»» First Shipping Forecast for the Oceans of Titan
[Thursday, April 01, 2004] When the European Huygens probe on the Cassini space mission parachutes down through the opaque smoggy atmosphere of Saturn's moon Titan early next year, it may find itself splashing into a sea of liquid hydrocarbons.
»» From Europa to Sedna: Life Beneath the Ice in the Outer Solar System?[Thursday, April 01, 2004] At present, we know of no worlds beyond our Earth where life exists. However, primitive organisms on our planet have evolved and adapted over billions of years, colonising the most inhospitable places.
»» Hunt for Extrasolar Earth-Like Planets Intensifies[Thursday, April 01, 2004] Research shows that the existence of life on other worlds is plausible. Astronomers have so far detected over 100 planets - but all have environmental conditions unsuitable for life.
»» Planetary systems with habitable Earths?[Thursday, April 01, 2004] How many of the known exoplanetary systems might contain habitable Earth-type planets? Perhaps half of them, according to a team from the Open University led by Professor Barrie Jones Keynes.
»» Astronomer Tells Congress About Lunar Water[Thursday, April 01, 2004] The discovery of accessible deposits of water on the moon would "profoundly" affect the economics and viability of a lunar base, Cornell University astronomer Donald Campbell told a House of Representatives subcommittee today.
»» Spirit Finds Multi-Layer Hints of Past Water at Mars' Gusev Site[Thursday, April 01, 2004] Clues from a wind-scalloped volcanic rock on Mars investigated by NASA's Spirit rover suggest repeated possible exposures to water inside Gusev Crater, scientists said Thursday.
»» Moon's Potential is Uncertain, Experts Testify[Thursday, April 01, 2004] A panel of scientific experts testified today to the House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics that more data are needed to determine if the moon has enough water and minerals to support significant, ongoing human activity there.
»» New Detailed VLT Images of Saturn's Moon Titan[Friday, April 02, 2004] ESO's Very Large Telescope at the Paranal Observatory in Chile now offers a unique opportunity to study the resolved disc of Titan with high sensitivity and increased spatial resolution.
»» NASA's Genesis Mission: Here Comes the Sun[Friday, April 02, 2004] Genesis is NASA's first sample return mission since the last Apollo mission in 1972, and the first ever to return material collected beyond the Moon. Sample collection began November 30, 2001.
»» NASA Cassini Image: Spots on Saturn[Friday, April 02, 2004] As Cassini closes in on Saturn, its view is growing sharper with time and now reveals new atmospheric features in the planet's southern hemisphere.
»» Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 - A call to the European Science Community [Friday, April 02, 2004] This announcement is to invite the community to participate in a Call for Themes for Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 to assist in developing the future plans of the Cosmic Vision programme of the ESA Directorate of Science.
»» Congressional Testimony of Paul D. Spudis: Lunar Science & Resources: Future Options[Friday, April 02, 2004] "Although we conducted our initial visits to the Moon over 30 years ago, we have recently made several important discoveries that indicate a return to the Moon offers many advantages and benefits to the nation."
»» Hearing Charter: Lunar Science & Resources: Future Options[Friday, April 02, 2004] "The hearing is not meant to focus on whether to go to the Moon, but rather is intended to examine the suitability of using the Moon for an extended - perhaps permanent - presence to conduct space science and resource-extraction activities."
»» World's Most Precise Gyroscopes Ready to Test Einstein Theory[Saturday, April 03, 2004] A NASA spacecraft designed to test two important predictions of Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity is set to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., at 1:09 p.m. EDT, April 17.
»» North Dakota State Triumphs in NASA's Great Moonbuggy Race[Sunday, April 04, 2004] For the second year in a row the team from North Dakota State University in Fargo led the field today in the college division of NASA's 11th annual "Great Moonbuggy Race" in Huntsville, Ala.
»» Titan Transits Crab Nebula and Casts a Revealing Shadown[Monday, April 05, 2004] A rare celestial event was captured by Chandra as Titan crossed in front of the X-ray bright Crab Nebula. The X-ray shadow cast by Titan allowed astronomers to make the first X-ray measurement of the extent of its atmosphere.
