SHUTTLE NEWS

+ The US Space Shuttle An Aging Transport Vehicle

Washington (AFP) Jun 30, 2006
The Space Shuttle Discovery lifting off Saturday in Cape Canaveral, Florida, has the ability to fly both astronauts and heavy payload into space. The shuttle fleet, which will be retired in 2010, took off for the first time from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida on April 12, 1981.

+ Saturday Launch Marks Quarter Century For Shuttle
+ Shuttle Discovery To Launch Into A Worrying Unknown


 

DRAGON SPACE

+ China Seeks Space Station Access

Beijing (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
China has allowed reporters inside its space launch control room at Aerospace City near Beijing as part of an effort to join in the world's space projects. The rare visit by foreign reporters occurred as China seeks access to the International Space Station, as well to assuage fears its space program is driven by military needs, The Independent reported Thursday.


 

APPOINTMENTS

+ Former Astronaut Takes Over Air Force Space Command

Peterson Air Force Base CO (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Gen. Kevin P. Chilton has assumed command of the U.S. Air Force Space Command in a ceremony on June 26, presided over by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley.


 

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GPS NEWS

+ Rockwell Collins Wins Air Force Contract For Next Gen GPS

Cedar Rapids IA (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Rockwell Collins announced this week that the U.S. Air Force has selected the company to develop next-generation Global Positioning System technology as part of its Modernized User Equipment Receiver Card Development program.

+ Next Generation Tracking Technology Emerging


 

INTERNET SPACE

+ Satellite to Aid Education In Northeast India

Agartala, India (IANS) Jun 30, 2006
Students in India's northeast will soon have satellite-based educational facilities available. Three states - Tripura, Mizoram and Nagaland - will be included in the first phase of the hi-tech facilities using the services of EDUSAT, a dedicated satellite for education launched in 2004.


 

LAUNCH PAD

+ Student Rocket Launched At Cape Canaveral

Cape Canaveral, Fla. (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
The first student-developed and -built rocket to be launched from Cape Canaveral has lifted off to applause and loud victory yells. The Florida Institute of Technology rocket was launched at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Launch Complex 47.


 

MOON DAILY

+ Mysterious Lunar Swirls

Huntsville AL (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Picture this: A cup of coffee, steaming and black. Add a dollop of milk and gently stir. Eddies of cream go swirling around the cup. Magnify that image a million times and you've got a Lunar Swirl.


 

NUKEWARS

+ Chinese Leadership Calls For Build Up Of Strategic Missile Forces

Beijing (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
Chinese President Hu Jintao has pledged to step up scientific and technological reforms in the military, as he marked the 40th anniversary of the nation's nuclear force, state media said Thursday.

+ World Powers Give Iran A Week To Respond
+ Iran Rejects Calls To Give Speedy Response To Nuclear Package
+ Bush And Koizumi Warn North Korea Against Launching Test Missile
+ NKorea Missile Test Could Derail Six-Way Talks


 

MISSILE DEFENSE

+ Japan Brings Aegis Missile Defense Warship Home Amid NKorean Crisis

Tokyo (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
Japan said Thursday it was bringing home an Aegis-equipped destroyer from US-led exercises off Hawaii, in apparent preparation for a possible North Korean missile launch. The Kirishima is one of four Japanese ships equipped with Aegis, a US system designed to intercept missiles.


 

MILTECH

+ Boeing Awarded B-52H Weapons Integration Contract

St Louis MO (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Boeing has received a U.S. Air Force contract worth up to $150 million to support new weapons integration efforts on the B-52H bomber. Work on the B-52 Smart Weapons Integration Next Generation (SWING) will be performed by engineers based at the company's Integrated Defense Systems facility in Wichita, Kansas. The contract expires December 2020.

+ Testers Evaluate Helmet-Mounted Display in Cockpit


 

EPIDEMICS

+ Effects Of Avian Flu Pandemic Disasterous

Washington (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
An avian influenza pandemic "could kill millions of people, cripple economies, bring international trade and travel to a standstill and even jeopardize political stability," according to Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula J. Dobriansky.


