May 17, 2006 Katherine Trinidad Headquarters, Washington (202) 358-3749 James Hartsfield Johnson Space Center, Houston (281) 483-5111 MEDIA ADVISORY: M06-089 NASA SETS MEDIA BRIEFINGS FOR NEXT SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION The seven-member crew of NASA's next space shuttle flight and Space Shuttle Program managers will participate in a series of media briefings June 8 at the Johnson Space Center, Houston. The briefings begin at 9 a.m. EDT and will be broadcast live on NASA TV. Reporters at participating NASA locations may ask questions. Space Shuttle Discovery's launch is targeted for July 1 in a launch window that extends to July 19. The mission, designated STS-121, will continue evaluating new shuttle safety improvements, many of which first flew on Discovery's July 2005 mission. The improvements include a redesign of the shuttle external fuel tank's foam insulation, in-flight inspection of the shuttle's heat shield, improved imagery during launch and the ability to launch a shuttle rescue mission if needed. Discovery will carry supplies and a third crew member to the International Space Station. At least two spacewalks are planned during the 12-day mission, which also includes repair work to the station. Planned briefings: Program Overview, 9 a.m. EDT Wayne Hale, Space Shuttle Program manager Kirk Shireman, International Space Station Program deputy manager Mission Overview, 10 a.m. EDT Tony Ceccacci, Lead STS-121 space shuttle flight director Rick LaBrode, Lead STS-121/ULF1.1 International Space Station flight director Space Shuttle Safety Improvements, 11 a.m. EDT Steve Poulos, Space Shuttle Orbiter Projects Office manager John Chapman, Space Shuttle External Tank Project manager Terri Murphy, Space Shuttle Imagery integration manager NASA TV Video File, 12 p.m. EDT Spacewalk Overview, 1 p.m. EDT Tomas Gonzalez-Torres, Lead STS-121 extravehicular activities officer Crew News Conference, 2 p.m. EDT Steve Lindsey, commander Mark Kelly, pilot Mike Fossum, mission specialist Lisa Nowak, mission specialist Stephanie Wilson, mission specialist Piers Sellers, mission specialist Thomas Reiter, mission specialist, station Expedition 13 flight engineer 2 Round-robin interviews with the astronauts are available to media in person or by phone. United States media planning to attend or participate in round-robins should contact the Johnson newsroom at (281) 483-5111 by 6 p.m. EDT Tuesday, June 6. Foreign national media planning to attend must contact the same number by 6 p.m. EDT Tuesday, May 23, to arrange credentials. NASA's Video File airs on the Media Channel (Program 103) at 6-8 and 9-11 a.m.; 12-2 and 4-7 p.m.; and 10 p.m.-midnight. All times are Eastern. NASA TV's Public, Education and Media channels are available on an MPEG-2 digital C-band signal accessed via satellite AMC-6; 72 degrees west longitude, transponder 17C, 4040 MHz, vertical polarization. In Alaska and Hawaii, they're on AMC-7; 137 degrees west longitude, transponder 18C, at 4060 MHz, horizontal polarization. For digital downlink and links to streaming video, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv For more information on STS-121 and its crew, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle -end- To subscribe to the list, send a message to: hqnews-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx To remove your address from the list, send a message to: hqnews-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
