Douglas Aircraft Company awarded contract for the development and fabrication of the airframe for the Thor IRBM. Following Hq USAF approval of its 23 December selection, the Western Development Division and SAPO awarded a contract to the Douglas Aircraft Company, Incorporated, for the development and fabrication of the airframe for the Thor IRBM (XSM-75) and assembly of the missile.

An appraisal of Air Research and Development Command research and engineering resources revealed that the command was well prepared to undertake immediate development of a manned space program. The ballistic missile division possessed the resources to embark on vehicle development and command headquarters was ready with a " . . . Fairly comprehensive program laid out in support of the manned aspects of space flight. " In specific terms this involved support from the School of Aviation Medicine, the Aeromedical Laboratory at Wright Air Development Center (WADC), and the Aeromedical Field Laboratory at AFMDC. (Memo, Col L. D. Ely, to Col C. H. Terhune, 30 Dec 57, subj: Telephone Call from General Flickinger and Visit of Colonel Karstens, School of Aviation Medicine.)

A decree ordering the training of sixty cosmonauts has been laying around, and suddenly the leadership wants to enforce it. 15 new trainee male cosmonauts, and 15 women are to be recruited - an overall total of 20 by the end of 1962 and 40 by the end of 1963 And crews are to be formed and trained, even though there are no spacecraft being built for the missions. And the decision that Popovich is to go on his Cuba tour is handed down only 2.5 hours before he is supposed to depart.

The first operational Titan II (LGM-25C) missile was installed in the lead complex of the 570th Strategic Missile Squadron at Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona. This was a major milestone in the transition of the Titan II from research and development to fully operational status with the Strategic Air Command.

Afanasyev holds meetings on the L3 lunar expedition program. Kamanin recites Mishin's failings. Afanasyev replies that he has talked to Ustinov about it, but Ustinov will leave the current management in charge until N1 flight tests begin. If they are unsuccessful, then Mishin alone will have to answer for it. Afansyev also assures Kamanin that although Feoktistov should be allowed to train for a space flight, he and Ustinov will make sure he never flies.

A State Commission investigating the crash of Zond 6 determined that the coronal discharge effect which caused the parachute to jettison would only occur at the 25 mm capsule pressure. If the capsule had been completely depressurised to a high vacuum, the accident would not have occurred. A discussion was conducted on when to conduct the next L1 test. The next capsule in line was s/n 13 - an unlucky omen. It was even proposed not to fly the capsule with such an unlucky number. That evening, the Soviet engineers could watch live video from the moon from aboard Apollo 8 via Eurovision from Western Europe. They had in any case lost the race to fly a man around the moon. The flight of further L1's, and sending a Soviet man on a lunar flyby, seemed a moot point.

The General Staff considers the impending Soyuz 4 and 5 flights. Vershinin asks - what is the likelihood of Apollo 8 being successful? Kamanin tells him it is very good now; the final midcourse correction was made successfully. A State Commission convenes to consider the Zond 6 failure. Mishin and Tyulin do not attend - they send Bushuyev to represent them. It has been found that 70 km from the cosmodrome, as the spacecraft deployed its parachute, the parachute lines were pyrotechnically severed at 3 km altitude and the capsule crashed into the plain. This in turn was found to be due to an ONA landing antenna failure; and this in turn caused by the SUS going down to temperatures of -5 deg C during the flight and the depressurisation of the cabin. The hydrogen peroxide, due to the low temperature, put the spcecraft at a 45 degree attitude instead of the 18 degree maximum (?). There are five L1's left. Number 13 is at Tyuratam begin prepared for an unmanned flight due for launch on 20 or 21 January, number 11 is being readied for a March 1969 manned launch, to be followed by numbers 14, 15, and 16 in April, May, June. At 19:15 the successful splashdown of Apollo 8 is reported. The race to be first around the moon is over.

On the sixth day, the crew prepared for reentry and the SM separated from the CM on schedule. Parachute deployment and other re-entry events were normal. The Apollo 8 CM splashed down in the Pacific, apex down, at 15:51 GMT - 147 hours and 42 seconds after liftoff. As planned, helicopters and aircraft hovered over the spacecraft and pararescue personnel were not deployed until local sunrise, 50 minutes after splashdown. The crew was picked up and reached the recovery ship U.S.S. Yorktown at 17:20 GMT. All mission objectives and detailed test objectives were achieved, as well as five that were not originally planned.

The crew was in excellent condition, and another major step toward the first lunar landing had been accomplished.

Decay date suspect Continued operation of the long-range telephone and telegraph radio-communication system within the Soviet Union and transmission of USSR central television programmes to stations in the Orbita and participating international networks (international cooperation scheme).

