Universe Today - August 3, 1999

the
U N I V E R S E
T O D A Y

Space Exploration News From Around the Internet, Updated Every Weekday.
August 3rd, 1999 - Issue #75
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-- UNIVERSE TODAY STORY SUMMARY --

* Mir May Shutdown Earlier than Expected
* UK Will Land a Probe on Mars
* International Space Station Atmosphere is Toxic
* Mislaunched WIRE Provides Useful Data After All


MIR MAY SHUTDOWN EARLIER THAN EXPECTED
------------------------
By accidentally shutting down Mir's central computer system, a
Mission Control officer may have helped speed up the spacestation's
closure. Although the shutdown didn't threaten the crew, Russia has
decided to use this opportunity to begin preparing the station for
its final reentry.

http://abcnews.go.com/sections/science/DailyNews/mir990802.html
http://cnn.com/TECH/space/9908/02/space.russia.reut/index.html
http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/080299/mir.sml
http://www.msnbc.com/news/296227.asp


UK WILL LAND A PROBE ON MARS
------------------------
The British government has backed a plan to land a probe on the
surface of Mars. Named the Beagle 2 after Charles Darwin's ship,
the mission will be a part of the ESA's Mars Express mission. The
probe is expected to land on Mars in Christmas of 2003.

http://www.astronomynow.com/breaking/9908/02beagle2/index.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_409000/409038.stm
http://cnn.com/TECH/space/9908/02/britain.mars.ap/index.html


INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION ATMOSPHERE IS TOXIC
------------------------
NASA has admitted that the atmosphere in the new International
Space Station is unfriendly to human beings. Investigations were
carried out after the crew of the Discovery returned complaining
about nausea, vomiting and headaches. A special task force has
been created to solve the problem before the next shuttle visit
in December.

http://www.foxnews.com/scitech/080299/iss.sml


MISLAUNCHED WIRE PROVIDES USEFUL DATA AFTER ALL
------------------------
It was thought to be a complete write-off, but it turns out that
the Wide Field Infrared Explorer (WIRE) can actually be used for
scientific purposes. Although the primary instrument on WIRE is
useless, its secondary instrument was used over the last month
to make some valuable observations of a nearby star.

http://www.spaceviews.com/1999/08/02a.html


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