November 29 - December 1, 2006
The Westin, Los Angeles Airport
2006 California Space Authority SpotBeam Award Recipients
In Special Recognition of the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching
Margaret Cagle
Caleb Cheung
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The Federal Leadership Award
Emily Stover DeRocco
U.S. Department of Labor Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training
The Federal Leadership Award is presented to U.S. Department of Labor Assistant Secretary for Employment and Training Emily Stover DeRocco for establishing a vision of change for the nation's workforce system, articulating this vision, demonstrating the vision and aligning resources through the Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) initiative to implement the vision.Ê She provides oversight and guidance to the nation's $10 billion public workforce investment system.Ê
Not only has Assistant Secretary DeRocco encouraged regional communities to partner together and to leverage the collective public and private sector assets designed to develop a more highly skilled workforce, but she has been able to transcend the bureaucracy at the federal level in a way that it has never before been done.Ê She has worked steadfastly to encourage other federal agencies to align their resources to the WIRED region's strategies and to be a partner in the transformation of the economy and its support systems.Ê The result has been a more coordinated approach to employment, training and economic development from the top layers of government to the local delivery systems.
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State Leadership Award
Assemblymember Ted W. Lieu
A State Leadership award is being presented to Assemblymember Ted W. Lieu for his tireless support of the California aerospace industry.Ê After his election to the 53rd Assembly District encompassing the key space strategic communities of El Segundo and Torrance, he was appointed to Chair the Assembly's Select Committee on Aerospace.Ê Demonstrating his sincere interest in keeping high-tech, high-wage aerospace manufacturing jobs in California, Assemblymember Lieu has hosted two aerospace select committee hearings, and he has authored numerous pieces of legislation designed to help improve the aerospace business climate in California.
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National Security Space Award
14th Air Force
The 14th Air Force is being awarded the National Security Space Award for activation of the new Joint Functional Component Command (JFCC) for Space.Ê The new Command, established in July 2006, will ensure United States freedom of action in space while ensuring that our adversaries do not use space against us.Ê At the activation ceremony in September, General James Cartwright, Commander of US Strategic Command, indicated the JFCC SPACE will "spearhead the transformation in space, the realization that things are fundamentally different and that we must adjust the way we do business, how we organize and how we present capability."Ê Major General William Shelton, Commander of the JFCC SPACE, will serve as the single point of contact for military space operational matters to plan, task, direct and execute current and future joint space operations.
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Space Science Research
Dr. Jack Lissauer, NASA Ames Research Center
Dr. Mark Showalter, SETI Institute
The Space Science Research award is being presented to planetary astronomer, Dr. Mark Showalter, of the SETI Institute (Mountain View, CA), and collaborating astronomer, Dr. Jack Lissauer, of NASA Ames Research Center (Moffett Field, CA), for the discovery of two new rings, Uranus' 12th and 13th, and two new moons, Mab and Cupid, orbiting the planet.Ê The rings are so far from the planet, they are being called Uranus' "second ring system."Ê
The discovery was reported in December 2005 following a long-term observing campaign by Dr. Showalter and Dr.Ê Lissauer.Ê Showalter and Lissauer captured numerous visible-light images of Uranus between 2003 and 2005 with Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys and also found the rings in archival images taken during Voyager 2's flyby of Uranus in 1986.Ê Analysis of the Hubble data reveals the orbits of Uranus' family of inner moons has changed significantly over the past decade.Ê Such discoveries contribute greatly to our understanding of how planetary systems are formed and sustained.Ê
The SETI Institute was founded in 1984 as a private, non-profit organization dedicated to science research, education and public outreach.Ê NASA Ames Research Center is one of the nation's premier research labs in support of NASA missions and the Vision for Space Exploration.
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Business Development and Retention
Southern California Edison
The Business Development and Retention award is being presented to Southern California Edison for its unwaivering support of California space enterprise.Ê Demonstrating its commitment to California space enterprise, Southern California Edison dedicated significant resources to ensure that the California Space Authority's California Innovation Corridor proposal for the U.S. Department of Labor's Workforce Innovations in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) grant was successful.Ê Additionally, Southern California Edison has taken a leadership role in planning for the future of California space enterprise by having a representative serve on the California Space Authority Board of Directors since its inception and by being a supporter of the 2004 and 2007-2010 Space Enterprise Strategic Plan.Ê
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The Buzz Aldrin Space Education & Workforce Award
Northrop Grumman Corporation
A Buzz Aldrin Space Education and Workforce Award is being presented to Northrop Grumman Corporation for the Northrop Grumman Corporation Weightless Flights of Discovery program.Ê This educational program offered teachers a rare professional development opportunity that incorporated experiments and demonstrations in complete weightlessness.Ê The parabolic flights were supplied by ZERO-Gravity Corporation (NV).Ê Forty California science teachers participated in the San Diego program, which was held in August 2006.Ê The teachers will incorporate the exciting hands-on science experience into their math and science curricula to inspire children to study math and science.
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The Buzz Aldrin Space Education & Workforce Award
Sally Ride Science
A Buzz Aldrin Space Education and Workforce Award is being presented to Sally Ride Science on the fifth anniversary of its founding for its dedication to empower young women to explore the world of science.Ê Sally Ride Science has reached over 50,000 girls and young women since October 2001 with its Science Festivals, TOYchallenge competition, Summer Science Camps, After-School programs and Sally Ride Science Clubs.Ê
Headquartered in San Diego, Sally Ride Science was founded by pioneering astronaut, Sally Ride-America's first woman in space.Ê Dr. Ride started Sally Ride Science to expand her commitment to support girls and young women interested in math and science.
