STS-130: NODE 3 UNDERGOING INSTALLATION – NH3 LINE OPTIONS PROTECT FEB 7 TARGET - Following a few minor delays due to poor weather at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), the arrival of STS-130’s payload to Pad 39A has taken place in the early hours of Monday. Meanwhile, engineers will have several days to play with, following the latest schedule for the arrival of backup NH3 lines to KSC, the second of two options to aid STS-130’s full mission content of installing Node 3 to the Station. Endeavour remains in a good stance to be ready for her February 7 launch date, following the resolution of two issues relating to her right hand Solid Rocket Booster (SRB).   More
(Source: NASASpaceflight.com - Jan 18)

CHINESE ROCKET LAUNCHES WITH BEIDOU NAVIGATION SATELLITE - A Chinese Long March rocket hauled a new navigation satellite to a high-altitude perch over Earth on Saturday, marking the first space launch of the year for the world's space programs. The Long March 3C rocket blasted off from the Xichang space center at 1612 GMT (11:12 a.m. EST) Saturday, or just after midnight Sunday morning local time, state media reported. The 180-foot-tall booster flew east from Xichang, which is situated in Sichuan province in southwestern China. The Beidou, or Compass, navigation satellite was placed on a trajectory toward geosynchronous orbit, according to the Xinhua news agency.    More
(Source: Space Flight Now - Jan 17)

SATELLITE IMAGES HELP FOCUS HAITI EARTHQUAKE RELIEF - NASA and space agencies around the world are pointing their satellites toward Haiti to aid relief efforts and map damage caused by the devastating earthquake earlier this week. The 7.0 magnitude quake struck the Caribbean island Tuesday, causing extensive destruction and fatalities estimated in the tens of thousands. NASA's Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER), a joint project with Japan, and its Earth Observing-1 (EO-1) satellite are taking images of Haiti's hardest-hit areas in multiple wavelengths of light.    More
(Source: Space.com - Jan 17)

SPACE SYSTEMS/LORAL-BUILT WEATHER SATELLITE OUTLIVES MISSION EXPECTATIONS - Planned for a 5-Year Mission Life, GOES-10 Tracked Storms, Hurricanes, and Cyclones in Real Time for 12 Years. Space Systems/Loral (SS/L), a subsidiary of Loral Space & Communications (Nasdaq:LORL) and the leading provider of commercial satellites, today announced that a satellite that it built for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), was retired after serving the organization for 12 years, more than twice its required mission life. Originally planned for a 5-year mission, the satellite, called GOES-10, was used to track storms, hurricanes, and cyclones from 1997 until just a few months ago.    More
(Source: CNN Money - Jan 14)

GOOGLE EARTH, GEOEYE BRING SATELLITE PHOTOS OF HAITI’S DEVASTATION - Satellite images of the aftermath of the Haiti earthquake are now available on Google Earth. The search giant partnered with imagery specialist GeoEye to provide a markup that shows satellite photos of Haiti from around 7:30 a.m. Pacific time today. The company lets you download the markup here and open it in Google Earth. There’s also a browser plug-in here. Pictured right is a birds-eye view of the Presidential Palace before and after the quake.    More
(Source: VentureBeat - Jan 14)

NASA DEVELOPS PLAN TO AVOID SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH DELAY - NASA managers decided Tuesday to modify existing space station ammonia coolant hoses by welding shorter sections together to replace a longer hose design that failed a recent ground pressure test. If the work goes well - and the schedule is tight - NASA hopes to launch the shuttle Endeavour on Feb. 7 as planned to deliver a new module to the orbiting lab complex. The primary goal of the three-spacewalk mission is to attach a pressurized module known as Tranquility to the left side of the space station's central Unity module. Tranquility will be used to house critical life support systems and exercise gear that currently are located elsewhere in the laboratory.    More
(Source: Space Flight Now - Jan 13)

USAF AWARDS ULA WGS-4 SATELLITE LAUNCH - The U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center recently awarded United Launch Alliance a contract modification to perform the launch services for the Wideband Global SATCOM-4 (WGS-4) satellite aboard a Delta IV Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle. The anticipated launch period is December 2011 - February 2012 from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.    More
(Source: Space Daily - Jan 11)

STS-130 SHUTTLE FLIGHT FACING DELAY DUE TO PAYLOAD TECHNICAL GLITCH - The launch of Shuttle Endeavour on the STS 130 flight now faces a potential delay due to technical problems with the external ammonia connecting lines which are designed to provide critical cooling capability to the new Tranquility module. Tranquility is a pressurized module being brought aloft as payload in the cargo bay of Endeavour on the STS 130 mission. Launch of Endeavour is currently set for 4:39 AM on Feb. 7.    More
(Source: Universe Today - Jan 10)

FALCON 9 PASSES ITS FINAL REVIEW - As NASA is getting ready to retire its space shuttle fleet, later this year, its ability to put astronauts in orbit will all but disappear. The agency will be able to continue using Russian-built Soyuz space capsules to get its crew members on the International Space Station (ISS), but will have no orbital capabilities of its own. Therefore, the private sector will have to step in. This is precisely the aim of the new Falcon 9 rocket, developed by SpaceX.    More
(Source: Softpedia - Jan 9)

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