The ISS as seen by a German Synthetic Aperture Radar satellite (Image:DLR – German Aerospace Center)
Welcome to another GeekDad Space Report! I hope everyone had a good Pi Day! The sounding rocket scheduled for this past week didn’t launch and is now scheduled for the 26th of this month. I will have an update on the launch in next week’s report. One launch on tap for the upcoming week of a new satellite for DISH Network. If you missed the great GeekDad article by Doug Cornelius about the discovery of Pluto, be sure to check it out!
Launches (Sources: Spaceflight Now World Launch Schedule, Wallops Flight Facility Daily Range Schedule)
Saturday, March 20-
Launch Site: Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan
Launch Vehicle: Proton
Upper Stage: Brize-M
Payload: EchoStar XIV
Launch Time: 18:27 GMT
Notes: A new satellite providing services for DISH Network.
Interesting Hubble Observations
In many ways, all of the Hubble observations are interesting, but here is a list of some of the standouts in the coming week. A more complete list can be found at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) This Week On HST Website.
High Contrast Imaging of Dusty White Dwarfs
High-resolution imaging of three new UV-bright lensed arcs
This is a small list of the overall observations. You may also see some of these observations popping up in other weeks as many observation programs consist of several observations over time.
While on the topic of Hubble, I want to mention the release this week of the IMAX movie Hubble 3D. I have heard from my colleagues that were able to go to a special early showing that it is amazing.
James Webb Space Telescope
As I mentioned last week, major progress is being made in the development of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). I thought I might also mention that there is now a live webcam available that looks into the Spacecraft Systems Development & Integration Facility cleanroom at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center where major elements of JWST, including the Integrated Science Instrument Module, are being integrated.
Have a great week everyone!
