{"id":12795,"date":"2024-12-21T00:12:18","date_gmt":"2024-12-21T04:12:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/nasa-ames-astrogram-december-2024\/"},"modified":"2024-12-21T00:12:18","modified_gmt":"2024-12-21T04:12:18","slug":"nasa-ames-astrogram-december-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/zobi.alcowep.com\/bourtagshdrevxnls658739\/nasa-ames-astrogram-december-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA Ames Astrogram \u2013 December 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"

NASA Ames Astrogram \u2013 December 2024<\/h2>\n

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2024 Year in Review \u2013 <\/strong>Highlights from NASA in Silicon Valley<\/h3>\n

by Tiffany Blake<\/em><\/p>\n

As NASA\u2019s Ames Research Center in California\u2019s Silicon Valley enters its 85th<\/sup>\u00a0year since its founding, join us as we take a look back at some of our highlights of science, engineering, research, and innovation from 2024.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Ames Arc Jets Play Key Role in Artemis I Orion Spacecraft Heat Shield Findings\u00a0<\/h4>\n<\/p>\n
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A block of Avcoat undergoes testing inside an arc jet test chamber at NASA Ames. The test article, configured with both permeable (upper) and non-permeable (lower) Avcoat sections for comparison, helped to confirm understanding of the root cause of the loss of charred Avcoat material that engineers saw on the Orion spacecraft after the Artemis I test flight beyond the Moon. <\/div>\n
photo credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Researchers at Ames were part of the team tasked to\u00a0better understand and identify the root cause<\/a>\u00a0of the unexpected char loss across the Artemis I Orion spacecraft\u2019s heat shield. Using Avcoat material response data from Artemis I, the investigation team was able to replicate the Artemis I entry trajectory environment \u2014 a key part of understanding the cause of the issue \u2014 inside the arc jet facilities at NASA Ames.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Starling Swarm Completes Primary Mission<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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The four CubeSat spacecraft that make up the Starling swarm have demonstrated success in autonomous operations, completing all key mission objectives. <\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

After ten months in orbit, the\u00a0Starling spacecraft swarm<\/a>\u00a0successfully demonstrated its primary mission\u2019s key objectives, representing significant achievements in the capability of swarm configurations in low Earth orbit, including distributing and sharing important information and autonomous decision making.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Another Step Forward for BioNutrients\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Research scientists Sandra Vu, left, Natalie Ball, center, and Hiromi Kagawa, right, process BioNutrients production packs.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NASA\u2019s\u00a0BioNutrients<\/a>\u00a0entered its fifth year in its mission to investigate how microorganisms can produce on-demand nutrients for astronauts during long-duration space missions. Keeping astronauts healthy is critical and as the project comes to a\u00a0close<\/a>, researchers have processed production packs on Earth on the same day astronauts processed production packs in space on the International Space Station to demonstrate that NASA can produce nutrients after at least five years in space, providing confidence it will be capable of supporting crewed missions to Mars.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Hyperwall Upgrade Helps Scientists Interpret Big Data<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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The newly upgraded hyperwall visualization system provides four times the resolution of the previous system.\u00a0<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA\/Brandon Torres Navarrete<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ames\u00a0upgraded its powerful hyperwall system<\/a>, a 300-square foot wall of LCD screens with over a billion pixels to display supercomputer-scale visualizations of the very large datasets produced by NASA supercomputers and instruments. The hyperwall is just one way researchers can utilize NASA\u2019s high-end computing technology to\u00a0better understand their data<\/a>\u00a0and advance the agency\u2019s missions and research.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Ames Contributions to NASA Artificial Intelligence Efforts\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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This landscape of \u201cmountains\u201d and \u201cvalleys\u201d speckled with glittering stars is actually the edge of a nearby, young, star-forming region called NGC 3324 in the Carina Nebula. Captured in infrared light by NASA\u2019s new James Webb Space Telescope, this image reveals for the first time previously invisible areas of star birth.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA\/Bill Ingalls<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ames contributes to the\u00a0agency\u2019s artificial intelligence work<\/a>\u00a0through ongoing research and development, agencywide collaboration, and communications efforts. This year, NASA announced David Salvagnini as its inaugural chief artificial intelligence officer and held the first\u00a0agencywide town hall on artificial intelligence<\/a>\u00a0sharing how the agency is safely using and developing artificial intelligence to advance missions and research.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Advanced Composite Solar Sail System Successfully Launches, Deploys Sail<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Illustration: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NASA\u2019s\u00a0Advanced Composite Solar Sail System<\/a>\u00a0successfully launched from M\u0101hia, New Zealand, in April, and successfully deployed its sail in August to begin mission operations. The small satellite represents a new future in solar sailing, using lightweight composite booms to support a reflective polymer sail that uses the pressure of sunlight as propulsion.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Understanding Our Planet\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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\"Samuel<\/a><\/figure>
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Samuel Suleiman, an instructor on NASA\u2019s OCEANOS student training program, gathers loose corals to place around an endangered coral species to help attract fish and other wildlife, giving the endangered coral a better chance of survival<\/div>\n
photo credit: NASA\/Milan Loiacono<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In 2024, Ames researchers studied Earth\u2019s oceans and waterways from multiple angles \u2013 from supporting NASA\u2019s\u00a0Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem, or PACE, mission<\/a>\u00a0to bringing students in Puerto Rico\u00a0experiences in oceanography and the preservation of coral reefs<\/a>. Working with multiple partners, our scientists and engineers helped inform ecosystem management by\u00a0joining satellite measurements of Earth with animal tracking data<\/a>. In collaboration with the U.S. Geological Survey, a NASA team continued testing\u00a0a specialized instrument package to stay in-the-know about changes in river flow rates<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Revealing the Mysteries of Asteroids in Our Solar System\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Image credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ames researchers used a series of supercomputer simulations to reveal a potential new explanation for\u00a0how the moons of Mars may have formed<\/a>: The first step, the findings say, may have involved the destruction of an asteroid.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Using NASA\u2019s powerful James Webb Space Telescope, another Ames scientist helped reveal the smallest asteroids ever found in the main asteroid belt.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Ames Helps Emerging Space Companies \u2018Take the Heat\u2019<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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A heat shield made by NASA is visible on the blunt, upward-facing side of a space capsule after its landing in the Utah desert.<\/div>\n
Image credit: Varda Space Industries\/John Kraus<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A heat shield material invented and made at\u00a0Ames helped to safely return a spacecraft<\/a>\u00a0containing the first product processed on an autonomous, free-flying, in-space manufacturing platform. February\u2019s re-entry of the spacecraft from Varda Space Industries of El Segundo, California, in partnership with Rocket Lab USA of Long Beach, California, marked the first time a NASA-manufactured thermal protection material, called C-PICA (Conformal Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator), ever returned from space.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Team Continues to Move Forward with Mission to Learn More about Our Star<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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This illustration lays a depiction of the sun\u2019s magnetic fields over an image captured by NASA\u2019s Solar Dynamics Observatory on March 12, 2016.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA\/SDO\/AIA\/LMSAL<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

