NASA Unlikely to Launch Shuttle Atlantis on January 10

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NASA Prepares Shuttle Atlantis Tank for Sensor Fix

Technicians at Kennedy Space Center on Friday started removing foam insulation from a portion of shuttle Atlantis' external tank to get ready to start work repairing the faulty wiring connecting the tank's vital fuel sensors. A test earlier this week identified the wiring as being behind the fuel sensor malfunction that has delayed Atlantis' long-awaited mission to the International Space Station for more than a month.  The foam removal operations on launch pad 39-A  are scheduled to finish sometime over the weekend. The foam is being removed so the technicians can get to a pass-through electrical connector that was pinpointed as the likely source of the problem.  Technicians will begin inspecting and testing the connector if approval is received for its removal next week when NASA mission managers meet to discuss plans to fix the fuel sensor system . [lien] [EN]

Space Shuttle Atlantis to launch Jan. 10

Space Shuttle Atlantis will make its next launch attempt Jan. 10, shuttle managers announced Thursday. "Moving the next attempt of Atlantis to Jan. 10 will allow as many people as possible to have time with family and friends at the time of year when it means the most," said Wayne Hale, space shuttle program manager at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston. Atlantis' initial attempts Dec. 6 and Dec. 9 were scrubbed because of malfunctioning sensors that monitor liquid hydrogen fuel levels in the tank. Atlantis' crew plans to install the European Space Agency's Columbus laboratory on the International Space Station. [lien] [EN]

Shuttle launch(es) delayed again

Sentinel Space Editor Robert Block just phoned this in: NASA still doesn't know when it will be able to launch shuttle Atlantis -- or the date of the other four launches that had been scheduled for 2008. In a press conference Thursday, engineers said that Atlantis -- whose Dec. 6 launch was scrubbed because of problems with fuel sensors -- now won't launch before Jan. 24 at the earliest, and more likely some time in February. That, in turn, will delay the scheduled February launch of Endeavor -- and could have a domino effect on the three other launches scheduled for later in the year. [lien] [EN]

NASA Launch Complex Gets Demolished, Bounces Back [Launch Pad Crash]

newVideoPlayer("complex40boom_gizmodo.flv", 494, 390,""); We have seen many spectacular demolitions, but the destruction of the Mobile Service Structure at NASA/USAF's Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral, Florida, is perhaps the most striking of them all: instead of imploding down, the whole ultra-strong metal structure falls to it side and actually seems to bounce on the ground—shattering cameras a mile away—looking almost intact after the dust clears up. The sound, even from the distance, is deafening. The Launch Complex 40—and 41—was the base for the largest US expendable rocket, the Titan IV. It started operations in 1965 with Titan IIIC rockets, and it was home for the legendary Mars Viking (1975) and Voyager missions, which has been crossing our solar system since 1977. [lien] [EN]

NASA Finds Sensor Problem But Atlantis Launch Date No Closer

NASA troubleshooters determined on Tuesday that the problem that delayed space shuttle Atlantis’ launch by at least a month is not caused by defective fuel sensors as originally suspected, but by a bad connector that links wires from the sensors inside the shuttle's fuel tank to the outside. The findings were the result of a long test that monitored the sensors as the shuttle’s giant orange external tank was filled with 500,000 gallons of super-cold liquid hydrogen and then left to stand for hours before it was drained. It is a critical step to solving one of NASA’s most vexing problems since the shuttle returned to flight in 2005 after the Columbia disaster. "Today the sensors themselves were exonerated in this test, and this is clearly a problem in the wiring upstream as it comes out of the tank. [lien] [EN]

Historic Photo Shows Atlantis and Endeavour Together for the Last Time [Nasa]

How's this for a truly awesome photo? Shown in the foreground is Space Shuttle Atlantis on Launch Pad A. The shuttle in the background is Endeavour, on Launch Pad B. Currently, both shuttles are locked and loaded for launch, should something go wrong up in space with the October 11 Atlantis mission. As Tom explains over at his Astronomy Blog, having two shuttles on the pad at the same time is rare, but it is not a cause for concern. When the ISS is not available for rescue purposes, as it might not be for this mission, a second shuttle is made ready for a quick launch. What is sobering, however, is this image is potentially the last of its kind. The space shuttle program is scheduled for retirement in 2010. [lien] [EN]

