Note: The links below will
open up in one new browser window. For best viewing, size the two web
browsers so that they don't take up the entire screen - this way, you will be
able to go back and forth to all the stories without losing your place.
27 December - Discovery at Kennedy Space Center! Follow the latest on
STS-103 at the STS-103
Page!
Are part of "Faster, Better, Cheaper"?
What's next for the ?
26 December - STS-103
crew prepares to come home tomorrow.
New for the
at NASA's
in Mississippi. The
engine has a very than the Shuttle's
engines.
25 December -
Merry
Christmas!!!
Did you know? STS-103
pilot (from the as your faithful editor!) has a who is also in the ? This makes the the ! The shuttle crew
released HST back to orbit today.
, in an exclusive , describes his plans for interplanetary Christmas
deliveries. (hmmm, I've been trying to get on the Big
Guy's appointment calendar for months - I guess you have to know the
right elves...)
24 December - Santa's sleigh - the ultimate !
NASA selects 's
air-launched
rocket for in 2002.
Today In Space History - The crew of , in , read from the Bible's
on . It was one of the most memorable and moving television from
.
The televised images were the by people , and
it was a of the fragility of our planet,
the we have.
23 December -
Satellite should its Earth mission.
Was the really a star?
NASA and Boeing agree to modify .
What are the odds of a
on the ?
22 December - The orbiting is attempting to
the south polar region of the Red Planet, to to the fate of the
Mars Polar Lander. The to be imaged successfully (it would appear
as a small dot), but scientists are hoping to spot other evidence,
like an impact crater, the jettisoned aeroshell, or its large
parachute.
Will Russians to keep alive?
's XMM telescope .
Observatory ,
thanks to Julian dates.
The were
into a , thanks to Houston-based (But won't it be tough to visit grandpa??)
21 December - STS-103 crew prepping for Hubble repairs - check the
STS-103 Page for the latest scoop.
Has anyone seen the new commercial with Bob Vila and Buzz
Aldrin? In the TV ad for the on-line brokerage, is shown floating around the screen
(as if space-walking, but wearing street clothes). As Buzz reaches out and grabs a floating ,
he exclaims "Gotcha!" while Bob, in the foreground, discusses their contrasting stock-trading styles. Bob claims that "you don't have to be a
rocket scientist to use" the service, and Buzz (who, with a , actually is a rocket scientist) retorts, "Speak for yourself, Bob!".
Two more rockets were launched today: An Taurus lofted (one for the , one for )
early this morning, and an rocket
a communications
satellite
- Ariane's this year.
Today In Space History - Tuesday marks the
of the
launch ().
was the first manned , sending three astronauts into (the first manned Apollo flight was an mission). This marked the that humans had
, and the anyone would see
another planetary body close up, with their own eyes. Mission Fact sheet
;
Crew info ;
Image collection .
was the of the
rocket, and carried a "" instead of a real Lunar Module. Before launch, the
Apollo 8 crew met aviation pioneer . This mission was also the first to lift off from KSC's Launch Complex 39, the home of all future manned NASA flights
(Apollo 7 and all the Mercury and Gemini missions launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station).
20 December - Shuttle crew gets set to take care of
business...
NASA issues a on the successful Terra satellite launch. The spacecraft
will study the from orbit.
18 December - 11:55PM EST - Terra, the
of the Earth Observing System, has over above our planet. We should have an
update from NASA tomorrow. Check out 's countdown journal. Congratulations, NASA! Now, let's get
that Shuttle going...
18 December - 2:30PM EST - FLASH!! successfully launched!!
Terra is currently in its first orbit, the solar array is deployed,
and we are awaiting confirmation of its antennas to be deployed. By the way, CNN hasn't even posted this on their site yet. You saw it here first! CNN rocks, anyway.
18 December - Earth Observing System satellite Terra will
launch from California's this morning. High
winds may delay the flight until the end of the launch window -
10:57AM PST (1:57PM EST). Terra will be the first in a series of 10
orbiting spacecraft meant to monitor the Earth's environment.
