Houston - Blog Posts

Huge trendy courtyard stone patio kitchen photo with a pergola

Houston Bathroom A classic powder room design illustration

it do be like that tho

Fountain Houston Example of a large trendy backyard stone and custom-shaped pool fountain design

Single Wall - Home Bar Shaker cabinets, gray cabinets, granite countertops, gray backsplash, glass tile backsplash, and a single-wall contemporary porcelain tile and black floor dry bar remodel idea

Landscape Vertical Garden

Outdoor Kitchen - Contemporary Patio Example of a huge trendy front yard stone patio kitchen design with a roof extension

Tile Houston Large tuscan beige two-story mixed siding house exterior photo with a hip roof and a tile roof

Patio in Houston

Brick Exterior in Houston

I really wish i could go to the How did we get here tour but sadly i can't and im very sad. The one chance i get to meet or see Jacksepticeye in person 😢😭😭

No better way to explore Texas

Exterior - Mediterranean Exterior Mid-sized tuscan beige two-story stone house exterior photo with a hip roof and a tile roof

Single Wall Home Bar Wet bar - small transitional single-wall wet bar idea with blue cabinets, mirror backsplash and white countertops

Houston Wet Bar Mid-sized trendy dark wood floor wet bar photo with an undermount sink, recessed-panel cabinets, gray cabinets and granite countertops

... and we’re ‘GO’ for launch! 🚀

NASA Flight Integration Chief and past Mission Control Flight Director, Ginger Kerrick, is here answering your questions during this Tumblr Answer Time. Tune in and join the fun!

We’re sending people to space this week 🚀 Here’s your chance to ask a past Flight Director in Mission Control your questions!

Ginger Kerrick will be taking your questions in an Answer Time session on Friday, September 27 from 12pm - 1 pm ET here on NASA’s Tumblr! Ginger served as a Flight Director in Mission Control for 11 years and is now the Flight Integration Division Chief at Johnson Space Center. Find out what it’s like to send humans to space and learn more about her position as our first female Hispanic flight director. Make sure to ask your question now by visiting http://nasa.tumblr.com/ask!

Ginger Kerrick, as a child, dreamed of growing up to be either a basketball player or an astronaut. When neither dream came to fruition, Kerrick developed a fresh perspective – best summed up by the phrase “It just wasn’t meant to be” – and later became part of our team, serving in the Mission Control Center at the NASA Johnson Space Center as a Flight Director who has, to date, supported 13 International Space Station and five joint space shuttle missions. It was there that Kerrick, a few years earlier, became the first non-astronaut Capsule Communicator (CapCom), the flight controller that speaks directly to the astronaut crew in space, on behalf of the rest of the Mission Control team. 

Today, Ginger Kerrick is the Flight Integration Division Chief at our Johnson Space Center. Her department is responsible for crew safety and training, among a list of other duties. She has worked for NASA since 1994, and interned here while she was earning a bachelor’s degree in physics from Texas Tech University. She also has a master’s degree in physics from the university.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

5 Myths About Becoming a Flight Director

Have you ever wondered if you have what it takes to become a NASA Flight Director? 

They are historically well known for making difficult calls and guiding the crew through "Houston, we've had a problem" situations, but in all spaceflight operations, they are ultimately responsible for the success of the mission.

We're looking for a new class of Flight Directors to join our team, and there are a few things to know.

Here are a few myths about becoming a Flight Director:

MYTH: You have to have already been a flight controller in Mission Control at NASA to become a flight director.

FACT: Although many flight directors have previously been NASA flight controllers, that is not a prerequisite to apply. The necessary experience could come from the military, other spaceflight organizations or areas that operate in similar high-stakes conditions.

MYTH: You have to already have a special spaceship flying license to apply.

FACT: The only place to get certified is on the job at NASA. Once chosen, the new flight directors will receive training on flight control and vehicle systems, as well as operational leadership and risk management.

MYTH: All flight directors have advanced degrees like, a PhD.

FACT: While a Bachelor's degree in engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science or mathematics from an accredited university is necessary, an advanced degree is not required to become a flight director.

MYTH: Flight directors are required to have experience in the space industry.

FACT: While you need at least three years of related, progressively responsible professional experience to apply, it can come from a variety of industries as long as it represents time-critical decision-making experience in high-stress, high-risk environments.

MYTH: Only astronauts become flight directors and vice versa.

FACT: To date, only one astronaut, T.J. Creamer, has become a flight director, and no flight directors have become astronauts. However, members of the flight controller teams have become astronauts. The "capsule communicator," or CAPCOM, role in Mission Control is more often filled by astronauts because the CAPCOM is the one responsible for relaying the flight director's decisions to the astronauts in space.

Okay, but What are the requirements?

Basic Qualification Requirements

Applicants must meet the following minimum requirements before submitting an application:

Be a U.S. citizen.

Have a Bachelor's degree from an accredited institution in engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science or math.

