WEBVTT FILE

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.000
[Music]

2
00:00:04.000 --> 00:00:08.000
[Music]

3
00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:12.000
[Music]

4
00:00:12.000 --> 00:00:16.000
Hi there and welcome to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt Maryland - home to

5
00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:20.000
the nation’s largest organization of scientists, engineers, and technologists.

6
00:00:20.000 --> 00:00:24.000
Our work encompasses the core disciplines of Earth science,

7
00:00:24.000 --> 00:00:28.000
planetary science, heliophysics, which is the study of the Sun and space weather,

8
00:00:28.000 --> 00:00:32.000
and astrophysics, which covers the whole cosmos.  

9
00:00:32.000 --> 00:00:36.000
These lines of businesses have helped guide the success of several notable missions,

10
00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:40.000
including the Hubble Space Telescope, the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission,

11
00:00:40.000 --> 00:00:44.000
OSIRIS-REx, which is on its way back to Earth with a sample of an asteroid,

12
00:00:44.000 --> 00:00:48.000
and a host of other satellites that monitor Earth, our changing climate

13
00:00:48.000 --> 00:00:52.000
and the dynamic universe.

14
00:00:52.000 --> 00:00:56.000
My name is Travis Wohlrab, and I’m an engagement officer here at Goddard.

15
00:00:56.000 --> 00:01:00.000
And I’m Courtney Lee, a video producer here at the flight center. Our campus

16
00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:04.000
at Greenbelt contains thirty-four buildings over twelve hundred acres,

17
00:01:04.000 --> 00:01:08.000
which translates to over three million square feet of research space.

18
00:01:08.000 --> 00:01:12.000
but Goddard consists of more than just the Greenbelt campus.

19
00:01:12.000 --> 00:01:16.000
We have five other locations: Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia the Goddard

20
00:01:16.000 --> 00:01:20.000
Institute for Space Studies in New York the Katherine Johnson Independent

21
00:01:20.000 --> 00:01:24.000
Verification and Validation Facility in West Virginia the Columbia Scientific

22
00:01:24.000 --> 00:01:28.000
Balloon Facility in Texas, and the White Sands Complex in New Mexico.

23
00:01:28.000 --> 00:01:32.000
Today we’re going take a tour of some of our facilities.

24
00:01:32.000 --> 00:01:36.000
A substantial amount of work is required to get a mission off the ground. Goddard is unique

25
00:01:36.000 --> 00:01:40.000
in that every element of a mission can be facilitated here; from designing,

26
00:01:40.000 --> 00:01:44.000
manufacturing, launching, controlling, and ultimately gathering

27
00:01:44.000 --> 00:01:48.000
and analyzing data, this NASA facility is a one-stop-shop!

28
00:01:48.000 --> 00:01:52.000
Our first stop is at the Visitor Center where everyone can come and learn

29
00:01:52.000 --> 00:01:56.000
about what we do. From strolling through our Rocket Garden to immersing yourself

30
00:01:56.000 --> 00:02:00.000
in our Solarium which explores our Sun through art and technology,

31
00:02:00.000 --> 00:02:04.000
the Visitor Center has multiple interactive exhibits for people to learn more

32
00:02:04.000 --> 00:02:08.000
more about Goddard’s research. Travis: But the Visitor Center isn’t the only place where

33
00:02:08.000 --> 00:02:12.000
you can see our research on display. We’re going to take you behind the gate on an

34
00:02:12.000 --> 00:02:16.000
exclusive tour of our facilities. Come on, let’s go!

35
00:02:16.000 --> 00:02:20.000
[Music Fades]

36
00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:24.000
[Music] Narrator: Before any mission becomes reality, it goes through several stages of development and planning.

37
00:02:24.000 --> 00:02:28.000
At Building 34, scientists think of problems that need to be

38
00:02:28.000 --> 00:02:32.000
solved and get funding to develop practical solutions.

