Spaceflight Now

Sunday: December 21, 2003		0947 GMT

Boeing Delta 2 rocket soars with GPS satellite Leaving behind its chilly Florida launch pad, a Boeing Delta 2 rocket lifted off on-time at 2:50 a.m. EST (0750 GMT) this morning to place the next Global Positioning System satellite into orbit. Follow the mission in our status center: MISSION STATUS CENTER

Engine, parachute tests pave way for launch escape NASA has tested rocket engines and parachutes that could be instrumental in developing the first spacecraft crew launch escape system in almost 30 years. The tests pave the way for a series of integrated Pad Abort Demonstration test flights to support NASA's Orbital Space Plane program. FULL STORY

Celestial illumination: X-ray glow from an exploded star NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has imaged the glowing shell created by the destruction of a massive star. X-rays from Chandra (blue), combined with optical (green) and radio (red) data, reveal new details in the supernova remnant known as N63A, located in the nearby galaxy of Large Magellanic Cloud. FULL STORY

Saturday: December 20, 2003		0128 GMT

New GPS satellite ready for Sunday morning liftoff A Boeing Delta 2 rocket and its Global Positioning System 2R-10 satellite payload are poised for liftoff at 2:50 a.m. EST (0750 GMT) Sunday from Cape Canaveral, Florida. The new spacecraft will strengthen the U.S. military's GPS constellation that guides planes, ships, troops and precision weaponry. MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates PREVIEW STORY

Rover wheels to dig holes for Martian soil study After the twin Mars Exploration Rovers bounce onto the red planet and begin touring the Martian terrain in January, onboard spectrometers and cameras will gather data and images --- and the rovers' wheels will dig holes. FULL STORY

Friday: December 19, 2003		1600 GMT

Beagle 2 released to hunt for life on Martian surface With the Christmas Day arrival at the Red Planet fast approaching, the tiny British Beagle 2 lander was successfully cast free from the Mars Express space probe Friday. Beagle 2 is bound for surface to conduct a host of experiments including some to look for evidence of past life. FULL STORY - updated with deploy image

First images from Spitzer Space Telescope unveiled NASA unveiled the first images from the $670 million Spitzer Space Telescope Thursday, spectacular infrared glimpses of the optically-hidden heart of a distant galaxy, the dusty cradle of an infant solar system and a peek at heretofore unseen stars lurking inside a vast cloud of gas and dust. FULL STORY

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NASA's last Great Observatory renamed The Space Infrared Telescope Facility has been renamed the Spitzer Space Telescope. It was named in honor of the late Dr. Lyman Spitzer Jr., one of the 20th century's most distinguished scientists. FULL STORY SPITZER BIOGRAPHY

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Rocket launch to bolster GPS satellite constellation A replacement satellite ascends into space this weekend to strengthen the U.S. military's Global Positioning System -- a constellation of orbiting spacecraft that guides planes, ships, troops and precision weaponry. Liftoff of the Boeing Delta 2 rocket from Cape Canaveral is set for 2:50 a.m. EST (0750 GMT) Sunday. PREVIEW STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates

IN OTHER NEWS Additional stories making news today

XTAR selects Arianespace to launch the XTAR-EUR satellite -- XTAR, a joint venture between Loral Space & Communications and HISDESAT, S.A., announced that it has entered into an agreement with Arianespace to launch its XTAR-EUR satellite aboard an Ariane 5 ECA rocket. The launch is currently planned for early second quarter 2004. Arianespace to launch Syracuse IIIB -- Alcatel Space has chosen Arianespace to orbit France's new Syracuse IIIB military communications satellite for the French defense procurement agency DGA. Syracuse III will be launched by an Ariane 5 at the end of 2005 from the Guiana Space Center, Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Arianespace to launch MSG 3 -- Tillmann Mohr, Director General of Eumetsat, and Jean-Yves Le Gall, Chief Executive Officer of Arianespace, on Dec. 17 signed the launch contract for the MSG 3 weather satellite at the European Space Agency headquarters in Paris. The launch of MSG 3 is scheduled for the first half of 2009 from the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, using an Ariane 5 launch vehicle.

Thursday: December 18, 2003		0635 GMT

Atlas rocket launches on Centennial of Flight A century after man made the first powered flight -- the Wright brothers' historic achievement that set in motion the realization of aviation and spaceflight dreams -- an American rocket with a Russian-made engine soared successfully Wednesday to put a communications satellite high above Earth. FULL STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER

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Mars may be emerging from an ice age NASA's Mars Global Surveyor and Mars Odyssey missions have provided evidence of a recent ice age on Mars. In contrast to Earth's ice ages, a martian ice age waxes when the poles warm up and water vapor is transported toward lower latitudes. Martian ice ages wane when the poles cool and lock water into polar icecaps. FULL STORY

Wednesday: December 17, 2003		0514 GMT

Atlas 3B rocket to fly 100 years after Wright Flyer As the aerospace world marks the Centennial of Flight -- the 100th anniversary of the Wright brothers' first powered flight -- Lockheed Martin will launch its Atlas 3B rocket to put a U.S. Navy communications satellite high above Earth. Liftoff from Cape Canaveral is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. EST (0230 GMT) tonight. MISSION STATUS CENTER - live updates! MONDAY SCRUB STORY LAUNCH PREVIEW STORY ASCENT EVENTS TIMELINE GROUND TRACK MAP FACT SHEET ON NAVY UHF PROGRAM

Rocket launch to bolster GPS satellite constellation A replacement satellite ascends into space this weekend to strengthen the U.S. military's Global Positioning System -- a constellation of orbiting spacecraft that guides planes, ships, troops and precision weaponry. PREVIEW STORY LAUNCH WEATHER FORECAST

Einstein makes extra dimensions toe the line Scientists say Albert Einstein's principle of the constancy of the speed of light holds up under extremely tight scrutiny, a finding that rules out certain theories predicting extra dimensions and a "frothy" fabric of space. FULL STORY

Tuesday: December 16, 2003		0625 GMT

Atlas 3 rocket launch postponed until Wednesday Monday night's shot at launching a Lockheed Martin Atlas 3B rocket carrying the final in a series of U.S. Navy communications satellites was postponed after a device that helps release the booster from its launch pad was subjected to colder-than-allowable temperatures, officials said. Liftoff is tentatively rescheduled for Wednesday night. SCRUB STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER - live updates!

