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Ball Aerospace Selected to Develop Aerocapture
Technology Under NASA Propulsion Research Study

Ball Aerospace News Release
June 11, 2003

BOULDER, Colo. - NASA recently
selected Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. to
pursue advances in ballute aerocapture, an in-space
propulsion innovation. Ball Aerospace was one of 15
organizations chosen to pursue 22 propulsion
technology research proposals totaling $20 million
that NASA says could revolutionize exploration and
scientific study of the solar system. These awards
are part of the In-Space Propulsion Technologies,
Cycle 2, which is designed to increase the efficiency
of space missions and enable new missions that are
impossible or impractical with current propulsion
technologies.

"Ballute aerocapture is really on the cutting edge
of space technology right now, and we feel very
fortunate to be involved with NASA at this early
stage in its development," says Harold Reitsema,
director of Space Sciences Advanced Programs at Ball
Aerospace. "This technology will reduce the cost of
planetary exploration, and increase the opportunity
to gather valuable scientific data about planets
we've previously been unable to study."

Aerocapture uses atmospheric drag to slow down an
incoming satellite so that it enters an orbit around
a planetary body more efficiently. Like a drag
racer's parachute, the satellite is equipped with a
"ballute," a combination of balloon and parachute,
which slows the satellite enough to go into orbit
around the target planet. Attached ballutes also
protect the satellite and its payload from the
extreme environment encountered while entering the
orbit by deflecting heat. The most important
advantage of aerocapture is that it reduces the
amount of propellant required to send a satellite
into its proper orbit. This lowers launch costs and
allows more room on the spacecraft for scientific
payloads.

Because of the fuel savings and lower-cost launches,
aerocapture techniques will allow scientists to study
more types of planetary bodies, including Neptune,
and Titan, the largest moon of Saturn. The technique
chosen for the NASA contracts leverages previous,
successful aerocapture work contracted to Ball
Aerospace over the past few years. The new contract
includes concept development and hypersonic testing
of materials.

Ball Corporation is one of the world's leading
suppliers of metal and plastic packaging to the
beverage and food industries. The company also owns
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. With the addition
of Ball Packaging Europe, acquired in December 2002,
Ball expects to report 2003 sales of approximately $5
billion, of which approximately $4.5 billion will
come from its two packaging segments and $500 million
from its aerospace and technologies segment.

Forward-Looking Statements:
The information in this news release contains
"forward-looking" statements. Actual results or
outcomes may differ materially from those expressed
or implied. As time passes, the relevance and
accuracy of forward-looking statements contained in
this release may change. The company currently does
not intend to update any particular forward-looking
statement except, as it deems necessary at quarterly
or annual release of earnings. Please refer to the
Form 10-Q filed by Ball Corporation on May 13, 2003,
for a summary of key risk factors that could affect
actual results or outcomes. Factors that might affect
the Packaging segments or business of the company
are: fluctuation in consumer and customer demand;
competitive packaging material availability, pricing
and substitution; the weather; fruit, vegetable and
fishing yields; company and industry productive
capacity and competitive activity; lack of
productivity improvement or production cost
reductions; regulatory action or laws, the German
mandatory deposit or other restrictive packaging
legislation, such as recycling laws; availability and
cost of raw materials, energy and transportation; the
ability or inability to pass on to customers changes
in these costs, particularly resin, steel and
aluminum; pricing and ability or inability to sell
scrap; and international business risks (including
foreign exchange rates) particularly in the United
States, Europe and in developing countries such as
China and Brazil. Factors that may affect the
aerospace segment or business are: funding,
authorization and availability of government
contracts and the nature and continuation of those
contracts; and technical uncertainty associated with
aerospace segment contracts. Factors that could
affect the company as a whole include those listed
plus: successful and unsuccessful acquisitions, joint
ventures or divestitures and the integration
activities associated therewith including the
integration and operation of the business of
Schmalbach-Lubeca AG, now known as Ball Packaging
Europe; the inability to purchase the company's
common stock; regulatory action or laws including
those related to corporate governance and financial
reporting, regulations and standards, business
consolidation investment costs and the net realizable
value of assets associated with the company's
activities; goodwill impairment; changes in generally
accepted accounting principles or their
interpretation; litigation; antitrust, intellectual
property, consumer and other issues; strikes;
boycotts; increases in various employee benefits and
labor costs, specifically pension, medical and health
care costs incurred in the countries in which Ball
has operations; rates of return projected and earned
on assets of the company's defined benefit retirement
plans; interest rates and level of company debt;
terrorist activities, war or catastrophic events; and
U.S. and foreign economic conditions.

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