iran launches second satellite

Iran launched Rasad-1 (Observation-1) into orbit, Wednesday. You have to like the humor in a Satnews Daily article, where subheading reads, "Iran... Why, Of Course This Is A Satellite Tasked With Peaceful Intentions (Launch)." Rasad-1 follows launch of Omid (Hope) in 2009. Iran's observation satellite weighs 34 pounds, will orbit every 90 minutes 162 miles up at an inclination of 55.7 degrees. Where's the right wing fear mongers to recite party line: rocket tech used in launch can also launch missiles? The present writer felt a deja vu to a more innocent time when space exploration meant new frontiers with wide horizons other than militarization and weaponization! The launch looked rudimentary if well-done with a resemblance to the fifties and sixties. "Seh do yek"...how do you say lift off in Farsi and may get more familiar with their countdown in time?

space x 'falcon heavy' to lift off in 2013

Are launch costs too high and weighing down your bottom line? Elon Musk, Space X founder, pitches his Falcon Heavy booster as right for the job to lift your prospects! In a Discovery News article, Musk says, "...we can realistically start to contemplate missions like a Mars sample return, which requires a tremendous amount of lift capability because you have to send a lander to Mars that still has enough propellant to return to Earth." Planetary Science Blog notes, the Falcon Heavy is second only to the Saturn V rocket in payload and escape velocity. The article adds 20-25 percent of mission cost is in the launch and idea of lowering your costs from $10,000 to $1,000 per pound a major selling point! A debut flight is scheduled for Vandenberg AFB in 2013. You can visit the Falcon Heavy webpage at the Space X website for more details. The sales pitch is a familiar one--"more bang for the buck"-- but will bottomline decisions translate into space exploration success? Do you trust companies and corporations to do the right thing in space?