UAE launches its first earth observation satellite

October 1st, 2009 PARIS - Reports indicate that the European Space Agency's (ESA's) GOCE (Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer) has started sending data that will lead to the development of the best gravity map ever, providing a better understanding of Earth's gravity. The GOCE satellite was launched on March 17 from northern Russia.

October 1st, 2009 MUNICH - The first of two planned satellites for Germany's defence forces blasted off late Thursday from the European space launch centre outside Kourou, French Guiana, officials said. The satellite separated from its rocket and was placed into orbit about 30 minutes after launch.

September 29th, 2009 LONDON - After the discovery of water on the Moon, scientists have picked a new target for the planned October 9 crash of a NASA spacecraft into a crater near the Moon's south pole, in the hopes of gathering water ice. Earlier, the Lunar Crater Remote Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) was going to target Cabeus A, a crater half as wide that sits further from the South Pole.

September 23rd, 2009 LONDON - A European satellite is all set to begin a quest to make the most detailed global map of the Earth's gravity field. According to a report by BBC News, known as the Goce satellite, the arrow-shaped spacecraft can sense tiny variations in the planet's tug as it sweeps around the world at the very low altitude of just 255km.

September 23rd, 2009 SRIHARIKOTA - India successfully launched its 16th remote-sensing satellite Oceansat-2 and six small European satellites on board a rocket that blasted off from here at 11.51 a.m. Wednesday.

September 23rd, 2009 SRIHARIKOTA - India successfully launched its 16th remote-sensing satellite Oceansat-2 and six small Europeans satellites on board a rocket that blasted off from here at 11.51 a.m. Wednesday. The 44.4-metre tall, 230-tonne Indian rocket Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) freed itself from the launch pad at the spaceport and lifted itself up, lugging the 960-kg Oceansat-2 and the six nano satellites all together weighing 20 kg.

September 17th, 2009 WASHINGTON - The element hydrogen - a key ingredient in water - is more widespread than expected at the moon's south pole, scientists said Thursday. NASA scientists announced the first data sent back to Earth from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), a satellite that will spend the next year making the most detailed maps yet of the moon's surface to prepare for man's eventual return.

September 9th, 2009 WASHINGTON - NASA has selected the target crater where its LCROSS spacecraft will search for water on the moon. The announcement of the target location where the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite, or LCROSS, and its spent Centaur rocket will hit in October, will be made on Friday, September 11, in the main auditorium, Building N201, of NASA's Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California.

September 7th, 2009 CHENNAI - Some time between Sep 20 and 25, India will launch a specialised satellite to watch over the Indian Ocean, an official of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said Monday. Oceansat 2 will be launched by the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) into a sun-synchronous orbit 720 km above the earth, the official said on phone from ISRO's launch centre at Sriharikota (Andhra Pradesh), 70 km from here.

August 21st, 2009 ASTANA - Kazakhstan's first satellite KazSat-1 has been put into orbit for a "space burial", the country's mission control reported Friday. The $100 million communications satellite, built for Kazakhstan by Russia's Khrunichev Space Centre, was put into orbit about 36,000 km above the Earth in June 2006.

July 31st, 2009 WASHINGTON - NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is introducing a new Web site that will provide a centralized resource for information on near-Earth objects - those asteroids and comets that can approach Earth. The "Asteroid Watch" site also contains links for the interested public to sign up for NASA's new asteroid widget and Twitter account.

July 29th, 2009 BANGALORE - The technology safeguard agreement (TSA) signed recently paves the way for India to launch US-made satellites from its spaceport at Sriharikota in Andhra Pradesh, a top space agency official said Wednesday. "Space cooperation with the US has been high on the government agenda.

July 28th, 2009 CHENNAI - A technology safeguards agreement (TSA) signed with the US last week will open up fresh opportunities for India in the field of space launches, say officials. The agreement, signed July 20 in New Delhi, will facilitate the launch of non-commercial US satellites and satellites with US components on Indian launch vehicles.

July 25th, 2009 DUBAI - The launch of the United Arab Emirates' first remote sensing satellite DubaiSat-1, scheduled Saturday, has been postponed to July 29, WAM news agency reported. The Emirates Institution for Advanced Science and Technology (EIAST) announced that the launch was postponed by the launching company -- International Space Company (Cosmotras) -- to undertake some safety and security tests.

June 23rd, 2009 WASHINGTON - NASA will take a giant step toward bringing humans back to the moon Tuesday as a new orbiting satellite arrives there to search for water. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is expected to reach the moon's orbit at 0943 (GMT).