HelioSwarm\u2019s swarm of nine spacecraft will provide deeper insights into our universe and offer critical information to help protect astronauts, satellites, and communications signals such as GPS. The mission team continues to work toward launching in 2029.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

CAPSTONE Continues to Chart a New Path Around the Moon\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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\"CAPSTONE\"<\/a><\/figure>
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CAPSTONE revealed in lunar Sunrise: CAPSTONE will fly in cislunar space \u2013 the orbital space near and around the Moon. The mission will demonstrate an innovative spacecraft-to-spacecraft navigation solution at the Moon from a near rectilinear halo orbit slated for Artemis\u2019 Gateway.<\/div>\n
Illustration credit: NASA Ames\/Daniel Rutter<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The microwave sized CubeSat,\u00a0CAPSTONE<\/a>, continues to fly in a cis-lunar near rectilinear halo orbit after launching in 2022. Flying in this unique orbit continues to pave the way for future spacecraft and\u202fGateway<\/a>, a Moon-orbiting outpost that is part of NASA\u2019s\u202fArtemis\u202fcampaign, as the team continues to collect data.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

NASA Moves Drone Package Delivery Industry Closer to Reality\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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A drone is shown flying during a test of Unmanned Aircraft Systems Traffic Management (UTM) technical capability Level 2 (TCL2) at Reno-Stead Airport, Nevada in 2016. During the test, five drones simultaneously crossed paths, separated by different altitudes. Two drones flew beyond visual line of sight and three flew within line-of-sight of their operators. More UTM research followed, and it continues today.\u00a0<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA Ames\/Dominic Hart<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NASA\u2019s uncrewed aircraft system traffic management concepts\u00a0paved the way<\/a>\u00a0for newly-approved package delivery drone flights in the Dallas area.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

NASA\u2019s uncrewed aircraft system traffic management concepts\u00a0paved the way<\/a>\u00a0for newly-approved package delivery drone flights in the Dallas area.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

