Spacecraft To Study Clouds At Edge Of Space Arrives At Vandenberg

BLUE SKY

Man-made noctilucent cloud, no classification possible. The trail of a rocket created an artificial cloud showing irridescence. On this occasion, the height was estimated to be 80-90 km. This photograph is from the book "Observing Noctilucent Clouds" by M. Gadsden and P. Parviainen, edited by IAGA in 1995

Gallery of Noctilucent cloud images via AIM at Hamptonu

by Staff Writers
Vandenberg AFB (SPX) Mar 14, 2007
NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere (AIM) spacecraft arrived Saturday at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., for a targeted April 25 launch aboard a Pegasus XL rocket. The AIM spacecraft will fly three instruments designed to study polar mesospheric clouds located at the edge of space, 50 miles above the Earth's surface in the coldest part of the planet's atmosphere.

The mission's primary goal is to explain why these clouds form and what has caused them to become brighter and more numerous and appear at lower latitudes in recent years. AIM's results will provide the basis for the study of long-term variability in the mesospheric climate and its relationship to global climate change.

Mating of the three stages of the Orbital Sciences Pegasus XL has been underway at Vandenberg. The AIM spacecraft now joins the Pegasus rocket at the facility. AIM will undergo a series of readiness tests to verify its state of health, and the instruments will be cleaned and calibrated. Technicians also will partially deploy the craft's solar arrays for illumination testing.

AIM is scheduled to be mated to the Pegasus XL during the second week of April, after which final inspections will be conducted. Approximately one week later, after the test team performs a launch countdown rehearsal and flight simulation, the payload fairing will be installed around the spacecraft.

Two days before launch, the Pegasus rocket with the AIM spacecraft will be transported to the Vandenberg runway where it will be attached beneath the Orbital Sciences L-1011 carrier aircraft.

NASA's Launch Services Program at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., is managing the AIM launch, and Orbital Sciences Corporation is conducting launch services.

AIM is the seventh Small Explorers mission under NASA's Explorer Program. The program provides frequent flight opportunities for world-class scientific investigations from space within heliophysics and astrophysics.

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS
Solar Energy Solutions
Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ...

Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News

BLUE SKY

Thailand Considers Declaring Emergency Over Haze

Bangkok (AFP) March 13, 2007
Thailand may declare an environmental emergency in tourist hotspot Chiang Mai and two other northern provinces after a thick smog blanketed the region, the environment minister said Tuesday. Kasem Snidwong Na Ayuttaya said air quality in three provinces was double the hazardous level after widespread forest fires and farmers setting blazes to clear land.

AEROSPACE Germans Urged To Give Foreign Travel A Rest To Curb Global Warming Raytheon Team Proposes Single International Standard In ADS-B Pursuit NASA Signs Defense Department Agreement Lockheed Martin And FAA Reach Significant Milestone In Transformation Of Flight Services	CAR TECH Toyota Anticipates Sharp Increase In Its Hybrid Sales New Nanoscale Engineering Breakthrough Points To Hydrogen-Powered Vehicles Geneva Show Hints At Green Fuel Jumble For Motorists Students Enter Competition To Produce A Zero-Emissions Snowmobile
MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS QinetiQ Completes Urgent Satellite Communications System Order For MOD Helicopters Harris Gets Follow-On Production Contract For Military Tactical Communications System US Army Developing Better Access To Intelligence Data Through Distributed Common Ground System General Dynamics Completes Milestone In Design Of US Navy Mobile User Objective System	MISSILE DEFENSE South Korea Wants To Buy Second-Hand Patriot Missiles From Germany Sea-Based X-Band Radar Completes Fine Calibration Testing US General To Reassure Ukraine On Missile Defence Shield US Missile Defenses Performed Well In North Korea Crisis Claims Boeing
FARM NEWS Plant Size Morphs Dramatically as Scientists Tinker with Outer Layer Indefinite Donor Accord To Preserve World Rice Varieties Up To One Million Fish Found Dead In Thai River Weeding Out The Risk Of Pest Plants	DISASTER MANAGEMENT Airmen Upgrading Giant Voice Systems In England Indonesia Allots One Billion Dollars To Prevent Floods Relief Flows Into Indonesia Quake Area As Death Toll Revised Down Global Disaster Bill Declines In 2006 Says Swiss Re
TECH SPACE Saab Space To Supply Antennas For New Generation Direct-To-Mobile Satellites Virtual Reality For Virtual Eternity Boeing Orbital Express to Demonstrate New On-Orbit Servicing Capability Top 10 Materials Moments In History Announced	ROBO SPACE Novel Salamander Robot Crawls Its Way Up The Evolutionary Ladder Look Ma, No Hands, No Humans Learning From Mistakes Next Challenge For Japanese Humanoids Superbots In Action

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright Space.TV Corporation. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space.TV Corp on any Web page published or hosted by Space.TV Corp. Privacy Statement