This undated photo provided by Northrop Grumman shows The Armadillo rocket, Scorpius launching from the pad at the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander X PRIZE contest. NASA put up $2 million in prizes for the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge as an incentive to spur development of technology by space entrepreneurs. AP Photo logo AP Photo 1 month ago

This undated photo provided by Northrop Grumman shows The Armadillo rocket, Scorpius launching from the pad at the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander X PRIZE contest. NASA put up $2 million in prizes for the Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge as an incentive to spur development of technology by space entrepreneurs.

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  1. U.S. Navy Chaplain Greg McClellan, left, Capt. Bill Galinis and Col. Lionel Rotelli stand in front of the bow stem during the keel authentication ceremony for the amphibious transport dock ship Somerset at the Northrop Grumman Corp. shipyard in Avondale, La., Friday, Dec. 11, 2009. Somerset is named in honor of the heroes lost on Sept. 11, 2001 on United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Somerset, Pa.
  2. John Vatavuk, County Commisioner of Somerset, Pa., speaks during the keel authentication ceremony for the amphibious transport dock ship Somerset at the Northrop Grumman Corp. shipyard in Avondale, La., Friday, Dec. 11, 2009. Somerset is named in honor of the heroes lost on Sept. 11, 2001 on United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Somerset, Pa.
  3. Lanford Bridges welds the signature of sponsor Mary Jo Myers into a plaque during the keel authentication ceremony for the amphibious transport dock ship Somerset at the Northrop Grumman Corp. shipyard in Avondale, La., Friday, Dec. 11, 2009. Somerset is named in honor of the heroes lost on Sept. 11, 2001 on United Airlines Flight 93, which crashed in Somerset, Pa.
  4. Gordon Felt, brother of Sept. 11 victim Edward Felt, sees his reflection in a plaque during the keel authentication ceremony for theamphibious transport dock ship Somerset at the Northrop Grumman Corp. shipyard in Avondale, La., Friday, Dec. 11, 2009. Somerset is named in honor of the heroes lost on Sept. 11, 2001 on United Airlines Flight 93.
  5. LOS ANGELES, CA - NOVEMBER 10: Douglas Beaver,(C) a US Army veteran, and Kenneth Breitweg, (R) a US Air Force veteran, look at jobs advertised at the Northrop Grumman booth during a job fair titled 'Honor a Hero, Hire a Vet' that attracted hundreds of veterans on November 10, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. The nation's unemployment rate surged to 10.2 percent in October, hitting double digits for the first time in 26 years while in California the unemployment rate is 12.2 percent.
  6. NEW YORK - NOVEMEBER 2: The amphibious transport dock ship, the soon to be commissioned USS New York (R) docks at pier 88 on the west side of Manhattan during an arrival ceremony on November 2, 2009 in New York City. The New York was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems in Avondale, Louisiana, using 7.5 tons of steel salvaged from the wreckage of the World Trade Center site in her bow will be commissioned during a ceremony on November 7.
  7. NEW YORK - NOVEMEBER 2: Military personnel march in formation during an arrival ceremony of the amphibious transport dock ship the soon to be commissioned USS New York on November 2, 2009 in New York City. The New York was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems in Avondale, Louisiana, using 7.5 tons of steel salvaged from the wreckage of the World Trade Center site in her bow will be commissioned during a ceremony on November 7.
  8. NEW YORK - NOVEMEBER 2: New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, (C) walks off the amphibious transport dock ship the soon to be commissioned USS New York after an arrival ceremony on November 2, 2009 in New York City. The New York was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems in Avondale, Louisiana, using 7.5 tons of steel salvaged from the wreckage of the World Trade Center site in her bow will be commissioned during a ceremony on November 7.
  9. NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, lifts off atop a Delta II rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California December 14, 2009 in this photograph released by NASA. The rocket deposited WISE into a polar orbit 326 miles above Earth, on its way to map the entire sky in infrared light.
  10. This photo provided by Vandenberg Air Force Base, located near Lompoc, Calif., shows the launch of a Delta II rocket before dawn Monday, Dec. 14, 2009, from Vandenberg AFB on a $320 million mapping mission to search for hidden asteroids, comets and other celestial objects. The Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, or Wise, will produce the most comprehensive map yet of the cosmos, according to mission managers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
  11. This photo provided by Vandenberg Air Force Base, located near Lompoc, Calif., shows the launch of a Delta II rocket before dawn Monday, Dec. 14, 2009, from Vandenberg AFB on a $320 million mapping mission to search for hidden asteroids, comets and other celestial objects. The Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, or Wise, will produce the most comprehensive map yet of the cosmos, according to mission managers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.
  12. Former President George H.W. Bush talks with NASA astronaut Nicole Stott before an NFL football game between the Houston Texans and the Seattle Seahawks Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009 in Houston.
  13. This image provided by NASA Wednesday Dec. 9, 2009 shows the hexagon jet stream flowing around Saturn's north pole captured by the Cassini spacecraft. The last visible-light images of the entire hexagon were captured by NASA's Voyager spacecraft nearly 30 years ago, the last time spring began on Saturn. According to scientists "It's a mystery on par with the strange weather conditions that give rise to the long-lived Great Red Spot of Jupiter." he hexagon was originally discovered in images taken by the Voyager spacecraft in the early 1980s. It encircles Saturn at about 77 degrees north latitude and has been estimated to have a diameter wider than two Earths. The jet stream is believed to whip along the hexagon at around 100 meters per second (220 miles per hour).
  14. This photo taken on Nov. 5, 2009 released by the Australian Antarctic Division, courtesy of gsfc/NASA, shows a satellite image of iceberg B17B, center, some 19 kilometers (12 miles) long, floating southwest of the West Australian coast, between Australia and Antarctica. Since it was first sighted, it has shrunk from 54 square miles (140 square kilometers) to 44 square miles (115 square kilometers), or around 11 miles (18 kilometers) long and 5 miles (8 kilometers) wide. The iceberg has broken up into hundreds of smaller icebergs, some up to several miles (kilometers) wide, and spread over more than 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) of ocean.
  15. BANNING, CA - DECEMBER 8: Emissions-producing diesel trucks and cars pass non-polluting windmills along the 10 freeway on December 8, 2009 near Banning, California. Sustained global warming shows no sign of letting up according to new analysis by the World Meteorological Organization made public at the climate talks in Copenhagen. Although global temperature fluctuates from year to year, overall the decade of the 2000s is likely the warmest decade in the past 150 years covered by the report. This decade is warmer than the 1990s which were warmer than the 1980s, and so on. The conclusion meshes with independent analysis by the National Climatic Data Center and NASA.
  16. BANNING, CA - DECEMBER 8: Diesel trucks and cars travel the 10 freeway on December 8, 2009 near Banning, California. Sustained global warming shows no sign of letting up according to new analysis by the World Meteorological Organization made public at the climate talks in Copenhagen. Although global temperature fluctuates from year to year, overall the decade of the 2000s is likely the warmest decade in the past 150 years covered by the report. This decade is warmer than the 1990s which were warmer than the 1980s, and so on. The conclusion meshes with independent analysis by the National Climatic Data Center and NASA.

