To the 50^th Anniversary of

beginning Space Era

This extraordinary issue of international scientific Journal "APAAS" (ї3(25), Vol.12, 2007) is devoted to the 50-th Anniversary of beginning Space Era in Earth peoples life: on October 4, 1957 it was launched 1-st man-made satellite - Soviet "Sputnik-1"!

It is outstanding Stage in history of mankind development realized by Soviet Union representatives, with uniting of achievements of Engineering, fundamental and applied Sciences (mechanics, mathematics, control,...), social-political system!

It was the beginning of a new Space Era for people living on the Earth. Space Exploration Era began with profound development of fundamental and applied Astronautics in all directions. Its Founder is a Great Russian scientist Konstantin Eduardovich Tsiolkovsky whose 150^th Anniversary was celebrated this year, in 2007. This is an Era of enormous achievements in space, from this very first, Soviet, Earth satellite launched in 1957, to the first cosmonaut (Yury Gagarin, 12 April 1961), to orbital satellite constellations and International Space Stations, to the manned Moon-landing and flights to the other planets.

With the names of great mathematicians and mechanists (whose Anniversaries were celebrated by progressive World also in this, 2007, year), with soviet scientific and scientific-design Schools appreciated all over the World, scientific theories and methods are associated which represent the basis and foundations for the first space theoretical and applied researches and computations.

Among them Academicians of St.Petersburg Academy of Sciences can be named: Great Leonhard Euler, brilliant Alexander Mikhailovich Lyapunov who is the Founder-Creator of motion stability; Academician of USSR Academy of Sciences, Great space engineering Designer Sergey Pavlovich Korolev whose 100^th Anniversary is celebrated this year by the whole progressive World; the prominent mechanist and mathematician, A.M.Lyapunov successor,- Nikolay Gurievich Chetayev, whose 105-th Anniversary i.e. celebrated this year, who was opening and developing of A.M.Lyapunov ideas for the whole scientific and scientific-engineering World, Founder of known scientific Kazan Chetayev's School of Mechanics and Stability, Founder-Organizer of Kazan Aviation Institute.

This issue is presenting the papers with analytical investigations, surveys, scientific-historical materials, that are reflecting adopted periods and conditions, past and present achievements, connected with aerospace themes, successfully developing for quite half-century, leading to triumph in our Knowledge in whole

N.M.Ivanov, V.G.Sobolevskiy (Central Research Institute of Mechanical Engineering, Russia), specialists in the area of ballistics, navigation and ballistic-navigational support of spaceflights,- with interesting scientific review, devoted to the 40^th Anniversary of development and operation start of "Soyuz" space vehicle's (SV) descent module (DM) developed in the USSR under the leadership of Chief Designer S.P.Korolev.

V.V.Efanov, V.V.Gorovtsov, Ya.G.Podobedov A.A.Kotomin, S.A.Dushenok (S.A.Lavochkin Association, St.P. SIT, Russia), specialists in the area of design and structure of spacecrafts service systems, physics of explosion, pyromechanical separation systems of the spacecrafts),- with scientific-engineering paper about new structure separation "microsized" devices, based on elastic explosive substances.

P.A.Capó-Lugo, P.M.Bainum (Howard University, USA), specialists in field of Satellite Formation Flying; Structural/Control Optimization Techniques for Large Space Systems Discrete and Intelligent Control Systems,- with scientific research describing a fuzzy logic control systems for reconfiguration procedure applied to formation flying.

Yu.Kim, A.de Ruiter, J.Lee, A.Ng (Canadian Space Agency, Canada), the specialists in area of satellite attitude control, satellite formation flying, intelligence control systems for spacecraft, - with scientific research and discussions about general methods of implementation of Kalman filter for INS correction.

S.Ye.Somov (SSAU of S.P.Korolev name, Russia), the specialist in domain in dynamics and modelling of flexible spacecraft motion,- with scientific research paper on modelling problems for spacecraft spatial movement with applications for satellite SESAT.

б.Gusev, N.Petrova N.лБwano (KSU, NAO, Russia, Japan), the specialists in area of dynamics of extra solar planetary systems, radio-astronomy, Moon investigation, computer technology in astronomy,- with scientific survey on investigation and exploration of the Moon in framework of Japanese-Russian Lunar cooperation.

M.V.Levsky (RISS, Khrunichev SRPSC, Russia), specialist in domain of space flight mechanics; of orientation, stabilization and navigation systems,- with paper on optimal program of spacecraft spatial attitude.

V.A.Arkhipov, V.A.Olaev S.O.Lebedev A.A.Potapov ("Elara" SPINE, "Sokol" DEB, A.N.Tupolev KSTU, Russia), the specialists in area of mechanics, magnetic devices of orientation, stabilization and navigation systems,- with scientific research paper about designing of integrated magnetic inertial systems of new type.

In scientific information section of the issue

E.I.Alexeeva, A.K.Medvedeva (CC RAS, INSTH RAS, Russia), specialists in area of nonlinear analysis, sustainable development, space flight mechanics, astronautics history,- with an analytical survey of the Jubilee XXXI^st Scientific Conference on Astronautics dedicated to Academician S.P.Korolev 100^th Anniversary (Moscow, 2007), which is highlighting the up-to-date problems and prospects of astronautics science and techniques.