US Space Program Research Articles

‘For better or for worse, there is history, there is the book and then there's the movie’: Foregrounding and Marginalizing African American Women in the Film Hidden Figures (2016)

This paper critically examines the representation of gender and race in the biographical drama film Hidden Figures (2016), directed by Theodore Melfi. The film is based on Margot Lee Shetterly’s nonfiction book of the same title, which spotlights previously hidden figures in US history: the black female mathematicians who worked in the early US space program. The movie was released to critical acclaim and embraced by audiences as empowering African American girls. At the same time, the film was criticized for including a ‘white savior’ scene in which the black female protagonists are marginalized.
 After providing background information on Shetterly’s book and the film’s critical reception, this paper conducts a close formal analysis of a pivotal sequence in the film, which is compared to the events told in the nonfiction book. To shed light on the power structures that the film sequence projects, the results of this analysis are, subsequently, related to critical theoretical approaches to Hollywood cinema, as well as to Sara Ahmed’s concept of ‘affective economies.’ In conclusion, we argue that Hollywood filmmakers’ expectations about the desires of ‘mainstream’ audiences work to perpetuate the repression of previously repressed herstory on the ‘silver screen.’

Landing on the moon 50 years later: A multi-analytical investigation on Superficie Lunare (1969) by Giulio Turcato

Giulio Turcato (Mantova 1912–Rome 1995) was an Italian artist, belonging to the figurative and abstract expressionist currents. At the end of the 1960s, fascinated by the US space program, Turcato produced a series of artworks, differing in colour and shape, titled Superficie Lunare (Moon Surface). To reproduce a realistic moon surface, Turcato used polyurethane foam as support for the painting. The combination of this unconventional material and the pictorial ones makes Superficie Lunare an interesting case of study to understand the alteration phenomena in contemporary art. In this study, a blue painted Superficie Lunare (1969) was analysed by means of non-invasive (ER-FTIR, Raman and X-ray spectroscopy) and micro-invasive techniques (µ-ATR, μ-FTIR, μ-Raman, Py-GC/MS, EGA-MS and SEM-EDS). The results point out the use of a polyurethane foam as support and of a poly(vinyl acetate) based Prussian blue paint tube as main constituent of the paint layer. The analyses highlight also the complexity of the paint layer, showing the presence of lampblack and Al foil mixed to the blue paint, lithopone inside the white crater and possibly ferric oxide in the red one. The results confirm the use of a polyurethane foam for the support. The painted layers present a binder composed of poly(vinylacetate), with polystyrene, possibly present as additive. Concerning the nature of the blue pigment, Prussian blue was identified on the whole surface. In some points, also lampblack was detected. Furthermore, small foils of Al were found inside the paint layer, probably to give sparkling effect. Inside the moon craters, lithopone was identified for the white pigment and possibly iron oxide for the red one. The multi-technique approach allowed also to obtain information about the manufacturing of the used Prussian blue and the occurrence of alteration process for the polyurethane foam.

Regulars - Columnist: The Eccentric Engineer. Explosives - The tale of the Rocket Girl who kept her secrets

This is the story of how Mary Sherman Morgan, who, having minimal options as an unqualified young woman with an illegitimate child, saved the US Space Programme.

A Literature of Questions: Nonfiction for the Critical ChildWas the Cat in the Hat Black? The Hidden Racism of Children’s Literature, and the Need for Diverse Books

A Literature of Questions: Nonfiction for the Critical ChildWas the Cat in the Hat Black? The Hidden Racism of Children’s Literature, and the Need for Diverse Books

The US space program in pop culture

The US space program in pop culture

The Trump administration and outer space: promoting US leadership or heading towards isolation?

