NASA’s Robert Cabana, Kathy Lueders, and Vanessa Wyche to Have Keynote Discussion at ISSRDC
Conference to be held in Washington, D.C., July 25-28
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA (D.C.), July 14, 2022 – NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration Associate Administrator Robert Cabana, NASA Associate Administrator of the Space Operations Mission Directorate Kathy Lueders, and NASA’s Johnson Space Center Director Vanessa Wyche will join the 11th annual International Space Station Research and Development Conference(Abbreviation: ISSRDC) The only conference dedicated exclusively to showcasing how the International Space Station is advancing science and technology and enabling a robust and sustainable market in LEO. This annual conference brings together leaders from the commercial sector, U.S. government agencies, and academic communities to foster innovation and discovery onboard the space station. ISSRDC is hosted by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, manager of the ISS National Lab; NASA; and the American Astronautical Society. (ISSRDC) in a keynote conversation. The conference will be held in person at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C., July 25-28.
Within this session, Cabana is expected to lead a conversation with Lueders and Wyche that focuses on the critical importance of our nation’s only orbiting laboratory and future goals and objectives for space-based R&D leveraging the platform. Last year, the Biden-Harris administration announced the extension of the ISSInternational Space Station through 2030. With that announcement, the space station transitions into a decade of results that will demonstrate value to our nation through space research, enable commerce in low Earth orbit(Abbreviation: LEO) The orbit around the Earth that extends up to an altitude of 2,000 km (1,200 miles) from Earth’s surface. The International Space Station’s orbit is in LEO, at an altitude of approximately 250 miles. (LEO), and pave the way for technological innovations that will lead to the first woman and person of color to reach the Moon’s surface through the Artemis program.
Cabana is the agency’s third highest executive and highest-ranking civil servant. Prior to joining the administrator’s executive team, Cabana had been director of NASA’s John F Kennedy Space Center in Florida since 2008. A decorated pilot in the U.S. Marine Corps who graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, Cabana first joined NASA as a member of the 1985 astronaut class. A veteran of four spaceflights, Cabana logged more than 38 days in space. His fourth flight was the first assembly mission of the International Space Station (ISS) in December of 1998.
As associate administrator for NASA’s space operations mission directorate, Lueders is responsible for overseeing the ISS, the Commercial Low Earth Orbit Development Program, the Space Communications and Navigation Program, the Launch Services Program, Human Spaceflight Capabilities, and operations of crewed Artemis missions. Prior to this role, Lueders was the manager of the Commercial Crew Program at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center and has served in various management positions within the agency since 1992.
Joining Associate Administrator Cabana and Lueders will be center director for NASA’s Johnson Space Center, Vanessa E. Wyche. Johnson Space Center—home to the ISS program, the Gateway program, the Orion program, America’s astronaut corps, and a host of future space developments—is instrumental in executing NASA program objectives that are pertinent to our presence in LEO. Prior to leading Johnson Space Center, Wyche served as its deputy director, among other management positions within NASA.
ISSRDC brings together leaders from the commercial sector, U.S. government agencies, and academic communities to foster innovation and discovery onboard the ISS. The conference is hosted by the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, Inc., manager of the ISS National Laboratory; NASA; and the American Astronautical Society (AAS).
To learn more about the conference, including how to register, please visit www.issconference.org.
Media Contact:
Patrick O’Neill
904-806-0035
PONeill@ISSNationalLab.org
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About the International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory: The International Space Station (ISS) is a one-of-a-kind laboratory that enables research and technology development not possible on Earth. As a public service enterprise, the ISS National Lab allows researchers to leverage this multiuser facility to improve life on Earth, mature space-based business models, advance science literacy in the future workforce, and expand a sustainable and scalable market in low Earth orbit. Through this orbiting national laboratory, research resources on the ISS are available to support non-NASA science, technology and education initiatives from U.S. government agencies, academic institutions, and the private sector. The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space, Inc. (CASIS(Abbreviation: CASIS™) The nonprofit organization that manages the ISS National Lab, which receives at least 50 percent of the U.S. research allocation on the International Space Station to facilitate research that benefits humanity (NASA manages the other 50% and focuses on research for space exploration purposes).) manages the ISS National Lab, under Cooperative AgreementA cooperative agreement is Federal assistance that establishes a relationship between the U.S. Government and a recipient in which the principal purpose of the relationship is to accomplish a public purpose of support or stimulation. Since 2011, the Center for the Advancement of Science in Space™ (CASIS™) has managed the National Laboratory® through a Cooperative Agreement with NASA. with NASA, facilitating access to its permanent microgravityThe condition of perceived weightlessness created when an object is in free fall, for example when an object is in orbital motion. Microgravity alters many observable phenomena within the physical and life sciences, allowing scientists to study things in ways not possible on Earth. The International Space Station provides access to a persistent microgravity environment. research environment, a powerful vantage point in low Earth orbit, and the extreme and varied conditions of space. To learn more about the ISS National Lab, visit issnationallab.org.
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