SHUTTLE CLEARED FOR LAUNCH DESPITE WING CONCERNS - NASA's senior managers cleared space shuttle Discovery for liftoff Tuesday, overruling a safety group that called for further studies and wing repairs, if necessary, before next week's launch. The potential problem is with the critical thermal shielding on Discovery's wings. A new inspection method uncovered possible cracking just beneath the protective coating on three of the 44 panels that line the wings. More (Source: CNN - Oct 19)
CHINESE SCIENCE SATELLITE ENDS MISSION IN FIERY PLUNGE - A Chinese satellite plunged into the Earth's atmosphere and destroyed itself this week to end an extended mission studying the planet's magnetic field. The science satellite, dubbed TC-1, was officially decommissioned Sunday after lasting three years beyond its planned one-year mission lifetime. The spacecraft burned up as it reentered the Earth's atmosphere, according to a mission update. More (Source: Space.com - Oct 16)
CLASSIFIED SATELLITE FAILURE LED TO LATEST SBIRS DELAY - The loss of a classified satellite after only 7 seconds on orbit prompted the review of software and processors that has caused the most recent delay and a potential $1 billion overrun in Lockheed Martin's Space-Based Infrared System (SBIRS), says Gary Payton, deputy under secretary of the Air Force for space programs. More (Source: ABC News - Oct 16)
CHINA'S LUNAR PROBE LAUNCH SET FOR LATER IN OCTOBER - China will launch its first lunar probe later this month, state-run newspapers reported Tuesday, just weeks after regional rival Japan successfully sent a lunar satellite into orbit. The Beijing Evening News said the Chang'e 1 orbiter would be launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center on Oct. 24 at 6 p.m. More (Source: The Associated Press - Oct 16)
POSSIBLE WING PROBLEM WITH SHUTTLE - NASA is studying a possible problem with the thermal shielding on Discovery's wings that could force a delay in this month's launch. Discovery's seven astronauts climbed aboard the shuttle at the launch pad Wednesday for a practice countdown. More (Source: CNN - Oct 12)
FIRST NEXT-GENERATION COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE LAUNCHES - The Air Force launched the first of a next generation of military communications satellites from here Oct. 10 at 8:22 p.m. EDT, when a United Launch Alliance Atlas V booster carried a Wideband Global SATCOM satellite into space. WGS is the nation's next-generation wideband satellite communications system. More (Source: Schriever Air Force Base - Oct 12)
HAVING A BLAST: TOURISTS TAKE FIRST STEPS INTO HISTORIC COSMODROME - Five star it is not: few creature comforts await the tourists who trickle to the birthplace of modern space flight for launches such as this week's Soyuz blast-off. But for some that is all part of the mystique. More (Source: AFP - Oct 12)
COMMERCIAL SATELLITE LAUNCHES FROM KOUROU COULD BEGIN IN 2008 - Commercial launches of satellites from the Kourou space complex with Russian launch vehicles could begin in 2008, President Vladimir Putin has announced. More (Source: Interfax - Oct 11)
ROCKET CARRYING MILITARY SATELLITE LAUNCHED INTO ORBIT - A rocket carrying a satellite used for communication by the United States Air Force lifted off Wednesday night. The Atlas V, which launched at 8:22 p.m. (0022 Thursday), is carrying a Wideband Global SATCOM satellite. It is the first of at least five satellites that will be placed in orbit through 2008. More (Source: International Herald Tribune - Oct 11)
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