Composition, cosmic radiation research. Launched at 1409 local time. Reached 137 km.

The ICBM design feasible, as was acceleration of the program; Rand Corporation Report: Atlas ICBM could be operational by 1960-62 and should have crash project status

A greatly expanded NACA program of space flight research was proposed in a paper, "A Program for Expansion of NACA Research in Space Flight Technology," written principally by senior engineers of the Lewis Aeronautical Laboratory under the leadership of Abe Silverstein. The goal of the program would be "to provide basic research in support of the development of manned satellites and the travel of man to the moon and nearby planets." The cost of the program was estimated at $241 million per year above the current NACA budget.

By the end of the year, over 70 different models had been tested by facilities at the Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Center and the NASA Langley, Ames, and Lewis Research Centers.

A voice message was sent from Washington, D.C., to Woomera, Australia, by way of the moon. NASA Deputy Administrator Hugh L. Dryden spoke by telephone to Goldstone, Calif., which "bounced" it to the deep-space instrumentation station at Woomera. The operation was conducted as part of the official opening ceremony of the Australian facility.

Rocketdyne Division's first static test of a prototype thrust chamber for the F-1 engine achieved a thrust of 1.550 million pounds in a few seconds at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.

At the first meeting of the House Committee on Science and Astronautics, during the first session of the 87th Congress, Charles F. Ducander, Executive Director and Chief Counsel of the Committee staff, outlined a number of proposed subjects for study. One subject was the Air Force's interest in a three-man spacecraft similar to the Apollo spacecraft planned by NASA. A Committee staff member had been assigned to investigate this duplication of effort. On February 22, testifying before the Committee, Air Force Undersecretary Joseph V. Charyk stated that the Dyna-Soar program was a direct approach to manned military space applications. The Air Force interest in an Apollo-type spacecraft was part of the post-Dyna-Soar program, Charyk said.

Two officers start a 15 day test aboard a mock-up of the Sever spacecraft, but without the participation of the IAKM. The whole thing was planned by Voronin's OKB in GKNII.

MSC directed Grumman to stop all work on the LEM Little Joe II program. This action followed the ASPO Manager's decision against a testing program for the LEM comparable to that for the CSM.

Saenger dies of a heart attack in Berlin while lecturing to his students at the Technical University in Berlin

This was the first of several hundred launches from Green River, Utah, to impact points in the US Army's White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The Athena was designed to simulate the re-entry environment of an intercontinental ballistic missile and was one of the few examples of sustained interstate missile tests within the United States.

Interdepartmental Scientific-Technical Council on Space Research (MNTS-KI) Decree 'On approval of the L3 draft project' was issued. The decree followed a review by a Keldysh-led Academy of Sciences state commission the previous December. The decree moved the first flight of the N1 to the end of 1966. - Additional details.

After data from this test were reviewed (February 15), the Joint Combined Systems Test was run February 16.

The commission, chaired by Tyulin, with attendance by Mishin, Tsybin, Shabarov, Kerimov, and others considers manned flight plans for 1966. The 20-day dog flight of Voskhod s/n 5 is expected to launch on 22-23 February. Kamanin notes that although he is not against the flight, it has no interest to the military. Launch of Voskhod 3 is set for 20-23 March. Kamanin names his crews for the flight - Volynov/Shonin and Beregovoi/Shatalov as back-ups. Only Pravetskiy objects to these selections, pushing Katys for the prime crew. This settled, Mishin announces he still intends to pursue the artificial gravity experiment on the flights of Voskhod s/n 7 and/or 8. Kamanin informs Mishin that he has requested for more than a year that this experiment be moved to a Soyuz flight - there are 700 kg of new military scientific equipment that has to be flown aboard Voskhod, leaving little room for nothing else.

It is decided that the flights of Voskhod s/n 5 and 6 will be run from Moscow rather than from the cosmodrome. The state commission will return to Moscow immediately after launch for this purpose. Four groups of staff will follow the flight on four-hour shifts.

