www.spacealliane.roA RSS feed containing the latest Space Alliance science and news articles.Copyright 2026 Space Alliance The ninth edition of the Space Alliance magazine - addressing the English language readers of our website, is ready. This edition focuses on the Mangalyaan mission, India’s space mission to the Red Planet. India managed to successfully launch their first Mars mission from the Satish Dhawan Space Center, aboard the PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) rocket on the 5th of November 2013. The launch of Mangalyaan, following the Indian Moon mission Chandrayaan, shows India’s long term planetary exploration ambitions. On 24th of September 2014, after a complicated interplanetary transfer, Mangalyaan was successfully placed in a stable orbit around the red planet, thus making India the first nation to put a satellite on Mars’ orbit from the first attempt. In short time ISRO mad...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20150523070001http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20150523070001Sat, 23 May 2015, 07:04:50 GMTThe seventh edition of the Space Alliance magazine - addressing the English language readers of our website is ready. This edition is focused on the debut of two new Asian launchers – one Chinese, the other one Japanese, the start of the European Swarm program and the one of the Global Xpress program (Inmarsat). Secondary, the magazine is coming with the latest news about the status of the Space X activities and their first flight with a GEO satellite, marking their entrance as a launch services provider for the telecom market. The summary of the seventh edition is listed below: •    Epsilon at the first flight – JAX marks another success •    A new spacecraft for the USAF •    A new rocket for the Chinese fleet, after a secret launc...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20140309043851http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20140309043851Sun, 09 Mar 2014, 04:44:38 GMTThe sixth edition of the Space Alliance magazine- addressing the English language readers of our website is ready. This edition is focused on the celebration of the 2011's World Space Week. Secondary, the magazine is coming with the latest news about the launch of the first Romanian satellite. We also present in dedicated articles the current situation of the Glonass program and the return to flight of the LandLaunch and SeaLaunch commercial operators. Then we turn our attention to the Indian and Chinese rockets, used recently to send new satellites in space. The summary of the sixth edition is listed bellow: •    WorldSpaceWeek 2011 •    QuetzSat •    Russia launches another Glonass satellite and comes closer to the number o...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20111115062821http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20111115062821Tue, 15 Nov 2011, 06:35:59 GMTThe fifth edition of the Space Alliance magazine- addressing the English language readers of our website is ready. This edition is focused on the celebration of 50 years of human spaceflight for NASA. Secondary, the magazine is coming with the latest news about the launch of the first Romanian satellite. We also present in dedicated articles the first 2011 launches of the Chinese and Indian space programs. Then we turn our attention to the Atlas 5 and Ariane 5 rockets, and finally we end with an article about a Russian military satellite recently sent in space. The summary of the fifth edition is listed bellow: •    Goliat the first Romanian satellite is approaching the launch dateless than 6 months since Romania will have its first space mission •  ...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110829055127http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110829055127Mon, 29 Aug 2011, 05:58:36 GMTThe fourth edition of the Space Alliance magazine- addressing the English language readers of our website is ready. This edition is dedicated to the legendary flight of Gagarin as we have recently celebrated 50 years of human spaceflight. We also present in a special article the discussions about the future of the international space station and we end this edition with a detailed view over the Messenger mission- the first who succeeded to enter a stable orbit around Mercury. The summary of the fourth edition is listed bellow: •    12 April 2011 - 50 years from the first flight of a human in space •    ESA's members reafirm their interest for ISS •    From Earth to Mercury - the Messenger mission writes history The entire ...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110721015152http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110721015152Thu, 21 Jul 2011, 01:58:08 GMT12 April 1961 “The world’s first spaceship, Vostok, with a man on board, was launched into orbit from the Soviet Union on 12 April 1961. The pilot space-navigator of the satellite-spaceship Vostok is a citizen of the USSR, Flight Major Yuri Gagarin.” 12 April 2011 50 years from the first flight of a human in space. A bit of history in 2 posters... ...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110412051549http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110412051549Tue, 12 Apr 2011, 05:30:15 GMTThe second edition of the Space Alliance magazine- addressing the English language readers of our website is ready. The summary of the second edition is listed bellow: •    Ariane 5 rocket aproaches the end the 2010 with a new successful launch •    The Glonass system hit by the loss of three satellites •    What happened with the Japanese Akatsuki probe •    China establishes a new record for the number of launches in 2010 •    How the spatial year 2010 ended-Part 1 •    How the spatial year 2010 ended-part 2 •    How the spatial year 2010 ended-Part 3 •    How the spatial year 2010 ended-Part 4 •    How the spatial year 2010 ended-Part 5 ...en http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110323013934http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=20110323013934Wed, 23 Mar 2011, 01:49:29 GMT The light measurement technology has evolved during the years from the old traditional film based photography to one where electronic images are the choice. The imaging recording device is one of the most critical components so understanding the process of how the light images are recorded can increase the quality of the light measurement data.