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Oregon Student Participates in Newly Established NASA Program

Tamela Maciel currently attends the University of Oregon in Eugene, Ore.

(GREENBELT, Md.) - Tamela Maciel, a student from Grants Pass, Ore., has been selected to participate in a newly established NASA program at Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

The Motivating Undergraduates in Science and Technology (MUST) Program was created in 2006 to attract and retain our nation's best and brightest undergraduate students from underrepresented groups in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) disciplines.

Space Shuttle Atlantis Given Green Light for Blast Off

Mission STS-117 is the Space Shuttle Program's 21st mission to the International Space Station.

(CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla) - Following the Flight Readiness Review meetings at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA's senior managers have signed the Certification of Flight Readiness confirming that Space Shuttle Atlantis, her flight crew and payloads are fit to fly.

This weekend, Atlantis' main engines, orbital maneuvering system and forward reaction control system will be pressurized for flight.

Orbiter testing and processing is under way, with stowage of flight crew equipment progressing in preparation for a scheduled June 8th launch.

NASA Astronauts to Speak at OMSI March 28th

Ever wonder what it's like in outer space? Or how hard it is to train to become an astronaut? And just how does a person eat in zero gravity?

(PORTLAND, Ore.) - The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry welcomes astronauts Mark L. Polansky and Robert L. Curbeam, Jr. to a special speaking engagement in OMSI's auditorium Wednesday, March 28th at 10:00 AM.

With a combined total of 1,829 hours in space, Astronauts Polansky and Curbeam =will discuss their space travel experiences and answer questions from the audience.

"We are pleased that the Rotary Club of Portland is bringing astronauts Polansky and Curbeam to OMSI and to Portland," said Mindy Clark, OMSI Senior Vice President for Organizational Advancement.

Oregon Astronaut Don Pettit Goes to Antarctica

Oregon Native Don Pettit joins ANSMET team in Antarctica.

(NASA) - "We're on a bit of an adventure," explains Don. "I've joined a scientific expedition to Antarctica to hunt for meteorites. The name of the expedition is ANSMET, short for Antarctic Search for Meteorites, and it is funded by the National Science Foundation and operated by principal investigators from Case Western University. ANSMET has been making annual trips to Antarctica since the mid-70s. The scientific value is immense. More than 10,000 meteorites have been found including such jewels as the famous Allan Hills meteorite from Mars.”

"I was fortunate enough to be asked to tag along as the token astronaut," he laughs. "Why me? It was mainly dumb luck. One of the ANSMET scientists dropped out at the last minute for medical reasons. Because the principal investigator had dealt with astronauts before, he knew they would not have trouble passing the medical exam and could be called up on short notice. When my boss asked me if I wanted to go, I thought about it for perhaps a nanosecond and said yes!"

"So here I am in Antarctica with the ANSMET team looking for little chunks of extra-terrestrial debris that just happened to rain down on the Antarctic continent where the glaciers have this amazing habit of concentrating them well beyond their natural abundance."

Lunar Leonid Strikes

Meteoroids are smashing into the Moon a lot more often than anyone expected.

(NASA) - That's the tentative conclusion of Bill Cooke, head of NASA's Meteoroid Environment Office, after his team observed two Leonids hitting the Moon on Nov. 17, 2006. "We've now seen 11 and possibly 12 lunar impacts since we started monitoring the Moon one year ago," says Cooke. "That's about four times more hits than our computer models predicted."

A New Paradigm for Lunar Orbits

It's 2015. You're NASA's chief engineer designing a moonbase for Shackleton Crater at the Moon's south pole. You're also designing a com-system that will allow astronauts constant radio contact with Earth.

(NASA) - But you know that direct transmissions won't work--not always. As seen from Shackleton Crater, Earth is below the horizon for two to three weeks each month (depending on the base's location). This blocks all radio signals, which travel line of sight.

The solution seems obvious. Simply place a satellite in a high, circular orbit going almost over the Moon's poles. Better yet, place three satellites into the same orbit 120 degrees apart. Two would always be above the lunar horizon to relay messages to and from Earth.

There's just one problem.

OSU Alum to Pilot Space Shuttle, Help Rewire Space Station

Oefelein was a naval aviator, served on the U.S.S. Nimitz and attended the U.S. Navy Fighter Weapons School, TOPGUN.

(CORVALLIS) - An electrical engineering graduate from Oregon State University who grew up in Alaska learning to fly bush planes will make his first journey into space as pilot of the space shuttle Discovery, scheduled for liftoff on Dec. 7th.

William Oefelein, who graduated from OSU in 1988 before becoming a pilot in the U.S. Navy, didn’t dream of being an astronaut growing up, but he loved to explore.

Oefelein was selected by NASA in June, 1998, and was originally scheduled to pilot the space shuttle in 2003.