Conference 7.286::space

    	See also SPACE Topic 543 for more on LDEF.
    

  A while ago there was fear that they wouldn't get to the LDEF in time
before it's orbit was too low to be safely retrieved. Any update on this?

  George

    Re:.2
    	Last update I saw (about two or three weeks ago) said that LDEF
    will fall out of orbit in late January. By early January, LDEF's orbit
    will be too low to allow a safe recovery by the Shuttle. Unfortunately,
    these predictions are just SWAGs. They are highly dependent on the
    amount of solar activity which itself is nearly impossible to predict
    more than a couple of hours to a couple of days in advance. Even if
    STS-32 makes it off the pad on schedule, it will be a real close call.
    
    					Drew
    

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 12/06/89 (Forwarded)
Date: 6 Dec 89 18:13:41 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, December 6, 1989                   Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Wednesday, December 6:
 
    It is official.  The STS-32 Space Shuttle mission is scheduled for
a December 18 launch from Kennedy Space Center.  It will be a night
launch from the re-activated Pad 39A.  The launch window opens at 7:29
P.M., Eastern time, and lasts about 62 minutes.  The exact lift off
time will be determined from the latest tracking data on the orbiting
Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). 
 
    Space Shuttle managers, following completion of the Flight
Readiness Review, say there are no major problems with the Space
Shuttle stack, but because the refurbished mobile launch platform and
pad complex will be used there is a more than usual chance that a
delay in the launch could occur. 
 
    During the 10-day mission, a SYNCOM communications satellite will
be deployed, the LDEF will be retrieved, and a variety of experiments
will be conducted. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select television.   All times are Eastern.
  
    Thursday, December 7:
  
     11:30 A.M.     NASA Update will be transmitted.
  
    Sunday, December 10:
  
    Launch of the Global Positioning System-05 satellite by a Delta
rocket.  Launch window extends from 12 noon to 3:30 P.M.  NASA Select
will join the count at T-30 minutes. 
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

                <<< PIEDMT::DUA0:[NOTES$LIBRARY]SPACE.NOTE;1 >>>
                             -< Space Exploration >-
================================================================================
Note 585.0                 Any guesses on Dec. launch?                No replies
FDCV07::NPAPPAS "Nick Pappas"                         2 lines   6-DEC-1989 21:03
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Any guesses on the launch date for the December Shuttle flight?  I will
    be in Florida from 12/16 to 12/23.  

  Anyone know why they waited so long to use Pad A? Was it being repaired
or modified?

  George

    Re:.6
    	Pad 39A was being upgraded during the past couple of years. I don't
    know, however, what those "upgrades" are.
    
    				Drew
    

    Wasn't the Challenger mission in January 1986 the first
    use of the refurbished pad 39A?  I remember reading the
    questions in the Rogers Commission Report about whether
    or not the new pad might have been a contributing factor
    in the accident.

If I'm not mixing up my pads, 39-A received a number of upgrades:

 o Rotating Service Structure was modified quite a bit to improve environmental
   conditions in the bay, plus the ability to access an exra fuel tank in
   Columbia for longer-duration missions (which, therefore, can only be flown
   from 39-A).

 o Crew and launch team safety improvements.

 o Some changes in the fuel loading system I believe.

- dave

    I believe the January 1986 Challenger launch was the first from 39B.
        John Sauter

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 12/13/89 (Forwarded)
Date: 13 Dec 89 19:45:10 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, December 13, 1989                  Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA Headline News for Wednesday, December 13:
  
    The STS-32 Space Shuttle mission has been delayed until Wednesday,
December 20.   Extra time is needed to validate systems at Launch Pad
39A and prepare Columbia for the flight. The schedule remains very
tight and there is the possibility lift off could slip to the next
day.  Associate Administrator for Space Flight William Lenoir says
he's confident there will be a pre-Chirstmas lift off. 
  
    Tuesday, December 19:
  
    Note:  A pre-launch news briefing schedule will be filed tomorrow.
NASA Select TV will provide near full time coverage of the STS-32
space shuttle mission from lift off through landing. 
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.  
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 12/15/89 (Forwarded)
Date: 15 Dec 89 19:15:11 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA

-----------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, Dec. 15, 1989                        Audio:  202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Friday, December 15:
 
    Because of the additional steps involved in the first use of
Launch Pad 39A for the upcoming STS-32 mission...the processing
schedule continues to run slightly behind.  As a result, it is
expected that Shuttle managers will announce later today that the
launch will slip an additional day to Thursday, December 21st. the
launch window on Thursday would open at 5:55 P.M. Eastern time. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select television. All times are Eastern.
 
    Monday, Dec. 18:
 
     5:00 p.m.      The STS-32 flight crew is scheduled to
                    arrive at KSC.
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

    If I heard right, the radio this morning said the launch was now
    planned for this Friday, 22 December.  If they can't launch then, they
    won't launch the 24th or 26th, because of Christmas.
    
    			Steve

    heard this was pushed back to Jan 8, 1990
    
    				-**Ted**-

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: Payload Summary for 12/18/89 (Forwarded)
Date: 19 Dec 89 05:34:57 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
                                PAYLOAD STATUS REPORT
                         Prepared at 4:15 p.m. Dec.l8, l989
                                   Mission STS-32
  
          STS-32 -- SYNCOM, LDEF RETRIEVAL
 
               Today's announcement of a new target launch date for STS-32
          of no earlier than Jan. 8, l990 is expected to have no impact on
          either SYNCOM deployment or the retrieval of  the  Long  Duration
          Exposure Facility (LDEF).
 
               SYNCOM  is  in Columbia's cargo bay at Launch Pad A.  There,
          the satellite is being trickle charged and maintained in a launch
          readiness condition.  The change of the launch date will not  af-
          fect the scenario planned for deployment of the satellite,  which
          will be known as LEASAT once on station.
 
               The scenario, known as Post Ejection Sequencer (PES),  calls
          for  a  series  of  manuevers  performed over a period of several
          days. Forty-five minutes after deployment, the solid perigee kick
          motor will be ignited.  Three manuevers will place the  satellite
          in a geosynchronous orbit at l77 degrees west.
 
               Retrieval of the LDEF, now a valuable scientific repository,
          will  not  be  impacted  by the revised launch date.  Current es-
          timates are that LDEF will be retrievable through  at  least  the
          third week of February.

>               Retrieval of the LDEF, now a valuable scientific repository,
>          will  not  be  impacted  by the revised launch date.  Current es-
>          timates are that LDEF will be retrievable through  at  least  the
>          third week of February.


Unless the sun kicks up again, presumably.  It is amazing how much such
things affect orbits...not too many months ago, it was thought that a mid-December
launch date was pretty marginal for LDEF retrieval.  Now its ok till February!

Just remember that it can change again!

Burns

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 12/27/89 (Forwarded)
Date: 27 Dec 89 17:33:57 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, December 27, 1989                  Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA Headline News for Wednesday, December 27:
  
    Technicians at Kennedy Space Center will recharge batteries on the
SYNCOM Navy communications satellite Thursday.  Meanwhile, a skeleton
crew continues work on the launch processing system and some work is
being completed on launch pad 39A's fixed service structure.  The
communications satellite will be deployed from the orbiter Columbia
prior to the retrieval of the Long Duration Exposure Facility.  Launch
of the STS-32 mission is scheduled for no earlier than January 8. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.  All times are Eastern.  
  
    Thursday, January 4:
 
    11:30 A.M.        NASA Update will be transmitted.
  
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.    

I don't mean to sound like a worry-wart, but has there been any discussion of
possible effects of the recent cold weather in Florida on the launch in January?
Since they've been talking about frost and freezing temperatures in the Florida
citrus belt I was wondering what the weather's been like at KSC.

...Roger...

  As I understand it, the double clevis O-ring was suppose to solve that
problem.

  George

RE: .19

That is my understanding as well, George.  Even though I didn't even mention
the o-rings, you read my mind!  I'm just kind of surprised that the media hasn't
jumped all over NASA about performing many many many checks (and review their
Criticality-1 list) to be sure the cold will have no effect.

May the warm sun shine brightly on the SRBs between now and Jan. 8th!

...Roger...

    There are also the heaters around the joints.  However, it seems to me
    the Rogers Commission found lots of other questionable issues around
    launching in real cold weather.  One wonders.
    
    They did cancel a commercial Titan 3 launch for several days running
    because of weather, however.
    
    Burns

    High altitude winds were the main problem for the Titan 3.
    
    gary

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/03/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 3 Jan 90 18:59:34 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, January 3, 1990                    Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA Headline News for Wednesday, January 3:
  
    The call to stations for the launch of the STS-32 mission is
scheduled for Thursday at 4:00 P.M., Eastern time.  Today, liquid
oxygen and liquid hydrogen tanks at Pad 39A will be filled in
preparation for loading the orbiter's onboard storage tanks during the
launch countdown.  Yesterday, ordnance devices were reinstalled on the
orbiter, SRBs and the external tank. 
 
    The Columbia's crew...Commander Dan Brandenstein, Pilot Jim
Wetherbee and Mission Specialists Bonnie Dunbar, Marsha Ivens and
David Low will arrive at the Cape from Houston on Friday. 
  
    Here is a corrected schedule of pre-launch briefings to be 
conducted at Kennedy Space Center and Telecast on NASA Select TV.
 
    Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 9:00 A.M., Eastern time, launch 
countdown status reports.
 
    On Saturday at 10:00 A.M., a SYNCOM briefing...at 11:00 A.M.,
briefing on characterization of neurospora circadian rhythms
experiment...1:00 P.M., protein crystal growth and fluid experiment
apparatus briefing.   At 2:00 P.M., a briefing on the Long Duration
Exposure Facility.  Then on Sunday at 11:00 A.M., the pre-launch news
conference will be held. 
  
    The New York Times says the Bush administration has told
congressional leaders that it cannot meet the statutory deadline for
the 1991 budget and will submit it one week late. Submission date is
now set for January 29. 
 
    Space pioneer Hermann Oberth died in Nuremberg, West Germany last
week.  The 95-year-old rocket scientist joined Wehrner Von Braun for
three years in 1955 to work on U.S. rocketry programs.  He was best
known for futuristic publications entitled "The Rockets To The Planets
In Space" and "The Way To Spaceship Travel". 
----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.  All times are Eastern. 
  
    Thursday, January 4:
 
    11:30 A.M.     NASA Update will be transmitted
 
     1:00 P.M.     Administrator Truly speaks to NASA employees
  
    Friday, January 5:
 
     9:00 A.M.     Launch countdown status
  
    Saturday, January 6:
 
      9:00 A.M.    Launch countdown status
 
     10:00 A.M.    SYNCOM briefing
 
     11:00 A.M.    Circadian rhythym
 
      1:00 P.M.    Commercial payloads briefing
 
      2:00 P.M.    LDEF briefing
  
    Sunday, January 7:
 
      11:00 A.M.   Pre-launch news conference   
      
    Monday, January 8:
 
      Mission STS-32 coverage begins at 3:30 A.M. with launch
scheduled for 8:06 A.M. 
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon 
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.  

    As of the 9am briefing, the countdown was proceeding on schedule.
    Weather predictions for Monday indicate a fairly high probability that
    conditions will NOT be acceptable for launch.
    
    gary

	So what's the scoop. Did it get off the ground or was the
	launch recycled to tomorrow?

    Launch scrubbed for today, due to weather.  Apparently, there was also
    a problem with a sensor, I don't know any details.
    
    			Steve

The problem was with one of the valves for the water deluge system that sprays
the pad just before and during liftoff.  That was apparently fixed, but they
killed it due to weather at about 9:56.

Interestingly, they were holding at T-9 for quite a while waiting for the
weather to improve.  Then  CNN said that if the decision to go was made,
they would *skip* to T-5 and go from there.  The fact that they scrubbed
at 9:56 when the window closed at 9:01 (or maybe it was :02) tends to
confirm that, although I don't remember hearing about the doing it before.

I suppose they can do the work that normally goes on between 9 and 5 during
the hold.  5 is about when the APUs are fired up.

Burns

    Interesting article in today's Globe about the "Seeds in Space"
    program carried aboard the LDEF.  Neat thing was that NONE of
    the tomato seeds carried aboard the LDEF would be made available
    to "professional" scientists; all the experimentation will be
    done by students, from grade school to graduate school.
    
    A neat idea to raise some interest among the kids.  The only
    downer mentioned was the fact no one was sure what the expected
    germination percentage would be.

    Does this mean they're trying again tomorrow, same time?
    
    			Steve

  Doesn't it take 2 days to recycle the main tank?

  George

    Well, they are off.  Launching of the satelite is scheduled for Wed and
    LDEF retreval is due Frid.  Then another week in space, for the longest
    shuttle mission to date.
    
    Tony

Re recycle:  For the first few missions, the minimum recycle time was two
days because they had to empty and refill the ET.  Now (and for several years)
they have 1-day turnaround capability because software was developed to manage
the fuel in the ET so that they don't have to drain it.

Re window:  A moot point, but the window opened at ~7:35 this morning, 30 or
so minutes earlier.  I don't know that the constraint was that changed by
30 minutes.  I assume either the LDEF position or the positioning of the
Navy satellite they are deploying, or both.

