America’s gateway to the universe. Leading the world in preparing and launching missions to Earth and beyond.

Nov. 17, 2000

John F. Kennedy Space Center

Spaceport Newshttp://www-pao.ksc.nasa.gov/kscpao/snews/snewstoc.htm

Vol. 39, No. 23

Page 3 – Students benefit fromcomputer donations.

Page 6 – Discovery returns viaferry flight and P6 is officiallyturned over to NASA.

Page 2 – Ribbon cuttings andCFC results.

Page 7 – Waterfowl benefit fromhabitat management at refuge.

(See STS-97, Page 6)

Pages 4-5 – KSC opens itsgates to the community.

NASA will launch the Earth Observing (EO-1)satellite and SAC-C, an international coopera-tive mission between NASA and the ArgentineCommission on Space Activities, on Nov. 18from the Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., at1:24 p.m. EST. In 1996, NASA started the New MillenniumProgram, designed to identify, develop andflight validate key instrument and spacecrafttechnologies that can enable new or more cost-effective approaches to conducting sciencemissions in the 21st century.

The first of three New Millennium ProgramEarth-orbiting missions is EO-1, an advancedland-imaging mission that will demonstrate newinstruments and spacecraft systems. EO-1 will validate technologies contributing

EO-1/SAC-C launch set for Nov. 18

Powering up the enormous orbiting Interna-tional Space Station (ISS) will be the primaryobjective of the five-member crew aboard STS-97, which is scheduled to launch Nov. 30 at10:05 p.m. EST.

Two solar arrays will be carried aboard the P6Integrated Truss Segment and will be the firstpart of a system that ultimately will deliver 60times more power to the ISS research facilitiesthan was possible on Russia's space station Mir.

The P6 Truss Segment, containing the solararrays and the batteries, will be temporarilyinstalled to the Unity connecting module by theZ1 Truss recently launched aboard STS-92.

Each 108.6-foot-long solar array wing willextend outward at right angles and be con-nected to the Station’s 310-foot-long truss.

Altogether, the solar arrays will cover an areaabout the size of an acre, and when fullyextended, will span about 240 feet, the largestdeployable structure ever built.

An array consists of two solar cell “blankets,”one on either side of a telescoping mast thatextends and retracts to form the solar arraywing. The mast turns on a gimbal, a device tolevel the arrays and keep it facing the sun. Thereare a total of four pairs of wings, each with twoarrays measuring 112 feet long by 39 feet wide,and along with its assemblies are called a“photo-voltaic module.”

STS-97 to power up Space Station

(See ELV, Page 6)

Inside

An artist’s conception of the Earth Observing satellite onorbit. EO-1’s primary focus is to develop and test a set ofadvanced technology land-imaging instruments.

The most powerful solar arrays ever to orbitEarth will capture the sun’s elusive energy andbegin the process of converting it into power forthe Station.

The arrays will supply 105 kilowatts – enoughto light a town – and will connect the labs, livingquarters, payloads and systems equipment. To complete this daunting task, MissionSpecialists Carlos Noriega and Joseph Tannerwill perform two spacewalks to install the solararray connections. The crew will also install batteries to providepower when the Space Station is in Earth’sshadow, about one-third of every orbit, tocompensate for the time the Space Station willspend in darkness.

The batteries will store energy gathered bythe solar arrays during the sunlit portion of timeand will supply the energy to power the Station.

The STS-97 crew leaves the O&C Building ontheir way to Launch Pad 39B for a simulatedlaunch countdown. Commander Brent Jett, right,leads the way with Pilot Mike Bloomfield behindhim. Taking up the rear are, left, MissionSpecialists Carlos Noriega, Joe Tanner and,right, Marc Garneau, who is with the CanadianSpace Agency.

The most powerful solar arraysever to orbit Earth will capturethe sun’s elusive energy andbegin the process of converting itinto power for the Station.

SPACEPORT NEWS Nov. 17, 2000Page 2

Kennedy Space Center Director Roy Bridges, front right,and U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing Commander Brig.Gen. Donald Pettit, front left, sign the ConsolidatedComprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CCEMP)on Nov. 8. The CCEMP establishes uniform policyguidelines for the effective mitigation of, preparation for,response to and recovery from a variety of emergencysituations at the Cape Canaveral Spaceport.

Helium pipeline

Emergency Plan signed

E&O ribbon cutting

This year’s Combined FederalCampaign, the annual time for federalemployees to reach out and help thosein need around Brevard County and theworld, ended on a high note.

Kennedy Space Center federalemployees generously contributed inexcess of $260,000, far exceeding theassigned dollar goal of $220,000.

