Presidential panel gives grim assessment of current plans and budget

    NEWSALERT: Thursday, August 13, 2009 @ 1425 GMT
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        The latest news from Spaceflight Now


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EXPLORATION PLAN DOESN'T FIT IN CURRENT BUDGET, PANEL SAYS
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A presidential panel wrapping up a review of options for future U.S.
manned space flight operations delivered a grim assessment Wednesday,
showing NASA's current plan to retire the shuttle, finish the space
station and return to the moon by the early 2020s is not even remotely
feasible without a significant restoration of previously cut funding.

http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0908/12augustine/


MOON BECKONS COMMERCIAL COMEBACK FOR BEAGLE
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Project managers for the British Beagle lander program are seeking
redemption - on the moon - nearly six years after their spacecraft
disappeared on Mars.

http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0908/12beagle/


CLOUDS DISCOVERED OVER TROPICS OF SATURN'S MOON
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In a case of persistent interplanetary detective work using powerful
ground-based telescopes, a team of astronomers located and tracked the
first bright but transient clouds over tropical latitudes on Saturn's moon
Titan.

http://spaceflightnow.com/news/n0908/12titan/


ASIAN COMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE LAUNCHED BY PROTON
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A Proton booster successfully guided an Asian communications satellite
into orbit Tuesday, six months after a last-minute rocket switch to meet
the customer's schedule demands.

http://spaceflightnow.com/proton/asiasat5/