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First Patient Treated in Cytori’s U.S. Cell Therapy Heart Failure Trial

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

SAN DIEGO & MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Cytori Therapeutics (CYTX) announced the initiation of the FDA approved ATHENA clinical trial to investigate Cytoris cell therapy in patients who suffer from a severe form of refractory (untreatable) heart failure due to chronic myocardial ischemia. Cytoris cell therapy is based on a patients own adipose-derived stem and regenerative cells (ADRCs) processed by the Companys proprietary Celution System technology, making this the first FDA approved trial in the U.S. to evaluate ADRCs for cardiovascular disease. This first patient was treated by co-principal investigator Timothy Henry, M.D., Director of Research, at the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation in September and has undergone a seven day follow-up assessment. More details on the ATHENA trial may be found at http://www.theathenatrial.com.

Patients with refractory heart failure have no options except for heart transplant, for which there are few hearts available, said Dr. Henry. Cell therapy such as Cytoris has the potential to delay, halt, or even reverse this progression. We believe this is accomplished by the cells ability to promote angiogenesis and regulate the immune response to help revive damaged tissue that is alive yet not necessarily contributing to its fullest capacity toward the pumping ability of the heart.

ATHENA is a device-based, multi-center, prospective, randomized, double-blind PMA/IDE safety and feasibility (Phase I/II) trial that will enroll 45 patients in six centers in the U.S. Patients will be randomized to receive either Cytoris cell therapy (n=30) or an inactive placebo injection (n=15). All trial participants will undergo a minor liposuction procedure to remove adipose tissue. The adipose tissue will then be processed at the point-of-care with Cytoris proprietary system to separate and concentrate clinical-grade ADRCs. The treatment group will have a prescribed dose of the patients own ADRCs (0.4 million cells/kg body weight), which will then be injected into their damaged heart tissue using a minimally invasive catheter system.

Cytoris cell therapy has unique advantages compared to alternate cell sources such as bone marrow and peripheral blood, said Emerson Perin, M.D., Ph.D. of The Texas Heart Institute and co-principal investigator for ATHENA. Specifically, its a proprietary formulation that Cytori has optimized for vascular delivery and which contains an uncultured and mixed population of cells. As a result, this increases the number of cell types that potentially contribute to repair relative to a more homogenous population of cultured cells.

The trial will measure several endpoints, including peak oxygen consumption (VO2 Max). VO2 Max is an objective functional measurement that can be predictive of outcomes in heart disease, including mortality, and is commonly used as a primary determinant for qualifying patients for heart transplantation. Additional endpoints include perfusion defect, left ventricle end-systolic and diastolic volume and ejection fraction at six and 12 months. ATHENA will also evaluate medical economic factors such as rate of re-hospitalization and heart failure symptoms such as angina and quality of life at 12 months.

We believe Cytoris cell therapy will improve patient outcomes, said Marc H. Hedrick, M.D., president, Cytori Therapeutics. In ATHENA, investigators will be delivering a virtually off-the-shelf cell therapy comprised of a patients own cells, which is made possible by our technology. Using a patients own cells minimizes the risk of rejection or disease transmission compared to alternative therapies derived from donor cells and the virtually off-the-shelf nature allows the treatment to be accomplished in a single surgical procedure.

Cytori received approval from the FDA for its Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) application to begin ATHENA in January 2012 and the trial is currently expected to complete enrollment in mid-2013. In addition to Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation, the Texas Heart Institute (Houston, TX) is actively screening patients under the direction of Emerson Perin, M.D., Ph.D., co-principal investigator for ATHENA, and James T. Willerson, M.D. Four additional centers are also expected to participate in the trial including:

Previously, Cytori reported six and 18-month safety and feasibility data from the PRECISE trial, a European clinical trial for this same indication. The PRECISE trial demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in VO2 Max in patients treated with Cytoris cell therapy compared to those treated with placebo. The Company is also conducting the ADVANCE trial, a European pivotal trial investigating the effect of Cytoris cell therapy in heart attack patients.

Refractory Heart Failure

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First Patient Treated in Cytori’s U.S. Cell Therapy Heart Failure Trial

StemGenex™ on Adult Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

LA JOLLA, Calif., Oct. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --New research directions are being explored to find therapies for hard to treat diseases. One exciting new approach is the use of autologous Adult Stem Cells. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is one of the many notable diseasesadult stem cell therapycould potentially impact. Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a disorder in which an individual's own immune system attacks the 'myelin sheath'. The myelin sheath serves to protect the nerve cells within the body's central nervous system (CNS). The damage caused by MS may result in many types of symptoms including:

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121010/LA89802-INFO)

Currently there is no cure for MS, but MS stem cell therapiesattempt to slow the disease's progression and limit symptoms. Since adult stem cells have the ability to differentiate into many different types of cells, such as those required for proper functioning and protection of nerve cells, the use of adult stem cells for MS therapy could be of substantial value. Adult stem cells can be isolated with relative ease from an individual's own 'adipose' (fat) tissue. As a result, adult stem cell therapy is not subject to the ethical or religious issues troubling embryonic methods.

