Virginia, NASA keep eyes on skies for air quality


Virginia, NASA keep eyes on skies for air quality

HAMPTON, Va. – Air quality in the skies above Hampton Roads will be monitored daily under a new partnership between NASA’s Langley Research Center and the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).

The agreement relocates the state agency’s air-quality measurement operation to Langley following closure of the Hampton organization where it had been located, the Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind. The DEQ’s new site is expected to open in May, said Margaret Pippin, the scientist coordinating the move at Langley.

“This site will bring together the partnership of NASA, DEQ, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in a coordinated effort to assess the relationship between space-based observations and surface observations of air quality,” Pippin said.

The federal and state agencies are both interested in generating a comprehensive data record of pollution from industrial processes and vehicles.

The DEQ station will be located at Langley’s Chemistry and Physics of the Boundary Layer Experiment site (CAPABLE), which will measure ozone and nitrogen dioxide. The DEQ will measure ozone, nitrogen dioxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter.

The partnership will be mutually beneficial, said Pippin. The DEQ will have a bigger pool of data and a larger location to add to its statewide network of air-quality monitoring sites. And NASA scientists will be able to use the combined measurements to enhance a future satellite mission to measure air quality from space.

Since the early 1970s, the DEQ has worked with the EPA to uphold the standards of U.S. Clean Air Act. That includes taking widespread air quality measurements in Virginia and keeping a data record.

NASA Langley’s Science Directorate has a legacy in atmospheric science as well, leading early discoveries about the ozone hole and improving knowledge of human-created pollution on air quality and the atmosphere.
Last week at the new Langley site, NASA and DEQ began monitoring what the U.S. EPA calls “criteria pollutants.” These are the emissions from factories, power plants and cars that can damage human health, plants, the environment and infrastructure. They include ozone, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides and other airborne particulates.

“For NASA Langley and the DEQ, I see this as a win-win situation where we can work together, share air-quality data and monitoring information and learn from each other,” said Tom Jennings of the DEQ Office of Air Quality Monitoring.
The DEQ’s transition to Langley will occur over the next two months and result in two identical environmental shelters positioned in a mirror image to one another – one for NASA’s instruments and the other for DEQ’s.

The partnership was formalized in what is called a Space Act Agreement, which was signed last week. The agreement calls for a five-year partnership at the Langley site.

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    KANSAS CITY – The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is proposing a $2,425,000 civil penalty against Cessna Aircraft Co., of Wichita, Kan., after carbon composite parts of the wing of one of its aircraft came apart during flight.

    On Dec. 6, 2010, an FAA test pilot performing a production audit test flight in a Cessna Corvalis experienced a failure of the skin on the left wing. About seven feet of the left wing skin separated from the forward spar and damaged a fuel tank. A spar is a beam-like structure inside the wing and is a principal load-bearing component. The pilot made an emergency landing at the Independence, Kan., airport.

    Subsequently, the FAA issued emergency airworthiness directives grounding 13 specific Corvalis aircraft that used wings and parts produced in Cessna’s Chihuahua, Mexico, plant between Dec. 17, 2009, and Dec. 16, 2010. FAA investigators determined that the wing skin separated from the spar due to excessive humidity in the factory that prevented the bonded materials from curing properly.

    The FAA alleges that Cessna failed to follow its FAA-approved quality control system when it manufactured the wings on the damaged airplane, as well as 82 additional parts, in the Chihuahua factory. The manufacturer has since made improvements to the plant.
    “Safety is our highest priority,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “We want to ensure that manufacturers are vigilant when it comes to aviation safety. There can be no exceptions.”

    “Quality control is a critical part of the aircraft manufacturing process and has to detect problems before planes leave the factory,” said FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt. “Manufacturers have to ensure that all the details are followed all of the time.”
    The Corvalis is a high-performance four-seat single-engine general aviation aircraft. It uses a significant number of composite parts and structures.

    Cessna has 30 days from the receipt of the FAA’s enforcement letter to respond.

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    Boeing Statement on Death of Senator Ted Stevens

    CHICAGO, August 10, 2010 — Boeing extends its deepest condolences to the families, friends and colleagues of former Senator Ted Stevens and others who lost their lives in the August 9 crash of a single-engine plane in Alaska. We wish the survivors of the accident a full recovery.

    We remember Sen. Stevens as a patriot who dedicated himself to public service and who made a real difference to the U.S. military and the lives of countless people. He was a great friend to the men and women of the armed forces, and he used his power in the Senate to fight tirelessly for them. Over the course of his six-decade career in U.S. government, Sen. Stevens was a strong advocate for his constituents and put the good of his nation above politics.

    Our thoughts are with Sen. Stevens’ loved ones, with the families of the others who perished, and with the survivors of Monday’s tragic accident.

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    Press Release – FAA, JetBlue Agreement to Bring NextGen Precision to East Coast, Caribbean Routes

    WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced today that the FAA and JetBlue have signed a NextGen agreement that will allow the airline to fly more precise, satellite-based flights from Boston and New York to Florida and the Caribbean beginning in 2012.

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    GE and AVIC Sign Agreement for Integrated Avionics Joint Venture

    GE Aviation of the United States and Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) today announced the signing of the agreement to form their new joint venture company. Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming and the U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke witnessed the public signing by David Joyce, president and CEO of GE Aviation and Zhang Xinguo, vice president of AVIC today in Chicago.

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    Boeing Completes Acquisition of Summit Aeronautic Group in Montana

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    Forward-Looking Information Is Subject to Risk and Uncertainty
    Certain statements in this release may be “forward-looking” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “intends,” “projects,” “believes,” “estimates,” “targets,” “anticipates,” and similar expressions are used to identify these forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements regarding the proposed acquisition of Summit include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the expected timetable for completing the transaction, future business prospects, our guidance relating to 2010 and 2011 financial and operating performance, product development and benefits and synergies of the transaction, as well as any other statement that does not directly relate to any historical or current fact. Forward-looking statements are based upon assumptions about future events that may not prove to be accurate. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed or forecasted in these forward-looking statements. As a result, these statements speak to events only as of the date they are made and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by federal securities laws. Specific factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the effect of economic conditions in the United States and globally, the ability of the parties to satisfy the transaction conditions and complete the acquisition, the risk that competing offers will be made, our ability to successfully integrate Summit’s business and realize anticipated synergies, and other important factors disclosed previously and from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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    NASA MEDIA ACCREDITATION FOR NEXT SPACE SHUTTLE FLIGHT ENDS FEB. 11

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    Contact the accrediting NASA center for details. Journalists should confirm accreditation before traveling.

    KENNEDY SPACE CENTER

    Accreditation for the STS-133 mission badges remains open. Mission badges previously issued for Discovery’s first launch attempt in November 2010 are valid.

    Reporters applying for credentials at Kennedy should submit requests via the Web at:

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