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Discovery mission last PDF Print E-mail
Written by Natascia   
Friday, 25 February 2011 23:47

U.S. space shuttle Discovery put an end to three decades of exploration activities in a space mission began last Thursday morning, launching from Kennedy Space Center.
Discovery launched into space last time in a serene day at 16.53 local time, on a mission from 11 days during which to deliver the International Space Station (ISS) a sophisticated humanoid robot named R2 and a storage module, BBC informs.

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No "sisters" sale, Endeavour and Atlantis, will continue work space: the end of this year, NASA hopes to retire and the last two spaceships, each after a final farewell trip - the first in April, the second no earlier June. Over 40,000 spectators gathered for the historic Space Shuttle launch on Friday, the coast of Florida. Discovery crew received the OK from the control center and a free "Enjoy the ride!" Before they launch into a huge tromba smoke and flames in space. Shuttle Commander Steve Lindsey, so he addressed the audience, and especially those who built the American space fleet: "We appreciate your work, and for those who are watching, be prepared to be witnesses to the power and superiority of Discovery, which is launches for the last time. "
Along with Steve Lindsey, pilot was aboard the Eric Boe and mission specialists Alvin Drew, Michael Barratt, Nicole Stott and Steve Bowen. It can be said that Bowen had a good fortune, being called at the last minute to replace Tim Kopra, injured in a bike accident last month.
Discovery is regarded as the "fleet leader" of the spacecraft and one that was resumed shuttle flights after the Challenger and Columbia accidents. Launched first in 1984, bears the name of several historical ships and has successfully accomplished more than the other shuttle missions, visiting both the ISS and the Russian Mir station. You could say that Discovery has written the history of space exploration: it carried the Hubble Space Telescope has spent 352 hours in orbit and made 5628 orbits around the Earth, was the first who recovered a satellite spacecraft and brought back to Earth and the list could continue. This is the 39th out in space and on return to Earth in two weeks, will be cumulative distance traveled 230 million miles - compared, the distance between Earth and the Sun is 149 million kilometers.
Once all veteranele retired U.S. space program, NASA plans to send astronauts into space aboard the Russian Soyuz rocket, an operation that will last, probably until the middle of this decade. By that time, several American companies hope to be able to develop the spacecraft so as to provide NASA the ability to buy space launch services. NASA plans to turn to channel their efforts towards the development of a large rocket - Space Launch System - that can send astronauts beyond the space station, for destinations such as asteroids. Congress set 2016 as deadline for when the rocket will be inserted in the space exploration program, although NASA has warned that time is too short and too small a budget for a result so important.
Neither this mission is not unimportant for Discovery. The shuttle will deliver the Italian ISS module called Leonardo. Module, which is used as a storage box for reserves for astronauts, returning to Earth with every mission, but this time it will leave Discovery station to serve as additional storage space. Most interesting, however, is Robonautul2 passenger shuttle, or R2, the first humanoid robot sent into space, well packed inside the module Leonardo. R2 is the product of 15 years of NASA-General Motors joint research. For now consists only of a head, arms and torso on a pedestal, but in time will end and legs, could move to the ISS. In a few years, his body will be upgraded in order to perform several functions. Before the end of this decade, R2 should be able to accompany them outside the space station astronauts, eventually reaching out repairs on satellites. NASA intends for these robots to be sent in a good day, space missions, and even reach Mars before the astronauts.

ziare.com


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Last Updated on Friday, 25 February 2011 23:59
 


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