NASA Technologies Streamline Air Traffic Management Systems\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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This image shows an aviation version of a smartphone navigation app that makes suggestions for an aircraft to fly an alternate, more efficient route. The new trajectories are based on information available from NASA\u2019s Digital Information Platform and processed by the Collaborative Departure Digital Rerouting tool.<\/div>\n
Illustration credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Managing our busy airspace is a complex and important issue, ensuring reliable and efficient movement of commercial and public air traffic as well as autonomous vehicles. NASA, in partnership with AeroVironment and Aerostar,\u00a0demonstrated<\/a>\u00a0a first-of-its-kind air traffic management concept that could pave the way for aircraft to safely operate at higher altitudes. The agency also saw continued fuel savings and reduction in commercial flight delays at Dallas Fort-Worth Airport, thanks to\u00a0a NASA-developed tool<\/a>\u00a0that allows flight coordinators to identify more efficient, alternative takeoff routes.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Small Spacecraft Gathers Big Solar Storm Data from Deep Space\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Illustration of NASA\u2019s BioSentinel spacecraft as it enters a heliocentric orbit.<\/div>\n
Illustration credit: NASA Ames\/Daniel Rutter<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

BioSentinel<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 a small satellite about the size of a cereal box \u2013 is currently more than 30 million miles from Earth, orbiting our Sun. After launching aboard NASA\u2019s\u00a0Artemis I<\/a>\u00a0more than two years ago, BioSentinel continues to collect valuable information for scientists trying to understand how solar radiation storms move through space and where their effects \u2013 and potential impacts on life beyond Earth \u2013 are most intense. In May 2024, the satellite was exposed to a coronal mass ejection without the protection of our planet\u2019s magnetic field and\u00a0gathered measurements of hazardous solar particles<\/a>\u00a0in deep space during a solar storm.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

NASA, FAA Partner to Develop New Wildland Fire Technologies<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Artist\u2019s rendering of remotely piloted aircraft providing fire suppression, monitoring and communications capabilities during a wildland fire.\u00a0<\/div>\n
Illustration credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NASA researchers continued to develop and test airspace management technologies to enable remotely-piloted aircraft to\u00a0fight and monitor wildland fires<\/a>\u00a024 hours a day.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) project seeks to use drones and advanced aviation technologies to improve wildland fire coordination and operations.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

NASA and Forest Service Use Balloon to Help Firefighters Communicate<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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The Aerostar Thunderhead balloon carries the STRATO payload into the sky to reach the stratosphere for flight testing. The balloon appears deflated because it will expand as it rises to higher altitudes where pressures are lower.<\/div>\n
Image credit: Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting\/Austin Buttlar\u00a0<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The\u00a0Strategic Tactical Radio and Tactical Overwatch (STRATO)<\/a>\u00a0technology is a collaborative effort to use high-altitude balloons to improve real-time communications among firefighters battling wildland fires. Providing cellular communication from above can improve firefighter safety and firefighting efficiency.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

A Fully Reimagined Visitor Center\u00a0<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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The NASA Ames Visitor Center includes exhibits and activities, sharing the work of NASA in Silicon Valley with the public.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA Ames\/Don RIchey<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The\u00a0NASA Ames Visitor Center<\/a>\u00a0at Chabot Space & Science Center in Oakland, California includes a fully reimagined 360-degree experience, featuring new exhibits, models, and more. An interactive exhibit puts visitors in the shoes of a NASA Ames scientist, designing and testing rovers, planes, and robots for space exploration.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Ames Collaborations in the Community<\/h3>\n<\/p>\n
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Former NASA astronauts Yvonne Cagle and Kenneth Cockrell pose with Eli Toribio and Rhydian Daniels at the University of California, San Francisco Bakar Cancer Hospital. Patients gathered to meet the astronauts and learn more about human spaceflight and NASA\u2019s cancer research efforts<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA Ames\/Brandon Torres Navarrete<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

NASA astronauts, scientists, and researchers, and leadership from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)\u00a0met with cancer patients and gathered in a discussion about potential research opportunities<\/a>\u00a0and collaborations as part of President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden\u2019s Cancer Moonshot initiative on Oct. 4. During the visit with patients, NASA astronaut Yvonne Cagle and former astronaut Kenneth Cockrell answered questions about spaceflight and life in space.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ames and the University of California, Berkeley, expanded their partnership, organizing workshops to exchange on their areas of technical expertise, including in Advanced Air Mobility, and to develop ideas for the Berkeley Space Center, an innovation hub proposed for development at Ames\u2019 NASA Research Park. Under a new agreement, NASA also will\u00a0host supercomputing resources<\/a>\u00a0for UC Berkeley, supporting the development of novel computing algorithms and software for a wide variety of scientific and technology areas.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

