Canadian provinces and three Mexican states. Major operations are at NASA’s Stennis Space Center, Miss., where it has an outdoor engine testing facility; Indianapolis; Prince George County, Va.; Walpole, Mass.; Oakland, Calif.; and Montreal. (Sources: multiple, including Aviation Week, Rolls-Royce, Aerospace Industries Association, 02/24/15)

NASA awards yard for barge work

MORGAN CITY, La. -- Conrad Industries Inc. has received the NASA Space Flight Awareness Supplier Award based on its work with the conversion of the NASA Pegasus barge. This annual award honors outstanding performance by hardware, software, or service suppliers who support NASA human space flight programs. Awardees are chosen based on their production of high-quality products, excellent technical and cost performance, and adherence to schedules. The barge, long used to transport shuttle external tanks for the Space Shuttle program, has been lengthened from 260 to 310 feet to accommodate components for the Space Launch System program. The upgraded Pegasus is set to transport the first major SLS hardware from New Orleans to NASA's Stennis Space Center, Miss., for testing as early as next year. (Source: PRNewswire, 02/12/15) Previous

NASA awards contract modification

NASA has awarded Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) of McLean, Va., a modification to the NASA Integrated Communications Services (NICS) contract that provides and manages the vast majority of NASA’s information technology (IT) communications infrastructure services. This $18.6 million contract modification adds the Automated Behavioral Analysis (AuBA) project. The objective is to conduct monitoring of network traffic for analysis of cyber events. The NICS contract is a cost-plus award fee/cost-plus incentive fee contract which consists of a three-year base period, one two-year option, one three-year option and one two-year option for the NICS contract. The period of performance runs through May 31, 2021, if all options are exercised. The NICS contract is administered by the NASA Shared Services Center (NSSC) at Stennis Space Center, Miss. The NSSC performs selected business activities for all NASA centers. (Source: NASA/NSSC, 02/05/15)

Contract: Lockheed, $36.8M

Lockheed Martin Space Systems Co., Sunnyvale, Calif., has been awarded a $36,819,781 modification (P00082) to previously awarded contract FA8810-08-C-0002 for Space Based Infra-Red Systems (SBIRS) follow-on production. The contract is being modified to change the initial launch capability dates for SBIRS Geosynchronous Earth Orbit 3-4 space vehicles in order to support new launch manifest dates and also procure storage for the GEO-3 space vehicle. Work will be performed at Sunnyvale and is expected to be complete by June 30, 2018. Fiscal year 2015 missile procurement funds in the amount of $25,504,071 are being obligated at the time of award. Space and Missile System Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 02/05/15) Note: The SBIRS is an A2100 satellite-based spacecraft. Work on the A2100 core's propulsion system, which positions the spacecraft in orbit, is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

Pegasus barge being supersized

The Pegasus barge, originally designed to transport Space Shuttle external tanks from New Orleans to Florida, is well on its way to being supersized. Its new role will be to transport the huge Space Launch System stages. The upgraded Pegasus is set to transport the first major SLS hardware from New Orleans to NASA's Stennis Space Center, Miss., for testing as early as next year. The barge's final role in shuttle program was when it shipped Space Shuttle Main Engine ground support equipment to Stennis from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Fla. The barge was mothballed at Stennis in 2011, and is now being modified by Conrad Shipyard LLC in Amelia, La. (Source: NASA Spaceflight.com, 02/04/15)

Lunch and Learn scheduled

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – February's Lunch and Learn series presented by the Mississippi Enterprise for Technology will feature an SSC-based Security Cooperation and Security Assistance organization operating under the U.S. Special Operations Command. Current and future international training programs offered by the Naval Small Craft Instruction and Technical Training School will be discussed, to include a focus on how such training impacts the security environment for more than 100 partner nations around the globe. The talk will also include plans for expansion of international training opportunities at Stennis Space Center and ways to identify potential opportunities and methods of interaction with this unique command. After the presentation, MSET Mentor Matthew McLaughlin will speak on the top 10 legal mistakes made by start-ups and small businesses. This portion of the program is sponsored by the Gulf Coast Industry Clusters MIST and EIGS. The event is Feb. 19 beginning at 11:30 a.m. in Building 1100 at Stennis Space Center. Call 228-688-3144 or email for more information. (Source: MSET, January 2015)

