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Clouds force space shuttle delay, next try Monday

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Mudslide kills 11 people in rain-sodden Mexico

Source: Reuters

VALLE DE BRAVO, Mexico, Feb 6 (Reuters) - A mudslide in central Mexico has killed at least 11 people after days of heavy rain that had already caused flooding and fatalities elsewhere in the country.

The mudslide crushed several cars on a road near the small town of Temascaltepec on the route from the capital, Mexico City, to the popular weekend town of Valle de Bravo. Rescue workers at the scene said on Saturday they had dug out 11 bodies.

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Cyclone Oli Reaches Category Four Strength On Its Way to Open Waters

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The TRMM satellite flew almost directly over Tropical Cyclone Oli on February 3 at 0741 UTC (2:41 a.m. ET). The image shows that Oli had a large circulation and that its converging rain bands were causing additional rainfall in distant Bora Bora and Tahiti.
Credit: NASA/SSAI, Hal Pierce

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An infrared AIRS image (from NASA's Aqua satellite) on Feb. 4 at 11:23 UTC (6:23 a.m. ET) showed that French Polynesia and Tahiti were on the outer edges of powerful Cyclone Oli. Purple indicates strong thunderstorms with heavy rainfall, and very high storms with cloud temperatures to -63F.
Credit: NASA/JPL, Ed OlsenCyclone Oli Reaches Category Four Strength On Its Way to Open Waters

Oli has exploded in strength and as of February 4 it was a Category 4 cyclone with peak sustained winds of 132 mph (115 knots/213 km/hr). NASA's Aqua and TRMM satellites observed Oli's clouds grow colder and rainfall become heavier over the last day. Residents of French Polynesia should watch for local weather advisories. 

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission or TRMM satellite is like a rain gauge in space. It's managed by NASA and the Japanese Space Agency, and can measure rainfall in a cyclone from its orbit above the Earth. Yesterday, the TRMM satellite flew almost directly over Tropical Cyclone Oli and revealed that Oli had a large circulation and that its converging rain bands were causing additional rainfall in distant Bora Bora and Tahiti. In some areas of the storm, rain was falling at more than 2 inches (50 millimeters) per hour. 

Earlier today, February 4, NASA's Aqua satellite flew over Oli and showed very high thunderstorm cloud tops, so high they were colder than -63F (-52C), and dropping heavy rainfall. 

NASA's Aqua Satellite Sees Tropical Depression Fami Fading Fast

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NASA's Aqua satellite AIRS instrument captured Fami (blue) on Feb. 3 at 09:35 UTC (4:35 a.m. ET), and showed the system more resembling a cold front than a tropical cyclone, as it appears stretched out from northwest to southeast. Credit:NASA JPL, Ed Olsen
NASA's Aqua Satellite Sees Tropical Depression Fami Fading Fast

Now that Fami has crossed Madagascar, its fading fast. NASA's Aqua satellite captured an infrared satellite image earlier today that showed the storm was elongating and losing its circulation.

NASA's Aqua satellite AIRS instrument captured Fami on Feb. 3 at 09:35 UTC (4:35 a.m. ET), and showed the system more resembling a cold front than a tropical cyclone, as it appears stretched out from northwest to southeast. There are also very few strong thunderstorms left in what was once the center.

The Joint Typhoon Warning Center issued their last advisory on the system at 1 p.m. ET on February 2 after it crossed Madagascar, and entered the Southern Indian Ocean. At that time it was located approximately 150 nautical miles southwest of Antananarivo, Madagascar, near 21.0 South and 45.5 East. It had maximum sustained wind near 34 mph, but was rapidly fading. Fami tracked eastward at 11 mph (10 knots) into open waters. 

Animated infrared satellite imagery showed a significant decrease and disorganization of deep convection after Fami tracked over Madagascar, as a result of friction from sweeping over mountainous areas.

GOES-P Spacecraft loaded with fuel, March 1 launch date expected

 

In the mobile service tower at Launch Complex 37 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Fla., a solid rocket booster for the Delta IV rocket, slated to launch NASA's GOES-P satellite as it is lowered toward the base of the rocket. Credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller
› Larger viewThe GOES spacecraft continues its processing at the Astrotech Facility in Titusville, Fla. and fuel was loaded into the GOES-P spacecraft on Saturday, January 30. The fuel will keep GOES-P in orbit for about 14 years.

Just as you wouldn't want your car's gas tank to leak, engineers don't want a satellite to leak fuel. So, a team of engineers performed propulsion system pressurization and leak checks before fueling GOES-P. Those preparations were completed on January 22.

The GOES-P spacecraft was moved to the fueling stand and the team began fueling the spacecraft. The oxidizer was successfully loaded on January 28. Like a fire needs oxygen to burn, the spacecraft fuel needs the oxidizer to ignite in space, where there is no air. . The fuel was successfully loaded on January 30.

After carefully lifting and moving the fueled spacecraft, the team successfully mounted GOES P on top of the Delta IV Payload Attach Fitting (PAF). This was completed on February 1. The PAF is a conical shape structure that the spacecraft mounts onto inside the launch vehicle. The spacecraft rides on the PAF until it separates at approximately 22 thousand miles above the Earth's surface.

Cyclone Oli hits French Polynesia

Source: Reuters

PAPEETE, France, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Cyclone Oli hit French Polynesia on Thursday, forcing hundreds of people living on the coast to be evacuated, hitting transport and driving tourists into temporary shelters.

Authorities told residents to stay indoors as winds of up to 200 km (125 miles) an hour threw up waves of up to 7 metres (23 ft).

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