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Sunday:
April 23, 2000 | |
0357 GMT |
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Atlantis countdown ticks smoothly toward launch
NASA mission managers today cleared space shuttle Atlantis for its Monday liftoff, putting to rest the earlier problem with a hydraulics unit that had to be replaced inside the ship's tail. Follow the countdown in our Mission Status Center.
 MISSION STATUS CENTER
STS-101 INDEX
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Submarine to be tested in shuttle booster recovery
A demonstration to evaluate the use of a one-man submarine during Space Shuttle solid rocket booster retrieval operations will be conducted at sea by United Space Alliance post flight operations during the upcoming STS-101 mission.
FULL STORY
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Officials scrub Boeing Delta 2 rocket launch again
The U.S. Air Force scrubbed Saturday night's planned launch of a Boeing Delta 2 rocket and a NAVSTAR Global Positioning System satellite. The delay was ordered so engineers can double check the satellite's solar arrays. See our Mission Status Center for the latest news.
MISSION STATUS CENTER
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DAILY BRIEFING Other stories making news today
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Mir's pressure stabilizes, leak search may be over -- The Mir cosmonauts' efforts to find and repair a small leak in the space station are paying off, with the internal pressure now stabilizing after a sealing plug was installed on the Spektr module's hatch.
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Saturday:
April 22, 2000 | |
0415 GMT |
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Boeing Delta 2 rocket launch scrubbed
The U.S. Air Force has called off last night's planned launch of a Delta 2 rocket carrying a Global Positioning System satellite because of a ground equipment problem. Liftoff has been tentatively rescheduled for Saturday night.
MISSION STATUS CENTER
LAUNCH PREVIEW STORY
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Stardust spacecraft catching dust in the wind
Like an excited kid hoping to snag a fly ball at a professional baseball game, NASA's Stardust spacecraft has extended its high-tech "catcher's mitt" to collect a valuable space souvenir -- a batch of interstellar dust particles.
FULL STORY
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Revolutionary telescope unveiled in search for ET
In a tree preserve a dozen miles from the campus of the University of California-Berkeley, astronomers have revealed a prototype telescope that will lead to the development of the world's most powerful instrument for finding signals from extra-terrestrial civilizations.
FULL STORY
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Friday:
April 21, 2000 | |
0233 GMT |
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Boeing Delta 2 rocket to launch tonight from Florida
The U.S. Air Force and Boeing are planning to launch a needed replacement satellite into the space-based Global Positioning System navigation network Friday night from Cape Canaveral. A Delta 2 rocket will carry the Lockheed Martin-built satellite. Follow the countdown and launch in our Mission Status Center.
MISSION STATUS CENTER
LAUNCH PREVIEW STORY
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Shuttle crew arrive
The seven astronauts arrived at the Kennedy Space Center today for Monday's planned launch of space shuttle Atlantis bound for the International Space Station. The countdown clocks will soon start ticking. See our Mission Status Center for the latest news.
MISSION STATUS CENTER [Updated: 2100 GMT]
VIDEO: CREW ARRIVAL
MEET THE ASTRONAUTS
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Traverse across the summit of Mars' Olympus Mons
A new image from NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, currently orbiting Mars, shows a close-up view across the summit of Olympus Mons, the largest volcano known in our solar system.
FULL STORY
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Landsat 7 celebrates its first birthday in space
A year after its April 1999 launch, NASA's Landsat 7 continues to serve a wide variety of "Earth customers" with its spectacular data. Since being declared operational last July, Landsat 7 has gathered more than 90,000 images, covering most of the Earth's surface multiple times in stunning detail.
FULL STORY
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DAILY BRIEFING Other stories making news today
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Sea Launch gives progress report on failure probe -- Members of the Sea Launch Failure Review Oversight Board met last week to hear briefings from the independent teams that are investigating the launch failure of March 12. The Board believes a ground software error doomed the launch.
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Thursday:
April 20, 2000 | |
0217 GMT |
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Galileo returns amazing images of Jovian moons
Lava flows, cliffs and depressions from collapsed volcanic eruptions are seen in new images of Jupiter's moon Io, taken by NASA's Galileo spacecraft during its most recent flyby on February 22. The new batch of images released Wednesday also includes a high-resolution view of the side of Europa that faces Jupiter.
FULL STORY
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Flagship of NASA's Earth observers begins its work
After a picture-perfect launch into space last December, NASA's premier Earth Observing System Satellite, Terra, has completed on-orbit checkout and verification and is "open for business."
FULL STORY
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Delta rocket launch to fill vacant hole in GPS network
A new Global Positioning System military navigation satellite will be launched into space Friday night to replace the very first spacecraft deployed in the U.S. Air Force constellation 11 years ago.
FULL STORY
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NASA probe finds signs of the times on asteroid Eros
NEAR Shoemaker's investigation of Eros from low altitude orbit continues to bring the asteroid's history into sharper focus. Two new images show the dissimilarity of two different regions of the asteroid.
