Human Spaceflight and Exploration http://www.esa.int ESA Human Spaceflight and Exploration newsspaceen-us600Copyright 2012 European Space Agencyrss@esa.intFri, 10 Feb 2012 16:26:02 GMTFri, 10 Feb 2012 16:26:02 GMThttp://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Europe’s ATV space ferry set for launch to Space Station Fuel, water, oxygen, air and most of the dry cargo have been loaded into ESA's third Automated Transfer Vehicle, Edoardo Amaldi, as the 9 March liftoff approaches. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMRNPVX7YG_index_0.html SEMRNPVX7YGWed, 08 Feb 2012 09:04:00 GMT European training for Russian cosmonauts In the spirit of the international nature of the International Space Station, ESA’s Astronaut Training Division not only welcomes European astronauts: four Russian cosmonauts are also working hard at the European Astronaut Centre this month. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM0GHTXXXG_astronauts_0.html SEM0GHTXXXGFri, 03 Feb 2012 14:12:00 GMT Mission X: are you fit for space? “We are fun, we are strong and we are enthusiastic, we are going to win Mission X!” claimed one school at the Mission X launch. They will have their work cut out, judging by the eagerness of other schoolchildren across Europe. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMSOFTXXXG_index_0.html SEMSOFTXXXGFri, 03 Feb 2012 10:23:00 GMT Voyage to the most isolated base on Earth Alexander Kumar, the next ESA-sponsored crewmember to stay in Concordia, has arrived safely at the research base in Antarctica. The voyage to one of the remotest places on Earth takes even longer than the voyage to the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMVGAI8RXG_index_0.html SEMVGAI8RXGFri, 27 Jan 2012 13:33:00 GMT Robot competition in zero-gravity School teams from Europe and America have been commanding robots competing in the Spheres ZeroRobotics tournament in space. The arena: 400 km above Earth on the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMN6SH8RXG_education_0.html SEMN6SH8RXGWed, 25 Jan 2012 09:10:00 GMT Greenhouse in space results and conclusions During the MagISStra mission, ESA astronaut Paolo Nespoli attempted to grow plants in space using a miniature greenhouse. Simultaneously, schoolchildren and the crew of Mars500 ran the same educational experiment to compare plant growth. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM8FCNXDXG_education_0.html SEM8FCNXDXGFri, 20 Jan 2012 09:42:00 GMT European finalists selected in Space Lab student competition Sixty space experiment proposals have been selected as finalists in the YouTube Space Lab student science competition, co-sponsored by ESA. Judges must now select the two top entries to be flown on the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMPE4NXDXG_index_0.html SEMPE4NXDXGWed, 18 Jan 2012 18:25:00 GMT 'I'll go where your music takes me...' Music has accompanied humans into space since the earliest years of spaceflight. Music and space, it seems, have a deep association, with some pieces becoming permanently connected with space in popular culture. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM9Y5KX3XG_index_0.html SEM9Y5KX3XGMon, 16 Jan 2012 11:29:00 GMT Dutch Prime Minister ‘phones’ André Kuipers in space The Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, and students from the Technical University of Delft recently enjoyed speaking with ESA astronaut André Kuipers about life on the International Space Station during a live event. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM5U4KX3XG_index_0.html SEM5U4KX3XGThu, 12 Jan 2012 10:08:00 GMT Happy New Year from space! An out-of-this-world Season's Greetings from the astronauts aboard the International Space Station, including ESA's André Kuipers.

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]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMYSOGXTWG_astronauts_0.html SEMYSOGXTWGMon, 02 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT ESA astronaut André Kuipers arrives at the Space Station ESA astronaut André Kuipers and crewmates Oleg Kononeko and Don Pettit docked today with the International Space Station in their Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft. They will work aboard the Station now for five months and return to Earth in May. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMJTOBX9WG_index_0.html SEMJTOBX9WGFri, 23 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT Season’s greetings from the other extreme It is summer in Antarctica and the new crew for the Concordia research station will soon arrive. And since the place is second only to space for harsh conditions, they have been trained courtesy of ESA. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM4TKBX9WG_index_0.html SEM4TKBX9WGThu, 22 Dec 2011 07:00:00 GMT ESA astronaut André Kuipers on his way to the International Space Station PR 37 2011 - After their launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 13:16 GMT (14:16 CET) today, ESA astronaut André Kuipers and crewmates Oleg Kononenko and Don Pettit are circling Earth every 90 minutes aboard the Soyuz TMA-3M spacecraft as they make their way to the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMWT8BX9WG_index_0.html SEMWT8BX9WGWed, 21 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT André’s rocket rolled out The Christmas season has brought the gift of a Soyuz launcher for the PromISSe mission. ESA’s André Kuipers and his crewmates are running their final simulations and preparing to board the rocket on Wednesday to head towards the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMWUXAX9WG_index_0.html SEMWUXAX9WGMon, 19 Dec 2011 11:42:00 GMT European Mars500 crew on tour After being shut away for 520 days in their simulated spacecraft, the six Mars500 ‘marsonauts’ are now taking a well-earned holiday. In between they underwent extensive medical checks, made a high-profile tour and attended a special tweetup in Rome. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMRWVAX9WG_index_0.html SEMRWVAX9WGMon, 19 Dec 2011 09:00:00 GMT André’s blog: from doctor to guinea pig ESA astronaut André Kuipers has spent many months preparing for his next mission – travelling, training, stuck in quarantine and a guinea pig for medical experiments. For the last six months, André has been writing a blog in his native Dutch, but now entries are also available in English. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM45I8XZVG_index_0.html SEM45I8XZVGThu, 15 Dec 2011 11:42:00 GMT ESA signs contract for Space Station support ESA signed a two-year contract with Astrium on 13 December to provide Industrial Operations Team support to the Agency’s human spaceflight activities. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM3548XZVG_index_0.html SEM3548XZVGTue, 13 Dec 2011 13:53:00 GMT Call for Media: Follow the launch of ESA astronaut André Kuipers PR 35 2011 - ESA astronaut André Kuipers is scheduled for launch to the International Space Station on 21 December. Media are invited to cover the event via ESA TV or ESA's web site or attend one of the ESA events in the Netherlands and Germany. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEM6238XZVG_astronauts_0.html SEM6238XZVGTue, 13 Dec 2011 10:15:00 GMT André is ‘go for launch’ and has arrived at Baikonur ESA astronaut André Kuipers is now officially ready for liftoff on 21 December: he and his crewmates have passed their final exams and left for the launch site yesterday. Along with André’s plane, his PromISSe mission blog also took off yesterday. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMWNB5XPVG_index_0.html SEMWNB5XPVGFri, 09 Dec 2011 11:42:00 GMT Mission-X: train like an astronaut in 2012 ESA astronaut André Kuipers is inviting thousands of schoolchildren to perform physical activities and to learn about healthy nutrition to compete with teams from around the world to become as fit as astronauts. Mission-X kicks off again in February! ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaHS/SEMSE7WWVUG_index_0.html SEMSE7WWVUGTue, 15 Nov 2011 14:00:00 GMT