NASA experts will discuss the Gravity Probe B (GP-B)
launch, spacecraft, and mission objectives at 1 p.m. EST,
Friday, April 2, in the Webb Auditorium, NASA Headquarters,
300 E. Street SW, Washington.

The briefing will cover the origins, experimental methods,
technology, mission operations, and science of GP-B. The
mission will test two important predictions of Albert
Einstein’s general theory of relativity. The 18-month mission
is scheduled for launch Saturday, April 17, 2004, at 1:09
p.m. EST, from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif., on board a
Boeing Delta II launch vehicle.

Briefing participants:

  • Anne Kinney, Director, Astronomy/Physics Division, NASA Headquarters
  • Rex Geveden, Program Manager, GP-B, and Deputy Director, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center, Ala.
  • Francis Everitt, Principal Investigator, GP-B, Stanford University, Stanford, Calif.
  • Brad Parkinson, Co-Principal Investigator, GP-B, Stanford University
  • Kip Thorne, Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, Calif.

NASA TV will carry the briefing live with two-way question-
and-answer capability for reporters at participating NASA
centers. NASA TV is available on AMC-9, transponder 9C, C-
Band, located at 85 degrees west longitude. The frequency is
3880.0 MHz. Polarization is vertical, and audio is monaural
at 6.80 MHz. Reporters can listen to the briefing by calling:
321/861-1200/1220/1240/1260. For more information about GP-B
on the Internet, visit:

http://einstein.stanford.edu & http://www.gravityprobeb.com.