17 December - 9PM EST - FLASH!! Both of today's scheduled
launches postponed until Saturday!! going up 1:33PM EST tomorrow.
going up 8:21PM tomorrow (see Shuttle page).
Latest International Space Station ...
16 December - 8PM EST - FLASH!! Shuttle launch delayed one
more day!! (See Shuttle Page).
Both of the "double-header" flights have been pushed
back 24 hours, as the
satellite mission was
due to a safety-related shutdown by onboard computers, just . The will be Friday at 1:33 PM EST.
16 December - NASA will use the orbiting Mars Global Surveyor
to of the failed Mars Polar Lander . The lander is too small to be , but scientists are hoping to spot the large
parachute near the target area.
NASA will have a "" launch today, as the
satellite is to from California's around 1PM EST. Shuttle
Discovery will launch from Florida's around 9PM
tonight.
14 December - CBS reports on ...
11 December - Today In Space History: The doomed was
a from 's aboard a . The
lifted off
successfully, but probably in the Martian or crashed to the surface. The
was later determined to be a miscalculation in
- 's metric units, and the 's
imperial (English) units. [Source: ]
10 December - Russian of nearly flight-certified.
Largest - the XMM X-Ray observatory (bigger than !)
went up on an
rocket. It was the for the .
9 December - the Mars Polar Lander? (Hey, it's not officially
yet!) NASA chief vows
of Mars program.
President , and, recalling far worse space tragedies of the
past, maintained that "America didn't quit ... and now." How about some budget
dollars, then?!?!?
will launch XMM atop a new heavy-lift rocket this Friday.
announced today that they would become the 15th member of .
China will build a . (Good! We need a worthy adversary for a new space
race!)
What would a be like?
Japan program to concentrate on lower-cost booster.
8 December - More attempts to prove fruitless. will learn from U.S. mistakes.
Russia claims that won't launch their nukes.
7 December - Just about every
possibility has been in the efforts to hear a
from . will be
the Mars program. Out of 25 U.S. or Russian Mars missions
since 1962, . They don't call this stuff for nothin'! Maybe "" needs to be .
on the state of the U.S. space program in light of
China's apparent readiness to put a human in space, in .
More top news at the ever-independent and always-skeptical ...
6 December - 8:00PM EST - Scientists are becoming about ,
but have that the probe is and temporarily .
The are probably a lost cause by now, since they were
designed with a limited lifespan and their batteries have most
likely run out. The for MPL comes at 3AM EST Tuesday. The would be a terrible disappointment, but this
business of space exploration is extremely complex, and we should
not be deterred by the occasional bump in the road. Even though
$165 million may seem like a lot of money to the average person, it
is very little compared to the billion-dollar of the 70's. The of these flights is the reason we are able to make of them. There will be !
6 December - 2:00AM EST - After a , the is wondering to the Mars Polar Lander. If it is by Tuesday, it means we have to assume it did not land successfully.
This Week In Space History - Tuesday marks the of the
launch ().
was the , and the
of the rocket. Mission Fact sheet ;
Crew info ;
Image collection . Mission commander
became the to walk on the (until...???).
"America’s challenge of today has forged man’s destiny of tomorrow". - Gene Cernan, last man on the moon
5 December - 2:50PM EST - Things are . No contact from the second antenna. Next at 3PM EST.
Mars exploration is featured on the Dec 6th issue of .
5 December - 10:45AM EST - NASA is "" after the continued from the lander or the in the soil. The next window of opportunity will be
this afternoon at 1:50 EST. This listening attempt will use a and relay via the already in orbit, so there is . Also, some onboard self-repair routines could kick in
this Thursday.
feed from mission control at .
5 December - 2:50AM EST - MPL
for . With each listening window that passes, the slowly . at 10:45AM EST. Stay tuned to !
5 December - 12:40AM EST - Still no contact with . Forty-five minutes from now, the orbiting
Global Surveyor will pass over the MPL site and possibly be able to
lock onto a signal. Possible reasons for the
include the lander being in "safe mode" with frozen
batteries, or a need to recharge them from the solar panels - which
means that more Martian daylight may (even though
one night/day cycle has already passed). NASA scientists
were planning for several such as misdirected
antennas, and have not given up hope, and have described the team's
mood as "". Let's hope that nothing bad happened
during descent (like a parachute malfunction, an improper detachment
of the "cruise ring", or a - like an
overly steep crater wall or large rocks). We're keeping our fingers
crossed!!!
