Thursday, September 6, 2007
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
[Astronomy and Telescope India] Explaining Dark Energy and Universe Acceleration
21 - The 2006 Shaw Prize in Astronomy and the 2007 Gruber Cosmology Prize were awarded for the amazing discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe, but the cause of this phenomenon is still considered a mystery. To date, the following is the only plausible explanation for this mystery that has been publicly proposed.
Observed galaxy clusters are rushing apart faster and faster thereby accelerating the expansion of the universe. If the galaxies and the stars were similarly rushing apart faster and faster, then the hypothetical concept of "dark energy" pervading all space might be valid. But this isn't the case.
The galaxy clusters are indeed rushing apart as their separation velocities are accelerating, but the separation velocities of the galaxies and of the stars are not known to be accelerating. If the hypothetical pervasive "dark energy" actually existed, all three of these types of celestial bodies would be subject to it and the galaxy clusters, galaxies, and stars, not just one of them, would be rushing apart faster and faster.
In an expanding universe, galaxy clusters are moving away from one another. When the galaxy-cluster separation velocities speed up, as in our universe, the universe is in an accelerating expansion mode. Since 1998, this has been attributed to "dark energy", called "the most profound mystery in all of science" by University of Chicago cosmologist Michael Turner.
In that year, two completed studies led by Saul Perlmutter, of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and by Brian Schmidt of the Australian National University, of astronomical events involving exploding stars (supernovae) led to the award-winning discovery that the expansion of the universe was accelerating. The cause was attributed to "dark energy", a hypothetical form of energy assumed to permeate all space and to have negative pressure resulting in a repulsive gravitational force.
In 2001, Michael Turner essentially removed the word "all" from this definition when he wrote, "Dark energy by its very nature is diffuse and a low-energy phenomenon. It probably cannot be produced at accelerators; it isn't found in galaxies or even clusters of galaxies."
Astro-cosmology author Jerome Drexler has based his accelerating-expansion theory upon Michael Turner's statement, "it isn't found in galaxies or even clusters of galaxies." That is, Drexler's criteria for the mysterious repulsive force are: it pushes galaxy clusters apart, but it doesn't push stars apart and it doesn't push galaxies apart.
Drexler's theory explains that, in a first phase, galaxy clusters, filled with relativistic dark matter protons, are separating from each other with velocities proportional to their separations. Then, when galaxy clusters' relativistic dark matter protons erode relativistic mass at a high-enough rate, via radiation of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) or soft X-ray photons, the separation velocities of galaxy clusters will increase owing to a reduction in the gravitational attraction between them and owing to the Law of Conservation of Linear Momentum.
This increases cluster-to-cluster separation and further lowers the gravitational attraction between galaxy clusters, thereby further accelerating both galaxy cluster separation and the expansion of the universe. The force causing this accelerating separation of galaxy clusters is essentially only between galaxy clusters, not between galaxies, or between stars, as will be explained. After a five-year analysis and interpretation of astronomical data, Drexler has concluded that dark matter is comprised of relativistic protons, with a relativistic mass up to ten billion times the mass of a proton at rest, accompanied by relativistic helium nuclei in a ratio of 12 to 1. This is compatible with a recent scientific paper, "Missing Mass in Collisional Debris from Galaxies" in the May 25, 2007 issue of Science Magazine, which concludes, "The most natural [dark matter] candidate is molecular hydrogen in some hard-to-trace form." (Note that relativistic protons are "hydrogen in some hard-to-trace form.")
The extragalactic magnetic fields cause the charged dark matter protons to remain within galaxy clusters and to emit radiant energy in the form of extreme ultraviolet (EUV), soft X-ray, or infrared photons.
This is called synchrotron radiation, which is photon emission from a proton in its direction of motion. Since protons in a galaxy cluster are orbiting groups of galaxies, such radiation from a galaxy cluster should be relatively isotropic with respect to the galaxy cluster's linear motion. Such dark matter protons in galaxy clusters would be emitting relatively high power synchrotron radiation, causing them to lose kinetic energy and relativistic mass continuously, as if their relativistic mass were eroding.
How can synchrotron radiation push galaxy clusters apart without pushing galaxies apart? First of all, the power of synchrotron radiation from a relativistic proton moving across a magnetic field is directly proportional to the square of the proton's energy. Secondly, the energies estimated for the dark matter protons orbiting groups of galaxies within a typical galaxy cluster would be about 30 times higher than the energies calculated for the dark matter halo protons orbiting a single spiral galaxy, such as the Milky Way.
