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NASA News 
National Aeronautics and
Space Administration

John F. Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center, Florida 32899
AC 321-867-2468
_____________________________________________________________________
For Release: April 21, 2003

Nancy Neal
NASA Headquarters
202/358-2369

George H. Diller
Kennedy Space Center
321/867-2468

Jane Platt
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
818//354-0880

Barron Beneski
Orbital Sciences Corporation
703/406-5528

KSC Release No. 31-03

NOTE TO EDITORS/NEWS DIRECTORS:
GALEX SPACECRAFT TO BE LAUNCHED ABOARD PEGASUS XL APRIL 28

Part 1 of 2

The launch of NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) spacecraft
aboard an Orbital Sciences Corporation (OSC) air-launched Pegasus
vehicle is scheduled for deployment over the Atlantic Ocean from
OSC's L-1011 carrier aircraft on Monday, April 28 at 8 a.m. EDT.
This time is contained within a launch window that opens at 7:50 a.m.
and closes at 9:50 a.m. EDT.

The launch begins with the drop of the Pegasus rocket from the L-1011
over the Atlantic Ocean at an altitude of 39,000 feet at a location
approximately 100 nautical miles offshore east-northeast of Cape
Canaveral. The launch is expected to be visible from the coast.
Spacecraft separation from the Pegasus occurs 11 minutes later.  At
that time the satellite will be in a circular orbit of 431 statute
miles (690 km) at a 29-degree inclination.

GALEX will observe a million galaxies across 10 billion years of
cosmic history to help astronomers determine when the stars and
galaxies we see today had their origins.  During the course of its
two-year investigation, GALEX will conduct the first ultraviolet
surveys of the entire extragalactic sky, including the first
wide-area spectroscopic surveys.  This vast data archive will form a
lasting legacy.  Rich in objects from galaxies to quasars to white
dwarf stars, it will serve as a resource for the entire astronomical
community. 

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is responsible for the project
management of GALEX and built the telescopic instrument.  Orbital
Sciences Corporation built the spacecraft bus and is responsible for
instrument integration.   The California Institute of Technology is
responsible for the science operations and astronomical data.  The
Kennedy Space Center is responsible for spacecraft/launch vehicle
integration, countdown management, launch vehicle engineering
oversight and mission assurance. 

PRELAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE  
  
The prelaunch news conference is scheduled for Friday, April 25 at 1
p.m. EDT at the NASA-KSC News Center.  Participating in the briefing
will be:

Charles Dovale, NASA launch director
John F. Kennedy Space Center, Florida

Bryan Baldwin, Pegasus launch vehicle program manager
Orbital Sciences Corporation, Dulles, Virginia

Dr. James Fanson, GALEX project manager
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California

James Sardonia, launch weather officer
45th Weather Squadron, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

GALEX MISSION SCIENCE BRIEFING

Dr. Richard Fisher, director of Sun-Earth Connection division
NASA Headquarters, Washington

Dr. Christopher Martin, GALEX principal investigator
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif. 
                                                            
ACCREDITATION

Media needing accreditation should apply written on news organization
letterhead and addressed to NASA Press Accreditations and faxed to
321-867-2692.  Please include full name, Social Security number,
birth date, birth location and citizenship.  For media needing
badges, all requests for launch day accreditation must be received by
the close of business Friday, April 25.

LAUNCH DAY PRESS COVERAGE

On launch day, April 28, media representatives will depart to cover
the launch at 6:15 a.m. by government-furnished transportation from
the Pass & Identification Building at Gate 3 on SR 405, east of U.S.
1 south of Titusville.  Media will be taken to the Skid Strip runway
on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station to view the take-off of the
L-1011.  After aircraft departure, media will be taken to the viewing
room of the NASA Mission Director's Center located in Hangar AE on
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. From there, media may follow the
deployment and launch of Pegasus/GALEX. Media may choose instead to
go to the NASA-KSC News Center to follow progress of the flight.

Assuming a nominal flight of the Pegasus launch vehicle, a
post-launch news conference will not be held.  However, launch
vehicle and spacecraft representatives will be available afterward at
Hangar AE to informally answer questions from the media.  Media who
have elected to return to the Press Site will be able to
teleconference from the News Center conference room if they so
request. 

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