39
00:02:32.000 --> 00:02:36.000
For example, the employees at the Sample Analysis at Mars Suite Investigation,

40
00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:40.000
also known as SAM, examine the habitability of Mars.

41
00:02:40.000 --> 00:02:44.000
I’m here at the SAM Lab, and as you can see, it’s quite a tight space

42
00:02:44.000 --> 00:02:48.000
due to the temporary clean tent. But every day

43
00:02:48.000 --> 00:02:52.000
scientists conduct experiments and investigations to determine if

44
00:02:52.000 --> 00:02:56.000
ancient Mars provided a habitable environment where microbial life might

45
00:02:56.000 --> 00:03:00.000
have thrived. SAM was built on mass spectrometer

46
00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:04.000
technologies that had been developed to explore the atmospheres of Jupiter,

47
00:03:04.000 --> 00:03:08.000
Venus, and Saturn’s moon, Titan. In addition to measuring

48
00:03:08.000 --> 00:03:12.000
atmospheric gases, SAM also measures gases released from rocks and

49
00:03:12.000 --> 00:03:16.000
soils on Mars. Let’s hear more about SAM

50
00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:20.000
from the SAM Deputy Principal Investigator, Charles Malespin.

51
00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:24.000
Here we have the SAM test bed, which is an exact working replica of SAM, which is located

52
00:03:24.000 --> 00:03:28.000
in the Curiosity Rover on Gale Crater Mars. SAM

53
00:03:28.000 --> 00:03:32.000
took about seven years to complete, from a proposal in 2004 to a

54
00:03:32.000 --> 00:03:36.000
2011 launch. and required one hundred fifty people in it’s creation

55
00:03:36.000 --> 00:03:40.000
After landing on Mars in August of 2012

56
00:03:40.000 --> 00:03:44.000
It is still operating on the surface after eight and a half years.

57
00:03:44.000 --> 00:03:48.000
Goddard scientists and engineers

58
00:03:48.000 --> 00:03:52.000
solved problems that arose as SAM was being developed. For example

59
00:03:52.000 --> 00:03:56.000
When the company that was providing the 52 microvalves in SAM went out of business

60
00:03:56.000 --> 00:04:00.000
Goddard stepped up to reinvent the valves, which are still

61
00:04:00.000 --> 00:04:04.000
being used in missions today. In another situation, the turbomolecular pumps

62
00:04:04.000 --> 00:04:08.000
weren’t reaching their planned lifetimes. A Goddard team

63
00:04:08.000 --> 00:04:12.000
worked with the commercial provider to redesign the pumps, and they were still operating on Mars

64
00:04:12.000 --> 00:04:16.000
With SAM and other missions, we focused

65
00:04:16.000 --> 00:04:20.000
on solving problems to create instruments, that will help answer the

66
00:04:20.000 --> 00:04:24.000
questions we have about the universe beyond our planet. Thank you Charles

67
00:04:24.000 --> 00:04:28.000
With missions like SAM and others we implement a project life cycle

68
00:04:28.000 --> 00:04:32.000
where we use scientific findings from current missions to develop

69
00:04:32.000 --> 00:04:36.000
new missions. We head to the Planetary Environments Laboratory,

70
00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:40.000
where a new spacecraft element is being developed.

71
00:04:40.000 --> 00:04:44.000
Narrator: The Planetary Environments Laboratory studies the atmospheres

72
00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:48.000
and surfaces of planetary bodies. Scientists there

73
00:04:48.000 --> 00:04:52.000
participate in all phases of planetary investigation, from developing instruments

74
00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:56.000
to analyzing data sent back to us from spacecraft.

75
00:04:56.000 --> 00:05:00.000
The Planetary Environments Laboratory is the home to a key instrument on Dragonfly

76
00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:04.000
a rotorcraft scheduled to land on Titan, which is Saturn’s largest moon,

77
00:05:04.000 --> 00:05:08.000
in 2034.

