- by Merri Sanchez, Chair 

John F. Kennedy 

I am writing this article on the 30^th anniversary of the first lunar landing, conducted by the Apollo 11 team, and 97 years after the first flight at Kitty Hawk. It is exciting to be a part of the aerospace industry as we are still reaching ever higher toward aeronautics and aerospace achievements. And, almost 40 years after President Kennedy issued the challenge to the nation, I challenge you to set your professional goals ever higher and to participate in AIAA. 

AIAA serves many roles in your profession. We look forward to serving you this year, but, we need your input on how to best formulate our programs and events to meet your needs and expectations (see the questionnaire in the newsletter). We will be active on many fronts this year including: 

· Monthly dinner programs with guest speakers to look at the state of the art in the aeronautics and aerospace industries. 

· Monthly Lunch and Learns sponsored by our technical committees to allow a more in-depth look at technical issues and research of interest to our members. 

· Sponsor of the Region IV Student Paper Competition in April 2000, with students from colleges across Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. 

· Annual Technical Symposium to be held in conjunction with the Student Paper Competition to allow the student's to see a professional conference. 

· Workshop on Automation and Robotics (date TBD). 

· Support of Engineers Week and science fairs. 

· Sponsor of Mars Design competition. 

· Planning for the second Service Vehicles Conference to be held in October 2000. 

We also need your help as a volunteer. You can participate in the section leadership on the Executive Council. Positions open include one Councilor position, and Chairs for the following committees: Young Professionals, College and Co-op, Honors and Awards, Public Policy, Professional Development, Publications, Public Policy, Astrodynamics, Space Science and Astronomy, and GNC. Please contact me if you would like more information on what these committees do or if you are interested in chairing them or participating on any of our committees (see our organization chart). Our most critical need for this year is to find a Chair for the Publications Committee as soon as possible. This committee is responsible for publishing our monthly newsletters. You can reach me at 281-244-8461. I look forward to your calls! 

I also want to congratulate and welcome the new officers and councilors for the Houston Section of AIAA. We have a challenging and exciting year ahead of us! 

On a Programs note: We are trying to finalize a speaker for the Awards banquet to close out Russ Filler's term. The planning date is August 26. We are trying to confirm Gene Cernan as a speaker. Since arrangements are still being made we couldn't include the flyer in this newsletter, but we will get you the information as soon as possible. 

Merri Sanchez 

Chair, Houston Section 

- by Russ Filler, Past-Chairman 

I truly believe all of us in the industry need to be involved in the AIAA. AIAA is the world's leading professional society for those engaged in aerospace. We should never reach a point in our careers where we no longer find a need to enhance our professional development. AIAA is professional development - for the individual and the industry as a whole. We should strive to constantly find ways to be more successful in our daily job responsibilities. We need to recognize that our organizational constraints regulate our creative thinking and influence our ability to advance in the industry. Through AIAA, we can examine and develop our professional skills and enhance our individual creative thinking on how to best advance aerospace. 

This is more important than in the past. With Better, Faster, Cheaper, we are all being asked to do more for aerospace. To achieve this we must constantly improve our own skills, our way of doing business, and how all of us work together to achieve what is being asked of us. We need to take advantage of the opportunities AIAA offers. 

Even if you can not find it in yourself to take advantage of the opportunities of the professional development AIAA offers, it is important that we pass on our experience and knowledge to those that can benefit by it. One of the purposes of AIAA is "to foster education in engineering and science." 

I have gained a lot by listening to the seasoned veterans of aerospace. We have had some excellent speakers at AIAA functions - locally and nationally. Another purpose of AIAA is to stimulate outstand 

I have always learned something by my involvement in AIAA. As Chairman, I have learned a lot about managing people and projects. It requires a unique skill to manage people that volunteer their time and talent. 

