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NASA's Psyche asteroid probe beams home haunting view of distant Earth (photo)
Lindy Garay: Supporting Space Station Safety and Success
Lindy Garay always knew she wanted to develop software. She did not anticipate that her work would contribute to human spaceflight.
The electrical and software engineering degree Garay earned from the University of Texas at Austin paved the way for a 25-year career with NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Her first job out of college was developing software for the International Space Station Program’s original space station training facility simulator. “I had not always been interested in working in the space program, but I became enamored with being able to contribute to such an important mission,” she said.
Official portrait of Lindy Garay.NASA
Today, Garay serves as a training systems software architect and is the technical lead for training system external interfaces. That means she leads the team that helps connect training simulations from NASA’s external partners with simulations run by Johnson’s Mission Training Center (MTC) to support crew and flight controller training. The MTC currently provides training capabilities for the International Space Station Program, the Commercial Crew Program, and Artemis campaign components such as the Orion Program and the human landing system.
Garay said that not having an aerospace background was challenging at the beginning of her career, but she overcame that by leaning on teammates who had knowledge and experience in the field. “Every successful endeavor depends on having a solid team of dedicated people working toward one goal,” she said. “Success also depends on good communication, flexibility, and being willing to listen to different opinions,” she added.
Garay was recently named as a 2025 NASA Space Flight Awareness Program Honoree – one of the highest recognitions presented to the agency’s workforce. Recipients must have significantly contributed to the human spaceflight program to ensure flight safety and mission success. Garay’s commendation acknowledged her “sustained superior performance, dedication, and commitment to the Flight Operations Directorate’s goals” and her instrumental role in the success of several major training systems projects. In particular, she was recognized for contributions to the High-Level Architecture simulation framework, which is used to create realistic simulations of visiting vehicles’ arrival, docking, and departure from the space station.
From left to right, Johnson Space Flight Awareness (SFA) Lead Jessica Cordero, SFA Coordinator Michelle Minor, Johnson Space Center Acting Director Stephen Koerner, Drew Faulkner, Adam Korona, Teresa Sindelar, Lindy Garay, Lindsay Kirk, Keith Barr, Ephram Rubin, and NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik. NASA/Kim Shiflett
Garay and 36 other agency honorees were celebrated during a special ceremony in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and had the opportunity to attend the launch of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. “That was quite an honor,” she said.
Outside of work, Garay may be found cheering on Houston’s sports teams. She enjoys traveling to watch the Texans and the Astros play.
Garay is also rooting for the Artemis Generation as NASA prepares to return to the Moon and journey on to Mars. She offered this advice: “Always remember the importance and the magnitude of the whole mission.”
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Article 4 days agoLindy Garay: Supporting Space Station Safety and Success
Lindy Garay always knew she wanted to develop software. She did not anticipate that her work would contribute to human spaceflight.
The electrical and software engineering degree Garay earned from the University of Texas at Austin paved the way for a 25-year career with NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Her first job out of college was developing software for the International Space Station Program’s original space station training facility simulator. “I had not always been interested in working in the space program, but I became enamored with being able to contribute to such an important mission,” she said.
Official portrait of Lindy Garay.NASAToday, Garay serves as a training systems software architect and is the technical lead for training system external interfaces. That means she leads the team that helps connect training simulations from NASA’s external partners with simulations run by Johnson’s Mission Training Center (MTC) to support crew and flight controller training. The MTC currently provides training capabilities for the International Space Station Program, the Commercial Crew Program, and Artemis campaign components such as the Orion Program and the human landing system.
Garay said that not having an aerospace background was challenging at the beginning of her career, but she overcame that by leaning on teammates who had knowledge and experience in the field. “Every successful endeavor depends on having a solid team of dedicated people working toward one goal,” she said. “Success also depends on good communication, flexibility, and being willing to listen to different opinions,” she added.
Garay was recently named as a 2025 NASA Space Flight Awareness Program Honoree – one of the highest recognitions presented to the agency’s workforce. Recipients must have significantly contributed to the human spaceflight program to ensure flight safety and mission success. Garay’s commendation acknowledged her “sustained superior performance, dedication, and commitment to the Flight Operations Directorate’s goals” and her instrumental role in the success of several major training systems projects. In particular, she was recognized for contributions to the High-Level Architecture simulation framework, which is used to create realistic simulations of visiting vehicles’ arrival, docking, and departure from the space station.
From left to right, Johnson Space Flight Awareness (SFA) Lead Jessica Cordero, SFA Coordinator Michelle Minor, Johnson Space Center Acting Director Stephen Koerner, Drew Faulkner, Adam Korona, Teresa Sindelar, Lindy Garay, Lindsay Kirk, Keith Barr, Ephram Rubin, and NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik. NASA/Kim ShiflettGaray and 36 other agency honorees were celebrated during a special ceremony in Cocoa Beach, Florida, and had the opportunity to attend the launch of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. “That was quite an honor,” she said.
Outside of work, Garay may be found cheering on Houston’s sports teams. She enjoys traveling to watch the Texans and the Astros play.
Garay is also rooting for the Artemis Generation as NASA prepares to return to the Moon and journey on to Mars. She offered this advice: “Always remember the importance and the magnitude of the whole mission.”