78
00:05:08.000 --> 00:05:12.000
[Music]

79
00:05:12.000 --> 00:05:16.000
The team is currently working to design every detail of the craft, and the instruments on

80
00:05:16.000 --> 00:05:20.000
it’s Scientific payload. Here with us is Project Lead Dr. Melissa Trainer

81
00:05:20.000 --> 00:05:24.000
Who will tell us more about Dragonfly. Well we’ve already presented the mission concept

82
00:05:24.000 --> 00:05:28.000
to the rest of NASA, Now our engineering team is hard at work

83
00:05:28.000 --> 00:05:32.000
making sure we’ve thought through all the potential problems in the design.

84
00:05:32.000 --> 00:05:36.000
In this phase, it’s a lot like going from an architect’s sketch of a house,

85
00:05:36.000 --> 00:05:40.000
to a blueprint where every beam and outlet are clearly marked.

86
00:05:40.000 --> 00:05:44.000
We end up spending a lot of time in this stage, where we test

87
00:05:44.000 --> 00:05:48.000
prototypes and plan details, because we want to get it right

88
00:05:48.000 --> 00:05:52.000
before actually build the spacecraft and the instruments.

89
00:05:52.000 --> 00:05:56.000
An example of one design change we’ve experienced, comes with the instrument that drills

90
00:05:56.000 --> 00:06:00.000
samples from the Titan surface, and how it brings them to the Dragonfly

91
00:06:00.000 --> 00:06:04.000
mass spectrometer, which is the instrument we’re building here. At first,

92
00:06:04.000 --> 00:06:08.000
the delivery system was designed to look like a funnel to dump samples on to a tray.

93
00:06:08.000 --> 00:06:12.000
But then we realized there were a couple of problems with that model.

94
00:06:12.000 --> 00:06:16.000
First, Titan’s samples can be sticky, especially if you warm

95
00:06:16.000 --> 00:06:20.000
them up compared to the Titan surface, and it would be hard to clear them off

96
00:06:20.000 --> 00:06:24.000
the tray before more samples are taken. Second, the gravity

97
00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:28.000
on Titan is low compared to Earth, and we can’t rely on the samples

98
00:06:28.000 --> 00:06:32.000
settling easily on the tray. So instead we came up with a

99
00:06:32.000 --> 00:06:36.000
new design that catches particles from a stream, into a cup

100
00:06:36.000 --> 00:06:40.000
and moves them into a chamber. We’ve also worked a detailed design

101
00:06:40.000 --> 00:06:44.000
where the sample chamber sides stays cold, like the surface of Titan,

102
00:06:44.000 --> 00:06:48.000
While the mass spectrometer side stays warmer.

103
00:06:48.000 --> 00:06:52.000
This interface is critical to getting the best measurements of Titan’s surface samples

104
00:06:52.000 --> 00:06:56.000
and it has already been through testing here at Goddard. Now, our team

105
00:06:56.000 --> 00:07:00.000
is continuing the work to make sure that everything fits into the

106
00:07:00.000 --> 00:07:04.000
rotorcraft lander in a way that makes sense and allows us to accomplish

107
00:07:04.000 --> 00:07:08.000
our science mission on Titan. Thanks Melissa, now let’s head over to another part of

108
00:07:08.000 --> 00:07:12.000
campus, which will help us further prepare the spacecraft for launch.

109
00:07:12.000 --> 00:07:16.000
Narrator: Once a spacecraft component has been developed, it has to be cleared for launch

110
00:07:16.000 --> 00:07:20.000
in one of our clean rooms, which can range in size up to almost 37,000 cubic meters.

111
00:07:20.000 --> 00:07:24.000
All of this occurs in the Integration and Testing, or

112
00:07:24.000 --> 00:07:28.000
I&T Complex, which is comprised of four buildings, Goddard

113
00:07:28.000 --> 00:07:32.000
Environmental Test Engineering and Integration facility ensures every

114
00:07:32.000 --> 00:07:36.000
craft is space-ready by putting it through a series of high-stress tests.

