NASA Sets New Date for Media to See Space Crew Capsule Model

NASA has postponed for one week an opportunity for reporters to view a scale model of the Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.

News media are invited to view a scale model of the CEV in Ames’ Unitary Wind Tunnel complex on Tuesday, March 7, 2006, from 10:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. PST. The one-week delay from the original date, Feb. 28, 2006, is to insure that reporters can view the model close-up inside the wind tunnel.

Tests to help in development of NASA’s new spaceship to support the Vision for Space Exploration are underway this week at NASA Ames in California’s Silicon Valley. NASA Ames’ wind tunnel tests of the CEV crew capsule model are simulating airflow and temperature changes the capsule could experience in atmospheric flight. The tests are among the first steps that NASA Ames is taking to help develop a new space travel system that will return human beings to the moon and support later missions to Mars. NASA Ames is participating in the CEV development effort that involves all NASA centers led by NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston.

WHAT: Opportunity to view the CEV model in the Ames Unitary Wind Tunnel complex and conduct interviews with NASA Ames scientists and engineers.

WHEN: A tour of the Ames Unitary Wind Tunnel complex will be held on Tuesday, March 7, 2006, from 10:30 a.m. – 1 p.m. PST.

WHO: George Sarver, who leads Ames’ efforts to support development of the new spaceship and its systems, will be available for interviews. Ames’ James Bell and additional NASA Ames engineers involved in the CEV model wind tunnel tests also will be available to speak with reporters.

WHERE: NASA Ames Research Center Unitary Wind Tunnel complex, Bldg. N227-A. News media representatives who wish to attend the wind tunnel tour and CEV model exhibition should report by 10 a.m. PST, March 7, 2006, to Ames’ Visitor Badging Office, located at the Ames main gate. To reach Ames, take the Moffett Field exit off Highway 101 and drive east to the main gate and Visitor Badging Office. Maps to the wind tunnel complex will be provided.

For further information about the Crew Exploration Vehicle, please visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/exploration/main/index.html

Publication size images are available at:

http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/multimedia/images/2006/cev_model.html