Open NASA website

[Chronomar]

www.opennasa.com

I don't work at NASA (I wish), but found this whilst doing a research report on the new allocation of funds from the government and what it means for science in general.

Anyway, the website is NASA employees just talking to eachother about their jobs, the projects they work on, problems in the organization, potential solutions, what they think of the new budget (most hated it at first, but then decided it wasn't that bad), manned flight vs. robotic exploration debates....that sort of thing.

 

[Chronomar]

A sample:

Spoiler

"
I, like many others here at NASA, have spent the past few days reading and thinking about the new plan the president has proposed for NASA and what it really means. I work in science research, so part of this new plan makes me happy. But other parts of this plan were harder to digest. Since its inception, NASA has always had a vision to achieve the impossible and push the boundaries. I feel that hasn’t changed with the new proposal. But I can see why people think it has.

Two years ago, I was fortunate enough to be a part of the group that came up with the 20 year vision for JSC. It was for “JSC to be a collaborative, innovative, and integrated space center, boldly expanding the frontiers of human space exploration.” I can’t help thinking that this new plan the president has laid out is the first step to get us exactly there.

I then started thinking about how we got to that vision. It was hard. Lots of long nights, frustration, arguments and running around in circles until one day it finally clicked. What are wonderful mentors were trying to get us to do was open our minds, erase the boundaries and think outside the box. Why was this seemingly easy concept so difficult? We are all trained in a system of rules, boundaries, goals, processes, etc. These aren’t bad things, they are needed to succeed. But they can come at a price. Some of these can hinder innovation, slow creativity and have so strong a focus that the big picture is lost. And yet we are so tied to them that the thought of going beyond them or even questioning why they exist is not something that crosses our minds often. After several months, our group had opened our minds and started to think about the big picture, started questioning and started really thinking. In the end we came up with something that was new and exciting. Many of my colleagues have continued to innovate and inspire and I see no signs of them stopping! I call upon them now to help make others see that NASA has now been given the same chance the 30 of us got 2 years ago.

Although at first glance the lack of a “mission” may feel like we have lost something, really look at the opportunity we have been given. It’s not going to be easy, harder for some then for others, but here at NASA we have people who really do achieve the impossible every day. With the knowledge and passion that every person in this agency has for the dream of exploration, we might even surprise ourselves in how far we can go when we are allowed to open our minds and let the creative process happen."

Spoiler

Here on Earth, we’ve grown used to having the Internet available almost anytime we want it. As of December 2009, 74% of American adults use the internet. 60% of American adults use broadband connections at home. 55% of American adults connect wirelessly through laptops or handheld devices like smartphones.
So, what about Astronauts in space? Do they have internet?

When I posted “The First *Human* Tweet from Space” back in May 2009, some rightly pointed out that this technically wasn’t a tweet from space. At that time, @astro_mike wrote an email that was sync’d to the ground later in the day (email is sync’d twice a day from the space). The email was sent to PAO and a ghost writer copied/typed the “tweet” word for word on @astro_mike’s twitter account.
Although this was a big step for NASA at the time, the agency took an even bigger step forward today when Astronauts on the International Space Station received a special software upgrade that provides personal access to the Internet. Although the internet service is still limited (no pictures or big files yet), it does allow for real time updating! TJ Creamer made the first use of the new system about eight hours ago with an update to his Twitter account (@Astro_Tj), inviting questions from those of us still stuck on Earth:
“Hello Twitterverse! We r now LIVE tweeting from the International Space Station — the 1st live tweet from Space!

More soon, send your ?s”
Here’s a little more information from the official NASA press release:
This personal Web access, called the Crew Support LAN, takes advantage of existing communication links to and from the station and gives astronauts the ability to browse and use the Web. The system will provide astronauts with direct private communications to enhance their quality of life during long-duration missions by helping to ease the isolation associated with life in a closed environment. During periods when the station is actively communicating with the ground using high-speed Ku-band communications, the crew will have remote access to the Internet via a ground computer. The crew will view the desktop of the ground computer using an onboard laptop and interact remotely with their keyboard touchpad.
As I mentioned in my previous post, I’m really looking forward to this new participatory era of human spaceflight. The challenge for all of us is to think about how we can use social media everyday to create a direct, personal connection with people who don’t usually think about spaceflight and help them experience space travel as we see it!

