NASA Daily News Summary

For Release: Dec. 17, 1998

Media Advisory 98-97

TODAY'S SUMMARY:

DOT, FAA and NASA Commemorate Wright Brothers' 95th Anniversary

NASA Video File for Dec. 17, 1998

See note about today's video file schedule

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DOT, FAA AND NASA COMMEMORATE WRIGHT BROTHERS' 95TH ANNIVERSARY

The Department of Transportation, the Federal Aviation

Administration (FAA) and NASA commemorated the 95th anniversary
of the Wright brothers' first flight with an aviation education
event for nearly 200 area students. The event was held on
Thursday, Dec. 17, from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. EST in the FAA
auditorium, third floor, 800 Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Michael Braukus

202/358-1979.
Contact at Department of Transportation, Washington, DC: Lorie
Dankers 202/366-5565.
Contact at Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC: Marcia
Adams 202/267-8521.

Full text available at:

ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/1998/98-224.txt

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If additional news releases are issued later today, summaries

and Internet URLs will be e-mailed to this list.

Index of NASA News Releases:

http://www.nasa.gov/releases/1998/index.html

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NASA VIDEO FILE FOR DEC. 17, 1998

ITEM 1: 1998 Global Temperature Smashes Record

In 1998, global surface temperatures set a new record, report
researchers at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS).
For the first time, scientists released data visualizations showing
global temperature anomalies since 1950.

Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Lynn

Chandler 301/614-5562.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: David Steitz
202/358-1730.

ITEM 2: Hubble Space Telescope Heritage Picture for December

Shown is NGC 253, a large, almost edge-on spiral galaxy, and
one of the nearest galaxies beyond our local neighborhood of
galaxies. This dramatic galaxy shows complex structures such as
clumpy gas clouds, darkened dust lanes, and young, luminous central
star clusters. These elements are typical of spiral galaxies.
Caroline Herschel discovered NGC 253 while looking for
comets. The galaxy's closeness to Earth makes it an ideal target for
amateur astronomers who can see the southern sky and for astronomers
interested in learning more about the makeup of these stunning
cities of stars.

Contact at Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD: Ray

Villard 410/338-4514.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Don Savage: 202/358-
1727.

ITEM 2: NASA'S Top 10 Video Files of 1998 (replay)

1: JOHN GLENN RETURNS TO SPACE

Contact at NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX: Eileen Hawley

281/483-5111.

2: BUILDING THE INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

Contact at NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX: James Hartsfield

281/483-5111.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Dwayne Brown 202/358-
1726.

3: HUBBLE VIEWS POSSIBLE PLANET OUTSIDE MILKY WAY

Contact at Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD: Ray

Villard 410/338-4514.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Don Savage: 202/358-
1727.

4: GAMMA RAY BLAST RIVALS BIG BANG

Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Bill

Steigerwald 301/286-5017.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Don Savage 202/358-
1727.

5: LUNAR PROSPECTOR FINDS ICE ON MOON

Contact at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA: David

Morse 650/604-4724.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Doug Isbell 202/358-
1753.

6: EL NINO/LA NINA CAUSE SEVERE WEATHER

Contact at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA: Mary

Hardin 818/354-0344.
Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Wade
Sisler 301/286-6256.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Dave Steitz 202/358-
1730.
 7: ANTARCTIC OZONE HOLE BIGGEST YET

Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Wade

Sisler 301/286-6256.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Dave Steitz 202/358-
1730.

8: SCIENTISTS DISCOVER MAGNETAR

Contact at NASA Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL: Tim

Tyson 256/544-0994.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Don Savage 202/358-
1727.

9: SOLAR POWERED AIRPLANE REACHES ALTITUDE RECORD

Contact at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, CA: Fred

Brown 805/258-2663.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Mike Braukus 202/358-
1979.

10: EILEEN COLLINS NAMED FIRST FEMALE SHUTTLE COMMANDER

Contact at NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX: Eileen Hawley

281/483-5111.

ITEM 4: Animation of Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR)

spacecraft's upcoming encounter with the asteroid Eros.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Doug Isbell/Don

Savage 202/358-1547.
Contact at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory,
Laurel, MD: Helen Worth 240/228-5113.

ITEM 5: Launch (on Dec. 11) of Mars Climate Orbiter (replay)

Contact at NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA: Diane

Ainsworth 818/354-5011.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Doug Isbell 202/358-
1753.

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SPECIAL NOTE: CHANGE TO VIDEO FILE SCHEDULE TODAY

Today, the noon and 3:00 p.m. video file will NOT run so NASA TV can
bring you live video of the STS-88 crew, just returned from the
successful first International Space Station assembly mission, as
follows.

At 11:00 a.m. the press will had the opportunity to ask questions of
the crew at the Skid Strip at Patrick Air Force Base. Questions
were limited to media onsite. The crew then departed for Houston.

At approximately 3:30 p.m., NASA TV will cover the crew's arrival at

Ellington Field in Houston.

All times are Eastern.

^^^^^

The NASA Video File normally airs at noon, 3:00, 6:00, 9:00
p.m. and midnight Eastern time. NASA Television is available
on GE-2, transponder 9C at 85 degrees West longitude, with
vertical polarization. Frequency is on 3880.0 megahertz,
with audio on 6.8 megahertz.

Ray Castillo
NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: 202/358-4555.

The most recent NASA Video File Advisory can be found at:
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/tv-advisory/nasa-tv.txt

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CONTRACT AWARDS

NASA contract awards are posted to:

http://procurement.nasa.gov/EPS/award.html

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The NASA Daily News Summary is issued at approximately 2:00

p.m. Eastern time on business days when news releases, new
Video File material or live events are scheduled. Members of
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this list should send an e-mail message to:

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END OF DAILY NEWS SUMMARY