White Sands International Film Festival (WSIFF), which will be held in Las Cruces, New Mexico, from April 15-18, 2010, is calling entries from filmmakers around the world.  The categories for entry include:

DOCUMENTARY

Feature length and short documentary films with particular focus on multi-cultural themes and background. Any films from any genres accepted from around the world. Please note that foreign language films should have sub-titles.

NARRATIVE

Feature length and short narrative films with particular focus on multi-cultural themes and background. Any films from any genres accepted from around the world. Please note that foreign language films should have sub-titles.

LATINO

Narrative, documentary features and shorts for its Latino Showcase. A special Jury Award will be awarded to the best work in this category.

NEW MEXICO

Narrative, documentary features and shorts for its New Mexico Showcase. A special Jury Award will be awarded to the best work in this category.

Filmmakers submitting in this category will be waived entry fee. Proof that at least parts of the film were shot in New Mexico MUST be included with the submission. Otherwise, the submission will be moved to another (correct) category.

Submit your entry by January 2, 2010 for only $35 (or $30 for the student fee).  Please visit the WSIFF official website for more details and also follow them on Facebook and Twitter for updates.

The New Mexico Museum of Space History and the Fellowship of Las Cruces Area Rocket Enthusiasts (FLARE) continue the yearlong commemoration of the 40th Anniversary of the Apollo program Saturday, November 14, at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo. The event, which includes the launch of model rockets reflecting the history of White Sands Missile Range and of the Apollo Manned Spaceflight Program, will be highlighted by the special appearance of Shuttle Astronaut Mike Mullane. Commemorative activities will take place in the parking lot of the museum and will be free to the public.

Shuttle Astronaut Mike Mullane will be the guest speaker and will also give two special presentations at the Alamogordo Family Recreation Center gym. The City of Alamogordo and the Family Recreation Center partnered with the Museum and FLARE to provide this exciting opportunity. Mullane’s first presentation will be at 11:00 am and the second will be at 2:00 pm at the gym, both are free to the public. Area residents are encouraged to attend the 11:00 am presentation. The afternoon presentation will have limited seating available because a group of over 400 Science, Engineering, Mathematics and Aerospace Academy (SEMAA) and Mathematics, Engineering, and Science Achievement (MESA) students from the Las Cruces/Deming area will be in attendance.

NASA will be on hand for the event. Leslie Williams, Public Affairs Specialist with the NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, will be representing NASA. The NASA display will feature models from NASA’s Constellation space program that will be replacing the space shuttle program when the orbiters are retired. Leslie will be at the display and talk about the Orion crew exploration vehicle launch abort tests that will be done at White Sands Missile Range.

Spaceport America, represented by Aaron Prescott, will have a booth at the event. Prescott will update those in attendance on the progress of Spaceport America, the nation’s first purpose built spaceport, which is currently under construction in southern New Mexico.

A special display is on loan for the event from the Franklin High School Marching Band from El Paso, TX.  The Band Director is Mr. Bruce Beach.  The band performed at the Tournament of Bands recently at NMSU.  The theme of their performance was “For All Mankind”. It is a tribute to the Apollo 11 mission and subsequent NASA space adventures.  The display consist of a series of seven foot tall, ten foot long panels with NASA photos from the Apollo 11 mission to the NASA Aries rocket constellation and will be located in the upper parking lot of the museum.

Visitors to the event will also be able to get close to the Sun without adding extra sun block. The National Solar Observatory will exhibit an 18-foot inflatable model of the Sun and models of the planets, all part of the 1-to-250-million scale Sunspot Solar System Model. NSO studies the Sun with telescopes in the Sacramento Mountains above Alamogordo and in Tucson and around the world. Dave Dooling, with NSO, will tell visitors what’s up (or right now, “down”) with the solar activity and why we need to know our local star.

Events begin with the “Rockets of White Sands” launch demonstration at 9:00 am, and the “Manned Space Program Space Vehicle” launch demonstration at 9:20 am. Museum of Space History Education Specialist Michael Shinabery will narrate the demonstrations. The demonstration rockets range from 12 inches to forty-five inches in height, with a maximum anticipated altitude of 1,200 feet.  Astronaut Mike Mullane will speak at 9:45. A letter from Nancy Conrad, wife of Apollo 12 Astronaut Pete Conrad, will be read as part of the ceremony.

All of the activities taking place in the upper parking lot of the museum are free to the public. All activities are weather permitting; a back-up date is not planned.

Veterans, active duty service members, National Guard personnel, employees of military contractors and civilian employees at military installations are invited to attend the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo, New Mexico, on Veterans Day, Wednesday, November 11. Admission for those personnel will be free of charge.

Veterans are asked to provide proof of service with a Form DD-214 or a veteran’s identification card. Active duty service members, National Guard and civilian employees will need to show a military ID card for their free admission to the museum.