NASA\u2019s Ames Research Center Celebrates 85 Years of Innovation<\/h3>\n

by Rachel Hoover<\/em><\/p>\n

Ames Research Center in California\u2019s Silicon Valley pre-dates a lot of things. The center existed before NASA \u2013 the very space and aeronautics agency it\u2019s a critical part of today. And of all the marvelous advancements in science and technology that have fundamentally changed our lives over the last\u00a085 years since its founding<\/a>, one aspect has remained steadfast; an enduring commitment to what\u2019s known by some on-center simply as, \u201can atmosphere of freedom.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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The NACA Ames laboratory in 1944.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NASA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Years before breaking ground at the site that would one day become home to the world\u2019s preeminent\u00a0wind tunnels<\/a>,\u00a0supercomputers<\/a>,\u00a0simulators<\/a>, and brightest minds solving some of the world\u2019s toughest challenges,\u00a0Joseph Sweetman Ames<\/a>, the center\u2019s namesake, described a sentiment that would guide decades of innovation and research:\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMy hope is that you have learned or are learning a love of freedom of thought and are convinced that life is worthwhile only in such an atmosphere,\u201d he said in an address to the graduates of Johns Hopkins University in June 1935.<\/p>\n

That spirit and the people it attracted and retained are a crucial part of how Ames, along with other\u00a0N.A.C.A. research centers<\/a>, ultimately made\u00a0technological breakthroughs<\/a>\u00a0that enabled humanity\u2019s first steps on the Moon, the\u00a0safe return of spacecraft<\/a>\u00a0through Earth\u2019s atmosphere, and many other discoveries that benefit our day-to-day lives.<\/p>\n

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Russell Robinson momentarily looks to the camera while supervising the first excavation at what would become Ames Research Center.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NACA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cIn the context of my work, an atmosphere of freedom means the freedom to pursue high-risk, high-reward, innovative ideas that may take time to fully develop and \u2014 most importantly \u2014 the opportunity to put them into practice for the benefit of all,\u201d said Edward Balaban, a researcher at Ames specializing in artificial intelligence, robotics, and advanced mission concepts.<\/p>\n

Balaban\u2019s career at Ames has involved a variety of projects at different stages of development \u2013 from early concept to flight-ready \u2013 including experimenting with different ways to create\u00a0super-sized space telescopes<\/a>\u00a0in space and using\u00a0artificial intelligence to help guide the path a rover<\/a>\u00a0might take to maximize off-world science results. Like many Ames researchers over the years, Balaban shared that his experience has involved deep collaborations across science and engineering disciplines with colleagues all over the center, as well as commercial and academic partners in Silicon Valley where Ames is nestled and beyond. This is a tradition that runs deep at Ames and has helped lead to\u00a0entirely new fields of study<\/a>\u00a0and seeded many companies and spinoffs.<\/p>\n

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Before NASA, Before Silicon Valley: The 1939 Founding of Ames Aeronautical Laboratory<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIn the fields of aeronautics and space exploration the cost of entry can be quite high. For commercial enterprises and universities pursuing longer term ideas and putting them into practice often means partnering up with an organization such as NASA that has the scale and multi-disciplinary expertise to mature these ideas for real-world applications,\u201d added Balaban.<\/p>\n

\u201cCertainly, the topics of inquiry, the academic freedom, and the benefit to the public good are what has kept me at Ames,\u201d reflected Ross Beyer, a planetary scientist with the SETI Institute at Ames. \u201cThere\u2019s not a lot of commercial incentive to study other planets, for example, but maybe there will be soon. In the meantime, only with government funding and agencies like NASA can we develop missions to explore the unknown in order to make important fundamental science discoveries and broadly share them.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Beyer, his boundary-breaking moment came when he searched \u2013 and found \u2013 software engineers at Ames capable and passionate about open-source software to generate accurate, high-resolution, texture-mapped, 3D terrain models from stereo image pairs. He and other teams of NASA scientists have since applied that software to study and better understand everything from changes in\u00a0snow and ice characteristics on Earth<\/a>, as well as features like craters, mountains, and caves\u00a0on Mars<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0the Moon<\/a>. This capability is part of the\u00a0Artemis<\/a>\u00a0campaign, through which NASA will establish a long-term presence at the Moon for scientific exploration with\u00a0commercial<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0international partners<\/a>. The mission is to learn how to live and work away from home, promote the peaceful use of space, and prepare for future human exploration of Mars.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs NASA and private companies send missions to the Moon, they need to plan landing sites and understand the local environment, and our software is freely available for anyone to use,\u201d\u00a0Beyer said. \u201cYears ago,\u00a0our management could easily have said \u2018No, let\u2019s keep this software to ourselves; it gives us a competitive advantage.\u2019 They didn\u2019t, and I believe that\u00a0NASA writ large allows you to work on things and share those things and not hold them back.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