Encouragingly for MS treatment potential, scientific researchers have been studying the properties of adipose-derived stem cells. Their results from canine and equine studies suggest anti-inflammatory and regenerative roles for these stem cells. Also, further research findings suggest these adipose-derived stem cells can have specific immune-regulating properties. Markedly, clinical-based work conducted overseas has indicated that individuals suffering from MS could respond well to adipose-derived stem cell treatment, with a substantially improved quality of life.

The US based company, StemGenex, is pioneering new methods for using adipose derived adult stem cells to help in diseases with limited treatment options like MS. StemGenex has been conducting research with physicians over the last 5 years to advance adult stem cell treatment protocols for alleviating MS symptoms. StemGenex's proprietary protocol includes the use of a double activation process, which increases both the viability and the quantity of stem cells that are received in a single application.

To find out more about stem cell treatments contact StemGenex either by phone at 800.609.7795 or email at Contact@StemGenex.com.

StemGenex™ on Adult Stem Cell-Based Therapy for Multiple Sclerosis

Speaker connects work, spirituality

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

WAVERLY, Iowa --- A company's diversity extends to its employees' spiritual lives, according to David Miller, director of the Princeton University Faith and Work Initiative.

Miller addressed the topic of spirituality in the workplace Tuesday at Wartburg College's 44th annual Corporation Education Day.

Corporation Education Day is designed to give students insights into a particular aspect of business. Tuesday's topic was focused on getting them to think about how they and business leaders can honor the religious rights of their employees in an increasingly diverse society.

Building a "faith-friendly" corporate culture is a meaningful investment in strengthening employee resources, Miller said.

"There was a time when these things weren't studied, but the taboos are falling now," he said. "Social scientists are saying, 'If people are bringing their faith to work, might they have a deeper sense of employee loyalty? Might they have a deeper sense of engagement? Might they find deeper meaning and purpose in their work? Might they be more ethical or creative?'"

If they are, their company prospers in more than just a monetary sense, Miller said.

"Ask any executive you know, if you have employees that are more engaged, more loyal, more ethical and more creative, they're going to say, 'Where do I buy that pill? I'll put it in the water supply,'" he said.

Noel White, senior group vice president of the Dakota Dunes, S.D.-based Tyson Fresh Meats, also spoke. He said Tyson, which employs 120 chaplains who walk the floors and meet with employees regularly, has embraced the faith-friendly concept.

"The chaplains, in my view, are a huge resource," said White, whose division oversees Waterloo's Tyson plant. "There are challenges in life and, in many cases, we have team members that want to talk to somebody about meeting those challenges. Our chaplains act as a resource for those people and many team members will seek out our chaplains to discuss those issues."

The Rev. Tony Opem, a retired priest in the Diocese of Sioux Falls, S.D., who, along Larry Adler, a Universal Christian minister, works two days a week at Tyson's Dakota Dunes plant, says it's important to let employees know their spiritual needs are valued.

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Speaker connects work, spirituality

Doctor to host seminars on spirituality, healthcare

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

Staff report

The 13th annual spirituality and health seminar, "Healthcare Leadership in Challenging Times," will be on Oct. 26.

The keynote speaker is Dr. Jospeh B. Martin, professor of Neurobiology at Harvard Medical School and former dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Harvard University.

Martin will explore the fabric of "listening, servant leadership," at a breakfast open to spiritual caregivers and healthcare professionals at 7:30 a.m. Oct. 26 in Marion Mennonite Church, 4365 Molly Pitcher Highway South. Breakfast will be provided.

At 10 a.m. Oct. 26, Martin will talk on "Challenges of Health Care Reform," in the Chambersburg Hospital Lecture Center (video-link to Waynesboro Hospital main conference room). The lecture is open to the public and healthcare professionals. Martin will discuss administrarive costs of the health care industry, lack of primary care workforce and the fee-for-service system. He will share his view on the health care reform bill from humanitarian and Judeo-Christian perspectives.

At noon Oct. 26, Martin will present a talk on "Alzheimer's Disease, Diagnosis and Treatment" open to physicans, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and dentists only at Chambersburg Hospital Lecture Center. The talk will review the state of advances in the diagnosis and management of neurodegenerative disorders.

Martin will speak at each session and will sign copies of his book "Alfalfa to Ivy: Memoir of a Harvard Medical School

The events are free. Space is limited. Register online at SummitHealth.org/Spirituality.

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Doctor to host seminars on spirituality, healthcare

Championing the Spirit

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

Published on 11 October 2012 Hits: 115 Written by TESSA MAURICIO-ARRIOLA LIFESTYLE, ENTERTAINMENT, AND STM EDITOR

The Sunday Times Magazines Spirituality Times is the newest addition to the papers weekend publication, dubbed The Magazine of Champions. It was conceptualized to fill a void in mainstream print media that essentially focuses on morality and Christian values.

As a growing number of Catholic Filipinos continue to join lay ecclesial and evangelical movementsfrom El Shaddai to Couples for Christit is evident that there is a resurgence of religious vitality in the country.

In the midst of temptations, tragedies, calamities, political instability, corruption, crimes and scandals, there is a placeand more importantly a needfor a source of guidance on how to live out ones faith in these modern day situations.