115
00:07:36.000 --> 00:07:40.000
Built in 1989, the Space Craft Systems Development and

116
00:07:40.000 --> 00:07:44.000
Integration facility or SSDIF, is the largest cleanroom in North America.

117
00:07:44.000 --> 00:07:48.000
It has an entire wall of 1,600 air filters to help protect

118
00:07:48.000 --> 00:07:52.000
equipment from contaminants, that means the air gets recycled every 60 to 90 seconds.

119
00:07:52.000 --> 00:07:56.000
To tell us more about the cleanroom we’re here with Delaney Burkart,

120
00:07:56.000 --> 00:08:00.000
an integration engineer. The SSDIF cleanroom is like a

121
00:08:00.000 --> 00:08:04.000
surgeon’s operating room. It prevents dirt, dust, and other

122
00:08:04.000 --> 00:08:08.000
contaminants from damaging spacecraft components. The largest source

123
00:08:08.000 --> 00:08:12.000
of this contamination is us, the personnel working on those components.

124
00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:16.000
To enter the room, you first must pass through an air shower.

125
00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:20.000
Then wear a sterile body suit, head cover, boots,

126
00:08:20.000 --> 00:08:24.000
gloves, and face mask, which takes about ten minutes to put on.

127
00:08:24.000 --> 00:08:28.000
Unlike a speck of dirt on a camera, a speck on a telescope

128
00:08:28.000 --> 00:08:32.000
lens cannot be easily removed if the spacecraft is far away

129
00:08:32.000 --> 00:08:36.000
studying distant stellar objects. Once the spacecraft is built, we move on to

130
00:08:36.000 --> 00:08:40.000
testing. Getting is ready for spaceflight conditions.

131
00:08:40.000 --> 00:08:44.000
To make sure the spacecraft can withstand the sounds

132
00:08:44.000 --> 00:08:48.000
it might encounter during its flight. Scientists test the craft

133
00:08:48.000 --> 00:08:52.000
in a 13-meter tall acoustic testing chamber. We’re here with Test Engineer Yan Lui

134
00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:56.000
to tell us more about how the chamber works. In this chamber here, a scientist

135
00:08:56.000 --> 00:09:00.000
use altering flows of gaseous nitrogen to produce sounds

136
00:09:00.000 --> 00:09:04.000
as high as 150 decibels. In other words, 20 decibels

137
00:09:04.000 --> 00:09:08.000
louder than the roar of a jet engine. Using six foot speakers,

138
00:09:08.000 --> 00:09:12.000
the sounds blare in a two minute test to make sure instruments can withstand

139
00:09:12.000 --> 00:09:16.000
such noises. After the acoustics test we need to replicate the conditions

140
00:09:16.000 --> 00:09:20.000
the craft might encounter in space, which is right around the corner.

141
00:09:20.000 --> 00:09:24.000
The Space Environment Simulator,

142
00:09:24.000 --> 00:09:28.000
operational since 1962, is a thermal vacuum chamber

143
00:09:28.000 --> 00:09:32.000
designed to expose spacecraft components to spaceflight conditions.

144
00:09:32.000 --> 00:09:36.000
Well what do those conditions look like? We’re talking about an almost

145
00:09:36.000 --> 00:09:40.000
400 degree temperature range. From negative 233 degrees celsius to

146
00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:44.000
150 degrees celsius. The range

147
00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:48.000
is achieved by passing liquids through thermal shrouds for cold temperatures

148
00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:52.000
or using thermal lamps for high temperatures. Our simulator is roughly

149
00:09:52.000 --> 00:09:56.000
12 meters tall and 8 meters across. It operates with

150
00:09:56.000 --> 00:10:00.000
massive mechanical vacuum pumps, which are like huge versions of the vacuum

151
00:10:00.000 --> 00:10:04.000
cleaners people use at home. We have cryopumps to condense remaining gasses

152
00:10:04.000 --> 00:10:08.000
out of the chamber. The mechanical pumps and the cryopumps work together

153
00:10:08.000 --> 00:10:12.000
to eliminate almost all of the air in the chamber. You wouldn’t

