All Space articles – Page 197
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All systems go?
In-orbit assembly of the International Space Station is to start this autumn Tim Furniss/LONDON Launch of the first components of the International Space Station (ISS) is due to start on 20 November, but sceptical observers are not holding their breath. The Russian element, which saved the ISS from the US ...
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MMS delivers X-ray telescope control system
Matra Marconi Space (MMS) of Bristol has delivered the $47 million Attitude and Orbit Control System (AOCS) for Europe's largest spacecraft, the X-ray Multi Mirror (XMM) telescope, to prime contractor Daimler-Benz Aerospace Space Systems. The AOCS is the "heart of the mission" of the European Space Agency's (ESA) XMM, ...
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Countdown to Sea Launch
Tim Furniss/LONDON Paul Duffy/MOSCOW A precise satellite launch service to all orbital inclinations from a single location is something that, until now, no launch site operator could claim. Payloads cannot be launched into polar orbits safely from Cape Canaveral in Florida, for example, without flying over the USA. Meanwhile, the ...
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IAI wraps up US Shavit deal
Tim Furniss/LONDON Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) has formalised an agreement with Coleman Research in the USA to develop a commercial version of the Shavit launcher. The new booster, called the LK-1, will operate from Spaceport Florida's Cape Canaveral site or from Wallops Island, Virginia. The LK-1 will ...
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Supersonic rising sun
Paul Lewis/MITIKA Japanese engineers have long displayed a distinctive flair for futuristic transportation thinking. While there may be a tendency in the West to confine many such notions to the realms of science fiction, it is worth remembering that Japan is the home of the Shinkansen "bullet train" and the ...
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Japanese space agencies may have to merge to save costs
Tim Furniss/LONDON Andrew Mollett/TOKYO Japan's ambitious space plans are being reined in under heavy Government pressure to cut costs, with pruning likely to lead to a merger of the National Space Development Agency (NASDA) and the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS). Streamlining of the space ...
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ISS delay allows time bonus for ground testing
Delays to the International Space Station (ISS) programme have provided an unexpected benefit because of the increased amount of ground testing that is now being performed at Kennedy Space Center (KSC), says NASA. The first ISS launch has been postponed to November and the Station will not be completed ...
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Sea Launch support vessels completed
Paul Duffy/MOSCOW The Sea Launch commercial satellite launch venture being headed by Boeing, together with partners in Norway, Russia and Ukraine, has completed construction of the two vessels that will support the operation. The Sea Launch Commander rocket assembly plant and mission control centre ship built by Kvaerner's ...
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mission goals
The 3,300kg Gravity Probe will operate in a 650km circular polar orbit for about 16 months - the lifetime of the dewar container - measuring minute changes in the rotation of the four on-board gyroscopes. The reference telescope will focus on a star to calibrate results. It is hoped that ...
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HSG lunar loop
The Hughes HSG 1 communications satellite is making a second loop around the moon, having completed one such flight in an attempt to salvage the former Asiasat 3, stranded in useless orbit after a Proton failure in December. The new flightpath will refine the satellite's trajectory, to achieve the best ...
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Transparent ambition
Tim Furniss/LONDON Never forget, says Arianespace, "-we are not selling a launcher but a delivery service, every three to four weeks, whether we use Ariane 5 or Ariane 4". This "transparent service" philosophy was emphasised at the ILA Berlin air show in late May by Jean-Marie Luton, the launch ...
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BAe and Lockheed Martin link on Skynet
British Aerospace Defence Systems and Lockheed Martin Missiles & Space have teamed to bid for the development of the Skynet 5 military communications satellite system for the UKMinistry of Defence. The companies are competing with Matra Marconi Space (MMS), which includes the former BAe Space Systems, the original prime ...
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Delayed date set for ISS launch
Tim Furniss/LONDON A new launch date has been set for the first component of the International Space Station (ISS), with the Russian-built Control Module now due to be launched on 20 November, five months late. A date had been set for June, but the launch of this initial Module was ...
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Alcatel predicts space boom
Figures released by French space and telecommunications company Alcatel Alsthom predict a 25% growth in the global commercial space applications business between 1998 and 2000. By far the fastest growing segment is in the forthcoming low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellations catering for mobile telephones and Internet applications. Alcatel, ...
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Motorola drops Celestri for Teledesic project
Motorola has abandoned plans to develop its Celestri "Internet-in-the-sky" satellite system and has signed a $750 million deal to take a stake in the rival Teledesic network. The move will result in Motorola securing a 26% share of the Teledesic system, which is already backed by Microsoft's Bill Gates, ...
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NASA introduces lightweight tank on next Shuttle mission
Tim Furniss/LONDON A major component change to the Space Shuttle system will be introduced on 2 June when the Discovery STS91 is launched on the ninth Shuttle Mir Mission (SMM). The Shuttle stack will incorporate the first lightweight external tank (ET) which holds the 543,300 litres of liquid ...
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Woomera is reborn
Tim Furniss/LONDON Australia is to join the international space-launch industry by establishing a commercial launch site at Woomera, South Australia, to support flight operations by the US Kistler Aerospace K-1 reusable satellite launch vehicle fleet. Test flights are expected later this year. A capital investment of A$50 million ...
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Mir may fly on after ISS crisis
Tim Furniss/LONDON Russia is considering extending the life of the Mir space station into 2000 if the International Space Station (ISS) programme is delayed significantly, according to Mir deputy flight director Yuri Blagov. The move comes as relations between Russia and the USA over delays to the ISS ...
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Australian Navy uses Leasat
The former US Navy Leasat 5 communications satellite is providing ultra high frequency services to the Royal Australian Navy from a new geostationary orbit (GEO) location at 156¼E under a multi-million dollar contract with Hughes Global Services (HGS). Australia has the option to maintain the service for up to five ...
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Beal means business
Tim Furniss/LONDON THE world's First privately developed expandable medium-lift launch vehicle is to be offered by Beal Aerospace Technologies, of Dallas, Texas. Beal will sell launches to low Earth orbit (LEO) of multiple payloads weighing about 7,710kg - "double the capacity" of the Boeing Delta II - "at a ...