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Happy birthday to a cool satellite
Friedrichshafen, 08 April 2020 – Happy birthday to a “cool” satellite: CryoSat-2, the European Space Agency´s ice and snow satellite, was launched from the Baikonour Cosmodrone into orbit on 8 April 2010. Originally designed for a three and a half year mission, CryoSat-2 has been operating since 2010, far exceeding its nominal mission lifetime. Actual health data of the Airbus-built 720 kilogram spacecraft triggered programmatic funds to keep it operational until end 2021. Over the last decade the satellite reached an operational availability close to 99 percent and delivered almost 350 Terabytes of data – the equivalent of a 1,400 km long bookshelf.
NASA Selects Early-Stage Technology Concepts for New, Continued Study
NASA Selects Early-Stage Technology Concepts for New, Continued Study
Illustration of how a solar gravity lens telescope would image an exoplanet. The technology concept received Phase I, II and III awards from the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts program.
Credits: NASA JPL/Slava Turyshev
Future technologies that could enable quicker trips to Mars and robotic exploration of ocean worlds might have started out as NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC). The program, which invests in early-stage technology ideas from NASA, industry and academic researchers across the country, has selected 23 potentially revolutionary concepts with a total award value of $7 million.
Boeing to Temporarily Suspend 787 Operations in South Carolina
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C., April 6, 2020—Boeing [NYSE: BA] will temporarily suspend all 787 operations at Boeing South Carolina (BSC) until further notice, starting at the end of second shift on Wednesday, April 8. This impacts the Airport Campus, Emergent Operations, Interiors Responsibility Center South Carolina and Propulsion South Carolina.
Boeing Statement on Starliner’s Next Flight
ARLINGTON, Va., April 6, 2020— The Boeing Company is honored to be a provider for the Commercial Crew mission. We are committed to the safety of the men and women who design, build and ultimately will fly on the Starliner just as we have on every crewed mission to space. We have chosen to refly our Orbital Flight Test to demonstrate the quality of the Starliner system. Flying another uncrewed flight will allow us to complete all flight test objectives and evaluate the performance of the second Starliner vehicle at no cost to the taxpayer. We will then proceed to the tremendous responsibility and privilege of flying astronauts to the International Space Station.
http://ftnews.firetrench.comBoeing Statement on Starliner’s Next Flight
New NASA Podcast Helps Listeners Explore Our ‘Curious Universe’
New NASA Podcast Helps Listeners Explore Our ‘Curious Universe’
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NASA’s newest podcast is taking listeners on an adventure to explore the wonders of Earth and help unravel the mysteries of the universe.
NASA Commemorates 50th Anniversary of Apollo 13, ‘A Successful Failure’
NASA Commemorates 50th Anniversary of Apollo 13, ‘A Successful Failure’
 S70-35614 (17 April 1970) — The crewmembers of the Apollo 13 mission, step aboard the USS Iwo Jima, prime recovery ship for the mission, following splashdown and recovery operations in the South Pacific Ocean. Exiting the helicopter which made the pick-up some four miles from the Iwo Jima are (from left) astronauts Fred W. Haise Jr., lunar module pilot; James A. Lovell Jr., commander; and John L. Swigert Jr., command module pilot. The crippled Apollo 13 spacecraft splashed down at 12:07:44 p.m. (CST), April 17, 1970.
Credits: NASA
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As NASA marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 13 mission – which has become known as “a successful failure” that saw the safe return of its crew in spite of a catastrophic explosion – the agency is sharing a variety of resources, recognizing the triumph of the mission control team and the astronauts, and looking at how those lessons learned can be applied to its lunar Artemis program.
Hitler’s Spanish Division
The Spanish volunteers fighting alongside the Germans on the Eastern Front have received very little attention from English language histories. This new book provides a concise history of their participation, with a text supported by lavish illustration. – Very Highly Recommended.
Images of War, The Americans From The Ardennes To VE Day, Rare Photographs From Wartime Archives
The Images of War series has become extremely popular thorough providing outstanding rare image, concise text and very low pricing. This new addition covers the final battles in the West to the German surrender and VE Day. – Very Highly Recommended.
Catastrophe at Spithead, The Sinking of the Royal George
The capsizing of Henry VIII’s Mary Rose was not the only major warship to disappear in some mystery within sight of home port. The sinking of the Royal George was once a popular subject of debate but has faded from memory until this detailed account. – Very Highly Recommended.