Thus, Spirituality Times was launched on July 1, 2012 as a weekly two-page center spread with feature stories that veer away from the preachy type of religious writing. The articles use the kind of language that is accessible to lay readers so that the section ultimately achieves its purpose.

New partnerships have been forged by The Manila Times to ensure that the content of Spirituality Times remains faithful to the teachings of the Catholic Church. These are with The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) Media Office, under its media office director Msgr. Pedro Quitorio 3rd (Media Office Director); and the Catholic Media Network (CMN) under its president Fr. Francis Lucas and his group from Eternal Word Television Network (EWTN), a Catholic Television Network, led by Edwin Lopez (International Marketing Manager). The weekly homily is meanwhile written by Fr. James McTavish, a young Scottish-priest based in the Philippines.

The series, which have been well-received by The Sunday Times Magazine readers include Inspired by Faith, profiles of men and women of the cloth with unique life stories, such as Fr. Amado Pacardal, known as the Biking Priest and Sister Beth Ortillo, a former lady police; Future Filipino Saints; saints who have visited the Philippines; as well as the written versions of ETWNs programs Fathers for Good hosted by Fr. Francis Gustilo and Frank Padilla; and Catholic Lives Asia hosted by journalist Chi Chi Robles.

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Championing the Spirit

How much influence do churches have in voting booths?

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

Religious leaders can guide you to spiritual enlightenment, financial stability, better parenting and even a good doctor. But one thing that they're not supposed to do is tell you whom to vote for in November.

"I make sure that my congregants are well-informed and can make an intelligent decision," said the Rev. Airon Reynolds, pastor of Borden Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in Beaumont. "I make it known that the church cannot endorse a candidate, but I am voting for Barack Obama."

Reynolds skirts the boundary of what he, as a pastor, can legally do more so than other religious leaders in the area.

According to the IRS tax exempt policy 501(c)(3), churches are prohibited from "directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign" or they will lose their tax exemption.

As fervent as the debate about who would make the better president - at least among religious leaders in Southeast Texas - is how much of an influence should religion have in one's vote.

Rabbi Joshua Taub from Temple Emanuel in Beaumont takes a stricter interpretation of the IRS law, defining it as a religious figure should not even talk about how candidates stand on an issue.

"It is highly inappropriate for any clergy minister to open up a Bible and show how stuff is reflected in the Bible," Taub said. "In reality, you can't offer that type of sermon without offering some type of opinion."

The legality

Space Station Crew 'Tames' SpaceX Dragon

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

Astronauts aboard the International Space Station snared themselves a Dragon cargo capsule early Wednesday.

The freighter, launched Sunday evening by manufacturer Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, flew itself to within 10 meters (about 33 feet) from the station, then shut down its rocket thrusters to let the station crew take over.

PHOTOS: Berthing a Dragon: An Astronaut's Spectacular View

Working from a control station inside the station's Cupola module, a small room with windows on seven sides, Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide gently steered the station's 58-foot long robotic crane over to the Dragon cargo capsule and latched on to a grapple fixture at 6:56 a.m. EDT. The two spacecraft were flying in tandem at 17,500 mph about 250 miles over the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of Baja California in northwest Mexico, at the time.

"Looks like we tamed the Dragon," station commander Sunita Williams radioed to Mission Control in Houston.

"We're happy she's on board with us. Thanks to everybody at SpaceX and NASA for bringing her here to us. And the ice cream, she said.

ANALYSIS: SpaceX Falcon Rocket Flies

Dragon launched with a freezer to ferry medical research samples to and from the outpost. It was launched with ice cream inside, a rare treat for an orbiting crew.

Once the capsule is attached to the station, astronauts will begin unpacking the food, clothes, science experiments and science gear inside and filling it up with about a ton of cargo and experiments that needs to be returned to Earth.

Dragon is due to remain berthed at the station for 18 days, then parachute down into the Pacific Ocean for recovery. It will be the first large load of items to come back from the station since the space shuttles were retired last year.

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Space Station Crew 'Tames' SpaceX Dragon

SpaceX Arrives at Space Station

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

A private company successfully delivered a half-ton of supplies to the International Space Station early Wednesday, the first official shipment under a billion-dollar contract with NASA.

The SpaceX cargo ship, called Dragon, eased up to the orbiting lab, and station astronauts reached out with a robot arm and snared it. Then they firmly latched it down.

"Looks like we've tamed the Dragon," reported space station commander Sunita Williams. "We're happy she's on board with us."

Williams thanked SpaceX and NASA for the delivery, especially the chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream stashed in a freezer.

The linkup occurred 250 miles above the Pacific, just west of Baja California, 2 days after the Dragon's launch from Cape Canaveral, Fla.

"Nice flying," radioed NASA's Mission Control.

It's the first delivery by the California-based SpaceX company under a $1.6 billion contract with NASA. The contract calls for 12 such shipments.

This newest Dragon holds 1,000 pounds of groceries, clothes, science experiments and other gear. Williams and her crew won't get access to all that until Thursday, when the hatch is opened.

The vessel will remain at the space station for nearly three weeks before departing with almost twice that much cargo at the end of the month. Dragon is the only cargo ship capable of bringing back research and other items, filling a void left by NASA's retired shuttles.

