XIAM007

Making Unique Observations in a Very Cluttered World

Sunday 15 January 2012

Failed Russian space probe has crashed in Pacific Ocean showering fragments south of Chile's coast in a fiery plunge -

Failed Russian space probe has crashed in Pacific Ocean showering fragments south of Chile's coast in a fiery plunge - 


Phobos Ground Probe

The fragments of the Phobos-Ground landed in water 775 miles west of Wellington Island off the southern coast of Chile, according to a statement from the military Space Forces carried by Russian news agencies.
Space Forces spokesman Col. Alexei Zolotukhin said Russian tracking facilities were monitoring the probe's crash.


The Phobos-Ground was designed to travel to one of Mars' two moons, Phobos, land on it, collect soil samples and fly them back to Earth in 2014 in one of the most daunting interplanetary missions ever. It got stranded in Earth's orbit after its Nov. 9 launch, and efforts by Russian and European Space Agency experts to bring it back to life have failed.
The $170 million probe was one of the heaviest and most toxic pieces of space junk ever to crash to Earth, but space officials and experts said the risks posed were minimal because its toxic rocket fuel and most of the craft's structure would burn up in the atmosphere anyway.
It was Russia's most expensive and the most ambitious space mission since Soviet times. Russia's space chief has acknowledged the Phobos-Ground mission was ill-prepared, but said that Roscosmos had to give it the go-ahead so as not to miss the limited Earth-to-Mars launch window.


Read more -
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/science/space/story/2012-01-15/russia-space-probe/52580488/1

U.S. Military spends $363,000,000 on weight loss surgery - 363 Million -

U.S. Military spends $363,000,000 on weight loss surgery - 363 Million - 




Free gastric bypass, lap-band, tummy tuck, and other weight-loss related surgeries are fast becoming the “it” thing for military dependents, especially soldiers’ wives.


Using the Freedom of Information Act, KIRO-TV (CBS-Seattle) Investigative Reporter, Chris Halsne, uncovered the never-before known cost to federal tax payers. [See document]


Defense Department records show from 2001 to 2010, the Army spent around $186,000,000 on bariatric surgeries. The Air Force spent nearly $75,000,000. The Navy $73,000,000. Active duty Marine wives and retirees accepted about $22,000,000 in weight loss surgeries, while Coast Guard dependents accepted around $7,000,000 worth.


All branches combined, we calculated a minimum $362,971,831. That number includes the costs of post-surgery tummy tucks, offered to about a third of the patients.


Read more -
http://www.kirotv.com/news/news/military-spends-363000000-weight-loss-surgery/nFTB5/