The Waterline
September 24, 2015
Vol. XXXII No. 37
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NEWS AND INFORMATION FOR THE NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION
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Service calls: are they emergent, urgent, or routine? By Whitney Anderson NSAW public affairs
Whenever the utilities we use on a daily basis go haywire, our immediate reaction is to panic. “Fix it now! It’s an emergency because in some way our day has been inconvenienced.” However, we often fail to think about the large amount of people experiencing similar inconveniences or about the people who have to find ways to remedy these problems. In an attempt to alleviate the frequency of service calls while spacing out the work load for installation contractors, Naval Support Activity Washington has a service ticket protocol under the base operating contract to prioritize service tickets accordingly. These service calls have been broken down into the three categories: -Emergency: 30 minute response. Work until emergent condition is arrested. - Any facility deficiency that immediately compromises the mission or life, health, and safety. Examples include-failure of any utility, fire protection, environmental control, or security alarm systems. - Urgent: 2 working days to complete. - Any deficiency that does not immediately endanger personnel or property, but extended delays or repairs could result in damage to government property, or soon affect the security, health or well-being of personnel or the continued operation of a service or system. - Routine: 10 working days to complete. - Any deficiency that does not qualify as emergency or urgent, but is needed to maintain the facility condition. The maintenance performed restores the deficiency to the item’s intended purpose and normal working condition. Does not include improvements. Lt. j.g. Laura Hess, NSAW public works officer, said that while the definition of each service call may seem clear, they still have to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. “While a broken lock on an average door would typically be classified as routine maintenance, if it’s a secure space and the lock is broken then that turns into an emergency,” said Hess. “EMCOR [installation government contracting services] has 30 minutes to respond when an emergency service ticket comes in, and by respond I mean they get the call, they are on the site within 30 minutes and starting to work to arrest the emergency,” Hess said. Hess said that a broken water pipe immediately becomes an emergency call to shut off the source of the water. However, any additional maintenance or repair once the water has been stopped becomes routine, and work will be scheduled and performed within 10 days. Hess said that the timeline given for each service to occur is a precise one and the contractors are bound to each time frame by their contract unless otherwise specified. “There are only certain limits that a service ticket can cover,” said Hess. She said that each service ticket can only cover $2,500 and 32 hours of manual labor, after that time if the work exceeds the limit it is passed on to the public works department as a task order. “[Public works] acquire additional funding, and in
The Waterline
Commander, Naval Support Activity Washington Capt. Monte Ulmer NSAW Public Affairs Officer Brian Sutton NSAW Deputy Public Affairs Officer Patrick Gordon Waterline Staff Writer Whitney Anderson Page Designer Comprint Military Publications Matthew Getz All stories must be submitted by 4 p.m. the Thursday prior to publication. E-mail stories to:
U.S. Navy photo
Naval Facilities Engineering Command Washington Plant Manager Larry Gray inspects equipment atop a cooling tower at the Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, D.C. Equipment such as this is regularly maintained, but should a service call need to be placed, NSAW public works wants personnel to know the difference between emergency, urgent, and routine items. that case the work is not going to be completed in 10 days, but the contractors still did their part and are abiding by the contract.” said Hess. “We’ll go through and get the money so that we can pay EMCOR the additional amount they need to complete the work and rework the time limit in that instance.” Hess said that it is important personnel understand these service call descriptions, and that above all they exercise patience. “EMCOR today has over 100 open service tickets, whereas the normal average is 60,” said Hess. Hess said the spike in service tickets filed during the
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summer months is due to a rise in air conditioning calls, but she said the fall months will likely bring some relief before the start of winter. Hess added that those wishing to file a service ticket have options to do so. “There are two different ways to call in a service ticket,” said Hess, “one is to call the FMS-facility maintenance specialist-but they can also call the public works service desk directly if it’s an emergency.” For more information on service call descriptions or to enter a service ticket, call (202) 433-3101 or visit the public works department in building 166 suite 100.