Burns

    The launch window is dictated by LDEF motion. The Syncom has a number
    of alternatives to cope with a variety of deployment times. The guy
    from Hughes said at Saturday's press conference  that all of this
    week's windows would allow them to use their nominal ascent, where the
    perigee stage fires about 45 mins after deployment and further perigee
    burns using the liquid propellant thrusters occur at the perigee of
    subsequent orbits (this is all outline in the STS-32 press kit,
    floating around this file somwehere).
    
    I think NASA said this would be the second longest mission, but I
    wasn't too awake at 7:30 so I could have misheard.
    
    gary

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/09/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 9 Jan 90 19:16:35 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday, January 9, 1990                      Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA Headline News for Tuesday, January 9:
  
    The Space Shuttle Columbia was successfully launched today at 7:35
A.M., Eastern time.  With good weather at the Kennedy Space Center
this morning...the countdown went flawlessly and the STS-32 mission
began on time as the launch window opened. KSC Launch Director Bob
Sieck said the launch process was nearly flawless. 
  
    Shortly after achieving orbit, the payload bay doors were opened
and flight operations began.  Activities today include checkout of the
remote manipulator arm that will be used to grapple the Long Duration
Exposure Facility later this week.  
 
    Wednesday's major activity will be deployment of the SYNCOM
satellite.  The flight schedule calls for retrieval of the Long
Duration Exposure Facility to occur Friday morning. 
 
    The New York Times says the world's most powerful optical
telescope will become partially operational this spring.  The 396-inch
Keck telescope is located on Mauna Kea...a dormant 13,700 foot
mountain in Hawaii...highest in the Pacific basin. Testing and
operation of the telescope will occur following installation of nine
mirror segments.  Installation of all 36 segments will not be
completed until next year.  Even with nine segments, the telescope
will have more power than the 200-inch Palomar telescope in California. 
  
    And a final note....Roald Sagdeev, a leading Soviet space
scientist and Susan Eisenhower, granddaughter of President Dwight
Eisenhower say they will wed next month in Moscow.  Sagdeev was a key
figure in the cooperative Halley comet investigation and has
participated in numerous U.S. and Soviet space science discussions. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.   All times are Eastern.
  
    Extensive live coverage of the STS-32 mission continues on NASA
Select TV.  Here is a list of mission highlights scheduled as of
January 9. 
 
    Wednesday, January 10:
 
    5:25 A.M.     Replay of flight day 1 activities.
    
    7:05 A.M.     Pre-deployment checkout of SYNCOM
 
   10:55 A.M.     Playback of SYNCOM deploy operations
 
    1:00 P.M.     NASA total quality management colloquium    
   
   10:25 P.M.     Replay of flight day 2 activities
  
    Thursday, January 11:
 
    6:25 A.M.     Replay of flight day 2 activities 
 
    9:30 A.M.     Playback of flight deck operations    
 
    9:25 P.M.     Replay of flight day 3 activities
 
    Friday, January 12:
 
    4:25 A.M.     Replay of flight day 3 activities
 
    8:50 A.M.     Live downlink of LDEF grapple operations
 
   10:50 A.M.     Live downlink of LDEF photo survey
 
   10:25 P.M.     Replay of flight day 4 activities
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
---------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily Monday through Friday at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
---------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/10/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 10 Jan 90 18:30:26 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, January 10, 1990                   Audio: 202/755-1788
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Wednesday, January 10:
  
    The STS-32 crew successfully deployed the 17-thousand pound SYNCOM
satellite early today and began the orbital chase of the Long Duration
Exposure Facility.  About a dozen course corrections with the orbital
maneuvering system and reaction control system thrusters will be
required to place Columbia into an orbit that matches that of the LDEF. 
 
    In addition to the communications satellite deployment...the five 
member crew began crystal growth experiments.  
 
    Yesterday, the remote manipulator arm was checked out by the crew.
 It will be used Friday to grapple the LDEF and take it into the
Columbia's payload bay.   The 11-ton LDEF spacecraft, holding 57
experiments, has been in orbit since 1984.  The LDEF has orbited
Earth over 32 thousand times...traveling over 800 million miles. 
  
    Vice President Dan Quayle will speak today at the opening session
of the American Astronomical Society meeting in Crystal City,
Virginia.   Associated Press reports the Vice President will make a
"major speech on space policy".  Quayle, head of the National Space
Council will discuss, according to AP..."where we've been and where
we're going in space"...along with an assessment of..."where the
problems are in the nation's space program". 
----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.   All times are Eastern. 
 
    STS-32 mission highlights through Saturday.
 
    Thursday, January 11:
 
    6:25 A.M.     Videotape replay of day 2 activities
 
    9:30 A.M.     Playback of flight deck operations
 
    9:25 P.M.     Videotape replay of day 3 activities
  
    Friday, January 12:
 
    4:24 A.M.     Videotape replay of day 3 activities
 
    8:50 A.M.     Live video downlink of ldef grapple ops
 
   10:50 A.M.     Live video downlink of ldef photo survey
 
   10:25 P.M.     Videotape replay of day 4 activities
  
    Saturday, January 13:
 
    4:45 A.M.     Videotape replay of LDEF retrieval ops
 
    6:20 P.M.     Live downlink of crew news conference
     
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
---------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C. 

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/11/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 11 Jan 90 22:15:08 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday, January 11, 1990                    Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Thursday, January 11:
  
    The crew of the Space Shuttle orbiter Columbia continues
preparations for rendezvous with the Long Duration Exposure Facility. 
Grappling of the satellite is now scheduled for about 9:48 A.M.,
Eastern time, Friday. 
 
    Mission Specialist Marsha Ivins has been filming with the IMAX
camera.  Later today, the crew will attempt to film fires in Madagscar
and deforestation in Brazil.  The text and graphics system is still
malfunctioning and water leakage in the cabin dehumidifier system
required some unscheduled plumbing earlier today. 
  
    Vice President Dan Quayle told members of the American
Astronomical Society meeting in Crystal City, VA., the United States
competitive advantage in technology has disappeared.  He said space
programs cost too much and take too long to develop. The Vice
President told the 175th annual meeting of the scientific group that
in order to revitalize U.S. space efforts...the National Space
Council, which he heads...is "looking across the traditional divisions
among civil, commercial and national security activities. 
 
    Quayle said the Space Council is developing a four-point plan for
the 1990s...devise plans for missions to the moon and Mars, expand
Earth observations and improve launch capabilities and improve
national security.  He also told the scientists the U.S. will commit
itself to a balanced program...not emphasizing human exploration at
the expense of science excellence. 
----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.   All times are Eastern.
  
    Coverage of the STS-32 mission continues....  here are some 
scheduled highlights. 
 
Friday, January 12....
 
     4:30 A.M.    Videotape replay of day 3 activities.
 
     6:43 A.M.    Downlink of LDEF retrieval activities 
 
     9:48 A.M.    Live color downlink of LDEF grapple ops.
 
    10:50 A.M.    Live downlink of LDEF photo survey.
 
    10:30 P.M.    Replay of day 4 activities.
  
Saturday, January 13....
 
      4:45 A.M.   Videotape playback of LDEF retrieval ops
 
     10:12 A.M.   Crew news conference with media
 
      1:30 P.M.   Videotape replay of day 5 activities
 
      9:30 P.M.   Replay of day 5 activities
  
Sunday, January 14....
 
       A variety of downlinks on crew activites.
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
---------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

    any news on the ldef recovery?
    
    Tony

    LDEF grapple was completed successfully at approx 10:16am EST.
    Described as a flawless rendezvous.
    
    The 4 1/2 hour photo survey is currently underway. Live video was
    available and it was spectacular. They are carrying an IMAX camera, so
    that should be something to see when it released.
    
    gary

    I heard an interview of a NASA person (sorry, didn't get his name or
    position) this morning on NPR's Morning Edition.  He said one of the
    primary purposes of the latter part of this mission has been to test
    the effects of longer duration on the crew.  This study is in
    preparation for the Space Station era.  Prior to the shuttle, people
    returning from extended space trips have been passive passengers on
    capsules.  Assuming the shuttle isn't actually landed by a computer,
    the pilot plays an active role in the landing.  They are measuring
    whether or not the crew's hand-eye coordination and reaction times are
    affected by the length of the mission.
    
    

    What??  No comments or discussion on the little surprise this morning??
    
    Apparently during the downloading of some information, the transmission
    was "glitched" which caused 6 of Columbia's manuevering jets to fire, 
    making the shuttle tumble end over end.
    
    They say that the crew was never in any danger but that many people
    were quite surprised by what happened.  (I'll bet!)
    
    I just saw the report on the Today show, so it was kept non-technical.
    Has anyone heard what really happened??
    
    cheers,
    jeff
    

    Re:.4
    	What you have stated is correct. In technical terms (from what I
    heard) there was an uplink command error which when combined with an
    error in one of the switch settings on the Columbia caused the attitude
    control jets to fire. The problem is being studied.
    
    				Drew
    

    	Apparently NASA isn't aware of the fact that for the past ten
    years, the Soviet Union has had crews in space for up to a year
    so far.  They beat the U.S. manned space endurance record, set by
    the SKYLAB 3 crew in 1974 (84 days) back in 1979, and have been
    improving ever since.
    
    	Larry
    

    re .42
    
    But the cosmonauts have little or no control over the reentry even in
    the Soyuz-TM.
    
    I'm not sure if the shuttle requires human intervention to land, but
    NASA places very high priority on having the flight crew in good shape
    for reentry. That is the reason behind the 4 day minimum mission
    length. It ensures enough time to overcome space adaptation syndrome if
    it occurs.
    
    gary

    In Feyneman's "What do you care what other people think?" he says that
    the only thing during reentry/landing which absolutely requires a human
    is throwing the switch that lowers the landing gear.  He claims that
    this was done more as a concession to the pilots than for any "real"
    technical reason.

    He goes on to point out how ironic it is that the shuttle software is
    probably the most reliable component of the shuttle's major systems and
    yet they're contemplating trying to reduce costs by cutting down on the
    regression tests.

    I was thinking along the same lines as .42......why are we studying the
    effects on the human body for a short 1 week flight.  Why not work with
    the Soviets - their crews have been in space for much longer durations.
    
    Maybe work some sort of deal - access to their data and let them go on
    some shuttle flights when they need to retrieve Soviet science payloads
    back to Earth.
    
    Joe
    

    Heard on the news while coming in this morning....  Columbia will be 
    spending an extra day in space due to bad weather at Edwards.  Landing
    should be early tomorrow morning.
    
    Will this make it the longest flight??  
    
    jeff
    

    Re:.46
    	Yes, at a duration of 11 days, this will be the Longest Space
    Shuttle flight.
    
    Re: Previous notes
    	There are already agreements recently signed with the Soviets for
    the exchange of data on the effects of spaceflight on crews. There are
    to be exchanges of instrumentation (nothing too fancy due to the
    ubiqutous and narrow minded "technology transfer issues") and
    standardization of certain types of measurements such as bone density.
    In addition there have been several cooperative Bio-Kosmos flights over
    the past several years most recently in 1989.
    	As for why bother with studying the effects of one week shuttle 
    flights on crews? Two reasons:
    
    1) Many of the important adaptation processes take place in the first
    week and their study shed light on some of the longer term effects
    which occur in humans.
    
    2) One does the best with what they got (i.e. since we don't have any
    sort of space station and at this rate probably never will, what else
    can we do).
    
    	If you don't like the level of cooperation with the Soviets and you
    don't like the present state of affairs with the US space program,
    
    		Go out and do something about it!
    
    This is a democracy; Write your Representative! Write your Senator!
    Write to the President! Write to the head of the Space Council, that 
    %@#*head Dan Quayle! Become a space activist. Nothing will change
    unless people demand change...
    	Ooops! I'm on the soapbox again...
    
    				Drew
    

    Thanks Drew for the reply.  I didn't realize that many changes happen
    soon after going-up.  Now, writing Dan Quayle......
    
    :^)
    
    Joe
    

Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Columbia Re-Entry Experiments (Forwarded)
Date: 19 Jan 90 02:23:29 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
 
    RELEASE:  90-8
 
    RESEARCH EXPERIMENTS TO MONITOR COLUMBIA RE-ENTRY
 
     During Columbia's fiery re-entry through Earth's atmosphere at
mission end, two experiments will measure the orbiter's aerodynamic
and thermodynamic characteristics to acquire data for future space
transportation systems. 
 
     STS-32 is the third flight of the Shuttle Infrared Leeside
Temperature Sensing (SILTS) and the Shuttle Entry Air Data System
(SEADS) experiments, developed by Langley Research Center, Hampton,
Va., in NASA's Orbiter Experiments (OEX) program. 
 
     The OEX program conducts atmospheric entry research during the
Shuttle orbiter's return from space.  OEX experiments are placed
within the orbiter structure for data collection, leaving the payload
bay free to support the flight's primary payloads. SILTS and SEADS
previously flew on STS-61C in January 1986 and on STS-28 in August 1989. 
 
     On STS-32, SILTS will gather additional data to predict thermal
protection requirements for the upper surfaces of advanced entry
vehicles.  As Columbia slows from orbital speed down to about Mach 8
(eight times the speed of sound), an infrared camera located in a pod
at the tip of the orbiter's vertical tail will gather high-resolution
infrared imagery of the upper (leeward) left wing.  Researchers will
use the data to produce detailed thermal maps showing the magnitude
and distribution of aerodynamic heating. 
 