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SpaceX Arrives at Space Station

SpaceX Dragon Capsule Arrives at Space Station With Precious Cargo

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

The 1,000-pound delivery included supplies and a sweet treat of ice cream for the astronauts

By Tariq Malik and SPACE.com

THE DRAGON HAS LANDED: SpaceX's Dragon space capsule hovers just below the International Space Station's robotic arm in this view from an arm camera on October 10, 2012, during the CRS-1 commercial cargo mission. Image: NASA TV

Showcasing more than fifty of the most provocative, original, and significant online essays from 2011, The Best Science Writing Online 2012 will change the way...

A privately built robotic space capsule arrived at the International Space Station early Wednesday (Oct. 10) to make the first-ever commercial cargo delivery to the orbiting lab under a billion-dollar deal with NASA.

The unmanned Dragon spacecraft was captured by station astronauts using a robotic arm after an apparently flawless approach by the cargo-laden space capsule, which was built by the private spaceflight company SpaceX. It is the first of 12 resupply flights SpaceX will fly for NASA under a $1.6 billion deal.

"Looks like we've tamed the Dragon," station commander Sunita Williams said as the spacecraft was captured by a robotic arm. "We're happy she's onboard with us. Thanks to everyone at SpaceX and NASA for bringing her to us and the ice cream."

The astronauts' chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream, a rare treat for the space station crew, was a last-minute item packed along with the nearly 1,000 pounds (453 kilograms) of supplies riding up to the orbiting lab on the Dragon capsule. [Photos: SpaceX's Dragon Arrives at Space Station]

The SpaceX spacecraft was captured at about 6:56 a.m. EDT (1122 GMT) by Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide as the space station soared 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the Pacific Ocean, just west of Baja California. The capsule will be attached to an open docking port on the station in the next few hours.

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SpaceX Dragon Capsule Arrives at Space Station With Precious Cargo

SpaceX cargo ship reaches International Space Station

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

A private company successfully delivered a half-ton of supplies to the International Space Station early Wednesday, the first official shipment under a billion-dollar contract with NASA.

9:52 a.m. CDT, October 10, 2012

After a 2-1/2 day trip, Space Exploration Technologies' Dragon cargo ship positioned itself 33 feet away from the $100 billion research complex, a project of 15 countries, which has been dependent on Russian, European and Japanese freighters for supplies.

"Looks like we tamed the Dragon," commander Sunita Williams radioed to Mission Control in Houston.

"We're happy she's on board with us. Thanks to everybody at SpaceX and NASA for bringing her here to us. And the ice cream," she said.

The Dragon's cargo includes a freezer to ferry science samples back and forth between the station and Earth. For the flight up, it was packed with chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream, a rare treat for an orbiting crew.

Williams and Hoshide attached the capsule to a docking port on the station's Harmony connecting module at 9:03 a.m. EDT (1303 GMT).

It is expected to remain docked to the station for about 18 days while the crew unloads its 882 pounds (400 kg) of cargo and fills it with science experiments and equipment no longer needed on the outpost.

The flight is the first of 12 planned under a $1.6 billion contract NASA placed with privately owned Space Exploration Technologies, or SpaceX, to deliver cargo to the station.

The U.S. space agency's second supplier, Orbital Sciences Corp, plans to debut its Antares rocket later this year. A demonstration run to the station is planned for February or March.

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SpaceX cargo ship reaches International Space Station

SpaceX Dragon Capsule to Dock with Space Station Today

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

SpaceX's robotic Dragon cargo ship is slated to arrive at the International Space Station early this morning (Oct. 10) for a nearly three-week stay.

The Dragon spacecraft has been chasing down the huge orbiting lab since launching Sunday night (Oct. 7) atop SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. If all goes according to plan, the unmanned capsule will approach the station in a series of cautious steps early today, then finally be snagged by its huge robotic arm at 7:17 a.m. EDT (1117 GMT).

NASA will broadcast the action live on NASA TV and online. You can watch the Dragon docking webcast live here beginning at 4 a.m. EDT (0800 GMT).

Dragon will have to pass a series of "go/no go" tests this morning, beginning at 5:13 a.m. EDT (0913 GMT), as it sidles up to the station. The aim is to assure SpaceX and NASA engineers that it's operating nominally during approach and poses no threat to the $100 billion orbiting lab or its three current residents. [Video: Dragon Launches Toward Space Station]

If it passes all of these trials, NASA astronaut Sunita Williams and Japanese spaceflyer Akihiko Hoshide will grapple the capsule using the station's 58-foot (18 meters) robotic arm. They'll guide Dragon to the Earth-facing side of the orbiting lab's Harmony module, where it will be bolted in place for an 18-day stay.

Dragon is embarked on the first-ever bona fide cargo mission to the space station by a private vehicle. It's carrying 1,000 pounds (454 kilograms) of supplies and scientific experiments, and it will return to Earth on Oct. 28 with a different load of gear totaling about 2,000 pounds (907 kg).

Dragon's mission is the first of 12 unmanned supply runs California-based SpaceX will make to the station under a $1.6 billion contract with NASA. The space agency also inked a $1.9 billion deal with Virginia-based Orbital Sciences Corp. to fly eight cargo missions with its Antares rocket and Cygnus spacecraft.

