Home » NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory unscathed by Eaton fire, but not its workforce – Jobsmaa.com

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory unscathed by Eaton fire, but not its workforce – Jobsmaa.com

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Jan. On the 11th, An airborne imaging spectrometer NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory flew over Los Angeles County to survey damage from the historic fire.

It is captured images Burnt hillsides in the Angeles National Forest, devastated neighborhoods in Altadena and — just west of the Eaton Fire's charred scar — the 170-acre JPL campus.

NASA's AVIRIS-3 (Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer-3) flew over Los Angeles County aboard a B200 aircraft.

This NASA image shows areas burned by the Eaton Fire in Altadena and nearby communities. Charred trees and buildings in developed areas appear dark brown, while burned forest areas, especially in Angeles National Forest, are orange.

(NASA)

La Cañada Flintridge Company survived the worst of the fire because its physical buildings and structures remained intact. The same cannot be said for its employees.

At the height of the emergency, about 20% of the company's 5,500 employees were forced from their homes, director Larry Leshin said.

About 210 employees lost their homes in the fire and another 100 — including Leshin — may have been displaced long-term by the extent of the damage to their home or neighborhood. Many more evacuees are not allowed to return home.

Despite the harrowing conditions, employees kept the 88-year-old company operating throughout the disaster, in some cases using decades' worth of crude emergency training for the first time.

“There's no doubt it was a dramatic scene on the first night of the fire,” Leshin said.

Managed by JPL Deep space networkA global network of antennas that communicate with spacecraft passing by Earth's moon. It operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

“We train twice a year what would happen if we had to relocate mission operations, [but] We never had to do that,” Leshin said.

As the flames approached, the crew — many under evacuation orders — executed those plans for the first time, temporarily transferring control of the network to the Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex without losing any data.

“It's really a heroic story,” Leshin said.JBL is a national treasure and it is our people who make it happen. Their commitment to our work is incredible, and they're going to make sure the study continues no matter what.

The fires follow a painfully difficult year for JBL. Dismissed 855 employees and 100 on-site contractors after cuts to NASA's budget.

The institute is funded by NASA but managed by the California Institute of Technology. A Disaster Relief Fund Launched on January 10, it has already raised more than $2 million for staff, faculty and students from the two campuses affected by the fire.

Most of the cleanup and repair work to be done at JPL is wind, not fire, Leshin said: some damaged roofs, some downed branches. Buildings will reopen next week for employees working remotely encouraged to do so For now.

“We are very grateful to the space community and their care during this challenging time,” Leshin said. “But the study continues, so we'll be back.”

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