 

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ China Ratifies International Convention On Oceanic Pollution

Beijing (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
China's parliament ratified Thursday an international treaty on preserving the marine environment and preventing pollution on the high seas, state press said Thursday. The National People's Congress ratified the 1996 Convention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter at a session that ended here Thursday, Xinhua news agency said.

+ Landfills And Chemical Weapon Debris A Good Match


 

ENERGY TECH

+ First Global Lighting Study Is Released

Paris (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
The first global survey of lighting uses and costs suggests the world's electric bill would greatly decrease with a switch to efficient lighting systems. The Paris-based International Energy Agency, which conducted the study, said it found lighting is a major source of electricity consumption.

+ Germany Now Has Two Energy Plans


 

CAR TECH

+ Back Middle Car Seat Maybe Un-Cool But It Is The Safest Car Seat

Buffalo NY (UPI) Jun 28, 2006
A U.S. study shows the middle of a car's back seat may be the least desirable, most uncomfortable and most "un-cool" spot -- but it is also the safest. University at Buffalo researchers studied all U.S. automobile crashes involving a fatality between 2000 and 2003 in which someone occupied the rear middle-seat.


 

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DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ FEMA Reform Plans Pick Up Pace

Washington (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
One of the leading advocates in the U.S. Congress of removing the Federal Emergency Management Agency from the Department of Homeland Security has reversed himself, joining sponsors of a bill to reform the agency within the department.


 

IRAN NUKES

+ World Powers Give Iran A Week To Respond

Moscow (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
World powers gave Iran one more week Thursday to provide a "clear and substantive response" to an international proposal on suspending uranium enrichment, but Tehran immediately rejected the deadline. Foreign ministers of the G8 group of leading nations said EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani will meet next Wednesday to discuss the plan.

+ Iran Rejects Calls To Give Speedy Response To Nuclear Package


 

KOREAN NUKES

+ Bush And Koizumi Warn North Korea Against Launching Test Missile

Washington (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said Thursday that he and US President George W. Bush had agreed to impose unspecified "pressures" on North Korea if it launches a long-range missile.

+ NKorea Missile Test Could Derail Six-Way Talks


 

MISSILE DEFENSE

+ Japan Brings Aegis Missile Defense Warship Home Amid NKorean Crisis

Tokyo (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
Japan said Thursday it was bringing home an Aegis-equipped destroyer from US-led exercises off Hawaii, in apparent preparation for a possible North Korean missile launch. The Kirishima is one of four Japanese ships equipped with Aegis, a US system designed to intercept missiles.


 

MILTECH

+ Boeing Awarded B-52H Weapons Integration Contract

St Louis MO (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Boeing has received a U.S. Air Force contract worth up to $150 million to support new weapons integration efforts on the B-52H bomber. Work on the B-52 Smart Weapons Integration Next Generation (SWING) will be performed by engineers based at the company's Integrated Defense Systems facility in Wichita, Kansas. The contract expires December 2020.

+ Testers Evaluate Helmet-Mounted Display in Cockpit


 

SINO DAILY

+ China Slams US Vote To Drop Restrictions On Taiwan Contacts

Beijing (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
China warned Thursday a move by US lawmakers to lift a ban on high-level US government contacts with Taiwan was a "serious violation" of the basis of Sino-American relations. "China has always resolutely opposed all forms of official contacts between United States and Taiwan authorities," foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told a regular press conference.


 

SUPERPOWERS

+ The Costs Of America's War Escalating

Moscow (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
The Bush administration allocated huge sums towards military programs, though the money was spent not on the planned acquisition of arms, but on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and on other similar operations. This means that the U.S. Department of Defense's budget remained the same in fixed prices as under President Ronald Reagan, but spending on acquisitions has been cut to a third.


 

GPS NEWS

+ USAF Awards Contract To Rockwell Collins For Next-Gen GPS Technology

Cedar Rapids IO (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
The U.S. Air Force has selected Rockwell Collins to develop next-generation Global Positioning System technology as part of the Modernized User Equipment (MUE) Receiver Card Development program. The main objective of the program is to develop and demonstrate modernized user segment receiver cards, establishing first proof of design for the modernized GPS architecture.


