8/25/2008 08:17:00 AM
(The latest installment in an on-going series, this post will recount relevant space news that you may have missed while out enjoying your weekend. It's not an exhaustive list--to get that, I recommend clicking through to the blogs in our blogroll--but it should contain the highlights, as least as I see them.)
I haven't been able to do one of these in a while, but now that I'm back in the office, I've finally got a chance to post one. And, wouldn't you know it, I came back just in time for a fairly slow news weekend: it seems that everyone was focused on the Olympics and on the Vice Presidential candidates for the USA (which might have little to do with space...)
Without further ado:
- The county commissioners in Otero County, New Mexico, decided to put the issue of a spaceport tax on the ballot for this November's elections. From what I hear, the ballot initiative passed through the commission on a 2-to-1 vote.
- At least one Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge team performed a significant test over the weekend. More on the Team Summit soon, I hope.
- The folks down in Florida worked over the weekend to make up for time lost due to a Tropical Storm, and have the Space Shuttle Atlantis on schedule for an October 8th launch for a Hubble Servicing mission. Opportunities to see that bird fly are running out--I'm pretty tempted to pop down for this one, despite my terrible track record of jinxing the Shuttle fleet.
- The ESA-led XMM-Newton mission made some pretty awesome discoveries lately, as recently announced. Kudos to the whole mission team.