ABSTRACTIn a relatively short period of time, the Trump administration has been fairly active in the field of space. The reconstitution of the National Space Council, under the direction of Vice President Pence, the President’s signing of Space Policy Directive 1, that calls for the return of humans to the Moon, and the announcement of a National Space Strategy that calls for an ‘America first’ approach in space, have been the highlights of this process. A key component of the administration’s approach has been the promotion of commercial (private) space activities through an effort of regulatory reform intended to facilitate free enterprise and individual initiative in space.Overall, it is evident that the Trump administration views a consolidated US leadership in space as instrumental to ‘Make America Great Again’. However, due to the lack of cohesion in the management of the US space program, the controversial interpretation of international principles and the US-centred view of space endorsed by the administration, doubts remain as to whether the space policy of the Trump administration will foster US leadership in space or lead to its progressive isolation.

When inspiration fails to inspire: A change of strategy for the US space program

A pressing issue facing the US space program is the projected shortfall in the skilled aerospace workforce, as the number of students in space-related fields wanes. This has prompted many to emphasize the rhetoric of inspiration that prevailed during the Cold War, at the expense of concrete arguments for space that are thought to be lackluster and insufficient. This essay argues that the logic of inspiration fails to consider the changed context and attitudes of this younger public. Instead, such an approach proves counterproductive in attracting generations compelled by a host of ideas, some incompatible with the rhetoric of competition and prestige that prevailed before. Arguments that draw attention to the pragmatic elements of space, and that successfully align space with the notions that make sense now, may in turn prove to be the solution to draw the best and the brightest to the space program.

Proactively Investigating “Limits of use” with Medical Device Manufacturers – An Example Case: Robotic Surgery

This paper presents an exploration of strategies undertaken by a consortium of clinical teams and manufacturers to proactively prepare and support use of new categories of medical devices. Potential avenues of exploration include leveraging other domains, such as the US Space program, providing innovative methods of training and research and development in known areas of concern such as systems integration. By a commitment to creating a safer system, we are committing to providing safer care to patients. We believe incorporating the ‘lessons learned’ from the largest possible set of real-world scenarios, into the design and use of medical devices, will accelerate success.

Greenhouses and their humanizing synergies

Greenhouses in space will require advanced technical systems of automatic watering, soil-less cultivation, artificial lighting, and computerized observation of plants. Functions discussed for plants in space habitats include physical/health requirements and human psychology, social cohesion, as well as the complex sensorial benefits of plants for humans. The authors consider the role of plants in long-term space missions historically since 1971 (Salyut 1) and propose a set of priorities to be considered within the design requirements for greenhouses and constructed environments given a range of benefits associated with plant–human relationships. They cite recent research into the use of greenhouses in extreme environments to reveal the relative importance of greenhouses for people living in isolated locations. Additionally, they put forward hypotheses about where greenhouses might factor into several strata of human health. In a recent design-in-use study of astronauts' experiences in space habitats discussed in Architecture for Astronauts (Springer Press 2011) it was found that besides the basic advantages for life support there are clearly additional “side benefits” for habitability and physical wellbeing, and thus long-term mission success. The authors have composed several key theses regarding the need to promote plant–human relationships in space, including areas where synergy and symbiosis occur. They cite new comprehensive research into the early US Space Program to reveal where programmatic requirements could be added to space architecture to increase the less quantifiable benefits to astronauts of art, recreation, and poetic engagement with their existential condition of estrangement from the planet. Specifically in terms of the technological requirements, the authors propose the integration of a new greenhouse subsystem component into space greenhouses—the Mobile Plant Cultivation Subsystem—a portable, personal greenhouse that can be integrated functionally into future greenhouse constructions in space.