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CNIC janitorial services increased to COL 3 By Whitney Anderson NSAW public affairs Has your office waste become an unsightly nuisance? Starting Oct. 1 Commander, Navy Installations Command will be implementing new janitorial all facility services from current standing common output level 4 to common output level 3, or from COL 4 to COL 3, as used as the general installation terms. Under COL 3, many services will now be administered more frequently.“COL 4 doesn’t allow for trash pickup desk side,” said Coleman. “As we go to COL level 3 we’ll see a reinstitution of some of those things that a lot of people are more familiar with.” Coleman remarked that despite the increase in service, it does not negate the need for individuals to supplement cleaning measures in between professional cleanings. “It’s probably still incumbent amongst the tenants to do some level of care themselves,” said Coleman. Coleman added that under COL 3 high volume areas such as restrooms, which were only cleaned once a day under COL 4, will now be serviced once every shift. “If you have a watch floor that has a 24-hour service, instead of the bathroom being cleaned once that day, if it’s three shifts, it will be cleaned three times,” Coleman said. Coleman explained that some of the problem with leaving areas such as the flooring solely up to tenants to clean is that if the act isn’t being done enough it tends to wear down the flooring and outdate the carpet. Replacing flooring can be much more expensive than extending its life with regular cleaning.
U.S. Navy photo by Patrick Gordon
Gerald Watson collects his office trash in building 101 for disposal at a central collection point. Starting Oct. 1 Commander, Navy Installations Command will be implementing new janitorial services increasing all facility services, including weekly desk side trash pickup. “Sweeping and vacuuming become monthly under COL 3, whereas under COL 4 it was something the tenants had to do themselves,” said Coleman. Although under COL 3 no area is left up to the tenant to clean, Coleman expressed that it is still imperative for peo-
ple to have enough respect for a shared workplace to clean up after themselves on a regular basis. “The goal here is to not only maintain the things we have through janitorial contracts, but to also instill a workplace pride for the people that work here so
that they’re in tune to take care of the facilities as well,” said Coleman. Coleman said he believes this to be a positive change for the installation because it will take some of the burden off of the individual, but it will not excuse them from all responsibility. “It’s important that we remember the same way we decorate or personalize our cubes or office space with paintings and pictures as a form of pride, it’s important we pick up and take out the trash in that same way,” said Coleman. Ensign Samuel Reimer, FMFS branch head, said buildings on base that see more public traffic will be cleaned more frequently than what is outlined for COL base level 3, and are looked at on an individual basis. Reimer explained that those commands that had a need for additional janitorial services, outside of what is to be provided in COL 3, would fund all other expenses themselves. “The region funds for up to COL level 3 base measure and anything additional the individual command funds that difference,” Reimer said. COL level 3 janitorial services have been funded at this time for the duration of FY16 and will start Oct. 1. Janitorial Services -01 October, all CNIC facilities increase to COL 3: - Restroom cleaning - once every shift - Drinking fountain cleanings - daily - Desk side trash pickup - once a week - Sweeping and vacuuming - monthly - Floor stripping, coating, and buffering - annually - Carpet & rug deep cleaning - every two years
NSAW traffic safety committee improving safety By Whitney Anderson NSAW public affairs
U.S. Navy photo by Patrick Gordon
Lt. Dan Jensen uses a crosswalk to safely cross the street at WNY. The NSAW traffic safety committee was created to generate and maintain an active interest in occupational safety and health while proposing policy and program objectives to minimize the number of traffic-related mishaps and injuries surrounding the installation.
