SECTION III

KSC SPECIFIC ROLES IN SUPPORT OF THE MISSION TO PLANET EARTH (MTPE) ENTERPRISE

KSC, in partnership with academia and private industry, will strive for excellence in the selected areas that are essential to the goals and objectives of the NASA Mission to Planet Earth Enterprise. KSC supports these activities in the following ways:

MTPE ENTERPRISE GOAL 1

Expand scientific knowledge of the Earth system using the unique vantage point of space

MTPE Enterprise Objective 1.1:

Develop the capability to perform repeated global inventories of land use and land cover from space, and develop the scientific understanding and models necessary to evaluate the consequences of observed changes

KSC Implementation Plans:

• Support the Earth Observing Satellite (EOS) Program by providing safe, efficient, and cost-effective launch and payload processing services
• Provide facilities, equipment, and expertise to perform final checkout and test of all other MTPE payloads and experiments
• Support Agency efforts by providing launch vehicle and payload processing services and associated support

KSC Future Plans:

• Consolidate acquisition and management of operational launch services with eventual transition to KSC for all operational space launches

MTPE Enterprise Objective 1.2:

Develop and use remotely sensed and in situ observations to monitor, describe, and understand seasonal-to-interannual climate variability, with the aim of improving skill in long-range weather forecasts and seasonal climate predictions

KSC Implementation Plans:

• Support the Smithsonian carbon dioxide research team at KSC with test site locations, facilities, utilities, supplies, and support services to implement the carbon dioxide research stations
• Collect, analyze, and archive lightning data from the KSC and Cape Canaveral Air Station (CCAS) vicinities
• Collect, archive, and analyze weather data to assist in research and weather predictions
• Support Agency efforts by providing launch vehicle and payload processing services and associated support

KSC Future Plans:

• Expand interactions with organizations conducting ecological and climate change research and utilize KSC as a testbed
• Establish KSC as a testbed for remote sensing system testing and validation
• Investigate aerospace technologies that offer the potential of forecasting weather and climate variability with more accuracy, shorter lead times, and increased cost effectiveness

MTPE Enterprise Objective 1.3:

Understand the causes and consequences of long-term (decades to centuries) climate system variability

KSC Implementation Plans and Future Plans:

• Partner with other research organizations to utilize KSC and KSC weather data in the conduct of research

MTPE Enterprise Objective 1.4:

Develop understanding of processes affecting distributions of ozone and oxidizing species in the global troposphere and stratosphere, to determine those distributions, including their spatial and temporal dependence, and to quantitatively characterize observed past and, through the use of predictive models, potential future changes in these distributions

KSC Implementation Plans and Future Plans:

• Continue to support the United Nations working group on ozone-depleting substances
• Continue research and applied technology development to upgrade KSC systems and equipment to be free of ozone-depleting substances

MTPE Enterprise Objective 1.5:

Understand Earth processes which can lead to natural disasters, develop risk assessment capability for vulnerable regions, and coordinate with U.S. disaster managers and international space agencies

KSC Implementation Plans:

• Provide support to the Disaster Preparedness Community to assess prediction and recovery of hurricanes and other natural disasters
• Continue to develop facility, system, and equipment design strategies, specifications and technologies that can endure natural disasters with minimal impact to functionality, and transfer these technologies to the public and commercial sector
• Seek opportunities where the application of NASA science and technology expertise can benefit local communities and resource managers throughout the world

KSC Future Plans:

• Initiate development of a hurricane wind measurement instrument capable of recording wind direction and speeds up to 150 miles per hour (mph) with survivability to 250 mph
• Partner with the Hurricane Research Division (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration/Environmental Research Laboratory/Hurricane Research Division (NOAA/ERL/HRD)) to determine the characteristics of land falling hurricanes through the use of the unique KSC/CCAS suite of weather sensors

MTPE ENTERPRISE GOAL 2

Disseminate information about the Earth system

MTPE Enterprise Objective 2.1:

Implement successive releases of EOSDIS in phase with spacecraft launch schedule

KSC Implementation Plans and Future Plans:

• Work with Florida's schools and universities to disseminate EOS data and information
• Continue to promote and enhance the existing NASA Technology Transfer Program that fosters technology awareness and understanding

MTPE ENTERPRISE GOAL 3

Enable the productive use of MTPE science and technology in the public and private sectors

MTPE Enterprise Objective 3.1:

Extend the use of NASA's data, models, and research beyond the traditional science community to be applied to the needs of the State, local, and commercial sectors

KSC Implementation Plans:

• Continue to provide Geographic Information System support to better aid in habitat management and conservation
• Continue to develop facility, system, and equipment design strategies, specifications, and technologies that can endure natural disasters with minimal impact to functionality, and transfer these technologies to the public and commercial sector
• Participate with local industry and provide KSC resources and expertise to promote commercialization of sensor technology

KSC Future Plans:

• As a focal point for applied technology, KSC will work as a team member within the Agency, industry, and academia to transfer and apply NASA-developed technology at KSC, within NASA, and to commercial entities
• Implement new tools that will allow for greater flexibility in the modeling of environmental conditions for wider application

MTPE Enterprise Objective 3.2:

Support the development of a robust commercial remote sensing industry

KSC Implementation Plans and Future Plans:

• Reduce launch and payload processing costs through development of better and cheaper processing systems
• Continue team efforts to support and foster commercial access and development of space through partnership and shared access to NASA ELV resources
• Enhance KSC's role as a testbed for remote sensing testing and validation

MTPE Enterprise Objective 3.3:

Make major scientific contributions to national and international environmental assessments

KSC Implementation Plans:

• Continue to publish results of scientific studies on the environment including habitat change and ecosystem management
• Continue the development of substitute methodologies such as aqueous cleaning for chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
• Partner with Environmental Protection Agency to use KSC as a testbed for validation of remediation technologies
• Continue to partner in our effort to promote studies of endangered species

KSC Future Plans:

• Expand the use of remote sensing technology in the evaluation and maintenance of ecosystem management activities
• Develop substitute chemicals and methodologies for banned chemicals whose properties are required for launch processing and support

KSC Implementation Plan Home Page

Author: Saul Barton
Curator: Carol Valdes (Carol.Valdes-1@ksc.nasa.gov)
Updated: June 10, 1997