_                   
                                                         |_|                  
      V   V   SSSS   OOO   PPPP                 \__      |_|      __/         
      V   V  S      O   O  P   P                   --____/ \____--            
      V   V   SSS   O   O  PPPP                    _ _ _ --- _ _ _            
       V V       S  O   O  P                      |_|_|_|  @|_|_|_|           
        V    SSSS    OOO   P                             o-o                  
                                                          /                   
      ***  N    E    W    S  ***                        <)                    

MEETINGS AT ISAS

International meetings were held at ISAS from August 28th to 30th to continue planning for VSOP-2, a successor to the VSOP mission. The first day and a half were devoted to discussions of the various possibilities for implementing a phase referencing capability on the satellite, and the second day and a half were spent discussing more general matters. A VSOP-2 web page will shortly be set up and linked to the main VSOP pages.

ISAS, NASDA, NAL TO MERGE

The government announced on August 21st that ISAS, NASDA (the National Space Development Agency) and NAL (the National Aerospace Laboratory) would be integrated to form a new space development organization. The merger is expected to take place by the 2003 fiscal year at the earliest, with committees to be set-up shortly to start planning the amalgamation process. There are many details to be resolved, ranging from combining three different staffing structures, to establishing a uniform system for planning and implementing science policy in a means which will enhance that achievable by the three separate bodies. NASDA, established in 1969, is the largest of the three bodies, with a staff of almost 1100 people and an annual budget of 200 billion yen. NAL has a staff of 410, and ISAS 320, and both have annual budgets of around 20 billion yen. The merger of the three is in line with the government's reform policy on government-related special agencies.

ISAS OPEN DAY

Saturday, August 25th was the annual ISAS Open Day and, coincidentally, also the Nobeyama Radio Observatory. Displays describing the HALCA satellite and VLBI technique, and results from VSOP observations were set up, with VSOP team members present at both open days to answer questions and provide more information. Approximately 18,000 attended the ISAS open day, with over 3,000 visitors travelling to Nobeyama for the day.

FIRST H-IIA LAUNCH

August 25th was also the planned date for the maiden flight of NASDA's H-IIA rocket. However, the launch was delayed until Wednesday 29th, and the first flight of the new rocket was a resounding success. The H-IIA is a two-stage rocket powered by liquid-hydrogen/liquid-oxygen engines. At 53 meters tall and 285 tons, the rocket is in the same class as ESA's Ariane-4. The H-IIA is a streamlined version of its predecessor, the H-II, which NASDA introduced in 1994 as Japan's first commercial launcher, but which suffered from successive failures in 1998 and 1999. In this light, the successful flight of the H-IIA was seen as a critical step in re-establishing confidence in Japan's space industry. The first H-IIA carried Doppler Ranging Equipment and a spherical laser ranging reflector as its payload. The next H-IIA launch, is scheduled for early next year.

                Editors: Phil Edwards and Hirax Hirabayashi