Report from Headquarters
HazNet – All Hazards Network Earns Certification
The HazNet – All Hazards Network, a web-based emergency management system provided by NVision Solutions Inc., has been designated a Certified Space Service by the Space Foundation. HazNet combines the visual power of satellite-based Graphic Information Systems (GIS) mapping and analysis with the Department of Homeland Security-mandated reporting and organizational requirements of the National Incident…
Space Artist Robert McCall Dies at 90
Space Artist Robert McCall, whose work graces the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum and the Space Foundation’s headquarters building, died in Scottsdale Arizona on Feb. 26 at the age of 90. McCall created concept sketches for Star Trek: The Motion Picture and Disney’s The Black Hole, designed the poster art for Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece 2001:…
First Festival of Science a Success
In January, the Space Foundation Discovery Institute, located on the campus of the Jack Swigert Aerospace Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo., hosted its first free Festival of Science. The after-school event featured hands-on science exhibits and two presentations by former astronaut Wendy B. Lawrence. Some Swigert Academy students had heard Lawrence’s lecture earlier in the…
Richard Truly: Space is Worth the Risk
It was a warm, sunny Saturday afternoon, but the appeal of meeting a former astronaut drew a crowd away from the beautiful weather and into a softly lit gallery at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center. Surrounded by an exhibit of space art, more than 100 people settled into folding chairs in the gallery to…
Certified Space Technology Saves Manatees
An invention that originally protected astronauts, spacecraft, and heat-sensitive equipment from the extreme temperatures in space is now being used to save an endangered sea mammal from excess cold. AFMInc is donating Heatsheets® Silver Lining™ Blankets to the Save the Manatee Club in Maitland, Fla., to help in manatee rescues and to use when private and government…
Historic Words ‘Hello Twitterverse!”
Social media became truly universal this year when on Jan. 22 flight engineer T.J. Creamer, of NASA Expedition 22 on the International Space Station, posted the first tweet from somewhere other than Earth. In his first tweet Creamer wrote: “Hello Twitterverse! We r now LIVE tweeting from the International Space Station — the 1st live…
IMAX® 3D Space Film HUBBLE 3D Debuts March 19
Since few of us of us will ever experience space travel, the next best thing might be the new IMAX® 3D space film, HUBBLE 3D. Narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, HUBBLE 3D is an IMAX and Warner Bros. Pictures production, in cooperation with NASA. For nearly 30 years, IMAX and NASA have teamed to produce films…
Levin Appointed to Defense Board
Space Foundation Board of Directors treasurer Lon Levin has been appointed by the Department of Defense (DoD) to serve as a member of the 2010 Defense Business Board. The Defense Business Board, a federal advisory board, conducts studies and provides the secretary and deputy secretary of defense advice on best business practices as they pertain to the…
Space Foundation Partners Team Up in India
GMV, a private, multinational firm headquartered in Madrid, has been awarded a contract with Raytheon to develop a prototype algorithm for India’s new satellite-based civil aviation navigation system. The Global Positioning Satellite-Aided Geosynchronous Augmented Navigation System (GAGAN), which was developed by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and the Airports Authority of India, will give…
Space Foundation Board Gets New Officers, Members
The Space Foundation kicked off the new year with a new Board of Directors chairman, vice chairman, and secretary and with two new Board members. William F. Ballhaus, Jr., Ph.D., retired president and chief executive officer of The Aerospace Corporation, will serve a two-year term as the chairman. He is also chairman of the Board’s Finance…