The nature of the satellite manufacturing industry is changing, much as the computer industry changed in the late 1970s. The satellite industry is becoming less of a scientific enterprise, wherein each spacecraft is a unique design, handcrafted and...

The world changed on October 4, 1957, when the Soviet Union launched the Earth's first artificial satellite (the Moon is a natural satellite). Sputnik, a Russian word meaning "fellow traveler," was an 83 kilogram (183-pound)...

Not long after the Soviet Union launched the first satellite in 1957, satellites began to play an increasingly important role in our lives. The first satellites were small because of the lack of powerful launch vehicles, and almost all had scientific...

The launch of the Telstar satellite on July 10, 1962 heralded a new age for communications. Prior to Telstar, live television broadcasts had been confined within continental borders, hindered by the inability of television's high frequencies to...

A full size model of the Earth observation satellite ERS 2 In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavor. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from...

Nowhere to go but up The past 13 months has been one of the most tumultuous stretches on record for the satellite industry. The in-orbit failure of PanAmSat's Galaxy IV bird last. May struck a crushing blow to the U.S. paging industry...

His wife shuffles to his Bed. They part, when the shades are bright, she sleeps, eyes opened. To stay with him, he would need to ask the light to shade its rising, she would need to ask the sun ...

China's burgeoning space program has announced plans to launch its first astronomy satellite and participate in joint projects with Russia and France, state media reported Monday.The satellite to be launched in 2010 will carry a "hard X-ray modulation telescope" being developed by Chinese scientists for...

Howard Stern finds himself listening to something different these days: "The Howard Stern Show," on satellite radio.Unlike his last years on terrestrial radio, where Stern felt his voice was neutered and his program sterilized, the still undisputed king of the shock jocks loves what he's...