_                   
                                                         |_|                  
      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  ***                        <)                    

HALCA STATUS

Although full attitude control has yet to be regained, HALCA is in reasonable health. Last month the Reaction Control System (RCS) thrusters were fired to put HALCA in a "safe-hold-like" mode, with the satellite reoriented so that it was pointing at 90 degrees to the sun and in a slow spin about the sun-axis. While in this relatively stable state, HALCA's reaction wheels have been undergoing regular testing. The reaction wheel which is suspected of causing the most recent loss of attitude control has shown encouraging signs that it may be able to be restarted, however it will need to be warmed from its present 2C to more than 20C for it to start reliably. This will probably be achieved by letting the spin axis slowly precess naturally: using the thrusters again is not favoured due the small amount of fuel remaining. Last Thursday marked the 7th anniversary of HALCA's launch, and a small party was held at ISAS last Friday in celebration of this milestone.

VSOP-2 PROPOSAL

ISAS' Science Steering Committee evaluation subcommittee has yet to complete its report for the next ISAS science mission. After it makes its recommendation, a decision will then be made between the selected science mission and a solar sail mission, which was selected by the Engineering Steering Committee. A decision must be made soon, so that funding for the selected mission can be included in the JAXA budget request, to be submitted in May/June, for the next fiscal year (starting April 1st, 2005).

RECENT PUBLICATION

A series of eight VSOP observations of the core-dominated quasar 1928+738 were recently published in New Astronomy Reviews (vol.47, p. 633) by Murphy, Preston and Hirabayashi. The observations were made in order to test claims that on the parsec-scale 1928+738 shows evidence for a super-massive binary black hole system in the form of a precessing ballistic relativistic jet. A wide range of proper motions were detected, from nearly stationary (0.02 mas/yr or 0.5c) to relatively fast (0.82 mas/yr or 19c), with the observed kinematics more consistent with a ballistic precessing relativistic jet model than a relativistic helical jet model.

VALE

As this is the first issue for this year it is our first chance to note, with sorrow, the loss of Lucia Padrielli in late December. Lucia was Chair of the EVN board of directors early in the VSOP mission and her support and encouragement were greatly appreciated. The VSOP team sends its condolences to her family, friends and colleagues at the Istituto di Radioastronomia.

                Editors: Phil Edwards and Hirax Hirabayashi