 

TERROR WARS

+ Is The Middle Ages On The Comeback Trail

Washington (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
Three years ago the Taliban operated in squad sized units. Last year they operated in company sized units (100+ men). This year the Taliban are operating in battalion-sized units (400+ men). So reported Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey (Ret), professor of International Affairs at West Point, after his second trip to Afghanistan to assess the balance of forces.

+ UK Court Ruling Leaves Terror Policy In Shreds


 

SHUTTLE NEWS

+ Bad Weather Threatens To Delay Controversial Discovery Launch

Cape Canaveral FL (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
NASA officials kept a close eye Thursday on a storm threatening to delay Discovery's controversial launch set for Saturday, only the second flight since the Columbia tragedy. US space agency officials said the shuttle was ready to rocket into orbit if weather permits and again defended their decision to go ahead with the mission despite lingering concerns over safety.

+ Shuttle Countdown Proceeding Despite Concerns
+ Space Shuttle Mission Details
+ The US Space Shuttle An Aging Transport Vehicle
+ Saturday Launch Marks Quarter Century For Shuttle
+ Shuttle Discovery To Launch Into A Worrying Unknown


 

DRAGON SPACE

+ China Seeks Space Station Access

Beijing (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
China has allowed reporters inside its space launch control room at Aerospace City near Beijing as part of an effort to join in the world's space projects. The rare visit by foreign reporters occurred as China seeks access to the International Space Station, as well to assuage fears its space program is driven by military needs, The Independent reported Thursday.


 

APPOINTMENTS

+ Former Astronaut Takes Over Air Force Space Command

Peterson Air Force Base CO (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Gen. Kevin P. Chilton has assumed command of the U.S. Air Force Space Command in a ceremony on June 26, presided over by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael Moseley.


 

GPS NEWS

+ Rockwell Collins Wins Air Force Contract For Next Gen GPS

Cedar Rapids IA (SPX) Jun 30, 2006
Rockwell Collins announced this week that the U.S. Air Force has selected the company to develop next-generation Global Positioning System technology as part of its Modernized User Equipment Receiver Card Development program.

+ Next Generation Tracking Technology Emerging


 

EPIDEMICS

+ Effects Of Avian Flu Pandemic Disasterous

Washington (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
An avian influenza pandemic "could kill millions of people, cripple economies, bring international trade and travel to a standstill and even jeopardize political stability," according to Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs Paula J. Dobriansky.


 

FROTH AND BUBBLE

+ China Ratifies International Convention On Oceanic Pollution

Beijing (AFP) Jun 29, 2006
China's parliament ratified Thursday an international treaty on preserving the marine environment and preventing pollution on the high seas, state press said Thursday. The National People's Congress ratified the 1996 Convention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter at a session that ended here Thursday, Xinhua news agency said.

+ Landfills And Chemical Weapon Debris A Good Match


 

ENERGY TECH

+ First Global Lighting Study Is Released

Paris (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
The first global survey of lighting uses and costs suggests the world's electric bill would greatly decrease with a switch to efficient lighting systems. The Paris-based International Energy Agency, which conducted the study, said it found lighting is a major source of electricity consumption.

+ Germany Now Has Two Energy Plans


 

CAR TECH

+ Back Middle Car Seat Maybe Un-Cool But It Is The Safest Car Seat

Buffalo NY (UPI) Jun 28, 2006
A U.S. study shows the middle of a car's back seat may be the least desirable, most uncomfortable and most "un-cool" spot -- but it is also the safest. University at Buffalo researchers studied all U.S. automobile crashes involving a fatality between 2000 and 2003 in which someone occupied the rear middle-seat.


 

DISASTER MANAGEMENT

+ FEMA Reform Plans Pick Up Pace

Washington (UPI) Jun 30, 2006
One of the leading advocates in the U.S. Congress of removing the Federal Emergency Management Agency from the Department of Homeland Security has reversed himself, joining sponsors of a bill to reform the agency within the department.