When briefed on the generosity ofNASA employees, KSC Deputy CenterDirector Jim Jennings, stated he was,“extremely pleased and grateful for theoutpouring of support.”

The entire senior staff applauded theoutstanding efforts of the workforce.Frank Ramsey, United Way of BrevardCounty Campaign Coordinator, summedup the campaign in two words, “Great!Fantastic!”

Launa Maier, KSC campaign chairper-son, said: “Employee giving wasphenomenal this year! We beat ourdollar goal and exceeded all expecta-

CFC exceeds goal

tions, with a final tally of more than$260,000.

“KSC employees demonstrated onceagain, that we are those who are CaringFor Our Community!

“The campaign cabinet, unit coordina-tors and key solicitors worked extremelyhard in making quality contacts, and theemployees responded, as always. Theresults speak for themselves. Everyoneshould be proud of the part they played.”

This year’s CFC victory celebrationpicnic will be combined with the KSCHoliday Celebration to be held on Dec. 13,at KARS Park 1. See future issues formore details.

At the commissioning of a new high-pressure heliumpipeline at Kennedy Space Center, participants cut thelines to helium-filled balloons. From left, they are KSCDirector Roy Bridges; Michael Butchko, president, SGS;Pierre Dufour, president and CEO, Air Liquide AmericaCorporation; David Herst, director, Delta IV Launch Sites;Pamela Gillespie, executive administrator, office ofCongressman Dave Weldon; and Col. Samuel Dick,representative of the 45th Space Wing. The nine-mile-long buried pipeline will service launch needs at the newDelta IV Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air ForceStation. It will also serve as a backup helium resource forShuttle launches. Nearly one launch’s worth of helium willbe available in the pipeline to support a Shuttle pad in anemergency. The line originates at the Helium Facility onKSC and terminates in a meter station at the perimeter ofthe Delta IV launch pad.

Gathered for the ribbon-cutting ceremony for Kennedy Space Center’s E&OBuilding at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station are, from left, Steve Francois,deputy manager, ELV and Payload Carrier Programs; MIke Benik, director,ELV Launch Services; Roy Bridges, KSC director; Bobby Bruckner, manager,ELV and Payload Carrier Programs; and James Schofield, senior managerof the Boeing ELV Program Support Office. Home for NASA’s unmannedmissions since 1964, the building has been renovated to house theExpendable Launch Vehicle Program. The program transitioned to the KSCin October 1998. Renovations to the building were begun in August 1999 tocorrect aging infrastructure problems and to make the building handicappedaccessible. The ELV Launch Services Directorate moved back to a newlyrenovated E&O on Oct. 14, 2000.

SPACEPORT NEWS Page 3Nov. 17, 2000

Days of Caring

Computer donation benefits schools

Space Gateway Supportworkers, above, loadComputers for Learningfrom the NASA PropertyDisposal Office onto atruck. Pike County schoolchildren, at left, work witha computer donatedthrough the program.

School children in Pike County,Ala., and Memphis, Tenn., aregetting more computers in theirclassrooms thanks to a recentdistribution of 690 Pentium Icomputer systems from the NASAKSC Property Disposal Office.

The unusually large number ofcomputers became available fordonation because of computerchangeouts made by United SpaceAlliance (USA) and ODIN.

They were donated to theschools through the property officeas part of the federal Computers forLearning program. The majordistribution brought the number ofcomputers donated by the officeduring Fiscal Year 2000 to 1,501.

The office expects to donateeven more computers to schoolsduring FY 2001 because USA isretiring 2,000 more computers.

“We typically are able to giveaway about 20 to 40 computers at atime, so a large of donation like thisis uncommon,” said PaulettaMcGinnis, property disposalofficer. “Both school systems hadsignificant needs and weredelighted to be able to get so manycomputers.”

Her office seeks to donatecomputers to schools that are in“empowerment zones ”– zonesdetermined to be hardship areas –as a first priority, and then schoolswith more than five children per

computer. A number of BrevardCounty schools have benefitedfrom donations in the past.

Through research, McGinnislearned that the Pike County andMemphis City schools, both inempowerment zones, were hurtingfor more computers. In some cases,the schools only had one computerper classroom.

“I can’t tell you how much weappreciate these computers,” saidMarvin Jackson, technical supportcoordinator for Pike County. “Withthis donation, we’ll be able toboost the number of computers ineach classroom to two or three. Ourstudents, like all students, greatlyneed access to computers sothey’ll be able to build the skillsthey will need in their lives andcareers.”