     On STS-28, SILTS images revealed increased temperatures just
behind the leading edge of the wing and in an area between the inboard
and outboard elevons flight control surfaces which reached around
1,100 degrees Fahrenheit. 
 
     Prior to the experiment's next flight on the STS-35 mission
scheduled for April 1990, the experiment will be reconfigured to
monitor Columbia's upper fuselage. 
 
     The SILTS results are vital to the design of advanced winged
spacecraft because each pound of unnecessary thermal protection that
can be eliminated allows another pound of payload to be carried for
the same launch cost.  Moreover, SILTS collects data under flight
conditions that can not be duplicated in ground- based facilities. 
 
     SEADS is housed in Columbia's nosecap.  The experiment
incorporates 14 penetration assemblies distributed about the nosecap
surface, each containing a small port through which local surface air
pressure is measured. 
 
     Measurement of air pressure distribution allows precise
post-flight determination of "air data" such as angle of attack, angle
of sideslip, free stream dynamic pressure and Mach number.  Accurate
information on these factors, coupled with vehicle motion information
measured by a separate experiment, are required to determine the
orbiter's aerodynamic flight characteristics.  SEADS provides accurate
data during ascent from liftoff to about 56 miles and from that
altitude through landing during re-entry. 
 
     The principal technologists for SILTS are David A. Throckmorton
and E. Vincent Zoby of Langley's Space Systems Division.  Paul M.
Siemers III of the Space Systems Division is the principal
technologist for SEADS. 
 
 Ron Baalke                       |    [email protected] 
 Jet Propulsion Lab  M/S 301-355  |    [email protected] 
 4800 Oak Grove Dr.               |
 Pasadena, CA 91109               |

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News - 01/16/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 19 Jan 90 02:34:35 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday, January 16, 1990                     Audio: 202/755-1788
----------------------------------------------------------------- 
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Tuesday, January 16:
  
    The space shuttle orbiter Columbia continues to perform well
during its 10 day mission...and the crew is performing in a highly
acceptable manner, too.  Aside from a small water leak in a humidity
separator and a false alarm from a navigational aid, columbia's
systems are operating nominally.  Mission specialists Bonnie Dunbar
and David Low have been switching as subjects for daily lower body
negative pressure checks with a new collapsible pressure check device.
A number of other medical experiments are being conducted by the crew. 
 
    Clear skies over parts of Africa this past weekend also gave the
crew good opportunities to shoot pictures of Lake Chad, the Nile
Valley and fires in Kenya as part of a photographic survey of
Earth's surface. 
 
    The weather report for landing at Edwards Air Force Base appears
favorable for early Friday.  Present plans call for landing on
concrete Runway #22 at 5:59 A.M., Eastern Time. 
  
 Ron Baalke                       |    [email protected] 
 Jet Propulsion Lab  M/S 301-355  |    [email protected] 
 4800 Oak Grove Dr.               |
 Pasadena, CA 91109               |

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News - 01/17/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 19 Jan 90 02:39:49 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, January 17, 1990                   Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA headline news for Wednesday, January 17:
  
    The crew of the orbiter Columbia continues to operate a variety of
experiments as they near completion of their ten day mission.
Astronaut Bonnie Dunbar has completed her participation as a subject
in the lower body negative pressure experiment.  The device pulls
fluids toward the body's lower extremities.  Dunbar spent more than
four hours in the device after consuming 32 ounces of liquid and eight
salt tablets.  Hopefully, the technique will help astronauts readapt
better to gravity on return to Earth. 
 
    Mission Commander Dan Brandenstein, who celebrates his 47th
birthday today, reported sighting a developing tropical storm
northwest of Australia.  The storm is nicknamed Sam. 
 
    The latest predicted landing time, Friday, at Edwards Air Force
Base, is about 5:55 A.M., Eastern Time.  The deorbit burn is scheduled
for 4:50 A.M. on orbit 157. 
  
    In a related story...Associated Press reports that ground-water
pumping brought about by a growing population in southern California's
Antelope Valley is cracking and sinking the dry lakebed runways at
Edwards Air Force Base.  U.S. Air Force officials told the California
Water Commission last week that the lake bed upon which the space
shuttle often lands has subsided three feet in some areas and many
fissures on the lakebed surface run for hundreds of feet. 
  
 Ron Baalke                       |    [email protected] 
 Jet Propulsion Lab  M/S 301-355  |    [email protected] 
 4800 Oak Grove Dr.               |
 Pasadena, CA 91109               |

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News - 01/18/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 19 Jan 90 02:46:09 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday, January 18, 1990                    Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA headline news for Thursday, January 18:
  
    The flight of Columbia has moved into its tenth day but not
without some excitement this morning while the crew was asleep.
Erroneous navigation data from Mission Control to the orbiter's
automatic pilot led to the firing of small thrusters.  They made an
unexpected change in Columbia's attitude.  Mission Commander Dan
Brandenstein was informed of the problem.  He turned off the autopilot
and took over control manually.  After monitoring new data the
autopilot was turned back on and the crew returned to sleep. 
 
    This morning the crew spoke with President George Bush and then held 
an on-orbit news conference with reporters at the Johnson Space Center. 
 
    In addition, Bonnie Dunbar used the remote manipulator arm to
check out waste water dump nozzles...experiments were completed...and
orbiter day-before-entry checks were conducted. 
 
    The weather looks good for an early morning landing tomorrow at
Edwards Air Force Base.  A storm center over southern California is
moving east and should pose no threat.  Touchdown of the Columbia is
scheduled for about 5:55 A.M., Eastern time, on the concrete runway. 
  
    NASA has selected 23 new astronauts.  The 1990 group includes the
first woman to be selected as a pilot trainee.  She is Air Force Major
Eileen Collins.  and...Thomas Sega, the husband of Bonnie Dunbar...now
in space aboard the Columbia...was selected as a mission specialist. 
  
 Ron Baalke                       |    [email protected] 
 Jet Propulsion Lab  M/S 301-355  |    [email protected] 
 4800 Oak Grove Dr.               |
 Pasadena, CA 91109               |

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News - 01/19/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 19 Jan 90 17:34:57 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, January 19, 1990                      Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Friday, January 19:
  
    The crew of the STS-32 Space Shuttle mission will remain in Earth
orbit one more day.  The delay was forced by predicted ground fog at
Edwards Air Force Base.  The extension makes the STS-32 mission the
longest duration flight in shuttle history.  Landing is now scheduled
for approximately 3:00 A.M., Eastern time, Saturday.  The deorbit burn
is scheduled for 1:54 A.M., with NASA Select TV coverage of
pre-landing and landing activities beginning at 12:30 A.M. 
 
    After learning of the delay, crew members set up an
echocardiograph device that generates images of the heart and other
soft body tissues.  In addition...Commander Dan Brandenstein and pilot
Jim Wetherbee will conduct photograpy activities and exercise on the
treadmill today. 
  
    A segment of the right hand solid rocket booster slated for use on
the STS-31 Discovery mission will be replaced.  That decision was made
yesterday by NASA and Thiokol Corporation officials.  The change is
being made because data doesn't show definitely that a required leak
check on a nozzle internal joint was properly accomplished.  Launch of
the Discovery...carrying the Hubble Space Telescope...had been
scheduled for late March.  The Washington Post reports the delay could
be about two weeks. 
 
    Also at the Cape...the orbiter Atlantis is scheduled to be rolled
over to the vehicle assembly building about noon today. 
  
    Aerospace Daily says recommendations on the early direction of the
Moon and Mars space initiatives will be sent to President George Bush
in two to three weeks.  National Space Council director Mark Albrecht
told the Daily, Thursday, some key decisions will be made in the next
30 days relating to the early direction of the program, its thrust and
decisions relating to international cooperation. 
  
    Two prime flight payload specialists have been named for the
International Microgravity mission aboard the orbiter Columbia now
scheduled for December 1990.  Dr. Ulf Merbold of the European Space
Agency and Dr. Roberta Bondar of the Canadian Space Agency will carry
out a wide variety of experiments in the Spacelab module. 
 
 Ron Baalke                       |    [email protected] 
 Jet Propulsion Lab  M/S 301-355  |    [email protected] 
 4800 Oak Grove Dr.               |
 Pasadena, CA 91109               |

re an earlier reply:  this was not only the longest shuttle flight but it
had the heaviest orbiter return from flight thanks to ldef.

							mike

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/22/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 22 Jan 90 18:58:36 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Monday, January 22, 1990                     Audio:  202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Monday, January 22:
 
    The Space Shuttle Columbia is being readied for its return trip to
Kennedy Space Center...after its landing at Edwards Air Force Base
Saturday morning, completing an 11-day flight...the longest in shuttle
history. 
 
    If processing remains on schedule, the orbiter will begin a
two-day flight aboard the 747-carrier aircraft, on Thursday morning. 
Once Columbia arrives back at the Cape, techincians will remove the
Long Duration Exposure Facility from its cargo bay. 
  
    At Kennedy Space Center...technicians will remove the right solid
rocket booster from the mobile launch platform tomorrow, and replace
it with a new one which was shipped from Thiokol's factory in Utah
last Friday.  Engineers decided to change the segment and nozzle
because they could not verify that a critical joint in the SRB nozzle
had been properly leak checked at the factory.  As a result, launch of
the STS-31 mission to deploy the Hubble Space Telescope has been
rescheduled for no earlier than April 19. 
 
    Meanwhile...the orbiter Atlantis is scheduled to be rolled out to
launch pad 39A on Thursday, January 25.  It is scheduled to fly a
classified Department of Defense mission in February. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select television.  All times are Eastern.
 
    Wednesday, Jan. 24: 
 
     5:55 P.M.                 Delta launch of a GPS satellite
                               from Cape Canaveral AFS. 
    Thursday, Jan. 25:
 
     8:00 A.M.                 Rollout of the orbiter Atlantis
                               to pad 39-A.
 
    11:30 A.M.                 NASA Update will be transmitted.
 
    Monday, Jan. 29:
 
     1:00 P.M.                 FY '91 budget briefing from 6th
                               floor auditorium, NASA HQ.
 
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC) NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/23/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 24 Jan 90 18:21:38 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Tuesday, January 23, 1990                    Audio:  202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 
    This is NASA Headline News for Tuesday, January 23:
  
    The Space Shuttle Columbia and the Long Duration Exposure
Facility, stored in its payload bay, are being prepared for Thursday
morning's start of a two-day ferry flight to Kennedy Space Center. 
The flight to KSC includes a refueling stop at Davis-Monthan AFB,
Arizona, an overnight stop at Kelly AFB, Texas, and a second refueling
stop at Eglin AFB, Florida.  LDEF will be removed from the payload bay
at KSC sometime next week for inspection by research teams.  Removal
of the 57 experiments will begin around mid-February. 
 
    Final checkouts of the orbiter Atlantis are continuing today in
the Vehicle Assembly Building.  Rollout to launch pad 39-A is targeted
for 8 A.M. Thursday.  The terminal countdown demonstra- tion test with
the STS-36 flight crew is scheduled for next week. Atlantis and its five 
man crew will fly a classified Department of Defense mission next month. 
  
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/24/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 24 Jan 90 18:30:55 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, January 24, 1990                   Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA Headline News for Wednesday, January 24:
   
    Meanwhile at NASA's Dryden Flight Research Facility at Edwards,
California, ground crews are making final preparations for the ferry
flight of the orbiter Columbia...carrying the Long Duration Exposure
Facility in its payload bay...back to Kennedy Space Center. 
Columbia...atop the 747 carrier aircraft...is scheduled to depart
Thursday morning and arrive at the Cape Friday afternoon. 

    Rollout to the launch pad of the Space Shuttle orbiter Atlantis
is targeted for 8:00 A.M., Eastern time, tomorrow.  The terminal
countdown demonstration test with the STS-36 flight crew is now
scheduled for February 2 and 3. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.   All times are Eastern.
  
    Thursday, January 25:
  
    8:00 A.M.     Rollout of Atlantis to pad 39A.
 
   11:30 A.M.     NASA Update will be transmitted.
  
    Monday, January 29:
 
    1:00 P.M.     Fiscal 1991 budget briefing at NASA 
                  Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
  
All events and times are subject to change without notice. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA  
Headquarters, Washington, D.C. 

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: Long Duration Exposure Facility shows few surprises (Forwarded)
Date: 24 Jan 90 20:09:30 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
Mary Sandy
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                   January 24, 1990
 
Jean Clough
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.
  
    RELEASE: 90-11
 
    LONG DURATION EXPOSURE FACILITY SHOWS FEW SURPRISES
 
     Television views, astronaut commentary and post-retrieval photos
of the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) from the STS-32 Shuttle
mission suggest that the condition of LDEF is about as NASA officials
expected. 
 
     The objective of LDEF, which orbited Earth for nearly 6 years,
was to measure the effects of atomic oxygen, space radiation,
micrometeoroids, man-made debris, vacuum and other space-related
phenomena on more than 10,000 test specimens.  Some of those effects
were immediately observable on LDEF during in- flight recovery operations. 
 