FULL STORY
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NEWSWIRE Links to news across the internet
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Search for alien life gets boost -- (AP/Yahoo!) With a whir of electric motors, seven satellite dishes swung as one Wednesday, pointing blindly into space in the first demonstration of technology scientists hope will let them eavesdrop on intelligent civilizations thousands of light-years in space. The dishes are the prototype of what is being called the One Hectare Telescope, a joint project of the SETI Institute - for Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence - and the University of California, Berkeley.
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Wednesday:
April 19, 2000 | |
0326 GMT |
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Arianespace lofts Galaxy 4R; next flight uncertain
Europe's Ariane 4 rocket placed a U.S. communications satellite into orbit Tuesday night but Arianespace's jungle launch pads will become silent until at least mid-summer due to spacecraft engine troubles.
FULL STORY
MISSION STATUS CENTER
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Giant magnetic bubble discovered in nearby galaxy
A team of astronomers in Hawaii have discovered a giant magnetic 'bubble' measuring 3000 light years (18 trillion miles) across in a nearby galaxy. Nothing similar has ever been seen before and it sheds new light on our understanding of how "starburst" galaxies evolve.
FULL STORY
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Space probe gets up close and personal with asteroid
NASA's NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft is now orbiting asteroid Eros at an altitude of 62 miles from the rock's center. Pictures taken from this orbit will be used to make a high-resolution map of the illuminated portion of the asteroid.
FULL STORY
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DAILY BRIEFING Other stories making news today
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Europe's Mars Express forging links with Japan -- Progress on building the European Space Agency's Mars Express spacecraft is proceeding according to plan, officials report. Meanwhile, efforts are being made to work with the Japanese Nozomi space probe currently enroute to the Red Planet.
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Tuesday:
April 18, 2000 | |
0530 GMT |
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New EUTELSAT satellite arrives in Earth orbit
A communications satellite built to serve Europe, Africa and Asia was hauled into space on Monday by a Russian Proton rocket. The Siberia Europe Satellite, or SESAT, is the first of seven new spacecraft EUTELSAT will launch over the next two years.
FULL STORY
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Ariane 4 launch tonight
A European Ariane 4 rocket stands ready atop its South American launch pad for Tuesday evening's fiery climb to space to deliver a U.S. telecommunications broadcasting satellite into Earth orbit. Follow the launch in our Mission Status Center.
MISSION STATUS CENTER
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Atlantis concerns: Failure probe, tight schedule
NASA says it remains optimistic space shuttle Atlantis will make its appointed launch date next Monday despite a continuing investigation into the failure of a hydraulics unit taken from the ship and a tight work schedule that has no room for more problems.
FULL STORY
MISSION STATUS CENTER
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NEAR Shoemaker back in the asteroid saddle again
NASA's NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft is being directed at the "saddle region" of asteroid Eros again. Scientists do not know the origin of the saddle, which is a low region between two mountains on the space rock.
FULL STORY
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DAILY BRIEFING Other stories making news today
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This week on Galileo -- Galileo continues to return science data acquired during its February flyby of Jupiter's volcanic moon Io. The data are stored on the spacecraft's onboard tape recorder. During playback, the spacecraft's main computer retrieves data from the tape recorder, processes the data with the help of the attitude control computer, and then packages and transmits the data to Earth.
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NEWSWIRE Links to news across the internet
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Atlantis rudder/speed brake report -- (NASA Watch) This internal NASA presentation contains 7 charts that explain the failure investigation in great detail - including how a spool within Shuttle Orbiter OV104's Speed Brake PDU (Power Drive Unit) failed.
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Monday:
April 17, 2000 | |
2130 GMT |
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Proton rocket launches with EUTELSAT satellite
A Russian Proton rocket has blasted off today to place a single satellite into space that will connect communications between Europe, Africa and Asia. Deployment of the satellite to complete the launch is expected at about 0330 GMT Tuesday.
FULL STORY
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Company rewrites Apollo 13 story with 'what if'
Thirty years ago, Apollo 13 ground and flight crews overcame substantial obstacles following an on-board explosion to return three stranded astronauts safely back to Earth. Analytical Graphics, Inc. (AGI) has announced interesting results that change what history books have written as the predicted outcome of this adversity had NASA not been able to successfully rescue Apollo 13.
FULL STORY
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Test of Atlantis' repaired hydraulics completed
Space shuttle engineers put Atlantis through a complete hydraulics test at launch pad 39A this weekend. A thorough review of the results, however, won't be finished until Monday. The shuttle must pass the test if it's to launch on April 24 as planned. See Mission Status Center for the latest news.
MISSION STATUS CENTER
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Ariane 4 rocket to fly Tuesday night
Workers today will load fuel into an Arianespace Ariane 4 rocket's first and second stages and twin strap-on boosters atop its launch pad in Kourou, French Guiana. The European rocket has been cleared for liftoff Tuesday night carrying the American Galaxy 4R communications satellite. Check back later today for a complete launch preview.
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