The only requirement besidesneed for the schools was beingable to provide for transportationof the computers. FedEx agreed todonate transportation for the 340computers for Memphis CitySchools and Yellow Transit pro-vided transportation at a reducedrate for the 250 computers for PikeCounty.

The disposal office coordinatedthe distribution with the SpaceGateway Support excess facilitywhere the computers were stored.The facility is more formally knownas the Reutilization Recycling and

Marketing Facility at Ransom Road.SGS staff loaded the computers onthe transportation trucks.

“This was a team effort with ourcontractors. It takes partnership tomake this program work,” McGinnissaid. “We’re so glad that we wereable to assist the school systems.”

The Computers for Learningprogram also allows for the

donation of printers, modems,routers, servers, telecommunica-tions equipment and researchequipment. Schools have beenrequired to re-register for theprogram since January 2000.

For more information about thefederal Computers for Learningprogram, visit the Web sitewww.computers.fed.gov.

KSC NASA employees along with some newly made friends fromPublix Supermarket on Garden Street in Titusville had the pleasure ofvisiting with some 30 seniors from the Cuyler Park Recreation facilityin Mims for Days of Caring. The group played bingo and winners wereawarded with various launch mission stickers, pins and lithographsbrought by the NASA employees. The volunteers, above, served lunchto the seniors. Many smiles and thank yous were exchanged. NASAemployees who participated were Denise Coleman, Delores Abrahamand Pat Christian of the External Relations and BusinessDevelopment Directorate; Dan Lewis from the ProcurementDirectorate; and Tim Lewis of the Space Station Directorate.

Page 4 SPACEPORT NEWS Nov. 17, 2000

Opening our gates to the co

More than 43,000 BrevardCounty residents as well asKennedy Space Center and CapeCanaveral Air Force Stationemployees entered the gates Nov. 4for a fun-filled day of spaceeducation. The joint CommunityAppreciation Day was a phenom-enal success.

The event provided KSC andCCAFS the opportunity to share anup close look inside the spaceprogram’s vehicles and the one-of-a-kind facilities that make the KSCskyline so unique.

“I would like to thank all of theemployees that made this event so

successful,” said KSC Director RoyBridges. “Community AppreciationDay is a perfect time to share ourcombined goals and vision for thefuture of our space program here atKSC as well as remember the richmoments of our past that madehistory.”

The highlights of the dayincluded a drive-by tour of LaunchPad 39B with a close-up view ofSpace Shuttle Endeavour, and abehind-the-scenes look from theInternational Space Station Centerviewing window to watch as actualStation elements are being pro-cessed for flight.A security officer describes his job to a student.

A family enjoys getting an astronaut’s autograph.

Children have a hands-on experience with a historiccapsule from the early space program .

Children l

Page 5SPACEPORT NEWSNov. 17, 2000

ommunity

earn about the power of a firehose. A spaceport employee describes the use of a robot.

Cars line up, above, to passthrough a guard station atKennedy Space Center, at left,during the Community OpenHouse. Thousands of BrevardCounty residents tookadvantage of the open houseinvitation and entered the gatesfor a day of education and up-close looks at America’sSpaceport.

A group takes a glimpse into the Vehicle Assembly Building.

Page 6 SPACEPORT NEWS Nov. 17, 2000

ELV ...(Continued from Page 1)

STS-97 ...(Continued from Page 1)

Return of Discovery

The Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, with Discovery attached to its back, gently touches down on the runway at Kennedy Space Center’s ShuttleLanding Facility on Nov. 3. The SCA returned Discovery to KSC after the orbiter’s California landing at Edwards Air Force Base at the end ofmission STS-92. Discovery was demated from the SCA via the mate/demate device at the SLF and transported to the Orbiter ProcessingFacility bay 1 where it is undergoing preparations for its next launch, STS-102, scheduled for February 2001.

During a ceremonial key exchange Nov. 7 at Kennedy Space Center, the P6 truss segment was trans-ferred from the International Space Station ground operations to the NASA shuttle integration team.Pictured from left to right, are Brent Jett,STS-97 Commander; Bill Dowdell, mission manager; MarkSorensen, outboard truss cargo element manager for Boeing; and John Elbon, Boeing ISS director ofground operations at KSC.

to the reduction in cost of follow-on Landsat missions. EO-1’sprimary focus is to develop andtest a set of advanced technologyland-imaging instruments.

However, many other keyinstruments and technologies arepart of the mission and will have

wide-ranging applications to futureland-imaging missions in particularand future satellites in general.

