Aerospace

The "spine" of the James Webb Space Telescope, called the backplane, is in great health for space, according to scientists and engineers. Recent tests show that the backplane, which supports the big mirrors of the telescope, can handle its trip into space and operate correctly when the observatory launches in 2013. Scientists and Engineers at Northrop Grumman working with the Backplane or "Spine" of the JWST. (Credit: Northrop Grumman) The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) will explore many wonders in space– from distant galaxies to nearby planets and stars. From the first light after the…

On Saturday, Hubble's main camera, the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS), stopped working. Until a solution, at least in part, can be found, Hubble will be returned to work with the remaining instruments. Saturday 27 January 2007 at 13:34 CET, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope entered into a protective "safemode" condition most likely triggered by a short circuit in Hubble's main instrument the Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). (Image credit: Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp) Saturday 27 January 2007 at 13:34 CET, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope entered into a protective "…

Thailand is doing the final preparations for the launch of its first earth observation satellite called THEOS into orbit in October, Thai Science and Technology Minister Yongyuth Yuthavong said Friday. The THEOS project is expected to be completed in August or September and be launched into orbit in October as scheduled, the minister was quoted by Thai News Agency as saying. The French company EADS Astrium, a leading European satellite producer, was contracted by the Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA) under Thai Ministry of Science and Technology in 2004 to…

India will set up an aerospace defence command to shield itself against possible attacks from outer space, officials said Sunday. The announcement came three days after Russia backed India's response to a Chinese satellite-destroying weapons test that demanded a "weapons free outer space." Indian Air Force (IAF) chief Shashi Tyagi said it was in the process of establishing an aerospace defence command "to exploit outer space," the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency reported. "As the reach of our airforce is expanding it has become extremely important that we exploit space and for…