Traffic safety initiatives continue to be pushed as a priority on the Washington Navy Yard. Naval Support Activity Washington will persist in upholding all traffic laws for personnel on the installation as the issue of traffic in the surrounding the D.C. continues to affect commutes and parking. The traffic safety committee, overseen by Capt. Monte Ulmer, NSAW commanding officer, and Lt. Cmdr. John Liddle, NSAW executive officer, is composed of representatives from each tenant command and meets quarterly to discuss various traffic hazards on the installation. Edward Lewis, NSAW safety specialist, said the committee has been taking its duties on the Washington Navy Yard seriously, and measures have already been put into place to lessen the burden of traffic violations in the previous months. Lewis explained the committee was created to generate and maintain an active interest in occupational safety and health, providing program assistance to commanding officers, while proposing policy and program objectives to minimize the number of trafficrelated mishaps and injuries surrounding the installation. “The traffic safety committee is a venue which provides an opportunity for various groups and individuals to express multiple viewpoints and interests,” said Lewis. “The goal is to enhance traffic safety awareness for NSAW personnel and tenant command personnel as well as dependents.” One safety measure that has come as a result of the committee is that of the pedestrian crosswalk sign at the 9th Street gate. Lewis said the crosswalk sign serves to show the commitment of the committee
to make efforts to ensure the safety of everyone that comes onto the installation. One protocol the traffic committee has decided to reinstate on the installation is that of towing enforcement for parking violators. Vehicles that impede traffic flow, get in the way of first responders or block fire hydrants will be towed at the driver’s expense. “The hope is to enhance traffic safety awareness and improve the effectiveness of the Navy Occupational Safety and Health Program,” said Lewis. Chief of Police Michael McKinney, Naval District Washington Regional Police, said that parking violations on the installation have gotten increasingly worse, emphasizing the need for traffic enforcement. “One of the largest things we’re running into here, particularly in our parking garage areas, people are parking on the end of rows where there is not a space, or they’re parking on the side walls as you would turn to go up to the next level, reducing the roadway,” said McKinney. “Illegal parking like that endangers vehicle and pedestrian traffic in the garage both coming and going.” Another problem police have come across on the yard are drivers parking in spaces that don’t belong to them or using items to illegally block spaces for their personal use later. “We’ve found people who are attempting to use their own cones or otherwise block a space with some type of furnishing-we’ve had to move a couple of chairs and stuff of that nature placed in spacesand it’s amazing that people are willing to go to that length,” said McKinney. To hear more on the traffic safety committee or make your voice heard on the traffic matters affecting you and your individual command, check out www. dcmilitary.com/waterline or www.Facebook.com/NavalSUpportActivityWashington to find the date of the next quarterly tenant command council meeting.
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NRL, aerospace industry host CanSat student challenge Naval Research Lab Public Affairs Office Created in 2004 by the American Astronautical Society and American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, the Texas CanSat Competition is an undergraduate and graduate level design-build-launch event simulating the end-to-end life cycle of a complex engineering project. Since its start in 2004, the CanSat competition has become an annual event providing a unique opportunity for university and college student teams to design,
U.S. Naval Research Laboratory photo by Jamie Hartman
Co-sponsored by the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, the CanSat competition is a design-build-fly competition that provides international colleges and universities an opportunity to experience the design lifecycle of an aerospace system.
build, and launch a soda can-size satellite designed to meet specific mission objectives. Teams must be able to design and build a space-type system following the approved competition guide, and then compete against each other at the end of two semesters to determine the winners. The 2015 mission simulates a science vehicle traveling through a planetary atmosphere, sampling the atmospheric composition during descent. The CanSat is composed of two primary components, a science vehicle and a re-entry container that protects the vehicle during descent. When deployed from the rocket the re-entry container must descend, via parachute, with the science vehicle secured in the container. When released, the science vehicle should utilize a passive helicopter/auto gyro recovery method to reduce its descent rate to less than 10 meters per second. The vehicle must then stabilize and descend at a minimum altitude of 300 meters. During descent the science vehicle should record video (pointing at Earth) until it lands, and must collect telemetry data during the descent at a 1 hertz (or one cycle per second) rate to a ground station. When the vehicle lands it should hold one large hen’s egg, unbroken from the fall. Spanning a decade long commitment by the U.S Naval Research Laboratory and other federal and commercial sponsors, the goal of CanSat is to foster student growth in multiple disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. “Competition sponsors like NASA Goddard, AAS, JPL, Kratos, and the NRL, continue to help make this competition successful year after year,” said Ivan Galysh, NRL engineer and organizer of the CanSat competition. “In adding to this year’s success, I additionally appreciated the help of NRL team members Dhiman Sengupta, Jim Yen, Ashley Wall, Dmitriy Bekker, Jamie Hartman, and Peggy Newman who, on short notice, pulled together 400 certificates for the event.” Beginning in October, student teams from around the nation, as well as South America, Europe, and Asia, enter to design and build a space-type system. With preliminary design reviews held in February and critical design reviews held in April, the competition culminates in June on the donated property of Texas landowner, Mr. Jim Burkett. “Thanks to Mr. Burkett and other volunteers from Texas, such as Gary Strickland and his students from Coleman High School, and Pat Gordzelik’s team for providing food and launch support for more than 100 attendees, this annual event continues to be rewarding, providing opportunity for students to learn, hands-on, the fundamentals and challenges necessary for successful real world missions.” Of the 59 original teams, 42 attended the launch competition with first place being won by Team AGH Space Systems from AGH University of Science and Technology, Poland; second place went to Team Ground Pounder University of Alabama Huntsville, USA; third place was Team Raven Knights Carleton University of Ottawa, Canada; fourth place, Team MetuSat from Middle East Technical University, Turkey; and fifth place was Team Vaimaanix from SRM University, India; and the Tenderfoot Award was The Preachers from Seth Jai Parkash Mukand Lal Institute of Engineering & Technology, North India.
