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By European Space Agency
Image: This rare, almost cloud-free view of the remote Elephant Island in Antarctica was captured in February 2023 by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission. View the full article
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By European Space Agency
ESA’s navigation testbed vehicle participated in a campaign organised by Norwegian governmental authorities to assess the impact of jamming and spoofing on satnav systems and test innovative technologies for detection and mitigation.
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By NASA
iss070e002586 (Oct. 7, 2023) — Southern Italy (to the right of the image) meets Sicily (to the left), the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of 20 Italian regions. At its closest point, Sicily resides only 2 miles (~3.2km) from mainland, the two connected by the Strait of Messina. From 260 miles above, the International Space Station offers a unique vantage point of where the two regions meet.NASAView the full article
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By NASA
6 Min Read Human Resources
The NSSC provides Human Resources (HR) services including: Benefits, Classification Appeals and Services, Development of Information Materials, Drug Testing, Electronic Official Personnel Folders (eOPF), Employee Notices, Employee Recognition and Awards, Financial Disclosure, General Employment Inquiries (GEI), HR Surveys, In-Processing, Leave Programs, Payroll, Personnel Action Processing (PAP), Retirement, Senior Executive Services (SES), Staffing, Suitability Adjudication, Survivor Benefits, Training Administration, Unemployment Compensation, and Workers’ Compensation.
Benefits
NASA offers a broad array of benefits programs, including health, dental, vision and life insurance, flexible spending accounts, and long-term care insurance to help meet the needs of you and your family.
Classification Appeals
The NSSC Classification Appeals Team reviews Agency-level appeals submitted by NASA employees who disagree with their current position classification and who wish to appeal their grade, occupational series, or pay system. The NSSC team supports the Agency by evaluating appeals and positions based upon OPM’s classification standards and issuing evaluation statements for final Agency decision.
Classification Services
Position Classification is the process used to evaluate the duties and responsibilities of a position in order to assign a proper title, occupational series and grade. The Classification Team ensures NASA’s classification program meets regulatory requirements and is consistent with OPM and Agency policy guidance.
Development of Information Materials
The HR Development of Information Materials Team supports NASA-wide requirements for HR document creation.
Drug Testing
The NSSC Drug Testing Team administers the NASA Drug Testing Program for applicants selected for or working in a Testing Designated Position (TDP) for all pre-employment, random, voluntary, post-accident or unsafe practice, reasonable suspicion, and follow-up testing. Tests are conducted for NASA employees in TDPs that work at Centers and Satellite locations.
Electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF)
The eOPF is an electronic version of your Official Personnel Folder and contains all the official records required to document your Federal career.
Employee Notices
The NSSC issues NASA-wide employee notices on a variety of HR topics. These notices engage and inform the NASA civil service workforce in topics such as annual notifications required by Federal law and regulations, employee rights and responsibilities, and various benefits and entitlements.
Employee Recognition and Awards
The NSSC provides general administrative support to the Agency and all NASA Center Award Offices to advance Agency- and Center-specific award programs, including certificate production and maintenance of the NASA Automated Awards System (NAAS).
Financial Disclosure
The NSSC Financial Disclosure Team provides support to Agency ethics offices, human resources offices, and financial disclosure filers for Confidential Financial Disclosure Office of Government (OGE) Form 450, Public Financial Disclosure Report OGE Form 278e, and Periodic Transaction Report OGE Form 278-T through NASA’s Ethics Program Tracking System (EPTS) and related services.
General Employment Inquiries
Many individuals worldwide are interested in a NASA career. The NSSC provides a variety of HR support activities including responding to a broad variety of questions from the public regarding Federal employment at NASA. As the Agency resource for these types of inquiries, the NSSC General Employment Inquiry team is available to field requests for information on subjects such as how to apply for a NASA position, citizenship requirements, student programs, veteran employment, and other general employment information.
For information about NASA jobs and the employment process, visit Careers at NASA. If you have general questions about the application process, student employment programs, opportunities for veterans, or other general employment questions, contact the NSSC by e-mail at nssc-contactcenter@nasa.gov or phone at 1-877-677-2123 (1-877-NSSC123).
HR Surveys
The NSSC supports, coordinates, facilitates, and administers customer/Agency surveys, and studies of interest to the Government, as requested by the Office of the Chief Human Capitol Officer (OCHCO) or the Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity (ODEO).
In-Processing
The NSSC In-Processing Team provides service to new NASA civil servants, transferred employees, reemployed annuitants, reinstated, converted, and reassigned employees.
Leave Programs
NASA leave programs work in coordination with one another to provide the most flexibility possible to NASA employees who are experiencing a personal or family medical emergency.
Payroll
The NSSC) Payroll Office (NPO) reviews, validates, and delivers time and attendance data to the Department of the Interior (DOI) Interior Business Center (IBC) for NASA Centers. NPO acts as liaison between Centers, employees and IBC for other payroll related activities such as supplemental payments, prior pay period adjustments and settlement agreements.
Personnel Action Request (PAR)
PAP covers transactional HR activities that are necessary to appoint, separate, record, and maintain personnel changes for NASA employees.