Spoiler

A friend pointed me to a blog called PostSecret this weekend. Apparently people write a secret they’ve never told anyone else and send it to somebody in Germantown, MD.
This one had a NASA contribution…

9 Responses to “shame on us”

1. 
   
   Michael Doornbos on November 11th, 2009
   
   I saw that over the weekend. That’s a tough truth there. Need to turn the ship around, and fast.
   Reply
   
2. 
   
   Beth Beck on November 11th, 2009
   
   Wow! We should have a poster printed. Reality check.
   Reply
   
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     skytland on November 13th, 2009
     
     I agree Beth! That’s a good idea…
     Reply
     
3. 
   
   iMensah on November 12th, 2009
   
   It is a sad truth, but do you want to know what I say? I say “Get over it”. Everyone knows that government, no matter what branch, typically runs on old technology because old technology is tried, true, generally safer, and…CHEAPER. If you want cutting edge, go to the “outside” and work for a tech company; that’s where the real innovation is.
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     Rolando Quintanilla on November 12th, 2009
     
     Your statement pains me, we can’t afford to think “because we are government”. It is psychological, if we expect that we use old technologies/ techniques because we are government, then we will use old technologies/techniques. Our expectations become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
     Reply
     
4. 
   
   John Benac on November 12th, 2009
   
   Bide your time folks. We are the ones to implement Constellation, or whatever else they do with the money. Historically, and for the foreseeable future, NASA and their contractors are the only game in town (when the game is on) when it comes to leading human exploration beyond earth orbit.
   And if robotic exploration is your gig, then the statement simply does not apply. NASA is doing the coolest stuff that’s being done (and their contractors.)
   Some people, somewhere in NASA will always have boring jobs.
   Reply
   
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     Rolando Quintanilla on November 12th, 2009
     
     We are the future, I agree that we have to be patient. My biggest fear is that I/we will be eaten up by the system, and nothing will change. I have seen so many of my senior counter parts get eaten up by the system. It hurts to see people who you know had a lot of passion as younger engineers get jaded by the system.
     If all we do is lead things the way we think things should be led today, we will still be 10 years behind industry.
     I see a lot of opportunity for NASA, but whether we will fulfill our promise I am not sure. I can only keep faith and hope that we will.
     Reply
     
5. 
   
   lwarren on November 14th, 2009
   
   When I was a kid, I wanted to work at Disneyland. After all, Disneyland is "the happiest place on Earth." It's a magic place where you can blast off in a rocket, fly over London in the Jolly Roger, get attacked by a giant squid 20,000 leagues under the sea, take a cruise on a jungle river, and then visit 19th century New Orleans.
   Even as a child, I recognized that the magic would fade as soon as I walked through a door labeled "Castmembers Only." The magic is the result of a small city of Disney employees working behind the scenes. Giant facilities include generators, food preparation, pumps, filters, electric sub-stations, sewage treatment and garbage staging. The behind the scenes 'City Works' of Disneyland is carefully hidden from the guests in order to maintain the sense of magic.
   There are castmembers that get to BE Mickey Mouse! But they are no more important than the meticulous janitors that keep the park spotless.
   NASA is a little bit like Disneyland. NASA is a magic place where you can blast off on a rocket, build a spacecraft to cruise through the trail of a comet, take pictures of baby stars, fly over the planet in 90 minutes, study the ice caps without getting cold. Like Disneyland, the magic of NASA really isn't magic at all.
   When you walk through the doors, you find that it takes a lot of hard work by a lot of people. There are people that get to GO to space! But they are no more important than the technician that installs the space potty.
   To get to my point: behind the scenes work is rarely glamorous and not always inspiring. There's paperwork and meetings and processes and training and certification and more meetings. It takes all of that and more to make the magic happen.
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6. 
   
   @msengupta on November 21st, 2009
   
   It seems what's missing is the connection to the agency's missions and goals that makes comments like that on the PostSecret message so prevalent. It is our responsibility as employees to understand & appreciate the role we play within the grand scheme of space exploration. However, just the same, it is the agency's responsibility to enable us to take ownership in all parts of professional lives. There's no reason the government cannot develop and implement new, innovative technical and process-based approaches in doing business. I believe we're already headed this direction: President Obama's SAVE Award initiative is a shining example of enabling federal employees to take ownership in improving efficiency within the government. If our Administration is taking strides to adopting innovative approaches to doing business, there's no reason federal agencies cannot do the same.

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