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Apart from the technology not being ready yet, we are faced with the usual trouble of how to get heavy hardware up there. Laser systems, magnets and giant Hoovers are not generally lightweight items. There's also the issue of whether we want to have nuclear stuff in orbit.

The only way someone could detect that you are spoofing the signal is that either the GPS timing would be off or the reachback connection from your ankle device has a technology like GPRS or CDPD that can be tracked down to the individual cell site (i.e. GPS says you are in Chicago, network packets say you are in Seattle)

Aye, that link is commercial flights. Not only are you a bit of an ass, but you are also wrong- NASA does not buy insurance on scientific missions. COMMERCIAL payloads on NASA missions are insured, however.

For actual facts you can see this or this or even this.

To back up my assertion that the vega is not competitive: here are a few launch prices:
The vega is supposed to cost 20 million USD for a payload of 1500kg to LEO. The Falcon I will cost 6 million USD for a payload of 700kg to a similar orbit, and the Falcon V will cost 12 million USD and have a payload of 4200kg to LEO.

So commercially vega will be a complete desaster. The only payloads that will go to vega will be government payloads that can not go to falcon for reasons of national prestige.

On the other hand, vega is a decent ICBM with MIRV capability.

• Demis
• terraserver
• European Space Agency
• NASA

Ian

There are currently moves to design the next generation launch system after Ariane 5. It is supposed to come online sometime after 2020. The Germans made a study called FESTIP. They studied several alternatives. SSTO and TSTO, winged, ballistic, etc. They identified two concepts as having the highest payoff and highest chance of success: a TSTO winged launch system and a suborbital so-called HOPPER space vehicle. They settled on HOPPER as the lower cost and risk approach and are currently doing a prototype.

In the meantime the French recently awoke to the necessity of an Ariane 5 replacement and have signed a deal with the Russians to develop two new reusable high performance engines. One using LOX/Hydrocarbon and another using LOX/LH2. They also started their own study, called FLPP. FLPP will build a test vehicle called Socrates using the Russian engines and the thermal protection systems pioneered in the yet to be launched EXPERT test vehicle. Talk about NIH syndrome. In their defense, the French are responsible for the Ariane 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 designs, so they probably think they have more experience to be able to pull this one off. That has some merit, but then again CNES was also responsible for the Hermes boondoggle... Not that the Germans are any better, with plans for expensive vapourware like this in the past.

There are currently moves to design the next generation launch system after Ariane 5. It is supposed to come online sometime after 2020. The Germans made a study called FESTIP. They studied several alternatives. SSTO and TSTO, winged, ballistic, etc. They identified two concepts as having the highest payoff and highest chance of success: a TSTO winged launch system and a suborbital so-called HOPPER space vehicle. They settled on HOPPER as the lower cost and risk approach and are currently doing a prototype.

In the meantime the French recently awoke to the necessity of an Ariane 5 replacement and have signed a deal with the Russians to develop two new reusable high performance engines. One using LOX/Hydrocarbon and another using LOX/LH2. They also started their own study, called FLPP. FLPP will build a test vehicle called Socrates using the Russian engines and the thermal protection systems pioneered in the yet to be launched EXPERT test vehicle. Talk about NIH syndrome. In their defense, the French are responsible for the Ariane 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 designs, so they probably think they have more experience to be able to pull this one off. That has some merit, but then again CNES was also responsible for the Hermes boondoggle... Not that the Germans are any better, with plans for expensive vapourware like this in the past.

There are currently moves to design the next generation launch system after Ariane 5. It is supposed to come online sometime after 2020. The Germans made a study called FESTIP. They studied several alternatives. SSTO and TSTO, winged, ballistic, etc. They identified two concepts as having the highest payoff and highest chance of success: a TSTO winged launch system and a suborbital so-called HOPPER space vehicle. They settled on HOPPER as the lower cost and risk approach and are currently doing a prototype.

In the meantime the French recently awoke to the necessity of an Ariane 5 replacement and have signed a deal with the Russians to develop two new reusable high performance engines. One using LOX/Hydrocarbon and another using LOX/LH2. They also started their own study, called FLPP. FLPP will build a test vehicle called Socrates using the Russian engines and the thermal protection systems pioneered in the yet to be launched EXPERT test vehicle. Talk about NIH syndrome. In their defense, the French are responsible for the Ariane 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 designs, so they probably think they have more experience to be able to pull this one off. That has some merit, but then again CNES was also responsible for the Hermes boondoggle... Not that the Germans are any better, with plans for expensive vapourware like this in the past.

I found a link to the SOHO technical description - check out figure 5 (antenna assembly)

Looks like an alt-azimuth assembly... and man, there looks like there's a lot of parts to go wrong in there!

I found a link to the SOHO technical description - check out figure 5 (antenna assembly)

Looks like an alt-azimuth assembly... and man, there looks like there's a lot of parts to go wrong in there!

I like Teledesics pipedream proposal of a 840 LEO satellite constellation (Uh, excuse me but your blocking out my sun!).

This technique might be used a lot more in future, although i agree it will not really be practical for Joe Soldier to carry a 1 meter telescope and a laser on his back.

One thing that most people don't realize is that the American flag placed on the Moon was more than purely symbolic; under U.S. law, they were actually staking a claim on the land for America.

Pardon my french, but: Bullshit. According to Article 2 of the Outer Space Treaty of 1967, no one can own the moon, or indeed anything else beyond the Earth's atmosphere.

Don't forget what it says on the plaque attached to the Apollo 11 LEM:

"We came in peace, for all mankind."

Please don't attempt to portray one of humanity's greatest achievements as some kind of land-grab. Thanks.

Until the launch of "Darwin" by the ESA, (pdf link) it is unlikely that we will be able to detect earth-like planets. We still cannot detect Jupiter sized worlds at this point in time.

comes this:
ESA, 1998: New European Gyroscopes for Space

They use gold in all of the X-ray mirrors I've heard of - it is a heavy enough atom that the innermost electrons are tightly bound and the energy from X-rays only causes a transition to a higher energy level rather than ionizing it.

This page describes the manufacture of an X-ray mirror for an ESA mission. I assume they're all fairly similar.

http://www.esrin.esa.it/htdocs/tidc/Press/Press96/ ariane5rep.html

>...and space shuttles taking off from Sweden. Last time I looked there were none.

You're looking in the wrong place, the European Space Agency lauch Ariane from French Guiana (sp?) on the North coast of South America.

Just a thought but is the ESA the only space programme to involve more then one coutry?

Bil

--

The latest Mir mission was for its inhabitants to beat the record of days in space
This last mission was funded mostly by the European Space Agnecy.
Another big part of the fund for this last mission came from France Space Center. Btw the name of this mission was perseus (many nice photos even if the site is in french)