{"id":11989,"date":"2024-09-19T00:02:17","date_gmt":"2024-09-19T04:02:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/the-marshall-star-for-september-18-2024\/"},"modified":"2024-09-19T00:02:17","modified_gmt":"2024-09-19T04:02:17","slug":"the-marshall-star-for-september-18-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/the-marshall-star-for-september-18-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"The Marshall Star for September 18, 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Marshall Star for September 18, 2024<\/h2>\n

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18 Min Read<\/div>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe Marshall Star for September 18, 2024\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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Marshall Welcomes NASA Chief Scientist for Climate, Science Town Hall<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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NASA Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Kate Calvin, center left, joins team members at the agency\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center for a Climate and Science Town Hall on Sept. 17 in Activities Building 4316. Calvin took part in a question-and-answer session during her visit that was live streamed agencywide. Joining her in the session were, from left, Rahul Ramachandran, research scientist and senior data science strategist for the Science Research and Project Division at Marshall; Marshall Earth Science Branch Chief Andrew Molthan; Marshall Chief Scientist Renee Weber; Marshall Center Director Joseph Pelfrey; and Marshall Science and Technology Office Manager Julie Bassler, who moderated the panel. (NASA\/Krisdon Manecke)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Molthan answers a question during the Climate Town Hall. Topics discussed during the town hall included the response by NASA and Marshall to climate change, the effects of climate change on NASA and Marshall objectives, and how NASA and Marshall are helping organizations around the world respond to climate change. (NASA\/Krisdon Manecke)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Space Station Payload Operations Director at Marshall Carries on Family Legacy<\/strong><\/h2>\n

By Celine Smith<\/em><\/p>\n

Jacob Onken remembers his father, Jay Onken, waking him up one morning at 3 a.m. when he was 9 years old to watch the International Space Station<\/a> fly overhead. At the time, his dad was a POD \u2013 a payload operations director \u2013 at NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center leading flight controllers who support science experiments aboard the orbiting laboratory 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.<\/p>\n

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Jacob Onken is a second-generation payload operations director at NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center. His father, Jay Onken, also served in the role in 1999. The father and son are the first family members at Marshall to both hold that position. <\/div>\n
NASA\/Danielle Burleson<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Now, the younger Onken has started a new chapter in his career as a POD at Marshall, following in his father\u2019s footsteps. The father and son are the first family members to serve in this role at Marshall. Onken said that happened by chance, despite growing up NASA-adjacent.<\/p>\n

Jacob Onken began his aerospace career with an internship at Teledyne Brown Engineering while earning a bachelor\u2019s degree in computer science at Auburn University in Alabama. The internship took him to Marshall\u2019s Payload Operations Integration Center<\/a> \u2013 a place his father had worked and often taken him when he was younger. Colleagues warmly remembered the veteran POD and welcomed to the role.<\/p>\n

After graduating with a bachelor\u2019s degree in computer science in 2018, Onken worked as a contractor with Teledyne for NASA. As a data management coordinator (DMC) he sat console and learned to operate data and video systems aboard the space station.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really found myself out here, and I loved it,\u201d he said. \u201cWorking in space flight operations is insanely cool and beneficial to humanity.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A young Jacob Onken smiles for a family photo while visiting Marshall with his father, Jay Onken, and sister, Elizabeth Onken, in 1998. <\/div>\n
Photo courtesy of Jacob Onken<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

After training for over a year, he earned his DMC certification and later was assigned as the lead DMC for space station Expeditions 62<\/a> and 63<\/a>. He later served as the DMC training lead, preparing new flight controllers for certification. In this role, he trained 13 DMCs for certification, using a people-based leadership approach he learned from his father.<\/p>\n

