USAF successfully launch the new GPS IIF-1 satellite

USAF successfully launch the new GPS IIF-1 satellite

GPS
Article by: Mike Barrett
Date: 29 May 2010

Last night saw the successful launch and deployment of a new generation of GPS satellites the GPS IIF. These satellites are built by Boeing and will enhance the current GPS constellation by adding a further 12 GPS satellites to replace the current ones that are nearing the end of their service life.

This launch was particularly important for a number of reasons: It was to be the first of the new GPS Satellites; It represented a major milestone for the Delta Rockets; and it was to be the first GPS launch on the Delta IV rocket.

The full pre-launch and launch day events follow along with our GPS IIF-1 launch video:

I had arranged to come out to Florida last year to witness this launch but it was postponed from November to February, finally to May 13th. May 13th was a particularly poignant date as this represented the 50th anniversary of the Delta family of rockets. Unfortunately due to the final flight of the Space Shuttle Atlantis this date was pushed out to May 20th.

GatorGuy and I were invited by the USAF to attend a pre-launch press conference on launch pad 37 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Base 12 hours before the launch. We headed out the the meeting point outside the security barriers of the AFB where we were met by our Air Force escorts (including Dan @AFSpace on Twitter). With about 25 other reporters we were take out to the Launch Complex in a large convoy.

http://www.pocketgpsworld.com/USAF-successfully-launch-the-new-GPS-IIF1-satellite-5123.php

NASA develops new technology to enhance search and rescue operations - ‎May 25, 2010‎

NASA develops new technology to enhance search and rescue operations

Oneindia - ‎May 25, 2010‎

Washington, May 25 (ANI): NASA has developed new technology that will more quickly identify the locations of people in distress and reduce the risk of rescuers.

Buzz up!

The Search and Rescue Mission Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., in collaboration with several government agencies, has developed a next-generation search and rescue system, called the Distress Alerting Satellite System (DASS).

NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Coast Guard and other agencies, are now completing the development and testing of the new system and expect to make it operational in the coming years after a complete constellation of DASS-equipped satellites is launched.

When it goes online, DASS will be able to almost instantaneously detect and locate distress signals generated by 406 MHz beacons installed on aircraft and vessels or carried by individuals, greatly enhancing the international community's ability to rescue people in distress, said NASA Search and Rescue Mission Manager David Affens.

This improved capability is made possible because the satellite-based instruments used to relay the emergency signals will be installed on the U.S. military's Global Position System (GPS), a constellation of 24 spacecraft operating in mid-Earth orbit (MEO).

http://news.oneindia.in/2010/05/25/nasadevelops-new-technology-to-enhance-search-andre.html

Louvre on the Rocks:

World

Louvre on the Rocks: Cache of Aboriginal Art Revealed

Traci Watson Contributor:
(May 29) -- Archaeologists have revealed the first detailed studies of what some call one of the world's most significant collections of rock art, a treasure trove of more than 3,000 stunning paintings and other images spanning as many as 15,000 years.

The extraordinary cache lies in a remote and sparsely populated region of north-central Australia. Known by the Aboriginal name of Djulirri (rhymes with "Hillary"), the site was until now almost completely unknown to science.

The rock walls of Djulirri bear images of kangaroos, the now-extinct Tasmanian tiger, sailing ships from the 1800s, humans performing a ritual with a snake, European missionaries, even a biplane. In some places there are 20 layers of artworks, one painted atop the other.
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http://www.aolnews.com/world/article/cache-of-aboriginal-art-revealed-in-djulirri-rock-shelter-in-australia/19495916