4 December - NASA
that MPL landed successfully, despite the from the lander or its two .
Others are . Check out the Mars on
The JPL team will
for signals . Next window: 8:30PM Pacific Time.
Get the latest and watch on !
European is on
rocket. It was the for the 's .
3 December -
Happy Hanukkah! from the
Polar
yet. It was due to touch down ,
but JPL has yet to hear from the ,
which was
in January 1998, or the that were along for the ride. Here is a from JPL on the windows of opportunity they will have for
establishing - (requires free reader).
gives us the skinny on how
is ready for all the Mars web traffic with their new heavy-duty
sites,
and .
promises to put a person in space within a year, after their first
successful last month.
2 December - The
Polar
is due to on the
of the tomorrow ()
! In-depth
coverage from ,
, and .
The will be the first spacecraft to from another planet! Check the and on the web!
slowly and may finally answer the question of and the exploding hatch!
28 November - This Week In Space History - Wow! five
anniversaries (moved to the Shuttle
page) plus another mission!
This Saturday marks the of the
launch (4 Dec 1965).
was the . Astronauts
and
would later lead Apollo missions (8 and 13), but not land on the lunar
surface. Mission Fact sheet ;
Crew info (and detailed history) ;
Image collection .
would launch 11 days later and
with Gemini 7, which set a space endurance record. [Source:
]
Today is the (28 Nov 1964) of the of
, the first spacecraft to return (). approached the in July 1965 and took 22 pictures
(recorded on tape and transmitted over 4 days!) during its . [Source:
]
25 November -
Happy Thanksgiving! News From Space will return to
its regular schedule in mid-to-late December. Watch for a major site
overhaul early next year!
Check the Shuttle Page for This Week In Space History.
20 November - FLASH! - they could put astronauts in orbit
next year, only the third nation on earth with this capability!
19 November - racks up
for their
heavy-lift rocket.
18 November - Discovery to deal with gyroscope failure. Follow the latest STS-103 status
at the Shuttle Page!
16 November - announces their micromirror technology may be part of the -
the future to .
15 November - FLASH! -
booster ordered to seconds into flight.
The failure of the unmanned satellite launch is a major setback for
the Japanese space program. Keep trying, guys!
Well, it was bound to happen - the had another one of its last 3 operational , the giant orbital observatory into "",
which will keep it in a but its scientific capability until the next
arrives .
If you have the cash, an may be in your future!
readies - can manned missions be far behind?
Minuteman 3 missile.
on the of a outside our
.
makes
in front of .
to be named after Antarctic explorers.
Keep your for those Leonid meteor showers! Peak
viewing will start .
Today In Space History - Jim Lovell and Buzz Aldrin splashed down in
Gemini XII this day in 1966, bringing their mission and the entire Gemini
program to a successful close.
14 November - Japanese satellite launch tomorrow - see it
(Requires free ).
launches . - An booster put a communications yesterday.
More talk of ...
return . The annual should peak this
night. We may see the meteorites !
This Week In Space History - Three Shuttle
anniversaries, a Skylab mission, plus an Apollo anniversary!
This Tuesday will be the 26th anniversary of the
of . (The official NASA designation was ,
counting the 's
unmanned ,
but it was the ). Mission Fact sheet ;
Crew info ;
Image collection .
was America's . Its
in May 1973 was the final flight of the mighty
rocket (The manned flights were s boosted by s).
's
orbit decayed over the years after that final mission (), and the station in the atmosphere in July 1979.
Today also marks the of the
launch ().
was the , and the last U.S. of the . Mission Fact sheet
;
Crew info ;
Image collection .
The crew
in the Pacific
after (24 Nov 69).
Mission commander became the
to on 19 November 1969. He 30 years later, in a
accident (July 1999), after a long and successful
as an and in the
.
is survived by his ,
and .
13 November - planet hunters make of a planet our
!
