ENGINEERS ASSESS CARGO CARRIER PROBLEM FOR LATER FIX - The failure to fully deploy an external cargo carrier mechanism during the Discovery crew's final spacewalk today will have no immediate impact on space station assembly, the flight director said today. The jammed carrier, intended to support pallets carrying spare parts and other equipment for downstream use, may be repaired by the station crew or astronauts on an upcoming assembly flight.    More
(Source: SpaceFlightNow.com - Mar 24)

SHUTTLE AND SPACE STATION DODGE DEBRIS - A piece of space junk is approaching their orbit, so the shuttle powers the space station out of the way. Ten days ago, another piece of junk menaced the station. With his ship still docked at the International Space Station, shuttle commander Lee Archambault fired up Discovery's steering jets Sunday to move the linked craft into a new position that will reduce their chances of colliding with a piece of space junk.    More
(Source: Los Angeles Times - Mar 23)

DELTA II GPS IIR-20 LAUNCH SCHEDULED FOR MARCH 24 - The launch of a NAVSTAR Global Positioning System (GPS) IIR-20(M) satellite aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket is scheduled for Tuesday, March 24. The launch will take place from Space Launch Complex 17A at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station during a launch window that extends from 4:34 to 4:49 a.m. (EDT). Delta II boosters have been instrumental in sustaining the GPS constellation. The Delta II has launched 46 successful GPS missions in its 20-year history.    More
(Source: GPS World - Mar 23)

ASTRONAUTS COMPLETE SECOND STS-119 SPACEWALK - Astronauts Steve Swanson and Joseph Acaba ended the mission's second spacewalk at 7:21 p.m. EDT. They prepared a worksite so that the STS-127 spacewalkers can more easily change out the Port 6 truss batteries later this year. On the Japanese Kibo laboratory they installed a second Global Positioning Satellite antenna that will be used for the planned rendezvous of the Japanese HTV cargo ship in September.   More
(Source: NASA - Mar 22)

EUROPEAN EARTH SCIENCE SATELLITE READY FOR WORK - The European Space Agency's (ESA) GOCE satellite was formally declared ready for work on Friday. GOCE was checked out to confirm that all of its control systems are operating normally. "Everything is working well and we have a healthy satellite,“ said Flight Operations Director Pier Paolo Emanuelli at ESA's European Space Operations Centre, Darmstadt, Germany. “Today, we will end round-the-clock staffing in the main control room and move the flight control team to regular work-day operations in the dedicated control room”.   More
(Source: Examiner.com - Mar 22)

INDIA TO LAUNCH ISRAEL-BACKED SATELLITE - India next month will launch a new "remote-sensing" satellite built with Israeli "inputs," the Indian Space Research Organization said Saturday. ISRO spokesman S. Satish told CNN that it would be a radar-imaging satellite equipped with all-weather capability. "It's an Indian satellite built with inputs from the Israeli aerospace industry. It will be launched from a PSLV in April," Satish said. A PSLV is a polar satellite launch vehicle. Satish did not confirm reports of any possible use of the rocket for defense or spying purposes.   More
(Source: CNN - Mar 22)

SPACE STATION'S SOLAR WINGS UNFURLED - The huge solar wings on the International Space Station (ISS) were successfully unfurled Friday, paving the way for the orbiting laboratory to power up to its full capacity for the first time. NASA said "no difficulties were encountered" in deploying the wings after astronauts Steve Swanson and Richard Arnold Thursday bolted an S6 truss to the space station to hold panels forming the fourth and last solar antenna. The payload is one of the last major tasks of the more than decade-long effort by 16 countries to build the 100-billion-dollar outpost in space.   More
(Source: AFP - Mar 21)

SHUTTLE ASTRONAUTS COMPLETE 6-HOUR SPACEWALK - A pair of astronauts from the space shuttle Discovery safely completed a six-hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Thursday, installing a set of solar panels that will help the station handle twice as many crew members. Astronauts Richard Arnold and Steve Swanson bolted into place solar arrays that will be the last piece of the station's expanded power system.   More
(Source: CNN.com - Mar 20)

GRAVITY SATELLITE LEADS NEW WAVE - The European Space Agency has launched its Goce gravity mapping satellite. Goce left Earth at 1421 GMT on a modified intercontinental ballistic missile from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in north-west Russia. The mission will give scientists new insights into how the interior of the planet is structured and provide key information on how the oceans move. The satellite is part of an armada of European spacecraft being sent up to study the planet.    More
(Source: BBC News - Mar 19)

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