»» NASA Genesis Spacecraft Closes Collector Arrays[Tuesday, April 06, 2004] Solar particle collection came to an end last week, when NASA ordered the Genesis spacecraft's collectors deactivated and stowed. The closeout process was completed when Genesis closed and sealed the spacecraft's sample-return capsule.
»» National Air and Space Museum Works to Save Saturn V Moon Rocket[Tuesday, April 06, 2004] It could have launched Apollo 18, but it never got off the ground. Still, the Saturn V rocket on display at NASA's Johnson Space Center has long outlived its sisters that took men to the moon between 1969 and 1972.
»» Preflight Interview with Expedition 9 Flight Engineer Mike Fincke[Wednesday, April 07, 2004] "I was 3 years old, and I can remember wanting to be an astronaut. This was the time when NASA first went to the moon, and I remember watching not just Apollo 11 but all of the Apollo missions."
»» NASA Schedules Genesis Spacecraft Mid-Air Recovery Media Day[Wednesday, April 07, 2004] A media event surrounding the flight training of the Genesis helicopter crew will take place April 15 at the U.S. Army's Yuma Proving Ground in Yuma, Ariz.
»» NASA NEO News: Astronauts Schweickart and Lu testify before Congress[Wednesday, April 07, 2004] Following are parts of the testimony presented by astronauts Rusty Schweickart and Ed Lu before the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space at a hearing April 7, 2004.
»» Photo Report: Soyuz TMA-4 Prime and Backup Crews Arrive at Baikonur Cosmodrome [Wednesday, April 07, 2004] The Soyuz TMA-4 prime crew of Gannadi Padalka, Michael Fincke, and Andre Kuipers and backup crew Salizhan S. Sharipov, Leroy Chiao, and Gerhard Thiele have arrived at Baikonur for final training.
»» FAA Issues License for Historic Sub-Orbital Manned Rocket Launch[Wednesday, April 07, 2004] The license was issued April 1 by the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation to Scaled Composites of Mojave, Calif., headed by aviation record-holder Burt Rutan, for a sequence of sub-orbital flights spanning a one-year period.
»» NASA Extends Mars Rovers' Mission[Thursday, April 08, 2004] NASA has approved an extended mission for the Mars Exploration Rovers, handing them up to five months of overtime assignments as they finish their three-month prime mission.
»» Two Storms Caught in the Act on Saturn[Thursday, April 08, 2004] Three months before Saturn arrival, the Cassini spacecraft has observed two storms in the act of merging into one larger storm. This is only the second time this phenomenon has been observed on the ringed planet.
»» Stars as Numerous Grains of Sand in a Nearby Galaxy[Thursday, April 08, 2004] What appear as individual grains of sand are actually myriads of stars deep in the nearby galaxy NGC 300. The Hubble's resolution enables it to see the stars as individual points of light, despite the fact that the galaxy is millions of light-years away.
»» NASA's Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel: Where's the Advice?[Thursday, April 08, 2004] NASA's prime safety advisory body has not even bothered to discuss the cancellation of the Hubble serving mission - a very public decision made on the basis of safety.
»» NASA Names Exploration Project Directors[Thursday, April 08, 2004] NASA selected Garry M. Lyles as Deputy Director of Project Constellation and Charles J. Precourt as Program Director of the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV).
»» Expedition 8 Conducts Russian Experiments, Prepares for Trip Home[Friday, April 09, 2004] The crewmembers continued preparations for their return to Earth. After spending nine days performing joint operations and handover activities with the Expedition 9 crew, Foale and Kaleri are slated to return to Earth on April 29.
»» Antimatter Propulsion Research at NASA[Friday, April 09, 2004] "The contractor shall undertake work and other expert duties in support of the Marshall Space Flight Center's Propulsion Research Centers. This work shall be performed on-site with the antimatter propulsion research team."
»» SMART-1 as a Bench Test for Electric Propulsion[Sunday, April 11, 2004] SMART-1 is now flying its 264th orbit, in good status and with all functions performing nominally. After the eclipse season, the new thrusting strategy is progressing well with long thrust arcs around perigee occurring every orbit for about 10.5 hours.
»» Gravity Probe B Ready for Launch[Monday, April 12, 2004] Gravity Probe B will launch aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket at 1:01:20 p.m. EDT Monday, April 19 from Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Should the launch be postponed 24 hours, the launch time is 12:57:24 p.m. EDT.
