1
00:00:01,346 --> 00:00:03,446
>> Dan Huot: Hey, everybody,
Dan Huot, back here inside

2
00:00:03,596 --> 00:00:05,706
with the Spaceflight
Meteorology Group,

3
00:00:05,866 --> 00:00:07,206
joined again by Frank Brody.

4
00:00:07,206 --> 00:00:11,306
Now, Frank is in charge of a lot
of the work that this division

5
00:00:11,306 --> 00:00:12,796
of the National Weather
Service does

6
00:00:12,796 --> 00:00:14,256
for monitoring human
spaceflight,

7
00:00:14,636 --> 00:00:17,706
but you guys do a lot of work
for the actual center here

8
00:00:17,706 --> 00:00:20,076
in Houston and, and the
surrounding areas as well,

9
00:00:20,076 --> 00:00:22,906
being in a pretty
tricky weather situation,

10
00:00:22,906 --> 00:00:24,126
like we are, being the Gulf.

11
00:00:24,556 --> 00:00:27,086
So why don't you start off, tell
us a little bit about just some

12
00:00:27,086 --> 00:00:28,436
of the day to day
stuff you guys do

13
00:00:28,436 --> 00:00:29,876
with weather alerts
and things like that.

14
00:00:30,356 --> 00:00:30,586
>> Frank Brody: Well,

15
00:00:30,586 --> 00:00:32,996
the National Weather Service
Spaceflight Meteorology Group is

16
00:00:33,066 --> 00:00:36,896
here, located at NASA Johnson
Space Center in Houston and one

17
00:00:36,896 --> 00:00:40,516
of our key duties is
to forecast the weather

18
00:00:41,066 --> 00:00:43,226
for the local community

19
00:00:43,226 --> 00:00:45,496
and weather sensitive
operations here at JSC.

20
00:00:46,066 --> 00:00:50,256
So we issue lightning
advisories and lightning alerts,

21
00:00:50,826 --> 00:00:54,406
which tells the population and
weather sensitive operations

22
00:00:54,766 --> 00:00:56,476
that there's lightning around

23
00:00:56,476 --> 00:00:57,996
and so they can take
precautions.

24
00:00:58,396 --> 00:01:01,086
Also, if there's a
tropical storm or hurricane,

25
00:01:02,206 --> 00:01:03,906
we will customize
that information

26
00:01:03,956 --> 00:01:06,456
for the decision makers
here at Johnson Space Center

27
00:01:06,826 --> 00:01:10,776
so that they can decide on
whether to close the center

28
00:01:11,156 --> 00:01:13,766
or after the fact,
when to reopen it.

29
00:01:14,176 --> 00:01:15,336
So we're here to provide

30
00:01:15,336 --> 00:01:17,696
that customized weather
decision support

31
00:01:17,976 --> 00:01:20,116
for the decision makers here
at Johnson Space Center.

32
00:01:20,456 --> 00:01:24,556
>> Dan Huot: So Mission Control
in -- it runs 24 hours a day,

33
00:01:24,556 --> 00:01:27,026
7 days a week, 365 days a year.

34
00:01:27,026 --> 00:01:29,756
So in the event of a
potential contingency

35
00:01:29,756 --> 00:01:32,616
that a hurricane could
cause, you guys are the ones

36
00:01:32,616 --> 00:01:34,146
that are feeding
them the information

37
00:01:34,536 --> 00:01:36,876
and letting them know about
backup options, right?

38
00:01:37,226 --> 00:01:40,986
>> Frank Brody: We do advise
the Space Station Control Center

39
00:01:41,406 --> 00:01:44,166
about a coming storm in parallel

40
00:01:44,166 --> 00:01:47,736
with advising the Center
Operations Group and that way,

41
00:01:48,056 --> 00:01:53,056
if there's a need for the
Space Station Control Center

42
00:01:53,146 --> 00:01:55,876
to relocate people to
another NASA facility,

43
00:01:56,286 --> 00:02:00,026
they can get a start on that
and so we will advise them

44
00:02:00,026 --> 00:02:04,456
on where the storm is, what the
likely impact is, the timing,

45
00:02:05,166 --> 00:02:09,156
the risk to the center
so that they can make

46
00:02:09,156 --> 00:02:09,956
informed decisions.