© Copyright 2010 www.spacealliance.ro The light measurement technology has evolved during the years from the old traditional film based photography to one where electronic images are the choice. The imaging recording device is one of the most critical components so understanding the process ...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201003230327http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201003230327Tue, 23 Mar 2010, 03:29:59 GMT  Based on the operating principle, the CCDs are categorized in four major classes: -linear CCDs -interline CCDs -full frame CCDs -frame transfer CCDs © Copyright 2010 www.spacealliance.ro Based on the operating principle, the CCDs are categorized in four major classes: 1. linear A linear CCD is actually consisting in a single row of pixels which needs to be repositioned by a special mechanism in order to construct the image. By that is a complex system which means is slower and leaves the possibility of potential failures Bellow is an example of this architecture-Atmel...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201003190321http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201003190321Fri, 19 Mar 2010, 03:28:12 GMT   A very important device on any spacecraft is the one which determines the spacecraft’s attitude. There are many different methods by which the attitude of a satellite can be determined, but one of the mostly widely used is the star tracker. © Copyright 2010 www.spacealliance.ro Star tracker specifications A very important device on any spacecraft is the one which determines the spacecraft’s attitude. There are many different methods by which the attitude of a satellite can be determined, but one of the mostly widely used is the star tracker. Other methods for determining attitude exist, but none c...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201002260821http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201002260821Fri, 26 Feb 2010, 08:28:43 GMT   Star sensors measure star coordinates in the spacecraft frame and provide attitude information when these observed coordinates are compared with known star directions obtained from a star catalog. In general, star sensors are the most accurate of attitude sensors, achieving accuracies to the arc-second range.© Copyright 2010 www.spacealliance.ro Introduction Researchers in the field of spacecraft dynamics and control are concerned with creating accurate and understandable physical models of satellites. These simulations help to verify principles of motion and to test control designs for both attitude and orbit...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201002250904http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=201002250904Thu, 25 Feb 2010, 09:16:25 GMT Article updated with programme ESA PR 16-2009. On 14 July, a crew of six will leave their Mars mission simulator and see the Sun once again. The crew, which includes a French pilot and a German engineer selected by ESA, will have completed 105 days of confinement and numerous scientific experiment runs inside the isolation facility at the Russian Institute for Biomedical Problems (IBMP) in Moscow. Their simulated mission will help understand the psychological and medical aspects of long-duration spaceflight. Media representatives are invited to meet the crew just after they have opened the door and stepped out of the isolation facility. There will be opportunities for the media to film and take photos of the facility, interview the six participants and project management and...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200907021822http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200907021822Thu, 02 Jul 2009, 18:26:36 GMT In the ancient times, it was noticed that some lights moved on the sky while the others remained in the same position in relation to each other. Stars which appeared to be closed together were grouped into constellations. Stars which changed their position were called planets and the seven ones observable directly by eye were considered in order of speed of apparent movement Moon, Mercury, Venus, Sun, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Today a lot of ancient mysteries have been solved, but much more are still to be investigated. This article is an introduction to some of the astronomy issues like absolute and apparent magnitude, relation between magnitude and distance, luminosity of a star, star's flux, spectral classes, colour index and temperature of a star, star distance, pa...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060702http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060702Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 07:15:55 GMT Operating a voice system depends largely on the skills of the involved persons. Proper voice procedure training should provide the operators with the basic knowledge of how to improve their skills in the use of radio communication. Even the best systems can suffer from interference and because of this is possible than the other part cannot hear (understand) the information passed. Therefore it is extremely important that proper voice procedure is used to save time. Briefly, a voice procedure is a set of rules designed to provide security, accuracy and discipline when speaking on the voice loop. Phonetic alphabet Letters, numbers and symbols It is most important to use the accepted phonetic alphabet for letters and digits for al...