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News briefs: July 1
Posted: Tue, Jul 2, 2002, 8:05 AM ET (1205 GMT)
- EchoStar announced late Monday that is plans to appeal an FCC decision to revoke two satellite licenses. The FCC announced Monday that it was revoking the licenses for Ka-band satellites in two orbital slots because EchoStar failed to meet milestones in the license to begin construction of the satellites. EchoStar officials said in a statement that they plan to launch a satellite, EchoStar 9, with a Ka-band payload later this year.
- The launch of Shenzhou 4, the latest prototype of a manned Chinese spacecraft, may take place in September, SpaceDaily reported Monday. The article cited separate Chinese press reports that said that a pair of OlympiadSat microsatellites would be secondary payloads on the Shenzhou 4 launch, and that the OlympiadSat spacecraft would launch in September. Some Western experts believe Shenzhou 4 may be the last unmanned test flight of Shenzhou before a manned launch is attempted.
- The SOHO spacecraft has captured an image of a giant loop of gas ejected by the Sun, SPACE.com reported Monday. The "eruptive prominence" is a magnetic field loop with hot gas trapped within it. While such prominences can cause geomagnetic activity, such as aurorae, when directed at the Earth, this particular prominence is not a threat.
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