NASA Troubleshoots in Space and On the Ground

As expected, Tuesday is turning out to be a busy day for NASA: two American astronauts are investigating a cranky rotary joint at the International Space Station while NASA engineers run a test on shuttle Atlantis' external fuel tank at Kennedy Space Center's launch pad 39A to pinpoint what's behind faulty fuel sensors. Space Station Commander Peggy Whitson and flight engineer Dan Tani are currently finishing the 100th spacewalk conducted in the history of the assembly of the station. The astronauts are peeking inside all 22 insulation covers surrounding the entire circumference of the starboard rotary joint that keeps solar panels on the right side of the station tracking the sun for power. The starboard joint has been locked in place since October after it first started malfunctioning. [lien] [EN]

NASA Last shuttle launch for Columbia - Raw video MUST SEE

NASA Last shuttle launch for Columbia - Raw video MUST SEEiweberdudei3 mn - 31 oct. 2006This video was shot with my DVCPro camera and gear by a crew from Israel who hired my services to uplink this video (I had leased out a KU band uplink truck at the time) back to their country. This video depicts a rare glimpse of an actual shuttle launch that is unedited. Turn your volume up and experience the roar of the booster rockets through your woofer speakers. Sadly the shuttle was carrying the crew that lost their lives when Columbia exploded during its descend over Texas in February of 2003. Cherish the clip. If you'd like to download a copy of this fascinating video: Click here. http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=245775144 To Own a DVD copy (best quality) go here. [lien] [EN]

STS-115 SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS LAUNCH

STS-115 SPACE SHUTTLE ATLANTIS LAUNCHne0heavymetal2 mn - 9 sept. 2006Sept. 9, 11:15 a.m. EDT Space Shuttle Atlantis lifted off from Kennedy Space Center and charged into the midday Florida sky on a mission to boost power on the International Space Station. The launch was on time, with liftoff at 11:15 a.m. EDT. Over the 11-day mission, the six-member crew will perform three spacewalks to install the P3/P4 integrated truss and solar arrays on the station, doubling the current power generating capability of the orbiting outpost. Atlantis Heads for Station The shuttle Atlantis is in orbit, headed for a challenging new phase in the construction of the International Space Station. Commander Brent Jett and his five crewmates will install a new 17. [lien] [EN]

NASA Preparing to Service Hubble for the Last Time, In Glorious Pictures [Nasa]

The Boston Globe's Big Picture blog continues its incredible coverage of all things wonderful to look at today with a spread relating to the space shuttle Atlantis and the Hubble Space Telescope. Atlantis is scheduled to launch on October 8, equipped with all manner of instruments, batteries and gyroscopes for Hubble. Pictured above is one of the massive Atlantis engines being moved to the main bay for installation. That's just one engine, though—there's plenty of space-related tech porn to be found in the rest of the spread, too. Servicing Mission 4 astronaut Drew Feustel uses the "Pistol Grip Tool," a computer-controlled power tool, to install the Wide Field Camera 3 into a high-fidelity Hubble model. Just another day at the office. Feustel gets all the fun gadgets. [lien] [EN]

Space Shuttle Rushes Home Before Pentagon Blows Up Satellite [Satellite Of Love]

NASA is rushing the Space Shuttle Atlantis back to Earth on Wednesday so the mad scientists at the Pentagon can try to shoot a monstrous poisonous spy satellite out of the sky before it crashes back... [lien] [EN]

Microsoft's Dynamics CRM 4.0 launch

I've noticed how the use of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems have been growing rapidly in education. I have traditionally thought about "students" rather than "customers", but student expectations have been rising so rapidly, since the introduction of tuition fees, that there is a growing need to manage the customer relationship with potential and current students. Sophisticated customer management techniques are vital to support the continuing development of your business revenues. And effectively managing potential students who are already in touch with you is less expensive than going looking for new ones. The Microsoft Dynamics CRM system version 4, is being launched on 31st January, at our main offices in Reading, with a follow up launch at The Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh on 25th February. [lien] [EN]

Microsoft's CRM system launch

I've noticed how the use of CRM (Customer Relationship Management) systems have been growing rapidly in education. I have traditionally thought about "students" rather than "customers", but the changes that have happened in the FE sector over the last few years, and an increasing focus on business customers (through things like 'Train to Gain'), have meant that sophisticated customer management techniques are vital to support the continuing development of your business. And after all, building a relationship with an existing customer is a lot less expensive than finding new ones every year. The Microsoft Dynamics CRM system version 4, is being launched on 31st January, at our main offices in Reading, with a follow up launch at The Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh on 25th February. [lien] [EN]

Bad weather threatens launch (AP)

AP - NASA fueled shuttle Atlantis for liftoff Thursday, exhilarated over the success of fuel gauge repairs but mindful that bad weather could delay the mission to add another science lab to the international space station. [lien] [EN]