Articles from "2012"

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Space | 26. November 2012 | posted by Jan Wörner

ESA council meeting at ministerial level – a personal view

ESA-Ministerratskonferenz 2012. Bild: DLR/Thilo Kranz, CC-BY.

In my last blog entry, I referred to the preparations for the European Space Agency council meeting at ministerial level, to be held in Naples and the key topics 'the future of ESA', 'launch systems' and 'utilisation of the International Space Station'. Well, now that the conference has ended, it is time to take stock. At this point, I would like to highlight primarily my own personal experience, since the facts and agreed conclusions have already received plenty of attention in the media. read more

Space | 09. November 2012 | posted by Jan Wörner

A heated debate concerning 'a cold potato'

My blog has been quiet in recent weeks; the reason for this is that it has been hectic. Too many appointments and events – from the ILA Berlin Airshow and the International Astronautical Congress (IAC) in Naples, to internal appointments within DLR – have fully taken up the time allocated to me by Earth's rotation. One particularly important event is the upcoming ESA Council meeting at ministerial level, which will also take place in Naples, on 20 and 21 November 2012. This meeting is being built up as a directional decision-making session dealing with a range of open questions. read more

Other | 23. October 2012 | posted by Jan Wörner

Equal opportunities through flexible work schedules

This article was originally written for the ATKearney 361° Blog.

The lifestyles of DLR employees are as many and diverse as DLR's research areas – this represents both an opportunity and a challenge. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) needs the best people – both male and female – now and in the future, to maintain its excellence in research and development. Therefore, we at DLR endeavour to create an environment in which employees can fully develop their potential. From my own experience, having had two working parents, I can say that, not only do I believe in the issue of equal opportunity in theoretical terms, but am also committed to it practically. read more

Space | 27. August 2012 | posted by Jan Wörner

A political week - with a sad ending

DLR got quite a bit of political attention last week, with a steady parade of three Federal ministers, a State minister and two State secretaries. Such contacts are very important for DLR because – rather than give a quantitative balance in terms of "what are you doing with the taxpayers' money?" – we are able to show them the work carried out at our research sites. Unfortunately, the weekend ended sadly with the death of a great man: Neil Armstrong.




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Space | 02. August 2012

Ariane 5 with record GTO payload mass launches tonight

Exactly four weeks after the last launch, the next Ariane is, once again, on the launch platform! The final launch preparations are underway for what will be the fourth Ariane 5 launch (VA208) this year from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. The 'dress rehearsal' took place last Friday, and the Launch Readiness Review was completed successfully on Tuesday. Yesterday, the rocket was rolled out to the launch platform, so nothing stands in the way of tonight’s launch. The Ariane 5 launch window opens at 22:54 CEST and closes 57 minutes later at 23:51 CEST. Those interested can follow the launch on the 'live-stream' provided by Arianespace. read more

Space | 01. August 2012 | posted by Andrea Haag

… And that's a wrap!

Last week was amazing – the largest ever International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS) was held in Munich. With over 2700 participants from 68 countries, and over 2500 scientific presentations, it was an excellent platform for knowledge exchange and the exploration and discussion of topics related to 'Remote Sensing for a Dynamic Earth'. Some of the highlights of the symposium included ESA's Envisat and upcoming Sentinel missions, the future of Earth observation, and last but not least, DLR's TanDEM-X and TerraSAR-X satellites. read more

Space | 27. July 2012 | posted by Andrea Haag

DLR Webcast: Interview with Stefan Dech at IGARSS 2012

DLR Webcast: Interview with Stefan Dech at IGARSS 2012

The International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS) is a place for those working in these fields to gather and discuss the current developments and future in a wide variety of perspectives. Why are digital elevation models so important? And why have radar satellites become of great importance to us? Stefan Dech, Director of DLR’s Earth Observation Centre, gives us his views at IGARSS 2012. read more

Space | 26. July 2012

DLR Webcast: Interview with Manfred Zink at IGARSS 2012

Manfred_Zink_200

TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X are exceeding the expectations of the scientific community. Why exactly? And what comes next? During the IGARSS 2012 symposium in Munich, we were able to speak to Manfred Zink, Project Manager of the Ground Segment of the mission. He is responsible for directing the entire mission, from the close flight formation of the TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X satellites to the creation of the digital elevation model. read more

Other | 25. July 2012

DLR Webcast: Interview with Marwan Younis at IGARSS 2012

DLR Webcast: Interview with Marwan Younis at IGARSS 2012

We are still here at IGARSS, giving you more information about 'Remote Sensing for a Dynamic Earth'. We spoke with Marwan Younis, who took some time from an incredibly tight schedule to answer some questions regarding TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X, as well as Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technologies. read more