Small steps come before giant leaps

The drama of the Apollo missions to the moon unfolded while I was a post doc at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. My wife, Susan, and I sat gripped by the TV as the Apollo 11 mission and the historic first step on the moon on 20 July 1969 were brought to us in real time. We attended the launch of Apollo 12 in Florida, though our view and hearing were obscured by a rainstorm. So, while we were only about 7 miles from the launch pad, our families in the UK 4,500 miles away, had a better view than we did! Later, with Walter Cronkite, we lived through every minute of the fateful outward and nail-biting return journeys of Apollo 13. We rejoiced when he reported a successful splash-down in the Pacific Ocean and the safe return to Earth of Lovell, Swigert and Haise. I was, therefore, moved by the announcement of the death of Neil Armstrong on 25 August to contemplate (in a small way) humanity and human destiny. What was it about the time, the people (individually and collectively) and the circumstance that made this a unique milestone in human achievement (but one which, at the time, was viewed as an expensive distraction by some and a massive deception by others)? There is probably less of a recollection of the massive collective effort that went into the US space programme that ended up with that ‘small step’ for a man, starting with the early planning and political decisionmaking, the bringing together and the organisation of the skills, judgements, insights, ingenuity and resources needed to solve the many component challenges and problems that led to that moment on that memorable Sunday. Neil Armstrong’s personal demeanour after the triumph seemed to reflect his awareness of the teamwork of all those involved in the enterprise and its significance as well as of the risks involved, particularly to the lives of the astronauts themselves. The echoes of this triumph are still with us as we marvel at NASA’s achievement in landing and successfully deploying the Curiosity roving laboratory on Mars. In its different way, the success of the London Olympics and Paralympics was also built upon individual and team endeavour and commitment, made possible only through global organisation (with all its faults) and national political will that had a vision of an under-developed part of east London, including highly polluted sites, the legacy of Victorian and Edwardian industrial development, being transformed into a show-case for spectacle, drama and expressions of national pride (and not just of the host country). While there was success at the Games for some and disappointment for others, there was in addition, within an intensively competitive sporting environment, a celebration of the things we have in common, a welcome for strangers, a generosity to opponents, an appreciation of effort and commitment and a collective pride in the success of others in confronting and overcoming often very daunting personal challenges. We were also inspired by the opening and closing ceremonies, particularly by Stephen Hawking’s narration at the opening of the Paralympics, telling us that the human spirit and intellect must work as one, with the words: ‘We live in a universe governed by rational laws that we can discover and understand. Look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious.’ There will be both an enduring legacy in the minds and hearts of participants and spectators alike, as well as a physical legacy that includes the giving over of the laboratory used for drug testing of athletes to the nobler area of N. Winterton (&) University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK e-mail: n.winterton@liverpool.ac.uk

John T. Shepherd (1919–2011)