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Commercial Space Award
Magellan
With the early introduction of the first U.S. commercial handheld GPS receiver to today's portable car navigations systems, outdoor handheld navigation devices and survey products, Magellan is being presented the Commercial Space Award for its commercialization of GPS technology.Ê Magellan has made significant contributions in bringing what began as a strictly military application to the masses and has "changed the rules for positioning and navigation."Ê The company was founded in 1986 as Magellan Systems Corporation and exists today as Magellan, a consumer and commercial GPS company,Ê with headquarters in San Dimas, California.
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Space Innovation Award
SpaceDev, Inc.
The Space Innovation Award is presented to SpaceDev, Incorporated of Poway, California for the August 2006 award of a United States patent entitled, "Hybrid Propulsion System," for technology related to fine altitude and control systems on a spacecraft.Ê Founded in 1997, SpaceDev creates and sells affordable and innovative space products and solutions to government and commercial enterprises.
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International Space Award
Hannover Fairs USA, Inc.
The International Space award is being presented to Hannover Fairs USA, Inc.-the U.S. subsidiary of Hannover, Germany-based trade show organizer, Deutsche Messe AG-for the annual International Satellite and Communications Exchange (ISCe) Conference that it organizes.Ê Held in California since its inception five years ago, ISCe is the premier West Coast satellite and communications event highlighting satellite-based services, technologies and solutions for the commercial, consumer, civil and military industries.
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Civil Space Award
NASA Ames Research Center
NASA Ames Research Center (Moffett Field, California) is being presented the Civil Space Award for the development and associated research on the Phenolic Impregnated Carbon Ablator (PICA) heat shield used for the Stardust re-entry capsule. In January 2006, the Stardust capsule re-entered the Earth's atmosphere at the highest re-entry speed ever, penetrating Earth's atmosphere much like a meteor. This event provided a unique opportunity to observe and analyze the performance of the heat shield and the chemistry associated with the evaporation process during re-entry.
NASA Ames is the agency's lead center for thermal protection systems and the results of the Stardust analysis will be utilized to design the thermal protection system for the Orion crew vehicle.Ê The Boeing Company (Huntington Beach, CA) was selected in September 2006 to support the design and development of a lunar direct return-capable heat shield for the Orion crew vehicle.Ê NASA Ames will use its thermal (arc jet), structural and environmental facilities to conduct extensive testing and evaluation of Boeing's PICA deliverables, assessing the material performance and suitability for use inÊ the Orion heat shield.
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Space Entertainment
Gene Roddenberry (Posthumously)
Perhaps best known as the creator of the science fiction magnum opus Star Trek, celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, Gene Roddenberry was a visionary, a futurist, and an unmatched inspiration to the fans of his works.Ê California Space Authority presents the first Space Entertainment award to Gene Roddenberry posthumously in recognition of his tremendous influence on the transformation of space.Ê Gene Roddenberry changed the public perception of space from a cold and threatening void into a frontier full of mystery, unforeseen opportunity, and a natural medium of exploration for sentient beings across the Universe.
Both a pilot and a writer, Gene Roddenberry quickly understood the power of television and left his flying career to become a Hollywood scriptwriter.Ê The first Star Trek pilot, entitled "The Cage", was pronounced "too cerebral" by the network and rejected.Ê Once on the air, however, Star Trek developed a loyal following and has since become the first television series to have an episode preserved in the Smithsonian, where an 11-foot model of the U.S.S. Enterprise is also exhibited on the same floor as the Wright brother's original airplane and Lindbergh's "Spirit of St. Louis." In addition to the Smithsonian honors, NASA's first space shuttle was named Enterprise, in response to hundreds of thousands of letters from fans demanding that the shuttle be named after the beloved starship.Ê On October 24, 1991 Gene Roddenberry passed away and a world mourned the loss of one of television's foremost pioneers.Ê The legacy and message that Gene Roddenberry brought to the world lives on through his family and in the hearts and minds of Star Trek fans the world over.Ê His works will continue to inspire humans to look beyond for untold generations to come.
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California Astronaut Hall of Fame
Colonel Richard A. Searfoss, U.S. Air Force (Ret.)
The California Astronaut Hall of Fame award is presented to former NASA Astronaut and U.S. Air Force Colonel (Ret.) Richard A. Searfoss of Tehachapi, California.Ê Selected by NASA in January 1990, he became an astronaut in 1991.Ê He piloted two Space Shuttle missions, STS-58 and STS-76, and commanded a third, with over 939 hours in space and 5400 hours flying time in 61 different types of aircraft.Ê His first space flight in 1993 set the record for the longest duration Space Shuttle mission and through its life science research experiments, expanded our knowledge of human and animal physiology.Ê In 1996, he piloted Atlantis to the Russian space station, Mir.Ê This mission included the first ever space walk on a combined Space Shuttle-Space Station complex.Ê In 1998, with the STS-90 "Neurolab" mission on Columbia, he commanded the most complex scientific research space mission ever flown, with unparalleled mission success.
Col. Searfoss retired his astronaut wings in 1998, yet he continues to inspire others to look to the stars.Ê As chief judge for the Ansari X Prize in 2004 and a leader in numerous entrepreneurial space ventures, Col. Searfoss's work has encouraged the development of the space tourism movement.Ê He has been a strong supporter California Space Authority, having served as a member of the Board of Directors and as a Space Enterprise Advisory Council Co-Chairman.Ê
