On July 19, 2013 at 13:00 UTC the "Atlas-5” rocket-carrier was launched from Cape Canaveral launch site of US Air Force. The launch was performed by United Launch Alliance supported by the 45th Space Wing of US Air Force. The rocket orbited the MUOS-2 (Mobile User Objective System-2) telecommunication satellite for US Navy.
Russian Post issued a postage stamp devoted to the 50th Anniversary of Valentina Tereshkova’s space flight. Although the 50th anniversary of the spaceflight took place on June 16, the postage stamp was issued only on July 5, 2013. The size of stamp is 32,5 X 65 millimeters. The stamp is printed by sheets of 8 (4 X 2) stamps. Total edition is 424 000 stamps (53 000 sheets). The First Day Cover was also issued on July 5. All 3 parts of FDC (a cover, a postage stamp and a post cancellation) depict a seagull soaring in the sky. The Tereshkova’s call sign during her historic space flight was "Chaika”. Chaika means a seagull in Russian.
In June 2013 Russian Post issued the postal stationery devoted to this Historical event. Total edition are 2 000 000 envelops. The cover depicts a Soviet postage stamp issued in 1963 and a seagull soaring in the sky. The Tereshkova’s call sign during her historic space flight was "Chaika”. Chaika means a seagull in Russian.
On July 16, 2013 at 11:56 UTC American astronaut Christopher Cassidy and Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano opened the hatches of the "Quest” module of the International Space Station to begin a spacewalk. But NASA aborted a planned 6.5-hour spacewalk by two astronauts outside the International Space Station, after Luca Parmitano reported "a buildup of water" inside his helmet. "A little more than one hour into Tuesday's spacewalk, Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency reported water floating behind his head inside his helmet," NASA said in a statement. "The water was not an immediate health hazard for Parmitano, but Mission Control Centre decided to end the spacewalk earlier." The spacewalk officially ended at 13:29 UTC. It lasted only 1 hour and 32 minutes instead of the planned 6.5-hour venture outside the space station, making it the second shortest in the orbital laboratory's history.
On July 15, 2013 at 09:27 UTC the "Chang Zheng-2C” (Long-March II-C) rocket-carrier was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center located in northwest China's Gobi desert. The rocket orbited the "Shi-Jian-11-05” experimental satellite. It will be used to conduct scientific and technological experiments.
On July 09, 2013 American astronaut Christopher Cassidy and Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano performed a spacewalk. The hatch of the "Quest” module was opened at 12:02 UTC. The spacewalks carried out a variety of maintenance and installation tasks. They spent six hours and seven minutes outside the International Space Station. It was Parmitano's first spacewalk, making him the first Italian astronaut to walk in space, and the 5th EVA for Cassidy.
On July 02, 2013 at 02:38 UTC the "Proton” rocket-carrier with 3 navigation satellites was to be launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome. The rocket, carrying three Glonass-M satellites, changed its flight direction a few seconds after takeoff, falling and exploding over the space center.
On July 01, 2013 at 18:11 UTC the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle-C22 (PSLV) was launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center on India's east coast. The rocket orbited the "IRNSS-1A” satellite (Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System).
On June 28 at 01:30 UTC the L-1011 "Stargazer” aircraft-carrier departed Vandenberg Air Force Base. The aircraft carried an Orbital Sciences Pegasus XL rocket hooked to the belly. Flying a pre-determined "race track pattern" northward over the Pacific, the aircraft flew by the drop zone to measure weather conditions while the launch team conducted countdown testing. Achieving the precise heading and receiving a final "go" from the ground-based launch officials, co-pilot pushed a button on the center console of the cockpit that opened hooks holding the rocket and Pegasus was away cleanly. The "Pegasus XL” rocket free-fell for five seconds, dropping 300 feet below the aircraft while traveling at Mach 0.82. During the plunge, the onboard flight computer sensed the rocket's separation from the carrier jet and issued a command to release the safety inhibits in preparation for ignition. The "Pegasus XL” rocket orbited the I
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On June 27, 2013 at 16:53 UTC the "Stela” (RS-18) rocket-carrier was launched from Baykonur Cosmodrome. The rocket orbited the "Kondor” military remote sensing satellite. Strela (it means arrow) is a Russian rocket-carrier designed on the base of the Soviet/Russian UR-100N intercontinental ballistic missile also known as SS-19 Stiletto named by the NATO. Kondor is a military reconnaissance satellites developed by NPO Mashinostroyeniya for the Russian Aerospace Defence Forces.
