YN PR — Washington, DC — Yuri’s Night is excited to commemorate the 50th anniversary of human spaceflight by launching two contests: the “Call to Humanity†Space Exploration Ad Competition, which calls on talented graphic designers, artists, and other creative individuals to create a powerful and inspiring print campaign that will move people to think about and support humanity’s future in space, and the “International Space Sweepstakes,” a free global drawing.
Wind tunnel tests have led to some tweaks in XCOR’s Lynx vehicle. Here’s what it looked like before: And here’s the latest iteration: As you can see, the nose is a bit rounder. And there is also an optional payload shroud on top of fuselage which will be used to launch small satellites into orbit.
Virtually Speaking Science Date: Sunday, 2/27/2011 Time: 8:00 p.m. EST Hosts:Jay Ackroyd, Alan Boyle, Robin Snelson Guest: Col. “Coyote” Smith Live in Second Life and on Blogtalkradio Call-in Number: (646) 200-3440 Cosmic Log’s Alan Boyle and Space Studies Institute’s Robin Snelson, aka Rocket Sellers, explore the often-volatile landscape of science, politics and policy. Their guest: M.V. “Coyote†Smith, Colonel, USAF and Director of the Air Force Space and Cyber Strategy […]
NASA PR — Space shuttle Discovery docked to the International Space Station at 2:14 p.m. EST Saturday with its cargo of a new station module, equipment and supplies for the orbiting laboratory.
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Former ISRO’s Chairman K. Kasturirangan said today that the space agency’s positive reputation has not been damaged by the uproar over the controversial S-band satellite deal with Devas Multimedia: “It is the performance that matters. The organisation has been performing consistently and the scam has not really affected our grit and determination to that level,” Kasturirangan, chairman of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for over nine years, told IANS. […]
The Big Island of Hawaii
Hawaiian State Senators are debating a bill that would allow the state to apply for a spaceport license from the Federal Aviation Administration. A similar measure passed the Legislature last year, but no money was appropriated for it by then-Gov. Linda Lingle.
The full text of Senate Bill 112, which was introduced by Sen. Will Espero, is shown after the break.
Jupiter Direct Launcher Variants
UPDATE: I ran into Bobby Braun last night here in Orlando, and he says that this story misquoted him as saying it would take a decade.
NASA Chief Technologist Bobby Braun thinks it could a while to complete the space agency’s human spaceflight projects:
But with spending squeezed and NASA at odds with lawmakers over a 2016 timeframe for building a new heavy-lift rocket and crew vehicle to replace the 30-year-old shuttle program, Braun said that developing the future mode of travel could take longer than Congress, or the US public, may want to hear.
“Let’s call it — think about it as a decade if you want to put a time stamp to it,” said Braun, who gathered along with a host of veteran astronauts, politicians and space enthusiasts at Kennedy Space Center on Thursday to witness the final blastoff for the Discovery space shuttle.
Armadillo Aerospace Founder John Carmack has offered a prize for “the next ground launched rocket flight above 100,000′ with GPS log and successful recovery.” He offered $5,000 for the flight; that total is now at $8,000 with contributions by Paul Breed ($2,000) and Robin Snelson ($1,000). Carmack’s description of the prize follows after the break.
CORRECTION: Space.com says this story is false. “I can confirm that there was a model of the VG spaceship given to the Oscar VIPs, not a flight,” Virgin Galactic president and CEO George Whitesides told SPACE.com today (Feb. 28). The New York Post reports that Oscar losers will not be going home empty handed: The infamous “consolation prize†swag bag — presented by Distinctive Assets the morning after the Oscars […]
Insider Media reports that the UK-Russia Year of Space 2011 is about much more than simply celebrating the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin’s historic flight into space:
The decision by the government to share expertise, knowledge and innovation in space science with Russia will be a valuable boost to the work of South East space science businesses. That’s according to Guildford-based Surrey Satellite Technology, one of the country’s biggest space companies.
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DLR — NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and DLR Chairman Johann-Dietrich Wörner share personal reflections and perspectives on international collaboration and examine the challenges that lie ahead in space exploration in a ‘Masters with Masters’ event at NASA Headquarters.
NASA PR — WASHINGTON — Preparations for the launch of NASA’s Glory mission from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California have been suspended temporarily. Engineers continue to troubleshoot a malfunction in ground support equipment associated with the Taurus XL rocket. Managers are evaluating possible Glory launch opportunities in early to mid-March.
On Feb. 23, a false indication was received about the rocket’s status after commands were sent approximately 15 minutes before launch to activate the Taurus.
