Happy New Year 2011

Think of joy,

Forget the fear,

Keep the smile,

Leave the tear,

Hold the laugh,

Leave the pain,

Be joyous,

Coz it’s New Year!

Wishing You All A very Happy and Prosperous New Year 2011

Marshall Space Flight Center

NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center which develops key transportation and propulsion technologies. The George C. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) is the U.S. government's civilian rocketry and spacecraft propulsion research center

Department of Space to launch 30 satellites

The Department of Space plans to launch “not less than 30 satellites in the next decade. These include a series of resourcesat, cartosat, ocean and atmospheric satellites, National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) Director V. Jayaraman told reporters on the sidelines of a conference on Karnataka Geo-Spatial Database on Tuesday.

The Hyderabad-based NRSC, which comes under the Department of Space, acquires processes and disseminates remote sensing data for applications and disaster management.

“We will launch Resourcesat-2 in early February or January-end. It will be a replacement satellite for Resourcesat-1, which gives us 5.8 metres, 70 km multi-spectral data for the first time,” Dr. Jayaraman said.

An “integrated multi-mission ground segment” would be set up in Hyderabad, which would enable the Indian Space Research Organisation to receive satellite data and to supply 1000 space products every day directly to the users.

Emergency products:

At present, the NRSC needed four to five days to deliver space products. With the new ground segment, the centre would be able to do that within 12 hours and even supply “emergency products” within an hour of receiving the data. The ground segment would be set up at a cost of around Rs. 40 crore and was expected to be operational by June 2011.

Delivering the keynote address at the conference, Dr. Jayaraman said experts in GIS and remote sensing must tap into the power of cloud computing. GIS, he added, must be made simple, friendly and easy-to-use. 

French President Nicolas Sarkozy to visit ISRO

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is going to visit Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on 4^th December. Sarkozy is slated to interact with top scientists from across the country.

ISRO sources said the President, during his one-hour visit, is expected to be briefed about some of activities of the organisation as also about the Megha-Tropiques climate satellite.  Sarkozy, accompanied by wife Carla Bruni, will start his four-day India's visit from this IT hub with a brief stopover at the ISRO facility with which France has a long-standing association.

France is collaborating with ISRO in developing two satellites for studying weather and climatic conditions. Megha-Tropiques (Megha meaning cloud in Sanskrit and Tropiques in French meaning Tropics), being jointly developed by ISRO and French National Space Agency (CNES), is expected to be launched by 2011 to study tropical climate.

Another ISRO-CNES mission to be launched next year is SARAL (Satellite for Argos and Altika) for seasonal forecasting, oceanography and climate studies.

ISRO has been working closely with the Centre Nationale d'Etudes Spatiales, CNES, and has a long-standing collaboration. Several joint research projects have been undertaken by the agencies. Several scientists of both agencies have visited each others' facilities and exchanged views.

ISRO made Hylas-1 satellite launched

An advanced communication satellite Hylas built by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was today launched successfully aboard the European Ariane-5 rocket from Kourou in French Guyana. 35 minutes after lift-off, the Highly Adaptable Satellite separated from the Ariane rocket and ISRO’s ground control centre in Hassan, Karnataka, began receiving radio signals transmitted by the satellite.

The £120 million Hylas-1 satellite will act as a relay station for broadband traffic, enabling isolated rural communities to connect with the World Wide Web for the first time. Hylas is the first superfast broadband satellite to be launched outside the US.

ISRO developed Hylas satellite for Avanti Communications plc, which is intended to deliver high-speed broadband services across Europe. Isro received the contract after it created an alliance with EADS Astrium, for joint development of communication satellites.

ISRO developed the bus integration and testing for the 2,541-kg satellite that is expected to have an operating life of 15 years.

A second satellite, Hylas-2, to be launched in 2012, is now at an advanced stage of development. It will provide further coverage across Europe as well as a footprint in the Middle East and parts of Africa. Together, the two satellites will have a capacity of one million consumers.

ISRO to launch 2 satellites in December

India is going to launch a new communication satellite GSAT-5 Prime from Sriharikota which will augment existing capacity and services in the field. ISRO scientists will give the go-ahead for the launch only after a mission-readiness review. The launch will takes place between 10-20 December.

The satellite, GSAT-5 Prime, is to be launched with Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F06).