12 November - will be sending an ! The SMART-1 will use an
system.
How's the
of 's Liberty Bell 7 capsule going?
simulates
emissions!
What was the seen over Florida skies this week?
discovered by automated telescope.
11 November - It's Veteran's Day (Rememberance Day for our friends in Canada/UK/Australia/NZ).
Fly your flag and give thanks to those who gave so much for our freedom!!
Will the be able to ?
plans to rate solar storms which may and here on Earth.
Several appear in the November issue of .
NASA boss reaches a milestone of his own this month - he will become
the in the agency's history.
estimates that Goldin will break Apollo-era chief
's 7.5-year record on 21 November (my birthday!).
10 November - NASA released a
today, on of the
. The $125 million or (probably
in the Martian
atmosphere) in September. Read the NASA report
here
(requires free reader).
Hubble observes and in the
.
Scientists are (this apparently involves shooting stuff
at buckets of dirt - for this I went to college??) to
what happens in .
9 November - may need to so that its will function properly. Let's keep our fingers crossed!
Priceless 9.5-ton makes its way from Arizona to Chile. It will take over 3
weeks to arrive at its destination in the Andes mountains.
Will the feud between Russia and Kazakhstan mean ?
More (see 4 Nov).
reflected on his life on NBC's "Today" show.
7 November - 14 cities, autographing copies of his new
autobiography.
KSC working on a 6-ft (2 meter) tall rocket
designed to
Did a giant asteroid impact 65 million years ago send ("tidal waves") racing across the Atlantic?
Get ready for the annual next week! Will from the cometary remnants?
to win $10 million X Prize for commercial .
This Week In Space History - Wow! four
anniversaries (moved to the Shuttle
page) plus a
mission!
This Thursday marks the of the
launch (11 Nov 1966).
was the , and the last of the . Mission Fact sheet ;
Crew info ;
Image collection .
Pilot docked
Gemini with the
"by hand" after the
radar system failed. Three years later,
would become the to set foot on the (A long way from !). Mission
commander already had under his belt. He would later become one of the first three
men to leave the Earth's orbit (, in 1968) and would head up in 1970.
6 November - to get up to the
, which is in urgent need of repair - if
loses one more
, its guidance system will fail, and the telescope would
shut down!
may have a ""
on Jupiter's moon Io. The volcano, dubbed ,
has a structure and behavior Kilauea volcano, but is .
Who will build the ?
A -based
has detected that is the "echo"
from the Big Bang.
satellite produces area from orbit.
Russian living quarters for to be
in February 2000.
4 November - A
developed in the starboard of the X-33 reusable launch vehicle while undergoing tests
at .
Hollywood will be churning out the next year!
For the , a
has been
orbiting a !
Orbiting captures photos of .
2 November - update: from its Space memorabilia
section - NASA and the are investigating the incident. Federal law prohibits
ownership of Challenger wreckage.
Was that his fellow Mercury
astronauts didn't want him to be the first American in space?
from Russia and Kazakhstan will of a Proton rocket on 29 Oct. The Kazaks claim that
the is between the former Soviet neighbors.
The was made into Florida's new . The new area code for the Space Coast conjures up
images of a
to liftoff.
Updates from the to Jupiter...
1 November - Some creep is trying to on !
The
site broke the story - lots of scoop at ,
too.
November will be a for .
Did you know that December's Mars Polar Lander mission will have
a
on board? We will be able to from the Martian
surface!! Testing, 1-2-3...
31 October - Happy
Halloween!
that can float in the stratosphere for 100 days will be
used in space
research!
Shuttle wing damage called "" - March mission remains on schedule.
to take place next Friday (5 Nov 99) in
Phoenix, Arizona. Proceeds will benefit the NSS's .
designing for low ! Does room service come in a
little ?
to take place 28 Jan 2000 in Denver,
CO.
This Week In Space History - STS-66 Shuttle mission (3 Nov
1994). Stay tuned for full article!
30 October -
Polar Lander deemed a .
of Shuttle by NASA technicians! In other Shuttle
news,
is set to roll out to next for its
flight.