»» 43rd Anniversary of Vostok 1 - 23rd Anniversary of STS-1[Monday, April 12, 2004] Today is a great day in the history of spaceflight. Russia celebrates this day as Cosmonautics Day. NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe sent congratulations on behalf of NASA to Russian Federal Space Agency Head Anatolii Perminov.
»» Soyuz TMA-4 Launch Preparations Continue[Monday, April 12, 2004] Payload shroud roll on to the Soyuz TMA-4 spacecraft was completed today at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. Soyuz TMA-4 is scheduled to launch Gennady Padalka, Michael Fincke, and Andre Kuipers on 18 April and arrive at the ISS on 21 April.
»» Web-based program calculates effects of an Earth impact[Monday, April 12, 2004] University of Arizona scientists are launching an easy-to-use, web-based program that tells you how the collision will affect your spot on the globe by calculating several environmental consequences of its impact.
»» Assessment and Plan for Organizational Culture Change at NASA[Monday, April 12, 2004] This report provides the results of an assessment of NASA's overall safety climate and culture and is based on review of existing information, an employee survey, and interviews and focus groups.
»» State-of-the-art sequencing technology to detect life on Mars[Monday, April 12, 2004] The same cutting-edge technology that speeded sequencing of the human genome could, by the end of the decade, tell us once and for all whether life ever existed on Mars, according to a University of California, Berkeley, chemist.
»» Mt. Everest Photographed from the ISS[Wednesday, April 14, 2004] ISS crewmembers recently took advantage of their vantage point to photograph this oblique view of the Himalayas looking south from over the Tibetan Plateau.
»» 'People is Hard': NASA Seeks To Fix Itself[Wednesday, April 14, 2004] On Monday NASA released a report it had commissioned which sought to examine the oft-mentioned 'culture' issues that arose during the activities of the Columbia Accident Investigation Board. Now NASA seeks to fix that within its culture which is broken.
»» UN Outer Space Legal Subcommittee Concludes 43rd Session in Vienna[Wednesday, April 14, 2004] The practice of States and international organizations in registering space objects was a new agenda item discussed by the Legal Subcommittee of the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space during its forty-third session.
»» Scientists to plan International Heliophysical Year[Wednesday, April 14, 2004] A workshop sponsored by NASA's Sun Earth Connection Program to begin planning U.S. participation in the International Heliophysical Year will be April 20-22, 2004 at the National Science Foundation's National Solar Observatory.
»» NASA Hubble Views Sedna: No Large Moon Visible[Wednesday, April 14, 2004] Astronomers poring over 35 Hubble images of Sedna, are surprised that the object does not appear to have a companion moon of any substantial size.
»» Invisible Giants Exposed in New NASA Spitzer Image[Wednesday, April 14, 2004] Hidden behind a curtain of dusty darkness lurks one of the most violent pockets of star birth in our galaxy. DR21 is so draped in cosmic dust that it appears invisible to the human eye.
»» NASA Cassini Image: Prometheus, Pandora, and Saturn's F-ring[Thursday, April 15, 2004] Cassini has sighted Prometheus and Pandora, the two F-ring-shepherding moons whose unpredictable orbits both fascinate scientists and wreak havoc on the F ring.
»» Opportunity Finds Rock Resembling Meteorites That Fell to Earth[Thursday, April 15, 2004] Opportunity has examined an odd volcanic rock on the plains of Mars' Meridiani Planum region with a composition unlike anything seen on Mars before, but scientists have found similarities to meteorites that fell to Earth.
»» Movie shows hydrocarbon haze that Huygens will encounter[Thursday, April 15, 2004] Astronomers has produced a detailed look at Titan's cloud cover and what the Huygens probe will see as it dives through the atmosphere of Titan to land on the surface.
»» Satellites Record Weakening North Atlantic Current[Thursday, April 15, 2004] A North Atlantic Ocean circulation system weakened considerably in the late 1990s, compared to the 1970s and 1980s, according to a NASA study.
»» Cosmic Magnifying Glass: Distant Star Reveals Planet[Thursday, April 15, 2004] Like Sherlock Holmes holding a magnifying glass to unveil hidden clues, modern day astronomers used cosmic magnifying effects to reveal a planet orbiting a distant star.