     Some thin film test specimens appeared to be degraded or
completely eroded.  Some thin film balloon material test specimens
were broken away at one end.  These are expected results that will be
fully analyzed when the principal investigators have access to their
LDEF experiments. 
 
     The Kapton thermal covers on two Heavy Ions in Space experiment
trays were partially peeled back "like a sardine can" in the words of
one astronaut.  In addition, the thermal cover strips around the
detectors of a space plasma high voltage drainage experiment appear to
have eroded away.  Impact on these experiments will not be known until
researchers can examine them. 
 
     At least one of the thermal covers of an ultra-heavy cosmic ray
nuclei experiment, located adjacent to LDEF's leading edge, exhibited
more apparent debris or meteoroid impacts than anticipated but there
probably was no effect on the cosmic ray data obtained.  Investigators
will pay particular attention to this area during post-flight examination 
of the satellite to determine the nature of the deterioration. 
 
     LDEF program officials also noted discoloration around the high
voltage leads of an interstellar gas experiment.  Just what this means
will be studied in the data analyses that are the next step in the
LDEF program. 
 
     Space Shuttle orbiter Columbia and LDEF are expected to arrive at
Kennedy Space Center on January 26.  The orbiter will be de-mated from
the Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft and towed to the Orbiter
Processing Facility (OPF) shortly thereafter.  Current plans call for
the removal of LDEF from Columbia's payload bay about January 29. 
 
     LDEF will be transferred to the Operation & Checkout (O&C)
Building about January 30 and loaded onto a special transporter. 
Around January 31, the satellite will be moved to the Spacecraft
Assembly and Encapsulation Facilty II (SAEF II) where researchers 
will inspect and photograph its structure and experiment trays from
February 5 through 17.  Program officials estimate that removal of 
the experiment trays will begin around February 22. 
 
     A meeting of the LDEF Investigator Working Group will take place
at Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va., this summer on a date to be
announced later.  A press release summarizing the preliminary results
will follow the meeting. 
 
     LDEF contains 57 science and technology experiments representing
more than 200 investigators, 33 private companies, 21 universities,
seven NASA centers, nine Department of Defense laboratories and eight
foreign countries.  Experiment analysis is expected to provide
invaluable data for the design of future spacecraft as well as insight
into Earth's cosmic origins. 
 
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: STS-32 post-flight crew press conference (Forwarded)
Date: 24 Jan 90 20:15:12 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
Ed Campion
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                   January 24, 1990
 
Jeffrey Carr                                     
Johnson Space Center, Houston
  
    N90-6

    NOTE TO EDITORS:  STS-32 POST-FLIGHT CREW PRESS CONFERENCE
  
     The astronaut crew of Shuttle mission STS-32 will meet with news
media next week to discuss their recent flight which featured the
deployment of a SYNCOM-IV satellite and the retrieval of the Long
Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). 
 
     The news conference will be held at 2 p.m. EST, Tuesday, January
30, at the Johnson Space Center and will be broadcast live on NASA
Select television.  Accredited media who wish to participate may do so
in the building 2 briefing room at JSC, or via support audio from
other NASA field centers. 
 
     NASA Select programming is carried on RCA SATCOM F2R, transponder 13, 
located 72 degrees West Longitude. 

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 01/26/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 26 Jan 90 18:55:09 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, January 26, 1990                      Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
    This is NASA Headline News for Friday, January 26:
  
    The orbiter Columbia with its cargo....the Long Duration Exposure
Facility...in the payload bay is on its final leg home to Kennedy
Space Center.  Overnighting at Kelly Air Force Base, the 747/orbiter
is expected to arrive at the Kennedy Space Center shortly after 4:00
P.M., Eastern time.  Weather conditions appear satisfactory for
today's flight. 
 
    The STS-32 crew will hold a televised news conference next Tuesday
at Johnson Space Center.  They will discuss the retrieval of the Long
Duration Exposure Facility...deployment of the SYNCOM satellite and
the variety of experiments performed during their ten day mission. 
The news conference will be carried on NASA Select TV at 2:00 P.M.,
Eastern time. 
 
    Four space shuttle mission specialists have been designated
payload commanders...a new position in the astronaut corps.  Payload
commanders will have overall crew responsibility for planning,
integration and on-orbit coordination of payloads on their mission. 
Payload commanders are Norman Thagard for STS-42...Kathryn Sullivan
for STS-45...Jeffery Hoffman for STS-46 and Mark Lee for STS-47. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affair events on NASA 
Select TV.  All times are Eastern.
 
    Monday, January 29:
 
      1:00 P.M.      Fiscal 91 NASA budget briefing from                      
                     Washington.
  
    Tuesday, January 30:
 
      2:00 P.M.      STS-32 crew news conference from Johnson 
                     Space Center.
  
    Thursday, February 1:
 
      11:30 A.M.     NASA Update will be transmitted.
  
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C. 

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 02/08/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 9 Feb 90 01:47:44 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Thursday, February 8, 1990                    Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
  
    This is NASA Headline News for Thrusday, February 8:
  
    Long Duration Exposure Facility project official Bill Kinard says
visual inspection of the LDEF satellite, now at Kennedy Space Center,
showed some deterioration from its six years in space, but not enough
to stop plans for construction of Space Station Freedom. 
  
    Meanwhile, requests for tomato seeds that flew aboard the LDEF are
pouring into NASA headquarters from schools all over the country. 
About 3,000 requests per day are received.  The single day record is
over 5,000 teacher requests for seeds.  A total 12.5 million tomato
seeds provided by Parks Seed Company of Greenwood, South Carolina,
were aboard the LDEF.  The seeds will be grown under controled
conditions by school students and be watched for any mutations caused
by the exposure to space radiation.  Better varities of vegetables are
developed by mutating plants. 
  
    Technicians at Kennedy Space Center have replaced a turbopump on
engine #3 aboard the Atlantis now on the launch pad.  There was some
concern that necessary welds to the turbopump had not been recorded so
the pump was replaced with a similar unit from a main engine aboard
the orbiter Columbia. 
 
    Meanwhile, NASA managers will meet Friday and Saturday at KSC for
the STS-36 flight readiness review.  Following completion of the
review on Saturday, a firm launch date is expected to be announced.  
The present target date is February 22 for the classified DOD mission.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.   All times are Eastern.
  
    Saturday, February 10:
 
      12 noon           Galileo/Venus flyby news briefing from                 
                        the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. 
  
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 noon, 
Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: LDEF inspection media briefing set (Forwarded)
Date: 9 Feb 90 01:55:38 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
Mary Sandy
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                   February 8, 1990
 
Jean Drummond Clough
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.
 
Patricia Phillips
Kennedy Space Center, Fla. 
  
    N90-10 EDITORS NOTE:  LDEF INSPECTION MEDIA BRIEFING SET
  
     NASA will hold a news briefing on the initial close-up inspection
of the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) on Tuesday, Feb. 13,
1990, 11 a.m, at NASA's Kennedy Space Center (KSC), Fla. 
 
     LDEF Chief Scientist William H. Kinard, NASA Langley Research
Center, Hampton, Va., will give an overview of LDEF's status,
including processing since LDEF was returned to KSC following Shuttle
mission STS-32. 
 
     Also scheduled to participate in the briefing are six LDEF
principal investigators:  Ann F. Whitaker, NASA Marshall Space Flight
Center, Huntsville, Ala.; Donald R. Wilkes, AZ Technology Co.,
Huntsville; Donald J. Kessler, NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston;
Robert M. Walker, Washington University, St. Louis; James H. Adams,
Jr., Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C.; Jim A. Alston,
George W. Park Seed Company, Inc., Greenwood, S.C. 
 
     The principal investigators will address solar array and
structural materials, thermal control and optical materials, space
debris, meteoroid chemistry, thermal blankets and the Space Exposed
Experiment Developed for Students (SEEDS). 
 
     The briefing will be carried live on NASA Select television,
Satcom F2R, Transponder 13 at 72 degrees W. Longitude, with two-way
question and answer capability.  News media interested in participating 
can access the satellite or view the event at NASA Headquarters, 
Washington, D.C., and at participating NASA field centers. 

I took a copy of a note from this conference to my son's 2nd Grade
teacher at the Westlands School in Chelmsford MA...a note that had
the address for the Seed Program.  She has been stressing science
with the children (something I fully support) and I thought that she
might try to get into the program despite the age of her class.  (The
official bracket is Grade 5 to College.)  Or at least get some materials
that would be exciting for the kids.  Well, they ended up being included
and will be getting seeds sometime soon.  I'll post any developments
here.

The kids are pretty excited, even if a few are a bit confused.  A
parent I know asked me about the "tomatoes from space that I got for
the kids" :-)

						Mike

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: Close-up inspection of Long Duration Exposure Facility begins 
Date: 13 Feb 90 20:51:10 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
 
Mary Sandy
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                  February 13, 1990
 
Jean Drummond Clough
Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.                        
 
    RELEASE:  90-23
 
    CLOSE-UP INSPECTION OF LONG DURATION EXPOSURE FACILITY BEGINS
  
     NASA officials and principal scientific investigators making
their first close inspection of the Long Duration Exposure Facility
(LDEF) at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., report that the spacecraft looks
much like they expected and hoped for after its extended stay in space. 
 
     LDEF's 57 experiments provide a unique opportunity to study
significant long-term effects of spaceflight on a broad range of
materials and components, as well as on living organisms.  The
spacecraft was retrieved by the crew of Space Shuttle Columbia on
January 12. 
 
     LDEF's exterior shows obvious effects from nearly 6-years'
exposure to bombardment by micrometeoroids and orbital debris, atomic
oxygen impingement and the Sun's ultraviolet rays.  LDEF will provide
unprecedented data on the changes caused by the combination of these
environmental parameters, because accurate simulations of the complex
space environment are difficult to perform on Earth.  These and other
effects will be evaluated in detail once LDEF's experiments are
removed for subsequent testing and analysis. 
 
     Discolorations or physical changes appear on many of LDEF's
thermal control and optical surface experiments.  There seems to be a
significant contrast between the surfaces on the leading edge (facing
the direction of flight) and those on the trailing edge.  One major
difference between these two sides of LDEF is the high exposure to
atomic oxygen on the leading edge and very low exposure on the
trailing edge.  Many of the materials appear as expected for this
extended exposure, while others look either more or less degraded
compared to preflight estimates. 
 
     Observation of solar array and structural materials on LDEF's
leading edge and surrounding rows reveals that all unprotected Kapton
thin-film insulation appears to have eroded away.  This Kapton erosion
is responsible for the disappearance of three solar cell modules and a
number of 1-mil polymer film materials on the Solar Array Materials
Passive LDEF Experiment (SAMPLE).  Kapton films protected with
silicone coatings seem to have survived prolonged exposure to atomic
oxygen, however, along with some silverized reflectors protected with
ionic bonded solids.  Researchers are somewhat surprised that
observations show white Tedlar is intact, and that Kevlar 29 and 49
appear eroded, but whole. 
 
     Two effects seen on SAMPLE and several other experiments are not
understood at this time.  Unbonded silvered teflon thermal blankets
appear white, while the silvered teflon bonded to metallic substrates
appears tarnished.  Elastomer materials, typically used as seals, have
greatly discolored.  Some surface erosion occurred on the carbon
fiber-epoxy matrix composite materials.  Even though space debris
impacts on the experiment's solar cells appear to be numerous, few of
the cells look broken. 
 
     The Thermal Control Surfaces Experiment (TCSE) is a once- active
experiment that performed periodic in-space optical properties
measurements of exposed thermal control and optical surfaces during
LDEF's initial 15-18 months in space.  This experiment will provide a
record of the condition of the test materials during that period, and
postflight laboratory analysis of the samples will determine any
subsequent damage.  In addition, the TCSE will be evaluated as a means
to obtain important knowledge on the effects of long-term space
exposure on complex optical, electronic and mechanical instrumentation. 
 
     The Chemical and Isotopic Measurements of Micrometeoroids by
Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry measured isotopic composition of
interplanetary dust.  A special capture cell on the front of LDEF and
two capture cells on the back collected vapor and debris fragments
from impacts.  When particles penetrated the foils, they should have
"exploded" on hitting the plates beneath, producing a plume of vapor
and debris that would redeposit on the underside of the plastic. 
 
     Unfortunately, many capture cells suffered catastrophic rupture
of the thin entrance plastic films during LDEF's longer- than-planned
sojourn in space.  But if the plastic was in place when impacts
occurred, there should be a spray of vapor and debris on the germanium
plates that can be analyzed.  The initial look from about six feet
away shows at least half of the front- facing cells have visible
impacts; at the microscopic level there probably will be many more. 
The knowledge gained from LDEF will be used to design a more complex
interplanetary dust experiment, one that will differentiate between
dust from comets and asteroids, for Space Station Freedom. 
 
     The Heavy Ions in Space (HIIS) experiment used plastic track
detectors to measure the abundance of chemical elements in cosmic
radiation.  The experiment should offer new insights into the origin
of chemical elements and may show how the elemental composition of the
Solar System differs from that of the rest of the galaxy.  The data
also will improve our knowledge of radiation hazards faced by
astronauts and by modern micro- electronic components in space. 
 
