When OSIRIS-REx returns a sample of the asteroid Bennu to Earth on September 24, 2023, it will kick off a carefully orchestrated retrieval process. One thing the retrieval team won’t need to worry about is protecting Earth and its inhabitants from the sample.

The latest issue of Orbital Debris Quarterly News is now available. See the latest updates as of August 2023. 

NASA Chief of Safety and Mission Assurance Russ DeLoach recently presented two “Yes, If” coins to Ames Research Center personnel while visiting the center for the SMA Directors Meeting.

NASA Chief of Safety and Mission Assurance Russ DeLoach recently presented a “Yes, If” coin to Kaci Reynolds, associate director for NASA’s Independent Verification and Validation Program, for her attention to detail, proactive approach and commitment to customer service. 

The EEE Parts Bulletin for May 2023 provides an overview of a new effort to develop a NASA Parts Engineering School in collaboration with The University of Maryland, Auburn University and numerous NASA centers. 

NASA’s Workmanship Standards Program is piloting a new training process with Johnson Space Center’s Receiving and Inspection Test facility that will allow personnel who take the IPC/WHMA-A-620 Space course at NASA training facilities to work as inspectors on NASA flight hardware. This training will provide efficiencies not available when using the training program offered by the IPC, who trains hardware builders and hardware inspectors in the same manner. This training program will be provided only to those who only perform inspections and not to those who will build the hardware.

The Office of Safety and Mission Assurance’s (OSMA) Ground-Based Pressure Systems Working Group (GBPSWG) completed a significant update to the agencywide SATERN training course, SMA-HQ-WBT-301, Ground-Based Pressure Systems Operations Safety.

The June 2023 issue of Orbital Debris Quarterly News is now available and includes the article “Two Years of Space Traffic: Current Trends in New Payloads and Debris in Orbit,” republished here. 

This issue also includes the articles “ISS Maneuvers Twice in a Week's Span to Avoid Potential Collisions,” “Three Minor Breakups in First Quarter of 2023” and “Recent Advances in Modeling Hollow Objects During Reentry,” among other articles.

John Livacich, Safety and Occupational Health manager at Ames Research Center, recently received a “Yes, If” coin for his proactive approach to mitigating risks and ensuring safe and reliable lifting operations.

As the Facility Safety program executive at Headquarters, Jose Caraballo works with Safety and Mission Assurance managers and various institutional groups to help them accomplish the agency’s mission of keeping NASA employees safe.