Retirement
The NSSC provides general administrative, advisory, and transactional support for federal benefits programs to all NASA employees, calculates retirement estimates, and processes retirements packages.
Senior Executive Services (SES) and Presidential Rank Award (PRA)
The NSSC provides documentation support for NASA’s Senior Executive Service (SES) appointments and Presidential Rank Award (PRA) nominations.
Staffing
Staffing Services works directly with hiring managers across the Agency to fill their vacancies and hire the talent they need. OCHCO Executive Services Division and the Office of Inspector General provide these services to their respective areas.
Suitability Adjudication
The NSSC Suitability team ensures consistent, timely, and quality adjudication decisions to meet the hiring requirements delineated in the 2010 Presidential Memorandum (Improving the Federal Recruitment and Hiring Process) and adhering to OPM’s adjudication metrics.
Survivor Benefits
In the event of an employee’s passing, a NASA Benefits Specialist will help your survivor file all necessary claims for any survivor and dependent annuities, life insurance and other benefits which may be available to them. Your surviving family members are our highest priority.
Training Administration
The NSSC provides training purchases and training administration support for specified needs that are standard across the Agency. Training Purchases includes procuring standard training classes, “reserving” seats for specific on-site courses, updating data in NASA’s learning management system (LMS), and completing acquisitions.
Training Administration, which transitioned to the NSSC in FY 2020, consists of administering Federal, Agency, and Center-mandated/required training to include entering training course information and employee training data into the LMS for updated training histories, supporting documents for offsite and onsite course requests, learning history, approved training forms, attendance and completion data, and course information; supporting Center Training Offices with the administration and payment of courses, and providing post-training support to include deploying course evaluations and compiling survey results, closing scheduled offerings and inactivating course items; and administering the Agency’s LMS (i.e., System for Administration, Training, and Educational Resources for NASA (SATERN).
Unemployment Compensation
The Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees (UCFE) program provides a weekly income for a limited period of time to unemployed former Federal civilian workers who meet eligibility requirements, to help them meet basic needs while searching for employment.
Workers’ Compensation
The NSSC provides Workers’ Compensation case management support for all NASA employees to assist injured employees in a timely and safe return to work.
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By NASA
NASA research pilot Scott “Jelly” Howe tested specialized retinal movement tracking glasses at Sikorsky Memorial Airport in Bridgeport, Connecticut on June 27, 2023. The glasses will help researchers working to design air taxis understand how a pilot visually experiences the cockpit and interacts with flight navigation tools.NASA/Dr. Tyler Fettrow Air taxis may become an important part of the U.S. transportation ecosystem, quickly carrying people relatively short distances – and eventually some may fly without a pilot aboard. NASA is helping prepare for that future with research to ensure that fully autonomous flight technology is safe.
Currently, a NASA study team is evaluating how autonomous software can work with flight navigation tools. And to get that information, they’re investigating how human pilots interact with the new flight navigation technology.
This work, involving the agency’s research pilots, software developers, and flight engineers, is critical for NASA’s Advanced Air Mobility mission, which envisions a future of new air transportation options including air taxis and delivery drones. The research is part of an automation software development collaboration between NASA, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the aircraft manufacturer Sikorsky.
During an upcoming test, NASA research pilot Scott “Jelly” Howe will wear specially designed glasses that track the movement of his pupils, as well as biometric sensors that measure his body temperature and brain activity during flight. Data gathered will include Howe’s real-time reactions to ground control instructions, aircraft controls, the presence of other aircraft, and weather. The research will also monitor his use of a specially designed tablet into which he will select algorithm suggested flight path options and manually input commands.
Biometric indicators such as dilated pupils, increased brain activity, elevated heart rate, respiration, and temperature can reveal when a pilot is experiencing excessive workload or heightened stress levels. The data gathered through this study will provide insight into pilots’ tendencies during flight. NASA researchers will use that data to improve future autonomous systems, so they can respond to hazards like human pilots would, paving the way for air taxi operations in the U.S. airspace
“The biometric devices we employ enable us to quantify physiological aspects that are typically subconscious,” said NASA human factors researcher Dr. Tyler Fettrow. “Through these devices, we capture eye tracking data, providing insights into where the pilot’s attention is focused, the duration of their fixations, and changes in pupil dilation.”
This type of human-factors research is important because of the unique challenges involved with integrating air taxis in the existing airspace system, where autonomous systems will have to avoid obstacles like other aircraft, buildings, birds, and weather. NASA is looking at the larger blueprint of how these aircraft will be integrated into the national airspace.
“Advanced Air Mobility systems typically involve a high degree of automation and interaction between the humans and technology,” Fettrow said. “Designing interfaces that provide clear situational awareness, appropriate alerts and notifications, and effective communication channels is vital for safe operations.”
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Last Updated Oct 03, 2023 Editor Cody S. Lydon Contact Location Armstrong Flight Research Center Related Terms
Aeronautics Aeronautics Research Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate Air Traffic Solutions Airspace Operations and Safety Program Ames Research Center Armstrong Flight Research Center Drones & You Flight Innovation Langley Research Center Technology Demonstration Explore More
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