The Dragon capsule has visited the station once before. This past May, it became the first private vehicle ever to dock with the 430-ton orbiting complex on a historic demonstration mission intended to show that SpaceX was ready to begin making its contracted flights.

Orbital Sciences, for its part, plans to test-fly the Antares rocket for the first time later this year.

With its venerable space shuttle fleet now retired, NASA is looking to private American vehicles to fly both cargo and crew to low-Earth orbit. The space agency hopes at least two different commercial spaceships are ready to carry crew by 2017; until then, the nation will be dependent on Russian Soyuz spacecraft to ferry its astronauts to the space station and back.

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SpaceX Dragon Capsule to Dock with Space Station Today

Dragon cargo ship captured, berthed to space station

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

After a flawless final rendezvous, a commercial SpaceX cargo ship is captured by the International Space Station's robot arm and attached to a docking port for unloading.

The SpaceX Dragon cargo ship was captured by the International Space Station's robot arm early Wednesday after a smooth rendezvous. The astronauts operating the arm then attached the cargo craft to the forward Harmony module's Earth-facing docking port.

After getting off to a rocky start with an engine failure during launch Sunday, a commercial cargo capsule loaded with a half-ton of equipment and supplies -- including ice cream -- carried out a flawless final approach to the International Space Station early Wednesday, pulling up to within 60 feet so Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide, operating the lab's robot arm, could pluck it out of open space for berthing.

Making the first of at least 12 cargo deliveries under a $1.6 billion contract with NASA, the SpaceX Dragon capsule, after a successful test flight last May, is the first commercially developed spacecraft to visit the station, the centerpiece of a push to restore U.S. resupply capability in the wake of the space shuttle's retirement last year.

Hoshide used the station's robot arm to latch onto a grapple fixture on the side of the Dragon capsule at 9:56 a.m. PT as the two spacecraft sailed 250 miles above the Pacific Ocean west of Baja California.

"Houston, station on (channel) two, capture complete," Expedition 33 commander Sunita Williams radioed. "Looks like we've tamed the dragon. We're happy she's on board with us. Thanks to everybody at SpaceX and NASA for bringing her here to us. And the ice cream."

Williams and Hoshide then maneuvered the Dragon capsule to the Earth-facing port of the forward Harmony module and locked it in place at 12:03 p.m., completing the rendezvous and berthing.

"The control center team here and the team out at Hawthorne (Calif.) at SpaceX just did a phenomenal job of making a pretty complex ballet in space look pretty easy," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA's director of space operations. "And it was not easy by any stretch of the imagination. But they just did a great job, and it's great to have the Dragon spacecraft on board the space station."

Space station commander Sunita Williams photographs the approaching Dragon cargo ship during its final approach to the lab complex Wednesday.

The long-awaited commercial cargo mission began with a spectacular launch Sunday night from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. But during the climb to space, one of the Falcon 9 booster's nine first-stage engines malfunctioned and shut down, forcing the flight computer to fire the other engines longer than planned to compensate for the shortfall.

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Dragon cargo ship captured, berthed to space station

Space station pulls in SpaceX cargo ship

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

A privately built robotic space capsule arrived at the International Space Station early Wednesday, making the first routine commercial cargo delivery to the orbiting lab under a billion-dollar deal with NASA.

The unmanned Dragon spacecraft was captured by station astronauts using the outpost's Canadian-built robotic arm after an apparently flawless approach by the cargo-laden space capsule, which was built by the private spaceflight company SpaceX. It is the first of 12 resupply flights SpaceX will fly for NASA under a $1.6 billion deal.

"Looks like we've tamed the Dragon," station commander Sunita Williams said as the spacecraft was grappled. "We're happy she's onboard with us. Thanks to everyone at SpaceX and NASA for bringing her to us and the ice cream."

The astronauts' chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream, a rare treat for the space station crew, was a last-minute item packed along with the nearly 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms) of supplies riding up to the orbiting lab on the Dragon capsule. [Photos: SpaceX's Dragon Arrives at Space Station]

The SpaceX spacecraft was captured at 6:56 a.m. ET by Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide as the space station soared 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the Pacific Ocean, just west of Baja California. The capsule was attached to an Earth-facing docking port on the station at 9:03 a.m. ET.

The Dragon's hatch was scheduled to be opened on Thursday but because the tasks associated with the hookup went so quickly, the astronauts opened the hatch early and got a sneak peek inside the Dragon on Wednesday.

SpaceX launched the Dragon spacecraft into orbit on Sunday atop the company's Falcon 9 rocket from its pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. It is expected to spend at least three weeks linked to the space station and be filled with nearly 2,000 pounds (900 kilograms) of blood samples, other experiments and station gear for the return trip to Earth.

"This is a big moment in the course of this mission and for commercial spaceflight," said SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur who founded the company in 2002. "We are pleased that Dragon is now ready to deliver its cargo to the International Space Station."

SpaceX officials watched over the Dragon capsule's arrival from the company's mission control center in Hawthorne, Calif., while NASA monitored the orbital rendezvous from its station Mission Control at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. The spacecraft is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean near Southern California on Oct. 28.