Well before the space station flew, Jay Onken was an aerospace engineer whose early career assignments included orbit analysis for the space shuttle and attitude selection for several Spacelab<\/a> missions. He later was one of the first flight directors for NASA\u2019s Chandra X-Ray Observatory<\/a>, and following its launch, joined the first group of space station PODs.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He went on to become the director of Marshall\u2019s Mission Operations Laboratory in 2005, deputy chief engineer for the Space Launch System<\/a> in 2014, and director of Marshall\u2019s Space Systems Department in 2016. He retired in 2018 and died in 2021 after battling cancer.<\/p>\n

Jacob Onken continues Jay Onken\u2019s legacy. Colleagues say he embodies similar traits. He often reflects on his father\u2019s advice.<\/p>\n

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From left, Jacob Onken during his payload operations director (POD) certification ceremony with former PODs Carrie Olsen, Sam Digesu, Pat Patterson, and Tina Melton in the Payload Operations Center at Marshall. <\/div>\n
NASA\/Craig Cruzen<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cI was lucky to have my dad, who understood the environment that I was working in,\u201d he said. \u201cI knew his work meant a lot to him. We were always close, but we got even closer. Bonding over the same things was special.\u201d<\/p>\n

In 2022, Onken became the DMC flight operations lead, supporting real-time console and planning operations for that team. In 2023, he joined the Operations Directors Office. After another rigorous training curriculum, he completed his POD certification in January 2024.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s rewarding and heartwarming to know that the future of space flight operations is in good hands with the new generation,\u201d said Craig Cruzen, the POD training lead who oversaw Onken\u2019s instruction and certification.<\/p>\n

Onken leads a team that communicates with astronauts about the scientific experiments they\u2019re performing on the space station and ensures their safety from the ground.<\/p>\n

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As a payload operations director at NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center, Jacob Onken leads flight controllers in the International Space Station Payload Operations and Integration Team, following in his father\u2019s footsteps. Onken and his father, Jay Onken, are the first family members to both serve in the role at Marshall. (NASA)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cMy role requires teamwork, trust, and communication,\u201d he said. \u201cI ask myself, \u2018How can we work together effectively to get the job done?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

While he holds the same position his father held, the space station has evolved, becoming a convergence of science, technology, and innovation. \u201cJay Onken was a POD when the International Space Station was just beginning,\u201d said former POD Carrie Olsen, now manager of NASA\u2019s Next Gen STEM K-12 education project<\/a> and a family friend to the Onkens. \u201cThe challenge the space station faced back then was its newness,\u201d Olsen explained. \u201cWe were still figuring out how to best work with Johnson Space Center, scientists around the world, international partners, and the space station program.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though Marshall had a rich operations history working programs like Apollo, Space Shuttle, Skylab, and Chandra, the space station was truly unlike anything that had come before.<\/p>\n

\u201cJay\u2019s leadership qualities and integrity helped to build trust across the organization and the agency. This allowed Marshall\u2019s operations team to excel and be recognized as the premier space station science operations center across the globe,\u201d said his former colleague Sam Digesu, currently technical manager of the Payload and Mission Operations Division. \u201cJacob is on the that same path.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jacob Onken says one of his career goals is to support payload operations on the lunar surface for the Artemis<\/a> missions. \u201cMy dad was around when it started, and hopefully, I\u2019m around to see it through.\u201d<\/p>\n

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NASA Hosts Observe the Moon Night at U.S. Space & Rocket Center<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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The Science Wizard, David Hagerman, right center, entertains the crowd with one of his shows Sept. 14 during Observe the Moon Night at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville. The free public event was part of International Observe the Moon Night, a worldwide celebration encouraging observation, appreciation, and understanding of the Moon and its connection to NASA exploration and discovery. NASA\u2019s\u00a0<\/em>Planetary Missions Program Office<\/em><\/a>\u00a0hosted the event at the rocket center. The Planetary Missions Program Office is located at NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center. (NASA\/Lane Figueroa)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Audience members react during one of Hagerman\u2019s demonstrations at Observe the Moon Night. (NASA\/Lane Figueroa)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Attendees visit a NASA display during the Observe the Moon Night event. (NASA\/Daniel Horton)<\/em><\/p>\n

