NASA has set media accreditation deadlines for the next space shuttle flight to the International Space Station. Shuttle Endeavour and six NASA astronauts are targeted to launch the STS-130 mission on Feb. 6 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center.
The 13-day flight will deliver a pressurized module, known as Tranquility, which will provide room for much of the space station’s life support systems. Attached to the node is a cupola — a robotic control station with six windows around its sides and another in the center — that provides a 360-degree view around the station.
Reporters and new media journalists, including bloggers, must apply for credentials to attend the launch or cover the mission from other NASA centers. To be accredited, reporters must work for verifiable news-gathering organizations. Journalists may need to submit requests for credentials at multiple NASA facilities as early as Jan. 12. No substitutions of credentials are allowed at any NASA facility.
Additional time may be required to process accreditation requests by journalists from certain designated countries. Designated countries include those with which the United States has no diplomatic relations, countries on the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism, those under U.S. sanction or embargo, and countries associated with proliferation concerns. Please contact the accrediting NASA center for details. Journalists should confirm they have been accredited before they travel.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER
Reporters applying for credentials at Kennedy should submit requests via the Web at:
Reporters must use work e-mail addresses, not personal accounts, when applying. After accreditation is approved, applicants will receive confirmation via e-mail.
Accredited media representatives with mission badges will have access to Kennedy from launch through the end of the mission. The application deadline for mission badges is Jan. 22 for all reporters requesting credentials.
Reporters with special logistic requests for Kennedy, such as space for satellite trucks, trailers, electrical connections or work space, must contact Laurel Lichtenberger at laurel.a.lichtenberger@nasa.gov by Jan. 22 There is no longer free wireless Internet access provided at Kennedy’s news center.
Work space in the news center and the news center annex is provided on a first-come basis, limited to one space per organization. To set up temporary telephone, fax, ISDN or network lines, media representatives must make arrangements with BellSouth at 800-213-4988. Reporters must have an assigned seat in the Kennedy newsroom prior to setting up lines. To obtain an assigned seat, contact Patricia Christian at patricia.christian-1@nasa.gov. Journalists must have a public affairs escort to all other areas of Kennedy except the Launch Complex 39 cafeteria.
JOHNSON SPACE CENTER
Reporters may obtain credentials for NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston by calling the Johnson newsroom at 281-483-5111 or by presenting STS-130 mission credentials from Kennedy. Media representatives planning to cover the mission only from Johnson need to apply for credentials only at Johnson. The application deadline for mission badges is Jan. 22 for all reporters requesting credentials.
Journalists covering the mission from Johnson using Kennedy credentials must contact the Johnson newsroom by Jan. 25 to arrange workspace, phone lines and other logistics. Johnson is responsible for credentialing media if the shuttle lands at NASA’s White Sands Space Harbor, N.M. If a landing is imminent at White Sands, Johnson will arrange credentials.
DRYDEN FLIGHT RESEARCH CENTER
Notice for a space shuttle landing at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center on Edwards Air Force Base in California could be short. Domestic media outlets should consider accrediting Los Angeles-based personnel who could travel quickly to Dryden. Deadlines for submitting Dryden accreditation requests are Jan. 12 for non-U.S. media, regardless of citizenship, and Feb. 11 for U.S. media who are U.S. citizens or who have permanent residency status.
For Dryden media credentials, U.S. citizens representing domestic media outlets must provide their full name, date of birth, place of birth, media organization, driver’s license number with the name of the issuing state, and the last six digits of their social security number.
In addition to the above requirements, foreign media representatives, regardless of citizenship, must provide data including their citizenship, visa or passport number and its expiration date. Foreign nationals representing either domestic or foreign media who have permanent residency status must provide their alien registration number and expiration date.
Journalists should fax requests for credentials on company letterhead to 661-276-3566. E-mailed requests to Alan Brown at alan.brown@nasa.gov are acceptable for reporters who have been accredited at Dryden within the past year. Requests must include a phone number and business e-mail address for follow-up contact. Journalists who previously requested credentials will not have to do so again.
NASA PUBLIC AFFAIRS CONTACTS:
Kennedy Space Center: Allard Beutel, 321-867-2468, allard.beutel@nasa.gov
Johnson Space Center: James Hartsfield, 281-483-5111, james.a.hartsfield@nasa.gov
Dryden Flight Research Center: Leslie Williams, 661-276-3893, leslie.a.williams@nasa.gov
For information about the STS-130 mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/shuttle
For information about the International Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/station