The GSAT-5P carries 24 normal C-band and 12 Extended C-band transponders to augment communication services in areas like television broadcasting and telecom. Positioned at 55 deg East longitude GSAT-5P will have a designed mission life of 12 years. The satellite weighs 2330 kg and has payload power requirement of 1700W. Satellite configuration and equipment panel layouts have been finalised as are payload subsystems and other subsystem packages

ISRO to prepare environmental database

The Central Pollution Control Board Wednesday asked the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to help in preparing an integrated environmental database using the Geographical Information System (GIS).

'We will ask ISRO to help us in preparing environment impact statement (EIS) using GIS, which will be of great help to policy makers,' said CPCB chairperson S.P. Gautam.

The central pollution monitoring agency released a compendium 'Studies on Pollution Mitigation', comprising of 133 research papers on various facets of pollution related matter.

Former ISRO chief G. Madhavan Nair, who was present at the function, said he will take up the matter with ISRO chief K. Radhakrishnan.

'India has not paid much attention on pollution monitoring. Monitoring environment is necessary as forest cover, level of ground water, status of water bodies, land cover is key input for national planning,' said Nair. The compendium incorporates the research papers of scientists and engineers from various institutions in the country.

Homemade Spacecraft

An ingenious father-and-son duo in New York launched a HD video camera tied to a weather balloon 30 kms above the earth into the stratosphere and share footage that their camera captured in its incredible 100-minute journey. To get back the camera intact, they also attached an iPhone as a GPS device to send its coordinates upon landing to a cell phone tower. The video reveals that the camera, tied to a parachute that auto-inflated when the balloon burst due to atmospheric pressure, landed safely just 30 miles away from where it was launched.

Video from a camera attached to a weather balloon that rose into the upper stratosphere and recorded the blackness of space.

Homemade Spacecraft from Luke Geissbuhler on Vimeo.
 

Mysteries of the Cosmos- TheWorld Space Week at Gujarat Science City

In celebration of 'Space Week', the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has put up an exhibition of innovative gadgets, armed with latest features. The theme for this year's exhibition is 'Mysteries of the cosmos'. "We have put some innovative devices on display, besides ground photographs of Antarctica and ice formations.

The interesting products on display include an Automatic Weather monitoring Station (AWS), with new features. Speaking about these new features, scientist-engineer AM Saifee said, "The earlier weather monitoring devices required human interaction and conventional power.

Looking to the stars has always inspired children to wonder and learn. Today around the world, it is a valuable tool in education. Teachers and educators successful use the excitement of to motivate students. This educational tool has been applied not just in science and mathematics but in history, language arts, and virtually every subject.

The Gujarat Science City is celebrating “World Space Week” during 4th to 10th October 2010 by organizing a series of activities for students and the visitors on the theme ‘Mysteries of the Cosmos’. On 4th October 1957, the first artificial satellite, Sputnik I, was launched by the Soviet Union, and on 10th October 1967 a landmark international treaty governing space exploration and the peaceful use of resources in space was signed. The United Nations celebrates the World Space Week to commemorate two important events in the history of Space Exploration.

India in Space expo

ISRO organizing a exhibition on space named ‘India in Space’ is going to be held at the FISAT, Angamaly, from September 16 to 18.

The main aim of the exhibition is to create an awareness among school and college students about India's achievements in space programmes and to show how they have helped in the country’s overall development.

The exhibition will showcase satellites ranging from Aryabhatta to the Insat series. Chandrayaan-1 and the technology used in it will be the major highlights of the exhibition. The models of India’s future programmes (VISION till 2020) like GSLV-Mk III, Reusable Launch Vehicle-Technology Demonstrator (RLV-TD), Space Capsule Recovery Experiment (SRE-II) and Chandrayaan-2 will also be displayed.

The video shows of Chandrayaan-1 and the history of the Indian space research will add color to the event. Electra, the student wing of the EEE branch, is organising the event in connection with the Techfest Nautilus, to be held in the college. The entry is free.

ISRO successfully conducts static testing of GSLV-Mk III rocket

Six months after a failed test, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully conducted the second static testing of its liquid core stage (L110) of Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III (GSLV Mk -III), according to a press release.