Have at least three years of related, progressively responsible professional experience.

Applications for our next Flight Director class open on Dec. 3, 2021 and close Dec. 16, 2021! Visit: go.nasa.gov/FlightDirector

Learn more about what Flight Directors do with our Everything About Mission Control Houston video featuring Flight Director Mary Lawrence!

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

100 Days in Houston

A lot can happen in 100 days...

At our Johnson Space Center, located in Houston, it has been busy since July 10. Here are six things that have been going on in Houston with our astronauts, the International Space Station and our next great telescope! Take a look:

1. Our James Webb Space Telescope is Spending 100 Days in a Freezing Cold Chamber

Imagine seeing 13.5 billion light-years back in time, watching the birth of the first stars, galaxies evolve and solar systems form…our James Webb Space Telescope will do just that once it launches in 2019.

Webb will be the premier observatory of the next decade, studying every phase in the cosmic history of our universe, ranging from the first luminous glows after the Big Bang, to the formation of solar systems.

On July 10, the Webb telescope entered Johnson Space Center’s historic Chamber A for its final cryogenic test that lasts about 100 days behind a closed giant vault-like door. 

Why did we put Webb in this freezing cold chamber? To ensure it can withstand the harsh environment it will experience in space.

The telescope has been in a space-like environment in the chamber, tested at cryogenic temperatures. In space, the telescope must operate at extremely cold temperatures so that it can detect infrared light – heat radiation -- from faint, distant objects. 

To keep the telescope cold while in space, Webb has a sunshield the size of a tennis court, which blocks sunlight (as well as reflected light from the Earth and Moon). This means that the sun-facing side of the observatory is incredibly hot while the telescope-side remains at sub-freezing temperatures.

2. Our 12 new astronaut candidates reported to Houston to start training

Our newest class of astronaut candidates, which were announced on June 7, reported for training on August 13. These candidates will train for two years on International Space Station systems, space vehicles and Russian language, among many other skills, before being flight-ready. 

3. Our Mission Control Center operated for 2,400 hours

While astronauts are in space, Mission Control operates around the clock making sure the crew is safe and the International Space Station is functioning properly. This means workers in Mission Control work in three shifts, 7 a.m. – 4 p.m., 3 p.m. – midnight and 11 p.m. – 8 a.m. This includes holidays and weekends. Day or night, Mission Control is up and running.

4. Key Teams at Johnson Space Center Continued Critical Operations During Hurricane Harvey

Although Johnson Space Center closed during Hurricane Harvey, key team members and critical personnel stayed onsite to ensure crucial operations would continue. Mission Control remained in operation throughout this period, as well as all backup systems required to maintain the James Webb Space Telescope, which is at Johnson for testing, were checked prior to the arrival of the storm, and were ready for use if necessary.

5. Crews on the International Space Station conducted hundreds of science experiments.

Mission Control at Johnson Space Center supported astronauts on board the International Space Station as they worked their typical schedule in the microgravity environment. Crew members work about 10 hours a day conducting science research that benefits life on Earth as well as prepares us for travel deeper into space. 

The space station team in Houston supported a rigorous schedule of launches of cargo that included supplies and science materials for the crew living and working in the orbiting laboratory, launched there by our commercial partners. 

6. Two new crews blasted off to space and a record breaking astronaut returned from a stay on space station

Houston is home to the Astronaut Corps, some of whom end up going out-of-this-world. On July 28, NASA Astronaut Randy Bresnik launched to the International Space Station alongside Italian astronaut Paolo Naspoli and Russian cosmonaut Sergey Ryazanskiy. Joining them at the International Space Station were NASA Astronauts Joe Acaba and Mark Vande Hei who launched September 12 with Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin.

When NASA Astronaut Peggy Whitson landed with crewmates Jack Fischer of NASA and Fyoder Yurchikhin of Roscosmos, she broke the record for the most cumulative time in space by a U.S. astronaut. She landed with over 650 days of cumulative flight time and more than 53 hours of spacewalk time. Upon her return, the Human Research Program in Houston studies her health and how the human body adapted to her time in space.

Learn more about the Johnson Space Center online, or on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.

Tile Houston Large tuscan beige two-story mixed siding house exterior photo with a hip roof and a tile roof

Porch Front Yard

This is an illustration of a concrete front porch with a roof extension in the mid-sized craftsman style.

Backyard Porch Mid-sized trendy stone porch idea with a roof extension

Blake Zimmerman of Houston, Texas explains microgrids and the use of them to promote sustainability. https://blakezimmermanhouston.net/

Blake Zimmerman of Houston, Texas discusses what Liquefied Natural Gas is, how it’s created, and why it’s an essential export for the United States.

Large Wine Cellar Inspiration for a large mediterranean dark wood floor and brown floor wine cellar remodel with diamond bins

Houston Family Room Library Inspiration for a large contemporary enclosed dark wood floor and brown floor family room library remodel with gray walls and a media wall