EO-1 will be inserted into an orbitflying in formation with the Landsat7 satellite taking a series of thesame images. EO-1 will be launchedon a Delta 7320. After deploymentfrom the third stage of the Delta,EO-1 will fly in a 705-km circular,Sun-synchronous orbit at a 98.7-

degree inclination. This orbit allowsEO-1 to follow behind and matchwithin one minute the Landsat 7orbit and collect identical imagesfor later comparison on the ground.

With EO-1 is the SAC-C space-craft, an international mission tostudy the structure and dynamicsof the Earth’s atmosphere, iono-sphere and geomagnetic field.SAC-C also will seek to measure

space radiation in the environmentand its influence on advancedelectronic components anddetermine the migration route of theFranca whale.

Another objective of the payloadis to verify autonomous methods ofattitude and orbit determination.The mission is a collaboration ofthe United States, Argentina, Brazil,Denmark, France and Italy.

This mission, STS-97, will havethe challenge of catching up to anddocking with an inhabited Interna-tional Space Station traveling morethan 17,000 miles per hour.

Three crew members, launchedearlier from Baikonur Cosmodromein Kazakhstan on a Russian Soyuzrocket, will greet the visitors ofSTS-97 and welcome them asguests.

Bill Shepard, Sergei Krikalev andYuri Gidzenko make up the Station'sfirst crew. They have begun a five-month stay marking the beginningof continuous habitation of theInternational Space Station.

.

P6 truss

Nov. 17, 2000 SPACEPORT NEWS Page 7

Weatherwise, seasons are lessdefined in Florida than other states.However, there are other seasonalimpacts on the Florida environ-ment, such as wildlife.

Many species of birds flee thecold of the north for a warmerSouthern climate. An especiallyinviting winter “resort” for water-fowl is the Merritt Island NationalWildlife Refuge, which justhappens to surround KennedySpace Center.

Beginning in October, sharp-eyed employees will notice largerflocks of herons, ducks and otherscriss-crossing the sky or swimmingand feeding in the nearby waters.

Large numbers of migratoryducks winter in the Sunshine State,particularly ring-necked ducks,scaup, teal, wood ducks, andwigeon. The refuge provideswintering areas for 23 species ofmigratory waterfowl.

Year-round habitat

The refuge is also a year-roundhabitat for more than 331 species ofbirds, including great blue herons,great egrets, wood storks, cormo-rants, brown pelicans and otherspecies of marsh and shore birds.

In addition, three species, themottled duck (Florida mallard),wood duck and fulvous whistlingduck, live in the state year round.Three species of ducks regularlynest during spring and summer.

The attractive nature of therefuge, however, brings a new setof problems. As human impact onthe environment has increased,negative impacts on waterfowlpopulations also have increased.

The Florida Fish and WildlifeConservation Commission’s (FWC)Waterfowl Management Section(WMS), a part of the Bureau ofWildlife Resources, is charged withensuring the continued well-beingof these popular birds.

Waterfowl management activitiesfall into two categories: populationmonitoring and habitat manage-ment. Biologists conduct aerialsurveys every January in coopera-tion with the U.S. Fish and WildlifeService to assess the distributionof wintering ducks within the state.

Habitat management benefits waterfowl

In March, an annual survey ofmottled ducks is conducted.

Habitat management providesthe greatest quantity and highestquality of habitat possible tosupport Florida’s waterfowl andother wetland wildlife.

Management activities of theMerritt Island National WildlifeRefuge include:• Management of water levelswithin the refuge’s 76 impound-ments for migratory birds, wadingbirds, shorebirds, and other nativespecies of plants and wildlife.• The use of prescribed fire tomaintain fire dependent/fireinfluenced communities.• Chemical and mechanical controlof exotic plants.• Thinning of pine stands toimprove bald eagle nesting habitat.• Public education and outreach tohelp instill conservation ethics.

Population control

Another part of wildlife manage-ment is population control throughhunting. The waterfowl huntingseason in Florida this year extendsfrom Nov. 18, 2000, to Jan. 16, 2001.Regulations, which have typicallyincluded restricted hours and baglimits, have been changed for the2000/2001 season.

In the early 90s, waterfowlpopulations declined and theRefuge cut the number of daysopen to hunting from five to threedays a week. But overcrowding ofhunters persisted. In recent years,altercations between huntingparties who set up too close andinstances of hunters being hit byshot from neighboring hunt partieshave become more common.

For the past two years the refugehas solicited comments fromhunters on ways to improve theprogram as well as reviewed othersuccessful waterfowl programs.

