TV Program Features NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (Source: WETA)
A new half-hour television program features an exclusive tour of NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, which has completed more than 240 missions to outer space and is home to the nation's largest organization of scientists and engineers dedicated to learning about Earth, the solar system and the universe. The program follows the center's major achievements in space flight, explores the ins and outs of a space mission, and spotlights the extensive and impressive team behind it all. The show is available on the Internet at http://www.weta.org/tv/allaccess.php and http://www.weta.org/watchonline/.
Sasso Wins Space Coast Legislative Race (Source: ERAU)
Former Cocoa Beach city commissioner Tony Sasso won a close race to replace former Rep. Bob Allen and serve District 32 in the Florida House of Representatives. District 32 includes the Cape Canaveral Spaceport and is home to a large percentage of the state's space industry workforce. Sasso assumed office immediately after the election and his term will end in November. The term's length is abbreviated because it finishes the remainder of Rep. Allen's original term.
The Exploration of Space Focuses on Denver (Source: KUSA)
Hundreds of scientists from NASA and major corporations involved in the space program are gathered this week in Denver for the 3rd Annual Space Exploration Conference, hosted by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Up to 1,800 youngsters from along the Front Range were invited to visit a national symposium put on by the space industry at the Colorado Convention Center. They were encouraged by current and former NASA astronauts to study mathematics and the sciences.
Hundreds Protest KSC Proposal to Use Wildlife Area for Launches (Source: AP)
Hundreds of people attended back-to-back hearings at the Titusville City Council to protest a NASA proposal to launch rockets from a nearby wildlife refuge. NASA officials say they haven't decided yet whether to use the 200 acres inside the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge as a commercial launch site. Another oceanside site has been proposed within the restricted area of the Kennedy Space Center. Endangered wildlife and wetlands exist in both locations. Officials say both sites also fit NASA's requirements for distance from residential areas and risk from hurricane storm surge. The protesters who attended yesterday's meetings say NASA instead should consider using abandoned launch pads at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Indian Mars Mission Possible Before 2015 (Source: The Hindu)
After the Moon, it could be Mars before 2015 for the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) if the ambitious space missions drawn up by ISRO’s Advisory Committee for Space (ADCOS) up to the year 2020 are realised in the envisaged time frame. It was on the basis of the recommendations made by ADCOS that the first lunar mission Chandrayaan-1, and the multi-wavelength X-ray astronomical satellite ASTROSAT have been undertaken by ISRO.
Britain's Race for Space (Source: The Journal)
As speculation mounts over British manned expeditions into space, it's time to ask whether this is a dream worth pursuing. The race for space is back on and the UK doesn’t want to be left behind. This month saw the release of the UK’s Civilian Space Strategy 2008-2012 which aims to keep the UK “at the forefront of the evolving space scene.” The headline grabbing announcement was that there would be a fresh look at the merits of participating in human space missions. The UK has not participated in such missions since a decision by Margaret Thatcher in 1986 to pull out of the European Space Agency’s human space missions.
There have even been four British astronauts: one was part of a privately financed space flight and the other three gained US citizenship in order to take part in NASA missions. However, if the UK is going to participate in the next wave of human space missions it needs to substantially increase its investment and commitment to space exploration.
Montana Girl Wins Planet Mnemonic Contest (Source: AP)
A fourth-grader at Riverview Elementary School has won the National Geographic planetary mnemonic contest, developing a handy way to remember the newly assigned 11 planets, including three dwarf planets. The contest was in response to the recent announcement by the scientific community that there are now 11 recognized planets — Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Ceres, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto and Eris. Ceres, Pluto and Eris are considered dwarf planets.
Maryn Smith's winning mnemonic is My Very Exciting Magic Carpet Just Sailed Under Nine Palace Elephants. Smith's mnemonic will be published in a National Geographic book, "11 Planets: A New View of the Solar System." It also will be recorded into a song by Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter Lisa Loeb. Both are scheduled to be released in March.
Russia's Proton-M to Launch Another Arab Satellite (Source: RIA Novosti)
A Russian-American joint venture has signed a contract to orbit another satellite for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by a Russian Proton-M carrier rocket. Proton-M launch services are provided by Russian-American joint venture International Launch Services (ILS), owned by the Khrunichev Center, RSC Energia, and U.S. firm Space Transport Inc. The company received $1.5 billion in new launch orders in 2007.
Iran Built Space Rocket in Just Months (Source: AP)
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said the research rocket Iran recently launched was built in just nine months without using any foreign models. Iran's launch of a rocket in early February provoked unease in an international community already suspicious over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program since the technology involved can also be used to deliver warheads. "Iranian space engineers built the research rocket in nine months," said Ahmadinejad, according to the IRNA, the state news agency. "The rocket was not a reproduction of a foreign one."
Analysts have expressed doubts about certain technological achievements announced by Iran in the past. The country launched its first domestically built rocket last February, which soared to the edge of space but did not reach orbit level. John Pike, director of defense research group GlobalSecurity.org, said that nine months was a "feasible" amount of time to build a rocket if the engineers began with some of the parts assembled.
