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News briefs: January 30
Posted: Thu, Jan 31, 2002, 8:46 AM ET (1346 GMT)
- The launch of a Soyuz taxi flight carrying space tourist Mark Shuttleworth may be delayed a week, Russian officials said Wednesday. The launch of the Soyuz flight, previously scheduled for April 20, will now likely take place on the 27th, although April 25 was also listed in some reports. The delay is designed to accommodate a shuttle mission to the station scheduled for early April.
- NASA is scheduled to release later Thursday new criteria for space station crews. The criteria were recently approved by the ISS partners in the wake of Dennis Tito's flight to the station last year. NASA also scheduled a briefing for Monday afternoon, February 4, to discuss the proposed fiscal year 2003 budget for the agency. President Bush's proposed budget will be released Monday morning.
- NASA's Mars Odyssey spacecraft is now in its prime mapping orbit after two maneuvers this week, JPL reported Wednesday. Two brief thruster burns on Monday and Wednesday tweaked the spacecraft's orbit into the preferred configuration for the spacecraft's science mission. Two neutron spectrometers on the spacecraft are already operating, and the remaining instruments are expected to start collecting data next month.
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