Small business industry day set

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- The NASA Office of Small Business Programs and the Stennis Space Center are holding a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Industry Day on Feb. 3 from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. The event will be held at the Infinity Science Center south of Interstate 10 at Mississippi Exit 2, near the Mississippi Welcome Center. This one-day event seeks to identify and build relationships with service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses throughout the state of Mississippi and the entire Gulf Coast. Registration opens at 7 a.m. and will be followed by scheduled remarks at 8 a.m. (Source: NASA/SSC, 01/29/15)

Athletes sought for Special Olympics

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. – Athletes should begin training now to prepare for games and activities during the annual Area III Special Olympics Track and Field Competitions scheduled for March 21 at NASA Stennis Space Center. Athletes must be at least eight years old, be mentally handicapped, and have a current medical form on file with the Special Olympics. The event, which draws athletes from Hancock, Harrison, Pearl River, and Stone counties, requires hundreds of volunteers and sponsors. Athletes may sign up through their school's Special Education Office or by calling Katherine Clough, Area III Director, at 228-601-358-2305 or via email. Additional information and paperwork can also be obtained through Clough. Volunteers may register and more information can be found on the Area III website. (Source: NASA/SSC, 01/26/15)

Praxair gets SSC-related contract

DANBURY, Conn. -- Praxair Inc. has been awarded a NASA a contract valued at $53 million over five years for acquisition of liquid hydrogen. Praxair's hydrogen supply network will provide liquid hydrogen to Stennis Space Center, Miss.; Kennedy Space Center, Fla.; Marshall Space Flight Center, Ala.; and Glenn Research Center, Ohio. NASA uses liquid hydrogen as fuel for rocket engine development, testing and the launching of spacecraft. NASA also awarded Praxair a five-year liquid oxygen supply agreement for Kennedy. Previously, the Department of Defense awarded Praxair a five-year liquid hydrogen supply agreement for missions launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. (Source: Business Wire, 01/22/15)

NASA exercises SAIC option

NASA has exercised option period two with Science Applications International Corp. of McLean, Va., an option to the Enterprise Application Service Technologies contract which provides and manages the vast majority of NASA's information technology application infrastructure services. The contract is a firm-fixed contract with delivery/task orders which consists of a two-year base period, one two-year option and one one-year option; extends the period of performance through Jan. 31, 2016. The $34.8 million contract option will provide the services necessary to operate the NASA Enterprise Applications Competency Center, which provides services to operate, maintain, and enhance key business and mission-supporting platforms, applications and infrastructure used across the agency. The contract is administered by the NASA Shared Services Center. (Source: NASA/NSSC, 01/21/15)

Contract: Lockheed, $37.6

Lockheed Martin Integrated Systems Inc., Bethesda, Md., was awarded a $37,556,621 modification (P00008) to contract W912DY-14-F-0423 to exercise the first option for the Next Generation Technical Services (NGTS) III requirement. The scope of this effort contains the management and technical support necessary to advance high performance computing services, capabilities, infrastructure and technologies. It includes the development of new techniques, analytical methods and computational approaches to solve particular high performance computing problems or to generally advance the state of the art in high performance computing effectiveness and efficiency. Fiscal 2014 and 2015 research, development, testing and evaluation, other procurement (Army) and operations and maintenance Army funds in the amount of $20,400,771 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is May 19, 2015. Work will be performed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio; Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.; Stennis Space Center, Miss.; Vicksburg, Miss.; and Lorton, Va. Army Corps of Engineers, Huntsville, Ala., is the contracting activity. (Source: DoD, 01/21/15)

MUOS has successful launch

The third Navy Mobile User Objective System satellite launched from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Tuesday night atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V. The MUOS satellite is designed to improve secure satellite communications for mobile U.S. forces. Five of the Lockheed Martin MUOS satellites will eventually be launched to form the constellation. Two MUOS satellites launched in 2012 and 2013 are already providing communications capability from their orbits 22,000 miles above Earth. Ultimately, the constellation and network will extend narrowband communications availability past 2025. Work on the core propulsion system for the A2100 satellite-based spacecraft is done by Lockheed Martin at Stennis Space Center, Miss. (Source: GCAC, 01/20/15) Previous

