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Media roundtable discussion with world space leaders on 8 January 2014 In Washington DC.

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Media roundtable discussion on 8 January 2014 to introduce 9/10 January event with world space leaders in Washington DC.

The International Academy of Astronautics (IAA) will be holding two major events in Washington DC, USA: the IAA Space Exploration Conference on 9 January 2014 and the Heads of Space Agencies Summit on Exploration (Planetary Robotic and Human Spaceflight Exploration) on 10 January 2014. The two-day gathering will take place at the Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20004, USA. This event will be introduced by a pre-event media roundtable discussion at the Boeing Roslyn in Arlington, VA.

The Heads of 30 Space Agencies will gather with policy-makers, government representatives, scientists, leading academics and industry representatives from all over the world to follow on from the 2010 Summit, engaging in dialogue on topics of international concern, in particular focusing on Planetary Robotic and Human Space Flight Exploration. In addition, this IAA Summit will be taking place in conjunction with the International Space Exploration Forum, a policy dialogue on space exploration at ministerial level, hosted for the first time by the US Department of State with the participation of Ministers and government representatives from around the world.

On January 9, while Ministers will be gathering for the restricted ministerial conference, the IAA will kick off with a one-day Space Exploration Conference. Six parallel sessions will take place on the topics of planetary robotic and human spaceflight exploration. In addition, participants and guests will witness the official release of ground-breaking IAA studies from Study Group leaders on exploration topics.

On 10 January, the Heads of Space Agencies Summit will see Agency leaders discussing on what has been implemented in terms of the 2010 Summit Declaration follow-on actions, focusing on the current outlook and tabling new ideas on international cooperation through a series of four interactive roundtables.

The Heads of Space Agencies Summit will conclude with a Press Conference open to the international media. Media representatives can register for free attendance of the two-day Conference and Summit by sending an email with personal data (first and last name, date of birth, place of birth, citizenship, passport/ID number and information on affiliation) to Dr. Jean-Michel Contant, IAA Secretary General, at sgeneral@iaamail.org

PROVISIONAL PRESS PROGRAMME

Wednesday 8 January 2014

Pre-event media roundtable discussion:

Title: Media roundtable discussion with world space leaders

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Media roundtable discussion with world space leaders on 8 January 2014 In Washington DC.

Waterbury native prepares for Soyuz space flight

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By BRYNN MANDEL/Republican-American/November 10, 2013

WATERBURY, Conn. (AP) His Twitter handle is AstroRM. He has amassed more than 11,000 followers on that social networking site.

On another website devoted to the hobby of geocaching a high-tech scavenger hunt with GPS devices hundreds more follow astronaut Rick Mastracchios exploits.

His Facebook page is flooded with likes about his travels, which last week brought him to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. From there, more than 1,150 events are planned around his Wednesday launch into space.

Fans from Tel Aviv to Waterburys own Buffalo Wild Wings will watch the start of the Brass City natives latest, and most intense, mission.

Since learning back in 2010 that he would travel on his fourth and longest space mission, Mastracchio has aimed to engage as many people as possible during the six-month assignment. Late Wednesday, he will rocket into space aboard a Russian Soyuz capsule as part of an international, three-man team, replacing a trio now living aboard the orbiting space station.

When I was in high school, I never even knew you could be an astronaut, chuckled Mastracchio, a Crosby High graduate who spent nine years trying before being accepted into NASAs rigorous astronaut program. In Waterbury, in Connecticut, its so far away. NASA is so far away. People know very little.

With the U.S. human space flight program halted with the retirement of the space shuttle in 2011, Mastracchio worried American efforts to explore science and space would be out-of-sight, and therefore out-of-mind.

Its a little disturbing for me and us at NASA, he said during a summer trip home to Houston, where he lives with his wife and high school sweetheart, Candi.

Mastracchio fretted that the past few years have been a low point for NASA because we dont have a launch vehicle. He expects that to change with the new generation of spacecraft being developed by NASA and private companies who are encouraging commercial investment in space. Mastracchio is one of about 45 NASA astronauts remaining, down from about 130. Until the next American fleet is functional, the Russian Soyuz represents the only way crews can be ferried to the space station.

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Waterbury native prepares for Soyuz space flight

NBC Will Air Virgin Galactic's First Commercial Space Flight

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November 09, 2013 02:25:31 GMT 'Today' will televise Virgin Group founder Richard Branson and his children as they travel into space on SpaceShip Two.

