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December 14, 2013

The Dragon Has Landed
Sydney, Australia (SPX) Dec 14, 2013
The successful landing of China's Chang'e-3 spacecraft on the Moon is significant for several reasons. This is China's first landing on another heavenly body, and represents an important step forward for their space program. It's also the first object to safely land on the Moon in 36 years, breaking a mission drought that has gone longer than most analysts would have expected. Like the launch of India's first Mars mission a few weeks ago, the landing of Chang'e-3 also serves as a wake-up call to t ... read more

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China's first lunar rover lands on moon: State TV A space module carrying China's first lunar rover landed on the moon Saturday, state television said, the first soft landing on the moon in nearly four decades and a major step for Beijing's ambitious space programme. ... more		Iran sends second monkey into space: president Iran said on Saturday that it had safely returned a monkey to Earth after blasting it into space in the second such launch this year in its controversial ballistic programme. ... more		SpaceX to bid for rights to historic NASA launch pad In a battle of technology titans for the right to lease a historic NASA launch pad in Florida, SpaceX has beat out competitor Blue Origin, the US space agency said Friday. ... more
				NASA mulls spacewalks to fix space station A series of spacewalks might be necessary to fix a breakdown in the equipment cooling system aboard the International Space Station, NASA said Friday. ... more		Space station cooling breakdown may delay Orbital launch NASA rushed Thursday to fix a breakdown in the cooling system at the International Space Station that may delay the launch next week of Orbital Sciences' first cargo mission. ... more

Chinese flyby of asteroid shows space rock is "rubble" China's first flyby of an asteroid shows that a gigantic space rock which once triggered a doomsday scare is essentially rubble, scientists reported on Thursday. ... more		MESSENGER Celebrates 1,000 Earth Days in Orbit around Mercury Later today, the MESSENGER spacecraft will have completed 1,000 Earth days of flight operations in orbit around Mercury. "This milestone is a testament to the outstanding work of those who designed, ... more				Arianespace to launch Brazilian government satellite SGDC Stephane Israel, Chairman and CEO of Arianespace, and Nelson Salgado, CEO of Visiona Tecnologia Espacial S.A., today signed the launch contract for the next Brazilian government satellite, the Geost ... more
				The ABS-2 and Athena-Fidus satellites for launch by Ariane 5 are welcomed in French Guiana Both satellite passengers for an Ariane 5 flight planned in early 2014 have arrived at French Guiana, clearing the way for Arianespace's start-up of payload preparations following their transfer by ... more		Russian Official Plays Down Concerns on Future of Proton A top Russian official overseeing the nation's defense sector said Wednesday that launches of the Proton rocket from Moscow-leased Baikonur cosmodrome are set to continue. Ties between Russia ... more

CubeSats, SmallSats and MicroSats

International Conference on Protection of Materials and Structures From Space Environment

Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison & Memory Foam Mattress Review

First Rock Dating Experiment Performed on Mars Although researchers have determined the ages of rocks from other planetary bodies, the actual experiments-like analyzing meteorites and moon rocks-have always been done on Earth. Now, for the first ... more		The Tough Task of Finding Fossils While Wearing a Spacesuit Someday, human explorers might momentously discover fossils on Mars, proving that the Red Planet once supported extraterrestrial life. An interplanetary expedition of this sort will have overcome ma ... more				SSTL selected for first private Mars mission Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) has been selected to carry out a concept study to develop an interplanetary communications system for Mars One, the privately funded project to establish a hum ... more
				SwRI scientists publish first radiation measurements from the surface of Mars In the first 300 days of the Mars Science Laboratory surface mission, the Curiosity rover cruised around the planet's Gale Crater, collecting soil samples and investigating rock structures while the ... more		NASA Curiosity: First Mars Age Measurement and Human Exploration Help NASA's Curiosity rover is providing vital insight about Mars' past and current environments that will aid plans for future robotic and human missions. In a little more than a year on the Red Planet, ... more

Russian Official Plays Down Concerns on Future of Proton

The ABS-2 and Athena-Fidus satellites for launch by Ariane 5 are welcomed in French Guiana

Arianespace to launch Brazilian government satellite SGDC

The Tough Task of Finding Fossils While Wearing a Spacesuit

Mars One Selects Lockheed Martin to Study First Private Unmanned Mission to Mars

SSTL selected for first private Mars mission

Ancient crater could hold clues about moon's mantle

Minerals in giant impact crater may be clues to moon's makeup, origin

Silent Orbit for China's Moon Lander

The Sounds of New Horizons

On the Path to Pluto, 5 AU and Closing

SwRI study finds that Pluto satellites' orbital ballet may hint of long-ago collisions

	Mars One Selects Lockheed Martin to Study First Private Unmanned Mission to Mars Mars One has selected Lockheed Martin to develop a mission concept study for its Mars lander spacecraft. The lander will be based on the successful 2007 NASA Phoenix spacecraft and will be a technol ... more		Ancient crater could hold clues about moon's mantle Researchers from Brown University and the University of Hawaii have found some mineralogical surprises in the Moon's largest impact crater. Data from the Moon Mineralogy Mapper that flew aboard Indi ... more		Arianespace to launch GSAT-15 and GSAT-16 satellites for India The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has chosen Arianespace to launch its GSAT 15 and GSAT 16 telecommunications satellites. The two satellites will be launched by Ariane 5 launch veh ... more		NASA poised to launch Mars atmosphere probe What happened to the water on Mars? How did the Red Planet's atmosphere become so thin over time? NASA's MAVEN probe is scheduled to launch Monday on a mission to find out. ... more

More Moon Missions For China		Robot herder brings the cows in for milking in Australia		Planning group calls for National Space Policy in Britain		Chang'e-3 probe moves closer to the moon		Countdown Begins for NASA's OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Mission
Ancient fresh water lake on Mars could have sustained life		Hard rock life		NASA reports coolant loop problem at ISS		Feature of Earth's atmosphere may help in search for habitable planets		NASA Developing Legs for ISS Robonaut 2

Quails in orbit: French cuisine aims for the stars

Minerals in giant impact crater may be clues to moon's makeup, origin

'Goldilocks' clue to habitable planets

Astronomers discover planet that shouldn't be there

Bid to colonize Mars wins high-profile backing

NASA Engineers Crush Giant Fuel Tank To Improve Rocket Design

MRO Reveals A More Dynamic Red Planet

First Boeing-built Inmarsat-5 Global Xpress Satellite Sends Initial On-Orbit Signals

Mars One spaceflight project 'can succeed'

Goddard Planetary Instruments Score a Hat Trick

Heat Shield for NASA's Orion Spacecraft Arrives at Kennedy Space Center

Opportunity ascending Solander Point at rim of Endeavour Crater

Kazakhstan to end Proton missions in 2025

Mars lake may have been friendly to microbes: NASA

Rover results include first age and radiation measurements on Mars

Russian Proton-M rocket launches Inmarsat-5F1 satellite

Basic build-up is being completed for Arianespace's Soyuz to launch Gaia

Space exploration can drive the next agricultural revolution

SST Australia: Signed, Sealed and Ready for Delivery

Literal Android: Google develops robots to replace people in manufacturing, retail

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