Thus, the synchrotron radiation power per proton and relativistic mass loss rate per proton are about 900 times greater for pushing galaxy clusters apart than for pushing galaxies apart.
Another question is why the accelerating expansion did not begin until about six billion years ago, as reported by astronomers. Perhaps prior to that time the much smaller separations of galaxy clusters led to a very much higher gravitational attraction that minimized the synchrotron-radiation repulsive effect. Note that in the past 13.4 billion years galaxy-cluster separation distances have grown linearly by a factor of the order of 1000.
Drexler's theories for dark matter and accelerating expansion could be tested by NASA in 2008 when the Hubble telescope's UV sensitivity is increased by a factor of 30. The detection of EUV/UV photons or soft X-rays from dark matter of our Local Group galaxy cluster, along with no such emission from the Milky Way's halo could confirm or support Drexler's theories. This is because calculations indicate that synchrotron radiation from the Milky Way's dark matter halo should have a broad peak in the infrared while synchrotron radiation from the other dark matter particles in galaxy clusters should have a broad peak in the EUV or soft X-ray region.
Drexler authored "Comprehending and Decoding the Cosmos," published May 2006 and "How Dark Matter Created Dark Energy and the Sun," published December 2003, which explain and support the relativistic dark matter theory and cosmology. They are sold by Universal Publishers, Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com and other booksellers. The 2006 book is now available in over 35 astronomy or physics university libraries or astronomical observatory libraries around the world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jerome Drexler is a former NJIT Research Professor in physics at New Jersey Institute of Technology, founder, former Chairman and chief scientist of LaserCard Corp. (Nasdaq: LCRD), and former Member of the Technical Staff of Bell Laboratories. He has been granted 76 U.S. patents, honorary Doctor of Science degrees from NJIT and Upsala College, a degree of Honorary Fellow of the Technion, an Alfred P.Sloan Fellowship at Stanford University, a three-year Bell Labs graduate study fellowship, the 1990 "Inventor of the Year Award" for Silicon Valley, recognition as the inventor of the familiar "Laser Optical Storage System," and membership on the NJIT Board of Overseers.
newsblaze
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Posted By AstronomytelescopeIndia to Astronomy and Telescope India at 9/04/2007 09:19:00 AM
Observed galaxy clusters are rushing apart faster and faster thereby accelerating the expansion of the universe. If the galaxies and the stars were similarly rushing apart faster and faster, then the hypothetical concept of "dark energy" pervading all space might be valid. But this isn't the case.
The galaxy clusters are indeed rushing apart as their separation velocities are accelerating, but the separation velocities of the galaxies and of the stars are not known to be accelerating. If the hypothetical pervasive "dark energy" actually existed, all three of these types of celestial bodies would be subject to it and the galaxy clusters, galaxies, and stars, not just one of them, would be rushing apart faster and faster.
In an expanding universe, galaxy clusters are moving away from one another. When the galaxy-cluster separation velocities speed up, as in our universe, the universe is in an accelerating expansion mode. Since 1998, this has been attributed to "dark energy", called "the most profound mystery in all of science" by University of Chicago cosmologist Michael Turner.
In that year, two completed studies led by Saul Perlmutter, of the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and by Brian Schmidt of the Australian National University, of astronomical events involving exploding stars (supernovae) led to the award-winning discovery that the expansion of the universe was accelerating. The cause was attributed to "dark energy", a hypothetical form of energy assumed to permeate all space and to have negative pressure resulting in a repulsive gravitational force.
In 2001, Michael Turner essentially removed the word "all" from this definition when he wrote, "Dark energy by its very nature is diffuse and a low-energy phenomenon. It probably cannot be produced at accelerators; it isn't found in galaxies or even clusters of galaxies."
Astro-cosmology author Jerome Drexler has based his accelerating-expansion theory upon Michael Turner's statement, "it isn't found in galaxies or even clusters of galaxies." That is, Drexler's criteria for the mysterious repulsive force are: it pushes galaxy clusters apart, but it doesn't push stars apart and it doesn't push galaxies apart.