Monday's Lear Jet crash (which claimed the life of golfer Payne
Stewart) was which killed astronaut candidate Susan Reynolds.
to analyze Lunar Prospector data.
Despite yesterday's Proton rocket explosion, in the Russian launcher.
Scientists think dusty rings may foretell the formation of .
29 October - A Russian on launch, prompting from its Baikonur Cosmodrome for the this year (see Aug
1st story). Further , pending an investigation.
Shuttle Discovery move to KSC Vehicle Assembly Building .
to be launched by Europe's
company.
DoD developing
to refuel satellites.
27 October - New York native Eileen Collins, the first
woman to command a Shuttle mission, received the state's , the Empire State Freedom Medal.
decides to keep original Mars Polar (see 23 Oct).
International to avoid . Without the in altitude, the
would have a spent rocket.
The last time such a move was attempted (in ),
the guidance system shut down, and the station avoided a collision
by only 7km. , Mr. Sulu!
NASA recommends funding
to the Shuttle fleet - postpones decision on Shuttle successor until
2005.
25 October - Biologists warn that zero gravity may prove
problematic to .
set for 2 Nov - 4 Nov in Washington DC.
space telescope
observes
emitting from .
NASA to hold "" conference 1 Nov - 3 Nov 1999, in Miami Beach, FL.
24 October - Ukraine announces of a satellite will take place in .
focusing on task ahead.
China intends - will they be manned flights?
may be a "window" to the .
This Week In Space History - The 29th of October marks the
of 's
in
(not to mention the , !) , and the 12th anniversary of STS-61-A Shuttle mission (30 Oct
1985). Stay tuned for
full articles!
23 October - Jupiter makes its to Earth . It's been a since
the has appeared in our sky.
In other Jupiter news,
has released
from the the 's closest
(only 417 miles/617 km) of its moon .
The target site for the may be - a may need to be chosen.
The , which launched a pair a satellites from China last
week, is in rescuing the SACI-1 bird, which appears to be
lost.
U.S. military satellite observes !
presents initial .
21 October - covered the Conference at
earlier this month. "" and return to the of our founders!
Former astronauts to travel to Antarctica to at Earth's . and
will be part of a team heading south this January (the austral summer) for a project to look for microbial life in
samples of ancient ice. If life can survive under these conditions, could it exist in the frosty cold of
?
The
is not as we thought! Weak and outgassing is identified by ground observations as
well as the .
NASA will work with on 2003 mission to study .
& U.S. for next .
Earth-based telescope observe .
with joint Brazil/China satellite (see Oct 14th story).
19 October - Does the CIA have a in Australia?
17 October - takes it easy on the Cape.
Commercial spaceport may wind up in .
is
by .
Interview with heading up Gamma Ray Burst project.
This Week In Space History - Four Shuttle launch anniversaries:
STS-34 (18 Oct 1989); STS-58 Shuttle (18 Oct 1993); STS-73 Shuttle (20 Oct 1995); and STS-52 Shuttle (22 Oct 1992).
Stay tuned for full articles!
Ten years ago (), the , bound for Jupiter and its
& ,
was launched from . The launched a into the Jovian
in July 1995, and the main spacecraft continues to return photos and
data .
16 October - Two crews in to guide the
space station into the ocean! Some people want to .
14 October - Historic was at , to make way for a new launch site. The 34-year-old was the for many military
launches, and saw the
of 's remarkable
Viking and Voyager missions. , indeed!
with .
Lunar Prospector smash-up reveals - its -mapping
mission was completed, so scientists had a plan: the probe into the , in an area thought to contain water
deposited by comet impacts over billions of years, and kept frozen
in the perpetual near the moon's south pole. Mission directors had
hoped that the
would eject a visible from Earth. There is still the
possibility of , but a new search would be required. The icy
resource would prove invaluable towards starting a , providing a fuel source and possible drinking water for
colonists. The report on the July 31st crash was presented
yesterday.
New announced.
ESA (European Space Agency) reports that all the is a . An unlucky collision with a large- enough
fragment would be enough to destroy the Hubble telescope, or even
the Space Shuttle!
Rutgers University enters
in South African Large Telescope ()
- The
university is towards the , which will be the in the world when it is completed in 2004.
