| August 29, 2016 MEDIA ADVISORY M13-16 NASA to Hold Asteroid Mission Briefings, Launch
NASA is gearing up to launch the United States’ first mission to sample an asteroid, with activities at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida beginning Tuesday, Sept. 6, and culminating with the spacecraft launch Thursday, Sept. 8. Various activities are open to media and will air live on NASA Television and the agency’s website. The Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket between 7:05 and 9 p.m. EDT Sept. 8 from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, neighboring Kennedy in Florida. The full schedule of events and television coverage is as follows:Tuesday, Sept. 6 10:30 a.m. – Commercial Crew Program media tour NASA’s Commercial Crew Program will provide media with an update on the progress being made by the agency’s commercial crew partners. Media wishing to participate must arrive at the Kennedy Press Site by 9:45 a.m. to board buses, and will return to the Press Site by 11:50 a.m. 1 p.m. – Prelaunch mission briefing at the Kennedy Press Site This briefing will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website. Social media followers can ask questions during this event using #askNASA. Briefing participants are:
2 p.m. – OSIRIS-REx mission science briefing at the Kennedy Press Site This briefing will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website. Social media followers can ask questions during this event using #askNASA. Briefing participants are:
2:45 p.m. – Ka-Band Objects Observation and Monitoring (KaBOOM) tour Media will have an opportunity to tour the antenna site and talk to Principal Investigator Barry Geldzahler about this high-power, higher-resolution radar system being developed to characterize near-Earth objects, such as asteroids and comets, 100,000 times more accurately than optical telescopes. Buses board for this tour at 2:45 p.m. and return to the Press Site by 4:40 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 7 8 a.m. – Atlas V Launch Vehicle Rollout Media are invited to cover the rollout of the Atlas V rocket from the Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad. Media should be at Kennedy’s Press Site at 8 a.m. for transportation to the viewing location near Space Launch Complex 41. Media will be returned to the Press Site by 11:30 a.m. Noon to 1 p.m. -- OSIRIS-REx Talk from Kennedy’s Operations Support Building II (OSB II) NASA will host a discussion with representatives from the mission’s science and engineering teams that includes an overview of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft and the science behind the mission. Social media followers can ask questions during this event using #askNASA. This event will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website. 1 to 2 p.m. – Uncovering the Secrets of Asteroids During this panel at OSB II, NASA scientists will discuss asteroids, how they relate to the origins of our solar system, and the search for life beyond Earth. Social media followers can ask questions during this event using #askNASA. This event will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website. Panelists for this conversation are:
Media who would like to attend this panel must board a bus at the Press Site at 12:15 p.m. to travel to the OSB II. Buses will return at 2:15 p.m. Also on this day, NASA will air a prelaunch webcast on the agency’s YouTube channel at: https://www.youtube.com/NASAtelevision Thursday, Sept. 8 2 p.m. - Dust to Thrust: Mining for Resources in Space During this event at the Kennedy Press Site, media will learn more about the potential and technology for space mining, and have the opportunity to interview experts in the in-situ resource utilization and atmospheric mining communities. This event will not air on NASA TV or the agency’s website. 4:30 p.m. – Launch Coverage Begins Live coverage of the OSIRIS-REx mission launch will begin on NASA TV and the agency’s website with the start of cryogenic tanking of the Atlas V rocket, and conclude approximately one hour after launch. 7:05 to 9:05 p.m. – Launch window for the OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft The launch will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website. Approximately 2 hours After Launch – Post-Launch News Conference Representatives from NASA and ULA will discuss the status of the spacecraft and next steps on the asteroid sampling mission. Social media followers can ask questions during this event using #askNASA. This event will air live on NASA TV and the agency’s website. OSIRIS-REx will be the first U.S. mission to sample an asteroid. OSIRIS-REx will travel to the near-Earth asteroid Bennu, arriving in 2018, to survey the surface, retrieve at least 60 grams (2.1 ounces) of surface material, and return it to Earth in 2023 for study. Analysis of the sample will reveal the earliest stages of the solar system’s evolution and the history of Bennu over the past 4.5 billion years. Goddard provides overall mission management, systems engineering and the safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. The University of Arizona leads the science team and observation planning and processing. Lockheed Martin Space Systems built the spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA’s New Frontiers Program. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages the agency’s New Frontiers Program for its Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Launch management is conducted by the Launch Services Program at Kennedy. Accreditation and Media Access Badging for Kennedy Space Center To cover OSIRIS-REx prelaunch and launch events, media must apply for credentials at: U.S. media accreditation requests must be received by 4:30 p.m. EDT Monday, Aug. 29. The deadline for accreditation requests by foreign media has passed. All registered media must present two forms of unexpired government-issued identification to access Kennedy. One form must be a photo ID, such as a passport or driver’s license. For more information about media accreditation, contact Jennifer Horner at 321-867-6598, 321-867-2468 or jennifer.p.horner@nasa.gov. Press Accreditation Office Hours of Operation Media may pick up credentials at Kennedy’s Press Accreditation Office, located on State Road 3, Merritt Island, Florida. Operating hours are: Tuesday, Sept. 6 8 to 9:45 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. International media may pick up credentials at 9 a.m. and 12:15 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 7 7 to 8:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. International media may pick up credentials at 7:30 a.m., 11:45 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 8 3 to 6 p.m. International media may pick up credentials at 11:45 a.m. and 4 p.m. Kennedy News Center Hours Tuesday, Sept. 6 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 7 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 8 7 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Recorded Status Updates Beginning Sept. 6, recorded status reports and updates to on the OSIRIS-REx launch and preceding activities will be available at 321-867-2525. New Conference/Briefing Participation For the prelaunch mission briefing and mission science briefing, media may ask questions by phone by calling the Kennedy newsroom at 321-867-2468 at least 15 minutes before the briefings begin. Media also can post questions during the briefings on Twitter by using the hashtag #askNASA. Remote Camera Placement at Space Launch Complex 41 On Sept. 7, photographers who wish to set up remote sound-activated cameras at the launch pad will be transported to Space Launch Complex 41 (SLC-41). Media should meet in the Kennedy Press Site parking lot at 2:15 p.m. Only photographers placing remote cameras may go to the pad for this opportunity. Media will be returned to the Press Site by 5 p.m. International news media will set up remote cameras at Universal Camera Site-3 on Kennedy, southeast of SLC-41. Launch Viewing for the Media On Sept. 8, media will be able to view the OSIRIS-REx launch from the Kennedy Press Site. Launch viewing also will be available from the NASA Causeway located on the Banana River, between Kennedy and Cape Canaveral. Buses will leave the Press Site for NASA Causeway at 5:30 p.m. Media signed up to view the launch from the Vehicle Assembly Building roof on Kennedy also will depart the Press Site at 5:30 p.m. Launch Audio Audio only of the press conferences, briefings, panel discussions and launch coverage will air on the NASA V circuits, which may be accessed by dialing 321-867-1220, 321-867-1240, 321-867-1260, or 321-867-7135. Mission audio, the launch conductor’s countdown activities without NASA TV launch commentary, will air on 321-867-7135 starting at 4 p.m. Launch audio also will be available on local amateur VHF radio frequency 146.940 MHz, heard within Brevard County, Florida. Wireless Capability Wireless capability is available to the media at Kennedy’s Press Site. To learn more about the OSIRIS-REx mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/osiris-rex To watch NASA Television programming online, or for downlink or schedule information, visit: Follow the launch countdown online at: http://www.twitter.com/NASAKennedy https://www.facebook.com/NASAKennedy http://blogs.nasa.gov/osiris-rex Join the conversation online using #osiris-rex and follow the OSIRIS-REx mission on social media at: http://www.twitter.com/OSIRISREx https://www.facebook.com/OSIRISREx - end - NASA Kennedy Space Center news releases and other information are available automatically by sending an e-mail message with the subject line subscribe to ksc-request@newsletters.nasa.gov. To unsubscribe, send an e-mail message with the subject line unsubscribe to ksc-request@newsletters.nasa.gov. |