Drexler's theory explains that, in a first phase, galaxy clusters, filled with relativistic dark matter protons, are separating from each other with velocities proportional to their separations. Then, when galaxy clusters' relativistic dark matter protons erode relativistic mass at a high-enough rate, via radiation of extreme ultraviolet (EUV) or soft X-ray photons, the separation velocities of galaxy clusters will increase owing to a reduction in the gravitational attraction between them and owing to the Law of Conservation of Linear Momentum.
This increases cluster-to-cluster separation and further lowers the gravitational attraction between galaxy clusters, thereby further accelerating both galaxy cluster separation and the expansion of the universe. The force causing this accelerating separation of galaxy clusters is essentially only between galaxy clusters, not between galaxies, or between stars, as will be explained. After a five-year analysis and interpretation of astronomical data, Drexler has concluded that dark matter is comprised of relativistic protons, with a relativistic mass up to ten billion times the mass of a proton at rest, accompanied by relativistic helium nuclei in a ratio of 12 to 1. This is compatible with a recent scientific paper, "Missing Mass in Collisional Debris from Galaxies" in the May 25, 2007 issue of Science Magazine, which concludes, "The most natural [dark matter] candidate is molecular hydrogen in some hard-to-trace form." (Note that relativistic protons are "hydrogen in some hard-to-trace form.")
The extragalactic magnetic fields cause the charged dark matter protons to remain within galaxy clusters and to emit radiant energy in the form of extreme ultraviolet (EUV), soft X-ray, or infrared photons.
This is called synchrotron radiation, which is photon emission from a proton in its direction of motion. Since protons in a galaxy cluster are orbiting groups of galaxies, such radiation from a galaxy cluster should be relatively isotropic with respect to the galaxy cluster's linear motion. Such dark matter protons in galaxy clusters would be emitting relatively high power synchrotron radiation, causing them to lose kinetic energy and relativistic mass continuously, as if their relativistic mass were eroding.
How can synchrotron radiation push galaxy clusters apart without pushing galaxies apart? First of all, the power of synchrotron radiation from a relativistic proton moving across a magnetic field is directly proportional to the square of the proton's energy. Secondly, the energies estimated for the dark matter protons orbiting groups of galaxies within a typical galaxy cluster would be about 30 times higher than the energies calculated for the dark matter halo protons orbiting a single spiral galaxy, such as the Milky Way.
Thus, the synchrotron radiation power per proton and relativistic mass loss rate per proton are about 900 times greater for pushing galaxy clusters apart than for pushing galaxies apart.
Another question is why the accelerating expansion did not begin until about six billion years ago, as reported by astronomers. Perhaps prior to that time the much smaller separations of galaxy clusters led to a very much higher gravitational attraction that minimized the synchrotron-radiation repulsive effect. Note that in the past 13.4 billion years galaxy-cluster separation distances have grown linearly by a factor of the order of 1000.
Drexler's theories for dark matter and accelerating expansion could be tested by NASA in 2008 when the Hubble telescope's UV sensitivity is increased by a factor of 30. The detection of EUV/UV photons or soft X-rays from dark matter of our Local Group galaxy cluster, along with no such emission from the Milky Way's halo could confirm or support Drexler's theories. This is because calculations indicate that synchrotron radiation from the Milky Way's dark matter halo should have a broad peak in the infrared while synchrotron radiation from the other dark matter particles in galaxy clusters should have a broad peak in the EUV or soft X-ray region.
Drexler authored "Comprehending and Decoding the Cosmos," published May 2006 and "How Dark Matter Created Dark Energy and the Sun," published December 2003, which explain and support the relativistic dark matter theory and cosmology. They are sold by Universal Publishers, Amazon.com, Barnes&Noble.com and other booksellers. The 2006 book is now available in over 35 astronomy or physics university libraries or astronomical observatory libraries around the world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Jerome Drexler is a former NJIT Research Professor in physics at New Jersey Institute of Technology, founder, former Chairman and chief scientist of LaserCard Corp. (Nasdaq: LCRD), and former Member of the Technical Staff of Bell Laboratories. He has been granted 76 U.S. patents, honorary Doctor of Science degrees from NJIT and Upsala College, a degree of Honorary Fellow of the Technion, an Alfred P.Sloan Fellowship at Stanford University, a three-year Bell Labs graduate study fellowship, the 1990 "Inventor of the Year Award" for Silicon Valley, recognition as the inventor of the familiar "Laser Optical Storage System," and membership on the NJIT Board of Overseers.
newsblaze
Tags: dark, energy, universe, acceleration, galaxies, matter, cosmology, universe, proton, milky way
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Posted By AstronomytelescopeIndia to Astronomy and Telescope India at 9/04/2007 09:19:00 AM
Sunday, September 2, 2007
[Astronomy and Telescopes India] A giant leap: Robots or astronauts?