     On seven of the eight HIIS modules, multilayer insulation thermal
blankets partially detached and rolled up while LDEF was in orbit. 
The loss of temperature control and exposure of some of the detector
material to direct sunlight probably resulted in some data loss.  The
thermal blanket on the eighth HIIS module is largely intact and may
have preserved the data in that module. 
 
     Still another experiment, Space Exposed Experiment Developed for
Students (SEEDS), looks good and all hardware is intact on the tray,
suggesting that the seeds have been protected as planned.  After
preliminary growth tests, the 12.5 million tomato seeds that flew
aboard LDEF will be distributed to U.S. students in grades 5 through
university for use in classroom research. 
 
     Experiment trays will be removed from LDEF around February 22 and
delivered to the principal investigators.  By the end of April, all
experiments should be in the hands of the investigators and analyses
of the experiments underway. 
 
     Results from the LDEF mission will furnish invaluable data for
design of future space structures, such as Space Station Freedom, as
well as insight into Earth's cosmic origins. 
 

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA technicians begin removing LDEF experiments (Forwarded)
Date: 23 Feb 90 20:54:23 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
  Patricia E. Phillips                          Feb. 23, l990
  Kennedy Space Center, FL.
 
  Jean Drummond Clough
  Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va.
 
  KSC Release No. 30-90
 
  NASA TECHNICIANS BEGIN REMOVING LDEF EXPERIMENTS
 
       NASA technicians from Langley Research Center began removing
  experiments  today  from  the  Long  Duration  Exposure  Facility
  (LDEF),  the satellite retrieved from space by the STS-32 crew in
  January.
 
       The first experiment, the Space Exposed Experiment Developed
  for Students (SEEDS),  was removed from the spacecraft  at  12:22
  p.m.  EST. SEEDS, sponsored by the George W. Park Seed Company in
  Greenwood, S.C.,  will eventually go to classroom students around
  the country for use in school science projects.
 
	Processing  plans call for the removal of three other trays
  today.  Illustrating the international flavor of the experiments,
  two of these trays contain cosmic ray experiments from the Dublin
  Institute for Advanced Studies in Dublin, Ireland. The other tray
  scheduled  for  removal  today is a Langley Research Center space
  debris experiment.
 
       The protocol for tray removal is painstaking in its  protec-
  tion  of scientific data.  As each tray is removed from LDEF,  it
  will be placed on a workbench where  the  principal  investigator
  will  perform  closer  inspections  and  take basic measurements.
  These  measurements  will  include   detailing   the   sizes   of
  micrometeoroid and orbital debris impacts.
 
       The  combined  data from individual trays and the LDEF frame
  will provide valuable information in planning future space struc-
  tures, including Space Station Freedom. Removal of the 57 experi-
  ments,  contained in 86 trays mounted on the LDEF  framework,  is
  expected to continue through March.
 
       After the measurements and first analyses are completed, the
  experiment   hardware   will   be  appropriately  configured  for
  transport,  then  packaged  and  shipped  to  the  investigator's
  laboratory.  There, additional investigation and analysis will be
  performed.  More than 200 investigators have participated in  the
  experiments flown on LDEF, which spent almost six years in space.
 
       Preliminary  results of these individual investigations will
  be announced late this  summer  during  an  Investigator  Working
  Group meeting to be held at the Langley Research Center, Hampton,
  Va.  Langley  developed  and  managed the LDEF project,  which is
  unique in its opportunities for analysis of the effects of  space
  on various materials.
 
       The date of the conference will be announced later.

Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: NASA Headline News for 03/02/90 (Forwarded)
Date: 2 Mar 90 18:32:37 GMT
Reply-To: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, March 2, 1990                         Audio: 202/755-1788
-----------------------------------------------------------------
    This is NASA Headline News for Friday, March 2:
 
    The Park Seed Company announced that some of the 12.5 million
tomato seeds exposed to the rigors of six years of space travel on
LDEF appear to be germinating normally.  A summary report this fall
will reveal the response to radiation that may indicate a difference
in the growth process and color - revealing a loss in chlorophyll -
which will determine whether food can be grown in outer space. 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Here's the broadcast schedule for public affairs events on NASA 
Select TV.  All times are Eastern.
  
    Sunday, March 4:
 
     Time to be announced         Landing of STS-36 shuttle
                                  Atlantis at Edwards Air Force 
                                  Base in California.
  
All events and times are subject to change without notice.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
These reports are filed daily, Monday through Friday, at 12 
noon, Eastern time.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A service of the Internal Communications Branch (LPC), NASA 
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.	                                  

re .58

Well, the kids have the seeds and have planted them.  They divided the
class in half and one half planted space seeds while the second planted
earth seeds.  "Birth announcemets" and further updates will be posted.

						Mike

    cute,
    
    does anyone know any kids growing these seeds.
    
    simon

My son is growing them (see previous replies to this note).  I'm planning
to post developments as they occur.  [I'm also planning to have some
weird tomato plants growing in our yard this summer. :-) ]

						Mike

PS. If they make it to maturity I hope to save some seeds for a second
generation.  It would make a good future science fair project for my
son.

My daughter is also growing them in her science class.  They have already
sprouted I believe.   The kids were asked to predict what the "space tomatoes"
will look like.

- dave

    My son's high school Biology class (10th grade) received some seeds 
    and have planted them in various soils. He said the seeds were distributed
    in groups of four seeds. Each set of four seeds had a control
    number associated with it. My son's team planted their seeds in
    a sandy loam and are watering them with water and a phosphate-rich
    soap. ( "!! That wasn't MY idea!!!"  he claims!! ) Four seeds from
    a tomato seem to me to be a rather small sample to test, but I don't
    know what the germination rate of 'typical' tomatoes is.
    Any gardeners out there have any information?
    The joke in the class is that they are breeding the parents of the
    'stars' for the sequel to the (awful) movie "Attack of the Killer
    Tomatoes!" Another kid in the class suggested they would become
    "Teenage Mutant Ninja Tomatoes!"
    
    ah, youth...
    
    John B. 

    I am not expert but I have had tomato seed that were over 5 years
    old that had over a 80% germination rate...  If the seed were keep
    in a control enviroment then there should be no problem.  Some 
    types of tomato seeds do not have a good life and they normally
    come raped in a water tight packet.   Do you know what type
    of tomato seeds they are? What were the instructions for transplanting
    the seeds - to an ouside area  - or to a larger container?  I would expect
    over  80% germination on seed less then 5 years old (earth keeped). It
    will be intersting to know what these 'spacer' have.
    
    cheers john
    

My son's class, sixth grade, has received and planted some of these
space. I do not have much to add to the previous replies, except
the tallest plant is about 5" high.

Steve

From: [email protected] (Henry Spencer)
Newsgroups: sci.space,sci.space.shuttle
Subject: Space news from March 5 AW&ST, etc.
Date: 16 Apr 90 01:05:43 GMT
Organization: U of Toronto Zoology
 
    [Flight International, 28 Feb:]
 
    Visual inspection of LDEF turned up many micrometeorite/debris
craters, some substantial.  Atomic-oxygen erosion was serious,
especially in the mounting material of four solar-cell modules on
LDEF's leading face:  One was gone, one floated away during retrieval,
the third was picked off the bottom of the payload bay after landing,
and only one stayed put throughout.  Copper and silver coatings had
oxidized, to the point where thin ones often disappeared completely. 
Paint samples had been darkened considerably by ultraviolet.  A
micrometeorite collector lost most of its thermal blanketing to oxygen
erosion.  A particular puzzle is discoloration of "reflecting materials 
such as Teflon" [I assume they mean Teflon coated with something]. 
-- 
        Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology
        uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry [email protected]

Date: Fri, 13 Apr 90 22:16:19 EDT
>From: [email protected]
Subject: Shuttle roll incident on January 1990 LDEF mission
 
    As many people know, during the LDEF retrieval mission in January
1990, at one point when the crew were asleep, a garbled "state vector"
uploaded to Columbia caused the orbiter to start rotating.  The extent
of this has been somewhat exaggerated -- maximum speed was half an
RPM, and the crew didn't notice until Mission Control woke them up --
but it was a bit startling that such a thing could happen.  It could
have been serious if it had happened at a worse time. 
 
    Most software people, on hearing about, react with "haven't those
clods ever heard of checksums?".  Well, it turns out they have.  In
the latest issue of World Spaceflight News (an excellent source for
serious technical detail on shuttle flights), the full story is given.
The telemetry channels were noisy at the time, the state vector was
garbled by several noise "hits", and Mission Control's computers
correctly announced that the copy sent back by the orbiter for
confirmation didn't match the original and the state vector should be
discarded.  The ground controller responsible for the matter examined
the detailed report, incorrectly decided that nothing important had
been damaged -- and ordered the orbiter's computers to begin using the
defective state vector! The orbiter, naturally, obeyed.  In other
words, this was ultimately operator error.  The controller's action
was "clearly outside the expected" procedures. (The question of
whether this sort of thing is routine practice was not addressed, but
I for one would suspect that the controller wouldn't have done that if
he hadn't had to use manual overrides before.) 
 
    Procedures have been changed as a stopgap, and various long-term
fixes are being considered, including the possibility of "inhibiting"
the manual override in such cases (It is not clear whether this
means making it impossible, or just requiring some degree of
confirmation or authorization). 
 
    Henry Spencer at U of Toronto Zoology        uunet!attcan!utzoo!henry
 

    The Space Exposed Seed are Park Seeds 
    'Tomato Rutgers California Supreme'
    
    
    A very good choice for shelf life
    
    john
    

From: [email protected] (Steve Nuchia)
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: LDEF Newsletter
Date: 10 May 90 02:53:57 GMT
Organization: South Coast Computing Services, Inc. - Houston, Texas
 
    I have here a copy of Vol 1, No 2 of the "LDEF Spaceflight
Environmental Effects Newsletter", "distributed free of charge to the
greater LDEF community and professionals working in the discipline
areas pertinent to the LDEF mission.  Both researchers and
applications professionals are invited to join our distributution
list.  [Send info to] LDEF Newsletter, P.O. Box 10518, Silver Springs,
MD 20914." 
 
    One of the articles is about the budget problems facing the
investigators; I suggest that you offer to pay for a subscription. 
 
    This will not become a regular feature, but I recall some questions
a while back about what was being learned from the LDEF, so here goes:
  
    Cover Photo: "Evidence of Erosion of Silver Teflon"

	[Micrograph showing a tuft of material protruding
	from a flat surface, vaguely like a breaking sea wave.]
 
    Specimen of silver teflon analysed at KSC, micrograph shows
"striking evidence for erosion" by atomic oxygen.  The protrusion is a
"surface protected feature", the flat area around it has been eroded
away. The angles of the edges of the feature are "in good agreement
with the expected angle of impingement of atomic oxygen." 
 
    Spectroscopy indicates Sodium, Potassium, Calcium, and Clorine,
"characteristic of the salt residue from ocean spray deposited prior
to launch".  Estimated 15-20 microns of erosion over 5 3/4 years. 
"[this evidence] suggests that the milky appearance on ram-facing LDEF
surfaces is due to microscopic roughening of the teflon surfaces due
to erosion. 
 
    LDEF Deintegration Completed on Schedule
 
    Last experiment removed 29 March.  "The event was appropriately
celebrated at the Cape, although by a somewhat sparce crew. The ranks
of participants had been steadily diminishing as participants have
been drawn away to pursue their own investigations at their own
facilities."  [Sounds like good material for a _Science_ cartoon: guys
in lab coats standing in buffet line as the LDEF is carved up, then
scurrying off to their labs with their slices]  
 
    Freedom Gets an Early "Sample" of LDEF's Potential
 
    SAMPLE is the Solar Array Materials Passive LDEF Experiment.
 
    Hmm... This is a confusing article... Looks like a report on a
meeting, or maybe just the doings of insiders.  Upshot of it is some
preliminary results are being presented to various folks, and there
are SIGs (Special Investigation Groups) for various things. 
 
    They are targeting the September for an LDEF "data workshop" and a
major symposium is planned for Spring of 1991.  Workshops for
spacecraft designers will also be arranged through the project office. 
 
    Technology Updates
 
    John Gregory, U of Alabama, reported burn patterns on his silver
oxide attitude sensor indicates steady 10 degree yaw with no long term
oscillation.  The project office is accumulating all attitude data
into the mission history. 
 
    Thermal Control Properties Group: Initial inspection indicated
thermal control materials had been significantly affected. Analysis is
considered very important to Hubble and other missions, and is
proceeding with "all deliberate haste". 
 
    Silver Teflon:  Samples from thermal blankets were relatively
unchanged, but adhesively bonded specimens had significantly altered
solar absorptance and infared emittance, "as might be expected for the
observed discoloration and streaks of contamination" on the material
bonded to aluminum. 
 
    Fluorescensce: It was discovered that samples of several materials
exhibit fluorescence under UV light while "control specimens ...
[have] no corresponding fluorescence" 
 
    Induced Radiation: "Some of the most sensitive counting facilities
in the country are involved" in measuring induced radioactivity in
LDEF samples.  Structural parts, samples put there for the purpose,
and parts loaned by other experimenters are being examined.  Results
are being used to cross-check the radiation transport modelling
software used in spacecraft design. 
 
