ESA TV News — More Info on feed 7 March 2001

The first ESA TV News feed will be transmitted on

7 March 2001

10:00-10:15 GMT

Please note the new transmission parameters below.

The feed will include the following two items:

1. Computer animations and background images (3 minutes) of an observation made by a British researcher from Cambridge (England) using the Hubble Space Telescope. This release is embargoed until 7 March 2001 at 14:00 GMT, and the details on the observations will be posted as of that time under http://hubble.esa.int. In the transmission, slates provide explanations of the images.

2. 3-D graphics and background recordings (4 minutes) for pre-event coverage of the launch of Leonardo, the European-built logistics module for the International Space Station. Its launch is scheduled for 8 March 2001, 11:42 GMT.

Background information on item no 2:

The logistics module Leonardo will solve a major logistical challenge during assembly and operation of the Space Station: it serves the transfer of bulky and heavy equipment into the Station.

Experiments and equipment in the Station are organised in “racks” mounted on the inner sides of the modules. Most modules are put into orbit empty, for weight reasons, and outfitted in orbit, a task performed by the Station Crew.

Transfer of heavy and bulky equipment into the Station is a delicate and time-consuming task. This is why Leonardo is loaded on the ground with up to 16 racks, and then attached to the Station as a whole with a robotic arm.

This gives the Station Crew time to transfer the equipment whilst the Crew of the Space Shuttle continues in-orbit assembly of further modules and facilities.

Alenia Spazio from Italy built the four logistics modules, all named after Italian painters, under a co-operation agreement between the Italian Space Agency ASI, and NASA. Their construction has much in common with ESA’s Columbus Laboratory. The first module is scheduled for launch on 8 March 2001, and the second already in April, when also the first European astronaut, Umberto Guidoni, will visit the Station.

Satellite parameters for the ESA TV News feed on 7 March 2001:

Eutelsat W1, 10 degrees East

Transponder B5, channel 2 (digital, horizontal)

F=11.14375 MHz, SR=5.632 MS/sec, FEC=3/4

For further information and a daily update of the transmission schedule, visit our website at http://television.esa.int. For all enquires, contact Claus Habfast, Tel +31 71 565 3838, Fax +31 71 565 6340, e-mail chabfast@hq.esa.fr.