[meteorite-list] NASA to Host Live Events for November 4 Comet Encounter

[Ron Baalke]

Nov. 1, 2010

Dwayne Brown      
Headquarters, Washington                                
202-358-1726 
dwayne.c.brown at nasa.gov 

DC Agle 
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 
818-393-9011 
agle at jpl.nasa.gov 

Lee Tune 
University of Maryland, College Park 
301-405-4679 
ltune at umd.edu 
MEDIA ADVISORY: M10-156

NASA TO HOST LIVE EVENTS FOR NOVEMBER 4 COMET ENCOUNTER

WASHINGTON -- NASA will hold a series of media and educational events 
about the EPOXI mission's close encounter with comet Hartley 2 at 
approximately 7 a.m. PDT on Thursday, Nov. 4. The spacecraft will 
provide the most extensive observations of a comet in history. 

Live coverage beginning at 6:30 a.m. from mission control at NASA's 
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., will be 
broadcast on NASA Television's Media Channel and the agency's 
website. A post-flyby news briefing is planned for 1 p.m. For NASA TV 
streaming video, scheduling and downlink information, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv 

Media who would like to cover the event at JPL must RSVP in advance to 
the JPL Media Relations Office at 818-354-5011. Valid media 
credentials are required. Non-U.S. citizens must also bring 
passports. From 6:30 to 8:30 a.m., media can watch live coverage of 
the control room via a feed to JPL's von Karman Auditorium. The 
auditorium will remain open through the day for working media. 
Reporters who won't be at JPL may call the Media Relations Office to 
make arrangements to ask questions during the briefing. 

The timeline for mission coverage is (all times PDT and subject to 
change): 

6:30-8:30 a.m. -- NASA TV commentary begins from mission control and 
includes coverage of closest approach, an educational segment, and 
the return of close approach images. 
1 p.m. -- News briefing following encounter. Participants may include: 

Ed Weiler, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at 
NASA 
Headquarters in Washington 
Michael A'Hearn, principal investigator, University of Maryland 
Jessica Sunshine, EPOXI scientist, University of Maryland 
Tim Larson, EPOXI project manager at JPL 

Activities will also be carried live on one of JPL's Ustream channels 
at: 

http://www.ustream.tv/user/NASAJPL2 

The public can watch a real-time animation of the EPOXI comet flyby 
using NASA's new "Eyes on the Solar System" Web tool. JPL created 
this 3-D environment that allows people to explore the solar system 
directly from their computers. Visit: 

http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/eyes 

EPOXI is an extended mission that utilizes the already "in-flight" 
Deep Impact spacecraft to explore distinct celestial targets of 
opportunity. The term EPOXI is a combination of the names for the two 
extended mission components: the Extrasolar Planet Observations and 
Characterization (EPOCh), and the Hartley 2 flyby, called the Deep 
Impact eXtended Investigation (DIXI). For more information about 
EPOXI, visit: 

http://www.nasa.gov/epoxi 
	
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