GSLV-Mk III, which is currently under advanced stage of development, uses two solid strap-on boosters (S200), L110 liquid stage and a cryogenic upper stage C-25

The test lasted 200 seconds at ISRO's Liquid Propulsion Systems Centre (LPSC) test facility at Mahendragiri today (September 8, 2010) at 15:50 hrs.

L110 is one of the heaviest earth storable liquid stages ever developed by ISRO. L110 stage had two high pressure Vikas engines in a clustered configuration. Nearly 500 health parameters were monitored during the test and the initial data acquired indicates its normal performance.

Today’s successful test of L110 for its full flight duration of 200 seconds, is a major milestone in the earth storable liquid rocket programme of ISRO and a significant step forward in the development of GSLV-Mk III launch vehicle.

ISRO conducted the test for 150 seconds at LPSC test facility on March 5 this year. While the test was originally targeted for 200 seconds it was stopped at 150 seconds since a deviation in one of the parameters - minor leakage in the command system - was observed. It may be recalled that GSLV-Mk III, which is currently under advanced stage of development, uses two solid strap-on boosters (S200), L110 liquid stage and a cryogenic upper stage C-25.

India’s Missile Revolution

1. Cruise Missiles (Subsonic, Supersonic, Hypersonic )

2. Hypersonic Boost Glide Missile

3. Ballistic Missiles

4. Nuclear Warheads

5. Anti-Ballistic Missiles

Vikram Sarabhai-the father of Indian Space Programme

Vikram Sarabhai for Rockets, atomic power & Bharatnatyam

ISRO found water on the moon and have more remote sensing satellites in space than any other country. But without Vikram Sarabhai, the man who founded ISRO, none of it would have been possible. On his birthday, here's a brief look at what he achieved.

Vikram Sarabhai was born on the 12th of August, 1919. Father Ambalal and Mother SarlaDevi were rich and involved in the freedom struggle. Gandhiji and Nehru were regular visitors at home.

After a doctorate at Cambridge and research at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, Sarabhai worked with Homi Bhabha, the father of India's nuclear programme. He set up a rocket launch station in Thumba, Kerala and launched India's first satellite in 1963. This was the start of the Indian Space Research Organisation -ISRO. In 1975, Sarabhai set up the country's first satellite television broadcasting service and beamed educational programmes to villages.

But it was his love for the arts that made him fall in love with Mrinalini, a Bharatnatyam dancer. Together, they set up Darpan, a theater group and a home called Premalay.

Sarabhai later became head of the Department of Atomic Energy. Professional rivalry with another legendary scientist, Homi Sethna and his personal views about the dangers of the atom bomb, led to the department being split in two, one for military research and the other for power production.

Vikram Sarabhai also set up the National Physical Research Laboratory and the Indian Institute of Management in Ahemedabad. Dr. Vikram Sarabhai died on 30 December 1971 at Kovalam, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

India to launch SARAL to monitor sea water levels

ISRO is going to launch a satellite SARAL to monitor sea water levels in collaboration with the French space agency, Minister of State for Science and Technology Prithviraj Chavan said Wednesday.

The satellite, called Saral, will carry an altimetre (ALTIKA) for studying the sea surface heights and an ARGOS payload, which is a satellite-based data collection platform.

"The project is a joint project of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the French National Space Agency (CNES). The ALTIKA and ARGOS payloads are built and supplied by the French space agency. The satellite building and launching are the responsibilities of ISRO," Chavan told the Lok Sabha. The minister said the satellite is likely to be launched in 2011.

India to launch satellite navigation system

A satellite-based navigation system to assist air traffic from Southeast Asia to Africa, including over the high seas in the vast region, would be launched tomorrow, placing India into a select group of nations which possess such a sophisticated technology.

GAGAN or the GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation to be launched by Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel would not only help the civil aviation sector but also help in marine navigation, search and rescue operations, rail and road transport, survey and mapping as well as precision farming.

So far, only the US, Europe and Japan have developed similar capabilities. GAGAN would fill the gap between the European EGNOS and the Japanese MSAS systems to provide seamless air navigation service across regional boundaries, an official spokesperson said.

China is the top outer Space Polluter

China has topped the list of the world's major polluters of the near-Earth space environment, followed by the United States and Russia, the Russian Federal Space Agency Roscosmos said on Friday.

