Sunday: March 18, 2001   0539 GMT Tests ordered to verify shuttle computer software Concern about possibly corrupted software in the shuttle Discovery's critical flight computers triggered an intensive engineering analysis today and consideration of an unprecedented in-flight software reload. In the end, troubleshooters concluded the shuttle's four general purpose computers, or GPCs, were healthy.    FULL STORY    MISSION STATUS CENTER - live updates Sea Launch poised to boost radio satellite Sunday The Sea Launch Zenit 3SL rocket was rolled out and erected upright atop the Odyssey platform anchored in the Pacific Ocean on Saturday as the countdown continued to Sunday's liftoff to place a relay spacecraft into orbit for XM Satellite Radio. The company aims to broadcast music, news and entertainment programming directly to cars across America starting this summer.    MISSION STATUS CENTER U.S. to build constellation of satellites for Taiwan Taiwan has chosen Orbital Sciences to build a fleet of six microsatellites that aims to study Earth's atmosphere to aid scientists in weather and climate forecasting and ionosphere and gravity research fields.    FULL STORY Saturday: March 17, 2001   0546 GMT Mir veterans recall station's glory, lament its passing As the shuttle and station crews wrapped up a quiet but productive day in space, four of the five Mir veterans on board reflected on the upcoming demise of the old Russian station, lamenting its passing but looking forward to the future.    FULL STORY    MISSION STATUS CENTER Ground control prepares to boost Mir's power supply Russian mission controllers in Korolev plan to restart space station Mir's orientation system on Wednesday, or around 24 hours prior to the complex's scheduled deorbiting, officials said Friday.    FULL STORY    SUMMARY OF REENTRY PLAN U.S. provides data to Russia for Mir splashdown United States space specialists are providing Russian technicians with Mir space station positional data to help ensure the vehicle's safe splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.    FULL STORY Friday: March 16, 2001   1835 GMT Discovery to stay an extra day at space station Mission managers have decided to extend Discovery's stay at the International Space Station by one day; the station's first crew looks forward to homecoming, if not Earth's gravity.    FULL STORY    MISSION STATUS CENTER    VIDEO: MISSION EXTENDED (subscribers only) Galileo gets final reprieve before crash into Jupiter The resilient Galileo spacecraft doesn't know when it call it quits. So, NASA has outlined the details of one last mission extension, which includes five more flybys of the Jovian moons before a final plunge into the crushing pressure of the giant planet's atmosphere.    FULL STORY Walker says no to NASA administrator job A former Congressman who had been considered as a leading candidate to succeed Dan Goldin as NASA administrator said Thursday he has no interest in the position.    FULL STORY Sea Launch to loft radio relay satellite Sunday The countdown got underway Thursday for Sea Launch's planned Sunday mission to place the first digital audio relay spacecraft into orbit for XM Satellite Radio, a company that aims to broadcast music, news and entertainment programming directly to cars across America starting this summer.    MISSION STATUS CENTER DAILY BRIEFING  Other stories making news today Twin telescopes team up to sharpen their focus -- The two largest telescopes in the world were linked together this week for the first time, a key step forward for efforts to directly observe extrasolar planets. Two asteroids get Irish touch -- Two asteroids have been given Irish names in time for St. Patrick's Day. Discovered in July 1987 by famed asteroid hunter and planetary astronomer Eleanor Helin, the asteroids have been officially christened by the International Astronomical Union and honor Irish contributions to astronomical research. Thursday: March 15, 2001   0646 GMT Cargo transfer in high gear The Discovery astronauts spent the day repacking the Leonardo cargo module with space station trash and discarded equipment while the lab's departing crew members briefed their replacements on the finer points of operating the growing outpost.    FULL STORY More mission coverage here:       Russians refine plan for reentry of space station Mir After weeks of uncertainty, Russian space officials have set the early hours of March 22 as the definitive target for the Mir's fiery reentry into Earth's atmosphere.    FULL STORY Volcanoes on Jovian moon Io try erasing their age The amount of lava gushing from individual volcanoes on Jupiter's moon Io dwarfs earthly comparisons, and the pace at which lava is repainting Io's surface suggests a novel technique for determining the relative ages of surface regions there.    