Unlike previous fly-by concepts, Robert Zubrin's Athena would remain in the vicinity of Mars for a year while the crew remotely operated probes of the Martian surface and atmosphere.

The company proposed commercial funding of a super light gas for launches into high-inclination orbits. JVL was apparently still operating in 1998, but no investors came forward to finance the multi-billion dollar development cost.

Soyuz 11A511U2 used synthetic kerosene ('Sintin') in the first stage for launch of premium reconnaisance satellite and manned payloads requiring just a bit more payload than the standard 11A511.

GPS receiver, amateur radio tests; examined effect of solar radiation on satellite explosive devices; deployed from STS 72 1/14/96; retrieved 1/16/96. References: 4 , 6 , 276 .

Deployed and retrieved OAST Flyer; retrieved SFU Space Flyer Unit. Beside the two satellite retrievals, the mission included two spacewalks. Additional Details: STS-72. References: 4 , 6 , 7 , 276 .

Geostationary at 91.4E. References: 4 , 6 .

Geostationary at 43.0W. References: 4 , 6 .

Geostationary at 116.0E. References: 4 , 6 .

Tested tools and techniques for extravehicular activity. References: 66 .

Military navigation satellite. Positioned in plane 1 of constellation. References: 4 , 6 , 107 .

Tested tools and techniques for extravehicular activity. References: 66 .

Stationed at 39.8E. References: 4 , 6 , 67 , 111 , 274 .

The first Buran payload, 37KB module s/n 37070, arrived in Baikonur. The 37KB modules, similar to the Kvant module of the Mir space station, were to be standard on the early Buran flights. 37KB-37070 itself primarily contained instrumentation to measure the performance of the orbiter and its structure on its first flight.

30 C-band, 6 Ku-band transponders. Geostationary at 150.4E. Launch vehicle put payload into supersynchronous earth orbit with IFR/MRS trajectory option. References: 4 , 6 , 278 .

Geostationary at 128.9E. References: 4 , 6 .

Retrieved and installed material samples References: 66 .

Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) mission was the first of NASA's Discovery missions, a series of small-scale spacecraft designed to proceed from development to flight in under three years for a cost of less than $150 million. The spacecraft's mission was to rendezvous with and achieve orbit around the asteroid Eros in January, 1999, and study the asteroid for one year. Prior to its encounter with Eros NEAR flew within 1200 km of the C-class asteroid Mathilde on 27 June 1997. It then flew by the Earth on 23 January 1998. A problem caused an abort of the first encounter burn and the mission had to be rescoped for a later encounter. NEAR finally entered orbit around Eros on February 14, 2000. Orbit insertion was at 15:34 GMT into a 323 x 370 km initial orbit with a period of 27 days. The renamed NEAR-Shoemaker probe moved into a 100 x 200 km orbit around Eros on April 2 at 0200 GMT. NEAR returned spectacular detailed pictures of the surface over the next several months. Studies were made of the asteroid's size, shape, mass, magnetic field, composition, and surface and internal structure. Periapsis of the orbit would be as low as 24 km above the surface of the asteroid during the final days of the mission. References: 4 , 6 , 296 .

LEO. Carried photo-surveillance system for disaster monitoring; also carried communications package References: 4 , 6 .

LEO. Carried photo-surveillance system for disaster monitoring; also carried communications package References: 4 , 6 .

LEO. Carried photo-surveillance system for disaster monitoring; also carried communications package References: 4 , 6 .

Secret military name for Raduga program is Gran'. References: 4 , 6 , 67 , 274 .

Mir Expedition EO-21. Soyuz TM-23 docked with Mir at 14:20:35 on February 23. The spacecraft undocked on September 2 at 04:20 GMT, and made a small seperation burn at 04:24:40 GMT. Deorbit was at 06:47:20 GMT . The three modules separated at 07:14:36 and the parachute deployed at 07:26 GMT. The landing was at 07:41:40 GMT, 100 km SW of Akmola in Kazakstan with Yuri Onufrienko, Yuriy Usachyov and Claudie Andre-Deshays. This concluded the French 'Cassiopee' mission. References: 4 , 6 , 9 , 51 , 276 .

Carried TSS-1R tether satellite; satellite tether broke during deployment, making TSS-1R an unintentional free flyer

Payloads: Tethered Satellite System (TSS) Reflight (1R); Orbital Acceleration Research Experiment (OARE) (part of United States Microgravity Payload 3); USMP-3; Commercial Protein Crystal Growth (CPCG) 09, Block IV; Middeck Glovebox Experiment (MGBX) (part of USMP-3). During the deployment of TSS, the tether broke and the satellite was lost. Additional Details: STS-75. References: 4 , 6 , 7 , 276 .

LEO. Tether deployment test; 20 km long tether; satellite unintentionally deployed when tether broke 2/25/96 Reentered Mar 19. References: 4 , 6 , 276 .

HEO. Fields and particles, auroral studies; part of International Solar Terrestrial Physics program. References: 4 , 6 .

Test from shuttle of 20 km long tether; satellite unintentionally deployed when tether broke. Re-entered March 19.

LEO References: 4 , 6 .

High resolution photo reconnaissance; returned film in two small SpK capsules during the mission and with the main capsule at completion of the mission. References: 4 , 6 , 179 , 276 .

GEO. 26 C-band, 14 K-band transponders. Geostationary at 0.9W. References: 4 , 6 .

Telescopic boom installed. References: 66 .

LEO References: 4 , 6 .

Shuttle-Mir Mission 3. Docked with the Mir space station 24 March 1996; Shannon Lucid was left on Mir for an extended stay. First American EVA on Mir. Payloads: SPACEHAB/Mir 03; KidSat; Shuttle Amateur Radio Experiment (SAREX) II, Configuration M; RME 1304—Mir/ Environmental Effects Payload (MEEP); orbiter docking system RME 1315; Trapped Ions in Space Experiment (TRIS); Extravehicular Activity Development Flight Test (EDFT) 04. Additional Details: STS-76. References: 4 , 6 , 7 , 276 .

Attached MEEP materials exposure experiment to outside of Mir (retrieved on STS-86). References: 66 .

MEO. References: 4 , 6 .