“Based on this, we have come tothe conclusion that one of the mosteffective ways to improving thequality of the hunt is to reintroducehunt quotas,” says RefugeManager Ron Hight. “In the pasttwo years we have seen a highconcentration of hunters in certainareas which can create competitiveproblems and injury and huntersgetting angry.”

This year, the refuge is limitingthe number of hunters in a givenarea on a given date. Also, the timehas been changed when hunterscan enter the hunt areas.

“The aim of the new regulationsis to provide the safest and highestquality hunter experience possiblewhile protecting waterfowl popula-tion on Merritt Island NWR,” says

Hight. “By implementing severalchanges now, we hope to maintainMerritt Island’s place as the premierwaterfowl area in Florida.”

Quota permits

Quota permits will be required intwo hunt areas that typically havethe worst overcrowding problems.

The daily quotas will be requiredfrom the beginning of the regularwaterfowl season in Nov. 18through Dec. 31. After the newyear, hunting pressure declines andthe quota permits will be droppedfrom Jan. 1 through the remainderof the season, Jan. 18.

The quota permit will be issuedto a party of one to four huntersthrough a drawing and the permitwill be good for a block of one ormore days. On weekends, forexample, a party with a quota permitcan hunt both Saturday andSunday. Around holidays, thepermit will be issued for Wednes-day and Thanksgiving or a three-day holiday weekend.

The time hunters can enter theRefuge has been moved from 2 a.m.to 4 a.m. As competition for primehunting spots increase, huntershave to get out earlier and earlier toclaim their favorite spot. Over thelast several years, hunters havebeen arriving at the legal time only

Habitat management of ducks such as these at the Merritt Island Wildwife Refuge keeps populations healthy.

John F. Kennedy Space Center

Managing editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bruce BuckinghamEditor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kathy Hagood

Editorial support provided by InDyne Inc. Writers Group.NASA at KSC is located on the Internet at http://www.ksc.nasa.gov

USGPO: 533-128/00045

Spaceport News

Spaceport News is an official publication of the Kennedy Space Center andis published on alternate Fridays by the Public Affairs Office in the interest ofKSC civil service and contractor employees. Contributions are welcome and should be submitted two weeks beforepublication to the Media Services Branch, XAE-1. E-mail submissions can besent to Katharine.Hagood-1@ksc.nasa.gov

Page 8 SPACEPORT NEWS Nov. 17, 2000

November employees

A person born on or after June 1, 1975, maynot be issued a license to take or attempt to takewild animal life in this state with the use of afirearm, gun (including a muzzle-loading gun),bow or crossbow without first having successfullycompleted a hunter safety course. A valid hunter safety certification card must bepresented prior to issuing a license whichincludes a hunting privilege (excluding lifetimelicenses) for anyone who meets the above

Hunter Education Requirement

REFUGE ...(Continued from Page 7)

The NASA November Employees of the Month from left to right areJohn Calvert, Dave Shelton, Greg Horvath, Melanie Chan, SudhirMehta, Lisa Morales and Pamela Steel, Not shown: Gerard Martin.

to find other hunters already there.This has caused tempers to flair

and altercations to arise. The newtime will force hunters to arrivecloser together.

The final change is makinghunter safety training a requirementin all areas. Hunter safety traininghas been a requirement since theearly ‘70s in all but one hunt area.

“For almost 30 years the refugehas provided an area where hunterswho had not taken the trainingcould go. Now in our effort toimprove hunter safety, as well ashunter ethics, the Refuge willrequiring hunter safety training inall areas,” says refuge Ranger DornWhitmore.

This follows a statewide trend toincrease hunter safety training.State regulations require all huntersborn since June 1975 to enroll in ahunter safety course before goingafield, and many public huntingareas are requiring this training ofall hunters as well.

These new regulations will gointo effect during the 2000/2001hunting season. For furtherinformation, hunters may contactDorn Whitmore at (321) 861-0667.

The following Web sites alsooffer information about Florida’swaterfowl and the 2000/2001waterfowl hunting regulations:• http://www.state.fl.us/fwc/hunting/mig-bird-00-01.html#Waterfowl• http://wld.fwc.state.fl.us/duck/What’s%20New/What’s%20New.htm

requirement. Individuals exempted from purchasing a huntinglicense but born on or after June 1, 1975, areexempted from the hunter safety requirement. Lifetime license holders born on or after June 1,1975, whose licenses do not indicate on its facethat a hunter safety course has been completed,must have in their possession the hunter safetycertification card while taking or attempting to takewild animal life.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife ConservationCommission’s Waterfowl Management Section, apart of the Bureau of Wildlife Resources, is chargedwith ensuring the continued well-being of theseducks at the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge.