* Astronomy

While its Genesis 1 expandable module circles Earth, Bigelow Aerospace of North Las Vegas is preparing a follow-on inflatable spacecraft for launch and getting ready to unveil its long-term business plan for space habitats.
As an entrepreneurial space development company, Bigelow Aerospace has as its primary focus the development of habitable complexes for a multitude of space users.
The firm’s first foothold in Earth orbit was the Genesis 1 module, which launched last July 12 atop a Dnepr booster under contract with ISC Kosmotras, a Russian and Ukrainian rocket-for-hire company. The booster — a silo-launched converted Cold War SS-18 ICBM — roared skyward from the Yasny Launch Base, an active Russian strategic missile facility.

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The company behind an inflatable space module that could serve as the prototype for future private-sector space stations has released its first video clips from orbit, showing a whirling view of the sun and Earth as well as a flurry of photos and other mementos floating within.

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A prototype spaceship module built by a U.S. private space firm has sent back some pictures taken by cameras aboard after one day in Earth orbit, its builder said on Thursday.
Launched into orbit atop a Russian rocket on Wednesday, the module now appears to be in good shape and is expected to circle the planet for several years while scientists study its durability.
It also carried insects that scientists hope to study to determine how well they survive the harsh space environment including exposure to space debris and radiation.

According to Robert Bigelow, founder of the Bigelow Aerospace, his control centre in Las Vegas received pictures from the cameras aboard the spacecraft.

A second prototype named Genesis-2, similar in construction and purpose to its predecessor, is expected to launch later this year or early 2007. It will help the firm fill gaps left by Genesis-1 in terms of vehicle performance and capability.
The company expects to have six to 10 sub-scale demonstrator flights, which will help establish both the technology and the business-case necessary for the deployment of a full-scale, private sector expandable habitats.

This launch was the first space launch from the new Yasnyy space complex, on the Dombarovsky ICBM base.
The Dombarovsky ICBM base is still operational and currently has 40 R-36M2/SS-18 missiles deployed there.


Latitude 50° 786 N, Longitude 059° 517 E

-- Edited by Blobrana at 03:15, 2006-07-13