NASA TV TO BROADCAST MAIDEN LAUNCH OF EUROPE'S STATION CARGO SHIP

http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2008/mar/HQ_M08047_ATV_NASA_TV_Coverage.html
HOUSTON - NASA Television coverage of the maiden launch of the European
Space Agency's "Jules Verne" Automated Transfer Vehicle, or ATV, to the
International Space Station will begin Saturday, March 8, at 9:15 p.m. CST.

So maybe we will have two ways to outsource the resupply of the
International Space Station, but then it is an INTERNATIONAL SPACE
STATION. :-)
- LRK -

Thanks for looking up with me.

Larry Kellogg

Web Site: http://lkellogg.vttoth.com/LarryRussellKellogg/
BlogSpot: http://kelloggserialreports.blogspot.com/
RSS link: http://kelloggserialreports.blogspot.com/atom.xml
Newsletter: https://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-update
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http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2008/mar/HQ_M08047_ATV_NASA_TV_Coverage.html

James Hartsfield
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
james.a.hartsfield@nasa.gov

MEDIA ADVISORY: M08-047

NASA TV TO BROADCAST MAIDEN LAUNCH OF EUROPE'S STATION CARGO SHIP

HOUSTON - NASA Television coverage of the maiden launch of the
European Space Agency's "Jules Verne" Automated Transfer Vehicle, or
ATV, to the International Space Station will begin Saturday, March 8,
at 9:15 p.m. CST.

Liftoff of the ATV on an Ariane 5 rocket is set for 10:04 p.m. CST
from the launch site in Kourou, French Guiana. Television coverage
originating from the launch site will be provided by ESA and
Arianespace. The launch coverage will air live on NASA TV and will
include supplementary coverage originating from NASA's Johnson Space
Center.

The ATV launch window is instantaneous. NASA TV will continue its
coverage until ATV's solar arrays are deployed, about one hour and 36
minutes after launch.

If the launch is postponed, another opportunity is available Sunday,
March 9. NASA TV coverage would begin at 9:45 p.m. CDT.

The ATV reaches its preliminary orbit about nine minutes after
liftoff. At that time, its engines will fire for eight minutes to
place the spacecraft into an elliptical orbit. About 45 minutes
later, a second engine firing will circularize the ATV's orbit prior
to spacecraft separation.

The ATV is a 22-ton unpiloted resupply ship that will carry up to
eight tons of cargo to the complex. The vehicle will have the
capability to reboost the station's altitude through its four primary
engines. Along with the Russian Progress cargo craft that
periodically carry supplies to the station, the ATV also will
transport equipment, experiments and fuel to the complex. The
spacecraft will be controlled by engineers at the ESA ATV Control
Center in Toulouse, France, working together with flight controllers
at the Russian Mission Control Center in Korolev, outside Moscow, and
at Johnson.

Once in orbit, the ATV will undergo four weeks of extensive systems
tests, including two approaches to the station to simulate rendezvous
and contingency techniques. NASA TV will provide live coverage of the
automated flight activities for ATV when it is in close proximity to
the station on March 31 and when it docks on April 3. A post-docking
briefing from the Johnson also is planned for April 3.

The ATV will remain at the space station until early August. When it
undocks, it will perform a deorbit maneuver to burn up in Earth's
atmosphere. Additional ATVs are planned for launch to the station in
future years.

For NASA TV streaming video, downlink and scheduling information,
visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

-end-

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India's Moon Mission Pushed To July First Week

Bangalore, India (PTI) Feb 26, 2008 - India's first planetary mission,
Chandrayaan-1, has now been rescheduled to take place in the first week of
July as the mission personnel work overtime to sort out payload integration
and launch-related issues. "We are targeting the end of June. We will try to
make it in the first week of July," a senior scientist associated with the
Rs 386 crore moon mission told PTI here on Monday on condition ... more

http://www.moondaily.com/reports/India_Moon_Mission_Pushed_To_July_First_Week_999.html


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WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK

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