I learned to recognize talent and who to depend on to get things done. I was fortunate to lead a team of very talented people. I was very fortunate to have such a fine group of people on the Executive Council. I was fortunate to have them step up to not only help me, but recognize they were helping the Section. This Executive Council was very motivated to have a successful year. The Executive Council adopted goals and objectives very early and stayed committed to achieving those goals throughout the year. 

Those goals translated into many achievements this year. 

· The highly successful ISS Service Vehicle Conference in April certainly helped promote communication among engineers and scientists, foster the dissemination of new knowledge and helped advance the arts, sciences, and technology of aeronautics and astronautics. 

· Our Annual Technical Symposium was held in conjunction with the National Space Society's International space Development Conference (ISDC) four day conference. This unique experience allowed AIAA to reach out to a more diverse audience and we produced our first conference proceedings on a CD. 

· We adopted our first section 'message' for Congressional Visits Day this year, which encouraged original research, improved public understanding of the profession and its contributions, and fostered the dissemination of new knowledge. 

OUTGOING...continued from page 3... 

I must thank the support I received from my employer - United Space Alliance, my management (both with USA and NASA), and my fellow workers. The support I received from USA indicates the level of support they have to AIAA and the importance they place on continued professional development. My managers have supported my need to devote time to AIAA and they recognized my efforts benefited numerous people throughout the industry. My fellow workers provided an extra effort on the job when I was away on AIAA business. Most important, I think they all recognized the opportunities I was having in AIAA would make me a better professional in the industry. 

It has been a pleasure to lead the Section with such fine people involved. I could not have done it alone. I look forward to helping and encouraging those that follow. Every major career change I have made has been influenced by my experience in AIAA. I stepped back into the Executive Council 3 years ago - first as Vice Chairman - Operations, then Chairman-Elect, and, this year, as Chairman. I will continue to support the efforts of the Section and the AIAA as we all strive to achieve the purpose of AIAA, which is: 

to advance the arts, sciences, and technology of aeronautics and astronautics and to nurture and promote the professionalism of those engaged in these pursuits. 

And may the purpose be with us, 

Good Luck and Best Wishes, 

Russell E, Filler, Associate Fellow 

Chairman 1998-99 

AIAA Houston Section 

As we approach the 100th anniversary of flight, lets look ahead to where we can go. 
 

                                            (Return)

  · Physics is Fun" Day in February. 

  · The Mars Design Settlement Competition in February. 

  · The Student Paper Conference in Albuquerque, NM in  April. 

· We promoted communication among engineers and scientists by continuing to enhance our local technical committees, conduct Lunch and Learns and we created a new TC on EVA. 

· We started the term by holding the first Section Leadership Retreat, which prepared the officers for their responsibilities and furthered their professional development. 

· We reached out to expand our knowledge and understanding by co-sponsoring another speaker with the Arts Alliance of Clear Lake this year. 

· We continued to encourage greater corporate support and involvement in AIAA, reaching out to Boeing and USA. They sponsored some of our monthly meetings. USA became the 56th corporate member of AIAA this year. Several corporate mangers spoke to the Section this year. 

· We continued to offer relevant programs that expanded our insight into the aerospace industry. 

The year was as dynamic and interesting as I had hoped we could make it. I think we tried to conduct these events and still have fun, enjoy working together, and do things with a sense of pride and accomplishment. 

I think the next big opportunity for AIAA and the Houston Section will be the celebration of the "Evolution of Flight." As the 100th anniversary of flight approaches,the AIAA has launched the "Evoulution of Flight," a campaign to honor and celebrate this landmark in humanity's journey of discovery. An advisory committee including Neil Armstrong, Scott Crossfield, Edward C. "Pete" Aldridge, and Patty Wagstaff leads the campaign. I have already volunteered to be the Deputy Director for Region IV for "Evolution of Flight." I look forward to where AIAA 

Your Executive Council and Councilors are listed below: 

Executive Coucil: 

Chairperson Merri Sanchez/NASA 

Chair-Elect Garland Bauch/NASA 

Vice Chair-Operations Mike Lisano/Lim-Com Corp. 

