[Busy, busy... but here I am again.]
Cover story this time is the Hubble repair..
Matra Marconi Space is installing videoconferencing systems connecting space facilities in France, Germany, and Russia, with a connection to ESTEC in Holland as well.
Cropix Inc., in Oregon, is testing a system to warn farmers of crop problems using satellite imagery.
ESA engineers are studying a problem in Meteosat 6's infrared radiometer, affecting temperature sensing. It is hoped that software changes can work around it.
Martin Marietta begins implementing recommendations of an internal panel that reviewed its operations after the spate of failures last year. The panel didn't find anything major, but did uncover some cases of poor organization and sloppiness.
Rand Corp. study urges a thorough review of post-Cold-War military comsat needs before Milstar 2 is funded, but supports launch of the Milstar 1s that are already paid for.
Rep. George Brown, after a visit to Baikonur, says that reports of major deterioration there are exaggerated.
And speaking of Baikonur, it's reported that Russia and Kazakhstan have reached agreement on lease terms for the cosmodrome.
White House in the middle of Yet Another Study Of US Launch Needs, as launch companies urge rapid action, claiming that the commercial market alone cannot fund necessary improvements in launchers and infrastructure.
One immediate issue that the White House is going to have to deal with is the question of MM acquiring GD... which MM has made conditional on full approval, and preferably some help (notably, a willingness to share some of the savings expected to result from consolidated launch operations).
Meanwhile, Rep. Joel Hefley is preparing a bill calling for a national launch services corporation, to have a monopoly on government launch business, first priority on access to facilities, and full authority to compete in the commercial market. [The funny thing is, this guy is allegedly a Republican.]
US and Russia sign key agreements on station cooperation (despite some skepticism from Congress). Krikalev's backup on STS-60, Vladimir Titov, will fly on STS-63, the Mir flyby. Beginning late next year, there will be up to ten shuttle visits to Mir, and at least four NASA astronauts will stay for long visits, totalling two years. The Spektr and Priroda modules will be equipped with US instruments and experiments. Goldin says he expects NASA will continue spending about $100M/year on Russian hardware and facilities. Various other agencies will also cooperate on assorted joint missions and coordinated projects.
RKA pledges full support to get Mars 94 up in October, but questions linger. Injections of funds have helped get things moving again, and things do seem to be happening... but time is short, testing will be skimpy, and the Russian government continues to be slow with funding. Russian managers agree that there is risk in maintaining the schedule, but fear that the Russian planetary program may disintegrate if it loses momentum.
Russia prepares to launch a three-man crew to Mir, including physician Valeri Poliakov. He will spend 14 months aloft, staying on Mir as the primary two-man crews continue their normal 5-month rotation. Russia is also beginning preparations for a long-duration flight by a woman.
Despite its recent fall in fortunes, Russia still launched more space missions in 1993 than the rest of the world combined: 47 launches, compared with 23 for the US.
DoD partially gives in to widespread pressure, agreeing to manage GPS jointly with the Dept of Transportation. Many users would prefer an international civil organization, but this is as far as the government is ready to go right now. DoD will continue to supply the major funding, with DoT contributing when civilian needs are involved. DoD says that deliberate degradation of GPS accuracy will continue.
Endeavour lands at KSC, using a new steeper approach intended to minimize chances of unfavorable winds making it impossible to reach the runway.
More pictures from the Hubble repair. Early results from calibration and focussing are looking good, and no operational problems have yet been seen. No contamination or other problems caused by the servicing visit are apparent. The new solar arrays are much better behaved; a few "twangs" have been seen, but much less frequent and much weaker than the old arrays used to produce, and it is not certain that they are even coming from the new arrays. (Slight twisting of the new arrays was seen during Hubble release, but that is within what was expected.) The WFPC2 team says their detectors are free of contamination -- a real worry because WFPC1 had unexplained contamination. Costar's arms for the FOS and FOC are in position, with the GHRS arms waiting until the FOS/FOC arms are fully adjusted.
1994 shuttle launch schedule is looking uncertain: the Discovery flight carrying the Wake Shield Facility has been postponed a week after work crews found a thruster leak, and an independent investigating panel has been appointed to look into the SRB pressure spikes seen on several recent flights.
Sea Launch Investors Group is looking for payloads for three cheap demo launches of the Shtil 2N -- a modified SS-N-23 SLBM -- this year. These are intended to pave the way for the larger Surf launcher that Makayev and SLIG are developing, which will put an SS-N-23 on top of an SS-N-20 first stage. Shtil 2N payload is 265kg into a 200km orbit at 70deg. The launches will probably be from Makayev's water-filled tower facility at Arkhangelsk; they would like to do a sea launch, as planned for Surf, but that requires a final guidance update from the launch ship, and the gear for that will take a while to sort out.
Editorial urging ESA to continue with the Columbus module, even if it must temporarily take second place to earlier participation on the space station.
Critics have long said "NASA specializes| Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology in pork"; now that's White House policy.| henry@zoo.toronto.edu utzoo!henry