Satellite News

The Endeavour astronauts are closing in on the international space station today, on track for a docking around 11:25 p.m. EDT to kick off a five-spacewalk assembly mission.

The astronauts unlimbered the shuttle’s robot arm and inspected the ship’s nose cap and wing leading edge panels with a laser scanner on the end of a 50-foot-long boom. The areas of the orbiter that experience the most extreme heating during re-entry appeared in good shape to the untrained eye, including the nose section where launch imagery indicates a possible bird or debris strike about 10 seconds after liftoff.

“If I had not criticised them, they wouldn’t have done anything – constructive criticism is helpful.” – Russian Vice-Premier Sergei Ivanov commenting earlier harsh remarks about Roskosmos, which he blamed for shortcomings of the GLONASS system

MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. reported that at today’s meeting of shareholders to consider the proposed sale of its Information Systems and Geospatial Services business, over 99.9 percent of voting shareholders approved the transaction.

Orbcomm Inc. , a global satellite data communications company focused on two-way Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications, announced financial results for the fourth quarter and the full year ending 31 December 2007.

European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. NV (EADS) reported results for the year 2007.

Vinasat-1, the second of two commercial telecommunications satellite passengers for Arianespace’s next heavy-lift Ariane 5 flight, has finally arrived at Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

Following an overnight recovery operation, Jules Verne ATV’s propulsion system has successfully been restored to full robustness. The spacecraft has since performed the first orbital manoeuvres necessary to set up phasing with the International Space Station.