Vice Chair-Technical John Vollmer/Boeing 

Treasurer Michael Oelke/Oceaneering 

Secretary Jorge Molina/Boeing 

Councilors: 

Neil Johnson/Oceaneering (Young Member) 

Steve King/Lockheed Martin 

Karin Loftin/Wylie Labs 

Joe Mayer/Boeing 

Quin Sheppard/Boeing 

The main theme of the presentation was don't get caught up in conventional thinking and do allow yourself to think beyond current technology. Mr. Bushnell covered many topics including basic research (the US is falling behind the rest of the world), the information explosion (the revolution is just beginning), aircraft design (change is coming including perhaps a personal 'air-car'), and on and on. 

In short, it was one of those events - well, you had to be there! 

Above: The Section was pleased to welcome Dryden Lecturer Dennis Bushnell April 20th. Attending were (from left to right): Astronaut and AIAA member Andy Thomas, Dennis Bushnell, Chairman Russ Filler, and Councilor Merri Sanchez. 

Changed since last Council Meeting in bold 

July 1999 

7/7 Lunch and Learn: "Role of Human Habitability Study in Space Facility and Vehicle Design" with Constance Adams 

7/16 Region IV RAC meeting in Dallas 

7/17 Regional Leadership Conference in Dallas 

7/17 "The Magic of Physics" at the Education Fair at the Lunar Rendezvous Fun Run 

7/20 Executive Council Meeting 

7/23 Newsletter inputs due  

August 1999  

TBD Mail out notice of August meeting 3 weeks prior 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Mentor Day for winner of TAMU sponsored high school essay contest  

TBD Executive Tour with Boeing management  

TBD Executive Tour with USA management  

TBD Executive Tour with Lockheed management 

8/1 Section Insurance Form due if we want it 

8/10 RAC Telecon, 4 pm 

8/12 Executive Council Meeting 

8/18 Newsletter inputs due 

8/26? Honors and Awards Banquet and Program  

September 1999 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Telecon to Australian Section  

TBD Executive Tour with Muniz management?  

TBD Executive Tour with Hernandez manage ment?  

TBD Executive Tour with Oceaneering manage ment? 

9/1 Submit Distinguished Lecturer request to National 

9/11 Executive Council Leadership Retreat 

9/15 Newsletter inputs due 

9/23 Dinner Program 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Executive Tour with Johnson Engineering management?  

TBD Executive Tour with LinCom management?  

TBD Executive Tour with DynCorp manage ment? 

10/1 Sustained Performance Award nominations due to National 

10/1 Engineer of the Year Award nomination due to National 

10/7 Executive Council Meeting 

10/13 Newsletter inputs due 

10/21 Dinner Program 

10/30 Section Programs calendar due to National 

10/30 Regional visit support request due to National 

November 1999 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Telecon to Australian Section 

11/4 Executive Council Meeting 

11/10 Newsletter inputs due 

11/9 RAC Telecon, 4 pm 

11/18 Dinner Program 

December 1999 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

12/2 Executive Council Meeting 

12/8 Newsletter inputs due 

12/16 Dinner Program or Holiday Party 

January 2000 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

1/6 Executive Council Meeting 

1/12 Newsletter inputs due 

1/10-13 38^th AIAA Aerospace Science Meeting and Exhibits in Reno 

CALENDAR...continued from page 7... 

