Spaceflight Now

Sunday: February 8, 2004		0311 GMT

Rover takes a bite out of rock in the name of science Its two diamond-tipped teeth gnawing at 3,000 revolutions per minute, the Mars rover Spirit has bore a hole in Adirondack, providing scientists a window inside the volcanic rock. Meanwhile, Opportunity has completed its drive to a rock dubbed Snout. FULL STORY PREVIOUS COVERAGE

Comet blamed for 6th century 'nuclear winter' Scientists at Cardiff University, UK, believe they have discovered the cause of crop failures and summer frosts some 1,500 years ago - a comet colliding with Earth. FULL STORY

Landslide warnings from satellites may save lives As winter rains come, thousands of square kilometers of territory across Europe's heart face a looming threat: steep slopes and waterlogged soils combine to trigger landslides. FULL STORY

Saturday: February 7, 2004		0322 GMT

Spirit readies for long drive after rock cleaning, grinding Whipping half-inch stainless steel bristles against a pyramid-shaped rock, the Spirit rover has performed "the greatest interplanetary brushing of all time," a scientist joked Friday with the unveiling the latest images from Mars. FULL STORY

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: SPIRIT'S BRUSHING OF ROCK EXPLAINED BY SCIENTIST QT VIDEO: MICROSCOPIC IMAGES AFTER BRUSHING WITH NARRATION QT VIDEO: FRIDAY'S BRIEFING ON LATEST IMAGES AND DRIVE PLANS QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Opportunity cruising to exposed bedrock Driving up the inclined wall of the small crater the craft landed in, the Mars rover Opportunity was expected to arrive at the outer edge of bedrock outcropping early Saturday to begin its geologic work. FULL STORY PREVIOUS COVERAGE

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: FORWARD VIEW OF OPPORTUNITY'S DRIVE W/NARRATION QT VIDEO: REAR VIEW OF OPPORTUNITY'S DRIVE W/NARRATION QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Friday: February 6, 2004		0635 GMT

American TV watchers to reap benefits of launch Starting this spring when U.S. cable television viewers flip on the Discovery Channel, MTV, Nickelodeon or Showtime, they will be watching the channels via a broadcasting satellite successfully launched into space Thursday from Cape Canaveral. FULL STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER STATUS CENTER PART 1

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: 6-MINUTE CLIP OF ATLAS LAUNCHING AMC-10 QT VIDEO: POST-LAUNCH COMMENTS FROM MANAGERS QT VIDEO: OVERVIEW OF THE AMC-10 CABLE TV SATELLITE QT VIDEO: NARRATED ANIMATION PREVIEW OF THIS LAUNCH QT FROM THE ARCHIVES: MOST RECENT ATLAS 2AS FROM THE CAPE VIDEO: LIFTOFF AS SEEN FROM COMPLEX 36 BLOCKHOUSE ROOF QT VIDEO: CAMERA LOCATED IN YARD NORTHEAST OF PAD QT VIDEO: DRAMATIC CAMERA ANGLE FROM UMBILICAL TOWER QT VIDEO: SETTING SUN SERVES AS BACKDROP IN EASTERN VIEW QT VIDEO: SOUTH CAMERA VIEW FROM END OF LAUNCH PAD RAMP QT VIDEO: TRACKING CAMERA FOLLOWS ROCKET THROUGH T+3 MIN QT VIDEO: CLOSE-UP OF ENGINES DURING ASCENT QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
New study shows how black holes get their 'kicks' When black holes collide, look out! An enormous burst of gravitational radiation results as they violently merge into one massive black hole. The "kick" that occurs during the collision could knock the black hole clear out of its galaxy. FULL STORY

An abrasive collision gives one galaxy a 'black eye' A collision of two galaxies has left a merged star system with an unusual appearance as well as bizarre internal motions. Messier 64 (M64) has a spectacular dark band of absorbing dust in front of the galaxy's bright nucleus, giving rise to its nicknames of the "Black Eye" or "Evil Eye" galaxy. FULL STORY

Thursday: February 5, 2004		0415 GMT

Atlas rocket to launch U.S. cable TV satellite today Some of the most popular television channels will reach millions of Americans via a new broadcasting satellite that goes up today aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas 2AS rocket. Liftoff is scheduled for 5:56 p.m. EST (2256 GMT) from Cape Canaveral, Florida. MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates! OUR PREVIEW STORY LAUNCH EVENTS TIMELINE GROUND TRACK MAP

