News briefs: August 13
Posted: Wed, Aug 14, 2002, 7:45 AM ET (1145 GMT)
- Frederick Gregory was officially sworn in Monday as the agency's new deputy administrator, NASA announced Tuesday. Gregory's nomination to the post was confirmed by the Senate earlier this month, but Gregory could not assume the job until after the President signed the confirmation papers. Gregory had been the associate administrator for space flight; that position has now been filled by Bill Readdy.
- China is planning the fourth, and perhaps final, unmanned test flight of its Shenzhou spacecraft by the end of this year, the AP reported Tuesday. The article cited reports in Chinese state media that said the Shenzhou 4 spacecraft would be "exactly the same" as a spacecraft designed to carry a human crew. If the launch does go off successfully, a manned flight could take place in 2003.
- A Dnepr rocket will launch five small satellites in December, Interfax reported this week. The five satellites: two LatinSats from Aprize Satellite Argentina, a German satellite named Rubin, Italy's UniSat, and SaudiSat, will be placed into sun synchronous orbit by a Dnepr launched from Baikonur. The Dnepr is a converted SS-18 ICBM.
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