Posted: Mon, Mar 10 5:13 AM ET (0913 GMT)
Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata took command of the International Space Station on Sunday, marking the first time an astronaut representing Japan has commanded the outpost. Wakata took command of the station from Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kotov in a ceremony Sunday. Most ISS commanders have bene Russian or American, although both European and Canadian astronauts have previously served as station commanders. Kotov, along with Sergey Ryazanskiy and American astronaut Mike Hopkins, will depart from the station Monday, landing in Kazakhstan Tuesday morning local time. Wakata will be in command of the station until he departs in mid-May.

Related Links:

•  collectSPACE article
•  Reuters article
•  Aviation Week article
•  JAXA press release

Posted: Sat, Mar 8 8:53 AM ET (1353 GMT)
The recent of the University of Texas agreed Friday to join a project to build the world's largest telescope in Chile, agreeing to contribute $50 million to the effort. The Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) will consist of seven mirrors each 8.4 meters in diameter, aligned to create a single telescope with an effective aperture of 24.8 meters. Total cost of building the GMT is estimated to be $1 billion; the University of Texas plans to provide $100 million of that total. The $50-million contributed approved by university regents Friday will be augmented by fundraising to reach the planned $100 million total. Another Texas university, Texas A&M, plans to provide $50 million for GMT construction. Several other institutions in the US, Australia, and South Korea are also partners on the GMT project, which expects to be completed in 2020.

Related Links:

•  Austin Business Journal article
•  Austin America-Statesman article
•  Houston Chronicle article
•  The Alcade article
•  Univ. of Texas press release

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