NASA’s newest building also is one of the nation’s greenest. News media are invited to tour the facility, called Sustainability Base, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. PDT on Thursday, April 19, 2012, at the agency’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif. Reporters also are invited to the dedication and ribbon cutting ceremony from 10 to 11 a.m. the following day.

Sustainability Base is a highly intelligent and intuitive facility designed to anticipate and react to changes in sunlight, temperature, wind and occupancy. The building can optimize its performance automatically, in real time, in response to internal and external changes. It is designed to achieve, and is presently under consideration for, the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum status, which is the highest LEED rating.

Participants in the ceremony include:

— Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy John Holdren (prerecorded message)
— U.S. Rep. Anna Eshoo, Calif.
— U.S. Rep. Zoe Lofgren, Calif.
— NASA Associate Administrator for Mission Support Woodrow Whitlow (representing Administrator Charles Bolden)
— Ames Center Director Pete Worden
— Ames Associate Center Director for Research Steven Zornetzer
— Architect William McDonough

Media interested in attending the events should contact Ruth Marlaire at 650-604-4789 or ruth.marlaire@nasa.gov by 4 p.m. on Wednesday, April 18.

Meeting the White House challenge to lead by example, NASA has repurposed its technologies and incorporated them into the new building. Sustainability Base features a Bloom Energy Box, for example, that uses fuel cell technology in a clean electrical-chemical process to produce electricity. The facility also has a water recovery system, derived from one originally designed for the International Space Station, which reduces unnecessary consumption of potable water.

Video highlights of the facility’s construction, technology and systems will air on NASA Television’s Video File beginning at 6 a.m. PDT, Friday, April 20. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

For a digital press kit of Sustainability Base, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/events/2012/sustainability-base-presskit.html

For more information about Sustainability Base, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/externalflash/sustainability-base

For more information about Ames’ green technologies, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/greenspace