NASA Invites Media To Orion Crew Module Arrival At Kennedy

June 22, 2012

Trent J. Perrotto
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0321
trent.j.perrotto@nasa.gov

Amber Philman
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-867-2468
amber.n.philman@nasa.gov

MEDIA ADVISORY: M12-118

NASA INVITES MEDIA TO ORION CREW MODULE ARRIVAL AT KENNEDY

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Media representatives are invited to attend an
event marking the arrival of NASA's first space-bound Orion
spacecraft at the agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The event
will take place at 10 a.m. EDT, Monday, July 2, at Kennedy's
Operations and Checkout Building and be carried live on NASA
Television and the agency's website.

The Orion spacecraft will carry astronauts farther into the solar
system than ever before. It will provide emergency abort capability,
sustain the crew during the space travel and provide safe re-entry
from deep space.

Speakers include:
-- Sen. Bill Nelson
-- NASA Deputy Administrator Lori Garver
-- NASA Orion Program Manager Mark Geyer
-- NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Exploration Systems
Development Dan Dumbacher
-- NASA Space Launch System Spacecraft and Payload Integration Manager
David Beaman
-- NASA Ground Systems Development and Operations Program Manager
Pepper Phillips

NASA participants will discuss progress made to-date on final assembly
and integration of the spacecraft, which will launch on Exploration
Flight Test-1, an uncrewed mission planned for 2014. This test will
see Orion travel farther into space than any human spacecraft has
gone in more than 40 years. In advance of its launch from Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., the Orion production team will
apply heat shielding thermal protection systems, avionics and other
subsystems to the spacecraft.

Additionally, NASA will host an interactive session from 11:45 a.m. to
12:30 p.m., with agency leaders and Orion Program managers to answer
questions from followers of NASA's social media accounts. Followers
on Twitter can ask a question during the event using the hashtag
#askNASA. On NASA Facebook and Google+, a comment thread will open
for questions the morning of the event.

Journalists must arrive at Kennedy's Press Site by 8:30 a.m., Monday,
July 2, for transportation to the Operations and Checkout Building
for a tour and the ceremony. Badges for the event can be picked up at
the Kennedy Space Center Badging Office on State Road 405.

International journalists must apply for credentials by 5 p.m.,
Sunday, June 24, to cover the event. For U.S. journalists, the
deadline to apply is 5 p.m., Thursday, June 28. All media
accreditation requests must be submitted online at:

https://media.ksc.nasa.gov

In 2017, Orion will be launched by NASA's Space Launch System (SLS), a
heavy-lift rocket that will provide an entirely new capability for
human exploration beyond low Earth orbit. Designed to be flexible for
launching spacecraft for crew and cargo missions, SLS will enable new
missions of exploration and expand human presence across the solar
system.

Likewise, NASA's Ground Systems Development and Operations Program,
managed at Kennedy, is preparing to process and launch the
next-generation vehicles and spacecraft designed to achieve NASA's
goals for space exploration.

The Orion crew module pressure vessel was built at NASA's Michoud
Assembly Facility in New Orleans. NASA's Johnson Space Center in
Houston manages the Orion Program. SLS is managed by NASA's Marshall
Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.

For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming
video, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

For more information about the Ground Systems Development and
Operations Program at Kennedy, visit:

http://go.nasa.gov/groundsystems

For more information on the Space Launch System, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/sls

For more information about the Orion Program, visit:

www.nasa.gov/orion


-end-



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