Bluejacket to blue and gold: USNA seeking enlisted applicants for the Class of 2020 By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Tyler Caswell USNA public affairs
With the recent release of ALNAV 065/15, the United States Naval Academy is now accepting motivated sailors and Marines, active and reserve, for admission to the Class of 2020. Successful candidates will be topquality sailors and Marines with a competitive academic and military profile. Preparation begins as early as high school. Typically, fleet applicants who ranked in the top 40 percent of their high school class are considered good candidates. Additional requirements include SAT/ ACT scores taken within the last two years, four years of high school mathematics and English and on year of chemistry. Two years of a foreign language is highly recommended. A candidate’s application can be strengthened with demonstrated strong leadership and command recognition. Candidates must be of good moral character and have no record of disciplinary action during the three years preceding application for admission. Packages will not be reviewed without the commanding officer’s endorsement. The process of application to USNA can seem daunting while serving your
country. It is highly recommended to seek out a mentor at your command, especially one who attended USNA. Mentors can guide and help articulate why the individual wants to attend USNA in preparation for the interviews needed for the CO’s endorsement, which stands in place of the nomination. “It was definitely huge having an officer mentor help me through the process,” said Midshipman 1st Class Andrew Whisner, a former enlisted hospital corpsman. “My executive officer was a USNA graduate, and he went as far as to help me finish the last pieces of my application that I couldn’t physically do myself while I was deployed to Afghanistan. Chances are there is an academy graduate at your command.” Beyond academics and military bearing, physical fitness is a top priority at USNA. Applicants are required to possess outstanding physical fitness, as determined by the Candidate Fitness Assessment and recent command Physical Fitness Assessments. “Everyone is in shape here at the academy,” said Midshipman 1st Class Anna Wade, a prior enlisted mass communication specialist. “My time period before getting ready to come here was a lot of physical training. I knew I was going to be pitted against people four years younger than myself, and I knew I wanted to be
in better shape than I was at the time. I would suggest to anyone to do an honest self-assessment and make the improvements you need to.” Changing from a military-focused environment to an academic-focused one can be a challenge. Applicants are encouraged to enroll in college courses in higher math and science while at their command in order to strengthen their admission application and to help them adapt to an academic environment. “A major challenge for enlisted and reservists is transitioning back to an academic environment,” said Chief Logistics Specialist Maximo Regino, coordinator for USNA Fleet Naval Academy Preparatory School. “Often they have to attend the Naval Academy Preparatory School, and the environment of NAPS replicates that of USNA. We know these service members are out in the fleet training, performing and focused on their mission. NAPS is here to encourage the transition. I would tell potential candidates take a college-level mathematics or science course to get yourself back into the academic groove.” Up to 170 regular and reserve personnel may be appointed to USNA each year. The experience they bring to the Brigade of Midshipmen is invaluable. “Our prior [enlisted] midshipmen provide a unique and important perspective. They are able to relate lessons from the
fleet back to what they are doing here at the academy and they are able to convey those lessons to their fellow midshipmen,” said Col. Steve Liszewski, commandant of midshipmen. “One of the reasons I am a Marine today is because I had a squad leader during Plebe Summer who had been a prior enlisted Marine. His inspirational leadership and the example that he set helped guide my decision to become a Marine.” The four years at USNA are challenging in order to develop midshipmen morally, mentally and physically. For enlisted candidates who are accepted the change can be a humbling experience. “You’ve been in two years, made rank and now you are coming to USNA and you’re taking orders from a second year midshipman who has no [fleet] experience. It’s hard for a lot of ‘priors’,” said Whisner. “You might have more fleet experience, but that individual has more academy experience and that’s what matters here. I see people struggle with that pride. This is a very humbling place and you have to adapt or you won’t make it.” The deadline to apply to the Class of 2020 is December 31, 2015. The deadline for all completed application documents is January 31, 2016. Individuals interested in applying can find a list of needed resources at www.usna.edu/Admissions/ For more news from U.S. Naval Academy, visit www.navy.mil/local/usna/.