The Dragon was a welcome sight for the space station's crew. "It's nice to see Dragon flying over the U.S.," Williams said during the space rendezvous.

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Space station pulls in SpaceX cargo ship

Space Station Arm "Tames" Dragon Capsule—SpaceX Docking Is a First

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

For the second time in five months, the commercial rocket company SpaceX has successfully docked its Dragon capsule at the International Space Station (ISS)this time on its first official cargo run under a supply contract with NASA.

"Looks like we've tamed the Dragon," station commander Sunita Williams, a U.S. Navy officer, told controllers on the ground after the ISS's robotic arm had grabbed the unmanned craft just before 7 a.m. ET, accomplished with the assistance of Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshideh. (Related: "Robot Arm to Grab Robotic ShipA Space Station First.")

"We're happy she's on board with us."

SpaceX's Dragonthe first and only commercial spacecraft to berth at the stationmade contact with the station 252 miles (406 kilometers) above Earth. The capsule is packed with nearly a thousand pounds (450 kilograms) of essential supplies and gear, as well some arguably nonessential chocolate-vanilla swirl ice cream and, for a school science experiment, some Silly Putty.

High-flying SpaceX, founded by PayPal co-founder Elon Musk, won a nearly U.S. $1.6 billion contract with NASA in 2008 to supply the space station via a dozen flights in the years ahead.

Unlike any government-owned capsules supplying the ISS, the SpaceX Dragon is designed to return intact to Earth, and so can be used as a two-way ferry. The capsule brought back 1,300 pounds (590 kilograms) of science experiments and space hardware after its test berthing in May and will do the same later this month.

SpaceX Contract an Investment in the Future?

Today's first formal berthing at the International Space Station under the NASA cargo-supply contract was broadly cheered as a milestone, and perhaps a harbinger of much more to come.

"I think it would be fair to say the successful docking under the NASA contract is parallel to the early days of the commercial airline industry," said John Logsdon, space policy emeritus professor at George Washington University and longtime NASA adviser.

"The government paid airline owners to deliver the mail and gave the early industry the financial support it needed to grow," he said. "Clearly, NASA is hoping the same will happen herethat giving commercial space companies contracts to supply the space station will act as a huge boost to the early commercial space industry."

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Space Station Arm "Tames" Dragon Capsule—SpaceX Docking Is a First

Masterpiece Models Lands Half Size Hubble Space Telescope Replica at The Museum of Flight-Seattle, WA

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

VANCOUVER, WA--(Marketwire - Oct 11, 2012) - Masterpiece Models, a boutique model making studio and workshop which specializes in custom fabrication at any scale, was commissioned by The Museum of Flight in December of 2011 to create a half size replica of the Hubble space telescope for their new Charles Simonyi Space Gallery which is scheduled to open to the public on November 10, 2012.

The replica, which has been installed at the Museum in Seattle, hovers above NASA's Full Fuselage Trainer (FFT), which was used for more than 30 years to train every person who flew on the space shuttle. NASA's retired astronaut trainer was delivered to The Museum of Flight during the Summer of 2012 over the course of three flights on a Super Guppy cargo plane from Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX.

"The deployment and subsequent repair of the Hubble Space Telescope were some of the most important -- and dramatic -- stories in the history of the Space Shuttle Program. Masterpiece Models' one-half scale model of the Hubble will certainly add to the visitor experience at the Museum's Space Shuttle Trainer exhibit, and help them visualize the telescope which has greatly broadened our understanding of the universe," says Chris Mailander, Museum of Flight Director of Exhibits.

Masterpiece Models began work on the space telescope in February 2012 and had the near exacting model completed within 6 months of the start date without the help of any plans from NASA or the Museum due to various security reasons. Masterpiece Models is also known for constructing other museum quality models such as a full size replica of the Mars Rover on display at the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI), an 11' long Nimitz Class aircraft Carrier for the Qatar Museum Authority, a 1/48th scale replica of the International Space Station (ISS), for the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center among many other equally impressive projects.

"This was one of the largest and most complex replicas ever built by Masterpiece Models," comments Masterpiece Models Founder, John Geigle. "Fabricating a scale replica has its own set of unique problems to solve. This replica, however, was especially challenging. There is a lot more than meets the eye when it comes to creating a strong yet lightweight model. The educational values to this replica go a long way to delve into the history of the Space Shuttle and the exploration of deep space."

Aside from Masterpiece Models' obvious specialty in creating museum quality exhibits, they also have a casting facility for not only casting, but vacuum forming and molding as well. In addition, a part of Masterpiece Models is solely devoted to making military and science fiction model kits. Masterpiece Models was recently acquired by fine art corporation Masterpiece Investments in July of this year. Masterpiece Investments previously acquired digital 3D production studio Additive Workshop in 2010. Today, the combined artistic and production capabilities of this 'fine art meets high-tech' innovative group, which Masterpiece Models has recently joined, are literally endless.

To learn more about Masterpiece Models, visit http://www.masterpiecemodels.com. For more information on The Museum of Flight and the opening for the new Space Shuttle Trainer exhibit, visit http://www.museumofflight.org.