All together, the three main space powers produce 93% of space debris, according to a statement published on the agency's website.

"According to estimates, 40% of space debris is produced by China. The U.S.'s share accounts for 27.5%, and Russia's [share] for 25.5%, with 7% falling on other countries involved in space exploration," the statement said.

The NASA Orbital Debris Program Office has named Russia and CIS countries as the main polluters of outer space. According to the organization, Russia and its former Soviet allies disposed of a total of 5,833 spacecraft or their parts, including 1,402 satellites and 4,431 parts of carrier rockets, by ejecting them into near-Earth space.

Some 15,550 "dead" spacecraft, rocket stages, upper-stage rockets and their parts are orbiting around Earth, according to the U.S. space agency.

NASA also named France, Japan and India as major polluters of the near-Earth space environment, with the figures standing at 472, 190 and 170, respectively.

ISRO to confirm Chandrayaan-2 payload

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Telemetry Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) director S.K. Shivakumar said the payload for Chandrayaan-2 will be confirmed at a meeting scheduled to be held in Bangalore on August 3, 2010. "The payloads are currently going through the process of short-listing," he said.

Speaking on 'Chandrayaan-Deep Space Network (DSN)' organized by the Institute of Engineers, Shivakumar said the probe would 'take forward' some of the accomplishments of Chandrayaan-1. He also described the step-by-step installation process of the DNS antenna constructed by ISRO to track signals of Chandrayaan 1.

ISRO constructed two DSN antennas - 32-metre primary antenna and 18-metre sandby antenna, at a cost of Rs. 100 crore at Byalalu on the outskirts of Bangalore. The Deep Space Network antenna is currently tracking the signals of Venus express satellite from Japan and waiting permission from the European Space Agency to track their Mars express satellite. The DSN satellite is epected to provide complete support for Chandrayaan 2. Chandrayaan 2 is scheduled for a 2012 launch and it would have an Indian-made orbiter and rover and a Russian Lander.

CARTOSAT-2B Sending High Quality images

India's advanced remote sensing satellite CARTOSAT-2B satellite, which was successfully launched by PSLV-C15 on July 12, 2010, into a polar sun-synchronous orbit, is working adequately.  The initial phase of operations of the satellite has been successfully completed. The camera has been switched on, and it is sending high quality images.

ISRO sends satellites for foreign space agencies

ISRO is getting huge orders from other countries to launch their satellites. For every one kilogram of third party payload that ISRO launches into orbit, the space agency earns an approximate $20,000. Last week too when its polar satellite launch vehicle an Algerian satellite into space orbit, it fetched a neat $4 million, besides more than half a dozen fresh orders. But then, there has never been any dearth of orders. The ISRO’s pipeline is already choked with orders worth Rs 3,000 crore.

“In case of space activity, execution of an order depends on a number of issues, from time schedule and skilled manpower,” says ISRO’s marketing arm’s head K Sridhara Murthi. “The launch services also involve provision of available spare capacity in our vehicles.”

The PSLV, often referred to as ISRO’s workhorse, is the most attractive launch vehicle for the global market because it has the capability to launch multiple satellites. Improved features over the years have not only increased the payload capacity but also acquired an ability to launch different size of satellites into various types of orbits. This flexibility with respect to various payloads and the regular turnaround for annual launch has worked to the agency’s benefit. “We are able to compete with any vehicle in the world in PSLV category,” says Mr Murthi. “But our own vehicles are the priority. Whatever capacity is available after meeting the requirements of our payloads, we offer it to global bodies. Of late, we are getting proposals for dedicated launches from other agencies.”

On the other hand, ISRO is going to launch Jugnu, the 3.5-kg satellite developed by the teachers and students of Indian Institute of Technology-Kanpur, into a polar orbit sometime in September or October 10.

Microsoft, NASA WorldWide Telescope Focuses On Mars

Software giant Microsoft and NASA have been working together to create an interactive Mars tour. The tour took three years of data crunching on 100 computers to create and is able to show Mars in the highest resolution images available of the planet.

The system uses Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope program and uses images collected from 40 years ago till now. The latter of the images come from the HiRISE camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

There are two ways to view the imagery. The first way is to download the Microsoft software and the second is to use the Web client.

