JAPAN LAUNCHES SATELLITE TO EYE GREENHOUSE GASES - The Japanese space agency launched a satellite Friday (Jan 23) that will measure greenhouse gases from the earth's orbit. The IBUKI satellite is designed "to observe the concentration distribution of greenhouse gases that cause global warming, and to help reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions covered by the 'Kyoto Protocol,'" the agency's Web site said. More (Source: CNN.com - Jan 23)
SINGLE ROCKET TO CARRY 6 'PRIVATE' SATELLITES - An H-2A rocket carrying six small satellites developed by universities and private-sector companies will be launched Wednesday from Tanegashima Space Center in Kagoshima Prefecture. This will be the largest number of "private" satellites to be carried by a Japanese rocket. The SOHLA-1 exploratory satellite, which is also known as Maido Ichigo, was developed by a team of small and midsize companies in Higashi-Osaka, Osaka Prefecture. More (Source: he Daily Yomiuri - Jan 19)
NEW SATELLITE TO MONITOR GLOBAL WARMING - Japan's space agency will launch a satellite next Wednesday that will monitor greenhouse gases and assist in the fight against climate change. After blast-off, the satellite will go into orbit around the Earth making rounds in less than two hours, and will collect new climate data every three days. More (Source: WFIE-TV - Jan 19)
DELTA IV HEAVY FINALLY LAUNCHES WITH NRO L-26 - After three years of delays, United Launch Alliance have launched the third Delta IV Heavy, carrying the classified NRO L-26 satellite for the US National Reconnaissance Office. The rocket finally launched liftoff from Launch Complex 37B at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, at 02:47 GMT (21:47 local time), following the resolution of a number of technical issues throughout the window. Whilst the details of tonight’s payload are classified, it is rumoured to be one of the NRO’s most expensive to date. More (Source: NASASpaceFlight.com - Jan 18)
MALFUNCTIONING COMPONENT DELAYS SATELLITE LAUNCH - Kirtland AFB NM (SPX) Jan 16, 2009 Air Force officials here are delaying the launch of Tactical Satellite-3 until repairs to a spacecraft avionics component, critical to the system's operational capability, are complete. Although scheduled to launch in late January, the program team is working with the manufacturer to resolve the problem. The Air Force Research Laboratory's Space Vehicles Directorate here administers the satellite program, known as TacSat-3. When ready, the TacSat-3 launch will occur at NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility in Wallops Island, Va. More (Source: Space Daily - Jan 16)
JAPAN ROCKET TO LAUNCH SOUTH KOREAN SATELLITE - Japan's Mitsubishi Heavy Industries said on Monday it had received an order from South Korea's aerospace agency to launch one if its satellites, marking the first time a Japanese rocket will carry a foreign satellite. The launch of South Korea's KOMPSAT-3 satellite, designed to take images of the Earth, will be in Japan in 2011 or 2012, Mitsubishi Heavy (7011.T), the country's biggest machinery maker, said in a statement. More (Source: Reuters - Jan 12)
DISCOVERY READY TO ROLL TOWARD VAB - The first of six planned space shuttle missions in 2009 kicks off in earnest this week with Discovery's placement on a launch platform. Kennedy Space Center workers early Wednesday are scheduled to roll the orbiter a quarter mile from its processing hangar to the 52-story Vehicle Assembly Building. More (Source: FloridaToday.com - Jan 6)
RUSSIA LAUNCHES THREE NEW GLONASS NAVIGATION SATELLITES - Russia's Federal Space Agency has successfully launched three new Glonass navigation and positioning satellites from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan aboard a Proton-M rocket. After the latest launch on Dec. 25, Glonass - Russia's equivalent of the U.S. GPS system - counts 20 satellites, enough to cover Russia's entire territory with a positioning accuracy of up to 1 meter, Sergei Ivanov, Russia's deputy prime minister in charge of technology, said in televised remarks Dec. 25. More (Source: Space.com - Dec 30)
RUSSIA TO SET WORLD RECORD WITH 39 SPACE LAUNCHES IN 2009 - Russia is planning to set a world record by conducting a total of 39 space launches in 2009 despite the current global financial crisis, the head of the Russian Space Agency said on Monday. "We have scheduled a record number of launches for next year. We are planning to carry out 39 launches, half of them commercial and civilian satellites," Anatoly Perminov said. Russia conducted 27 space launches in 2008 and 26 launches in 2007, becoming the world's leader in this sphere. More (Source: RIA Novosti - Dec 30)
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