Dream Chaser drop tests planned for 2012 using WhiteKnightTwo
New Space: Sierra Nevada plans to drop test its Dream Chaser spaceplane in 2012 using Scaled Composites’ WhiteKnightTwo.
Category: Points of Information
Very brief descriptions, with appropriate links, of current or recent news items.
Shuttle launch slips to at least May 10, possibly later
Endeavour’s last launch has slipped to at least May 10, possibly later.
Did Apollo 12 bring back a microbe from Surveyor 3?
Did a microbe survive 2.5 years attached to Surveyor 3 on the Moon, and then come home on Apollo 12? New research says no.
Jeff Zwart in a Porsche GT3 Cup runs Pikes Peak
An evening pause: Let’s go for a drive! Jeff Zwart in a Porsche runs Pikes Peak, setting a record for the fastest time.
More info on the asteroid “flyby” of Earth this coming November 8
More information on the asteroid “flyby” of Earth this coming November 8.
“On November 8, asteroid 2005 YU55 will fly past Earth and at its closest approach point will be about 325,000 kilometers [201,700 miles] away,” said Don Yeomans, manager of NASA’s Near-Earth Object Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. “This asteroid is about 400 meters [1,300 feet] wide – the largest space rock we have identified that will come this close until 2028.”
bin Laden killed by U.S. military
Justice: The U.S. military finally tracked down and killed Osama bin Laden yesterday.
Some additional information and analysis:
- Osama death: An embarrassment Pakistan can’t live down.
- World cheers bin Laden’s death as victory.
- Watch out for revenge attacks on Christians.
- Pakistani man unknowingly live tweets Osama bin Laden raid.
- Taliban vow revenge for bin Laden’s death.
- World wide travel alert from the U.S. Department of State following bin Laden’s death.
- Hamas leader Haniyeh condemns killing of Osama bin Laden.
Scaled Composites Ramps Up SS2 Test Rate
Scaled Composites is ramping up the test rate for SpaceShipTwo.
Endeavour launch delayed by NASA until May 8 at the earliest
The launch of space shuttle Endeavour has now been delayed by NASA until May 8 at the earliest.
Climate change is a serious problem, but the solutions are a joke
This from someone who believes in climate change: “The solutions are a joke.”
Technical problem delays US shuttle launch 48 hours
Technical problems have delayed the last launch of the shuttle Endeavour at least 48 hours.
The world’s ten creepiest abandoned cities
The world’s ten creepiest abandoned cities.
Putin sacks the head of the Russian space agency
Putin sacks the head of the Russian space agency.