Commercial Crew Astronauts Visit Kennedy on This Week @NASA – August 12, 2016 | Summary and Q&A

TL;DR

NASA astronauts Eric Boe and Suni Williams, along with Commercial Crew Program Manager Kathy Lueders, attended a panel discussion at Kennedy Space Center to answer questions about the agency's Commercial Crew Program. The program aims to develop crew transportation systems for the International Space Station.

Key Insights

• 🧑‍🚀 NASA astronauts Eric Boe and Suni Williams participate in an event at Kennedy Space Center for the Commercial Crew Program, which aims to develop crew transportation systems for the International Space Station.
• 💦 NASA works with Boeing and SpaceX for the development of these crew transportation systems.
• 🫢 H211, LLC pilots fly through wildfire smoke to measure ozone and greenhouse gas effects on air quality.
• ❓ The AJAX Project at NASA's Ames Research Center studies the atmosphere using NASA-developed sensors.
• 🚀 The CYGNSS mission will launch a constellation of microsatellites to improve hurricane forecasts.
• 🆘 NASA's DEVELOP program helps address environmental challenges using Earth observations and modeling.
• 🎓 The MissionSTEM Summit focuses on ensuring equal opportunity in STEM education.

Transcript

“Here’s some of the stories trending This Week at NASA!” Two of the NASA astronauts training for the first flight tests for the agency’s Commercial Crew Program visited with employees during an Aug. 11 event at Kennedy Space Center. Astronauts Eric Boe and Suni Williams, alongside Commercial Crew Program Manager Kathy Lueders, responded to question... Read More

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the purpose of NASA's Commercial Crew Program?

NASA's Commercial Crew Program aims to develop crew transportation systems to ferry astronauts to and from the International Space Station. This program is crucial for the United States to regain independent access to space since the retirement of the Space Shuttle.

Q: Who are the astronauts involved in the Commercial Crew Program?

The astronauts involved in the Commercial Crew Program are Eric Boe, Suni Williams, Bob Behnken, and Doug Hurley. NASA will select astronauts from this group to participate in the first flight tests next year.

Q: What did the pilots from H211, LLC do during their flight near the "Soberanes" wildfire?

The pilots flew through plumes of smoke from the "Soberanes" wildfire to measure and study the effects of ozone and greenhouse gases on air quality in the region. This flight was part of the Alpha Jet Atmospheric eXperiment (AJAX) Project based at NASA's Ames Research Center.

Q: What is the purpose of the Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS)?

The purpose of CYGNSS is to gather new and detailed information about the formation and intensity of tropical cyclones and hurricanes. It consists of a constellation of eight microsatellites that will improve hurricane track, intensity, and storm surge forecasts.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Two NASA astronauts, Eric Boe and Suni Williams, visited Kennedy Space Center for an event related to the agency's Commercial Crew Program.

• The Commercial Crew Program aims to develop crew transportation systems for the International Space Station.

• NASA has contracted with Boeing and SpaceX for this program and plans to select commercial crew astronauts soon.