154
00:10:12.000 --> 00:10:16.000
want to be inside while that is happening. It is just a billionth of

155
00:10:16.000 --> 00:10:20.000
Earth’s normal atmospheric pressure. It takes up to 12 hours

156
00:10:20.000 --> 00:10:24.000
to pump the chamber down to that pressure and 2 to 4 days to go

157
00:10:24.000 --> 00:10:28.000
back to room temperature. And we’re not done yet! Next the instruments

158
00:10:28.000 --> 00:10:32.000
gets tested in the high capacity centrifuge. Built in

159
00:10:32.000 --> 00:10:36.000
1965. this used to be an all-in-one machine. It’s not designed for astronauts

160
00:10:36.000 --> 00:10:40.000
however it used to be able to test environmental, vibration

161
00:10:40.000 --> 00:10:44.000
acoustic and G-force conditions. As our spacecraft grew in size

162
00:10:44.000 --> 00:10:48.000
it had to be modified. The centrifuge now only simulates the acceleration

163
00:10:48.000 --> 00:10:52.000
level of a rocket during the launch phase, typically about 10 G’s.

164
00:10:52.000 --> 00:10:56.000
This allows scientists to see how stress affects a craft’s structure

165
00:10:56.000 --> 00:11:00.000
and verify that it can withstand launch. It can rotate at

166
00:11:00.000 --> 00:11:04.000
155 miles per hour. our test limit is 30 G’s.

167
00:11:04.000 --> 00:11:08.000
or 30 times the gravity we have on Earth. The centrifuge draws

168
00:11:08.000 --> 00:11:12.000
one gigawatt of electricity, and when in use generates

169
00:11:12.000 --> 00:11:16.000
200 mile per hour winds. It’s been used for more than just spacecraft testing

170
00:11:16.000 --> 00:11:20.000
in 2002, NASA partnered with the NTSB

171
00:11:20.000 --> 00:11:24.000
to test SUVS and analyze the tipping point for manufactured models.

172
00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:28.000
Once a spacecraft has passed all testing phases, it’s go for launch.

173
00:11:28.000 --> 00:11:32.000
Narrator: For many Goddard launches

174
00:11:32.000 --> 00:11:36.000
we head to the beaches of Virginia. Wallops Flight Facility is NASA’s only

175
00:11:36.000 --> 00:11:40.000
owned and operated launch range for a variety of vehicles.

176
00:11:40.000 --> 00:11:44.000
including research aircraft, sounding rockets, scientific balloons,

177
00:11:44.000 --> 00:11:48.000
orbital vehicles, and unmanned aerial vehicles.

178
00:11:48.000 --> 00:11:52.000
It’s America’s oldest, continuously operating rocket range. With launches

179
00:11:52.000 --> 00:11:56.000
operations dating back to the summer of 1945.

180
00:11:56.000 --> 00:12:00.000
Wallops provides low-cost opportunities to conduce scientific experiments

181
00:12:00.000 --> 00:12:04.000
and for engineers to test their technologies ahead

182
00:12:04.000 --> 00:12:08.000
of their main missions. Many services support these tests, including

183
00:12:08.000 --> 00:12:12.000
integration and testing facilities, launchers and runways, as well as

184
00:12:12.000 --> 00:12:16.000
tracking and data services. Let's head to the launch viewing area

185
00:12:16.000 --> 00:12:20.000
where Sam Henry is going to tell us more about the launch cycle. There are many

186
00:12:20.000 --> 00:12:24.000
moving parts that go into a mission so everything can come together on launch day.