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Can everyone be an astronomer? It certainly seems that way, especially with some of the latest tools at our fingertips, like Google Sky, which allows Internet users to navigate through a digitized map of space. But some say virtual astronomy is not just for amateurs and should also be the way forward for professional space exploration. A future of virtual astronauts, too.
The future? The James Webb Space Telescope is the successor of Hubble.
The JWST will launch in 2013, with a collecting area six times the size of Hubble's.
Bob Park, professor of physics at the University of Maryland, believes that virtual space exploration using telerobots (which humans control from the ground) is a better solution than sending astronauts, which he calls a waste of resources. "We've gone about as far as we can with manned space missions," Park says. "We could go to Mars at enormous expense but what would a human do when he got there? We can't do much locked in a space suit. There isn't much to hear except a very low rumble from the Martian wind. The only sense that would be available to us is our eyes and we can build robots with much better eyes than humans. Already, the little rovers on Mars right now can focus in on a distant mountain or a grain of sand. We can build telescopes on our robots with any sort of visual capability that we want."
To take man to Mars? Or to take us to Mars via a robot (which we are doing already)? Park says there is little dissent in the scientific community about which is better for science, although he concedes there is an element of romance lost by using robots. "Sense of adventure is the only thing going for manned space travel," Park says. "But it's time to have a grown-up attitude to adventure. If you want adventure, go bungee jumping."
Director of the United Kingdom Astronomy Technology Centre in Edinburgh, Scotland, Ian Robson agrees that the science points us away from manned space travel. "You can always achieve more by robotic missions," Robson says. "If I had the budget, I would spend it on robotic missions. But if I was a politician I would have to think again."
Certainly, the manned space mission has been what's captured the public's imagination in the past. "The cultural experience of watching the Apollo landing was so dramatic," Robson says, "but if we all switched on our television sets today to see the first person land on Mars and career around, maybe it wouldn't have such an impact."
That could be because there are so many more ways of experiencing space exploration today, like the recently launched Google Sky, described as a 'virtual telescope'. It is the latest feature from the mapping service Google Earth but instead of focusing in on our planet, Google Sky allows Internet users to turn their zoom around and explore space, with the ability to navigate around over 100 million individual stars and 200 million galaxies. "We thought we could use the same base technology (as Google Earth) but put it in reverse and look outwards," says Ed Parsons, Google's Geospatial Technologist.
The images and information on Google Sky are all available elsewhere but their software stitches together in one place a collective knowledge, from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, the Digital Sky Survey Consortium and NASA's Space Telescope Science Institute.
"We'll bring in imagery that may have been produced by NASA from the space telescope, from terrestrial telescopes," Parsons says, "and show you pictures of nebulae, of distant galaxies, of the planets as they move throughout the year."
Given that 250 million people have downloaded Google Earth, which was launched less than three years ago, this service also looks destined to become a popular resource. "It's a one-stop shop under a very reputable banner," says ATC's Ian Robson. "And don't forget, it's also free!"
Dr Francisco Diego, Department of Physics and Astronomy at University College London, says access to space has suddenly opened up. "There are no limits," Diego says. "When you put this in the hands of millions of people, this is public outreach for science in a way that is going to be very revolutionary."
Bob Park agrees tools like Google Sky make astronomy more accessible and that is something he believes in at all levels. "One of the things that pleases me most is how democratic this is," says Park. "When we send rovers to Mars, we can go to the web and see what the rover is seeing instead of sending inarticulate beings up there to tell us what's going on. We can see it for ourselves. Everyone can be part of that."
That's not the only argument for a future of unmanned space exploration. Park points out that the price of manned missions is staggering. "It costs more to send a human to the moon than it does to send the rovers to Mars," Park says. "If we invested the money from the manned space program into telescopes, we would be way ahead of where we are now. Our robotic missions are going great."
