SPACE STATION RESUPPLY SHIP LAUNCHED AHEAD OF ENDEAVOUR - Before the shuttle Endeavour can receive final clearance for takeoff Friday afternoon, a Russian-made cargo freighter must make a smooth flight to the International Space Station. Step number one was accomplished this morning when that unmanned resupply ship successfully launched atop a Soyuz booster from Kazakhstan at 9:05 a.m. EDT (1305 GMT). The preliminary orbit was achieved after a nine-minute ascent provided by the three-stage rocket, and onboard commands were issued to unfurl the craft's communications and navigation antennas and extend two power-generating solar arrays that span 35 feet. More (Source: Space Flight Now - Apr 27)
ROYAL WEDDING VS. SHUTTLE LAUNCH - England's royal wedding and a space shuttle launch are two huge events set for this Friday. The launch taking on a new significance now that we've learned Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords will make the trip to Florida to see her husband Mark Kelly lift off into space. This is just three months after she was shot in the head in Tucson on Jan. 8. Royal Wedding coverage will run on ABC15-TV from 1 a.m. to 9 a.m. The shuttle will launch at 12:47 p.m. There is a large amount of attention on these huge news stories this week. More (Source: ABC15.com - Apr 27)
OBAMA TO ATTEND NEXT WEEK'S SHUTTLE LAUNCH - President Obama will bring his wife Michelle and their daughters Malia and Sasha to attend the 25thand final flight of the space shuttle Endeavour on Apr. 29 at 3:47 p.m. He is expected to attend the launch with Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords who will be watching her husband, Commander Mark Kelly, take the orbiter up for one last mission to the International Space Station. Giffords was severely injured during a shooting rampage last January that saw six people killed in an outdoor event entitled “Congress on Your corner.” Giffords, by all accounts, has made a remarkable recovery; however, her doctors have not given her the final go-ahead to attend the launch. More (Source: Examiner.com - Apr 24)
CARGO CRAFT UNDOCKING SETS STAGE FOR MORE ARRIVALS - The departure of an unpiloted Russian cargo craft Friday set the stage for the arrival of the next supply ship and a final visit from space shuttle Endeavour. The ISS Progress 41 cargo craft, filled with trash and other unneeded items, undocked from the Pirs docking compartment at 7:41 a.m. EDT Friday as the International Space Station flew 220 miles over China. As the Progress slowly backed away from the station, Expedition 27 Commander Dmitry Kondratyev photographed the cargo craft through a window in the Russian segment of the orbiting complex to assess the condition of the rubber seals on its docking interface. More (Source: Space Fellowship - Apr 24)
ARIANE 5 ROCKET ACHIEVES SUCCESS WITH TWO SATELLITES - Bouncing back from a last-second countdown abort in March, an Ariane 5 rocket smoothly ascended into space Friday with communications satellites destined to serve the Middle East and Africa. The 165-foot-tall rocket rose away from the launch pad at 2137 GMT (5:37 p.m. EDT) Friday, climbing into partly cloudy skies over the French-controlled Guiana Space Center on the northeast coast of South America. Powered by twin solid rocket boosters and a hydrogen-fueled main engine, the Ariane 5 surpassed the speed of sound in 42 seconds. After shedding the solid motors, the rocket's core stage accelerated to a velocity of more than 15,400 mph and an altitude of 104 miles in the first 9 minutes of flight. More (Source: Space Flight Now - Apr 24)
NASA CLEARS SHUTTLE ENDEAVOUR FOR APRIL 29 LAUNCH - The shuttle Endeavour was cleared for a launch attempt on April 29 to deliver a new class of physics instrument to the International Space Station on NASA's next-to-last shuttle flight, officials said Tuesday. Liftoff of the 134th shuttle mission is scheduled for 3:47 p.m. EDT (1947 GMT) from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The all-veteran crew is led by Mark Kelly, husband of Arizona Democratic Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who is recovering from a January 8 shooting that killed six people and injured 12 others. More (Source: Reuters - Apr 21)
ALL SET FOR PSLV-C16 LAUNCH ON WEDNESDAY - The stage has been set for the launch of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C16) from the first launch pad at Sriharikota on April 20 at 10.12 a.m. The PSLV-C16 will put in orbit three satellites — India's Resourcesat-2, an Indo-Russian satellite called Youthsat and a micro-satellite named X-Sat from the Nangyang Technological University of Singapore. The Launch Authorisation Board (LAB), which met at Sriharikota on Saturday, cleared the rocket's lift-off. More (Source: The Hindu - Apr 19)
PSLV C16 LAUNCH ON APRIL 20 - The Indian Space Research Organisation is gearing up to launch the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle C16 (PSLV C16) from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre of Sriharikota Range, 90 km from here, at 10.12 am on April 20. The countdown for the launch will begin at 4.12 am on April 18, 54 hours before the launch. ISRO chairman K Radhakrishan, who conducted a series of technical meetings with the scientists, expressed satisfaction on the arrangements. More (Source: Express Buzz - Apr 17)
NEW U.S. SPY SATELLITE LAUNCHES ON CLANDESTINE MISSION - A rocket carrying a new U.S. spy satellite lit up the California night sky Thursday on a secret mission for the National Reconnaissance Office. The spy satellite NROL-34 soared into orbit atop an unmanned Atlas 5 rocket after launching from a pad at the Vandenberg Air Force Base at 9:24 p.m. PDT (0424 GMT on April 15) to begin the latest classified flight for the NRO. The details of the satellite's purpose and final orbit are classified, but the new spacecraft will definitely serve a role for the U.S. military, officials said. More (Source: Space.com - Apr 15)
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