    Integrated Systems Test: Prior to deintegration they powered the
bird up; batteries charged up normally and electronic systems
functioned properly.  Triggering relays for all experiments were
checked and found to be in the proper position, with the expected
contact resistance. 
 
    Solar Cells: Some discoloration and erosion (particularly of potting 
compound) but all arrays worked when tested under halogen lamps. 
 
    Mechanisms:  The two valves "borrowed" from the Smithsonian's
SKYLAB worked properly and are still functional. 
 
    Experiment Exposure Canisters: The Air Force opened their
canister, after verifying that it had vacuum in it and taking a sample
of the gasses.  Impact damage visible on some samples confirmed that
the canister had opened properly.  "The most striking observation was
the change in color of a Nd+:glass laser rod from light pink to purple." 
 
    Structures: VELCRO "in numerous locations" is intact and has high
tear strength.  Further evidence of cold welding between dissimilar
metals has appeared. Stainless steel and aluminum are involved.  When
forced considerable galling is observed on the contact surfaces. 
 
    Seals: "Reports coming in continue to point to long term success
with seals."  A tape recorder on a Canadian experiment, sealed with
conventional technology, tested out at about 1 PSI per year prior to
flight.  Postflight it showed a drop of [Ta-Da!] about 5 PSI.  Good
results from Lockheed tape recorders too.  O-rings appear to have
retained their roundness, to the naked eye.  Apezion grease appears to
have retained its viscosity and texture on both sides of the seal. 
 
    Thermal: Aluminum shield and radiator on the HEPP [solar cell]
experiment have some tarnish over 20% of the surface, with a
concentration near the sheild/radiator intersection.  This is thought
to be due to contamination coming through the slit from inside the
experiment or LDEF.  
 
    Meteoroids and Debris SIG Sets Broad Goals
 
    The SIG wants to make maxumum use of the LDEF to "characterize the
natural meteoroid and man-made debris environment in low-Earth orbit."
40% of the LDEF surface was dedicated to M&D experments, but characterizing 
the largest (and rarest) particles "requires characterization of the 
exposure history of the entire LDEF satellite." 
 
    So they're getting cooperation from the other experimenters with
impacts on their samples.  "Several thousand large impact features
have been located, and their stereo images recorded."  One 0.5mm
impact feature was located inside the satellite, "the impactor having
apparently passed within between a thin opening in the frame." 
 
    J.A.M. McDonnel of the University of Kent had a debris analysis
experiment at each end of the spacecraft, and reports 10-20 times the
concentration of impact features on the forward end. Since orbiting
debris is much slower than the typical meteroid, this indicated that
there is an order of magnitude more junk than dirt in LEO.  Results
presented at 21st Lunar and Planetary Science Conference at JSC in March. 
  
    Budget May Constrain LDEF Data Analysis
 
    Writer belives budget requirements for testing, analysing, and
recording LDEF data were underestimated.  About $12 million currently
budgeted over four years.  Writer wants $4-5 million per year "over
the next several years". 
  
    Magnetic Data Tapes Successful Despite Early Concerns
 
    All of the recorders examined so far appear to have functioned
properly; the tapes have been copied and partially read.  Data have
not yet been extensively validated. 
 
    They were worried about the tape having dried out in its final
position in the dry nitrogen of the tape canisters. The tapes were
removed without rewinding "and allowed to soak in ambient atmosphere",
which "returned pliability to the tapes." 
 
    The tape in the one recorder operated for the entire mission did
not have this "conformal set".  Lockheed says they are now using 45%
relative humidity in their backfill gas for recorders. 
 
    Investigators at the U of Toronto, working with spare tape that
had been stored in dry nitrogen in the lab, observed that the oxide
had lost some of its adhesion, causing severe difficulties in
simulated read-back.  The flight tapes did not exhibit this phenomenon
though - they were "well behaved".  "At this time there is no
explanation for this discrepancy; however attention is being focused
on the presence of offgassed material from the electronics."  
 
    Editorial by "tech. ed."
 
    "One of the opportunities staring us in the eye that we do *not*
want to miss is the opportunity to use the LDEF experience as an
educational too."  Work loads threaten to cause everybody to neglect this. 
 
    "But one of the reasons we are so absorbed is that we suffer from
a cronic shortage of clones.  And right now nobody is out there making
clones for us.  We need to make our own, and that's really what this
education business is all about." 
 
    Advocates making the effort to get students involved in analysing
LDEF results, despite the costs in "our time, efficiency, accuracy and
risk to flight specimens." 
 
    "No surprise to me, but ironic in the end, if the greater benefit
to us from LDEF is not in what we learn but what we teach." 
 
    Cartoon: LDEF as a grey-beard amadillo, caption "so long and
thanks for all the tomatoes!" - Emmett Miller  
-- 
Steve Nuchia	      South Coast Computing Services      (713) 964-2462

    "To learn which questions are unanswerable, and _not_to_answer_them;
  this skill is most needful in times of stress and darkness."

		Ursula LeGuin, _The_Left_Hand_of_Darkness_

    How are the plants going? Are they normal? When does a tomatoe plant
    produce tomatoes?
    
    Simon

    Does anyone know if there are any foreign schools involved or only US
    ones. My son's school in Sydney, Australia wrote to NASA about 4 months
    ago, asking if they could participate and never received a reply.
    [Which I find surprising as every time I have written, to any section, I
    have had at least the courtesy of a response.]
    Maybe the letter was never received. It would be a shame if they missed
    out because of a mail delivery snafu.
    
    I can't remember the address they used but it came out on one of the
    original Notesfile listings on this. I gave it to the school concerned.
    [Newington College, Stanmore N.S.W. Australia].
    
    Anyone associated with the program shed any light on this?
    
    Thanks,   ...Mike.

    FWIW, NASA always replied to me when I wrote to them from Oz, but it
    usually took a LONG time. Most of the time I would get a package of
    literature about 6 months later. The one time they sent something
    airmail was in response to a very specific question about one
    particular flight of a sounding rocket. That took about a month.
    
    gary

    I recently recieved a copy of the LDEF newsletter, they were pretty
    surprised to recieve a 20 dollar subscription offer. In response to my
    question regarding tomatoe seeds, the guy said he had sent my request
    onto a specific person in Virgina. And that there should be no probs
    with getting some seeds. 
    
    Does anyone know if the seeds were sterilised after they were returned
    to earth. Australian quarantine is pretty strict about plant and animal
    imports and any info on the seeds status would be helpful.
    
    Also does anyone have an update on how the school projects are going in
    the US.
    
    
    Thanks,
    
    Simon Mansfield@SNO
    	

    Update from high school...
    
    As of the last day of school for the year (June 1st) my son said
    that one of his group's seeds sprouted, but expired before much
    growth was seen. (Private services were held...)
    
    Two groups' seeds had better results, and in one, 3 of 4 seeds sprouted
    and were growing well. (They used Miracle Grow (TM)...this is NOT
    a product endorsement!) The other group sprouted 2 (he thought)
    and they seemed healthy enough to reach maturity (he thought), but
    not as good as the first group's. 
    
    So...wanting more data, Science-Dad asked his son: "Well, what is
    your teacher going to do with the surviving plants?" 
    
    "Oh. I guess I didn't ask her...maybe she'll keep and eat 'em?"
    <sigh> 
    When school opens in the Fall I'll have him check with her. It seems
    he is much more inclined to talk to teachers he USED to have than
    ones by which he is currently being evaluated!!
    
    John B.

I guess I should provide an update on my son's class.  Some specimens of
each group (space and control) made it through the 2nd Grade with help
from the teacher and the teacher's aide.  Since the plants were only about
6 inches tall, the kids brought them home for the summer and will report
on their progress next fall.  The one's with space tomatos will save seeds
from any fruit that might appear.  Sooo, I have a 2 foot tall space traveler
in my back yard.  So far it hasn't eaten any of the critters that live in
the area :-)

							Mike

    UPce 07/23 1409 Professor says he has first space tomatoes
 
   ELMHURST, Ill.  (UPI) -- All that talk about cosmic rays doesn't
frighten Elmhurst College professor and space tomato cultivator Frank
Mittermeyer.

   Mittermeyer said Monday the tomato seeds he received from NASA --
seeds that spent six years in space on the Long Duration Exposure
Facility satellite -- are bearing fruit.
                                      
   And when he's done studying the plants, he plans to make a salad.

   "They're looking great," the biologist said.  "Some are close to being
red.  It will be a matter of days.  They're coming in very quickly."

   Mittermeyer discounted early speculation the seeds could produce
poison fruit.

   "Well, actually, that original story was incorrect," Mittermeyer
said.  "NASA has confirmed to me there isn't really any problem with
radiation on these things.  They don't have high radiation content
themselves."

   At the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, Associate Astronomer April Whitt
said her space seeds have just begun to sprout.

   "Ours are just babies," Whitt said.  "They're growing in artificial
conditions.  They're much slower and frailer than those growing outside.
The tomatoes in my garden put these to shame.

   "The space seeds germinated faster and grew a little faster (than
regular tomatoes) until the time they got real leaves."

   Whitt said the planetarium split its seeds with Lincoln Park Zoo and
is encouraging people to visit both crops.

   Whitt said she'd like to sample part of Mittermeyer's crop.

   "They're just tomatoes," she said.  "I'd love to try some.

   Mittermeyer and his students plan to run a series of tests on the
plants, including chromosome studies, and examine the fruit for weight,
texture and color.

   "I myself plan to eat some of these," he said.

   The tomato plants are growing normally, he said, but there are some
differences in leaf pigmentation between the space plants and a control
crop Mittermeyer planted for comparison purposes.

   "Usually there's violet or purple in the leaves," Mittermeyer said.
"The colors (on the space plants) appear more intense.

   "The green looks about the same.  The flowers are a beautiful, nice
yellow.  There are some changes in the color of some flowers but we
haven't determined whether there was any mutation involved."

   Mittermeyer said the plants have been growing normally but they did
have an early run-in with the local wildlife.

   "Some groundhog came past and ate three plants from top to bottom,"
Mittermeyer said.  "He survived and he doesn't glow in the dark."
 

I am wondering if the "space plants will have formal tests done such as a 
spectral compare between the space seeds and the control seeds grown in the 
same environments?  (Differences would indicate mineral absorbtion rate 
differences, photosynthasis process differences, etc.)  

Most gardeners I know look at their plants color and determine if there is a 
need for action or change to the health of the plants.  Wish the press would
release the science instead of the "eat space tomatoes" junk...Les

    APn 08/13 0038 Space Tomatoes
 
    By MICHAEL GOUGIS
    Associated Press Writer

   CHICAGO (AP) -- The feared "killer tomato" seeds from outer space
are bearing a rather tame harvest. 

   People have sampled the fruit of the seeds exposed to five years
more space radiation than planned.  None turned into a space monster
-- or even got sick.  Neither did a groundhog at Elmhurst College who
took a nibble. 

   "He's not glowing, I can tell you that," said Elmhurst biology
professor Frank Mittermeyer, one of about 58,000 teachers who received
some of the seeds. 

   More than 12 million seeds were sent into orbit aboard a satellite
in 1984 to face deep-space radiation exposure for 10 months.  But the
1986 Challenger disaster and other problems left them aloft five years
longer than planned. 

   Astronauts retrieved the 11-ton Long Duration Exposure Facility
satellite in January, and the seeds were distributed to 4 million
students nationwide. 

   A memo from a NASA contractor warned of a "remote possibility" that
mutations in the seeds could produce toxic fruit, prompting some
teachers to abandon the program.  The memo from Oklahoma State
University was not an official NASA statement, spokesmen said. 

   About 6,000 participants have reported back to the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration, program manager J. Gregory
Marlins said.  So far, no one has grown a "killer tomato." 

   Most have ignored NASA warnings not to eat the fruit.  "They're
eating them all over the country," Marlins said in a telephone
interview from Washington. 

   "In this first generation, there are very few mutations," he said.
"But philosophically, we think it's not a good idea to eat your
science experiments." 

   Tomato plants belong to the nightshade family, which includes such
poisonous plants as the black nightshade, Marlins said.  Some
scientists feared mutations could cause the tomatoes to become like
their poisonous relations. 

   "We've noticed that the colors were a little different, but nothing
yet that scares us, or makes us think they're monsters," Mittermeyer
said.  "I'm really looking forward to eating the tomatoes.  I've been
waiting six years." 

   Some of the tomatoes grown from the space seeds are darker than
those grown from normal seeds.  And some of the plants have green,
yellow and white leaves, instead of normal green leaves, said Jim
Alston, a scientit with Park Seed Co., which distributed the seeds. 

   The importance of those changes is not yet known, Alston said in a
telephone interview from Greenwood, S.C., where the company is based. 

   Many mutations won't become evident until the second generation of
space plants bears fruit, Marlins said.  During the second generation,
mutations hidden in recessive genes may surface. 

   Students and teachers involved in the program are scheduled to
return their reports to NASA by September, Marlins said.  A final
report on the experiment is tentatively scheduled to be released in
December. 
 

    UPn 09/11/1990 1617 'Space tomatoes' win first place at state fair
 
   HUTCHINSON, Kan.  (UPI) -- Tomatoes grown from seeds exposed to space
radiation as part of a NASA project captured a first-place award at the
Kansas State Fair, officials said Tuesday.

