Roundups on the incentive2innovate conference and the Space Business Forum, which were both held in New York City in early June.
William John Cox gives an overview of efforts to develop reusable spaceplanes, including the X-43, X-51 and HTV-3X Blackswift programs.
India confident of manned space programme: ISRO
The Hindu
Recent successes in India’s space programme have given the country the technological base to confidently approach the challenge of sending man to outer space, Chairman of Indian Space Research Organisation G. Madhavan Nair has said.
- NASA’s Johnson Space Center 2009 class of flight directors gathers for a group portrait. From the left are Scott Stover, Ed Van Cise and Dina Contella.
NASA has selected three new flight directors who will manage and carry out shuttle flights and International Space Station expeditions. Dina Contella, Scott Stover and Ed Van Cise will join a select group of individuals who lead human spaceflights from Mission Control at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
China may set up moon base camp by 2030
China Daily
In a roadmap for the development of China’s space technology, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) said that China’s manned spacecraft could also launch from a moon base to explore further planets in 2050.
Artist Impression of Virgin Galactic's WhiteKnightTwo/SpaceShipOne over Spaceport America in New Mexico.
The New Mexico Spaceport Authority has released the schedule for the two days of festivies surrounding the groundbreaking for Spaceport America on June 18-19. It will include speeches, exhibits, and (weather permitting) a flyover by Virgin Galactic’s WhiteKnightTwo. For those who can’t make it in person, the groundbreaking ceremony will be webcast.
ASTRIUM PRESS RELEASE
Astrium, Europe’s leading space company, has been commissioned by the German Aerospace Centre (DLR) to conduct a study for the testing of future moon landings. The aim is to prove the technological feasibility of a soft and precise robotic landing on the moon.
Northrop Grumman Press Release
The Northrop Grumman Foundation is accepting teacher applications for the 2009 Weightless Flights of Discovery. This annual professional development program allows teachers to prepare for and participate in micro- and zero-gravity flights to test Newton’s Laws of Motion with the purpose of taking the experience back into their classrooms to energize their students in science and math subjects during the formative middle-school years.
A gaseous hydrogen leak on a vent line for space shuttle Endeavour is postponing this morning’s launch.
Intelsat, Ltd., the world’s leading provider of fixed satellite services, today provided further details with respect to its current fleet investment plan, which is expected to result in a significant improvement in the types and quantities of satellite capacity available to media, networking and government customers in the Asia-Pacific region.
Former NASA astronaut George "Pinky" Nelson
NORTHROP GRUMMAN PRESS RELEASE
Northrop Grumman Corporation recently sponsored the 2009 U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame induction gala, an annual scholarship fundraising event held by the Astronaut Scholarship Foundation (ASF). The event honored this year’s Astronaut Hall of Fame inductees George “Pinky” Nelson, William Shepherd and Jim Wetherbee.
Altair
ORBITEC PRESS RELEASE
Aerospace hardware, whether for jet engines, space station payloads or lunar surface components, has some of the most demanding requirements of any design application. To ensure proper verification and validation during operations, Orbital Technologies Corporation (ORBITEC) is now offering commercial in-house testing capabilities for systems, subsystems, and components.
Led by ORBITEC’s Human Support Systems and Instrumentation Division, the test capabilities include vibration, vacuum, thermal and humidity cycling, shock, lunar dust exposure, acoustic load, altitude, vacuum, and lifetime testing. Other capabilities supporting testing include precision gas mixing capabilities and gas chromatography mass spectrometry.