A fantastic site about Guy Fawkes

Terrorism then, terrorism now,
Torture then, torture now,
Religion, the source of evil?

China's Shenzhou VI spacecraft has safely returned to Earth, after five days in orbit.
The craft, carrying two astronauts, landed at 0432 on Monday (2032 GMT on Sunday) in the remote grasslands of Inner Mongolia.

It is the second manned spaceflight for China - only the third country to successfully put a man into space.

China first sent up a manned mission in 2003, following the United States and Russia into space.

The capsule is reported to have landed by parachute only 1km (0.6 miles) from its target.

Beijing has attached great importance to its space programme, viewing it as a source of national pride and international prestige.

China hopes to set up a space station within five years and eventually it wants to put an astronaut on the Moon.

My comment:

Why spend so much money on this?
Aren't there more urgent problems on earth, in science?
It is no secret that the experiments carried out on the ISS for instance did not yield as much as was expected. So why start plans for another white elephant, another piece of rubbish orbiting the earth and turning the sky into a dump?

Non Nasa use of NASA's facilities

Parts of a message received from NASA
10.07.05
NASA AND ZERO-G TEST SPACE SHUTTLE RUNWAY PROGRAM

NASA and Zero Gravity Corporation, known as ZERO-G, of Fort
Lauderdale, Fla., have announced the firm's participation in a pilot
program. It will demonstrate expanded access to and use of the space
shuttle's runway and landing facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center,
Fla., for non-NASA activities.

ZERO-G will conduct weightless flights from the facility using its
Boeing 727-200 aircraft, called G-Force One, the weekend of Nov. 5-6.
The passengers, called "Flyers," will predominantly be teachers who
will perform simple microgravity experiments they can share with
their students back in the classroom.

The provider of weightless flights will be the first in a series of
demonstration projects invited to use the landing facility to help
NASA develop policy, management and operational approaches to opening
the 15,000-foot runway to non-NASA use. The pathfinder project was
proposed by ZERO-G in response to NASA's recent solicitation of
interest in non-NASA uses for the facility.

"We're excited to have ZERO-G come to the Shuttle Landing Facility as
the first demonstration project in this effort to broaden the
facility's use," said Kennedy Space Center Director Jim Kennedy.
"Their activities to help share the experience of spaceflight with
the general public, especially those educators who are developing our
next generation of explorers, offer a strong synergy with NASA's own
outreach and educational activities," he said.

In addition to giving passengers a brief exposure to the zero gravity
experience astronauts have while orbiting earth, the parabolic
flights also offer a simulation of the gravity a person would feel on
the moon and on Mars, providing a glimpse of what future NASA crews
will encounter.

Dr. Peter H. Diamandis, Chairman and CEO of ZERO-G explained, "Our
flyers train just like astronauts and live their dream of being
weightless. More than 1,250 customers in the last year have been able
to fly with ZERO-G and company officials are excited to be part of
the effort to expand use of the historic Shuttle Landing Facility."

ZERO-G and NASA also are discussing future potential flight activity
that will support scientists and their experiments, using Kennedy
Space Center experiment-processing capabilities, as well as the
availability of nearby airspace.

Other potential projects proposed to NASA in response to the Request
for Information are in the discussion stage with their respective
organizations and are expected to be announced jointly in the near
future.

The pilot program is being sponsored by the Kennedy Space Center,
Center Operations Directorate, and is supported by NASA's Office of
Space Operations for the purpose of helping NASA implement U.S. Space
Transportation Policy and the President's Management Agenda.

For more information about ZERO-G, please visit
http://www.GoZeroG.com or call (800) ZERO-G-800.

For information about NASA missions and projects, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov


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