Testing of the main engine of the space shuttle orbiters was suspended when the engine failed, apparently because of a malfunctioning of its main oxidizer valve. This and previous test failures caused the scheduling of the first orbiter test flight to slip from March 1979 to the end of CY 1979 or the beginning of CY 1980.

Stationed at 99 deg E. Transmitting USSR Central Television programmes to a network of communal receivers. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 99 deg E in 1988-1992 As of 5 September 2001 located at 125.85 deg W drifting at 15.807 deg W per day. As of 2007 Mar 10 located at 124.58E drifting at 15.805W degrees per day.

Believed to be a modernised version of the Taifun-1 satellite, built by NPO Yuzhnoe. The satellite carried 36 small Calibration Spherical Object subsatellites to test Russian radars. These were released between December 27, 1989 and November 1, 1991. While Cosmos 2053 re-entered in 1997, by May 1999 the S5M upper stage was still in a 471 km x 485 km x 73.5 deg orbit. An on-board explosion blew it into 25 new objects.

Stationed at 346 deg E. Relaying of telegraph and telephone information. The third Altair/SR geosynchronous satellite for communication with Mir space station and other orbital spacecraft. Combined with Cosmos 1897, it permitted Mir to maintain contact with Mission Control in Moscow 70% of the time. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 16 deg W in 1990-1997 As of 30 August 2001 located at 21.03 deg W drifting at 0.023 deg E per day. As of 2007 Mar 9 located at 68.57W drifting at 0.338W degrees per day.

Stationed at 49 deg E; second launch of alternate Raduga design. Further expansion of the long-range telephone and telegraph radio-communications system in the territory of the USSR. Positioned in geosynchronous orbit at 49 deg E in 1991-1996 As of 27 August 2001 located at 93.45 deg E drifting at 0.139 deg E per day. As of 2007 Mar 10 located at 51.16E drifting at 0.090W degrees per day.

On 24.12.1998 at 0409 UTC the engines of the freighter Progress-M40 raised Mir's orbit. With the

2-line elements determined after the orbit correction it was possible to calculate accurate passes of the complex again.

On 25.12.1998 the cosmonauts asked for the new Apogee and Perigee of Mir. TsUP said that these values were 372 and

361 KM. Possibly the last 2-lines will only be valid for a short period for there might follow a 2nd correction on 26 or 28.12.1998. Radio traffic and radio observations did not confirm that there was a correction on 26.12 so let us wait and hear if this will take place on 28.12.1998.

A high ranking official in Korolyov assured me that the reboost of the Mir-complex has nothing to do with an eventual

prolongation of the exploitation after June 1999, but was executed for ballistic reasons. The rumours about plans to extend

Mir's operational life are unfounded and the plan to bring Mir back in the earth's atmosphere after June 1999

is still fully in force.

Progress-M40:

The undocking of this freighter from Mir is scheduled for 4.02.1999. After some autonomous orbits Progress-M40 will jettison and deploy a solar reflector for the execution of the Znamya 2.5 experiment.

Chris v.d. Berg, NL-9165/A-UK3202.

Early warning satellite, carrying a large telescope to monitor missile launches. The payload and fourth stage were placed in an initial 229 km x 523 km x 62.8 deg orbit; the fourth stage (Block-2BL) fired over South America on the first orbit and delivered the payload to its 12-hour final orbit.

International Space Station Expedition 6 crewmembers, Commander Ken Bowersox, Flight Engineer Nikolai Budarin, and NASA ISS Science Officer Don Pettit, began their second month aboard the orbiting laboratory on Christmas Day. While they had some duties to attend to - checking the environmental control system and the status of payloads aboard the U.S. laboratory Destiny - it was basically a day off. Additional Details: here....

European COnvection ROtation and planetary Transits satellite, designed to detect transits of planets down to earth size as they pass in front of their stars, and convection currents on stellar surfaces. The satellite was to use its 27-cm-diameter telescope to scan 120,000 stars during its 30-month mission. This was the first flight of the Soyuz-2 booster with the improved RD-0124 third stage engine.

The crew installed two video cameras from the Vancouver-based company UrtheCast. After struggling with the cabling on the medium resolution camera, the astronauts jettisoned the UrtheCast MRC cable reel and an obsolete space science experiment, Vsplesk. The new Seismoprognoz experiment launched on Progress M-21M was installed on Zvezda to replace Vsplesk. It was then reported that the UrtheCast cameras were not working correctly, and the astronauts were ordered to dismount them and bring them back inside.