   The six tomatoes won first place in one of two tomato classes in the
Horticulture Miscellaneous Vegetables division at the fair, said Jackie
Johnston, a spokeswoman for the fair's publicity office.

   "We've just had so much fun growing these tomatoes this summer, and we
just took them in (to the fair)," said Rober Hoefer, planetarium director
at the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center in Hutchinson who entered the
greenhouse-grown tomatoes.

   "It was probably the environment that they were growing in and a lot
of luck," he said.  "I don't think that being in space won the blue
ribbon in the state fair."

   The seeds were part of the Space Exposed Experiment Developed for
Students (SEEDS) project, which involved sending 12 million seeds aboard
the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) satellite when it was launched
six years ago by the space shuttle Challenger.

   The LDEF satellite was retrieved in January by the space shuttle
Columbia, and the seeds were circulated around the nation to some 4
million students.

   The students were asked to plant a set of space-exposed seeds and a
set of seeds that did not go into space, compare their growth and report
any differences to NASA.  The experiment was designed to spur the
interest of students in space science.

   The Kansas Cosmophere and Space Center participated in the SEEDS
project because of a program that instructs teachers about the latest in
space science, Hoefer said.

   Controversy erupted last April over a NASA memo that said there was
a "remote possibility" that mutations caused by exposure to cosmic
radiation could cause the plants to produce "toxic fruit." 

   However, NASA officials reassured teachers, students and parents the
seeds would not produce "killer tomatoes," and the fruit should be as
safe as any grown in backyard gardens.

   "I wasn't concerned about this so-called report that they could be
considered poisonous," Hoefer said.  "My wife even canned some of them."
 

    Could anyone put the address of NASA in this note so I can try and
    obtain some of these seeds.
    
    
    Cheers,
    
    Chris

I know this is ancient history by now, but in case there are any collectors
out there:

The STS-32 Press Kit (formatted) is available at:

  Pragma::Public:[NASA]STS-32.ps


Other press kits are also available at this location - see the hello file.

- dave

From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: "Space Tomatoes" findings featured in education video conference
Date: 23 Jan 91 20:49:22 GMT
Sender: [email protected] (USENET Administration)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
Terri Sindelar                    
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                
(Phone:  202/453-8400)                          January 23, 1991
 
N91-4
 
NOTE TO EDITORS:
"SPACE TOMATOES" FINDINGS FEATURED IN EDUCATION VIDEO CONFERENCE
 
     NASA's Educational Affairs Division will transmit via satellite
an educational video conference Jan. 29 to present the results and
discuss the implications derived from the data collected by student
investigators participating in the Space Exposed Experiment Developed
for Students (SEEDS). 
 
     Budding student scientists throughout the nation planted gardens
last spring and summer to experiment with tomato seeds which had been
exposed to the harsh environment of space for nearly 6 years aboard
the Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). 
 
     Dr. Jim Alston, Director of Research, Park Seed Company,
Greenwood, S.C., will review the SEEDS project and describe the
results of his research.  He will also share some of the experiences
he has collected from the thousands of schools participating in the
SEEDS project. 
 
     Ken Selee, a teacher from Turlock, Calif., will give a teacher's
perspective on the SEEDS activity. 
 
     Dr. Kenneth Wiggins, Director of the Aerospace Education Services
Program, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, will present the
preliminary findings summarized from data submitted by participants. 
 
     Finally, Dr. Bill Kinard, LDEF Project Scientist, NASA's Langley
Research Center, Hampton, Va., will discuss results derived from many
of the other LDEF experiments. 
 
     More than 30,000 educators in 50 states are expected to
participate in this broadcast.  These 1-1/2 hour, interactive video
conferences are designed to update teachers on NASA programs,
demonstrate aerospace activities for the classroom and announce new
programs, products and activities available to classroom teachers. 
Participating school districts will receive transmissions from 2:30 to
4:00 p.m. EST. 
 
     The Jan. 29 conference -- the third in a series of four -- will
be transmitted on Westar IV, channel 19.  There is no charge for
registration or participation in the video conference. 

From: [email protected] (Peter E. Yee)
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: Scientists find rare isotope on NASA spacecraft (Forwarded)
Date: 22 Feb 91 01:38:59 GMT
Sender: [email protected] (USENET Administration)
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
 
Sarah Keegan
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                              February 21, 1991
(Phone:  202/453-2754)
 
Jim Sahli 
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.  
(Phone:  205/544-0034)
  
RELEASE:  91-30
 
SCIENTISTS FIND RARE ISOTOPE ON NASA SPACECRAFT 
  
 	Scientists from several U. S. government and university
laboratories will report today finding the rare atmospheric isotope
Beryllium-7 present on the surface of NASA's Long Duration Exposure
Facility (LDEF). 
 
	The isotope Beryllium-7 is radioactive and produced naturally
by cosmic ray reactions in the Earth's atmosphere.  Although very
rare, the isotope is detectable by modern nuclear instrumentation and
has been studied in the past as a means of tracing the distribution
and transport of atmospheric gases in the lower atmosphere, said Dr.
Gerald J. Fishman of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. 
 
	"The finding is thought to be significant from at least two
different aspects," said Fishman.  "First, it is known that the
isotope is mainly produced at much lower altitudes in the atmosphere
than where the LDEF was orbiting.  The detection and measurements show
that some, as yet undetermined, process efficiently carries it to high
altitudes. 
 
	"Additional and more detailed measurements of this type may
lead to a better understanding of the movement of rare atmospheric
components over the globe at high altitudes," he said. 
 
	"Secondly, prior to this finding, there was only one
atmospheric gas known to strongly interact with orbiting spacecraft. 
That gas, atomic oxygen, has been found to be very significant,
leading to the degradation of various spacecraft surfaces.  The
detection of Beryllium-7 on the LDEF surface will allow scientists to
study in greater detail the interaction of gases with spacecraft in
low Earth orbit," said Fishman. 
 
	"A team of scientists found the isotope on the LDEF during
measurements at the Kennedy Space Center shortly after its return.  At
approximately the same time, researchers working with removed external
spacecraft components at the Marshall Space Flight Center and the
University of Alabama, Huntsville, confirmed the Beryllium-7 presence
and showed that it was confined to a very thin layer -- the surfaces
on the leading edge of the LDEF," said Fishman.  The NASA scientist is
part of a radiation group investigating materials and radiation data
returned from LDEF. 
 
	The finding involved the collaboration of scientists from the
Marshall Space Flight Center; Universities Space Research Association,
Huntsville; University of Alabama, Huntsville; Naval Research
Laboratory, Washington, D. C.; University of Florida; Institute for
Space Science and Technology, Gainesville, Fla; and Mississippi State
University. 
 
	The Long Duration Exposure Facility was returned from space by
the Space Shuttle Columbia in January 1990 after nearly 6 years in
Earth orbit. 
 
	LDEF is a 12-sided cylindrical structure 30 feet long and 14
feet in diameter.  The LDEF spacecraft was designed to test the
performance of spacecraft materials, components and systems that have
been exposed to micrometeroids, space debris, space vacuum, atomic
oxygen, solar ultraviolet and space radiation for an extended period
of time. 
 
	LDEF carried 57 experiments and involved participation of
several hundred scientists and engineers in the data analysis. The
Long Duration Exposure Facility program is managed by NASA's Langley
Research Center, Hampton, Va. 
 
	This first observation of the isotope on the surface of an
orbiting spacecraft was reported in the British scientific journal
Nature today. 

    	The November, 1991 issue of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC has an excellent
    article on the retrieval and study of LDEF.
    
    	Larry
                                                    

Terri Sindelar
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.


RELEASE:  92-49         (4/17/92)


        Space tomatoes have been popping up all over the world.  In
fact, more than 3.3 million budding student scientists and 64,000
teachers in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and 34 foreign
countries have grown and compared space-exposed tomatoes with earth-
based tomatoes.  The students have completed their investigations
and NASA has analyzed and compiled their findings.  The results
indicate that the space tomatoes were as healthy as their
Earth-based siblings and were "tastier, juicier and sweeter!" NASA
now knows that seeds can survive in space for long periods of time
with little or no change in the resulting plant.

        The Space Exposed Experiment Developed for Students (SEEDS)
is a national science project that brought students into the
scientific community to experience the excitement, interaction, hope
and disappointment that is the nature of science.

        The national science experiment involved flying over 12.5
million tomato seeds in space for nearly 6 years.  SEEDS was one of
57 experiments housed onboard the Long Duration Exposure Facility
(LDEF) satellite launched by the crew of Challenger in April 1984
and retrieved by the crew of Columbia on Jan. 12, 1990.

        Experimental observations were compiled by students in
elemen-tary through graduate school.  Of the 8,000 reports returned
to NASA, the findings suggest that the space-exposed seeds
germinated slightly faster.  In addition, the space-exposed
seedlings had a faster initial growth rate, observed for the first 3
or 4 weeks of growth.  Eventually, the Earth-based seedlings caught
up with their counterparts and overall, no differences were found
between the two types of plants or their fruits.

        Many SEEDS participants did not return the data collection
forms or returned partially completed forms or forms with reporting
errors.  Any shortcomings in data reporting should not overshadow
the primary value of SEEDS: Students from all over the world
contributed data and learned about science from an experimenters
viewpoint.

        In addition to the basic experiment, some student
researchers used the SEEDS project to begin long-term research on
such topics as space seed histology, chromosome morphology, and cell
cycle time of the space-exposed plants and their descendents.  Other
student investigators are conducting third generation studies.

        Three student-designed experiments discovered that the
space-exposed plants had greater levels of chlorophyll and carotenes
than the Earth-based plants.  In addition, tests found that light
absorbance was greater in extracts made from space-exposed plant
tissues.  Finally, results from laser-induced fluorescent
spectroscopy concluded that space-exposed seeds exhibited premature
chlorophyll development.

        SEEDS was designed to be quality, hands-on science.
Students experienced the successes, failures, puzzles and solutions
inherent in scientific problem solving.  SEEDS had all these rewards
and hazards, especially to the plants.

        A child in Ontario wrote: "Dear NASA: Hi, My name is Matt. I
am in grade 2.  I really enjoy growing my plants.  Here are my
results.  My Earth seed did not grow.  My space seed grew but it
fell off my desk.  It died."

        Those plants fortunate enough to survive the rigors of the
classroom were transported to the outside world to begin their new
life in a garden.  However, unpredicted hardships and natural
disasters began to fall on these plants' newly-found freedom.
Hailstorms hit certain areas, as did late freezes, high heat and
thunderstorms.  Some seedlings became prey for mice, moles and
worms.

        Other space plants suffered from "people disasters." A
parent in Portland, Oregon wrote that his stepson found his space
plants were not even safe from his 4-year-old stepsister's "Michael
Jordan 3- point shot" when it rebounded and severely damaged both of
his space-exposed plants.  Miraculously, the plants survived and
later produced a tomato that won the Youth Division Vegetable Oddity
Blue Ribbon at the Oregon State University Extension Seed Harvest
Fair.

        As for the fruit, researchers were quick to reveal the
tantalizing effects on their tastebuds.  Some reported the fruit as
"tastier, juicier, and sweeter." Others claimed the tomatoes had
thicker skins and more seeds.  Others simply said, "Made enough
Gazpacho for a week."

        Tests of fruit pH found no difference between space-exposed
and Earth-based plants.  Space-exposed plants also performed
normally in tests of geotropism, tissue culturing, seed weight and
phototropism.

        Interesting observations reported include differences in
plant size, leaf shape and size, stem and leaf color, root size,
stem thickness, and resistance to heat, cold, draught and pests.
Even though many student researchers were disappointed not to see
drastically altered mutant plants and fruit, it is now known that
seeds can survive in space for long periods of time with little or
no change in the resulting plant.

        One of the most interesting occurrences resulting from the
experiment came from the media attention surrounding the possibility
of radiation- induced mutations in the space-exposed tomatoes.  A
Los Angeles Times article warning of a possibility of poisonous
fruit from the space-exposed plants appeared shortly after the seeds
were distributed.  The article was based on the science that
radiation can affect the DNA of the seed resulting in lethal
alterations.  In the space-exposed seeds, such somatic mutations
would cause a point mutation, altering the DNA molecule at a single
base pair.  Such a change would only affect the resulting plant,
most likely being lethal to the plant itself, and would not be
passed on to the plant's descendents.

        It is more likely that such a mutation would occur in normal
Earth-based tomatoes, given the number of tomato plants grown
worldwide and the cumulative amount of radiation and other mutagens
these plants are exposed to each growing season.  Radiation emission
occurs naturally in the environment from soil, building materials,
rocks, ground water, food and even our own bodies.  But as explained
in the SEEDS Teacher's Guide, the effects of long-term radiation
exposure was one of the chief variables of the experiment.

        Nevertheless, the articles added a new realm to the
experiment that would have been missed had the article not been
published.  In most cases, teachers saw the attention as a good way
to stimulate thinking and discussion about the experiment, teach
concepts of radiation and radioactivity and develop an understanding
of genetics and mutations.  An elementary teacher in San Antonio
wrote, "... the experiment and the media flap produced much
discussion about radiation, mutation and the like.  We feel the
experience was very beneficial to the students." Many teachers
reported they enjoyed eating the space- exposed fruit.  One teacher
planned to make tomato jam as Christmas presents.

