* Astronomy

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) has announced the date of the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 11 (H-IIA F11) with the Engineering Test Satellite VIII "Kiku No. 8" (ETS-VIII) onboard, which was approved by the Space Activities Commission (SAC).

Scheduled date of launch:
3:32 - 3:44 p.m. December 16 (Saturday), 2006 (Japan Standard Time, JST)

Launch windows:
December 17 (Sun) through 28 (Wed), 2006 (JST)

Launch Site:
Yoshinobu Launch Complex at the Tanegashima Space Centre