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Mangalayaan arrives at Mars
The unmanned Mangalayaan space probe arrives, intact and functioning, in Mars orbit, making India the first country on Earth to successfully reach Mars on its first attempt. (A high failure rate among past Mars missions has plagued both the Russian and American space programs.) A 23-minute engine burn slows Mangalayaan down enough to be captured by Mars’ gravity, but leaves the vehicle with twice the fuel reserves expected for its projected six-month mission.
Part of the 40th full-time crew of the International Space Station lifts off from Russia’s Baikonur Cosmodrome aboard Soyuz TMA-14M. Upon arriving in orbit, one of the Soyuz solar panel “wings” fails to deploy, only unfolding properly once the vehicle has docked at the ISS. Aleksandr Samokutyayev, Yelena Serova and Barry Wilmore take up residence on the ISS, becoming part of the Expedition 40 and 41 crews. This crew returns to Earth in March 2015 aboard the same vehicle.
Doctor Who audio actress Maggie Stables, who originated the role of the first TARDIS traveler unique to the audio medium, dies after a lengthy illness. First appearing in a guest role in Big Finish Productions’ inaugural Doctor Who story, The Sirens Of Time, in 1999, Stables was quickly cast as Dr. Evelyn Smythe, a new companion for the sixth Doctor (Colin Baker) who defied the series’ convention of casting young actresses in such roles. Ms. Stables reprised the role intermittently, making her final appearance in a trilogy of stories released by Big Finish early in 2011; the character appeared in animated form in a 2002 webcast, but never appeared on television.
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
The first episode of The Flash, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ superhero, premieres on the CW, starring Grant Gustin. The series has been developed for TV by Greg Berlanti, creator of Arrow and past TV successes including Everwood and Eli Stone, and is part of the CW’s “shared universe” of DC Comics adaptations frequently referred to by fans as the Arrowverse. Stephen Amell (Arrow) guest stars; Barry Allen’s father is played by John Wesley Shipp, who played The Flash in his last TV series during the 1990-91 season.
The 47th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Caity Lotz (Mad Men, Legends Of Tomorrow), Grant Gustin (The Flash), and Brandon Routh (Superman Returns) guest star in the third season premiere.
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
An unexpected malfunction destroys Orbital Sciences’ unmanned Cygnus cargo spacecraft a mere six seconds after its Antares booster rocket leaves the ground. Supplies and experiments bound for the 
Virgin Galactica’s suborbital tourist spacecraft SpaceShip Two is launched on its first rocket-powered test since January 2014, this time using a modified rocket engine and a fuel mixture different from its previous test flights. Within seconds of its release and the firing of its engine, things go disastrously wrong: an explosion rips through the vehicle, which tumbles into the Mojave Desert from an altitude of 50,000 feet. One of SpaceShip Two’s pilots, Michael Alsbury, is killed on impact; the other pilot ejects from the vehicle and parachutes to the ground, though he is still severely injured. Virgin Galactic and the National Transportation Safety Board begin an investigation into the accident; though this first flightworthy SpaceShip Two model, the VSS Enterprise, is destroyed, another is under construction.
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
Launched in 2004, the European Space Agency’s Rosetta space probe, orbiting Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko in the outer solar system, releases the Philae robotic lander to descend to 67P’s surface. The lander’s harpoon anchoring system doesn’t work entirely as expected, and Philae bounces off the surface and goes spaceborne again for two hours before coming to rest on the comet once more. Though Philae is able to gather scientific data and the first-ever pictures from a comet’s surface, the nearby geography prevents its solar panels from keeping its batteries at a full charge; ESA ground controllers are only able to intermittently contact Philae.
A television producer with an improbably long list of mega-hit series, including the science fiction shows 
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the