The 3-D effect is derived from information provided by an instrument called MOLA, the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter, which flew on the Mars Global Surveyor. Scientists at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., combined the data with regular images to come up with 3-D views. The images themselves reside on the Nebula cloud at NASA-Ames.

Read full article about WorldWide Telescope

ISRO’s PSLV Successfully Launches Five Satellites

India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) on 12^th July, 10 Monday fruitfully placed 5 satellites, the remote sensing satellite Cartosat-2B and four other satellites into orbit.

At the end of an over 51-hour countdown, the 44.4 metre-tall four-stage PSLV-C-15, costing Rs 260 crore, blasted off from a launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre with ignition of the core first stage and placed the satellites in orbit one after the other.

Visibly relieved scientists, headed by ISRO chairman Dr K Radhakrishnan, cheered as ISRO's workhorse PSLV soared into clear skies at 9.22am from the spaceport in the East Coast in Andhra Pradesh, about 100 km north of Chennai.

The PSLV launch assumes significance as it comes about three months after ISRO suffered a major setback on April 15 when the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-D3), which was launched using an Indian-designed and built cryogenic engine for the first time, failed and fell into the Bay of Bengal.

Cartosat-2B is an advanced remote sensing satellite built by ISRO. This is the latest in the Indian remote sensing satellite series and the 17th in this series. Cartosat-2B is mainly intended to augment remote sensing data services to the users of multiple spot scene imagery with 0.8 metre spatial resolution and 9.6 km swath in the panchromatic. Cartosat-2 and 2A, two Indian remote sensing satellites in orbit, are currently providing such services.

A set of four satellites including Studsat built by students of seven engineering colleges in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, Alsat from Algeria, two nano satellites from Canada and Switzerland, and a pico (very small) satellite called Oceansat 2 accompanied Cartosat 2 on its trip to orbit.

Planck reveals the new Universe picture

European Space Agency has released what it says is the first ever image of the entire universe which will give scientists new insight into how the stars and galaxies form.

The all-sky image produced by space telescope Planck Canalso, tells how the Universe itself came to life after the Big Bang 13.7 billion years ago.

The satellite was launched last year by the ESA under a 600-million euros project to record the origins of the universe. While the satellite was sent nearly a million miles into space, the Planck observatory's job was to look at the age, contents and evolution of the cosmos by studying the heat left behind by the Big Bang.

This multi-frequency all-sky image of the microwave sky has been composed using data from Planck covering the electromagnetic spectrum from 30 GHz to 857 GHz.

The mottled structure of the CMBR, with its tiny temperature fluctuations reflecting the primordial density variations from which today’s cosmic structure originated, is clearly visible in the high-latitude regions of the map. The central band is the plane of our Galaxy. A large portion of the image is dominated by the diffuse emission from its gas and dust. The image was derived from data collected by Planck during its first all-sky survey and comes from observations taken between August 2009 and June 2010. This image is a low- resolution version of the full data set.

India to help Saudi Arabia’s space program

A delegation of scientists from Saudi Arabia are set to visit India to ink an agreement with space agency ISRO for boosting cooperation that will help the country develop an indigenous space programme.

The Saudi delegation, comprising of the country’s leading scientists will visit the India Space Research Organisation later this month. The agreement to boost cooperation in space science is in line with a MoU signed between the two countries’ space agencies during Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s visit to Riyadh earlier this year.

The visit of Saudi scientists would pave the way for a cooperation that will help Riyadh develop its indigenous space programme for peaceful purposes, an Arab daily reported.

The Saudi delegation will comprise of scientists from the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) and other scientific institutions in the Kingdom, Rajeev Shahare, outgoing deputy chief at the Indian mission in Riyadh, was quoted as saying by Arab News.

Shahare said that a Memorandum of Understanding between KACST and ISRO during the Prime Minister’s visit.

He said that ISRO would provide expertise to Riyadh as it has been conducting a variety of operations for both Indian and foreign clients.

Chandrayaan-2 by 2013

Chandrayaan-2 by 2013, confirms ISRO: The Indian Space Research Organization has confirmed that India is going to send Chandrayaan -2 by 2013

According to K. Radhakrishnan, the chairman of Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), India is preparing to launch its second moon mission ‘Chandrayaan-2 by 2013′.

They are planning to have The Chandrayaan -2 in the year 2013 and by that time they should have their GSLV (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle) flying with the Indigenous Cryogenic Engine Stage which is their target, said Radhakrishan.

