September 19 News Items

Malaysians Take Last Tests Before Blast Off Into Space (Source: SpaceDaily.com)
The two candidates to become Malaysia's first man in space underwent final exams on Tuesday before one is selected to blast off on October 10 to the International Space Station (ISS). Khaleed, a 27-year-old army dentist, and Sheikh Muszaphar Shukor, a 35-year-old doctor and part-time model, were undergoing the second of two days of tests to ensure they are fully ready for their 11-day mission. One of the two will be selected to travel to the ISS alongside Russian Yury Malenchenko and American Peggy Whitson, spending about nine days there before returning to Earth with the station's current crew.

Delta Launch Begins New Era in Commercial Remote Sensing (Source: Space News)
A Delta 2 rocket placed a next-generation commercial remote sensing satellite into orbit Tuesday from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The vehicle's payload, WorldView-1, is the most powerful commercial remote sensing satellite ever launched, and is capable of taking images with a resolution of sharp as half a meter. The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) financed the satellite under its NextView program to support to development of a new generation of commercial remote sensing satellites. The launch was the 75th consecutive successful launch for the Delta 2 family, dating back over a decade.

China Launches Third Sino-Brazilian Earth Resources Satellite (Source: The Hindu)
China today successfully launched the third Sino-Brazilian earth resources satellite jointly developed by the two nations. The satellite, dubbed "02B", was lifted by a Chinese "Long March-4B" rocket which blasted off from the Taiyuan spaceport in north China's Shanxi Province. The satellite will gather earth resources information and send earth images to China, Brazil and other countries, which could be used for agricultural production, environmental protection, city planning and land resources survey. This is the third earth resources satellite launched by the two countries. The previous ones were launched in 1999 and 2003.

Local Space Tourists Get Free Access to Space Center (Source: Florida Today)
Florida's premier space tourism attraction, the KSC Visitor Complex, is providing free admission this weekend to Space Coast residents. The normal admission charge -- $38 for adults and $28 for children ages 3 through 11 -- will be waived for Brevard County residents on Sept. 21-23 as Delaware North Park Services shows its gratitude for 40 years of support from the local community. Click here for information

Spain To Build Radar Reconnaissance Satellite (Source: Space News)
The Spanish Defense Ministry has committed 112.5 million euros ($156 million) for the construction of a high-resolution radar imaging satellite to be launched in 2011 for military and civil-security applications, a decision that would bring to 10 the number of European military radar spacecraft expected to be in orbit by then, according to a Spanish Defense Ministry official.

Bush Accepts Pentagon Position on GPS (Source: AP)
President Bush on Tuesday accepted the Pentagon's decision to stop buying Global Positioning System satellites that can intentionally degrade the accuracy of civil signals used for a myriad of purposes — from tracking aircraft to finding missing skiers. In May 2000, President Clinton abandoned the practice of deliberately degrading the accuracy of civilian navigation signals, a technique known as "selective availability." This capability will no longer be present in the next generation of GPS satellites. The move coincides with the Air Force's solicitation to purchase the next generation of GPS satellites known as GPS III.

ATK Selected for Prompt Global Strike Study (Source: ATK)
Alliant Techsystems has been selected to support the U.S. Air Force's Conventional Ballistic Missile Prompt Global Strike (PGS) efforts. The company will conduct a study to evaluate options for replacing the Minotaur booster. The study effort is focused on identifying candidates to replace the Minotaur boosters that draw on a family of motors concept to reduce total system cost. Evaluation of the options includes associated cost, risk and schedule. The objective of the study is to provide affordable and executable options to transition the Minotaur replacement motors in support of the PGS missions.

Nebraska Governor Gets Surprise Call from Space (Source: Beatrice Daily Sun)
Nebraska Gov. Dave Heineman is used to getting phone calls from people in high places, but not like this. Heineman got a surprise phone call from astronaut Clayton Anderson and spoke with the Ashland native for about five minutes Tuesday. Anderson is part of a NASA crew that launched into space aboard space shuttle Atlantis in June and is working on the space station. The two Nebraska natives also talked football. Heineman says they were both disappointed in the Huskers' loss to USC Saturday but think the team can still have a good season.