Genesis Scheduled for Launch July 30 aboard Boeing Delta II
The launch of NASA’s Genesis spacecraft is scheduled for Monday,
July 30 at 12:36:01 p.m. EDT. The launch window is two minutes in duration.
Liftoff will occur aboard a Boeing Delta II launch vehicle from Space Launch
Complex 17A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Should launch be
postponed for 24 hours for any reason, the launch time on July 31 is
12:32:34 p.m. EDT.
Genesis, designed and built by Lockheed Martin Space Systems for NASA and
the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will catch a piece of the Sun — a sample of
the elements and ions in the solar wind and bring them back to Earth.
Scientists can then study the exact composition of the Sun and probe the
solar system’s origin. By studying the solar wind, scientists will have a
detailed view of the factors that went into building the solar system as we
know it today.
Genesis’ samples will return to Earth in a capsule in September 2004. As
the capsule parachutes toward the ground in the Air Force’s Utah Testing and
Training Range, it will be captured by a helicopter to prevent the samples
from being disturbed by impact with the ground. The samples will then be
analyzed to provide a basis for comparing the Sun and the solar nebula’s
compositions to those of the planets and the other solar system bodies.
This makes these samples a “Rosetta Stone” of data.
PRELAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE
A prelaunch news conference is scheduled for Sunday, July 29, at 1
p.m. EDT in the NASA-KSC News Center auditorium and will be carried live on
NASA Television. Participating in the briefing will be:
* Jay Bergstralh, Chief Scientist, Solar System Exploration,
NASA Headquarters
* Omar Baez, NASA Launch Manager, Kennedy Space Center
* Rich Murphy, Mission Director, The Boeing Company
* Chet Sazaki, Genesis Project Manager, Jet Propulsion
Laboratory
* Lloyd Oldham, Genesis Program Manager, Lockheed Martin Space
Systems – Astronautics Operations
* Don Burnett, Principal Investigator, California Institute of
Technology
* Joel Tumbiolo, Launch Weather Officer, Department of the Air
Force
ACCREDITATION
Media who wish to cover the launch of Genesis including the
prelaunch news conference should send a letter of request to the NASA-KSC
News Center on news organization letterhead by the close of business on
Friday, July 27. It should include name and Social Security number or
passport number, and be faxed to 321/867-2692 or addressed to:
Genesis Launch Accreditation
NASA XA-E1
Kennedy Space Center, FL 32899
Genesis mission badges may be obtained at the NASA-KSC News Center
beginning on Friday, July 27, between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. On launch day,
Monday, July 30, Genesis mission badges will be available starting at 11
a.m. and will be issued at the Pass & Identification Building on SR 401
outside Gate 1 of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
Departure on launch day from the Gate 1 Pass & Identification
Building for Press Site 1 will be at 11:15 a.m. A NASA Genesis mission badge
is required for all media covering the launch at Press Site 1. Annual KSC
badges or other Space Shuttle launch credentials will not be honored on
Genesis launch day. After launch, media may leave unescorted for the return
to Gate 1. An escort is required for all other areas of Cape Canaveral Air
Force Station. For further information on Genesis launch accreditation
contact Patti Beck at the NASA-KSC News Center at 321/867-2468.
REMOTE CAMERAS
Media wishing to establish remote cameras at the launch pad should
meet at the NASA-KSC News Center at 2 p.m. on Sunday, July 29 to be escorted
to Space Launch Complex 17.
TOWER ROLLBACK PHOTO OPPORTUNITY
A photo opportunity to view rollback of the mobile service tower will be
available on launch day. Media will depart from the Gate 1 Pass &
Identification Building at 6:15 a.m. on Monday, July 30.
PRESS SITE OPERATING HOURS
On launch day, the NASA-KSC News Center will be open from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
NASA TELEVISION COVERAGE, V CIRCUITS, WEBCAST AND RECORDED LAUNCH STATUS
NASA Television will carry the prelaunch news conference beginning
at 1 p.m. EDT on Sunday, July 29. On launch day, Monday, July 30, countdown
coverage will begin at 11 a.m. Coverage from Cape Canaveral Air Force
Station will conclude shortly after spacecraft separation that occurs 64
minutes after launch. Commentary will then begin from the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory for acquisition of the spacecraft’s radio signal through the Deep
Space Network tracking station at Goldstone, Calif. This is anticipated to
occur approximately 20 minutes after spacecraft separation. At that time the
Genesis spacecraft’s state of health can be reported.
NASA Television is available on satellite GE 2, transponder 9C,
located at 85 degrees West longitude. A simulcast of the NASA Television
coverage will also be available on the worldwide web at www.ksc.nasa.gov.
Information about the Genesis mission is available on-line at
www.jpl.nasa.gov and www.ast.lmco.com.
Audio only of NASA Television coverage of the prelaunch news
conference and launch commentary will be available on the “V” circuits which
may be dialed directly at 321/867-1220, 867-1240, 867-1260, 867-7135,
867-4003, 867-4920.
The NASA-KSC News Center codaphone will carry Genesis pre-launch status
reports beginning at L-3 days, on Friday, July 27, and may be dialed at
321/867-2525.
