The European Space Agency (ESA) will be conducting a 500 day isolation experiment to test the psychological effects of a manned mission to Mars. 6 people will sit and live in a space about 2,150 sq ft. for 500 days without outside interaction. The experiment is expected to take place in the spring of 2008. They will be looking for some information on the following, the influence of confinement on sleep, mood and mental health, and the effect of differences in personality, cultural background and motivation. But also on the medical side — physiological adaptation to an isolated envi

The Plank Mission is a satelitte based exploration craft that is slated to explore the galaxy for clues to the origin of the Universe. Working from the big bang theory, the Plank Mission satelitte will use large telescopes to measure small changes in temperature caused by fluctuations in Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB). Scientists believe that the accuracy of the telescope used will provide a glimpse into the forces present when the Universe had just been created - as young as 300,000 years after the explosion that God sent from the heavens to unleash matter into the world. Or is that not an accurate picture of the Big Bang theory?

COROT has finished it's testing phase with excellent results. With that completed, the satelitte launched by the European Space Agency has begun it mission. COROT has begun looking for new planets around other stars. In order to accomplish this, COROT will be monitoring the amount of light emitted from distant stars. It is thought that when the light received from a star decreases in intensity, the satellite will have detected a planet passing in front of the star. This method of planet detection is thought to improve our chances of detecting smaller planets closer to a star, planets more like Earth, than previously possible.

Starchaser, from New Mexico awarded $200K grant to 'submit an analysis of the proposed Thunderstar Starchaser 5 rocket and to develop a business plan on the sustainability of space tourism.' Umm, I can write a business plan. How much of that contract is for the business plan?

Lunar ambitions for China, Japan, others

China will launch the Chang’e I, a lunar orbiter, in 2007. During its 1 year mission they will engage in imaging and studies of the moon's surface. They will also be looking at the distribution of 14 usable elements on the moon's surface.

Japan's JAXA will also launch a lunar orbiter in 2007. The mission is more extensive than China's mission, however they will be studying very much the same things as the Chinese (surface and subsurface architecture, mineral deposits).

The European Space Agency's SMART-1 recently completed a lunar orbiter mission.

The French have launched a 'planet-hunter' telescope called Corot. This telescope will measure fluctuations of light received from stars to detect when planets of 'all sizes' move between the star and the telescope. The article contradicts itself on this point, however. At one point, they state that planets found will be rocky planets "a few times the size of earth". This method of planet hunting is currently used on Earth, however, from earth based telescopes the planets must be very large to detect the drop in light from a star. Researchers believe that they will be able to detect much smaller planets using this method. Let's hope so, I need some elbow room.