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        One Night, Two Spaceships Sky watchers in North America can spot the ISS and the space shuttle Atlantis at the same time on Oct. 16 and 17. Listen to this story via streaming audio, a downloadable file, or get help.October 16, 2002: It's not every night you get to see a spaceship fly over your back yard. This week you can see two.The International Space Station (ISS) and the space shuttle Atlantis will soar over North America after sunset on Oct. 16th and again on the 17th. It's perfect timing for sky watchers. Light from the...

Video will provide glimpse of Earth from takeoff to orbit 10/06/2002 Associated Press CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. - In a dramatic first for human space flight, a camera will beam down live video as the shuttle Atlantis soars into orbit this week. The shuttlecam view will start with the launch pad, then the launch site and then all of Cape Canaveral and the Eastern Seaboard as Atlantis blasts off and climbs higher and higher. Two minutes into the flight, viewers should see the booster rockets peeling away. Six minutes later, Atlantis will separate from its fuel tank, with the grand...

The Lili hurricane threatens the mission of the Atlantis shuttle Monday September 30, 2002 - 21h43 GMT Cape Canaveral (the United States), 30 seven (AFP) - the Lili hurricane, which moves right towards the Gulf of Mexico and threat the center of control of NASA in Houston (Texas), could force with the carryforward of the launching of the Atlantis shuttle envisaged Wednesday of Florida, indicated to Monday a person in charge for NASA. If the hurricane, with its winds of 120 km/h, continues on its trajectory, "it is probable that one returns people on their premises to Houston so...

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2002 September 21 Moonset, Planet Earth Credit: STS-35 Crew, NASA Explanation: During the Astro-1 astronomy mission of December, 1990, Space Shuttle astronauts photographed this stunning view of the setting full moon poised above the Earth's limb. In the foreground, towering clouds of condensing water vapor mark the extent of the troposphere, the lowest layer of the planet's life-sustaining atmosphere. Strongly scattering blue sunlight, the upper atmospheric layer, the...

Space Shuttle Fleet Grounded Until September NASA's space shuttle fleet is likely to remain grounded until at least early September while technicians investigate tiny cracks discovered on pipes in the main engines of all four orbiters, according to shuttle program manager Ron Dittemore. The cause of the cracks remains unknown, but NASA officials believe all have a common root because the cracks appeared regardless of each launcher's age or the number of times it has flown, Dittemore said during a July 12 press conference at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Investigators first discovered the cracks on the space shuttle...

Report: Science Capabilities of International Space Station Questionable A blue-ribbon group has advised NASA that the International Space Station (ISS), without enhancements, lacks research capacity and cannot facilitate the sophisticated science as promised. If the costly orbiting outpost is not beefed up with more gear and staffed with dedicated researchers, the study group reported today, NASA should not claim the ISS is a "science driven" program. Called the Research Maximization and Prioritization Task Force, or ReMaP, the 20-person advisory group took an independent look at the research productivity and priorities for NASA's Office of Biological and Physical Research (OBPR). A...

<p>Our manned space infrastructure is extremely fragile — even brittle.</p> <p>NASA just found a problem with the Space Shuttle Orbiters Atlantis and Discovery. They have hairline cracks in some jackets in the main propellant lines.</p> <p>These aren't cracks in the lines themselves, so there's no danger of a leak of oxygen or hydrogen, but they could result in a small piece of metal getting ingested into the engines, which could potentially cause anything from a premature engine shutdown to a turbopump explosion.</p>

The American space agency Nasa has grounded its space shuttle fleet indefinitely after finding small cracks in fuel pipes in the main engines of two shuttles. The cracks, discovered on shuttles Atlantis and Discovery, will delay the scheduled 19 July launch of Columbia, due to carry the first Israeli astronaut, Ilan Ramon, into space. The cracks were found in metal liners used to direct fuel flow inside the main rocket motor's fuel pipes on shuttles Atlantis and Discovery. "The concern is that ... if a piece were to crack off and go down into the engine, would that damage the...

The STS-111 and Expedition Four crews are headed to Edwards Air Force Base in California. STS-111 Commander Ken Cockrell and pilot Paul Lockhart fired Space Shuttle Endeavour's engines at 12:50 p.m. EDT today to begin the descent. Endeavour is scheduled to touch down at 1 :58 p.m. EDT. This is the 49th landing at Edwards. (Full Story)(06/18/2002)

Link post: Geology Picture of the Week, May 12-18, 2002

The Internet auction site eBay, a favorite on-line haunt of memorabilia collectors and bargain hunters alike, is also a popular destination for United Space Alliance officials responsible for tracking down hard-to-find parts needed to keep the space shuttle in business. Designed and built in the 1970s, the U.S. space shuttle fleet relies on a host of diagnostic and ground support equip-ment powered by computer components that are no longer manufactured. NASA plans to spend about $1.5 billion over the next five years upgrading its space shuttle fleet for improved safety and operations. While most of that money is targeted toward...

Escape System Needed Space News, April 25, 2002, page 12 The NASA Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel's 2001 annual report failed to take an aggressive position for a space shuttle crew escape system. Instead they called for "formal documentation of the risk acceptance rationale for the space shuttle's lack of a crew escape system." This panel has made a tragic mistake in believing that more paperwork can save the lives of a flight crew. By not reprimanding NASAs management for their failure to provide for crew escape, this safety panel has driven another nail in some future flight crew's coffin. The...

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2002 March 8 Columbia Dawn Credit A. Barrett, KSC, NASA Explanation: Trailing a thick column of exhaust, the Space Shuttle Columbia blasted into the twilight morning sky on March 1, its thundering rockets briefly flooding a cloud bank with the light of a false dawn. The event marked the start of the ongoing eleven day mission to upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope. Hubble's upgrades include the installation of...