Virgin Galactic's first commercial space flight will be documented by NBCUniversal. Virgin Group founder Richard Branson announced on Friday, November 8 that the television network would cover his inaugural space flight on various platforms, such as CNBC, MSNBC, NBCNews.com, Syfy, in addition to a live three-hour broadcast on "" hosted by and .

Branson and his adult children, Holly, 31 and Sam, 28, will travel into space on SpaceShipTwo from Virgin Galactic's terminal at Spaceport America in New Mexico. If tests and plans go according to schedule, the rocket plane with its passengers will take off next August.

"We are delighted that we are going to be working with you," British business magnate Branson told Lauer and Guthrie on "Today". "It is going to be an incredibly exciting year." Lauer was equally excited, saying, "We are very, very happy to be part of this project."

Sharon Scott, president and general manager of Peacock Productions, said in a statement, "Without a doubt, Sir Richard and his children taking the first commercial flight into space, will go down in history as one of the most memorable events on television."

"Through NBCUniversal's multiple platforms and overseas network partners, viewers from around the world will get to experience this where were you moment; we're extremely honored to chronicle Sir Richard's journey and live launch into space."

Branson added, "Virgin Galactic is thrilled that NBCUniversal will join us on our exciting first journey to space. In this first chapter of commercial space travel, we will help make space accessible and inspire countless more people to join us in the pursuit of space exploration and science innovation."

Nearly 700 people, including , have booked a trip with Virgin Galactic. recently announced that she would sing in a Virgin Galactic spaceship in 2015, making her the first artist to do so.

AceShowbiz.com

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NBC Will Air Virgin Galactic's First Commercial Space Flight

Branson's space flight to air on NBC platforms next year

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NEW YORK, Nov. 8 (UPI) -- NBCUniversal says it has made a deal to televise the inaugural commercial space flight of British tycoon Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo.

Branson and his adult children, Holly and Sam, will be the first private passengers to travel on the craft from Virgin Galactic's terminal at Spaceport America in New Mexico next year.

"Without a doubt, Sir Richard and his children taking the first commercial flight into space, will go down in history as one of the most memorable events on television," Sharon Scott, president and general manager of Peacock Productions, said in a statement Friday. "Through NBCUniversal's multiple platforms and overseas network partners, viewers from around the world will get to experience this 'Where were you moment?' We're extremely honored to chronicle Sir Richard's journey and live launch into space."

"Virgin Galactic is thrilled that NBCUniversal will join us on our exciting first journey to space," said Branson. "In this first chapter of commercial space travel, we will help make space accessible and inspire countless more people to join us in the pursuit of space exploration and science innovation."

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Branson's space flight to air on NBC platforms next year

Webb Telescope NIRSpec Instrument Arrives at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center – Video

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Webb Telescope NIRSpec Instrument Arrives at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
JWST Telescope NIRSpec instrument arrives at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. NIRSpec is provided by the European Space Agency and built by EADS/Astrium. Th...

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FAA Established Practices for Human Space Flight Occupant Safety (Draft)

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1. Purpose

The issuance of this document continues a conversation - a conversation between the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Commercial Space Transportation (AST), the commercial space transportation industry, and other stakeholders on commercial human space flight occupant safety. AST has developed this document to share our thoughts about established practices for human space flight occupant safety. Ultimately, our goal is to gain the consensus of government, industry, and academia on established practices as part of our mandate to encourage, facilitate, and promote the continuous improvement of the safety of launch and reentry vehicles designed to carry humans. The outcome of this effort may also serve as a starting point for a future rulemaking project, although AST has no plans to start a rulemaking project in the near term.

2. Scope

The scope of this document includes suborbital and orbital launch and reentry vehicles. The document assumes that any orbital vehicle will stay on orbit for a maximum of 2 weeks, and can return to earth in under 24 hours if necessary. Orbital rendezvous and docking, long duration flights, extravehicular activity, and any flights beyond earth orbit are not explicitly covered in this document. Future versions of this document may cover such additional human space flight operations.

The established practices in this document cover occupant safety only; public safety and mission assurance are not covered. This document also takes a clean sheet approach to occupant safety, that is, it assumes no other regulations act to protect occupants from harm. This includes AST's existing regulations in 14 CFR Chapter III.

Lastly, the established practices in this document cover occupants from when they are exposed to vehicle hazards prior to flight through when they are no longer exposed to vehicle hazards after landing.