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: NARRATED ANIMATION PREVIEW OF THIS LAUNCH QT FROM THE ARCHIVES: MOST RECENT ATLAS 2AS FROM THE CAPE VIDEO: LIFTOFF AS SEEN FROM COMPLEX 36 BLOCKHOUSE ROOF QT VIDEO: CAMERA LOCATED IN YARD NORTHEAST OF PAD QT VIDEO: DRAMATIC CAMERA ANGLE FROM UMBILICAL TOWER QT VIDEO: SETTING SUN SERVES AS BACKDROP IN EASTERN VIEW QT VIDEO: SOUTH CAMERA VIEW FROM END OF LAUNCH PAD RAMP QT VIDEO: TRACKING CAMERA FOLLOWS ROCKET THROUGH T+3 MIN QT VIDEO: CLOSE-UP OF ENGINES DURING ASCENT QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Report: Dramatic thinning of Earth's atmosphere The highest layers of the Earth's atmosphere are cooling and contracting, most likely in response to increasing levels of greenhouse gases, according to a new study by scientists at the Naval Research Laboratory. This contraction could result in longer orbital lifetimes for both satellites and hazardous space debris. FULL STORY

Galactic building blocks seen swarming Andromeda A team of astronomers using the National Science Foundation's Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope has made the first conclusive detection of what appear to be the leftover building blocks of galaxy formation -- neutral hydrogen clouds -- swarming around the Andromeda Galaxy, the nearest large spiral galaxy to the Milky Way. FULL STORY

Opportunity sees tiny spheres in Martian soil Opportunity has examined its first patch of soil in the small crater where the rover landed on Mars and found strikingly spherical pebbles among the mix of particles there. "There are features in this soil unlike anything ever seen on Mars before," says the lead scientist. STATUS REPORT MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates!

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: MICROSCOPIC IMAGE & ROVER STATUS BRIEFING QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Wednesday: February 4, 2004		0234 GMT

First of two new U.S. cable TV satellites set for launch Some of the most popular television channels will reach millions of Americans via a new broadcasting satellite that goes up Thursday aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas 2AS rocket. MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates! LAUNCH EVENTS TIMELINE GROUND TRACK MAP

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: NARRATED ANIMATION PREVIEW OF THIS LAUNCH QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Supernova blast bonanza in nearby galaxy A nearby dwarf galaxy is a hotbed of vigorous star birth activity which blows huge bubbles that riddle the main body of the galaxy. The galaxy's "star factories" are also manufacturing brilliant blue star clusters. This galaxy had a sudden and relatively recent onset of star birth about 25 million years ago, which subsided about the time the very earliest human ancestors appeared on Earth. FULL STORY

2005 budget to fuel NASA's new exploration plan NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe presented the Bush Administration's fiscal year 2005 budget proposal on Tuesday. The spending plan would implement the new U.S. space exploration policy. FULL STORY

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Tuesday: February 3, 2004		0504 GMT

Rover's arm reaches for clues about Mars' history Lending a hand to unlocking the geologic riddles of Mars, the rover Opportunity has extended its instrument-laden arm to begin probing soil on the floor of a small crater where the craft landed. FULL STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates!

Video coverage for subscribers only: VIDEO: OPPORTUNITY'S ARM DEPLOYED WITH NARRATION QT VIDEO: 36O-DEGREE COLOR PAN UNVEILED WITH EXPLANATION QT VIDEO: TODAY'S SPIRIT AND OPPORTUNITY STATUS BRIEFING QT SUBSCRIBE NOW
Martian hills dedicated to fallen Columbia crew The Martian hills, located east of the Spirit Mars Exploration Rover's landing site, will be dedicated to the space shuttle Columbia STS-107 crew, NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe announced Monday. READ ANNOUNCEMENT HILLS NAMED FOR APOLLO 1 CREW

Oxygen, carbon discovered in exoplanet atmosphere The well-known extrasolar planet HD 209458b, provisionally nicknamed Osiris, has surprised astronomers again. Oxygen and carbon have been found in its atmosphere, evaporating at such an immense rate that the existence of a new class of extrasolar planets - 'the chthonian planets' or 'dead' cores of completely evaporated gas giants - has been proposed. FULL STORY

Big Bang echoes corrupted? In recent years, astronomers have obtained detailed measurements of the cosmic microwave background radiation - the 'echo' from the birth of the Universe during the Big Bang. But now a group of UK astronomers has found evidence that the primordial microwave echoes may have been modified or 'corrupted' on their 13 billion year journey to the Earth. FULL STORY

Monday: February 2, 2004		0443 GMT

Files deleted on Spirit to fix computer trouble A week-and-a-half after falling ill to computer woes, NASA on Sunday declared its Mars Exploration Rover Spirit was healthy again. FULL STORY MISSION STATUS CENTER - updates! PREVIOUS COVERAGE

IN OTHER NEWS Additional stories making news today

New era begins for European weather satellite system -- With commissioning activities finished, the Meteosat Second Generation (MSG-1) begins delivering nine new and three improved products at higher speeds. In keeping with tradition, MSG-1 will be renamed Meteosat-8. Boeing successfully tests new engine -- The Rocketdyne Propulsion & Power business unit of Boeing successfully completed hot-fire testing of an RS-88 rocket engine at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. The 50,000-pound-thrust engine was designed and built by Boeing for use on Lockheed Martin's Pad Abort Demonstration vehicle. Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman get TCM contract -- A Lockheed Martin/Northrop Grumman team has been awarded one of two industry contracts valued at approximately $472 million to enter the Risk Reduction and System Definition phase of the U.S. Air Force's Transformational Communications MILSATCOM Space Segment. TCM will provide thousands of users with significantly improved, highly mobile, beyond line-of-sight protected communications to support the future battlefield. Boeing awarded $472 million for TCM satellite system -- In partnership with the U.S. Air Force, Boeing will develop a system design and demonstrate critical technologies for a secure, high-capacity global communications network serving the U.S. Department of Defense, NASA and the intelligence community.