Park says now is the perfect time to push for a future of robots and telescopes. "I think the public is sort of tired of the manned space program and today's kids are different. They're cyber-kids. Robots are a very natural idea for kids today and we should be capitalizing on this. What we should be doing now is building far more powerful telescopes to search for life out there. That's going to tell us a lot more about ourselves."
Using robots and telescopes may not be as sexy as seeing astronauts trawling around a Martian landscape but it is generally accepted it will be better value for money. Our greatest quest -- the search for other life -- has so far been fruitless. That should continue to motivate us to keep looking upwards, whether down the barrel of a telescope or at the monitor of our home computer. Whether it will also be through the visor of a spacesuit is still to be decided.
CNN
--
Posted By AstronomytelescopeIndia to Astronomy and Telescopes India at 9/02/2007 10:17:00 PM
The future? The James Webb Space Telescope is the successor of Hubble.
The JWST will launch in 2013, with a collecting area six times the size of Hubble's. Bob Park, professor of physics at the University of Maryland, believes that virtual space exploration using telerobots (which humans control from the ground) is a better solution than sending astronauts, which he calls a waste of resources. "We've gone about as far as we can with manned space missions," Park says. "We could go to Mars at enormous expense but what would a human do when he got there? We can't do much locked in a space suit. There isn't much to hear except a very low rumble from the Martian wind. The only sense that would be available to us is our eyes and we can build robots with much better eyes than humans. Already, the little rovers on Mars right now can focus in on a distant mountain or a grain of sand. We can build telescopes on our robots with any sort of visual capability that we want."
To take man to Mars? Or to take us to Mars via a robot (which we are doing already)? Park says there is little dissent in the scientific community about which is better for science, although he concedes there is an element of romance lost by using robots. "Sense of adventure is the only thing going for manned space travel," Park says. "But it's time to have a grown-up attitude to adventure. If you want adventure, go bungee jumping."
Director of the United Kingdom Astronomy Technology Centre in Edinburgh, Scotland, Ian Robson agrees that the science points us away from manned space travel. "You can always achieve more by robotic missions," Robson says. "If I had the budget, I would spend it on robotic missions. But if I was a politician I would have to think again."
Certainly, the manned space mission has been what's captured the public's imagination in the past. "The cultural experience of watching the Apollo landing was so dramatic," Robson says, "but if we all switched on our television sets today to see the first person land on Mars and career around, maybe it wouldn't have such an impact."
That could be because there are so many more ways of experiencing space exploration today, like the recently launched Google Sky, described as a 'virtual telescope'. It is the latest feature from the mapping service Google Earth but instead of focusing in on our planet, Google Sky allows Internet users to turn their zoom around and explore space, with the ability to navigate around over 100 million individual stars and 200 million galaxies. "We thought we could use the same base technology (as Google Earth) but put it in reverse and look outwards," says Ed Parsons, Google's Geospatial Technologist.
The images and information on Google Sky are all available elsewhere but their software stitches together in one place a collective knowledge, from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, the Digital Sky Survey Consortium and NASA's Space Telescope Science Institute.
"We'll bring in imagery that may have been produced by NASA from the space telescope, from terrestrial telescopes," Parsons says, "and show you pictures of nebulae, of distant galaxies, of the planets as they move throughout the year."
Given that 250 million people have downloaded Google Earth, which was launched less than three years ago, this service also looks destined to become a popular resource. "It's a one-stop shop under a very reputable banner," says ATC's Ian Robson. "And don't forget, it's also free!"
Dr Francisco Diego, Department of Physics and Astronomy at University College London, says access to space has suddenly opened up. "There are no limits," Diego says. "When you put this in the hands of millions of people, this is public outreach for science in a way that is going to be very revolutionary."
Bob Park agrees tools like Google Sky make astronomy more accessible and that is something he believes in at all levels. "One of the things that pleases me most is how democratic this is," says Park. "When we send rovers to Mars, we can go to the web and see what the rover is seeing instead of sending inarticulate beings up there to tell us what's going on. We can see it for ourselves. Everyone can be part of that."
That's not the only argument for a future of unmanned space exploration. Park points out that the price of manned missions is staggering. "It costs more to send a human to the moon than it does to send the rovers to Mars," Park says. "If we invested the money from the manned space program into telescopes, we would be way ahead of where we are now. Our robotic missions are going great."