3. Development Process

Fifty years of human space flight by governments has provided AST with a wealth of information to use in developing this document. AST reviewed a number of existing government and private sector requirements and standards including those from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the European Space Agency, and the International Association for the Advancement of Space Safety. AST chose to primarily use

Draft Established Practices for Human Space FlightPage 5 of 49 Occupant SafetyNASA's requirements and guidance for its Commercial Crew Program1 to guide the development of this document. The purpose was not to copy NASA's requirements, but to use them as a means to capture areas of concern for human space flight.

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FAA Established Practices for Human Space Flight Occupant Safety (Draft)

3 Pinoys undergo astronaut training for space flight

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Manila, Philippines Three Filipinos are set to travel to Orlando, Florida in December for a chance to go to outer space in 2014.

In a press briefing Wednesday at a restaurant in Bonifacio Global City (BGC), Taguig City, Axe Philippines said the three Filipino representatives to the international Axe Apollo Global Space Camp in the US Evan Rey Datuin, Ramil Santos and Daniel Angelo Roque have been selected after a rigorous and competitive eight-month selection process.

He said the three Filipino hopefuls, who were presented before members of the media, are ready for the next stage of the search: Astronaut Training. Axes space camp in Orlando, Florida will house over a hundred candidates from more than 60 countries as they undergo training missions designed to stimulate space flight and real astronaut training.

Axe Philippine Brand Manager Gem Laforteza said the delegates will set out to bring honor to the countries they represent by proving their mettle as they compete for 23 tickets to space one of which is reserved for the best out of the three Filipino hopefuls. Through the Axe Apollo Space Academy, we have set out to inspire modern-day Filipino heroes to step forward. The title of first Filipino in space will go to the best candidate, someone all Filipinos can look up figuratively and literally, Laforteza said.

One of Filipino aspirants is Evan Rey Datuin, who believes that his aspirations can take him into the horizon or high up into space. The 24-year-old Datuin, who studied at De La Salle University (DLSU) Dasmarias, said although he sees himself as a regular Juan, his journey to space camp is no regular feat.

As among the three finalists, Datuin is the only one who emerged victorious from the mainstream competition as one of the finalists from more than 28,000 applicants who went through the regular selection process.

During the Axe National Challenges, he bested over 4,000 shortlisted candidates in tests designed to evaluate not only physical prowess but also intellect and determination. He added that as an ordinary man who has proven that he can rise above any challenge and do the extraordinary, he sees himself as an inspiration to other regular Juans, who also dreams big in life. Gusto ko maging patunay na kahit sino ay maaaring maging bayani para sa kanyang bayan (I want to prove that anyone can be a hero for his country), Datuin said during the press conference.

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3 Pinoys undergo astronaut training for space flight

Old volcanic rock to represent Victoria in space flight

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22 October 2013

Old volcanic rock to represent Victoria in space flight

A small piece of pumice that originatedduring the Taup eruption almost 1,800 years ago has been selected by aVictoria University of Wellington professor to go on a European space flight.

The pumice will accompany European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Dr Alexander Gerst on a six-month mission to visit theInternational Space Station, which is currently orbiting Earth.

Dr Gerst is a formerVictoria University student, who studied under geophysicsprofessor Martha Savage at the Institute of Geophysics several years ago.

He will serve as a flight engineer on the mission, which is scheduled to leave Earth at the end of May 2014 and return six months later in mid-November.

He invitedProfessor Savage to contribute an item to take on the journey to the International Space Station and she selected a small, rectangular piece of pumice, measuring two and a half centimetres in width and weighing just over 14 grams.

I chose it because its lightweight andsmall, and beautifully represents the University and the highly regarded earthsciences programme we run here, which Dr Gerst was part of for a time, says Professor Savage.

She says being able to provide an item for the flight provides an exciting opportunity for Victoria University to be part of Dr Gersts first-everspace exploration.

Its also a reminder of the kind of things talentedstudents like Dr Gerst go on to achieve with a Victoria Universityeducation.

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Old volcanic rock to represent Victoria in space flight

London to Sydney in TWO hours: Virgin Galactic space flight technology could be used to build new generation of super …

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Virgin say their SS2 spacecraft could be modified into a jet One day it could allow travel from London to Sydney in just two hours The company says it is also considering space cruises to the Moon Space tourism flights could begin as early as next year Force India boss Michiel Mol has said he will offer London-Sydney in two hours by 2014

By Chris Pleasance

PUBLISHED: 09:24 EST, 19 October 2013 | UPDATED: 10:54 EST, 19 October 2013

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Futuristic planes based on spaceships which could allow passengers to travel from London to Sydney in two and a half hours are being developed.