Air Europa selects Trent 1000

Spanish carrier Air Europa has selected Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines and long term service support, worth $1.1 billion, for 14 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft. Air Europa already has eight Trent 1000-powered 787-8s on order that will enter service in 2016. Rolls-Royce powered the very first Boeing 787 test flight in December 2009, the first 787-8 to enter service in October 2011, and the first 787-9 to enter service last year. (Source: Rolls-Royce, 01/15/15) Note: Rolls-Royce Trent engines are tested at the company's outdoor test facility at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

RS-25 has successful test

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- The engine that will power America's next great rocket to deep space had its first successful test Friday at NASA's Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Miss. The RS-25, formerly the space shuttle main engine, fired up for 500 seconds on the A-1 test stand, providing NASA engineers critical data on the engine controller unit and inlet pressure conditions. This is the first hot fire of an RS-25 engine since the end of space shuttle main engine testing in 2009. Four RS-25 engines will power Space Launch System on future missions. (Source: PRNewswire, NASASpaceflight, 01/09/15) Previous related

SpaceX launch successful

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – SpaceX had a successful launch of its Falcon 9 rocket this morning, but a planned attempt to vertically land the booster on a barge failed. The Dragon capsule is bringing 5,000 pounds of supplies to the International Space Station and its six astronauts. The company’s founder, Elon Musk, said the 14-story tall first stage of the rocket made it to the platform floating east of Jacksonville, Fla., but the booster came down too hard and broke apart. The company is trying the soft landing so the rocket can be re-used. (Sources: multiple, including AP via Yahoo News, CBSNews, NBCNews, National Geographic, 01/10/14) Note: SpaceX plans to test its newest rocket engine at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

MIST summit set

STENNIS SPACE CENTER, Miss. -- The Marine Industries Science and Technology (MIST) cluster small business summit will be held Jan. 15 at Stennis Space Center. The summit in Building 1200 begins at 9 a.m. The event will focus on the Navy. Agencies and support contractors participating at exhibit tables include the Naval Oceanographic Office, Naval Research Laboratory, Lockheed Martin, Textron, Ingalls and more. There will be five parts of the summit: a tour of Stennis Space Center, a doing business workshop, lunch and networking, exhibits, and a small business stakeholders meeting. (Source: MSET, MIST)

SpaceX delays launch

SpaceX canceled its early morning rocket launch of a Falcon 9 and its Dragon capsule to the International Space Station, citing a last minute malfunction. NASA said the SpaceX team at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., had detected an "actuator drift," causing the launch to be scrubbed. The next possible launch time is Friday. The launch included a plan to have the launch vehicle land vertically on a platform on a barge-like vessel in the Atlantic Ocean, east of Jacksonville, Fla. The problem was with the second stage, not the stage that will land on the platform. (Source: multiple, including Los Angeles Times, CNN, 01/06/15)

SpaceX rocket launches Tuesday

SpaceX and NASA are scheduled to launch a Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Tuesday to bring supplies and equipment to the International Space Station. If all goes according to plan, the Dragon capsule will dock with the ISS later this week. SpaceX will use this mission to test a procedures to salvage and reuse rockets. This mission has an intriguing twist. After the Falcon 9's first stage is jettisoned, SpaceX will relight the booster rocket's engines for a series of burns, attempting to land it upright on a 300-foot by 170-foot bargelike vessel in the Atlantic Ocean, some 200 miles east of Jacksonville, Fla. The landing test has no impact on the resupply mission. (Source: Orlando Sentinel, New York Times, 01/04/15) Note: SpaceX plans to test its next generation engines at Stennis Space Center, Miss.

Third MUOS to launch Jan. 20

The third Mobile User Objective System satellite is scheduled to launch from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station Jan. 20. The MUOS satellite is designed to improve secure satellite communications for mobile U.S. forces. Five of the Lockheed Martin MUOS satellites will eventually be launched to form the constellation. Two MUOS satellites launched in 2012 and 2013 are already providing communications capability from their orbits 22,000 miles above Earth. Ultimately, the constellation and network will extend narrowband communications availability past 2025. (Sources: ExecutiveGov, 01/05/15, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command Public Affairs, 12/30/14) Note: Work on the propulsion system for the A2100 satellite-based spacecraft is done at Stennis Space Center, Miss.