Park says now is the perfect time to push for a future of robots and telescopes. "I think the public is sort of tired of the manned space program and today's kids are different. They're cyber-kids. Robots are a very natural idea for kids today and we should be capitalizing on this. What we should be doing now is building far more powerful telescopes to search for life out there. That's going to tell us a lot more about ourselves."
Using robots and telescopes may not be as sexy as seeing astronauts trawling around a Martian landscape but it is generally accepted it will be better value for money. Our greatest quest -- the search for other life -- has so far been fruitless. That should continue to motivate us to keep looking upwards, whether down the barrel of a telescope or at the monitor of our home computer. Whether it will also be through the visor of a spacesuit is still to be decided.
CNN
--
Posted By AstronomytelescopeIndia to Astronomy and Telescopes India at 9/02/2007 10:17:00 PM
[Astronomy and Telescopes India] GSLV launched successfully
SRIHARIKOTA 2 Sep: The launch of the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle, GSLV-F04, from here on Sunday turned out to be "a sweet success," with the launch vehicle lifting off flawlessly and injecting the communication satellite, INSAT-4CR, in its pre-determined orbit.
It was a remarkable comeback for the ISRO after the failure of the GSLV on July 10, 2006. It was the third consecutive successful mission this year.
On January 10, the PSLV put in orbit a spacecraft that was brought back to earth, and on April 23, a pared down version of the PSLV put in orbit Italian satellite Agile.
"A fantastic job"
ISRO Chairman G. Madhavan Nair said the ISRO team did "a fantastic job" after the failure of the GSLV mission in 2006. He appreciated "the precision with which this mission performed the job."
B.N. Suresh, Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, described the launch as "a sweet success." It showed that the GSLV was a robust vehicle, whose systems performed as expected.
As Mr. Nair described it, "from all points of view, it was a highly dramatic mission."
The INSAT-4CR, at 2,130 kg, is the heaviest satellite to be launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). Its transponders would be used for direct-to-home telecast, video-picture transmission, telecasting news live using a satellite and business communications..
The GSLV-F04, a three-stage vehicle, is 49 metres tall and weighs 414 tonnes. The first stage is fired by solid propellants. There are four strap-on booster motors, powered by liquid propellants, strung around the core first stage. The second stage is fired by liquid propellants. The third, uppermost stage uses cryogenic fluids — liquid hydrogen as fuel and liquid oxygen as oxidiser. The vehicle was scheduled to lift off on September 1. But the heavy downpour on August 26 played spoilsport."Every night, clouds would come in from somewhere … There will be lightning. We lost 40 hours in the countdown sequence." So the launch was postponed to 4.21 p.m. on September 2.
But 15 seconds before lift-off at 4.21 p.m., there was a problem. The signal related to the readiness of the upper, cryogenic stage did not reach the computer, which takes over the entire launch sequence 12 minutes before lift-off. So the computer halted the launch. The problem was addressed and the launch re-scheduled for 6.20 p.m.
In the twilight hour, the GSLV-F04 shot off from its second launch pad at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre and rode a ball of flame. All the three stages ignited and jettisoned into the Bay of Bengal on time. Seventeen minutes after lift-off, INSAT-4CR was injected into the geosynchronous transfer orbit at a velocity of 37,000 km an hour.
The were other heartbreaking moments. There were signal drop-outs from the tracking stations at Brunei and Biak in Indonesia, and the ISRO lost track of the vehicle. This happened on and off for three and a half minutes. But at the end of 17 minutes, jubilation filled Sriharikota.
G. Ravindranath was the Mission Director and N. Jayachandran Nair was the Vehicle Director. Prahalada Rao was the Satellite Director.
Pat for scientists
PTI reports from New Delhi:
President Pratibha Patil, Vice-President Mohd. Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee congratulated space scientists on the successful launch.
This successful launch further validates the immense economic and strategic importance of the country's space programme, Mr. Ansari said. Mr. Chatterjee said the successful launch "proves the point that the GSLV is a reliable vehicle."
T.S. Subramanian
The Hindu
Tags: GSLV, Madhavan nair, vikram sarabhai, director, Insat-4CR, Satish Dhawan
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Posted By auromarx to Astronomy and Telescopes India at 9/02/2007 10:11:00 PM
[Astronomy and Telescopes India] Space Race Rekindled? Russia Shoots for Moon...
