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Wednesday’s CSExtra offers the latest reporting and commentary on space related developments from around the world. In Florida, the countdown for shuttle Endeavour’s final flight begins with a favorable launch weather forecast. Launching is scheduled for Friday at 3:47 p.m., EDT. Endeavour’s crew is all guys and led by Mark Kelly, a success oriented commander. Many Florida schools will release students early Friday to ease the traffic congestion around the shuttle launching. Endeavour’s payload includes squid embryos and other student experiments. China discloses more about its plans for an independent space station. Florida’s newest senator urges support for human exploration as a symbol of U S. leadership. Supporters of space passenger travel are finding more to make them optimistic about the future of their enterprise.
1. From Spaceflightnow.com: The countdown for Endeavour’s final mission got under way on Tuesday. The weather outlook is favorable for a lift off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday at 3:47 p.m., EDT.
http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts134/110426count/
A. From the Associated Press via the Washington Post: What makes Endeavour commander Mark Kelly tick? Speed, determination and a new found faith in the forces that have helped his wife, Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, begin a remarkable recovery from a Jan. 8 gunshot wound.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/endeavours-last-skipper-loves-speed-accepts-risk-devoted-to-nasa-and-congresswoman-wife/2011/04/26/AFQb3rrE_story.html
B. From Spaceflightnow.com: A look at each of Endeavour’s six astronauts.
http://spaceflightnow.com/shuttle/sts134/crew/
C. From Space.com: Shuttle Endeavour was the only NASA orbiter whose name was determined by school children in a competition. The winning name was announced in May 1989, a year after the competition began. Endeavour was built as a replacement for shuttle Challenger, which exploded moments after lifting off in 1986.
http://www.exploredeepspace.com/11488-nasa-space-shuttle-endeavour-origins.html
D. From Florida Today: The large crowds anticipated for the launching of shuttle Endeavour’s final flight have prompted officials to close many public schools early in Central Florida on Friday to ease the expected traffic congestion.
http://cramsession.flatoday.net/2011/04/thirty-schools-will-close-early-on.html
E. From Universe Today: Endeavour will carry several student experiments, including studies of seed germination and squid embryo development in space.
http://www.universetoday.com/85175/several-student-led-experiments-to-fly-on-endeavour/#more-85175
2. From the Guardian of London: China unveils a model of its space station, a 60-ton multi-module spacecraft that could be supporting three astronauts within a decade. China’s space ambitions include plans to place explorers on the moon by 2025, the Guardian reports.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/apr/26/china-space-station-tiangong
3. From the Orlando Sentinel: In an op-ed U. S. Sen. Marco Rubio, of Florida, expresses his support for human space exploration, which he characterizes as vital to U. S. global interests.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/os-ed-marco-rubio-nasa-042411-20110426,0,694267.story
4. From USA Today: Evidence that dreams of space passenger travel are beginning to become reality.
http://travel.usatoday.com/flights/story/2011/04/Space-tourism-travel-comes-closer-to-fruition/46549950/1?loc=interstitialskip
A. From Popular Mechanics: Space Adventures, the Virginia-based company that has ushered private citizens to the International Space Station, has sold a $150 million seat to circle the moon aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft in 2015. The ticket holder’s name was not disclosed as the transaction was announced at an MIT conference.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/science/space/rockets/just-one-150-million-seat-remains-on-space-adventures-lunar-flyby
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