187
00:12:24.000 --> 00:12:28.000
Depending on the vehicle, technicians may arrive anywhere from 4 to 8 hours

188
00:12:28.000 --> 00:12:32.000
ahead of T minus zero, to begin testing on a vehicle and support system

189
00:12:32.000 --> 00:12:36.000
to make sure everything is ready, public safety is a top

190
00:12:36.000 --> 00:12:40.000
priority, so we launch our rockets over the ocean. Surveillance teams will

191
00:12:40.000 --> 00:12:44.000
monitor boat and air traffic before the rocket can take flight

192
00:12:44.000 --> 00:12:48.000
Weather also plays an important role on launch day. Meteorologists give weather updates

193
00:12:48.000 --> 00:12:52.000
from 72 hours until minutes just before launch. So teams

194
00:12:52.000 --> 00:12:56.000
can be as prepared as possible. Winds, severe weather, and cloud thickness

195
00:12:56.000 --> 00:13:00.000
are the biggest concerns on launch day. When conditions align,

196
00:13:00.000 --> 00:13:04.000
we are a go for launch and ready to safely conduct our range operations.

197
00:13:04.000 --> 00:13:08.000
I’ll head back to the control room where Courtney and I

198
00:13:08.000 --> 00:13:12.000
will tell you more about other Wallops missions and responsibilities.

199
00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:16.000
Wallops conducts research here on Earth, as well as in a near

200
00:13:16.000 --> 00:13:20.000
space environment, looking deep into the cosmos. Wallops manages

201
00:13:20.000 --> 00:13:24.000
NASA’s scientific balloon and sounding rockets program.

202
00:13:24.000 --> 00:13:28.000
Which are launched not only from the flight facility in Virginia, but from areas across the globe.

203
00:13:28.000 --> 00:13:32.000
As far North as Norway and as South as Antarctica.

204
00:13:32.000 --> 00:13:36.000
Sam: On average we fly 10 to 20 scientific balloon launches each year.

205
00:13:36.000 --> 00:13:40.000
These platforms allow researchers a chance to gather data with flights in the stratosphere

206
00:13:40.000 --> 00:13:44.000
a near space environment. Flights can run up to weeks at a time

207
00:13:44.000 --> 00:13:48.000
depending on science mission requirements. Sounding rockets are manufactured

208
00:13:48.000 --> 00:13:52.000
tested and launched from Wallops and remote locations

209
00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:56.000
many of these technology missions we support end up being integral to larger missions

210
00:13:56.000 --> 00:14:00.000
like Artemis. With around 20 missions a year, the sounding

211
00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:04.000
rocket program is one of Wallops’ most active platforms.

212
00:14:04.000 --> 00:14:08.000
We also open our facilities to industries for space and aeronautics research.

213
00:14:08.000 --> 00:14:12.000
In the past 25 years, we’ve collaborated with over 50 established

214
00:14:12.000 --> 00:14:16.000
and emerging aerospace companies. We also support other government

215
00:14:16.000 --> 00:14:20.000
agencies with their tests, missions, and training exercises. We look forward

216
00:14:20.000 --> 00:14:24.000
to partnering with these groups and others in coming years. As you can see

217
00:14:24.000 --> 00:14:28.000
Wallops provides a large range of options when it comes to testing equipment

218
00:14:28.000 --> 00:14:32.000
or conducting near-Earth research. And you can often watch

219
00:14:32.000 --> 00:14:36.000
their launches online and join in on the action! Once the vehicle

220
00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:40.000
has been launched, we jet back to Goddard to run communications with the craft.

221
00:14:40.000 --> 00:14:44.000
Narrator: When the craft is finally in space, how do we communicate with it?

222
00:14:44.000 --> 00:14:48.000
Goddard has over 60 years of communications and navigation support, going back

223
00:14:48.000 --> 00:14:52.000
to the Mercury, Gemini and Apollo eras. Goddard’s Near Space

224
00:14:52.000 --> 00:14:56.000
Network coordinates all space-to-ground communications for missions near Earth.