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060647http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060647Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 06:52:11 GMT The concept of proper motion in astronomy is defined as the apparent movement of a star on the celestial sphere, usually measured as seconds of arc per year. It is due both to the actual relative motions of the sun and the star through space. The proper motion reflects only transverse motion (the component of motion across the line of sight to the star); it does not include the component of motion toward or away from the sun. The most distant stars show the least proper motion. The average proper motion of the stars that can be seen with the naked eye is 0.1'' per year. The proper motion of a star is its apparent angular movement per year on the celestial sphere. It is a combination of its actual motion through space and its motion relati...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060636http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060636Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 06:40:07 GMT The Hipparcos and Tycho Catalogues are the primary products of the European Space Agency's astrometric mission, Hipparcos. The satellite, which operated for four years, returned high quality scientific data from November 1989 to March 1993. Each of the catalogues contains a large quantity of very high quality astrometric and photometric data. In addition there are associated annexes featuring variability and double/multiple star data, and solar system astrometric and photometric measurements. Although in general only the final reduced and calibrated astrometric and photometric data are provided, some auxiliary files containing results from intermediate stages of the data processing, of relevance for the more-specialized user, have also been retained for publication. The global data...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060623http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060623Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 06:30:16 GMT Spacecraft attitude is briefly the angular orientation of a spacecraft body vector with respect to an external reference frame. A spacecraft attitude determination and control system typically uses several sensors and actuators and because attitude is described by three or more variables (apart from the angles, one can add the rotational speed etc), the difference between the desired and the measured state is complicated to be evaluated, most of the time being either undetermined or over-determined. The attitude of a spacecraft is its orientation in space. The motion of a rigid spacecraft is specified by its position, velocity, attitude and attitude motion. The first two quantities describe the translation motion of the center of mass of the spacecraft and are the subject of wh...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060613http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060613Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 06:16:28 GMT The Lagrangian points are locations in space in the vicinity of two orbiting masses where the gravitational forces and the orbital motion balance each other to form a point at which a third body of negligible mass would be stationary relative to the two bodies. There are a number of web resources describing the Lagrangian points, some of them offering a very good introduction and description of the 5 Lagrangian points, while others insist on the techical aspects of the problem. Nonetheless, in the following article we'll try to add to the non-mathematical and intuitive descriptions available on the web (like, for instance, the ESA page related to the 5 lagrangian points or the Wikipedia article ) a detailed-mathematical view of the problem, starting from the technical defintion wh...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060441http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060441Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 05:00:38 GMT This article intends to give to the reader an overview of the state of the art attitude sensors used for the modern missions. Attitude determination uses a combination of sensors and mathematical models to collect vector components in the body and inertial reference frames, typically in the form of a quaternion, Euler angles or rotation matrix. The main sensors available on satellite area are: Earth sensors There are different earth sensors available on the market like horizon crossing indicators and horizon scanners. The sensors use the difference of the infrared light emitted by Earth and the one emitted by the deep space in order to detect the horizon, and then they return the vector to the approximate center of the Earth.   Sun sensor ...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060439http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060439Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 04:40:02 GMT This article intends to be a summary of the attitude actuators for spacecrafts either active or passive. It will introduce the reader to the basic attitude control hardware in use for the modern platforms. The attitude control of a spacecraft can be considered being either actively controlled (meaning that a controller calculates necessary control torques and acting on the satellite to adjust its attitude to a desired position) or passively controlled (meaning that the satellite uses external torques that occurs due to its interaction with the environment and thus they cannot be avoided, in this case the disturbances being used for forcing the attitude of the satellite). In general, the active control assures 3 axes stabilization, while the passive control gives the opportunity...enhttp://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060429http://www.spacealliance.ro/articles/view.aspx?id=200903060429Fri, 06 Mar 2009, 04:31:24 GMT