When looking forward to what the next 85 years might bring, researchers shared a belief that advancements in technology and opportunities to innovate are as expansive as space itself, but like all living things, they need a healthy atmosphere to thrive.\u00a0Balaban offered,\u00a0\u201cThis freedom to innovate is precious and cannot be taken for granted.\u00a0It can easily fall victim if left unprotected.\u00a0It is absolutely critical to retain it going forward, to ensure our nation\u2019s continuing vitality and the strength of the other freedoms we enjoy.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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Ames Aeronautical Laboratory.<\/div>\n
Image credit: NACA<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The Retirement of the Astrogram Newsletter<\/strong><\/h3>\n

by Astrid Albaugh<\/em><\/p>\n

For 66 years, the Astrogram <\/a>has told the story of NASA\u2019s Ames Research Center. Over those six-plus decades, the newsletter has documented hundreds of missions led by Ames, the progression of Hangar One\u2019s reclamation, space shuttle launches with Ames\u2019 payloads aboard them, countless VIP visits, and everything in between.<\/p>\n

Ames published the first edition of the Astrogram in October 1958, coinciding with the transition of the center from its original incarnation as the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics Ames Aeronautical Laboratory to a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) research center.<\/p>\n

The newsletter has evolved over time, alongside the center. From October 1958 through January 2016, the Astrogram was published in print, before a digital edition was developed. In January 2016, the Astrogram transitioned to a digital-only format. Below are examples of some of the Astrogram issues from over the years. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n

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August 2017 Astrogram Online<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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October 2014 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

I have served as the editor of the Astrogram since February 1998. Over the past quarter century, it has been an interesting, and sometimes quite challenging, task for me to capture the breadth and depth of Ames\u2019s story and ensure that we always published the newsletter on time. I still remember trekking over to the center\u2019s imaging office to review the physical negatives and images that the Ames photographers had taken of events onsite and select the most compelling photos. I used a very early version of visual design software to craft the layout. When the paper was completed, I\u2019d file it onto a CD and then hand it to the courier who would drive from the San Francisco printshop to pick it up from me. Once and awhile, someone would request to have an additional feature added, requiring multiple trips up the 101 and back. Sometimes I\u2019d come in on the weekends to work on the paper, due to late submissions, much to the chagrin of my kids.<\/p>\n

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July 2007 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

It has been a pleasure serving as the editor over the past quarter century, almost as many years as my kids are old. A person once asked me if I had changed my name to Astrid since it\u2019s so like the word Astrogram. Any relationship between the newsletter and my name is simply serendipity. I have enjoyed being behind the scenes, mostly working diligently at my computer. Many at Ames know my name because of the newsletter but may have never met me in person. It\u2019s been amusing sometimes when I encounter someone who can\u2019t put a finger as to why they knew my name but didn\u2019t recognize me standing in front of them. Their usual response when they realized why they know me was, \u201cAh, Astrid of the Astrogram.\u201d Here are some additional Astrogram front pages from 1998 and before.<\/p>\n

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\"March<\/a><\/figure>
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March 20, 1998 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"March<\/a><\/figure>
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March 2, 1990 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Feb.<\/a><\/figure>
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February 11, 1988 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Dec.<\/a><\/figure>
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December 5, 1974 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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December 5, 1968 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Dec.<\/a><\/figure>
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December 22, 1960 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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\"Nov.<\/a><\/figure>
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November 25, 1959 Astrogram<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Just as NASA innovates, the content of the Astrogram has to innovate as well. Many of the stories that you used to read in the Astrogram<\/a>, you can now find on our NASA Ames web page here<\/a>. If you would like to access past, archived issues of the Astrogram, going back to 1958, please consult the Ames Research Center Archives<\/a>. I will continue to help tell Ames\u2019s story, just using new platforms.<\/p>\n

Whether this is your first issue or you have been an Astrogram supporter for decades, thank you for reading!<\/p>\n

\u2013 Astrid of the Astrogram officially signing off<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Powered by WPeMatico<\/a><\/small><\/p>\n

Get The Details…<\/a>
\nAstrid Albaugh <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2024 Year in Review \u2013 Highlights from NASA in Silicon Valley by Tiffany Blake As NASA\u2019s Ames Research Center in California\u2019s Silicon Valley enters its 85th\u00a0year since its founding, join us as we take a look back at some of our highlights of science, engineering, research, and innovation from 2024. Ames Arc Jets Play Key [\u2026] Continue reading → <\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

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