Dec 5 2003
From The Space Library
Russia successfully conducted its first test of a modified Soviet RS- 18 Stiletto missile, launching the missile from an underground silo at Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. The Stiletto, renamed Strela, or Arrow, carried a dummy satellite into low Earth orbit. Originally designed to carry six individually guided nuclear warheads, Russia planned for the modified Stiletto to become the world's cheapest booster rocket for commercial satellite launches. Spokesperson for the Russian military Lieutenant-Colonel Igor Zatula stated that Russia would need to conduct several more test launches before the rocket would become available for commercial use.(Reuters, “Russia Tests New Role for Cold War Nukes,” 8 December 2003.
NASA announced the creation of the first detailed map of the water contained in Earth's atmosphere, a map that would help scientists better understand the nature of atmospheric water vapor and its implications for climate change and ozone depletion. In July 2002, NASA had taken detailed measurements of water isotopes in the atmosphere using Alias, an aircraft laser infrared absorption spectrometer flying aboard NASA's WB-57F high-altitude jet aircraft. The new laser technique had enabled scientists to map the water isotopes with sufficient resolution for researchers to use the map to study water transport, as well as to examine the detailed microphysics of clouds~key parameters necessary for understanding atmospheric composition, storm development, and weather prediction. The resulting map showed heavy hydrogen and heavy oxygen atoms, from Earth's surface to 25 miles (40.2 kilometers) above the planet. NASA's Earth Science Enterprise had funded the mission, which had used six aircraft provided by NASA and other federal agencies, to record observations above, in, and below the clouds. (NASA, “The Measure of Water: NASA Creates New Map for the Atmosphere,” news release 03-394, 5 December 2003, http://www.nasa.gov/home/hqnews/2003/dec/HQ_03394_water_map.html (accessed 23 March 2009).
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