NASA’s Independent Verification and Validation Program reduces risk associated with safety- and mission-critical software.

NASA Reliability and Maintainability (R&M) professionals attend the 2015 Reliability and Maintainability Symposium (RAMS), where they held a NASA splinter session and presented papers. 

The Europa Clipper is the first mission to integrate into its design a new Software Assurance process on managing Command File Errors.

The April 2015 issue of Orbital Debris Quarterly News features the article "Orion EFT-1 Postflight MMOD Inspection." Continue reading for the full article.

Changes to NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement 1852.223-73 will make NASA’s proposal review process quicker and more efficient. The requirement changes permit companies competing for low-cost and administrative contracts with minimal hazards to submit Safety and Health Plans after the contract is awarded.

NASA is rolling out an Explosives Safety course to replace center-specific courses and provide consistent training throughout the agency. Goddard Space Flight Center Explosives Safety Officer Gordon Marsh taught the updated course, “Basics Explosive Safety Training,” at Wallops Flight Facility on Feb. 11-12.

The Oxygen Compatibility Assessment (OCA) team at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility created a Web-based OCA database that will be available agency-wide within the next year.  

In 2014, the Electrostatic Discharge Association updated its primary Electrostatic Discharge (ESD) control standard: American National Standards Institute/ESD S20.20. The changes affect how NASA defines the minimum requirements for ESD controls applied when the agency and its suppliers process and handle mission hardware that is sensitive to damaging ESD events.

Although Additive Manufacturing (AM) has been around for decades, increasing awareness of the significant benefits of flying 3D printed parts and using 3D printers in space has pushed NASA and the aerospace industry to take a close look at how to evaluate and certify AM parts to assure safety and mission success. 

NASA’s Expendable Launch Vehicle (ELV) Payload Safety Program hosted a workshop at Kennedy Space Center Dec. 3-4.