ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 8:14am EDT [= epoch])
Mean altitude — 345.2 km
Apogee height – 350.5 km
Perigee height — 339.9 km
Period — 91.44 min.
Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
Eccentricity — 0.00079148
Solar Beta Angle — -42.1 deg (magnitude decreasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.75
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours — 62 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 62443
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below... Read Full Story
A large piece of space junk flew past the International Space Station (ISS) Friday without posing any threat, US space agency NASA said.
A piece of a European Ariane-5 rocket passed within 1.3 km of the ISS, but not close enough to pose a risk to the station or its crew.
"The flight control team is continuing to monitor that debris, but again it did pass as expected and is no concern to the orbiting complex," said a NASA spokesperson.
NASA was monitoring the approaching 19-square... Read Full Story
ISS Orbit (as of this morning, 3:08am EDT [= epoch])
Mean altitude — 346.5 km
Apogee height – 352.8 km
Perigee height — 340.2 km
Period — 91.47 min.
Inclination (to Equator) — 51.64 deg
Eccentricity — 0.0009309
Solar Beta Angle — -17.8 deg (magnitude increasing)
Orbits per 24-hr. day — 15.74
Mean altitude loss in the last 24 hours — 104 m
Revolutions since FGB/Zarya launch (Nov. 98) — 62156
All ISS systems continue to function nominally, except those noted previously or below... Read Full Story
Two astronauts from the space shuttle Discovery began a third and final spacewalk Saturday outside the International Space Station (ISS).
US astronaut John "Danny" Olivas and Swede Christer Fuglesang began the scheduled six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk at 4.39 p.m. (2039 GMT), US space agency NASA said.
They were to deploy an attachment system that will be used to hang spare parts on the station's truss. They were also to replace a device designed to help the station determine its... Read Full Story
European Space Agency
Image credit: NASA TV
Space Shuttle Discovery landed at Edwards Air Force Base, California, at
02:53 CEST (on 12 September) completing all objectives of the 14-day STS-128
mission to the International Space Station.
Discovery undocked from the orbital outpost at 21:26 CEST (19:26 UT) on
Tuesday 8 September and safely brought back to Earth her crew of
seven-including European Space Agency astronaut Christer Fuglesang of
Sweden-and a precious cargo, ESA’s... Read Full Story
Space shuttle Discovery blasted off in a midnight launch on a mission taking it to the International Space Station (ISS).
Discovery lifted off the launching pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida at 11.59 p.m. Friday (0359 GMT Saturday) after days of postponements due to a questionable valve on the shuttle's external fuel tank and poor weather.
Weather forced a delay of a planned takeoff Tuesday and then problems with the valve scrubbed a scheduled liftoff Wednesday. NASA then sought to... Read Full Story
WASHINTON: NASA was planning to launch the space ****tle Discovery early Friday after thunderstorms and a hydrogen fuel tank valve postponed two previous attempts. The ****tle and its crew of seven astronauts were preparing for a 13-day mission to supply the orbiting International Space Station (ISS).Ahead of the next planned launch attempt, engineers will evaluate a liquid hydrogen valve that became problematic when technicians began fueling Discovery on Tuesday, mission management team... Read Full Story
US space agency NASA scuttled what would have been its second attempt to launch space shuttle Discovery on a mission to the orbiting International Space Station (ISS).
After the risk of lightning forced an overnight launch to be postponed early Tuesday, the blast off was rescheduled for 1.10 a.m. (0510 GMT) Wednesday.
But hours before the new launch attempt, shuttle programme managers late Tuesday announced another cancellation after discovering a problem with a liquid hydrogen... Read Full Story
11:30 p.m. CDT Saturday, Aug. 29, 2009
Mission Control Center, Houston, Texas
View of Discovery’s port side from the Orbiter Boom Sensor System; credit:
NASA TV
During their first full day in space, astronauts aboard Discovery conducted
a daylong inspection of the space shuttle’s thermal protection system,
checked out spacesuits and prepared to dock with the International Space
Station.
With Commander Rick Sturckow at the controls, Discovery is scheduled to link
up with the... Read Full Story
2 p.m. CDT Saturday, Aug. 29, 2009
Mission Control Center, Houston, Texas
International Space Station viewed from Endeavour on July 28; credit: NASA.
The crew of space shuttle Discovery woke at 1:30 p.m. to start work on the
first full day of their 13-day mission. The seven-person crew will focus on
heat shield inspections and preparations docking to the International Space
Station on Sunday.
Overnight, the Flight Control Team reported the failure of one of two small
steering... Read Full Story