47
00:02:10,466 --> 00:02:10,646
>> Dan Huot: Okay.

48
00:02:10,646 --> 00:02:13,596
And I know we have some -- this
is data from today, correct?

49
00:02:13,596 --> 00:02:15,026
That we have back
here on our monitor.

50
00:02:15,026 --> 00:02:15,796
>> Frank Brody: Yes,
that is correct.

51
00:02:15,936 --> 00:02:18,746
>> Dan Huot: And so, I mean
we're, we're looking at the,

52
00:02:18,926 --> 00:02:20,716
the Caribbean right now.

53
00:02:20,716 --> 00:02:22,436
So are you guys doing, you know,

54
00:02:22,436 --> 00:02:25,006
monitoring for other NASA
centers, besides JSC?

55
00:02:25,346 --> 00:02:26,526
>> Frank Brody: We're
monitoring strictly

56
00:02:26,556 --> 00:02:27,716
for Johnson Space Center.

57
00:02:28,016 --> 00:02:31,316
We do provide advice to
[inaudible] facility,

58
00:02:31,476 --> 00:02:35,056
occasionally we, we, we've
given them some information.

59
00:02:35,546 --> 00:02:36,666
But on the screen here,

60
00:02:36,666 --> 00:02:39,146
you'll see that the tropics
are actually relatively quiet

61
00:02:39,146 --> 00:02:41,596
and the middle of the
screen is the remnants

62
00:02:41,656 --> 00:02:44,106
of Tropical Storm Debbie,
which crossed Florida

63
00:02:44,106 --> 00:02:45,446
and is now moving
into the Atlantic.

64
00:02:45,446 --> 00:02:51,426
And the little white blob
in the, in the southern --

65
00:02:51,426 --> 00:02:54,736
or the Central Atlantic is
a very weak tropical wave

66
00:02:54,736 --> 00:02:56,846
that the hurricane
center is monitoring

67
00:02:56,846 --> 00:02:58,756
and we're watching too, in
case that should develop.

68
00:02:58,756 --> 00:02:59,966
But right now, it does not look

69
00:02:59,966 --> 00:03:01,756
like that will develop
much, if at all.

70
00:03:01,986 --> 00:03:03,626
>> Dan Huot: And so
you guys are currently

71
00:03:03,626 --> 00:03:06,146
in constant communication with
the National Weather Service,

72
00:03:06,186 --> 00:03:10,056
being part of them as well and
so you're also serving kind

73
00:03:10,056 --> 00:03:13,176
of as a, a feeder of information
for the surrounding area,

74
00:03:13,356 --> 00:03:15,096
around the Johnson
Space Center, correct?

75
00:03:15,096 --> 00:03:16,586
For the communities around us?

76
00:03:17,226 --> 00:03:18,626
>> Frank Brody: Well,
the communities

77
00:03:18,816 --> 00:03:22,676
around Johnson Space
Center sometimes rely on JSC

78
00:03:23,196 --> 00:03:27,666
to see what the center is doing
and as it turns out, the --

79
00:03:27,666 --> 00:03:30,836
in the Emergency Operations
Center on the third floor

80
00:03:30,946 --> 00:03:33,736
of building 30 here, the third
floor of Mission Control,

81
00:03:34,106 --> 00:03:36,876
there's an area where the local
communities could relocate

82
00:03:37,176 --> 00:03:39,726
if necessary, to conduct
their emergency operations.

83
00:03:40,246 --> 00:03:44,496
And in that case, we would
be supporting not only JSC,

84
00:03:44,496 --> 00:03:45,916
but some of the local
communities

85
00:03:45,916 --> 00:03:47,226
if they needed weather
information.

86
00:03:47,526 --> 00:03:49,706
>> Dan Huot: So not only
looking out for our spacecraft,

87
00:03:49,706 --> 00:03:51,726
but looking for -- out
for all these people

88
00:03:51,726 --> 00:03:54,926
that help keep the International
Space Station functioning