The Government has offered Australia's three mobile operators, and vividwireless, renewal of their existing spectrum allocated on 15 year licences in the late 90s and early 2000s at set prices, while the Government expects to rake in $3 billion.
Many of the instruments on the two spacecraft are of shared designs and are being operated by the same scientific teams. Having both missions running simultaneously makes the cost of each lower than it would be alone.
Among its other achievements, Mars Express has provided evidence of volcanic and glacial activity, and its use of radar to probe beneath the surface revealed underground ice.
Continuing observations from Mars Express will be useful in determining landing sites for future expeditions from virtually the entire planet.
The extension of the Venus Express mission will allow coverage of the planet's entire atmosphere, and should determine whether Venus is still volcanically active. It will also enable a more thorough investigation of the greenhouse effect.
Results so far include the first systematic infra-red observations of the surface and an examination of the complex atmospheric structures.
Mars Express was launched in June 2003; Venus Express in November 2005. Both missions were originally planned to end in late 2007.
David Bass
| ComOps, a leading Australian provider of business software products and services, has won a competitive tender to deploy its Salvus safety, r…
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