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Masterpiece Models Lands Half Size Hubble Space Telescope Replica at The Museum of Flight-Seattle, WA

Sarah Brightman Announces 'Dream' Space Flight

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

British soprano and crossover singer Sarah Brightman confirmed on Wednesday that she will travel to the International Space Station as a space tourist.

I am planning to become a space flight participant and I have received a confirmation from [Russias space agency] Roscosmos that I can start the preparation for my flight, Brightman told a news conference in Moscow.

Brightman, 52, said she had been approved medically and would undergo six months of training in Russia after a 15-month world tour promoting her new album, Dream Chaser, which is scheduled for release in January 2013.

This voyage is a product of a dream, my dream. Finally it can be a reality. I am more excited about this than anything I have done in my life to date, Brightman said, adding that she would spend 10 days aboard the ISS and maybe even "sing a song from space."

The head of manned space missions at Roscosmos, Alexei Krasnov, confirmed at the same news conference that Brightman could travel to the orbital station aboard the Soyuz space craft in October 2015 together with a Russian cosmonaut and a NASA astronaut chosen for a year-long experimental mission on the ISS.

Brightman, known for her roles in West End musicals such as Cats and The Phantom of the Opera, will become the eighth private individual to make the trip to the ISS, which has been off limits to space tourists since 2010 as its crew grew from three to six astronauts.

The commercial flights to the ISS for space tourists are organized through US-based company Space Adventures, which has been authorized by Roscosmos to select and contract candidates for space tourist trips.

The price of a 10-day trip to the ISS for a tourist is estimated at about $35 million.

Space tourists started flying to the ISS in 2001. Dennis Tito, an American businessman and former NASA scientist, became the first space tourist when he visited the ISS in 2001.

He was followed by South African computer millionaire Mark Shuttleworth in 2002, and Gregory Olsen, a U.S. entrepreneur and scientist, in 2005.

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Sarah Brightman Announces 'Dream' Space Flight

The Next Era in Space Travel and Exploration Continues as Endeavour's Final Flight Ends

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwire - Oct 11, 2012) - The space shuttle Endeavour will be traveling through the streets of Los Angeles to her new and final home at the California Science Center on Friday, October 12. It will bring a bittersweet end to a notable era in U.S. space exploration, but an exciting new era of privatized space exploration is already well under way.

"While we bid a fond farewell to the Space Shuttle program and the era of spaceflight it represents, I've never been more excited than now about our opportunities going forward," said Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Chairman and CEO of the X PRIZE Foundation, which has conducted two multi-million-dollar prizes, helping spur massive private investment and research in space exploration in recent years.

"We're now in an era where space exploration no longer is only done by a few highly trained, government-employed specialists," Diamandis said. "Since 2001, we've seen the first space tourists, the first private space companies and even, earlier this year, the first privately developed and operated capsule to travel to the International Space Station."

"Sometimes, these private initiatives will work in cooperation with the government organizations that funded and conducted space travel in the past," Diamandis commented. "Sometimes they will operate independently of government involvement and support, potentially dramatically accelerating exploration and research opportunities."

The new era in private space exploration began in earnest in 2001, when Santa Monica investor Dennis Tito paid $20 million to Space Adventures (www.SpaceAdventures.com) to fly aboard a Russian Soyuz mission to the International Space Station. Many other private space efforts have happened since:

Pursuit of these X PRIZE Foundation competitions has spurred a flurry of investment and technological development by private companies trying to create reusable space vehicles.

In the process, they have helped create a private space industry that is an increasingly viable partner with public space agencies, so much so that SpaceX founder (and X PRIZE Trustee) Elon Musk told ABC's "Nightline" that his company expects to be able to send humans to Mars in "roughly 12 to 15 years."

"The X PRIZE Foundation can be proud of its role in helping midwife this Fourth Era of Spaceflight and Exploration," Diamandis said. "The opportunities before us are remarkable, and we intend to continue our special role in encouraging private investment and research to open the skies for us all."

ABOUT X PRIZE FOUNDATION Founded in 1995, the X PRIZE Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is the leading organization solving the world's Grand Challenges by creating and managing large-scale, high-profile, incentivized prize competitions that stimulate investment in research and development worth far more than the prize itself. The organization motivates and inspires brilliant innovators from all disciplines to leverage their intellectual and financial capital for the benefit of humanity. The X PRIZE Foundation conducts competitions in five Prize Groups: Education; Exploration; Energy & Environment; Global Development; and Life Sciences. Active prizes include the $30 million Google Lunar X PRIZE, the $10 million Archon Genomics X PRIZE presented by Express Scripts, the $10 million Qualcomm Tricorder X PRIZE, and the $2.25 million Nokia Sensing X CHALLENGE. For more information, go to http://www.xprize.org.

The Next Era in Space Travel and Exploration Continues as Endeavour's Final Flight Ends

Singer Sarah Brightman Will be Next Space Tourist

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

Want to stay on top of all the space news? Follow @universetoday on Twitter

Singer Sarah Brightman at a press conference on October 10 to announce her upcoming space flight.