Virgin Galactic, the space flight company owned by Sir Richard Branson, says that the space tourism plane it is currently developing could be modified and turned into a super jet.

The Concorde-like aircraft would travel outside of the Earth's atmosphere and enter orbit, using gravitational forces to travel at incredibly fast speeds.

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NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center to Reopen at Noon Thursday

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Marshall Space Flight Center (WHNT News 19)

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (AL.COM) -Nearly 2,500 NASA civil service workers will return to their jobs at Marshall Space Flight Center at noon Thursday, a center spokesman said Wednesday night. That will officially end the center closure in place since the federal government shutdown began Oct. 1.

Liberal leave will be in effect for employees on Thursday and Friday, spokesman Dom Amatore said in a statement. Employees should be especially diligent about observing safety precautions as they return to work.

Amatore said liberal leave means employees can take leave without requesting it in advance by notifying their supervisors. The advisory to be careful simply reflects that the centers labs and shops have been closed for 16 days, Amatore said.

NASA was one of the government agencies hardest hit by the shutdown. An estimated 95 percent of its workforce was sent home. In Huntsville, controllers remained on the job to assist astronauts aboard the International Space Station in science experiments.

Still unclear is how many of Marshalls estimated 2,500 civilian contract employees will be back on the job Thursday. But those workers support their NASA counterparts, so they will all be back soon.

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NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center to Reopen at Noon Thursday

A decade after its first manned space flight, China is becoming a power in the skies

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Its got to be disheartening to be an international member of the Chinese space program. Within the borders of China, Taikonauts are hailed as national heroes, their missions aired as event broadcasts everywhere from bars to school-houses. In the West, however, their achievements get little press. When your local space agency is putting robots on Mars, popping an astronaut up to low Earth orbit is a hard sell to broadcasters. Still, we ought to appreciate some of the remarkable achievements of the worlds fast-rising second runner is aerospace. After all, it was just 10 years ago today that China put its first man into space.

On October 15, 2003, Yang Liwei rode the Shenzhou 5 mission to become the countrys first non-terrestrial citizen, making China just the third nation ever to achieve this on its own. To put this into perspective, in 2003 NASA was working to perfect its reusable shuttle program to help with traffic to and from an orbital space station though that quest resulted in the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster and a major blow to American confidence in the space program, it still shows the large disparity in technology that existed between the two administrations.

The launch of Shenzhou 10.

In the ten years since China put Liwei into space, the country has managed to launch a functioning space station, dock with it several times, and is even working on three different lunar landers one of which is designed to return with samples and act as a model for a manned mission to the Moon. In the same 10-year span following astronaut Alan Shepards 1961 foray into space, NASA focused entirely on winning the space race by putting a man on the Moon. It shows the difference in priorities that comes with the modernization of space, as China focuses on satellites, rovers, and orbital platforms and makes a manned mission to the Moon a second priority.

Remember, though, that NASA launched Apollo 11 just eight years after its first manned space flight; Chinas most optimistic flight-to-lunar-landing advancement will at least double that span of time. Still, during the space race the US was spending between $6 and $33 billion per year on space technology; China now spends on the order of about $1 billion per year. If the history of the US is any sort of model, China has a major increase in spending still to come, one that could help it cement its place as a world power in the way both the United States and the Soviet Union sought in the 1950s and 60s.

The Change 3 lunar lander.

In America its an aging population that still remembers the early landmarks of space exploration, but in China its the young. If you were eight when China first reached space, you were eighteen when it completed its first lunar lander. These are important stepping stones for a rising national economy, and for a population that seems to hunger for validation on the world stage. This is an ambitious space agency that constantly looks at least three or four missions ahead, and which plans for success. Dont be surprised if, in 15 years or so, its China who first announces concrete plans for a manned mission to Mars.

Chinas impressive progress is to be expected of course, since it have the benefit of seeing research done by earlier American and Soviet scientists over the past 50 years or so. The struggling giant of the American economy can still outspend its rivals though; despite having the lowest portion of the federal budget since its second year of operation, NASAs funding is still roughly fifteen times that of its Chinese counterpart. If China continues to expand economically, we could see its ambitious plans meet with the funding to truly take off.

Now read: Part of Apollo 12 rocket engine returns after decades in deep space

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A decade after its first manned space flight, China is becoming a power in the skies

Weather balloon GPS space flight iPhone camera footage homemade spacecraft 100,000 ft altitude HD) – Video

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