German, French aerospace companies to form EADS - to be world's defense firm.
Today In Space History: , piloting a rocketplane, becomes the . Yeager's amazing flight () for future aviation and space ,
culminating in the lunar landings and today's Shuttle program. So,
who cares if you never made it into space, General - - you really have !!
Could the potential
on Jupiter's moon Europa support microbial ?
NASA-developed to be built and
by .
Where will the world's largest be built?
Chandra orbiting X-Ray telescope images .
retire satellite base.
imaging
can
objects as small as a from orbit!
[Top]
12 October -
survives a "" with
moon Io - the passed within 380 miles of the Jovian satellite
Sunday night, that had scientists the probe's
destruction. Way to go, !!
due for routine (let's hope so!) next week.
10 October - The successful
satellite !
The
consortium
the -built
last night from a
(a former ) in the , near the ,
1400 miles (2253 km) off the coast of .
The
was
in with a .
This Wednesday - Shuttle
from KSC!
The - in !!
Backyard
- bust out the telescope! visible this month.
On TV - The premieres "History's Mysteries - Asteroids"
tomorrow (Monday 8PM ET).
PBS is showing "" on Tuesday 12 Oct and 19 Oct. Check .
This Week In Space History - The 31st anniversary of the launch (). Mission Fact sheet ; Crew info
;
Image collection .
This was the
manned
of the , and featured the from space. The three-man crew
into space atop a and would splash down nearly 11 days later. This would be the
from (
of the Apollo 1
).
9 October - The first for the International was delivered to
Florida aboard 's "" cargo .
to
will
with its moon
this
!
China reveals plans for program!! (See also stories from 5 Oct and 1 Aug).
An
with a
of ?? Asteroid Eugenia is found to have a small .
Next Mars mission (the ) is due for a December 3rd landing - and it doesn't have
the
English/metric that doomed the .
Next
mission won't
until due to
on both the American and Russian sides.
7 October - Has been discovered??? of a in a orbit (Sorry,
- you may be only the now!) The may be , and take to orbit the sun. An , a brown dwarf, may also be .
investigation names .
, guys - at least the - and you still have !
NASA testing system for commercial pilots.
6 October - of International Space Station
leaves 's facility for .
Historic launch pad ()
to be
to for new complex.
Space Telescope snaps
about
of .
5 October -
planning a new !
Check the Washington Post .
October is at the .
ESA designing "" for ISS.
September launch summary in October's issue of .
4 October - passes . Russian military !
Was the ever a (see also 2 Oct).
Aircraft exec to !
Today In Space History:
The USSR's launch of , the world's , took place (4 Oct 1957). The launch and
the that would find the U.S. and the competing for and technological firsts for decades to come.
Check the archives (halfway down page) for more info. Listen to the
(You'll need the free
player).
3 October -This Week In Space History - Mercury
8 launch (3 Oct 1962) - Wally Schirra's "Sigma 7" capsule;
STS-51-J Shuttle mission (3 Oct 1985); STS-41-G Shuttle mission (5
Oct 1984); and STS-41 Shuttle mission (6 Oct 1990). Stay tuned for
full articles! Also: of . The made the of the of the .
The mission was launched and snapped its
photos 3 days later.
2 October - An unmanned NASA experimental airplane
on a California highway yesterday.
The within
and
may make them great ! [Ed. Note: I remember reading about
this possibility years ago in Arthur C. Clarke's ].
deep-space
still after in .
It is the
man-made
to the .
evidence of on .
discovered on moon could serve as !
Shuttle Discovery slated for .
to sponsor part of
launch for the International Space Station?!?!? Their (that's 9 meters, Lockheed!) will
the rocket that will boost the
living quarters into orbit.
When will we ever ???
1 October - NASA blames for Climate
Observer .
The due to
between English and metric units of used in course
calculations. Lots more space agency dirt can be found at .
California may be visible from several western states!
The will take over for all American military forces.
? Where do we ???
for International Space Station .
If
is Earth's "Sister Planet", why is its ?
Today In Space History: 41 years ago today (), the was created. Happy
Birthday, !