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Richardson relieves Greenert as CNO
From Chief of Naval Operations Public Affairs Office
Adm. John Richardson relieved Adm. Jonathan Greenert as the chief of naval operations in a ceremony, Sept. 18, at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. Richardson became the 31st CNO, the Navy’s most senior officer and, as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a principle advisor to the secretary of the Navy, secretary of the defense and the president. Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus spoke to mark the significance of the event. “We are here today to mark the change of command in one of the most storied, most historic and iconic posts in our military or any military-the chief of naval operations,” said Mabus. “This job has been held by Leahy and King and Nimitz and Burke and Zumwalt-the very title implies action. It’s the chief of naval operations.” Mabus added, “It is fitting that this ceremony takes place here at the Naval Academy, where the Navy legacy and legend for both our outgoing and incoming CNO began.” Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, the senior Pentagon official in attendance, presided over the event. Carter spoke of the Navy’s many accomplishments during Greenert’s tenure. “With Adm. Greenert standing the watch, America’s sailors and Marines have been where it matters, when it matters - rebalancing to the Asia-Pacific, where much of America’s future will be written; reinforcing our longstanding NATO allies; supporting our forces ashore in the turbulent Middle East; and providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief the world over, in a way that only America can and does do,” said Carter. Before concluding, Carter’s remarks turned to the future, adding “Continuing and building on all this work will be critical going forward, and Adm. John Richardson was a clear choice to carry it out.” During the ceremony, Richardson took the podium to thank Greenert and his wife Darleen. “To have the chance to work with Adm. Greenert - to have he and Darleen as friends and mentors, is like being an imme-
U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Nathan Laird
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert is relieved by Adm. John Richardson at a change of office ceremony held at the U.S. Naval Academy. diate family member.” The new CNO briefly discussed his worldview and the optimism he has for the future. “I think that deep in our guts we sense a shift in the world, and we sense that once again it will be vitally important to protect our interests on the seas,” said Richardson. “As an American and as your CNO, I am very optimistic. Because this is exactly the environment in which Americans thrive, and we will thrive.” In his farewell speech, Greenert, after four years as CNO and 40 years of honorable service as a naval officer, thanked those who served with him during his tenure, his friends, family and the men and women serving in the U.S. Navy. “People are this country’s asymmetric advantage,” said Greenert. “We talk a lot about the sailors, but it’s also the civilians-It’s also the families. It’s great American willing to
do the job. They are our advantage.” Greenert also praised his successor.“Challenges remain, but we have the right team,” said Greenert. “Adm. Richardson has all that it takes, but he also has what it takes, and that is Dana [his wife], and they are ready to meet those challenges.” The Office of the Chief of Naval Operations has established the following social media accounts for sailors and citizens to communicate with and get information from the new CNO: - Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/CNORichardson) - Twitter (http://twitter.com/CNORichardson) - Flickr (http://flickr.com/CNORichardson) - Instagram (http://instagram.com/CNORichardson)
Rogers outlines cyber challenges facing DoD, U.S. By Jim Garamone DoD News Defense Media Activity The commander of U.S. Cyber Command described the role of deterrence in the cyber world, the problems of defending against cyber enemies, and “operationalizing” cyber capabilities in the Defense Department during a discussion at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Sept. 8. Navy Adm. Michael S. Rogers stressed that these cyber challenges face all Americans. Wilson Center President Jane Harmon demonstrated the truth of that statement by asking anyone in the audience who had not been hacked to raise his or her hand. Not a soul did. Defense of the cyber realm requires solving the challenge of “bringing together a broad expanse of organizations with different expertise, different capabilities, different perspectives inside the government, outside, whether they wear the uniform or in civilian clothes,” Rogers said. “How do we bring this together in a coherent way as a nation to deal with problems that are only growing in their complexity?” Cybercom is tasked with defending DoD networks from attacks, and the command is at war 24/7, the admiral said. The command also responds to cyberattacks and develops the capabilities that provide options to civilian leaders and combatant commanders. Cybercom “must learn, even as we build capabilities of the future,” Rogers said. “This is a long-term effort.