The free admission is for the museum only and does not include admission to the Clyde W. Tombaugh IMAX Dome Theater. The theater is currently showing the IMAX films “SHARKS” and “Molecules to the MAX”. Movies begin at 11:00 am daily, with the last showing at 5:00 pm. The museum is open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm seven days a week. For more information about the theater or the New Mexico Museum of Space History, call (877) 333-6589 or (575) 437-2840 or visit the web site at www.nmspacemuseum.org.

Air Force officials here announced the list of candidate locations Oct. 29 for basing the F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter.

The list of candidate bases was approved by the secretary and chief of staff of the Air Force and identifies the first group of bases to be considered for joint strike fighter basing decisions. The selection of these bases signifies the determination of Air Force officials that these locations have the greatest potential to accommodate the F-35 training or operational mission.

Eleven bases have been selected as candidate bases and include for training: Boise Air Terminal Air Guard Station, Idaho; Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.; Holloman AFB, N.M.; Luke AFB, Ariz.; and Tucson International Airport Air Guard Station, Ariz. The six bases selected as candidate bases for operations are: Burlington International Airport Guard Station, Vt.; Hill AFB, Utah; Jacksonville International Airport Air Guard Station, Fla.; Mountain Home AFB, Idaho; Shaw AFB, S.C.; and McEntire Air Guard Base, S.C.

Air Force officials will evaluate existing F-22 Raptor force structure at Holloman AFB as it considers F-35 basing.

“The selection of this candidate list is the result of a deliberate, repeatable, standardized and transparent process,” said Kathleen Ferguson, Air Force deputy assistant secretary for installations. “We are excited about the future of the joint strike fighter and look forward to working with each of the communities surrounding these bases to ensure all of their concerns are addressed.”

The list of candidate bases were selected using previously announced basing criteria such as airspace, flight training ranges, weather, support facilities, runways, taxi ramps and environmental concerns, and military judgment factors such as combatant commander requirements, aircraft retirements and delivery schedules, aircraft maintenance and logistics support and integration with the Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve.

Now that the list of candidate bases has been released, the formal environmental impact analysis process and site assessments will begin, allowing communities around each candidate base to participate and provide input into the environmental impact analysis. Based on the results of these efforts, officials expect to announce the JSF preferred locations in late spring of 2010. Once the formal environmental impact statements are complete, Air Force officials will issue the Records of Decision and announce the final basing decisions. This is anticipated in early 2011.

The new IMAX film “Molecules To The Max” begins November 1 at the Clyde W. Tombaugh IMAX Dome Theater at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo, New Mexico. Produced by Nanotoon, developed at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and made possible through a grant from the National Science Foundation, this animated film takes the audience deep into the innermost workings of the cosmos through the adventures of a round eyed oxygen atom named Oxy and her two oxygen atom friends, Hydro and Hydra. These atomic musketeers explore inside places no one has ever been like snowflakes, chewing gum, pennies and the human cell. The straight man to the trio is, naturally, the on-board computer of their incredible ship the Molecularium.

Aimed at entertaining and educating children, parents and teachers, “Molecules To The Max” presents the world of atoms in a down to earth manner. Inside the Molecularium, a ship that goes from nano to macro in an instant and travels the speed of light, Oxy, Hydro and Hydra chart a course to discover the meaning of life. As they journey from outer space to inner space, the band of adventurers meet a myriad of characters who help explain scientific principles in an easily understandable manner. Children of all ages will delight in the music and animation of this exciting film. “Molecules To The Max” is distributed by SK Films, Inc.

Also playing at the IMAX Theater is “SHARKS”, a stunning immersive IMAX experience that takes the audience around the globe documenting the life of the ultimate predator. The stunning images really place the viewer in the middle of the colorful undersea world. Along with incredible shark encounters, audiences will get up close with sea lions, be surrounded by huge schools of fish and get so near to manta rays and jellyfish swimming past that they can reach out and touch them! “SHARKS” isn’t just a movie; it’s an exhilarating experience!

IMAX ticket prices are $6.00 for adults, $5.50 for seniors and active military, $4.50 for children four to twelve years old and children three and under are free. Movies start every day at 11 am, with the last showing at 5:00 pm.

The New Mexico Museum of Space History is a division of the NM Department of Cultural Affairs. Admission to the museum is $6.00 for adults, $5.00 for seniors and military personnel, $4.00 for children four to twelve years old, and under four free. For more information, call 505-437-2840 or toll free 1-877-333-6589 or visit the website at www.nmspacemuseum.org.

In this day and age of electronic media and riding the “information superhighway,” getting information quickly is as important as picking up the daily newspaper.

With the upcoming 2009 Holloman Air Force Base Open House in New Mexico, scheduled for Saturday, October 24 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., information about the event, such as a schedule of events, authorized and prohibited items and featured links, can be found on the Holloman Web site at www.holloman.af.mil/openhouse.asp.