»» Soyuz TMA-4 Integrated with Launch Vehicle[Friday, April 16, 2004] Soyuz TMA-4 was integrated with its launch vehicle today. Gennady Padalka, Michael Fincke, and Andre Kuipers will be launched on 18 April from Baikonur and arrive at the ISS on 21 April.
»» Public Comments Support of President's Vision for Space Exploration [Friday, April 16, 2004] Thus far, public comments received by the President's Commission on Implementation of U.S. Space Exploration Policy are running 7 to 1 in support of President Bush's "Vision for Space Exploration".
»» NASA's Mars Rovers Look Back[Saturday, April 17, 2004] As Spirit and Opportunity look forward to their extended missions, they've looked back at the road they have traveled away from their landing sites.
»» Soyuz TMA-4 Transported to Launch Pad[Saturday, April 17, 2004] The launch of Soyuz TMA-4 carrying the Expedition 9 crew to the ISS is scheduled for Sunday 18 April at 11:19 pm EDT. You can watch launch coverage on NASA TV starting at 10:30 pm EDT.
»» Cometlike Body Vaproized by a Very Young Hot Star[Saturday, April 17, 2004] Evidence that a cometlike object with a diameter of at least 100 kilometers fell into a massive, very young star has been obtained by a team of astronomers at Penn State using the 9.2-meter Hobby-Eberly Telescope at the McDonald Observatory in Texas.
»» Soyuz TMA-4 lifts off for the International Space Station[Sunday, April 18, 2004] Soyuz TMA-4 lifted off on time from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Monday at 9:19 am local time. The crew is now in orbit.
»» Expedition 9 on the way to International Space Station[Monday, April 19, 2004] Expedition 9, the new crew of the International Space Station, was successfully launched Sunday at 11:18 p.m. EDT. The crew reached orbit at approximately 11:28 p.m. EDT.
»» NASA Response to Russia's Request to Extend Next ISS Expedition to One Year in Length[Monday, April 19, 2004] "Last week, NASA sent a response letter to our Russian partners that says we believe this isn't right time to extend International Space Station crew missions from six months to a year."
»» NASA Gravity Probe B Launch Delayed for 24 Hours[Monday, April 19, 2004] A hold was called approximately three minutes before lift off, after it was determined there was insufficient time to confirm before launch the correct wind profile had been loaded aboard the Delta II based on the data from the final weather balloon.
»» Dr. Jill Tarter selected one of world's most influential people[Tuesday, April 20, 2004] Tarter has devoted her life to the science of detecting intelligent, technological civilizations through searches of the electromagnetic (radio and now optical) spectrum, a discipline within the growing field of astrobiology.
»» Dust devils on Mars might have high-voltage electric fields[Tuesday, April 20, 2004] If martian dust grains have a variety of sizes and compositions, dust devils on Mars should become electrified the same way as their particles rub against each other. Martian dust storms are also expected to be strong generators of electric fields.
»» Expedition 9 to Arrive at Space Station Early Wednesday[Tuesday, April 20, 2004] Expedition 9 Commander Gennady Padalka and NASA ISS Science Officer Michael Fincke are scheduled to arrive at 12:04 a.m. CDT (0504 GMT) Wednesday. Joining them on the trip to the ISS is European Space Agency Astronaut André Kuipers.
»» NASA Successfully Launches Gravity Probe B Mission[Tuesday, April 20, 2004] The NASA space vehicle designed to test two important predictions of Albert Einstein's Theory of General Relativity launched today from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., aboard a Boeing Delta II expendable launch vehicle.
»» Expedition 9 Crew Arrives at ISS[Wednesday, April 21, 2004] New residents arrived at the International Space Station at 12:01 a.m. CDT (0501 GMT, 9:01 a.m. Moscow time) Wednesday. Docking of the Expedition 9 Crew's Soyuz spacecraft (ISS Soyuz 8 / TMA-4) initiated a nine-day handover.
»» NASA Exploration Systems Enterprise Request for Information[Wednesday, April 21, 2004] White papers are invited that address initial challenges facing Project Constellation and Project Prometheus in general, and the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) in particular.