It always reminds me of the counterterrorism piece in that regard. It will require a sustained focus at multiple levels.” The admiral emphasized the need for legislation governing the cyber world, noting that it is not a panacea, but necessary to establish “rules of the road.” He also emphasized the need for public and private entities to work together. Americans Expect Cyberattacks Harmon asked Rogers if there was the danger of a “cyber Pearl Harbor.” The admiral said the image of the Pearl Harbor attack that precipitated U.S. entry into World War II was “a bolt from the blue” that America did not expect and had little defense against. Americans expect cyberattacks, and the potential targets of those attacks -- both public and private -have defenses, the admiral said. “I expect in my time as the commander of United States Cyber Command, the command will be called about its mission of responding to cyber incidents of significant consequence,” he said. “It’s not ‘if,’ it’s ‘when.’ All of us, we’ve got to generate action and not just talk. Because in the end this is about a very real set of capabilities and circumstances out there that aren’t something imaginary.” The Sony attack, the Office of Personnel Management hack and the attacks on Aramco in Saudi Arabia all show the capabilities of cyberattacks, Rogers said. “There isn’t a segment in our society that hasn’t had to deal with this,” he said. Defense and prevention efforts in cyberspace must abide by the rule
of law, the admiral said. U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency operate in a free and open republic, he added. “We cannot attempt to override [the laws] or pretend that they are not relevant to what we do,” Rogers said. “If we can’t engender trust in the nation we are serving, we are doomed to failure.” The Role of Deterrence The admiral said deterrence in the cyber realm has an offensive aspect to it, but defense also plays a role. Classic means of deterrence rely on convincing an opponent that they will fail despite their best efforts. “That’s one reason in the department we are investing a lot of capability … to make it harder for opponents to actually penetrate our networks,” he said. The second idea is convincing opponents that, even if they succeed, the cost they would pay would far outweigh any value that would be generated, he said. “It’s part of the reason that when we came up with the [DoD cyber] strategy -- in an attempt to deter behavior -- we would talk about the department’s intent to generate a spectrum of capability from the defensive to the offensive,” he said. Deterrence works with nation states, but will it work against nonstate actors? Rogers doesn’t have an answer for that, but noted that “every group, every individual, values something. There’s a way that we can highlight that which you value and potentially threaten if you continue to pursue destabilizing courses of actions.”
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3000th ‘Sungrazer’ comet imaged by NRL space coronagraph instrument Naval Research Lab Public Affairs Office Karl Battams -- a computational scientist at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory -- confirmed the discovery of the 3,000th near-sun comet using an NRL instrument Sept. 15. “The comet was very small and only visible for a few hours before being vaporized by the sun’s intense radiation,” said Battams. “But despite their small size, these comets really present real science value in a multitude of ways.” The comet images come from NRL’s Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph Experiment instrument, which orbits on the Solar & Heliospheric Observatory. “We are taking images of the region of space that surrounds the sun,” said Battams, “and this allows us to see small objects very near the sun that would otherwise be invisible from earth.” SOHO is a collaboration between NASA and the European Space Agency. NRL has been sharing LASCO data online since 1995; as a result, volunteers and citizen scientists discover most of the LASCO comets. “I could make a fulltime job out of looking for comets and I still wouldn’t find a fraction of the ones that these guys have found,” says Battams. “So, for me, the 3000th comet is mostly their achievement.” Worachate Boonplod, a science writer from Thailand, discovered the 3,000th comet in data recorded by the spacecraft on Sept. 13 and 14. Russ Howard, who first started looking at comets through coronagraphs in the 1970s, is the NRL principal investigator for LASCO. After unexpectedly observing the first sungrazer, “We saw probably one a year for five years,” he said. But now, thanks to LASCO and crowd-sourcing, “We’ve gone from one a year to one every few days.” “From a science perspective,” said Battams, “it’s more than doubled the population of known comets on record. More than half of all known comets now carry SOHO’s name.” And that’s changed the science. “It allows you to rethink things, how much material there is entering our world,” said Howard. The SOHO satellite hovers in force balance between the sun and our planet. “SOHO is always right there, it’s always looking right down the barrel of the gun,” said Battams. And when the sun takes aim at earth, in the form of powerful solar eruptions, it can directly impact daily life andilitary operations. “The mission was looking for these big eruptions from the sun, called coronal mass ejections, or CMEs,” said Howard. A major CME, like one that NRL watched just barely miss earth in 2012, could cause an estimated $2 trillion in damages and take 4-10 years for recovery. Even more normal space weather can disrupt satellite communications and radar, and blow out power transformers; so forecasting space weather is hugely impor-
Photo courtesy of Naval Research Lab
Seen in an image taken by LASCO, a U.S. Naval Research Laboratory coronagraph instrument, in 2002 a powerful coronal mass ejections, like this one, can impact space weather and disrupt military missions; NRL scientists Russ Howard and Dr. James Chen were the first to define their structure, using LASCO and other data. tant and many NRL programs are devoted to improving these capabilities. The three-day predictions of CMEs that LASCO provides from SOHO give time for utilities to disconnect transformers from the grid, for airplanes to reroute away from the poles, and for satellites to be switched into safe mode. Battams also studies the chemistry of the comets themselves to learn about how our planets formed. “Comets are the leftover building blocks of when the solar system was formed,” he said, “and what we hope to do is learn about the initial conditions and early composition of the very early solar system, and from that try and piece together how everything came together to form the planets and everything we have now.” In December 2015, SOHO will mark 20 years in space. “I think the longevity of it is a testament to all these people who build the spacecraft, operate the observatory, and work on the data,” said Howard. “There’s really a dedication.” Sungrazers probe near the sun to predict space weather In studying sungrazers, NRL has learned a lot about the sun and how its activity affects us here on earth.