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  1. Philadelphia Flyers Dan Carcillo (13) pulls the sweater up over the face of Pittsburgh Penguins Craig Adams (27) during a fight in the first period of their NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on December 15, 2009.
  2. Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury stops a shot by the Philadelphia Flyers during the first period of their NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on December 15, 2009.
  3. Toronto Raptors Chris Bosh (R), is blocked by Miami Heat's Dorell Wright (L) and Udonis Haslem (C) during first quarter NBA basketball action in Miami, Florida December 15, 2009.
  4. Performers take the stage during a preview of Cirque du Soleil newest show "Viva Elvis" during a news conference inside the Elvis Theater at Aria Resort & Casino at the MGM Mirage's $8.5 billion CityCenter complex in Las Vegas, Nevada December 15, 2009.
  5. PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 16: Shane Watson of Australia fends off a short delivery during day one of the Third Test match between Australian and the West Indies at WACA on December 16, 2009 in Perth, Australia.
  6. PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 16: Ravi Rampaul of the West Indies sends down a delivery during day one of the Third Test match between Australian and the West Indies at WACA on December 16, 2009 in Perth, Australia.
  7. PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 16: Shane Watson of Australia hooks for four during day one of the Third Test match between Australian and the West Indies at WACA on December 16, 2009 in Perth, Australia.
  8. PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 16: Shane Watson of Australia slashes a shot through slips during day one of the Third Test match between Australian and the West Indies at WACA on December 16, 2009 in Perth, Australia.
  9. PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 16: Kemar Roach of the West Indies sends down a delivery during day one of the Third Test match between Australian and the West Indies at WACA on December 16, 2009 in Perth, Australia.
  10. PERTH, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 16: Shane Watson of Australia hits out during day one of the Third Test match between Australian and the West Indies at WACA on December 16, 2009 in Perth, Australia.
  11. The statue of Christ the Redeemer is seen during sunset in Rio de Janeiro, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009.
  12. A man prepares a native delicacy during the season for church goers attending an early morning mass that signals the start of celebration of Christmas Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009 in Manila, Philippines.
  13. Filipino devotees flock to the church for the early morning mass that signals the start of celebration of Christmas Wednesday, Dec. 16, 2009 in Manila, Philippines.
  14. Christopher Hall stands during his arraignment in Providence, R.I., District Court Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009, on charges of shooting and wounding three police officers during a drug raid Monday night.
  15. St. Louis Blues' Barret Jackman (5) congratulates goalie Chris Mason (50), as Calgary Flames' Olli Jokinen skates by, after the third period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009 in St. Louis. The Blues beat the Flames 4-3.
  16. St. Louis Blues' T.J. Oshie (74), center, celebrates with teammates after scoring the go-ahead goal in the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Calgary Flames, Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009 in St. Louis. The Blues beat the Flames 4-3.