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\u2018Legacy of the Invisible\u2019 Event to Celebrate Marshall\u2019s Contributions to Astrophysics<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The public is invited to join NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center for a special celebration of art and astronomy in downtown Huntsville on Sept. 20 from 6 to 8 p.m. The event will include a dedication of Huntsville\u2019s newest art installation, \u201cNo Straight Lines,\u201d by local artist Float.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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The celebratory event, \u201cLegacy of the Invisible,\u201d will take place at the corner of Clinton Avenue and Washington Street, coinciding with the 25th anniversary of NASA\u2019s Chandra X-ray Observatory. Attendees will have a chance to meet and hear from NASA experts, as well as meet Float, the artist behind \u201cNo Straight Lines,\u201d which aims to honor Huntsville\u2019s rich scientific legacy in astrophysics and highlight the groundbreaking discoveries made possible by Huntsville scientists and engineers.<\/p>\n

Enjoy live music, art vendors, food, and more.<\/p>\n

Learn more<\/a> about Chandra\u2019s 25th Anniversary.<\/p>\n

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SLS Program Manager John Honeycutt Delivers Keynote at National Space Club Breakfast<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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John Honeycutt, front center, manager of NASA\u2019s SLS (Space Launch System) Program at the agency\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center,\u00a0delivers the keynote address at the National Space Club Breakfast on Sept. 17 in Huntsville. Honeycutt provided a detailed presentation to the audience with insight into the operations, accomplishments, and future goals for the SLS Program. The SLS rocket is a powerful, advanced launch vehicle for a new era of human exploration beyond Earth\u2019s orbit. \u201cAll elements of the SLS Block I for the first crewed lunar mission of the 21st century are either complete and ready for stacking or are nearing completion,\u201d Honeycutt said. \u201cFor more than 60 years, this town \u2013 this community \u2013 has led the effort to explore space. We aren\u2019t done.\u00a0SLS and Artemis are the next chapter in that legacy. Led and enabled by folks in this room, at Marshall, and here in North Alabama, we will launch missions to the Moon that will re-write history books, lead to scientific discoveries, and pave the way to Mars.\u201d (NASA\/Serena Whitfield)<\/em><\/p>\n

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NASA\u2019s Lunar Challenge Participants to Showcase Innovations During Awards<\/strong><\/h2>\n

NASA\u2018s Watts on the Moon Challenge<\/a>, designed to advance the nation\u2019s lunar exploration goals under the Artemis campaign by challenging United States innovators to develop breakthrough power transmission and energy storage technologies that could enable long-duration Moon missions, concludes Sept. 20 at the Great Lakes Science Center in Cleveland, Ohio.<\/p>\n

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The Sun rises above the Flight Research Building at NASA\u2019s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.<\/div>\n
Credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cFor astronauts to maintain a sustained presence on the Moon during Artemis missions, they will need continuous, reliable power,\u201d said Kim Krome-Sieja, acting program manager, Centennial Challenges at NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center. \u201cNASA has done extensive work on power generation technologies. Now, we\u2019re looking to advance these technologies for long-distance power transmission and energy storage solutions that can withstand the extreme cold of the lunar environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

The technologies developed through the Watts on the Moon Challenge were the first power transmission and energy storage prototypes to be tested by NASA in an environment that simulates the extreme cold and weak atmospheric pressure of the lunar surface, representing a first step to readying the technologies for future deployment on the Moon. Successful technologies from this challenge aim to inspire, for example, new approaches for helping batteries withstand cold temperatures and improving grid resiliency in remote locations on Earth that face harsh weather conditions.<\/p>\n

During the\u00a0final round of competition<\/a>, finalist teams refined their hardware and delivered a full system prototype for testing in simulated lunar conditions at NASA\u2019s Glenn Research Center. The test simulated a challenging power system scenario where there are six hours of solar daylight, 18 hours of darkness, and the user is three kilometers from the power source.<\/p>\n