This year’s Open House is officially titled “Raptors and Reapers over the Southwest,” however, the title only offers a taste of what will be happen during the action-packed event. Aerial acts include the F-22A demonstration team, the T-38 Talon demonstration team and flybys from the MQ-9 Reaper and the C-17 Globemaster III, while aircraft on static display include the German Tornado, MQ-1 Predator, F-15 Eagle and F-4 Phantom II.

The Army, Navy and Marine Corps recently conducted a multi-platform countermeasure effectiveness test at White Sands Missile Range, completing a total of 16 missions, with all aircraft hosted by Holloman AFB, New Mexico.

Holloman was selected as the aircraft host because of its ability to support aircraft and ordnance missions for WSMR operations and its central location relative to the squadrons participating.

During the four days of testing, nine aircraft were evaluated, including the UH-1Y Venom, CH-46E Sea Knight, CH-53E Super Stallion, MV-22 Osprey, CH-47 Chinook, UH-60 Black-Hawk and AH-64 Apache. Over 1,500 infrared countermeasures were dispensed from the aircraft under various test conditions, providing valuable information to be used in theater.

“The Marine Corps, head of the countermeasures division, realized that there are emerging threats in Afghanistan involving helicopters being attacked from above with the use of heat-seeking missiles,” said 1st Lt. Steve Crosbie, 586th FLTS program manager.

The aircraft and their respective units deployed to Holloman from Afghanistan for the duration of the testing and afterward, returned back to the area of responsibility.

“They flew the helicopters with different configurations of flare and flying techniques to see what would help combat that threat the best,” said Lieutenant Crosbie. “Once they get this information compiled, it will all go straight back to Afghanistan where they can hopefully fly more successful sorties against the enemy.”

The 586th FLTS headed the operation for Holloman and coordinated with different units throughout the base in order to support the Air Force’s sister services.

The 49th Operations Support Squadron coordinated parking details and airfield hours, working 24 hour operations, while the MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper squadrons provided maintenance space for the helicopters. U.S. Army Air Operations Division provided local airspace procedures training to all of the visiting aircrew since they are the only helicopter-familiar organization stationed at Holloman. Additionally, the 49th Fighter Wing Weapons Safety and 49th Maintenance Squadron Munitions Flight provided munitions support to 586 FLTS weapons personnel.

The testing was ultimately a success and will be used to improve aircraft survivability against infrared missiles, exemplifying a functioning partnership of joint forces to achieve a common goal.

The new Saturday Space Science Classes at the New Mexico Museum of Space History in Alamogordo, New Mexico, puts a new spin on the solar system in October. The journey starts Saturday October 3 with the first class focusing on the sun and teaching students about the power of our own star. These classes give kids who love science a journey around the universe inside the museum’s classrooms. Offering fun projects, science experiments and hands-on learning, Saturday Space Science Classes will spark life long curiosity and love of learning in any child.

Open to students in first through sixth grade, the program runs every Saturday. Classes for first through third graders are from 9:00 am to noon and fourth through sixth graders have class from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm. The registration fee is $18 per session ($15 for museum members) or $60 per month ($50 for museum members).

In October, the theme is “The Solar System” and the class schedule includes “The Sun” October 3, “The Planets” October 10, “Asteroids and Comets” October 17, and “Moons” October 24.

The theme for November is “The Weather”, featuring the four seasons, hurricanes, tornadoes and more. Each month will have a different theme focusing on space science related topics, with a different topic presented each week. Experiments and projects will be age group specific so that students will get the most out of each class. Every three hour class includes over a dozen science demonstrations and projects.

Register your child for Saturday Space Science Classes today. Download a registration form from the museum’s website at www.nmspacemuseum.org (click on Programs and Education at the top of the home page) or visit the Museum Education Office inside the IMAX theater. Call 437-2840 extension 41132 for more information.

The International Space Hall of Fame Foundation and the Alamogordo Breakfast Lions Club in Alamogordo, New Mexico,  are hosting an early morning balloon viewing and breakfast in the upper parking lot at the Museum beginning at 6:30 am on September 19 and September 20, 2009. “The Lions cook up a mean breakfast,” commented Hayes, “add in nearly a hundred colorful hot air balloons launching from all over town and you’ll definitely have something to write home about.”

The Lions Club will be serving breakfast burritos, breakfast sandwiches, sweet rolls, juice and coffee. The profit will benefit the Lions Club and the International Space Hall of Fame Foundation. Parking is free for the event, which is expected to last until 8:30 am.

An unmanned Air Force MQ-1 Predator crashed at about 8:58 a.m. at Holloman AFB in New Mexico, on September 11, 2009.  The aircraft was assigned to the 432nd Wing from Creech AFB and part of the MQ-1 training mission.  No one was injured and no private property was damaged.

The accident is under investigation.