Roscosmos and Space Adventures are re- starting space tourism flights, and the next space tourist will be singer Sarah Brightman, who will head to the International Space Station on a Soyuz rocket. Brightman, 52, announced her trip at a press conference in Moscow on Wednesday, saying that she hopes her trip which will likely take place in 2015 will be a catalyst for the hopes and dreams of people around the world.

I dont think of myself as a dreamer. Rather, I am a dream chaser, said Sarah Brightman. I hope that I can encourage others to take inspiration from my journey both to chase down their own dreams and to help fulfill the important UNESCO mandate to promote peace and sustainable development on Earth and from space. I am determined that this journey can reach out to be a force for good, a catalyst for some of the dreams and aims of others that resonate with me. Brightman is a UNESCO Artist for Peace Ambassador, and is a classical soprano who also has topped the music charts with her pop music.

Coincidently, her new album is titled Dream Chaser, and she soon starts a world-wide tour to promote her new album. A trip to space would be the ultimate promotion tour. See a video below of her latest single, Angel, which includes footage from early space flight and recent views from the ISS. Brightman said space exploration has inspired her all her life.

Russia halted orbital space tourism in 2009 due to the increase in the International Space Station crew size, using the seats for expedition crews that would normally be sold to paying spaceflight participants.

Along with Brightman at the press conferece were Alexey Krasnov, Head of Roscosmos Piloted Programs Department and Eric Anderson, Chairman of Space Adventures, a space tourism company that has arranged all previous tourist flights to the Space Station.

The schedule for her flight will be determined very shortly by Roscosmos and the ISS partners, Brightman said, adding she had been approved medically and will do six months training in Russia.

This past July, Ms. Brightman completed and passed all of the required medical and physical evaluations, said Krasnov. Shes fit and mentally prepared for our spaceflight training program. We will work closely with Space Adventures in supporting Ms. Brightmans spaceflight candidacy.

Singer Sarah Brightman Will be Next Space Tourist

New blastoff for Sarah Brightman: flight to space

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

MOSCOW (AP) Sarah Brightman's voice, beloved by audiences and renowned for its three-octave range, rocketed to fame more than two decades ago as the heroine of "The Phantom of the Opera." Now the world's biggest-selling soprano is heading to outer space.

On Wednesday, Brightman told a news conference in Moscow that she has booked a trip to the International Space Station. Brightman, who had a hit in 1978 with "I Lost My Heart to a Starship Trooper" and has sold more than 30 million records, will become the first recording artist in space.

The British singer said that after touring the world in 2013 for her new album, Dreamchaser, she will spend six months in Russia's Star City cosmonaut training center.

"I think of myself not just as a dreamer, but as a dream chaser," she said.

Brightman, a UNESCO ambassador, said the trip would also serve as a way to promote the U.N. agency's message, by encouraging women's education in the sciences and environmental awareness. She hinted at the possibility of doing a promotional "space concert."

She wouldn't give a precise time for her mission, but Alexei Krasnov, the head of manned programs at the Russian space agency Roscosmos, said she would likely make it in the fall of 2015.

Krasnov said the price tag for the flight was in "tens of millions of dollars," but refused to name a precise figure.

Brightman teamed up with the private company Space Adventures, which organizes trips for private space explorers. When questioned about the expense of the journey, Eric Anderson, co-founder and chairman of Space Adventures, wouldn't give a figure but joked that "it's a round-trip flight."

Previous flights have cost the adventurous travellers over $20 million each, according to several of the participants.

The cost should be of little concern for Brightman, who has grossed millions of dollars from her tours and albums. Brightman, ex-wife of Broadway playwright Andrew Lloyd Webber, said in a 2008 interview with the Guardian that she had offered to return the money she won in their divorce settlement, worth 6 million pounds.

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New blastoff for Sarah Brightman: flight to space

Singer Sarah Brightman books flight to space station

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Danzig

Fulfilling a lifelong dream, singer Sarah Brightman has booked a seat on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft for a 10-day visit to the International Space Station.

Soprano Sarah Brightman, believed to be one of the world's wealthiest classical crossover performers, has booked a seat on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft for a 10-day visit to the International Space Station.

The launch schedule has not been announced, but the first available flight is believed to be in mid- to late-2015.

"As I'm sure you may know, I'm planning to become a spaceflight participant and have been recently approved to begin my spaceflight training by the Russian space federation, having passed the necessary medical and physical tests," she said today, reading prepared remarks at a news conference in Moscow.

Sarah Brightman will begin training for a flight to the International Space Station after a tour next year to promote a new album, the singer said during a Moscow news conference Wednesday.

"The final scheduling and details of my trip by Soyuz rocket to the International Space Station will be determined very shortly by Roscosmos and the ISS partners," she noted.

Brightman said she will go on tour next year to promote a new album, visiting five continents before returning to Russia to begin six months of mission-specific training.

"This extraordinary voyage has been many months in the planning but more accurately, has been many years in the making," she said. "Throughout most of my life, I felt an incredible desire to take the journey to space that I have now begun."

She said her dream began in 1969 when she was 8 years old watching Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon

"There, as a small an incredulous child, I watched a man bound gently from the steps of a rocket ship and land on the surface of the moon," she said. "This really was an adventure, it was something miraculous. For me, it was an epiphany.

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Singer Sarah Brightman books flight to space station

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