February 2000 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Telecon to Australian Section  

TBD Congressional Visits Day  

TBD Physics is Fun Day  

2/3 Executive Council Meeting 

2/9 Newsletter inputs due 

2/17 Dinner Program 

2/20-26 Engineer's Week  

March 2000 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

3/2 Executive Council Meeting 

3/8 Newsletter inputs due 

3/16 Dinner Program 

3/30-4/1 Houston Science and Engineering Fair  

April 2000 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Telecon to Australian Section  

3/30-4/1 Houston Science and Engineering Fair  

4/6 Executive Council Meeting 

4/12 Newsletter inputs due 

4/15 Associate Fellow upgrade nominations due  

4/20 Student Paper Competition 

4/21 Annual Technical Symposium 

4/27 Dinner Program 

May 2000 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

TBD Workshop on Automation and Robotics and Innovations 2000  

TBD Clear Lake City Technical Societies Annual Awards Banquet  

5/1 Houston Section Spirit of Apollo scholar ships applications due  

5/4 Executive Council Meeting 

5/10 Newsletter inputs due 

5/10-12 Global Air and Space 2000 International Business Forum and Exhibits in Washing ton, DC  

5/18 Dinner Program 

June 2000 

TBD Lunch and Learn 

6/1 Executive Council Meeting 

6/7 Newsletter inputs due 

6/15 Fellow nominations due 

6/22 Honor and Awards Banquet 

6/30 Section Reports due to Regional and National 

July 2000  

TBD RAC meeting and Regional Leadership Conference, location TBD 

As part of the "NASA Means Business" program Texas A&M conducted a Space Exploration Essay Contest to reach out to the community to inform them of the Student Branch's goals and objectives, as well as to get the community involved in this exciting project. The Houston Section provided consultation to the students on how to conduct the contest. 

The Houston Section was one of the sponsors. We arranged for the second place prize for the Space Exploration Essay Contest with "A Mentoring Day" at Johnson Space Center! The winner was Garret Reece. He is a junior in high school who is interested in computers and engineering. 

Above: The Section hosted a visit of the Texas A&M Student Branch April 23, 1999. 

The schedule for the Space and Life Sciences (SLS) Panel that I chaired changed on the day of the conference from that posted to the WEB on Thursday. We had a good selection of topics. Included were papers covering exercise physiology, alternate reference mission to Mars, KC-135 flights, (both high school students and test projects for endoscopic surgery), and a discussion covering a probe to measure electric field in space. One speaker, Jeff Jones, M.D. had been placed in a session where he did not belong, but was then able to replace a speaker who failed to show for the SLS session. Dr. Jones filled in the empty slot and everything was on schedule. After the final speaker, Dr. Jones continued further discussion of his talk with interested people. 

The speaker provided a high level overview of the Systems Engineering process, discussed how this process is tied to the contract content and structure, and the mechanisms for contract change. The presentation was very well received and generated a considerable amount of dialog in addition to several questions which were answered and discussed among the audience. 

The intent of this Lunch-n'-Learn was to serve as a lead-in to a series of Systems Engineering Lunch-n'-Learn sessions focused on disseminating, teaching "tried and true" methods, and processes to promote successful application of Systems Engineering techniques. 

At the end of this first in a series of Lunch-n'-Learns, suggestions were solicited for content, and specific Systems Engineering areas of interest, for future Lunch-n'-Learn topics. I have already received several inputs and welcome any other suggestions. Please E-mail your suggestions to john.vollmer@sw.boeing .com or call John at 281-336-4623. 

The next Lunch-n'-Learn topic will address, "Requirements Allocation and Traceability." 

This CD-ROM has a variety of detailed technical reports and data such as the Mission Operation Reports, News References, and Press Kits from all the Apollo missions in pdf form. It also contains a variety of other information such as biographies, mission summaries, mission patches, technical diagrams, and several electronically formatted books such as the photo-filled Apollo Expeditions to the Moon (SP-350), and audio and video clips. 

The CD runs on both Mac and PC platforms and requires Windows 95 or higher. You may obtain a copy of the CD-ROM by sending a self-addressed, padded envelope with $1.90 in postage to the NASA Headquarters Information Center, Mail Code CI-4, 300 E Street SW, Room 1H23, Washington, D.C. 20546-0001, 202-358-0000. 