X-ray view of the Red Planet As the Mars Express spacecraft nears the Red Planet, another European Space Agency mission is turning its gaze towards Mars. This recent X-ray image of the planet was taken by the XMM-Newton observatory. FULL STORY

NASA scientists say spring thaw makes a difference Using a suite of microwave remote sensing instruments aboard satellites, scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University of Montana, Missoula, have observed a recent trend of earlier thawing across the northern high latitudes. FULL STORY

Monday: December 15, 2003		0001 GMT

U.S. Navy satellite to launch aboard Atlas 3 rocket The last in a long line of communications satellites for the U.S. Navy heads for space Monday night aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas 3B rocket. Launch from Cape Canaveral is scheduled for 9:38 p.m. EST (0238 GMT). MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates! LAUNCH PREVIEW STORY ASCENT EVENTS TIMELINE GROUND TRACK MAP FACT SHEET ON NAVY UHF PROGRAM

Delta 4-Heavy exposed The mobile service tower at Cape Canaveral's pad 37B was rolled away from the newly-erected Boeing Delta 4-Heavy rocket for a brief time December 11. This provided the first clear view of the 170-foot tall rocket standing fully exposed on the launch pad. ENTER PHOTO GALLERY

Planet rings may live longer by recycling Although rings around planets like Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune are relatively short-lived, new evidence implies that the recycling of orbiting debris can lengthen the lifetime of such rings, according to University of Colorado researchers. FULL STORY

News Archive
Dec. 8-14: Spaceflight Now interviews station's resident crew; Japan's star-crossed Mars mission ends in failure; Boeing's big Delta 4 booster journeys to the launch pad; Why astrobiologists look to Saturn's moon Titan; Details of Saturn become visible to Cassini spacecraft; A giant cocoon discovered around massive young star; GALEX observatory captures galaxies galore.

Dec. 1-7: Atlas rocket successfully soars on secret mission; Atlas launch pad at Vandenberg getting extensive facelift; Mars Express snaps its first view of Red Planet; NASA scientists use radar to detect asteroid force; NASA cites progress in earthquake research.

Nov. 24-30: Japanese launch of spy satellites fails; Cheap method developed for solar system hunt; NASA successfully tests futuristic ion engine; Radiation monitoring device fails on Mars spacecraft.

Nov. 17-23: O'Keefe: time is right for new space vision; Shuttle Enterprise arrives at Smithsonian museum; Launch of Einstein's space experiment postponed; Feature story on Heavy-lifting version of Delta 4; Ulysses gives first 3-D observations of sun storms.

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Gemini 7

Gemini 7: The NASA Mission Reports covers this 14-day mission by Borman and Lovell as they demonstrated some of the more essential facts of space flight. Includes CD-ROM.

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Apollo patches

The Apollo Patch Collection: Includes all 12 Apollo mission patches plus the Apollo Program Patch. Save over 20% off the Individual price.

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Mars Rover mission patch

A mission patch featuring NASA's Mars Exploration Rover is available from our online.

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Apollo 9 DVD

On the road to the moon, the mission of Apollo 9 stands as an important gateway in experience and procedures. This 2-DVD collection presents the crucial mission on the voyage to the moon.

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Gemini 12

Gemini 12: The NASA Mission Reports covers the voyage of James Lovell and Buzz Aldrin that capped the Gemini program's efforts to prove the technologies and techniques that would be needed for the Apollo Moon landings. Includes CD-ROM.

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Soviet Space

For the first time ever available in the West. Rocket & Space Corporation Energia: a complete pictorial history of the Soviet/Russian Space Program from 1946 to the present day all in full color. Available from our store.

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Viking patch

This embroidered mission patch celebrates NASA's Viking Project which reached the Red Planet in 1976.

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Apollo 7 DVD

For 11 days the crew of Apollo 7 fought colds while they put the Apollo spacecraft through a workout, establishing confidence in the machine what would lead directly to the bold decision to send Apollo 8 to the moon just 2 months later.

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Gemini 12

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Soviet Space

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Viking patch

This embroidered mission patch celebrates NASA's Viking Project which reached the Red Planet in 1976.

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Apollo 7 DVD

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Gemini 12

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Expedition 18 patch & pin

The official embroidered patch and lapel pin for the International Space Station Expedition 18 crew is now available to from our stores.

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Columbus mission patch

The official astronaut embroidered patch of Atlantis' STS-122 mission that launched the Columbus science lab in February is available to U.S. customers from our store.

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Project Orion

The Orion crew exploration vehicle is NASA's first new human spacecraft developed since the space shuttle a quarter-century earlier. The capsule is one of the key elements of returning astronauts to the Moon.

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Apollo patches

The Apollo Patch Collection: Includes all 12 Apollo mission patches plus the Apollo Program Patch. Save over 20% off the Individual price.
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