“We can treat the comets as mini-probes of the solar wind and near sun conditions,” says Battams. “You can look at their behavior, how their tails are reacting to the solar environment-it’s like a wind sock on an air field.” These data points help scientists understand and better forecast space weather. “It’s almost like dropping a rock in a pond,” said Battams. “So we have a model of how we think the pond’s going to behave, but when we drop the rock in a pond we can compare our model to what we actually observe.” Sungrazing comets can, on rare occasion, also help us learn about the magnetic fields around the sun. In 2011, “We had a big comet that went right near the sun,” said Battams. “For a short time, it kind of lit up the magnetic field lines near the sun.” These events help scientists better understand CMEs, and how they impact space weather. “SOHO has really shown that CMEs are the cause of the major geomagnetic storms,” said Howard. “What happens is this huge amount of material is headed out into space. And if it hits the earth’s magnetosphere, this protective envelope of mag-
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netic fields, it causes the atmosphere to ring-to sort of move in and out.” CMEs affect us more than one might think for a sun almost one million miles away. “That causes sub-storms to develop in the earth, it causes the atmosphere to heat up-and so that increases drag on spacecraft, it induces a field in the earth’s crust,” said Howard. “And if you have a long transmission line, you get what’s called a backwards [electromotive force], which can burn up transformers in power substations. It’s an amazing event.” Scientists still don’t fully understand what causes CMEs. “The holy grail is to try to predict it,” said Howard. But for now, at least, “you can have a few days advance warning. Light gets here in eight minutes, but the material travels more slowly: it takes one to three days.” Do comets hold the keys to earth’s origins? In addition to space weather, studying the chemistry of the comets themselves may lead to a better understanding of how our delicate blue planet came to be. “One of the biggest questions we have now is, where did earth get its water?” said Battams. “When earth was very young, it was kind of like this big molten ball-so where did all the water come from?” Collisions, before gravity helped sweep things up, used to be much more frequent. “The solar system is a lot cleaner and tidier place now than it was if you go back, say, 3.5-4 billion years,” he said. At that time, “a lot of this debris would have impacted the primitive earth”-including, possibly, water. “You have to keep going backwards in time, and at some point you reach the point of where comets were formed,” said Battams. “We know that comets are mostly made of frozen water and frozen gas.” They also have amino acids, complex molecules, carbon-many of the basic ingredients for life. “There’s a ton of question marks about our origins,” said Battams. “So you study what’s left over from that time and see what you can figure out from there.” Most of the comets LASCO sees, about 85 percent, are the smaller remnants of a larger comet that’s broken apart. “What will have happened is, several millennia ago, a big comet went near the sun and, due to the sun’s gravity, it basically crumbled and formed a small family of comets,” said Battams. This comet group continued to orbit the sun-crumbling further each time it came back around. “After that happened a few times, we were left with this long string of comets, and that’s a lot of what we’re seeing with SOHO.” LASCO’s revelations could tell us as much about our future as they do about our past. “That gives us information about the evolution of objects in the inner solar system, and the way their orbits evolve and the way they might fall apart,” said Battams.
Thursday, September 24, 2015
Waterline
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Thursday, September 24, 2015