225
00:14:56.000 --> 00:15:00.000
The Near Space Network enables missions to send back significant amounts

226
00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:04.000
of data for investigation and discovery. These include missions like The Hubble Space Telescope

227
00:15:04.000 --> 00:15:08.000
and the International Space Station. In fact, the network plays

228
00:15:08.000 --> 00:15:12.000
a crucial role in NASA’s human space exploration effort

229
00:15:12.000 --> 00:15:16.000
It provides the International Space Station with constant communications, letting astronauts working and living

230
00:15:16.000 --> 00:15:20.000
there to always have a connection back home. We are here with

231
00:15:20.000 --> 00:15:24.000
Rosa Avalos-Warren, a human spaceflight mission manager to tell us

232
00:15:24.000 --> 00:15:28.000
more about the Near Space Network. Goddard’s Exploration and Space Communications

233
00:15:28.000 --> 00:15:32.000
division oversees the Near Space Network. The network blends commercial providers

234
00:15:32.000 --> 00:15:36.000
and government assets to support missions from Earth’s

235
00:15:36.000 --> 00:15:40.000
orbit up to two million kilometers away. These missions include

236
00:15:40.000 --> 00:15:44.000
launch vehicles, robotic and science satellites, technology demonstrations,

237
00:15:44.000 --> 00:15:48.000
and human spaceflight missions. To communicate with astronauts and spacecraft

238
00:15:48.000 --> 00:15:52.000
we download signals from satellites and translate them

239
00:15:52.000 --> 00:15:56.000
into recognizable data. This data ensures mission success for NASA

240
00:15:56.000 --> 00:16:00.000
The network is involved in a variety of missions, including NASA’s commercial crew

241
00:16:00.000 --> 00:16:04.000
program, which provides communications and navigation support to companies like Space-X

242
00:16:04.000 --> 00:16:08.000
and Boeing. As we go to the Moon as part of the Artemis program, the network will provide

243
00:16:08.000 --> 00:16:12.000
telemetry, command, and tracking support to the missions as they launch into space.

244
00:16:12.000 --> 00:16:16.000
In doing so we work alongside the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s Deep Space Network.

245
00:16:16.000 --> 00:16:20.000
We’re here with Brandon Bethune, the deputy project manager for the Near Space Network

246
00:16:20.000 --> 00:16:24.000
who will tell us more about some of the recent projects

247
00:16:24.000 --> 00:16:28.000
the scientists are working on. With missions like the Laser Communications Relay Demonstration

248
00:16:28.000 --> 00:16:32.000
and the Orion Artemis II Optical Communications System,

249
00:16:32.000 --> 00:16:36.000
we are infusing optical communications into our mission architectures. We are also

250
00:16:36.000 --> 00:16:40.000
advancing our radio frequency capabilities and integrating Ka-band

251
00:16:40.000 --> 00:16:44.000
capabilities into our network so missions can communicate more

252
00:16:44.000 --> 00:16:48.000
data, increasing our capacity for discovery. And that’s not all.

253
00:16:48.000 --> 00:16:52.000
We’re even implementing Delay/Disruption Tolerant Networking, which is a building block for NASA’s LunaNe

254
00:16:52.000 --> 00:16:56.000
a communications and navigation architecture at the Moon.

255
00:16:56.000 --> 00:17:00.000
Narrator: Our support to both human exploration and science investigation

256
00:17:00.000 --> 00:17:04.000
is always evolving and adapting to the needs of missions and empowering NASA’s vision.

257
00:17:04.000 --> 00:17:08.000
Thanks for joining us on this tour of Goddard

258
00:17:08.000 --> 00:17:12.000
Space Flight Center. We’ve seen the exhibits at the Visitor’s Center, explored the SAM lab,

259
00:17:12.000 --> 00:17:16.000
investigated how spacecraft are tested at the I&T Complex,

260
00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:20.000
launched a rocket at Wallops Flight Facility and coordinated communications at the

261
00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:24.000
Near Space Operation Control Center. We hope you enjoyed your tour

262
00:17:24.000 --> 00:17:28.000
of Goddard! If you want to learn more, you can visit our website or follow us on social media.

263
00:17:28.000 --> 00:17:32.000
We hope the rest of your day is out of this world!

264
00:17:32.000 --> 00:17:41.931
And keep looking up! [Music Fades Out]