spacetoday.net: News briefs: October 24

Posted: Thu, Oct 25, 2001, 11:10 AM ET (1510 GMT)
The launch of a Taiwanese sounding rocket failed early Wednesday, AFP reported. The rocket lifted off from the Chiupeng base in southern Taiwan at 2:19 pm EDT (1819 GMT, 2:19 am Wednesday local time), but the second stage of the rocket failed to ignite after the first stage shut down as planned. The rocket, which was going to study the upper atmosphere, reached an altitude of only 15 km before plummeting into the sea... Astronomers announced this week that they have for the first time discovered a pulsar in an oxygen-rich supernova remnant. The discovery should allow astronomers to measure the mass and composition of the supernova's progenitor, and thus make a closer connection between pulsars and the stars from which they form... Astrobiology researcher Christopher Chyba is the recipient of one of 23 MacArthur Foundation "genius" fellowships, the foundation announced Wednesday. Chyba hold the Carl Sagan Chair for the Study of Life in the Universe at the SETI Institute and is one of the pioneers of the field of astrobiology. Chyba, who served on the national security staff of the White House in the mid-1990s, is also co-director of the Stanford University Center for International Security and Cooperation.