NASA News <br />National Aeronautics and<br />Space Administration<br /><br /><br />John F. Kennedy Space Center<br />Kennedy Space Center, Florida 32899<br />AC 321-867-2468<br />____________________________________________________________________________<br />_______________________________<br />For Release: June 20, 2003 <br /><br /><br />Dennis Armstrong <br />Kennedy Space Center, Fla.<br />(Phone: 321/867-2468)<br /><br /><br />KSC Release No. 47-03<br /><br /><br />NOTICE TO EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS:<br />KSC WEB TO PROVIDE LIVE COVERAGE OF MER-B LAUNCH<br /><br /><br />On Tuesday, June 24, the Kennedy Space Center Web site will begin its<br />coverage of the launch of Mars Exploration Rover (MER) Opportunity,<br />currently scheduled for June 26. The KSC Web Studio will present two NASA<br />Direct! webcast events in addition to live coverage of the launch countdown.<br /><br /><br />The first program, "Preparing for Launch," on June 24, will be hosted by Jon<br />Cowart and will feature Launch Weather Officer Joel Tumbiolo, NASA Launch<br />Manager Omar Baez, and MER Principal Investigator Steve Squyres. The "MER<br />Mission Overview" program, on June 26, will feature MER spacecraft mission<br />director Peter Theisinger with host Tiffany Nail.<br /><br /><br />During both programs, guests will answer questions submitted to the NASA<br />Direct! Question Boards from space enthusiasts around the world. Anyone with<br />questions regarding the MER mission or MER-B launch is encouraged to submit<br />their questions to the appropriate NASA Direct! Question Board for a<br />possible answer during the webcast. The NASA Direct! home page and Question<br />Boards can be viewed online at
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/nasadirect/index.htm.<br /><br /><br />In addition to NASA Direct!, the KSC Web will provide live countdown<br />coverage from the Virtual Launch Control Center, located at<br />
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/elvnew/merb/vlcc.htm. Coverage will feature<br />real-time updating as milestones occur during the countdown, as well as<br />downloadable and streaming video clips of countdown events. All videos will<br />be provided in RealMedia format, with downloadable clips available in two<br />sizes for users with 56K modems or cable/broadband connections.<br /><br /><br />-- end of general release --<br /><br /><br />MER-B WEB COVERAGE SCHEDULE (all times are EDT and subject to change)<br /><br /><br />L-2 Days - Tuesday, June 24<br />2:15 p.m. NASA Direct! program: Preparing for Launch<br /> <br />
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/nasadirect/elv/merb/event1.htm<br /><br /><br />L-1 Day - Wednesday, June 25<br />11:00 p.m. Live countdown coverage begins<br />
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/elvnew/merb/vlcc.htm<br /><br /><br />L-0 Days - Launch Day, Thursday, June 26<br />3:00 p.m. NASA Direct! program: MER Mission Overview<br /> <br />
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/nasadirect/elv/merb/event2.htm<br /><br /><br />Although coverage events for this mission do not begin until two days prior<br />to launch, the MER-B coverage site at<br />
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/elvnew/mera/index.htm was activated approximately<br />one month before the anticipated launch date. KSC's Expendable Launch<br />Vehicles site at
http://www.ksc.nasa.gov/elvnew/elv.htm will always serve as<br />a starting point for coverage of other NASA ELV missions.
