NASA PRESS RELEASE
29 September 2008
WASHINGTON — NASA will host a media teleconference at 6 p.m. EDT today to discuss a significant Hubble Space Telescope anomaly that occurred this weekend affecting the storage and transmittal of science data to Earth. Fixing the problem will delay next month’s space shuttle Atlantis’ Hubble servicing mission.
The malfunctioning system is Hubble’s Control Unit/Science Data Formatter - Side A. Shortly after 8 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 27, the telescope’s spacecraft computer issued commands to safe the payload computer and science instruments when errors were detected within the Science Data Formatter. An attempt to reset the formatter and obtain a dump of the payload computer’s memory was unsuccessful.
Continue reading ‘Shuttle Mission Delayed as Hubble Malfunctions’
Snow is the surprising forecast for Mars
Los Angeles Times
“The latest forecast on Mars calls for morning fog and swift-moving clouds — along with light snow.
“The surprising weather report was part of the latest scientific findings from NASA’s Phoenix lander, which has been taking measurements at the Martian north pole since May 25.
“At a press briefing Monday at NASA headquarters in Washington and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge, scientists said the discovery of snow on Mars was made by an instrument that shined a laser into clouds about two miles above the ground, revealing the presence of ice crystals.”
NASA Mars Lander Sees Falling Snow, Soil Data Suggest Liquid Past
NASA MISSION UPDATE
29 September 2008
PASADENA, Calif. — NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander has detected snow falling from Martian clouds. Spacecraft soil experiments also have provided evidence of past interaction between minerals and liquid water, processes that occur on Earth.
Continue reading ‘Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow….’
Congratulations are due to Elon Musk and his team at SpaceX. On Sunday, they successfully launched the Falcon 1 rocket from the Marshall Islands. The rocket took off at 16:16 PDT; the second stage reached an orbital velocity of 52,00 meters per second at 8 minutes and 21 seconds after launch.
The rocket carried a “payload mass simulator of approximately 165 kg (364 lbs), designed and built by SpaceX specifically for this mission. Consisting of a hexagonal aluminum alloy chamber 1.5 meters (5 feet) tall, the payload attaches to the standard Falcon 1 payload mounting structure. It does not separate, but remains attached to the second stage as it orbits the Earth,” according to SpaceX.
Elon Musk posted the following update on his blog:
Falcon 1 is currently cleared for liftoff sometime between 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. (California time) tomorrow, Sunday September 28th. Of course, if we see anything that requires investigation, the launch will be postponed, but we’ll let you know as soon as we know. As with prior flights, you can access the webcast from the SpaceX site: www.spacex.com
Elon Musk (Credit: SpaceX)
NASA at 50: Privatizing Space
Washington Post
The results of a webchat Q&A with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, who discusses the progress of his Falcon rockets and his dreams for Mars.
Aiming for Stars, Entrepreneurs May Also Fill Gaps
Washington Post
As NASA turns 50 this week, the space agency faces increasing competition from entrepreneurs like Elon Musk and Richard Branson who are pushing for space tourism in low Earth orbit and trips to the moon and Mars.
The Shenzhou 7 spacecraft touched down in Northern China on Sunday afternoon, successfully returning taikonauts Zhai Zhigang, Liu Boming, and Jing Haipeng to Earth after a 68-hour flight that thrilled the Chinese nation.
The flight’s main highlight was a 20-minute spacewalk in which Zhai climbed outside of the spaceship clutching a Chinese flag. The nation’s first spacewalk was broadcast live throughout China.
This was the third successful manned flight of the Shenzhou, which is similar to the Russian Soyuz transport. China plans to eventually construct a space station in Earth orbit.
Rob Coppinger reports that the first test flight of Virgin Galactic’s WhiteKnightTwo carrier ship may be slipped until closer to the end of the year.
“There have been various taxi trials outside the hangar already, but undertaken at night. The first flight trials will take place when we are ready and will definitely be this year and possibly within the next few weeks,” Virgin Galactic President Will Whitehorn told Coppinger.
Meanwhile, Bill Deaver has taken a spin into space aboard SpaceShipTwo - a good eighteen before any paying passengers will. Sort of.
Continue reading ‘WhiteKnightTwo Flights Set to Begin Later This Year’
Spacemen: Two men behind the future of American space exploration and commerce compete to launch little white balls into the unknown
Washington Post Magazine
“Early this year, I learned that Peter Smith, the principal investigator and driving force behind NASA’s astoundingly successful Phoenix Mission to explore Mars via remote-controlled robots, was also a golf enthusiast. I did a quick calculation: [Burt] Rutan, space flight pioneer + Smith, nation’s leading Mars authority + golf, male-bonding session = irresistible story.”
Wannabe Space Tourist Wants $21 Million Back Over Scuttled Mission
Wired
“The Japanese internet tycoon who paid $21 million to become the first space tourist to walk outside the International Space Station wants his money back.
In a lawsuit, Daisuke Enomoto, 37, claims that Space Adventures, the private firm with connections to the Russian Federal Space Agency, ‘deceptively and fraudulently’ induced him to pay $21 million for a 10-day orbital sojourn that never materialized.”
China launches mission for first spacewalk
Associated Press
“China successfully launched a three-man crew into space Thursday to carry out the country’s first spacewalk, beginning the nation’s most challenging space mission since it first sent a person into space in 2003.
“The Shenzhou 7 spacecraft, China’s third manned mission, blasted off atop a Long March 2F rocket shortly after 9 a.m. EDT under clear night skies in northwestern China.
“The spacewalk by one of the astronauts is expected to take place either on Friday or Saturday.”