John T. Shepherd, MD, a visionary physiologist who headed the American Heart Association, served as a NASA adviser and led US scientific exchanges with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, died 4 October 2011 at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. He was 92. Over the course of his career he received many awards, including honorary degrees from the Universities of Bologna, Ghent and Queens (Belfast). He was actively involved with NASA and the US National Academy of Sciences, and chaired the academy's Committee on Space Medicine from 1965 to 1974. During the Cold War, he helped the US space program by working with colleagues in the then-Soviet Union on space physiology. He was president of the American Heart Association in 1975–76. He was also a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in the United Kingdom and Ireland. He was elected a Member of The Physiological Society in 1951 and elected to the Committee in 1957 (Fig. 1). Figure 1 Professor John T. Shepherd (1919–2011) Professor Shepherd made major contributions to understanding the regulation of the cardiovascular system, producing more than 300 scientific publications and four books. His research spanned a number of areas related to cardiovascular control including classic studies on reflex control of the circulation, haemodynamic responses to heat stress and exercise, and mechanisms of vasodilation. Depending on the question, he conducted studies in normal humans, patients with specific diseases, animal models and isolated tissues. Many of his studies from the 1950s, 60s and 70s are considered foundational and still cited today: Duff et al. (1953), Roddie et al. (1956, 1957), Marshall et al. (1961), Donald & Shepherd (1963), Corcondilas et al. (1964), Bevegard & Shepherd (1966), Strandell & Shepherd (1967), Vanhoutte & Shepherd (1973) and Mancia et al. (1976). The concept of ‘translational’ research that is in vogue today was inherently obvious to John Shepherd throughout his long career. His scientific work was also the platform that facilitated the training of more than 100 research fellows. John Shepherd was born 21 May 1919 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and received his MB, BCh, MChir and MD with honours from Queens University in Belfast. He completed his internship and residency at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. He joined the academic staff at Queens in the Department of Physiology. In 1953, he was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to come to Mayo Clinic for 1 year to engage in cardiovascular research. The selection of Mayo Clinic was based on his brother's enthusiasm after reading The Doctors Mayo in the late 1940s. He returned to Northern Ireland. His four close colleagues in the Department of Physiology at Queen's University (Greenfield, Roddie, Glover and Whelan) later became deans of medical schools around the world. In 1957 he joined the Mayo staff where he spent the rest of his professional career. In addition to his cutting edge scientific work, Professor Shepherd also had exceptional leadership skills and led the transformation of the Mayo Clinic from a group practice of medicine to a group practice embedded in a world class academic medical centre which included a medical school, graduate school and broad based research programmes. He was director of research from 1969 to 1976. In this position, and as a member of the Mayo Board of Trustees, he was instrumental in enabling Mayo Clinic to become a degree-granting institution in 1972. He became director for education of the Mayo Foundation and dean of the new Mayo Medical School from 1977 to 1983. This included responsibility for the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine and Mayo School of Health-Related Sciences. From 1983 to 1988, Dr Shepherd chaired the Mayo Board of Development and was actively involved in establishment of the Mayo Clinic campus in Jacksonville, FL. He retired from Mayo Clinic in 1989. In 2003, he published a memoir, Inside the Mayo Clinic. He was also one of more than 15 physicians in his family, including his daughter and his son who is on the staff at Mayo Clinic. His grandson and namesake is a Mayo Medical Student and participating in physiology research. Dr Shepherd is survived by his second wife, Marion, a son and a daughter, four step-children, five grandchildren, eight step-grandchildren and a great-grandson. ‘As I look back on my fifty years at Mayo Clinic and Foundation, I am astonished at its metamorphosis beyond what William Worrall Mayo, and particularly his sons, Charles Horace Mayo and William James Mayo, first envisioned,’ Shepherd wrote in his memoirs. ‘I am also gratified by my opportunities to play a part in that growth as a researcher, educator and partner in what is, arguably, the world's greatest medical group practice.’ For those of us who had an opportunity to work with him his superior intellect, great enthusiasm, endless energy, generosity and inclusive leadership style were remarkable.

Should SAGES advance minimally invasive surgery in space?

With the recent completion of the Space Shuttle program, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the rest of the American spaceflight community are designing new ways to reach space. Confusion in the popular press had led to the misconception that the Obama administration has ended the American human spaceflight program. In fact, the Obama administration (through the US Human Spaceflight Plans Committee or ‘‘Augustine Commission’’ [1]) realized that NASA did not have enough resources to both operate the space shuttle and design and build the next generation of space vehicles needed to accomplish the goals of the Bush administration’s 2004 Vision For Space Exploration [2]. So, while work on mission design and decisions about whether future space vehicles will be made by NASA or private industry progress, the US Space Program will purchase seats on Russian Soyuz vehicles for transport to and from the International Space Station. Regardless of the final design and system chosen, the crew selected to fly in space will have medical concerns. If the mission is to Mars or a near-Earth object (NEO), where the total mission time can be 3 years or longer, those medical concerns will have surgical implications that need to be addressed in-flight to complete the mission, or simply to get everyone back to Earth. According to NASA, preventive medicine is the key approach to preventing a mission-impacting medical issue, but even the best screening only reduces risk; it does not eliminate it. Also, a goal of space exploration is to allow humans to live and work in space for the long term. Over the last two decades, the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) has promoted the research and clinical adaptation of many technologies such as endoscopy, laparoscopy, robotic surgery, and natural orifice translumenal endoscopic surgery (NOTES). Besides publishing a few articles dealing with research in parabolic aircraft (also known as the ‘‘vomit comet,’’ Fig. 1) and remote environments, SAGES has done little to be involved in the next frontier of surgical practice. Is it time to rethink our focus? Browning said that our ‘‘reach should exceed [our] grasp, or what’s a heaven for?’’ [3]. SAGES should use exploration of the heavens to extend the reach of surgical technology beyond what we can currently grasp. NASA’s latest reference mission to Mars would take about 3 years; there would be about 6–8 months of transit time to Mars, 18 months on Mars, and 6–8 months to return. With a well-selected prescreened crew, the types of medical and surgical issues considered for contingency planning would be trauma from accidents and typical renal and abdominal pathologies for healthy 30–55-year-old men and women at risk for dehydration (from the low-pressure, low-humidity flight environment), fluid shifts (from weightlessness), and bone and muscle loss (disuse atrophy) [4]. The current protocol for the International Space Station is to return the crew-member to Earth for treatment as soon as safety allows for anything more than a minor medical issue. This would not be an option for a Mars mission, and even a Moon mission would have much more limited return capability. D. M. Buckland (&) D. B. Jones Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA e-mail: buckland@mit.edu

