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Media Briefing for Upcoming Launch of NASA'S Space Infrared Telescope Facility

Posted on: Wednesday, 10 September 2003, 06:00 CDT

PASADENA, Calif., Aug. 19 (AScribe Newswire) -- The launch of NASA's Space Infrared Telescope Facility aboard a Boeing Delta II Heavy expendable launch vehicle is scheduled for Friday, August 22, at the opening of an instantaneous launch window that occurs at 10:37:29 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time (1:37:29 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time on August 23). Launch will occur from Pad 17-B on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.

The Space Infrared Telescope Facility marks the finale of NASA's Great Observatories Program, which includes the Hubble Space Telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the Compton Gamma Ray Observatory. Its unprecedented infrared sensitivity will allow astronomers to study the most distant, coldest, and most dust- obscured objects and processes in the universe.

The observatory's amazing ability to sleuth around for low-temperature objects will also aid in the search for planetary systems in the making, some of which may breed Earth-like planets. The mission is a cornerstone of NASA's Origins Program, which seeks to answer the questions, "Where did we come from? Are we alone?"

NASA has scheduled a media briefing consisting of two panels to discuss the science and upcoming launch of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility. The briefing, to be carried live on NASA Television, will be held at the NASA News Center at Kennedy Space Center on Thursday, August 21, 9:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time. Los Angeles-area reporters are invited to watch the briefing via satellite at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Dr., Pasadena.

Two-way question-and-answer capability will be available. Media who would like to view the briefing at JPL must RSVP to the Media Relations Office at (818) 354-5011. Valid media credentials are required. Non-U.S. citizens must also bring passports. To monitor the briefing over the phone, reporters should call (818) 354-6666. The briefing will be webcast live at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/webcast/sirtf/1.cfm.

Science Briefing

Participating in the science panel will be:

Dr. Ed Weiler, NASA associate administrator NASA Headquarters, Washington

Dr. Michael Werner, Space Infrared Telescope Facility project scientist Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

Dr. Dale Cruikshank, interdisciplinary scientist for planetary science NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.

Dr. Michael Jura, Space Infrared Telescope Facility interdisciplinary scientist for planetary science University of California, Los Angeles

Dr. Marcia Rieke, astronomer/professor Stewart Observatory, University of Arizona, Tucson

Mission Briefing

Participating in the mission briefing will be:

Lia LaPiana, Space Infrared Telescope Facility program executive NASA Headquarters, Washington

Omar Baez, NASA launch director Kennedy Space Center, Fla.

Kris Walsh, director of NASA Programs Boeing Expendable Launch Systems, Huntington Beach, Calif.

David Gallagher, Space Infrared Telescope Facility project manager Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

U.S. Air Force Delta/Space Infrared Telescope Facility Launch Weather Officer 45th Weather Squadron, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla.

No post-launch press conference will be held. A post-launch release will be issued with details on the state of health of the spacecraft after data is received. This is expected to be available approximately three hours after launch.

Remote Camera Placement at Complex 17: On Friday, August 22, photographers who wish to set up remote cameras at the Delta launch complex will be escorted by a Boeing representative to Pad 17-B. Departure will be at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time from the Gate 1 Pass and Identification Building located on SR 401 outside Gate 1 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Tower Rollback Photo Opportunity

On Friday, August 22, there will be an opportunity to observe rollback of the mobile service tower from around the Space Infrared Telescope Facility/Delta II launch vehicle at Pad 17-B. Media will depart at 4:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time by government bus from the Gate 1 Pass and Identification Building on SR 401 outside Gate 1 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. Press credentials and identification from a bona fide news organization will be required.

Launch Day Press Access

On Saturday, August 23, media covering the launch will be able to obtain press access badges beginning at midnight Eastern Daylight Time at the Gate 1 Pass and Identification Building on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station located on SR 401. Press credentials and identification from a bona fide news organization will be required to obtain an access badge. A driver's license alone will not be sufficient.

Due to the location of the impact limit lines for the launch of the Delta Heavy, the Trident bluff remote press site will be used. This is located on south Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on the east side of the Trident turn basin. Video and audio plug-in capability for NASA Television will be available. In addition, a limited number of laptop telephone interfaces will be available. Departure from Gate 1 for the Trident bluff will be at 12:20 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

News Center Hours for Launch

On Friday, August 22, the NASA News Center at KSC will be open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. The News Center will be closed on Saturday. All media activities will be conducted from the remote press site at the Trident bluff.

NASA Television Coverage

On Thursday, August 21, NASA Television will carry live the Space Infrared Telescope Facility/Delta II Mission Science Briefing at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time and the Mission launch Briefing at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time. On Friday, August 22, NASA Television coverage of the launch will begin at 8:30 p.m. Pacific Daylight Time and conclude approximately one hour after launch.

NASA Television is available on the AMC-2 satellite, Transponder 9C, located at 85 degrees West.

Audio only of the prelaunch press conference and the launch coverage will be carried on the NASA "V" circuits which may be accessed by dialing

321/867-1220. . . 1240. . . 1260...7135.

NASA Television coverage will be simulcast on the web and accessed via the NASA Home Page at: http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/MM_NTV_Web.html

A live webcast of the launch is also available at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/webcast/sirtf/ .

Live informational updates and post-event video will also be available through Kennedy Space Center's Virtual Launch Control Center at: http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/elvnew/sirtf/index.htm .

Status Reports

Recorded status reports on the launch of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility will be provided on the Kennedy Space Center news media codaphone starting on Monday, August 18. The telephone number is 321-867-2525.

The management of the Space Infrared Telescope Facility launch is the responsibility of NASA's John F. Kennedy Space Center. JPL in Pasadena, Calif., a division of the California Institute of Technology, manages the project for the Office of Space Science at NASA Headquarters. The fully integrated spacecraft was designed and built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company in Sunnyvale, Calif. The Space Infrared Telescope Facility's cryogenic telescope was designed and built by Ball Aerospace and Technologies Corp. in Boulder, Colo. The observatory's three science instruments were provided by astronomers at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass. After launch, the Space Infrared Telescope Facility will be operated by teams from JPL, Caltech and Lockheed Martin.

For more information on the mission, visit: http://sirtf.caltech.edu/.

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