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.

NASA’s Cassini finds 60th Moon of Saturn

Scientists have found a new moon hidden in one of Saturn's dazzling outer rings. The international Cassini spacecraft spotted the moon, which measures about a third of a mile wide. The discovery was announced Tuesday in a notice by the International Astronomical Union.

Researchers have long puzzled over the formation of Saturn's G ring, one of the planet's more mysterious arcs. They now think the G ring was likely formed from icy debris that scattered when meteorites crash into the newfound moon.

Scientists confirmed the moon's existence last summer after analyzing images from Cassini. Saturn has over 60 moons.

The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, manages the Cassini-Huygens mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. The Cassini orbiter and its two onboard cameras were designed, developed and assembled at JPL. The imaging team is based at the Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colo.

Six people selected for Mars flight simulation experiment

Six people have been selected by scientists at the Moscow-based Russian Institute of Medical and Biological Problems. They will take part in a 105-day experiment to simulate a flight to Mars.

Four Russians - astronauts Oleg Artemyev, Sergei Ryazansky, Alexei Baranov, a doctor, and sports physiologist Alexei Shpakov - and two members of the European Space Agency, France's Cyrille Fournier, a civilian pilot, and Germany's Oliver Knickel, a mechanical engineer, will take part in the experiment.

Initially, six Russians and four Europeans wanted to participate in the institute's project.

All participants will receive 15,500 euros (USD 20,000) each, Institute spokesman Mark Belakovsky said.

Institute Director Igor Ushakov said the 105-day trial is a continuation of the 14-day experiment of November 2007 and precedes the main event, a 520-day simulation flight due to start in late 2009.

The 520-day experiment will simulate all aspects of the journey including the 250-day one-way trip to the Red Planet, a 30-day stay on its surface, and the 240-day return flight.

During nearly two years of isolation, crew members will experience many of the conditions likely to be encountered by astronauts on a real space flight.

They will stick to a rigid daily regime of work, rest and exercise, and follow the diet of crews aboard the International Space Station (ISS).