© ARCA

09. 11. 09. - 16:00

• more Panorama news...
• RSS Feed Panorama

09. 11. 09. - 16:00

Bad weather postpones launch of first Romanian rocket

Romanian Times

The launch of Romanian rocket Helen has been rescheduled for next week-end because of unfavourable meteorological conditions, its builder ARCA announced today (Mon).

"Helen", which is competing for a 30-million-dollar prize in the Google Lunar X Prize competition, will be launched on the Black Sea coast.

Helen was designed and built by the Romanian Aeronautics and Cosmonautics Association (ARCA), a non-governmental organization based in Valcea county.

Engineer Dumitru Popescu, the coordinator of the ARCA project, said: "We have done a lot of technical work for this competition and also raised funds and found sponsors."

The cost of the project has not been revealed.

The launching of the rocket will be done from a solar balloon, and it will use eco-fuel.

Helen will use a gravitational-stability method in vertical flight without aerodynamic surfaces or jet commands by towing component stages and its payload.

The Google Lunar X PRIZE is an international competition to land a robot on the surface of the Moon and have it travel 500 metres over the lunar surface and send images and data back to Earth.

Policeman dies when his car slides into the Danube
A border policeman died after the car he was in with three other cops went into the Danube River at Caras Severin in southwestern Romania.

Dog gets a discount for monthly public-transport ticket
The top manager of public transport in a town in northern Italy has given a special discount to a dog for use of public buses in its status as the companion of its worker owner.

Helicopter rescues stranded pregnant women
Three pregnant women in Calarasi county in southern Romania were taken by helicopter yesterday (Mon) to a hospital after heavy snow prevented ambulances from reaching their homes.

Dacia employees threaten protests if wages are not raised
Renault's Dacia car plant in Piesti in southern Romania will face protests by employees if their salaries are not increased, it emerged today (Tues).

Romania´s next EU commissioner to be voted on today
Romanian EU Commissioner-designate for Agriculture and Rural Development Dacian Ciolos is going to be voted on today (Tues) by the European Parliament (EP) in Brussels, together with the rest of the new commissioners.

Winter Olympic participants insured against swine flu
Romania's delegation to the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver has been insured against any consequences that may follow cases of swine flu.

Bad-weather warning code lifted
Romanian meteorologists lifted the code yellow and orange advisories for the southeastern part of the country yesterday (Mon) evening but warned that snowfall and gusty wind would continue for a few more hours.

Nightclubbing
A 16-year-old schoolboy killed his father with an iron bar when he tried to stop him going to a party.

Eurovision´s greatest Brit
British Eurvision hopeful David Bryan's song for his adopted Romania has become a massive Internet hit after the TV company running the contest out it online.

Schools to be closed for another day tomorrow
Kindergartens and schools are going to be closed for a second day tomorrow (Tues) in capital Bucharest, the local school inspectorate decided today.