As the world's most powerful telescope for X rays, Chandra will make images of the most high-energy events in the cosmos, such as supernovae and black holes. On that date, an international business partnership called Sea Launch successfully launched a demonstration satellite from a ship positioned within a few feet of the equator in the Pacific Ocean. Launching satellites from remote stretches of sea promises to reduce the costs of getting telecommunications hardware into orbit, in part because equatorial launch sites take advantage of Earth's spin to give rockets a boost. The helicopter carries 19 passengers in a cabin large enough for them to stand upright. It also gets them there in a hurry by cruising at 180 mph, a speed that would make other helicopters shake uncontrollably.
Luggage is loaded through a ramp in the back.
And with fewer parts than the shuttle's engines, it promises greater reliability for launches on its intended expendable launch vehicle, the Delta IV, starting in 2001. In a year when public attention focused on the safety of general aviation, AlliedSignal made a welcome announcement. The company's Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System, which for years has alerted commercial pilots when they're flying dangerously close to mountains or the ground, will soon be available for private aviators. The system had been too expensive and bulky for small planes. Military aviators will get a new look from the cockpit thanks to a head-up display shown for the first time this year.