NASA IG Reports Fundamental Challenges With Agency’s Cloud Adoption

As a pioneer in cloud computing, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) established its Nebula cloud computing data center at Ames Research Center in 2009. Despite the agency’s position as an early adopter of cloud technology, a recent report from NASA’s Inspector General (IG) highlights fundamental governance and risk management issues that will impair the effectiveness of future cloud efforts.

Over the past several years, NASA’s cloud efforts have included:

Nebula (Private Cloud-Computing Initiative) – Established in 2009, the Nebula private cloud was established at Ames Research Center. Nebula provided computation and storage services until it was decommissioned in April 2012.

OpenStack (Software for Managing Private Clouds) – NASA partnered with Rackspace, a publicly held, cloud-computing company, to launch OpenStack, an open-source software project, in July 2010.

Mission-related services – Marshall Space Flight Center has used cloud computing to support experiments for the International Space Station, conduct environmental monitoring, and hosting a website for spacecraft design and planning. [...]