Close-up radar images of the lunar south and north poles by NASA's tracking network antenna indicate that deep craters that do not receive direct sunlight may hold ice deposits. NASA's Lunar Prospector could release up to 18kg of water vapour from the craters when it makes its scheduled controlled crash on the moon's south pole on 31 July.
Source: Flight International
China’s AVIC has secured a contract from the China Manned Space Agency to develop a winged, reusable spacecraft called Haolong.
The UK Space Command’s first owned earth observation microsatellite has been launched, providing the inaugural element of a planned space-based intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) constellation.
Orbital launch pioneer SpaceX is being contracted by the American space agency NASA to develop a so-called “US Deorbit Vehicle” that can safely return the International Space Station to Earth via controlled re-entry.
