The fire in India's solid-propellant booster plant at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre on 23 February was caused by friction or an electrostatic charge, says a preliminary report. n China plans to launch a Moon rover in 2012 to follow the $170 million Chang'e lunar orbiter mission due for launch in 2007. n Israel is to join the European Union's Galileo navigation satellite programme. China is investing $283 million in Galileo, and India hopes to join with a $300 million investment.
Source: Flight International