They are analyzing some snags which have been identified in flight-testing of the Indigenous Cryogenic Engine, which will be sorted out in about a year. The Chandrayaan-2 is the second unmanned lunar exploration mission that ISRO is pursuing.

ISRO's new mission to study greenhouse gases

Encouraged by the discovery of ice on the moon's surface by Chandrayan-I mission, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) would launch a dedicated satellite to conduct a study about greehouse gases, with funding from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests.

Th proposed mission would be the first by ISRO to study green house gases. Once successful, it would place the Indian space agency on par with NASA of US and other nations in this unique study. In a brief chat with newsmen on the sidelines of a function, former ISRO Chief and Planning Commission Member Dr K Kasturirangan said the launch of the satellite, which was only in design stages, would take place in the next two to three years.

ISRO's proposal to launch satellites for studying greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide, comes at a time when concerns were raised across the world over the growing impact of climate change and global warming. ''The US and Japan have already launched such satellites and the idea is to see whether India can look at the greenhouse gases using satellite sensors,'' he added. Stating that the Union Environment Ministry would play a significant role in this and promising its full support for such missions, Dr Kasturirangan said the funding terms were being worked out.

China is planning the launch of its own space laboratories

China plans to launch an unmanned space module, Tiangong 1, in 2011, said Qi Faren, the chief designer of China's Shenzhou spacecraft, at the sidelines of the annual plenary session of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country's top political advisory body, on March 3.

Tiangong, or the Heavenly Palace, will eventually be transformed into a manned space laboratory after experimental dockings by the three Shenzhou spacecrafts—Shenzhou 8, Shenzhou 9 and Shenzhou 10, which are expected to be launched into space within two years of the module's launch, said Qi.

Qi said that Tiangong 1, which weighs approximately 8.5 tons, is expected to complete China's first space docking with Shenzhou 8 during the following year, and will perform long-term independent operations, which are regarded as an essential step toward building a space station.

The official website of China's manned space program, Cmse.gov.cn, says China is now in the second phase of a three-step plan that the nation has drafted for implementing its manned space program.

China is planning the launch of its own space laboratories

China plans to launch an unmanned space module, Tiangong 1, in 2011, said Qi Faren, the chief designer of China's Shenzhou spacecraft, at the sidelines of the annual plenary session of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the country's top political advisory body, on March 3.

Tiangong, or the Heavenly Palace, will eventually be transformed into a manned space laboratory after experimental dockings by the three Shenzhou spacecrafts—Shenzhou 8, Shenzhou 9 and Shenzhou 10, which are expected to be launched into space within two years of the module's launch, said Qi.

Qi said that Tiangong 1, which weighs approximately 8.5 tons, is expected to complete China's first space docking with Shenzhou 8 during the following year, and will perform long-term independent operations, which are regarded as an essential step toward building a space station.

The official website of China's manned space program, Cmse.gov.cn, says China is now in the second phase of a three-step plan that the nation has drafted for implementing its manned space program.

India to launch South Korean satellites

India and South Korea on Thursday discussed a host of bilateral issues including cooperation in space programmes with External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna, who is on an official visit there, suggesting that the South Korean satellites could be launched by Indian launch vehicles.

Describing the 40 minute meeting between Mr. Krishna and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak as “constructive and fruitful”, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement that the two leaders underscored the importance of increasing people-to-people exchanges to bolster the bilateral strategic partnership.

Recalling his “landmark” visit to India this year as the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations, Mr. Lee appreciated Mr. Krishna’s visit to Seoul for the 6th Joint Commission meeting (JCM), which would give further impetus to bilateral relations and the initiatives announced during his visit to India.

Mr. Krishna also suggested a bust of Rabindranath Tagore, who had described Korea as the ‘Lamp of the East’, be installed at a prominent location in Seoul.

Welcoming the idea, President Lee said he would make a strong recommendation to the concerned city authorities to identify a suitable location for installing the bust of Tagore in 2011, the 150th birth anniversary of the Nobel Laureate.

Referring to the MOU for cooperation signed last January between the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and Korean Aerospace Research Institute (KARI), Mr. Krishna suggested the satellites could be launched by Indian launch vehicles.