Stephen Garber 
 

We presented the following awards: 

Certificate of Appreciation: Steve King - For continued support and dedication to the section. He stepped in to serve as acting Program Chair while continuing excellent support as Section Secretary and provided financial expertise throughout the year. 

Certificate of Appreciation: Joy Conrad - For outstanding leadership in the Houston Section Pre-College Activities including "Physics is Fun" Day and the Houston Science Fair. 

In addition: 

The Executive Council selected Bill Arceneaux as the AIAA nominee for the Clear Lake Council of Technical Societies Technical Administrator of the 

The Executive Council selected John Vollmer as the AIAA nominee for the Clear Lake Council of Technical Societies Technical Person of the Year for his work as the Boeing Launch Package Manager for the International Space Station Node/PMA flight on STS-88. 

The Executive Council selected Dr. Victor Bond as the AIAA nominee for the Clear Lake Council of Technical Societies Educator Person of the Year for his work at the University of Houston Clear Lake. 

Above: Apollo 16 moonwalker John Young was the featured speaker at the Awards Banquet. 

Above: The Executive Council selected Bill Arceneaux (on the left) as the AIAA nominee for the CLCTS Technical Administrator of the Year for his outstanding work as Manager of the ISS Test and Verification Office. 

Left: JSC Director, Mr. George Abbey, gave the ISS SVC welcome. 

Right: The ISS SVC Planning Committee - 

Above: (left to right) Houston Section Incoming Chair Merri Sanchez, Actor Bruce Boxlietner, and 1998-1999 Section Chairman Russ Filler. 

   

Actor Bruce Boxleitner 

The Commanding Officer for Babylon 5 is Captain John Sheridan, former captain of the Earthforce military starship Agamemmnon. Captain Sheridan was portrayed by the well-regarded actor Bruce Boxleitner, known to many as the series lead in "Scarecrow And Mrs. King." He has also starred in numerous TV movies, miniseries and feature films. 

According to the memo, once it was clear that Armstrong and Aldrin could not come home, Nixon was to call the "widows-to-be" to express condolences. He was then to deliver a speech to the nation. 

Finally, at the point when NASA would cut off radio communications with the moon and leave the astronauts alone to die, a clergyman was to commend their souls to "the deepest of the deep," in the fashion of a burial at sea. 

The planned memo was drafted for Nixon's chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman, by Nixon's speech writer, William Safire, now a columnist for the New York Times. At the same time, Safire drafted the short speech Nixon was to give. 

Years ago, in a memoir about his time in the Nixon White House, Safire briefly alluded to this secret planning. 

"On June 13, Frank Bormanan astronaut the president liked and whom NASA had assigned to be our liaisoncalled me to say, 'You want to be thinking of some alternative posture for the president in the event of mishaps on Apollo XI.' When I didn't react promptly, Borman moved off the formal language'like what to do for the widows.'" 

In two weeks, this country will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the day when Neil Armstrong and Edwin E. "Buzz" Aldrin Jr. stepped onto the surface of the moon. 

Over the past three decades, many of the details of that epic trip have been told over and over again in books and movies. And so, naturally, we now take it as a given that the trip was destined to be a successthat the American astronauts, after landing on the moon, would return home safely. 

But it didn't seem so inevitable at the time. It turns out that officials at the White House and NASA quietly made contingency plans for what President Richard Nixon would do if Armstrong and Aldrin got stuck on the moon and were doomed to die there. 

There was even a euphemism for how such a tragedy would end. The stranded astronauts would "close down communications" with Mission Control in Houston and be left in silence, either to die slowly or, perhaps, to commit suicide. 

Nixon's speech was to end with these haunting words, in effect a tribute to Armstrong and Aldrin: "For every human being who looked up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind." 

I came across the remarkable documentary evidence of this lugubrious planning a couple of years ago, while doing research in the National Archives.