\u201cWatts on the Moon was a fantastic competition to judge because of its unique mission scenario,\u201d said Amy Kaminski, program executive, Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing, Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. \u201cEach team\u2019s hardware was put to the test against difficult criteria and had to perform well within a lunar environment in our state-of-the-art thermal vacuum chambers at NASA Glenn.\u201d<\/p>\n

Each finalist team was scored based on Total Effective System Mass (TESM), which determines how the system works in relation to its mass. At the awards ceremony, NASA will award $1 million to the top team who achieves the lowest TESM score, meaning that during testing, that team\u2019s system produced the most efficient output-to-mass ratio. The team with the second lowest mass will receive $500,000. The awards ceremony stream live on\u00a0NASA Glenn\u2019s YouTube channel<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0NASA Prize\u2019s Facebook page<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Watts on the Moon Challenge is a\u00a0NASA Centennial Challenge<\/a>\u00a0led by\u00a0NASA\u00a0Glenn<\/a>. NASA Marshall manages Centennial Challenges, which are part of the\u00a0agency\u2019s\u00a0Prizes, Challenges, and Crowdsourcing program<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0Space Technology Mission Directorate<\/a>. NASA has contracted\u00a0HeroX\u00a0to support the administration of this challenge.<\/p>\n

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Technicians Work to Prepare Europa Clipper for Propellant Loading<\/strong><\/h2>\n

NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper<\/a> mission moves closer to launch as technicians worked Sept. 11 inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility to prepare the spacecraft for upcoming propellant loading at the agency\u2019s Kennedy Space Center.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Technicians work to complete operations before propellant load occurs ahead of launch for NASA\u2019s Europa Clipper spacecraft inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at the agency\u2019s Kennedy Space Center on Sept. 11.<\/div>\n
NASA\/Kim Shiflett<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The spacecraft will explore Jupiter\u2019s icy moon Europa, which is considered one of the most promising habitable environments in the solar system. The mission will research whether Europa\u2019s subsurface ocean could hold the conditions necessary for life. Europa could have all the \u201cingredients\u201d for life as we know it: water, organics, and chemical energy.<\/p>\n

Europa Clipper\u2019s launch period opens Oct. 10. It will lift off on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedy\u2019s Launch Complex 39A. The spacecraft then will embark on a journey of nearly six years and 1.8 billion miles before reaching Jupiter\u2019s orbit in 2030.<\/p>\n

The spacecraft is designed to study Europa\u2019s icy shell, underlying ocean, and potential plumes of water vapor using a gravity science experiment alongside a suite of nine instruments including cameras, spectrometers, a magnetometer, and ice-penetrating radar. The data Europa Clipper collects could improve our understanding of the potential for life elsewhere in the solar system.<\/p>\n

Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, California, NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory leads the development of the Europa Clipper mission in partnership with APL for NASA\u2019s Science Mission Directorate. APL designed the main spacecraft body in collaboration with JPL and NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center. The Planetary Missions Program Office<\/a> at NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center executes program management of the Europa Clipper mission.<\/p>\n

Learn more about the mission here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Marshall to Present 2024 Small Business Awards Sept. 19<\/strong><\/h2>\n

NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center will host its annual Small Business Industry and Advocate Awards ceremony Sept. 19. The awards recognize small businesses and small business champions from government and industry for their outstanding achievements in fiscal year 2024.<\/p>\n

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The ceremony will take place during the 38th meeting of Marshall\u2019s Small Business Alliance, from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CDT at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center\u2019s Davidson Center for Space Exploration in Huntsville. The event will also highlight new opportunities for small businesses to take part in NASA\u2019s procurement processes. Afterward, attendees will have the open opportunity to network with NASA officials, prime contractors, and other members of Marshall\u2019s small business community. Exhibitors will provide valuable information to support their business.<\/p>\n

NASA speakers include:<\/p>\n