Explore More 3 min read NASA Shares Final Contenders for Artemis II Moon Mascot Design Contest Article 3 days ago 5 min read NASA’s Bennu Samples Reveal Complex Origins, Dramatic TransformationAsteroid Bennu, sampled by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission in 2020, is a mixture of dust that…
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NASA Science, Cargo Launch on 33rd SpaceX Resupply Mission to Station
Following a successful launch of NASA’s SpaceX 33rd commercial resupply mission, new scientific experiments and cargo for the agency are bound for the International Space Station.
The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, carrying more than 5,000 pounds of supplies to the orbiting laboratory, lifted off at 2:45 a.m. EDT on Sunday, on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
“Commercial resupply missions to the International Space Station deliver science that helps prove technologies for Artemis lunar missions and beyond,” said acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy. “This flight will test 3D printing metal parts and bioprinting tissue in microgravity – technology that could give astronauts tools and medical support on future Moon and Mars missions.”
Live coverage of the spacecraft’s arrival will begin at 6 a.m., Monday, Aug. 25, on NASA+, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and more. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
The spacecraft is scheduled to dock autonomously at approximately 7:30 a.m. to the forward port of the space station’s Harmony module.
In addition to food, supplies, and equipment for the crew, Dragon will deliver several experiments, including bone-forming stem cells for studying bone loss prevention and materials, to 3D print medical implants that could advance treatments for nerve damage on Earth. Dragon also will deliver bioprinted liver tissue to study blood vessel development in microgravity, as well as supplies to 3D print metal cubes in space.
These are just a sample of the hundreds of biology and biotechnology, physical sciences, Earth and space science investigations conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory. This research benefits people on Earth while laying the groundwork for other agency deep space missions. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring the world through discovery in a new Golden Age of innovation and exploration.
During the mission, Dragon also will perform a reboost demonstration of station to maintain its current altitude. The hardware, located in the trunk of Dragon, contains an independent propellant system separate from the spacecraft to fuel two Draco engines using existing hardware and propellant system design. The boost kit will help sustain the orbiting lab’s altitude starting in September with a series of burns planned periodically throughout the fall of 2025. During NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission on Nov. 8, 2024, the Dragon spacecraft performed its first demonstration of these capabilities.
The Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to remain at the space station until December, when it will depart the orbiting laboratory and return to Earth with research and cargo, splashing down off the coast of California.
Learn more about the International Space Station at:
https://www.nasa.gov/international-space-station
-end-
Joshua Finch
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov
Steven Siceloff
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-876-2468
steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones / Joseph Zakrzewski
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / joseph.a.zakrzewski@nasa.gov
NASA Science, Cargo Launch on 33rd SpaceX Resupply Mission to Station
Following a successful launch of NASA’s SpaceX 33rd commercial resupply mission, new scientific experiments and cargo for the agency are bound for the International Space Station.
The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, carrying more than 5,000 pounds of supplies to the orbiting laboratory, lifted off at 2:45 a.m. EDT on Sunday, on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.
“Commercial resupply missions to the International Space Station deliver science that helps prove technologies for Artemis lunar missions and beyond,” said acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy. “This flight will test 3D printing metal parts and bioprinting tissue in microgravity – technology that could give astronauts tools and medical support on future Moon and Mars missions.”
Live coverage of the spacecraft’s arrival will begin at 6 a.m., Monday, Aug. 25, on NASA+, Netflix, Amazon Prime, and more. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
The spacecraft is scheduled to dock autonomously at approximately 7:30 a.m. to the forward port of the space station’s Harmony module.
In addition to food, supplies, and equipment for the crew, Dragon will deliver several experiments, including bone-forming stem cells for studying bone loss prevention and materials, to 3D print medical implants that could advance treatments for nerve damage on Earth. Dragon also will deliver bioprinted liver tissue to study blood vessel development in microgravity, as well as supplies to 3D print metal cubes in space.
These are just a sample of the hundreds of biology and biotechnology, physical sciences, Earth and space science investigations conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory. This research benefits people on Earth while laying the groundwork for other agency deep space missions. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring the world through discovery in a new Golden Age of innovation and exploration.
During the mission, Dragon also will perform a reboost demonstration of station to maintain its current altitude. The hardware, located in the trunk of Dragon, contains an independent propellant system separate from the spacecraft to fuel two Draco engines using existing hardware and propellant system design. The boost kit will help sustain the orbiting lab’s altitude starting in September with a series of burns planned periodically throughout the fall of 2025. During NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission on Nov. 8, 2024, the Dragon spacecraft performed its first demonstration of these capabilities.
The Dragon spacecraft is scheduled to remain at the space station until December, when it will depart the orbiting laboratory and return to Earth with research and cargo, splashing down off the coast of California.
Learn more about the International Space Station at:
https://www.nasa.gov/international-space-station
-end-
Joshua Finch
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov
Steven Siceloff
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-876-2468
steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones / Joseph Zakrzewski
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / joseph.a.zakrzewski@nasa.gov
Tidal Forces and Orbital Evolution of Habitable Zone Planets
How do tidal forces determine a planet’s orbital evolution, specifically planets in the habitable zone? This is what a recently submitted study hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated how tidal forces far more powerful than experienced on Earth could influence orbital evolution of habitable zone planets with highly eccentric orbits around low-mass stars. This study has the potential to help researchers better understand the formation and evolution of exoplanets, specifically regarding where we could find life beyond Earth.