FULL STORY Wednesday: March 14, 2001   0518 GMT Station crew rotation complete Astronaut Susan Helms moved aboard the international space station today, completing the lab's first crew rotation and becoming the first woman to live aboard the outpost. The astronauts are ahead of schedule unloading the Leonardo cargo carrier.    FULL STORY    MISSION STATUS CENTER Volcanoes may have played role in Martian life Two of the oldest volcanoes on Mars, which have been active for 3.5 billion years, are providing clues to the possibility of life on the planet, according to preliminary analysis by geologists of new data from the Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft.    FULL STORY Deep X-rays show universe teeming with black holes For the first time, astronomers believe they have proof black holes of all sizes once ruled the universe. NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory provided the deepest X-ray images ever recorded, and those pictures deliver a novel look at the past 12 billion years of black holes.    FULL STORY DAILY BRIEFING  Other stories making news today Astronomers find missing type of quasar -- Astronomy's "most wanted" list shortened by one this week when researchers announced that they had spotted the first type II quasar, an object on the fringes of the known universe whose existence they had suspected for two decades. Tuesday: March 13, 2001   0530 GMT Spacewalk clears way for arm attachment Shuttle astronauts Andy Thomas and Paul Richards made a 6.5-hour spacewalk today that successfully continued outfitting the exterior of the international space station's Destiny module and fixed a solar array wing brace.    FULL STORY    MISSION STATUS CENTER    SPACEWALK PREVIEW MOVIE (subscribers only)    DETAILED EVA TIMELINE Unexpected anomalies in globular clusters found Astronomers have now obtained some unexpected results during a detailed analysis of dwarf stars in some globular clusters. Such stars have about the same mass as our Sun and like it, they evolve very slowly.    FULL STORY Cracking the mystery to Venus' climate change A mathematical model of the surface of Venus could show how the hot, dry surface has reacted to changes in temperature throughout the planet's history. Patterns of cracks were found on Venus' 500-degree surface by NASA's Magellan spacecraft in the early 1990s.    FULL STORY DAILY BRIEFING  Other stories making news today Galileo to fire thrusters to tweak course -- This week's major scheduled activity for NASA's Galileo spacecraft is a propulsive maneuver on Friday. This burn of the probe's primary steering jets will help to refine the trajectory leading up to the next planned flyby of the satellite Callisto in late May. Gone with the wind but visible to NASA radar -- The history of sea islands in the Altamaha River delta on the coast of Georgia is revealed in this image produced from data acquired by the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR). Monday: March 12, 2001   0654 GMT Italian-made 'moving van' docked to space station The Leonardo Multipurpose Logistics Module has been mounted to the international space station with its 9,993 pounds of equipment and experiments for the U.S. Destiny laboratory. The astronauts are slated to enter the $150 million pressurized module in a few hours, then start unpacking its contents on Monday night.    FULL STORY    MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates    STS-102 MISSION THEATER				Earlier news March 5-11: Discovery launches to space station for crew exchange; Supermassive black hole found in nearby galaxy; Checking on an old and active cometary friend; Russia offers module, extra Soyuz capsule to partners; First Ariane 5 rocket of 2001. Feb. 26-March 4: Titan 4 rocket launches Milstar; NASA kills X-33 and X-34; NEAR Shoemaker phones home for the last time; Jupiter's largest moon may be a wet, slushy place; Pluto mission clings to life; Volcanic Io erupts. Feb. 19-25: Atlantis landing diverted to California; NEAR gets another extension; Students uncover baffling Martian boulders; Mir turns 15 years old; Asteroid or comet blamed for mass extinction. Feb. 12-18: NEAR probe survives historic landing on asteroid Eros; Atlantis departs station after flawless lab delivery; More new Mars pictures; Launches of XM radio satellites shuffled. More news  See our weekly archive of space news. Contact us If you have a comment or question for Spaceflight Now, just send us an e-mail. Hubble poster The Hubble Space Telescope's majestic view of the Eskimo Nebula. This spectacular poster is available now from the Astronomy Now Store.    MORE