        Ken Selee, a teacher in Turlock, Calif., represents so many
creative teachers in the country and exemplifies the ways the "Space
Tomatoes" were embraced by the world.  He saw SEEDS as a way to
excite students about the space program and teach good science.  He
organized seeds distribution throughout Turlock public schools, kept
schools updated through a newsletter, developed social events to
inform the public of his student's success and involved more than
500 people in SEEDS. Knowing the good weather conditions of
California, Selee raced the nation in producing the first ripe space
tomato.  To celebrate, his classes organized the first Bacon,
Lettuce and Space Tomato Sandwich Party.

        SEEDS exposed future scientists of the nation to an
experiment that tests the effects of long-term space exposure on
seeds and set the stage for one of this country's largest science
learning projects.  States one parent from Boston, "Our children
were eager NASA scientists, fascinated with the concept of space
tomatoes, and rewarded not only by their satisfaction coming from
the completion of an independent scientific search, but also by the
realization of working on a national project with unknown results.
You have provided the children with a special and well designed
experience which they'll always remember."

        Many teachers also wrote warm and encouraging words to NASA.
An elementary teacher in Port Orchard, Wash., wrote, "Thank you for
giving America's schoolchildren an opportunity to really be a part
of the space program.  I am thrilled with the level of interest
today's youth have for anything that has to do with space."

        An elementary teacher in Brockpoint, N.Y., responded, "The
part that excited my students the most was a sense of pride in
knowing they were doing the same thing as students in all parts of
the country.  It provided great opportunities and similarities in
lots of different areas, and still feel a sense of real unity as
Americans."

        Written by an elementary school teacher in Robbinsdale,
Minn., "The project was indeed exciting for all of us -- seeds from
space!  Do it again!  Science is alive and well for my 6th graders.
They felt a part of a 'real world' project.  Thanks!"

        NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin responded, "To the
elementary school teacher in Robbinsdale, Minn., and to all
students, teachers, parents and communities who participated in
SEEDS, we at NASA also found the project to be exciting, informative
and rewarding.  When government, industry and education team
together, we can bring the students of America a great national
science project.  Many thanks to our cooperative partner, the George
W. Park Seed Company. NASA plans to continue offering national
science projects to stimulate interest in science through active
involvement.

         "We sincerely hope the learning from SEEDS will continue
for many years to come . . . for someday these budding scientists
will be the experimenters and explorers on Space Station Freedom and
at the lunar outpost, and they will be the first Martians."

Date: 16 Sep 92 17:27:23 GMT
From: "Peter J. Scott" <[email protected]>
Subject: Alien substance from space
Newsgroups: sci.space

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] (Stupendous Man) writes: 

> 	Anyone have any ideas as to what the substance found on NASA's long
> term exposure unit is?

Coincidentally, a couple of days ago I snagged a spare copy of Vol III
#4 of the LDEF Spaceflight Environmental Effects Newsletter, which has
a lot to say on the subject.  It is published by the LDEF Corporation
for the LDEF research community, and their address is P.O. Box 10518,
Silver Spring, MD 20914.  Dunno what the status of quoting articles
is, they weren't in when I called, hope they don't mind me doing this: 

	Unusual "Growth" Found on LDEF Surface

During scanning electron microscope (SEM) detailed investigations of the
materials flown on the Thermal Control Surfaces Experiment (TCSE) S0069 a 
most unusual "growth" was found.  This growth was located on the front
cover of the TCSE which was exposed in the ram direction for the full
5.8 years of the LDEF mission.  The term "growth" is utilized to describe
what appears to be an unusual non-faceted dendritic type feature.  A
better term may be coined when we have a positive identification of what the
material is and how it occurred.

[...] Growth occurred on Teflon, in a transitional region between directly 
exposed and unexposed surfaces.  Part of the growth region was exposed to 
the space environment, which included atomic oxygen and solar ultraviolet 
radiation.  This growth was found within an area 3mm in width by about 
5cm in length, parallel to a gap between two covers.  Other areas of 
growth may exist but have not yet been found.  [...]

Okay, summarizing now.  Doesn't look like a fungus/mold that could have
grown after recovery, hence it is either a post-flight growth that is
not biological, or it grew in space.  They discount the former possibility
since it was stable in a vacuum under electron irradiation (the SEM), so
currently they think it grew in space.

The growth is ordered and non-directional; non-faceted (not a single
crystal metal or crystalline-type semiconductor material); several
stages of growth apparent; growth substrate is a brittle dark layer which
can be easily removed and appears to be flaking off the Teflon; appears
somewhat translucent under optical microscope; two major orientations:
one normal to the surface aligned with the LDEF major axis, the other
parallel to the surface facing inward on one side and outward on the
other side; overall growth pattern appears tohave some of the characteristics
of a dendritic-type growth with nucleation occurring along defect sites.

SEM photos were taken without coating the sample; surface charging from
the electron beam can affect high-res pictures.  This problem only
occurred when the material below the growth was imaged.  When the 
growth and its base material is imaged even 50,000x, surface charging
does not build up sufficiently to affect the imaging.  One explanation 
would be that the substrate under the growth region is Teflon whereas
the growth and its base material are not.  Growth did not respond to
culturing on nutrient agar.  Acridine orange direct count epi
fluorescence tests (staining DNA) were negative.  Biological tests were
applied to samples that had and had not been exposed to SEM environment,
both negative.

Growth dimensions on the order of 7 microns in height and a fraction of a 
micron in diameter.  A few growth units are larger, many are smaller.
Individual growth units have a hollow tube down their center and small
bases expanding to a larger "leaf" or "ear" pattern.  The photo shows
this quite well; too bad I don't have a scanner.  Growth does not appear
degraded by space environment including atomic oxygen.  It is in a location
where contaminants, including dimethyldisulfide gas (from the four
batteries, whose cells ruptured) could vent.
-- 
This is news.  This is your       |    Peter Scott, NASA/JPL/Caltech
brain on news.  Any questions?    |    ([email protected])

------------------------------

Date: 17 Sep 92 03:09:48 GMT
From: Ron Baalke <[email protected]>
Subject: Alien substance from space
Newsgroups: sci.space,misc.headlines

>In article <[email protected]>
>[email protected] (Stupendous Man) writes: 
> 
>	Anyone have any ideas as to what the substance found on NASA's long
>term exposure unit is?
> 
>	Apparently it's something never before seen on Earth.
> 
>	The substance is a few microns of crystal-like material found on a 
>piece of teflon from the structure.

A "growth" was discovered on LDEF with an electron microscope.  It hasn't
been identified yet, and all biological testing has turned up negative.  
It seemed to have formed during the time LDEF was in space.

     ___    _____     ___
    /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|     Ron Baalke         | [email protected]
    | | | |  __ \ /| | | |     Jet Propulsion Lab |
 ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |__   M/S 525-3684 Telos | Quiet people aren't the
/___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | only ones who don't say
|_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/                     | much.

Article: 33924
From: [email protected] (Ron Baalke)
Newsgroups: alt.sci.planetary,sci.astro
Subject: Re: LDEF and micrometeorites
Date: 29 Mar 1993 22:48 UT
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory
 
In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] (James J Klavetter) writes... 

>One of my students is interested in doing a project/paper on 
>micrometeorites.  At this point he is just stumped at finding
>any references, at any level.  Could someone please help me
>with some references, either at the level of SCIENCE or related
>magazines as well as ICARUS or related journals.  I figured
>with LDEF down there would be a boatload of them.
 
You can contact some of the LDEF people directly:  Charles Simon
(phone: 904-371-4778) in charge of counts and locations of small
impact craters on LDEF, and Mike Zolensky (phone: 713-483-5128) in
charge of chemistry data and foreign residue in or near impact
craters.  Also, there is a LDEF newsletter put out semiquarterly for
the research community: 
 
             LDEF Newsletter
             PO Box 10518
             Silver Spring, MD 20914
             Phone: (301) 588-0922

     ___    _____     ___
    /_ /|  /____/ \  /_ /|     Ron Baalke         | [email protected]
    | | | |  __ \ /| | | |     Jet Propulsion Lab |
 ___| | | | |__) |/  | | |__   M/S 525-3684 Telos | Don't ever take a fence 
/___| | | |  ___/    | |/__ /| Pasadena, CA 91109 | down until you know the
|_____|/  |_|/       |_____|/                     | reason it was put up.
 

Article: 62460
From: [email protected] (Peter J. Scott)
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: LDEF "growths" seen on shuttle mission
Date: 11 May 1993 20:17:05 GMT
Organization: Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA/Caltech
 
This group was all-aflutter a while back over some reported
microscropic ear-like "growths" found on some Long Duration Exposure
Facility samples.  Now the LDEF newsletter Vol IV #1 (a hard copy
periodical available from P.O. Box 10518, Silver Spring, MD  20914 at
some unknown cost) says: 
 
"The Limited Duration Candidate Exposure (LDCE 1, 2, and 3)
experiments were flown on STS-46 in July 1992, by the Center on
Materials for Space Structures at Case Western Reserve University. 
356 samples were exposed to ram atomic oxygen for 42 hours at an
altitude of 124 nautical miles.  Evidence of surface growth previously
reported by MSFC for LDEF was also found on LDCE.  The SEM micrographs
show the evolution of the 'ear-shaped' features from birth to
adulthood. 
 
"The conditions under which these growth features were found brings
into question the role of plasma in their formation.  The LDCE samples
were located in a GAS can in the bay of the Shuttle, and the geometry
associated with their exposure also suggests that plasma effects may
not have been a contributing factor." 
 
That's all they have to say about it, aside from reproducing four of
the micrographs. 
-- 
This is news.  This is your       |    Peter Scott, NASA/JPL/Caltech
brain on news.  Any questions?    |    ([email protected])

Article: 4856
From: [email protected] (UPI)
Newsgroups: clari.tw.science,clari.local.washington
Subject: Tons of space debris headed for Earth
Date: Fri, 22 Oct 93 14:37:26 PDT
 
	SEATTLE (UPI) -- University of Washington scientists said
Friday a space experiment shows Earth is in the path of 40,000 tons of
extraterrestrial debris a year. 

	Fortunately, astronomy professor Donald Brownlee and graduate
student Stanley Love say, most of the debris disintigrates before
striking the planet. 

	Brownlee said the study, published in the current issue of the
journal Science, indicates that 90 percent of the space debris falling
into Earth's atmosphere is smaller than 1 millimeter in diameter. 

	He and Love said people often are struck by space particles,
but their extremely small size makes them barely noticeable, if at all. 

	``There are pieces on your lawn and falling on your head,''
Brownlee said. ``You'd never notice them because they're so diluted by
Earthly particles.'' 

	The two space researchers based their information on meteor
craters left in the aluminum panel of a Long Duration Exposure
Facility satellite taken into orbit on a space shuttle mission nearly
six years ago. 

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        VNS VOGONBALLS ....................................   75   "

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			Fullerenes from space?
			----------------------

        From Science News, June 11,1994, Vol. 145, No. 24, Pg 381
        Author - Richard Lipkin

    Buckyballs - the 60-carbon buckminsterfullerenes known for their soccer
    ball shape - may occur naturally in space, according to two research 
    groups.

    The recent reports offer data supporting the contention that the 
    spherical carbonaceous shells, known to occur naturally on Earth, can
    also form in the inky void of space.

    In the May 5 NATURE, Filippo Radicati di Brozolo, a space scientist at 
    Charles Evans and Associates in Redwood City, Calif., and his colleagues 
    describe finding fullerenes among carbon residue in a tiny impact crater
    on NASA's Long-Duration Exposure Facility after that spacecraft's return 
    to Earth.

    The scientists believe that the crater - roughly 100 micrometers in 
    diameter - formed when a chondritic micrometeoroid struck the craft at 
    high velocity, leaving a dent in an aluminum panel near its leading 
    edge.  Inspecting the carbon residue with laser ionization mass 
    spectrometry and Raman spectroscopy, they saw evidence of fullerenes.  
    Further tests to determine whether fullerenes can survive such 
    high-velosity impacts into aluminum showed that they can.  Moreover, the
    scientists found no indication that the buckyballs formed as a result of
    handling or contamination.

    Even if further study shows that the impact itself produced the 
    fullerenes, the researchers say, "this suggests a viable mechanism for
    fullerene production in space."

    In the May 26 NATURE, B.H. Foing and P. Ehrenfreund of the European 
    Space Agency and the Leiden Observatory, respectively, both in the 
    Netherlands, report observing fullerene spectra in the near-infrared
    light of seven stars.

    Specifically, the scientists found two spectral bands that resemble 
    those from fullerenes made in the lab.  On the basis of their 
    measurements, they estimate that 0.3 to 0.9 percent of all interstellar
    carbon could exist in fullerene form.

    For many years, scientist have observed more than 100 well-defined 
    absorption bands in the visible and near-infrared ranges, which arise 
    from diffuse interstellar gas.  They have suspected that fullerenes 
    play a role in those spectra, but until recently they had only weak
    evidence.  These new data, though not definitive, buttress the belief
    that buckyballs do exist naturally in interstellar space.

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