VOLUME 6, ISSUE 1January 2005
Thule Times
www.thule.af.mil
In this issue:AFSPC Web site provides worldwide space surveillance support—Page 2A glimpse of the past—Thule History Day—Page 2Scholarships for military children—Page 3Thule Idol—Page 4More Thule Idol—Page 5I know what you did last summer at Thule… - Page 6Your AEF needs you—Page 712 SWS takes MLK 3-on-3 tournament title—8Call to join the Thule Booster Club—Page 9The Lighter Side of Thule—Page 10
Dancing, celebration, fireworks ring in 2005
Thule Air Base offi-cially rang in the New Year during an evening celebration at the Tow Club Dec. 31.Men and women at Thule danced the nightaway to music by Waking Norman, a visiting bandfrom Dallas, Texas. While some Thule-itesreturned back to the Statesto welcome the new year with their families, othersremained at the base andtook advantage of themany events offeredthroughout the holiday weekend. The afternoon dark sky was lit up by a fireworksdisplay at approximately 1:30 p.m. Dec. 31. and the Top of the World Clubgave the men and womenof Thule a chance to ring in the new year with sing-ing, dancing and a tradi-tional countdown to thenew year.821 ABG/PA Staff Report
Top: Team Thule dances to the musicof Waking Norman during the NewYear’s Eve celebration at the TOW ClubDec. 31.Left: Fireworks light up the Thuleafternoon sky Dec. 31.Center: Tech Sgt. John Link, a formerTops in Blue performer, joins the bandwith his saxophone during their NewYear’s Eve performance.Far right: Waking Norman lead singer,Troy Allen Mayfield, engages thecrowd during their performance.Photo by 1st Lt. Jennifer TribblePhoto by Col. John HavenPhoto by 1st Lt. Jennifer Tribble
January 2005PAGE 2
THULE TIMES
Military men and women at Thule Air Base got the chanceto learn about the history andmissions of the base during “History Day”, Jan. 14. The event, sponsored by the Community Center and the Thule Heritage Hall, gave Thule personnel informationabout the mission of the base,as well as the history that sur-rounds the base at the top of the world. The mission of the 821st Air Base Group is to operateand maintain Thule Air Base insupport of missile warning,space surveillance and satellitetelemetry and tracking opera-tions missions. The groupprovides security, communica-tions, civil engineering, person-nel, services, logistics andmedical support to remoteactive duty units in a combinedU.S., Canadian, Danish andGreenlandic environment of approximately 800 military,civilian and contractor person-nel.It operates the Departmentof Defense’s northernmostdeep-water seaport as well as a10,000-foot runway and associ-ated airfield.
Peterson Air Force Base, Colo. -- AirForce Space Command began a pilotprogram Jan. 3 designed to providespace surveillance support to Commer-cial and Foreign Entities. Public Law 108-136, transferred this space surveil-lance support responsibility from NASAto AFSPC on Nov. 24, 2003."The primary objective of the pilotprogram is to develop processes andtools to deliver timely, accurate, state-of-the-art space surveillance services tocommercial and foreign customers," saidLt. Col. David Maloney, AFSPC chief of space situational awareness. This service ensures mission successfor commercial and foreign space opera-tors who often rely on the United States'space surveillance support to mitigatehazards facing their space assets, accord-ing to Colonel Maloney. "To that end,they request space object orbital data,support in predicting potential conjunc-tions (close approaches between satel-lites) for on-orbit and launch operations,satellite anomaly resolution support andend-of-life support." As the worldwide leader in spacesurveillance, the United States is in thebest position to provide that support,said Colonel Maloney. The CFE Pilot Program is being im-plemented in three phases. The firsttwo phases are dedicated to replacing the NASA Goddard Space Flight CenterOrbital Information Group website withthe CFE Space-Track website. TheCFE Space-Track ( http://www.space-track.org ) website will distribute Two-Line Elements, satellite catalog mes-sages, satellite decay messages, project TIP messages, and most of the miscella-neous messages currently offered by theNASA OIG website. AFSPC will con-tinue to provide this data at no cost. As part of the CFE Pilot Program,the Aerospace Corporation will operatethe CFE Support Office that will inter-face with the commercial and foreignentities on behalf of AFSPC. The CFESupport Office is responsible for devel-oping and maintaining the Space-Track website."We've been working very closely with NASA to ensure a smooth transi-tion for existing customers to transfertheir OIG accounts to the Space Track website," said Colonel Maloney. "Ourgoal is to provide uninterrupted serviceto more than 1,100 customers in 43countries worldwide by implementing a90-day dual operations period betweenthe two websites." This 90-day transition period allowscurrent OIG users to activate theirSpace Track website accounts, whichincludes agreeing to terms of the CFEuser's agreement -- specifically agreeing not to transfer any data or other infor-mation received or services provided toany third party without the prior writtenpermission from the Department of Defense. The transition period allowsOIG users to become familiar with thenew website's design and functionality. The main differences between the websites are the menus and report op-tions, according to Colonel Maloney. After a 90-day transition periodNASA will terminate their OIG websiteoperations. The third phase of the CFE Pilotprogram is dedicated to advanced ser- vices. Proposed advanced services in-clude, launch support (pre-launch safety screenings and/or early orbit determina-tion), conjunction assessment (including screening for planned maneuvers), end-of-life/reentry support (includes reentry support and planned de-orbit opera-tions), anomaly resolution support(includes attitude determination andspacecraft configuration) and perform-ing emergency services (significant mis-sion degradation or failure for either therequester's asset or U.S. governmentassets, endangerment of human life ordegradation of U.S. national security isat stake)."The advanced services are expectedto be provided for a fee," according toColonel Maloney. "The fees will beused to reimburse the Department of Defense for the costs for providing ad- vanced services. The details and fees arestill to be determined.For more information on the CFEsupport pilot program and the Space- Track website, go to www.space-track.org .
