Nasa picks three in space contest
Nasa has chosen three front runners among proposals for the next space mission in its New Frontiers programme.(BBC News)
Russia plans to divert asteroid that will pass near Earth in 2030s
The Russian space agency has said it will hammer out plans to divert an asteroid that will pass near the Earth in 20 years' time.(BBC News)
NASA Extends Chandra Science and Operations Support Contract
NASA has extended a contract with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Mass., to provide science and operational support for the Chandra X-ray Observatory, a powerful tool used to better understand the structure and evolution of the universe.(NASA)
NASA's Mars Rover Has Uncertain Future as Sixth Anniversary Nears
Mars rover Spirit will mark six years of unprecedented science exploration and inspiration for the American public on Sunday.(NASA)
Winter High School Alumnus in Orbit on Space Station Will Talk with Wisconsin Students, State Representative
Wisconsin Rep. Mary Williams will attend a discussion Jan. 6, 2010, among astronauts orbiting 220 miles above Earth and students from two Wisconsin schools.(NASA)
NASA Chooses Three Finalists for Future Space Science Mission to Venus, an Asteroid or the Moon
NASA has selected three proposals as candidates for the agency's next space venture to another celestial body in our solar system.(NASA)
Crew Lifts Off From Kazakhstan to Begin Science and Construction Work Aboard the International Space Station
NASA astronaut T.J. Creamer, Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kotov and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Soichi Noguchi safely launched aboard a Soyuz spacecraft to the International Space Station on Sunday.(NASA)
NASA Flight Tests Unique Jumbo Jet; Plane's Airborne Telescope Will Be Used to Unlock Secrets of the Cosmos
A NASA jumbo jet that will help scientists unlock the origins of the universe with infrared observations reached a milestone Friday when doors covering the plane’s telescope were fully opened in flight.(NASA)
NASA and Maryland Researcher Recognized for Data that Provides Clues to Earth's Changing Climate, Forests, and Crops
NASA and the U.S. Department of the Interior presented the William T. Pecora Award to the Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System, or CERES, team and to Forrest Hall, senior research scientist at the University of Maryland Baltimore County.(NASA)
Esa satellite senses Earth's pull
Europe's Goce satellite returns remarkable new data on the way the pull of gravity varies across the Earth.(BBC News)
Ariane achievements highlighted in new films
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of the first Ariane launch, ESA, Arianespace and CNES, the French space agency, are showing two films on a large outdoor screen in the centre of Paris highlighting the successes of the rocket family.(ESA)
Astronauts Aboard the Space Station Talk With Troops in Iraq; Brave Men and Women on Both Sides of the Holiday Hookup Are Far From Home
Some U.S. forces in Iraq will get the chance during the holidays to talk with two NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station who also are far away from their families and friends.(NASA)
Undergraduate Students Fly High for Weightless Science
NASA has selected 28 undergraduate student teams to test their science experiments in simulated weightlessness.(NASA)
Traditional press breakfast with ESA’s Director General in Paris
ESA PR 32 2009 - On Thursday 14 January 2010, ESA's Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain will meet the press at the traditional start-of-year gathering at ESA’s headquarters in Paris. The meeting will begin at 08:30 with breakfast, followed at 09:00 by a press briefing to go over the Agency’s activities in the year just ended and take a look at activities to come in 2010.(ESA)
ESA Member States give green light to ExoMars Programme
ESA's Council yesterday gave the go-ahead to proceed with the implementation of the ExoMars Programme. This decision paves the way for two Mars exploration missions in cooperation with NASA in 2016 and 2018.(ESA)
Inside the dark heart of the Eagle
Herschel has peered inside an unseen stellar nursery and revealed surprising amounts of activity. Some 700 newly-forming stars are estimated to be crowded into filaments of dust stretching through the image. The image is the first new release of ‘OSHI’, ESA’s Online Showcase of Herschel Images.(ESA)
Gaia to lift off from Europe’s Spaceport on a Soyuz launcher
Gaia, ESA’s next-generation star mapper, will be carried into space by a Soyuz-STB/Fregat launch vehicle from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. David Southwood, ESA’s Director of Science and Robotic Exploration, signed the contract for the launch with Jean-Yves LeGall, Chairman and CEO of Arianespace, at ESA Headquarters in Paris yesterday.(ESA)
PHARAO atomic clock agreement signed by ESA and CNES
ESA PR 31-2009 Today at the Paris headquarters of the French space agency (CNES), Simonetta Di Pippo, ESA Director of Human Spaceflight, and Thierry Duquesne, CNES Director for Strategy, Programmes and International Relations, signed an agreement that paves the way for the launch of a high-accuracy atomic clock to be attached to the outside of the European Columbus laboratory onboard the International Space Station (ISS).(ESA)
ESA and World Bank move towards closer collaboration
The World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world. At first glance, this may not appear to be connected to space technology, but large development projects and the state of Earth’s environment are intrinsically linked.(ESA)
Space agencies join forces to systematically observe climate variables
Over 30 000 people from 190 nations are gathered at the two-week UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. On Thursday about 150 distinguished guests attended an ESA-hosted side event entitled 'Global Monitoring of our Climate: the Essential Climate Variables'.(ESA)