Tyulin, Keldysh, and Mishin want engineer and scientist cosmonauts to be trained for early Soyuz flights. Kamanin agrees, telling them he will submit suitable candidates. The meeting goes well, possibly since in the absence of Korolev the commission is stacked with military representatives - of 17 members, 9 are military.

Area survey photo reconnaissance satellite.

The Board of Inquiry into the January 20 S-IVB-503 explosion at the Douglas Sacramento Test Facility identified the probable cause as the failure of a pressure vessel made with titanium-alloy parent-metal fusion welded with commercially pure titanium. The combination, which was in violation of specifications, formed a titanium hydride intermetallic that induced embrittling in the weld nugget, thus significantly degrading the capabilities of a weldment to withstand sustained pressure loads. The Board recommended pressure limitations for titanium-alloy pressure vessels.

Meeting with TsKBEM Deputy Chief Designer Tregub on manned space flight plans. Soyuz s/n 14 is set for a solo seven day mission in April-May. 15 and 16 with 5 cosmonauts aboard will fly a 7 day mission in August-September, remaining docked for three days. Soyuz s/n 17 through 20 will not fly until after May 1970 - there are no definite plans for them at this time. - Additional details.

High resolution photo reconnaissance satellite; returned film capsule

Soyuz 17 landed at 11:03 GMT, 110 km NE of Tselinograd.

High resolution photo surveillance; film capsule; maneuverable; also performed earth resources tasks. Investigation of the natural resources of the earth in the interests of various branches of the national economy of the USSR and international cooperation.

Unmanned resupply vessel to Mir. Conducted third test of Buran ejection seat during ascent to orbit. The K-36M.11F35 seat was installed in an 'experimental droppable compartment' installed in place of the Launch Escape Tower engine on top of the shroud. Docked with Mir on 12 Feb 1989 10:29:38 GMT. Undocked on 3 Mar 1989 01:45:52 GMT. Unfurled experimental space mirror petal structure on undocking. Destroyed in reentry on 5 Mar 1989 01:59:00 GMT. Total free-flight time 4.08 days. Total docked time 18.64 days.

Military store-dump communications satellite. Six satellites launched by a single carrier rocket.

Investigation of the natural resources of the Earth in the interests of various branches of the Soviet economy and international cooperation; space-based survey of the central part of Antarctica for purposes of mapping inaccessible regions of that continent.

Mir Expedition EO-23. Soyuz TM-25 docked with Mir at the forward port on February 12 at 15:51:13 GMT.

Altimeter.

Plane G. Ascending node 297.9 degrees.

Plane G. Ascending node 298.1 degrees.

Spacecraft was injected in very low perigee orbit and reentered.. X-ray astronomy satellite. Stage 1 lost control, and separated with the rocket off-course at 75 seconds in the flight. Stage 2 burned correctly and separated at 218 seconds, followed by the third stage burn at 621 seconds. Last signals were received at 20 minutes after launch. ASTRO-E was to have separated from the third stage at 23 minutes, but ended in an orbit with a perigee of only 80 km and an apogee of 410 km. It probably reentered on the first orbit at around 0230 - 0300 GMT somewhere between East Africa and western China.

Tom Jones and Bob Curbeam began the first STS-98 spacewalk from the ODS airlock on Atlantis, supervising the ISS/Destiny assembly operations. The airlock was depressurized at 1544 GMT. PMA-2 was berthed on Z1 at 1650 GMT; Destiny was unberthed from the payload bay at 1735 GMT and docked to Unity at 1900 GMT. At 1935 GMT Curbeam was connecting ammonia coolant lines when a leaking connector sprayed ammonia into space, contaminating his suit. He was ordered to stay in sunlight to bake off the ammonia. At around 2311 GMT the spacewalkers returned to the airlock, closing the hatch at 2318 GMT. A new depressurization for decontamination was begun at 2342 GMT, with the airlock fully depressurized at 2350 GMT. The hatch was then opened and closed quickly at 2351-2352 GMT, to flush the airlock of any ammonia residue. This last event was not counted as an EVA by NASA.