New AFSPC website provides worldwide space surveillance support
Air Force Space CommandNews Service
A glimpse of the past
Airmen learn about the history of Thule AB
821 ABG/PA Staff Report
Top: Tech Sgt. Dennis Sarver and Tech Sgt.Eric Balogh reflect on a map from the past.Above: Master Sgt. Scott Stolte shows Capt.Ty Nielsen an interesting article from an oldThule Times.
PAGE 3 January 2005
THULE TIMES
FORT LEE, Va. – There’s still timeto submit an application to the Scholar-ships for Military Children program. The deadline for the $1,500 scholarshipsis Feb. 16 and all applications must bedelivered to the commissary by the closeof business that day. At least one schol-arship will be awarded at every commis-sary location with qualified applicants. The application can be downloadedthrough a link on the front page of http://www.commissaries.comordownloaded directly fromhttp:// www.militaryscholar.org and filled outby hand or on the computer. Copies of the application are also available at com-missaries worldwide.DeCA program liaison Edna Hooge- wind stresses that students should putemphasis on writing the essay portion of the application. “In past years the essay has been a key factor in deciding among the many outstanding applicants,” saidHoogewind. This year’s topic is “How has the heightened awareness of terror-ism impacted your life?”Students who are not hand-delivering applications are advised to usea delivery method that supplies a returnreceipt. Applicants may visithttp:// www.militaryscholar.org and click onthe “Verification of Receipt” section.Scholarship managers will respond to“Verification of Receipt” e-mails until June 15. Applicants should check all materialscarefully for simple things, like making sure the application is signed or that it’sthe 2005 application, not one from pre- vious years. The scholarship program is open tounmarried children under the age of 21(23 if enrolled in school) of active duty personnel, including Coast Guard,Guard and Reserve, and retired military.Eligibility will be determined using theDefense Enrollment Eligibility Report-ing System (DEERS) database. Appli-cants should ensure that they, as well astheir sponsor, are currently enrolled inthe DEERS database and have a currentID card. The applicant must be planning toattend, or already attending, an accred-ited college or university full-time in thefall term of 2005, or be enrolled in aprogram of study designed to transferdirectly into a four-year program. Addi-tional instructions can be found on theapplication or athttp:// www.militaryscholar.org .Fisher House Foundation, a non-profit organization best known forbuilding comfort homes near military medical facilities, administers the Schol-arships for Military Children program.Scholarship Managers, a professionalfirm that has handled more than 400programs, screens applicants and awardsscholarships. Neither Fisher House norDeCA is involved in the decision proc-ess. The Scholarships for Military Chil-dren program is in its fifth year and hasawarded nearly 3,000 scholarships andmore $3 million since the first scholar-ship was awarded. Scholarships are pri-marily funded through the voluntary donations of the various manufacturers,brokers and suppliers that sell productsin commissaries. The general public canalso contribute through a link athttp:// www.militaryscholar.org . The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of nearly 275 commissaries providing groceries tomilitary personnel, retirees and theirfamilies in a safe and secure shopping environment. Authorized patrons pur-chase items at cost plus a 5-percent sur-charge, which covers the costs of build-ing new commissaries and modernizing existing ones. Shoppers save an averageof 30 percent or more on their pur-chases compared to commercial prices – savings worth about $2,700 annually fora family of four. A core military family support element, and a valued part of military pay and benefits, commissariescontribute to family readiness, enhancethe quality of life for America’s military and their families, and help recruit andretain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.
Scholarships for military children
By Adam AustinDECA News Service
t h u l efirst light •førstelys •qaammariartulerneraf e s t i v a l
Saturday, 26 FebruaryHangar 7
Pull out your poodleskirts and bellbottoms –We’re celebratingwith a Retro theme!
Stay tuned formore info…
t h u l efirst light •førstelys •qaammariartulerneraf e s t i v a l
Saturday, 26 FebruaryHangar 7
Pull out your poodleskirts and bellbottoms –We’re celebratingwith a Retro theme!
Stay tuned formore info…
Get out yourbeads — It’s aMardi GrasTheme!!
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