US Launches First Unmanned Spacecraft after Space Shuttle Tragedy

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, April 29, 2003

US Launches First Unmanned Spacecraft after Space Shuttle Tragedy

In the first launch of unmanned spacecraft since the loss of space shuttle Columbia on Feb. 1, US space agency NASA successfully sent an orbiting scientific satellite into space Monday.

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In the first launch of unmanned spacecraft since the loss of space shuttle Columbia on Feb. 1, US space agency NASA successfully sent an orbiting scientific satellite into space Monday.

The spacecraft, Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX), was launched from a Pegasus XL rocket released by an L-1011 aircraft off the coast of Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Station at about 8:00 a.m. EDT (1200 GMT), NASA said.

The 103.7-million-dollar spacecraft features an orbiting telescope that will observe millions of galaxies across 10 billion years of cosmic history. After one month of in-orbit checkout, its science mission will begin and will last for up to 28 months.

The spacecraft's ultraviolet detectors will hone in on galaxies containing young, hot, short-lived stars that emit a great deal of ultraviolet energy.

"Because these galaxies are actively creating stars, studying them will help scientists learn more about how, when and why stars form inside galaxies," NASA said in a statement.

According to the space agency, the findings of GALEX may help astronomers determine when the chemical elements originated and the stars we see today first blossomed.

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