When inspiration fails to inspire: A change of strategy for the US space program

A pressing issue facing the US space program is the projected shortfall in the skilled aerospace workforce, as the number of students in space-related fields wanes. This has prompted many to emphasize the rhetoric of inspiration that prevailed during the Cold War, at the expense of concrete arguments for space that are thought to be lackluster and insufficient. This essay argues that the logic of inspiration fails to consider the changed context and attitudes of this younger public. Instead, such an approach proves counterproductive in attracting generations compelled by a host of ideas, some incompatible with the rhetoric of competition and prestige that prevailed before. Arguments that draw attention to the pragmatic elements of space, and that successfully align space with the notions that make sense now, may in turn prove to be the solution to draw the best and the brightest to the space program.

The Space Shuttle—Evaluating an American icon

The Space Transportation System (STS), for better or worse, has dominated the US space program for some 30 years and is now an American icon. The Space Shuttle orbiters have flown over 120 missions and certainly accomplished some amazing feats, including the deployment of the International Space Station (ISS), the launch and double repair of the Hubble Telescope, a number of classified missions for the US defense establishment and the cementing of international cooperation in space. As the remaining Space Shuttle orbiters head toward various museums, it is timely to look at the STS program in terms of key US space policy decisions that have paralleled the Space Shuttle’s often troubled history. This article seeks, from both a historical and a policy perspective, to assess what might have been. While noting the major accomplishments of the STS, it also identifies what can best be characterized as major lost opportunities and flawed policy decisions that have had multi-billion dollar consequences. In this regard, the US Congress, the White House, and NASA leadership have all played a role. If there have been failings, they have not been by NASA alone, but the entire US space policy leadership.

A new space vision for NASA—And for space entrepreneurs too?

Despite its scientific successes, NASA has over the past two decades lost its way, spending billions of dollars on transportation systems that have at bottom been failures. President Obama's cancellation of the costly and unwieldy Constellation program provides an opportunity for genuine reform of the agency and the US space program, through harnessing the innovatory and cost-effective power of commercial entrepreneurs. Examples of the kinds of project they might undertake – including solar power satellites, ‘space taxis’ and a space elevator – are discussed.

The National Space Biomedical Research Institute's education and public outreach program: Working toward a global 21st century space exploration society

