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Upcoming Conferences & Events
5 - 6 Feb 2009 - Arlington, VA
12th Annual FAA Commercial Space Transportation Conference More info > See Complete List » industry headlines
The U.S. space program is approaching a critical crossroads, one that will make 2009 the year in which a new presidential administration continues or alters the course of the human spaceflight program. Within the first 100 days of taking office, President-elect Barack Obama could decide to extend the life of NASA's aging shuttle fleet, or to step up efforts on Project Constellation, which aims to develop next-generation Ares rockets and Orion spacecraft for missions to the moon. Or, he could explore some combination of both. (Image Credit: NASA)
SpaceX recently completed assembly of all sections of the Falcon 9 rocket, which is on track to fly early in 2009 from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral. Workers connected the 5.2-meter payload fairing to the Falcon 9 first stage on Tuesday, which came a day ahead of schedule. Work will now focus on the launch mount and erector. All the pieces have been delivered, and over the next several days much of the welding will be done to join them all together. SpaceX expects to raise the rocket to vertical early in 2009. (Image Credit: SpaceX)
Air New Zealand conducted a two-hour test flight on 29 Dec. in which one of four Rolls-Royce engines on a Boeing 747-400 jetliner was powered by a biofuel blend of standard fuel and kerosene derived from Jathropha oil. Air New Zealand's chief pilot, Capt. David Morgan, took the airplane up to 35,000 feet to test acceleration and to see if friction of the fuel slows down its flow to the engine. The engine was shut down twice in descent and then restarted. It was shut down and restarted again while taxiing on the tarmac. The flight was a joint program between Air New Zealand, Boeing, Rolls-Royce, and Honeywell subsidiary, UOP. (Image Credit: NZ Herald)
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