To subscribe to CSExtra via RSS feed click here.
If you would prefer to receive CSExtra in e-mail format, e-mail us at Info@space.com with the word SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.
From the Coalition for Space Exploration: We are pleased to announce the winners of the “What’s Next?” video contest. From travelling back to the moon, on to Mars and beyond, the video entries we received made it clear that the public has a strong understanding of the importance of space exploration and wants to help shape the future of the industry. The winning videos are now featured on the Coalition website.View and share! http://bit.ly/nvygkk
Monday’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting and commentary on space related activities from across the globe, including a roundup of developments from the weekend. NASA sets Feb. 7 for the first commercial cargo launching to the International Space Station. New Earth science missions face launch constraints. Russia gives up on, apologizes for Mars mission failure. Australians say much of Mars habitable. Cost overruns major threat to NASA’s future, says columnist. Mercury takes a punch. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory avoids future layoffs. Russia, Japan mark successful rocket launches. Saturday’s lunar eclipse offers memorable views. Presidential hopefuls Romney and Gingrich spar over space. Huntsville launches propulsion think tank. Mining the moon. A look at space related events scheduled for the week ahead.
1. From Spacefightnow.com, Dec. 9: NASA and Space X set Feb. 7 for the launching of the first commercial cargo mission to the International Space Station. The flight marks a milestone in NASA’s efforts to foster commercial transportation services for both humans and cargo to the station. The un-piloted SpaceX Dragon capsule will maneuver close enough to the station for astronauts on board the outpost to capture and berth the craft with a long robot arm.
http://bit.ly/uTuopd
2. From Space News, Dec. 9: A top NASA Earth science official suggests the agency is looking at “one to two” mission launches annually because of rising launch costs.
http://bit.ly/vMV1RF
3. From the Washington Post, Dec. 10: From all appearances, Russia has given up on the ambitious Phobos Grunt mission launched on a sample return mission to the Martian moon Phobos in early November. The probe has been locked in Earth orbit and ever since and appears destined to plummet back to Earth in January.
http://wapo.st/sBSCQm
A. From Space.com, Dec. 9: Scientists in Russia associated with the failed Photos Grunt mission offer an apology to their fellow Russians for the failure. The ambitious mission was intended to gather soil and rock samples form the Martian moon Phobos.
http://bit.ly/vpJFqg
B. From Spacepolicyonline.com, Dec. 11: Russian leaders announce an investigation in the Mars Phobos Grunt mission failure.
http://bit.ly/vCotpG
4. From AFP via Discovery.com, Dec. 12: Studies by Australian scientists suggest that large regions of Mars would be habitable by Earth organisms. Most of the Martian habitat would be underground.
http://bit.ly/t5VYRn
5. From Florida Today, Dec. 11: Columnist John Kelly takes NASA’s handling of the over budget, behind schedule James Webb Space Telescope to task. A repeat could undermine NASA aspirations on other fronts, Kelly writes.
http://on.flatoday.com/ujFQBc
6. From Space.com, Dec. 11: Scientists suggest odd rotations by the planet Mercury were caused by an impact from a large asteroid. The small planet rotates three times for every two orbits of the sun.
http://bit.ly/umVh8l
7. From the Los Angeles Times: NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory faces a budget cut, but no additional lay offs, according to a lab official.
http://lat.ms/tl91do
8. From Spaceflightnow.com, Dec. 11: A Russian Proton rocket successfully launches two satellites, one an Israeli communications craft and the other a Russian data relay spacecraft that will support activities aboard the International Space Station.
http://bit.ly/rwOab6
A. From the Associated Press via the Orlando Sentinel, Dec. 12: Japan successfully launches a radar reconnaissance satellite, part of an intelligence gathering network.
http://thesent.nl/s9JNUK
9. From MSNBC.com, Dec. 10: Saturday offered a spectacular lunar eclipse, primarily visible to those in the Western United States, the Pacific Rim and Asia. The website offers a collection of photos and video.
http://on.msnbc.com/sfiiHX
10. From Spacepolitics.com, Dec. 11: Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney rips rival Newt Gringrich over past statements supporting a lunar colony. The nation has higher priorities, says Romney. The two men participated in an ABC network sponsored presidential debate on Saturday.
http://bit.ly/vZXux8
11. From the Huntsville Times, Dec. 11: The home of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center celebrates the start of the National Institute for Rocket Propulsion Systems, a think tank focused on advanced rocket propulsion with experts from the government, industry and academia.
http://bit.ly/rT8hOX
12. From Spacepolicyonline.com, Dec. 11: A look at the major space policy events scheduled for the work week ahead.
http://bit.ly/sPhzsV
Brought to you by the Coalition for Space Exploration, CSExtra is a daily compilation of space industry news selected from hundreds of online media resources. The Coalition is not the author or reporter of any of the stories appearing in CSExtra and does not control and is not responsible for the content of any of these stories. The content available through CSExtra contains links to other websites and domains which are wholly independent of the Coalition, and the Coalition makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy, completeness or authenticity of the information contained in any such site or domain and does not pre-screen or approve any content. The Coalition does not endorse or receive any type of compensation from the included media outlets and is not responsible or liable in any way for any content of CSExtra or for any loss, damage or injury incurred as a result of any content appearing in CSExtra. For information on the Coalition, visit www.space.com or contact us via e-mail at Info@space.com.