Space Exploration educators worldwide are confronting challenges and embracing opportunities to prepare students for the global 21st century workforce. The National Space Biomedical Research Institute (NSBRI), established in 1997 through a NASA competition, is a 12-university consortium dedicated to space life science research and education. NSBRI's Education and Public Outreach Program (EPOP) is advancing the Institute's mission by responding to global educational challenges through activities that: provide teacher professional development; develop curricula that teach students to communicate with their peers across the globe; provide women and minority US populations with greater access to, and awareness of science careers; and promote international science education partnerships. A recent National Research Council (NRC) Space Studies Board Report, America's Future in Space: Aligning the Civil Program with National Needs, acknowledges that “a capable workforce for the 21st century is a key strategic objective for the US space program… (and that) US problems requiring best efforts to understand and resolve…are global in nature and must be addressed through mutual worldwide action”. [1] This sentiment has gained new momentum through a recent National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) report, which recommends that the life of the International Space Station be extended beyond the planned 2016 termination. [2] The two principles of globalization and ISS utility have elevated NSBRI EPOP efforts to design and disseminate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educational materials that prepare students for full participation in a globalized, high technology society; promote and provide teacher professional development; create research opportunities for women and underserved populations; and build international educational partnerships. This paper describes select EPOP projects and makes the case for using innovative, emerging information technologies to transfer space exploration knowledge to students, engage educators from across the globe in discourse about science curricula, and foster multimedia collaborations that inform citizens about the benefits of space exploration for life on Earth. Special references are made to educational activities conducted at professional meetings in Austria, Canada, France, China, Greece, Italy, Russia, Scotland and Spain.

Guiding the Space Age from the ground up: Pan Am, Cold War and guided missiles

This article analyses the role of Pan American Airways (Pan Am) in the shaping of the ‘Space Age’.The study arises out of our interest in the role of the organization in the development of discourse (Foucault 1979).While much has been written on discourse (Phillips and Hardy 2002) there have been few applied studies, and they tend to focus on the reproduction of discourse (e.g.New Public Management) within organizations (Thomas and Davies 2004) rather than on the role of organizations in the production of discourses. Pan Am was studied because of its role in the development of the US space program; its prominence as a major international company; and the availability of an extensive archive of company materials. Using critical hermeneutics (Prasad and Mir 2002), discourse analysis (Phillips and Hardy 2002), and archaeo-genealogical historiography (Rowlinson 2004), we examined the implications for organizational management and the study of organizational and management history.We conclude that the study of organizations as sites of discourse production is a fruitful area for further research; drawing attention to the implications for change by revealing the importance not only of the ‘localized’ aspects of discourse but also the discursive character of analyses of ‘the past’.

Creation of the Hubble Space Telescope

The Hubble Space Telescope has been the most successful space astronomy project to date, producing images that put the public in awe and images and spectra that have produced many scientific discoveries. It is the natural culmination of a dream envisioned when rocket flight into space was first projected and a goal set for the US space program soon after NASA was created. The design and construction period lasted almost two decades and its operations have already lasted almost as long. The capabilities of the observatory have evolved and expanded with periodic upgrading of its instrumentation, thus realizing the advantages of its unique design. The success of this long-lived observatory is closely tied to the availability of the Space Shuttle and the end of the Shuttle program means that the end of the Hubble program will follow before long.

Post WWII technology [Part Two, NASA at 50

The US space program is a prime example of how a national imperative can reap benefits far beyond its initial goals. The attraction of space had been unfolding for nearly a century in novels; and early experiments with balloons and aircraft stimulated interest across the globe. Advances in rocket propulsion and structures were absolutely vital to accessing outer space; it is unlikely that the space race could have proceeded without these two critical technologies. Although discovered in the late 1 940 s, solid-state electronics remained a curiosity until the military began to use them to reduce the size, weight, and power requirements for their critical systems.

Roger Ervin Miller. 23 July 1952 — 6 November 2005

Roger Miller, perhaps the most outstanding experimental physical chemist of his generation, was sadly taken from us at the age of53 years, at the peak of his career. Roger Ervin Miller was born in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, on 23 July 1952, the son of Ruth and Donald R. Miller. Roger had one older brother, Gerry, and one younger sister, Patricia. Roger's father worked in a tyre factory and was very innovative and creative in mending items around the house, a trait that he passed on to his children. From a very early age Roger was curious about the world around him. He was also a hard worker, raising rabbits or picking dew worms to earn money so that he could purchase model rockets, the bigger the better. This was the time of Sputnik and the US space programme, Roger being just 5 years old when the first Sputnik satellite was launched in 1957. As Roger explained in a memoir that he began to write in 2000 (but never finished; extracts are reproduced by courtesy of Mrs. Debbie Miller):