5:12 PM
Two NRL nano-satellites (CubeSat) were deployed to evaluate nano-satellites as a platform for experimentation and technology development. They were launched as secondary payloads on the SpaceX launch vehicle:
http://www.asdnews.com/news/32528/NRL_Launches_Nano-Satellite_Experimental_Platforms_.htm
Pres. Obama told NASA to come up with a less expensive way to launch spacecraft, and 5 months later NASA's engineers came up with a plan to save million in propellant, improve astronaut safety, and allow for more frequent space launches. They propose using a rail gun over 2 miles of train track, an airplane flying at *10x* the speed of sound (a NASA scramjet already reached Mach 10 last year), and enough electricity to light up a small town:
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-11/nasa-engineers-propose-combining-rail-gun-and-scramjet-fire-spacecraft-orbit
AT&T is buying Qualcomm's Flo TV spectrum for $1.93 billion. That 700 MHz spectrum covers 300 million people in the US, but Qualcomm is shutting down its mobile-TV service and selling the spectrum. Qualcomm paid $683 million for that spectrum, so it will make a nice profit even after losing all that money trying to get Flo TV to work:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-20/at-t-agrees-to-acquire-wireless-licenses-from-qualcomm-for-1-93-billion.html
http://www.asdnews.com/news/32528/NRL_Launches_Nano-Satellite_Experimental_Platforms_.htm
Pres. Obama told NASA to come up with a less expensive way to launch spacecraft, and 5 months later NASA's engineers came up with a plan to save million in propellant, improve astronaut safety, and allow for more frequent space launches. They propose using a rail gun over 2 miles of train track, an airplane flying at *10x* the speed of sound (a NASA scramjet already reached Mach 10 last year), and enough electricity to light up a small town:
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-11/nasa-engineers-propose-combining-rail-gun-and-scramjet-fire-spacecraft-orbit
AT&T is buying Qualcomm's Flo TV spectrum for $1.93 billion. That 700 MHz spectrum covers 300 million people in the US, but Qualcomm is shutting down its mobile-TV service and selling the spectrum. Qualcomm paid $683 million for that spectrum, so it will make a nice profit even after losing all that money trying to get Flo TV to work:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-12-20/at-t-agrees-to-acquire-wireless-licenses-from-qualcomm-for-1-93-billion.html