Sydney, Australia (SPX) Mar 04, 2008 - In less than nine months, China will probably take the next step in its human spaceflight program. The mission of Shenzhou 7 will produce China's first spacewalk, along with an extended mission involving three astronauts on the spacecraft.
McLean VA (SPX) Mar 03, 2008 - International Launch Services has signed contracts for the launch of two Sirius Satellite Radio satellites on the Proton Breeze M vehicle. Sirius expects to launch Sirius FM-6 under the contract announced. Sirius FM-6 is currently under construction at Space Systems/Loral and is anticipated to be launched in the fourth quarter of 2010. Sirius has not announced plans to utilize the second launch just announced.
Beijing (UPI) Mar 03, 2008 - A Chinese space official said China is preparing for the manned space program's first spacewalk later this year.
Hawthorne CA (SPX) Mar 03, 2008 - Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) says it has completed the qualification testing program of its Merlin 1C next generation liquid fueled rocket booster engine for use in the Falcon 1 rocket.
Moscow (RIA Novosti) Mar 03, 2008 - The orbital altitude of the International Space Station (ISS) has been increased by 5 kilometers (3 miles), a spokesman for the Russian Mission Control Center said on Thursday. The correction of the orbit of the ISS started at 8:16 a.m. Moscow time [5:16 a.m. GMT] by using thrusters on the Russian module Zvezda, the spokesman said, adding that the procedure had lasted 123 seconds.
Beijing (XNA) Feb 29, 2008 - China plans to carry out its first spacewalk in second half of the year, an official of the nation's manned space program said here on Thursday. The Shenzhou VII spacecraft will be launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the northwestern province of Gansu latein the year and the astronauts will leave their spacecraft for the first time, the official told Xinhua.
Kourou, French Guiana (SPX) Feb 29, 2008 - Preparations for Arianespace's initial two Ariane 5 flights of 2008 are in full swing at Europe's Spaceport as the company continues to demonstrate its ability to provide launch capacity and mission flexibility that meet customers' needs.
Washington (AFP) Feb 29, 2008 - US space agency NASA confirmed it would launch the shuttle Endeavour on March 11 to deliver part of a Japanese space laboratory to an orbiting station, according to a statement Friday.
Paris, France (ESA) Feb 28, 2008 - Jules Verne, the first Automated Transfer Vehicle, has been encapsulated in its huge fairing on top of the Ariane 5 launcher. With a total mass of about 19 360 kg, Jules Verne is the largest payload ever launched by Ariane 5. This historical mission with the first European space supplier for the ISS is scheduled for a night time launch on 8 March at 04.23 UT.
Lampoldshausen, Germany (ESA) Feb 28, 2008 - The first hot firing test of a reduced-scale demonstration version of a staged-combustion rocket engine has recently been achieved at the Lampoldshausen (Germany) test facility of DLR. This development work is part of ESA's Future Launchers Preparatory Programme.
Moscow (RIA Novosti) Feb 28, 2008 - A Russian-American joint venture has signed a contract to orbit another satellite for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) by a Russian Proton-M carrier rocket, the Khrunichev State Research and Production Center said on Tuesday.
Washington DC (SPX) Feb 27, 2008 - International Launch Services (ILS) have announced a contract with S2M to use a Proton Breeze M vehicle to launch the first dedicated mobile television satellite for the MENA region. The companies made the announcement during the Satellite 2008 industry conference in Washington, D.C.
Oberpfaffenhofen, Germany (SPX) Feb 27, 2008 - Europe will receive its own access to the International Space Station (ISS) by means of the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) space transporter. As the most complex spacecraft ever to be built in western Europe, the ATV represents a significant milestone for European space.
Toulouse, France (SPX) Feb 27, 2008 - Shortly after its planned 8 March launch to the ISS, ESA's Automated Transfer Vehicle will make the first-ever laser-guided docking in space. The vehicle's fully automated docking provides unique challenges to the multi-agency mission operations team at ESA's ATV Control Centre.
Twin Cities MN (SPX) Feb 27, 2008 - It's as if we took a trip into space with our best friends, and they turned into mutants and attacked us. Electrons are the best friends we've ever had from the subatomic world. We harness their flow as electricity to power all of modern life -- everything from cell phones and laptops to light bulbs.
Houston (UPI) Feb 26, 2008 - International Space Station crew members are collecting blood, saliva and urine samples to study their immune function in microgravity.