News Archive
Jan. 26-Feb. 1: Opportunity achieves 'interplanetary hole in one'; Opportunity finds what it went to Mars looking for; Martian landmarks dedicated to Apollo 1 crew; Challenger crew memorialized on Mars; Russians launch resupply ship to space station; Fitful young star sputters to maturity in Rosette Nebula.

Jan. 18-25: Opportunity rover safely arrives at Mars; Opportunity hits scientific jackpot in strange martian world; Spirit suffers 'serious anomaly'; First scientific results from Europe's Mars Express; Building a new West Coast era for Atlas rockets.

Jan. 12-18: President Bush reveals new space initiative; Six-wheeling on Mars: Spirit drives off lander; Spirit's robot arm extended for detailed study of soil; NASA cancels final Hubble telescope servicing mission; Europe's comet orbiter and lander set for rescheduled voyage; Scientists find 'spitting star' imitates black hole.

Jan. 5-11: Continuing coverage of Spirit rover; Columbia crew memorialized on Mars; Chandra locates planetary ore in colliding galaxies; Hubble tells tale of record-breaking galaxy clusters; Suns of all ages possess comets, maybe planets; Sea Launch Zenit makes first 2004 rocket launch.

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Gemini 7

Gemini 7: The NASA Mission Reports covers this 14-day mission by Borman and Lovell as they demonstrated some of the more essential facts of space flight. Includes CD-ROM.

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Apollo patches

The Apollo Patch Collection: Includes all 12 Apollo mission patches plus the Apollo Program Patch. Save over 20% off the Individual price.

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Mars Rover mission patch

A mission patch featuring NASA's Mars Exploration Rover is available from our online.

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Apollo 9 DVD

On the road to the moon, the mission of Apollo 9 stands as an important gateway in experience and procedures. This 2-DVD collection presents the crucial mission on the voyage to the moon.

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Apollo 11 special patch

Special collectors' patch marking the 35th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 moon landing is now available.

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Soviet Space

For the first time ever available in the West. Rocket & Space Corporation Energia: a complete pictorial history of the Soviet/Russian Space Program from 1946 to the present day all in full color. Available from our store.

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Viking patch

This embroidered mission patch celebrates NASA's Viking Project which reached the Red Planet in 1976.

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Apollo 7 DVD

For 11 days the crew of Apollo 7 fought colds while they put the Apollo spacecraft through a workout, establishing confidence in the machine what would lead directly to the bold decision to send Apollo 8 to the moon just 2 months later.

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Gemini 12

Gemini 12: The NASA Mission Reports covers the voyage of James Lovell and Buzz Aldrin that capped the Gemini program's efforts to prove the technologies and techniques that would be needed for the Apollo Moon landings. Includes CD-ROM.

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Gemini 7

Gemini 7: The NASA Mission Reports covers this 14-day mission by Borman and Lovell as they demonstrated some of the more essential facts of space flight. Includes CD-ROM.

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Apollo patches

The Apollo Patch Collection: Includes all 12 Apollo mission patches plus the Apollo Program Patch. Save over 20% off the Individual price.

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Mars Rover mission patch

A mission patch featuring NASA's Mars Exploration Rover is available from our online.

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Apollo 9 DVD

On the road to the moon, the mission of Apollo 9 stands as an important gateway in experience and procedures. This 2-DVD collection presents the crucial mission on the voyage to the moon.

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Final Shuttle Mission Patch

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The crew emblem for the final space shuttle mission is now available in our store. Get this piece of history!

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STS-134 Patch

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The final planned flight of space shuttle Endeavour is symbolized in the official embroidered crew patch for STS-134. Available in our store!

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Ares 1-X Patch

The official embroidered patch for the Ares 1-X rocket test flight, is available for purchase.

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Apollo Collage

This beautiful one piece set features the Apollo program emblem surrounded by the individual mission logos.

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Project Orion

The Orion crew exploration vehicle is NASA's first new human spacecraft developed since the space shuttle a quarter-century earlier. The capsule is one of the key elements of returning astronauts to the Moon.

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Fallen Heroes Patch Collection

The official patches from Apollo 1, the shuttle Challenger and Columbia crews are available in the store.

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