Sirius Satellite Quarterly Loss Narrows (Source: Reuters)
Sirius Satellite Radio, which plans to buy rival XM Satellite Radio, posted a narrower fourth-quarter loss after an increase in subscribers to its pay-radio service. Sirius posted a net loss of $166.2 million, compared with a loss of $245.6 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenue increased 29 percent to $249.8 million. Sirius added 654,309 subscribers in the quarter, ending the year with 8.32 million.
US Team Wins Asteroid Competition (Source: BBC)
A US team has won a $50,000 competition to design a spacecraft to rendezvous with and track the path of an asteroid which may threaten Earth. The winning entry, led by SpaceWorks Engineering, will shadow asteroid Apophis for 300 days. The measurements it takes will be used to refine what is known about the orbit of this 300m-wide space rock. Apophis will make a close pass of Earth in 2029 and there is a small but real possibility it could hit in 2036. The competition was organized by the Planetary Society, a space advocacy group with its headquarters in Pasadena, California.
Ares I Issue Near Resolution, NASA Says (Source: Aviation Week)
The focus team studying the thrust-oscillation problem that has raised concerns over development of NASA's planned Ares I crew launch vehicle is set to brief senior agency managers on their findings next month, with early indications the problem won't be a show-stopper. The team has almost finished its work on both the "forcing function" that a vibration in the Ares I first stage sets up in the rest of the stack, and on ways to mitigate potentially damaging effects in the vehicle's response to it.
NASA Still Mum on Job Losses (Source: Florida Today)
Communities near Kennedy Space Center could feel the impact of the space shuttles' retirement more than regions surrounding other NASA field centers, according to a new agency report. The reason: the space shuttle program accounts for a bigger share of this area's economy. Space shuttle work represents less than 1 percent of economic activity in NASA communities in other states, but nearly 3 percent of economic activity in the central Florida region surrounding the spaceships' launch and landing base. NASA has given no official job loss figures since news of the shuttle's retirement in 2004.
Teachers Defy Gravity to Promote Science (Source: Miami Herald)
A pair of Miami teachers went to new heights to bring a gravity-defying science lesson to their classrooms. As she floated three feet above the floor Sunday, Rita Kaplan couldn't believe it: She actually felt like an astronaut in space. A few feet away, Emery Atkinson, an earth science teacher at North Miami Senior High, did back flips and barrel rolls without touching the floor. "I'm speechless," said Atkinson. "My students are going to love this." Despite their gravity-defying antics, the two never left the Earth's atmosphere. Instead, they were on a Boeing 727 that made a series of steep dives, rendering everything inside weightless for about 30 seconds per dip. The flight was sponsored by Space Florida.
Space Club Luncheon Features Space Florida President (Source: NSC)
Space Florida President Steve Kohler will speak on "Driving Value Locally for Global Impact" during the March 11 National Space Club luncheon in Cocoa Beach. The monthly luncheonevent will be held at the DoubleTree Hotel. For information and to RSVP, call LaDonna at 321-505-2037, or mailto:ladonna.j.neterer@boeing.com.
Blue Origin Buys Texas Ranch as Launch Site (Source: SpaceRef.com)
According to sources, Jeff Bezos' company Blue Origin has reportedly bought a 32,000 acre ranch a few miles north of Sierra Blanca, Texas to use as a launch site. This location was previously cleared by the FAA for a launch attempt for the Space America suborbital launch vehicle in 1998.
Hundreds Pack Meeting About Commercial Launch Complex Inside Wildlife Sanctuary (Source: Orlando Sentinel)
More than 200 people have packed into the Titusville Council chambers to urge NASA not to use pristine property in the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge for a commercial launch pad. "That you would even consider this boggles my mind," Wes Biggs of Orlando told NASA representatives. "I don't think you realize what kind of monumental firestorm this would cause." The meeting attracted everyone from fisherman and birders to bait-and-tackle shop owners, city officials and retired NASA workers.
NASA Mulls Booster Chute Failures (Source: Aviation Week)
The upcoming space shuttle Flight Readiness Review (FRR) for Endeavour's STS-123 mission will review recovery system malfunctions that occurred on both of the boosters that launched the orbiter Atlantis on the STS-122 mission earlier this month. None of the problems involved flight safety or propulsion aspects of the ATK solid rocket motors and both were towed back to Kennedy Space Center (KSC) without difficulty. Also, no delay of STS-123 will occur because of the booster issues.
But the failure of one of three large recovery parachutes to open properly on the flight's left solid booster will result in the shuttle program scrapping the aft skirt for the booster that would normally be refurbished and reused. A camera on the booster showed that when the three 136-foot diameter main chutes were deployed, one of the three immediately developed what grew to be a 25-foot hole at the top of its canopy. This resulted in the chute never opening properly, instead streaming uselessly as the booster descended toward the Atlantic Ocean 150 miles northeast of KSC.
By Edward Ellegood
LinkedIn Group
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