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Tuesday’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting on space related activities from around the world. Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin names a news space czar in response to a series of mission failures in 2011. China passes the U.S. in number of annual launches with the pre-Christmas send off of a remote sensing satellite. NASA’s twin Grail moon probes close in on their lunar destination. NASA’s commercial crew development program enters a new phase in 2011. Scientists turn to string theory to explain a three dimensional universe.
1. From Spacepolicyonline.com and Itar-Tass: Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin places deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin in charge of the state’s space sector, following a series of rocket launch difficulties in 2011. The latest loss, on Dec. 23, involved a Soyuz rocket with a Meridian military communications satellite on board. Officials point to a change from military to civilian oversight of the rocket programs as a possible factor. http://bit.ly/t9TLAD
A. From Ria Novosti of Russia: Russia postpones the planned commercial launching of a Proton rocket for the U. S. based International Launch Systems. In a statement, ILS said a suspect avionics unit in the Proton’s upper stage would be replaced and that another launch attempt by the end of January is possible. http://bit.ly/rB8J0F
2. From Space.com and spaceflightnow.com: China’s successful pre-Christmas launch of a mapping satellite, allows Beijing to eclipse the U.S. launch rate for 2011 — a Space Age first. http://bit.ly/rWx9rc
3. From the Associated Press via the Houston Chronicle and others: NASA’s twin Grail probes, launched in September, are on course to maneuver into orbit around the moon over the New Year’s weekend. The small spacecraft were designed to detect changes in the lunar gravity field that signal the moon’s composition from crust to core. http://bit.ly/tc37d4
4. From Space.com: The space websites forecasts the top global space launch activities planned for 2012. They include plans by SpaceX to carry out the first U.S. commercial cargo re-supply mission to the International Space Station in February and by China to dock a piloted spacecraft to the new Tiangong spacelab. http://bit.ly/sStUxa
5. From Spaceflightnow.com: NASA prepares for the next phase of the agency’s commercial crew development program. Working under a continuation of the original Space Act Agreement strategy, NASA will issue a request for proposals in February and award a 3rd round of Space Act Agreements in July or August. http://bit.ly/t14Owc
6. From Universe Today: Why do we see a universe in three dimensions? A team of researchers turn to super string theory for a possible explanation. http://bit.ly/sYOO7w
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