What's in this week's issue of Space News? Every Monday we post quick, concise summaries of the current issue's top stories.

The most recent smaller stories from all corners of the space community, collected in one convenient place.

GLASGOW, Scotland — The private company planning to take wealthy tourists to the edge of the atmosphere starting in late 2009 or early 2010 has refused a million-dollar proposal to film a sex video while the participants are floating gravity free, the company's president said.

WASHINGTON — NASA now has the legal ability to conclude a new deal with Russia for the three-person Soyuz vehicles it will need to ensure U.S., Canadian, European and Japanese astronauts can fly to the international space station beyond 2011. The permission to move ahead with a new deal with Russia was included in a massive temporary spending measure U.S. President George W. Bush signed into law Sept. 30 to keep the government operating at current spending levels until March.

GLASGOW, Scotland — Europe's Giove-B navigation satellite suffered a complete shutdown of its functions Sept. 9 in what program managers now believe was what they call a "sudden event upset" that was caused when its onboard computer failed after exposure to a temporary spike in radiation, European government officials said.

GLASGOW, Scotland — Thailand's Theos Earth high-resolution optical Earth observation satellite was successfully placed into a transfer orbit Oct. 1 by a Russian-Ukranian Dnepr silo-launched rocket after nearly two years of delays related to launch-vehicle availability, according to Thai authorities and satellite prime contractor Astrium Satellites.

WASHINGTON — A $21 million dispute over a space tourism trip that never happened is set for a Nov. 21 hearing in U.S. District Court in Alexandria, Va.

WASHINGTON — Ares 1 main-stage prime contractor Alliant Techsystems (ATK) reached a weekend agreement with United Space Alliance (USA) meant to keep the Houston-based space shuttle operator engaged in the development of the shuttle's successor until a long-term deal can be concluded.

GLASGOW, Scotland — Satellite manufacturer Astrium of Europe signed an agreement with India's Antrix organization Sept. 30 for the launch of Astrium-built Earth observation satellites on India's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket starting in 2011, according to Astrium officials.

WASHINGTON — Charles Simonyi, a Hungarian computer software executive who paid more than $20 million to fly to the international space station aboard a Russian-built Soyuz capsule in spring 2007, will train for a second Soyuz trip to the space station in spring 2009.

GLASGOW, Scotland — NASA Administrator Michael D. Griffin defended his agency's determination to establish a lunar colony before embarking on a manned Mars mission Sept. 30, arguing that those who prefer to focus only on Mars are overestimating what is known about the Moon and underestimating the difficulties of going to Mars.

WASHINGTON — NASA has extended the Mars Phoenix Lander's mission for a second time, announcing Sept. 29 that the $420 million science station will be kept in service until it succumbs to the long martian winter ahead.