The Russian space agency announced a plan to send a man to the moon by 2025, to establish a permanent base there a few years later, and possibly even send a man to Mars by 2035, in an aggressive plan reminiscent of the 1960s space race between the United States and the Soviet Union.
But Russia's plan to shoot for the stars is expensive, which is why it is looking for international assistance while relying on funding from its lucrative space tourism program.
One former American astronaut said while the Russians plan may be in motion, it is beginning from a difficult starting point.
"The Russians have some big ideas, but their space program is coming up slowly from being in a position bankruptcy," said Walter Cunningham, a former Apollo 7 astronaut.
As Russia plans out its space program, the U.S. space agency, NASA, struggles to chart its own way forward amid mounting costs and safety concerns.
History Repeating Itself
Russia's announcement has caused some to wonder if history will repeat itself.
Initially in the race for space dominance, the United States was forced to play catch up after the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, which was the first unmanned spacecraft in 1957.
Then, four years later, the Soviets sent the first man into space.
But America also made large strides in space exploration. By 1969, the country blasted ahead in the space race by placing the first man on the moon.
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," astronaut Neil Armstrong said as he took his first steps on the moon.
Exploration Success and Implications
Even today, the Russians have yet to reach the moon. Yet, Russian President Vladimir Putin continues charting a more ambitious course for his country, including a new exploration era.
The second man to step on the moon, Buzz Aldrin, said on "Good Morning America Weekend Edition" Sunday he believes the Russian program can be successful, but said he wouldn't call it a race with America.
Aldrin, who is a proponent of space exploration, said it is important for Americans to continue their interest in the stars for future generations, despite recent high profile negative press for NASA.
"Unfortunately, our transition from Apollo took much longer than we thought," Aldrin said about Americans' declining interest in space.
But for Russia, a moon landing may not only excite citizens, but also help project military might for Russia.
With the moon and Mars in Russia's sights, some believe the two powerhouse nations once again may be in a race toward the heavens.
And other nations also have expressed interest in space exploration. Japan claimed its project is the biggest since Apollo and China said it is readying probes to study the lunar surface to plan a landing, according to The Associated Press.
abcnews
--
Posted By auromarx to Astronomy and Telescopes India at 9/02/2007 10:00:00 PM
But Russia's plan to shoot for the stars is expensive, which is why it is looking for international assistance while relying on funding from its lucrative space tourism program.
One former American astronaut said while the Russians plan may be in motion, it is beginning from a difficult starting point.
"The Russians have some big ideas, but their space program is coming up slowly from being in a position bankruptcy," said Walter Cunningham, a former Apollo 7 astronaut.
As Russia plans out its space program, the U.S. space agency, NASA, struggles to chart its own way forward amid mounting costs and safety concerns.
History Repeating Itself
Russia's announcement has caused some to wonder if history will repeat itself.
Initially in the race for space dominance, the United States was forced to play catch up after the Soviet Union launched Sputnik, which was the first unmanned spacecraft in 1957.
Then, four years later, the Soviets sent the first man into space.
But America also made large strides in space exploration. By 1969, the country blasted ahead in the space race by placing the first man on the moon.
"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind," astronaut Neil Armstrong said as he took his first steps on the moon.
Exploration Success and Implications
Even today, the Russians have yet to reach the moon. Yet, Russian President Vladimir Putin continues charting a more ambitious course for his country, including a new exploration era.
The second man to step on the moon, Buzz Aldrin, said on "Good Morning America Weekend Edition" Sunday he believes the Russian program can be successful, but said he wouldn't call it a race with America.
Aldrin, who is a proponent of space exploration, said it is important for Americans to continue their interest in the stars for future generations, despite recent high profile negative press for NASA.
"Unfortunately, our transition from Apollo took much longer than we thought," Aldrin said about Americans' declining interest in space.
But for Russia, a moon landing may not only excite citizens, but also help project military might for Russia.
With the moon and Mars in Russia's sights, some believe the two powerhouse nations once again may be in a race toward the heavens.
And other nations also have expressed interest in space exploration. Japan claimed its project is the biggest since Apollo and China said it is readying probes to study the lunar surface to plan a landing, according to The Associated Press.
abcnews
Tags: Moon, landing, Russia, America, Apollo, Nasa, 2025, united states, buzz aldrin, associated press
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Posted By auromarx to Astronomy and Telescopes India at 9/02/2007 10:00:00 PM
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