»» Researcher predicts global climate change on Jupiter as planet's spots disappear[Wednesday, April 21, 2004] If a University of California, Berkeley, physicist's vision of Jupiter is correct, the giant planet will be in for a major global temperature shift over the next decade as most of its large vortices disappear.
»» Taikonaut Yang Liwei becomes an Icon on the International Space Station[Thursday, April 22, 2004] Look closely to the right of Astronaut Mike Foale and you will see a picture of Shenzhou V taikonaut Yang Liwei on a bulkhead of the Service Module.
»» NASA Cassini Offers Four Ways to See Saturn[Thursday, April 22, 2004] A montage of Cassini images, taken in four different regions of the spectrum from ultraviolet to near-infrared, demonstrates that there is more to Saturn than meets the eye.
»» NASA Notice: National Environmental Policy Act; Development of Advanced Radioisotope Power Systems[Thursday, April 22, 2004] NASA intends to prepare a Tier I EIS for the development of advanced Radioisotope Power Systems. In cooperation with DOE, NASA proposes to develop two types of advanced RPSs to satisfy a wide of range of future space exploration mission requirements.
»» NASA Arctic Sea Ice Study May Stir Up Climate Models[Thursday, April 22, 2004] Contrary to historical observations, sea ice in the high Arctic undergoes very small, back and forth movements twice a day, even in the dead of winter. It was once believed ice deformation at such a scale was almost non-existent.
»» NASA Notice of availability of draft programmatic environmental impact statement (DPEIS) for implementation of the Mars Exploration Program[Thursday, April 22, 2004] NASA has prepared and issued a DPEIS for the Mars Exploration Program. The DPEIS addresses the potential environmental impacts associated with continuing the preparations for and implementing the program.
»» Report of the NASA Science Definition Team for the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter[Thursday, April 22, 2004] "The Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter affords an exciting and unprecedented opportunity to explore a part of the solar system identified by the NAS as critical in the search for life's origins and the understanding of planetary evolution."
»» NASA Hubble Space Telescope Image: The Lure of the Rings[Thursday, April 22, 2004] Resembling a diamond-encrusted bracelet, a ring of brilliant blue star clusters wraps around the yellowish nucleus of what was once a normal spiral galaxy in this new image from Hubble Space Telescope.
»» DOD Misidentifies Photos of Columbia Crew Remains Arriving at Dover AFB as Being Iraq War Dead[Friday, April 23, 2004] If you look at the originating website for the controversial photos of war dead being returned from Iraq, you will see that most of the first page of photos are of Columbia crew remains arriving at Dover AFB on 5 February 2003.
»» Mike Foale Talks about 'Expeditions' in space[Saturday, April 24, 2004] "Well Keith - you're quite right. We've gone an awful long way - but around the Earth - and not out of Earth orbit - which is something all of us here have our hearts and dreams set upon."
»» New York Times Fans Global Warming Film Controversy with NASA Memos[Sunday, April 25, 2004] Global warming is a topic that many people have a deep philosophical attachment to - often with a ferocity that matches the events portrayed in this film. This at the heart of an article that appeared recently in the New York Times.
»» Multinational team of scientists finds early life in volcanic lava[Monday, April 26, 2004] Scientists from the United States, Norway, Canada, and South Africa have identified what is believed to be evidence of one of Earth's earliest forms of life, a finding that could factor heavily into discussions of the origins of life.
»» New evidence supports three major glaciation events in Earth's distant past[Monday, April 26, 2004] Glaciers reached Cape Cod, Massachusetts, in the most recent ice age about 20,000 years ago. But much harsher ice ages hit the Earth in an ancient geological interval known as "the Cryogenian Period" between 750 and 600 million years ago.
»» Rate of ocean circulation directly linked to abrupt climate change on Earth[Monday, April 26, 2004] A new study strengthens evidence that the oceans and climate are linked in an intricate dance, and that rapid climate change may be related to how vigorously ocean currents transport heat from low to high latitudes.
»» Government Working Group Completes 'Physics of the Universe' Report[Monday, April 26, 2004] "In its report, the Physics of the Universe group examines the status of the Federal government's current investments, and makes prioritized recommendations for the next steps to answer the eleven questions in the NRC's 2002 report."
»» NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory Reveals Two Faces of Supernova Power[Monday, April 26, 2004] This image shows the enormous power released when a massive star explodes. An implosion crushed material into an extremely dense neutron star, triggering an explosion that sent a shock wave rumbling through space at speeds in excess of 5 million mph.
»» Buon appetito: Russian cosmonauts on a Mediterranean diet[Tuesday, April 27, 2004] In parallel with the DELTA Mission, two Russian cosmonauts on the ISS - Alexander Kaleri and Gennadi Padalka - will perform the Mediet (Mediterranean Diet) experiment, demonstrating the use of the Mediet food system on board the ISS.
»» NASA Study: Results May Indicate Climate Change[Tuesday, April 27, 2004] In a new study, a University of Missouri-Columbia researcher found significant and widespread thinning of the southeastern portion of the Greenland ice sheet, indicating that climate change may be affecting the sheet.
»» Clouds Caused by Aircraft Exhaust May Warm U.S. Climate[Tuesday, April 27, 2004] NASA scientists have that found cirrus clouds, formed by contrails from aircraft engine exhaust, are capable of increasing average surface temperatures enough to account for a warming trend in the United States that occurred between 1975 and 1994.
»» Two Comets to Glow in the Spring Sky[Tuesday, April 27, 2004] Seven years have passed since Comet Hale-Bopp graced the evening sky in the spring of 1997. Now not just one but two new comets are heading into springtime view -- though they won't come near Hale-Bopp for brightness and grandeur.
»» Cosmic Ballet or Devil's Mask - Galaxy Triplet NGC 6769-71[Wednesday, April 28, 2004] ESO PR Photo 12/04 shows an example of such a cosmic tango. This is the superb triple system NGC 6769-71, located in the southern Pavo constellation (the Peacock) at a distance of 190 million light-years.
»» Expedition 8 Prepares to Hand Over Space Station, Return Home[Wednesday, April 28, 2004] Aboard the International Space Station, the Expedition 8 and 9 crews continued joint operations and handover activities Tuesday.
»» DELTA Mission science program nears completion[Wednesday, April 28, 2004] After two very busy days on board the International Space Station, ESA astronaut André Kuipers is now starting to round off the last of the DELTA Mission scientific experiments.
»» Rebuttal to Comments by the Houston Chronicle and Robert Zubrin Regarding NASA's Hubble Repair Options[Thursday, April 29, 2004] "A robotic Hubble mission such as what we propose is not a pipedream, it is based upon hard nosed engineering, and a great deal of proven flight hardware, that can be built and flown within a reasonable time to save Hubble."
»» NASA Cassini Image: Saturn in Color[Thursday, April 29, 2004] This is the last single 'eyeful' of Saturn and its rings achievable with the narrow angle camera on approach to the planet. From now until orbit insertion, Saturn and its rings will be larger than the field of view of the narrow angle camera.
»» NASA Mars Rovers Finish Primary Mission and Roll Onward[Thursday, April 29, 2004] Both rovers have completed their originally planned mission. Improvement to the rovers' mobility from new software has expanded options for planning their explorations - indeed both have driven farther in April than in the previous three months combined.
»» NASA Schedules Centennial Challenges Workshop[Thursday, April 29, 2004] The NASA program that offers cash prizes for the development of new capabilities to help meet the agency's exploration and program goals is conducting its first workshop June 15-16 at the Hilton Hotel, Washington.
»» Bug Nebula, NGC 6302: Demise in ice and fire[Thursday, April 29, 2004] The Bug Nebula, NGC 6302, is one of the brightest and most extreme planetary nebulae known. At its center lies a superhot dying star smothered in a blanket of 'hailstones'. A new Hubble image reveals fresh detail in the wings of this 'cosmic butterfly'.
»» Soyuz TMA-3 Lands Safely in Kazakhstan[Thursday, April 29, 2004] Expedition 8 Commander and NASA ISS Science Officer Michael Foale and Flight Engineer Alexander Kaleri returned to Earth on Thursday after spending six months at the International Space Station.
»» NASA Releases Update to Shuttle Return to Flight Plan[Friday, April 30, 2004] "NASA has made considerable progress in the past months in our return to flight efforts to make the Shuttle safer. We have taken the lessons of the CAIB Report to heart as we reexamine and improve our vehicles and our processes."
