On December 18 at 16:26 UTC France successfully launched a new spy satellite from French Guiana, using Europe's trusted Ariane 5 rocket.
The Helios 2B spacecraft joins an orbiting fleet of military platforms with optical and infrared imagers to map battlefields, monitor terrorist threats and enforce disarmament and non-proliferation treaties.
The letter addressed to cosmonaut Roman Romanenko to the ISS was sent from Austria at the 40th anniversary of the day when the first Man went on the Moon (July 21 in according to European time).
The letter was paid by 3 Austrian postage stamps. 2 of them were issued by the limited edition and can be bought only in a special philatelic booklet.
The letter was postmarked with the ISS official board post mark dated October 02, 2009 the day when the Soyuz TMA-16 docked to the ISS.
The letter, sent from the Bulgaria 2009 European philatelic exhibition from Sofia by registered mail, was addressed to cosmonaut Roman Romanenko to the ISS.
The letter was sent to the home address of Russian cosmonaut-veteran Yuri Romanenko, the father of cosmonaut Roman Romanenko. Then the letter was delivered to the ISS by Progress M-67 unmanned supply spacecraft.
On May 29, 2009 the ISS crew began to consist of 6 members for the first time. At that day Soyuz TMA-15 spacecraft with 3 cosmonauts aboard docked with the ISS.
On December 15, 2009 at 02:31 UTC China launched its first public-welfare mini satellite.
Hope I was launched from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province along with a remote-sensing satellite Yaogan VIII both on board a Chang Zheng-4B rocket-carrier.
The Hope I satellite will be used by students in China to study and experience aerospace science and technology.
On December 14, 2009 at 14:09 UTC a United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket successfully boosted the WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) space telescope into polar orbit from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
The two-stage rocket-carrier deployed the craft into an orbit 325 miles above Earth. NASA promises to discover millions of objects never seen before and revolutionize our view of the Universe.
The Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer will use advanced technologies to scan the sky with the clarity of a modern digital camera to reveal asteroids, comets, brown dwarfs, ultraluminous galaxies and new born stars that humans haven't laid eyes on.
On November 30, 2009 the Manu Karere rocket was lifted off at 2.28 p.m. (local time) from Great Mercury Island (New Zealand) and performed an exemplary 22 second burn.
It was a 6-metre-long, 60kg rocket Atea-1. The rocket reached its target speed of up to Mach 5, or 5000 km/h, reaching at least 100 km altitude and spent between 10 and 20 minutes in the sky before splashing down.
The rocket was named Manu Karere which means Bird Messenger. The rocket was made by the Rocket Lab private company.
It is the first time a privately-owned rocket has been launched in the southern hemisphere.
On December 1, 2009 the Soyuz TMA-15 undocked from the ISS at 03:56 UTC with Russian Roman Romanenko, Belgian Frank De Winne and Canadian Robert Thirsk on board.
photo by Rocket Lab
