NASA Daily News Summary
For Release:  Mar. 28, 2000
Media Advisory m00-61


SUMMARY


NEWS RELEASES:

MARS PROGRAM ASSESSMENT REPORT OUTLINES ROUTE TO SUCCESS

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VIDEO


VIDEO FILE:

ITEM 1 - SATELLITES MONITOR CHANGES IN ARCTIC SEA ICE - GSFC

Replays:
ITEM 2 - INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION OVERVIEW BRIEFING AND STS-101
         ANIMATION - JSC
ITEM 3 - NEW COOL FLIGHT SUIT - DFRC
ITEM 4 - IMAGE LAUNCH AND PRE-FLIGHT ANIMATION
ITEM 5 - NEAR PICTURES OF ASTEROID EROS (by request)
ITEM 6 - SEAWIFS: PULSE OF THE PLANET - A PICTURE OF PLANET EARTH
         (by request)


LIVE TELEVISION EVENTS THIS WEEK


SPECIAL NOTE TO ASSIGNMENT EDITORS & PRODUCERS:
     ARE WE ALONE IN THE UNIVERSE?



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NEWS RELEASES


MARS PROGRAM ASSESSMENT REPORT OUTLINES ROUTE TO SUCCESS

     An in-depth review of NASA's Mars exploration program,
released today, found significant flaws in formulation and
execution led to the failures of recent missions, and provides
recommendations for future exploration of Mars.  The report
concluded the most probable cause of the failure was the
generation of spurious signals when the lander legs were deployed
during descent.  The spurious signals gave a false indication that
the spacecraft had landed, resulting in a premature shutdown of
the engines and the destruction of the lander when it crashed on
Mars.  NASA's Office of Space Science will develop an integrated
strategic response to the findings and recommendations of the
report.  NASA Chief Engineer W. Brian Keegan also will coordinate
an integrated Agency response to the recent reviews of NASA
program management practices.

     In addition, today, Dr. Edward Weiler, the Associate
Administrator for Space Science, announced the cancellation of the
planned Mars 2001 lander awaiting his approval of a new overall
Mars "architecture" plan.  Weiler also will make management
changes in the Mars Exploration Program at NASA Headquarters and
work with the California Institute of Technology to institute
effective change at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA,
clearly articulating lines of authority, clarifying roles and
improving communication between all organizations involved.  In
that regard, Weiler today appointed Scott Hubbard as the Mars
Program Director at NASA Headquarters.  Hubbard is now Associate
Director for Astrobiology and Space Programs, NASA Ames Research
Center, Moffett Field, CA.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC:  Peggy Wilhide
(Phone:  202/358-1898).

For full text see:
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/00-046.txt



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If NASA issues any news releases later today, we will e-
mail summaries and Internet URLs to this list.

Index of 2000 NASA News Releases:
http://www.nasa.gov/releases/2000/index.html

Index of 1999 NASA News Releases:
http://www.nasa.gov/releases/1999/index.html



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VIDEO

LIVE TELEVISION EVENTS THIS WEEK:

March 28, Tuesday
- *9:30 - 10:30 a.m. - Ames Modulator Validation Test - ARC
- *2:00 p.m. - Mars Program. Independent Assessment Team. Report
   Briefing - HQ (NOTE: REPLAYS DURING THE GALLERY HOURS AT 2:00
   PM, 4:00 PM, 7:00 PM, 10:00 PM, AND 1:00 AM)

March 29, Wednesday
- 1:00 p.m. - New Planets Space Science Update - HQ

March 30, Thursday
- *12:30 p.m. - X-38 Drop Test - DFRC (Note:  test time subject to
   change depending on weather conditions)
- 4:00 - 5:30 p.m. - Mars 2000 (replay from 2/28/00) - HQ

March 31, Friday
- 9:00 a.m. - Noon - FY 2001 Budget Posture Hearing before the
  House Subcommittee on VA-HUD-Independent Agencies;
  Appropriations Committee (recorded 3/30/00) - HQ
- 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. - FY 2001 Budget Posture Hearing before the
  House Subcommittee on VA-HUD-Independent Agencies;
  Appropriations Committee (recorded 3/30/00 continued) - HQ
- 5:30 - 10:00 p.m. - "Planet Hunting Mission" Live News
  Interviews - JPL

April 1, Saturday
- 11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m. - Ames Research Center Western Regional
  FIRST Robotics Competition - San Jose State University Event
  Center, San Jose, CA (direct uplink to NTV)



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SPECIAL NOTE TO ASSIGNMENT EDITORS & PRODUCERS

FROM:  Jack Dawson, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, (818) 354-0040
       Michelle Viotti, NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
       (818) 354-8774

ARE WE ALONE IN THE UNIVERSE?

     Have you ever looked up at the night sky and wondered which
stars might have planets around them?  Is life out there in the
Universe, abundant on some distant world?  What is that planet
like, and could we recognize life there if we found it?
Creative sparks are flying as the Jet Propulsion Laboratory awards
contracts to four industry-academic teams, which will take the
first steps toward answering these far-reaching questions.  Over
the next eighteen months, the teams will set out to create the
most innovative designs for Terrestrial Planet Finder, an
ambitious mission in NASA's Origins Program that will look for
life-sustaining Earth -like planets around other stars.

     Astronomers have already found far more planets outside of
our solar system than within it, but so far we've only been able
to detect really large, gaseous bodies that wouldn't likely
support life.  We're on the verge of having the technology that
will enable us to look for much tinier, Earth-like planets that
orbit closer to their parent stars. Terrestrial Planet Finder will
have the potential to give us the first "family portraits" of
planetary systems like our own--and it might even find another
planet where life can thrive.

     Live satellite interview opportunities are available with
JPL¹s Dr. Firouz Naderi from 6 to 10 p.m. EST on Friday, March 31.
Animation, B-roll and interviews will be carried 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.  Emergency telephone numbers are 818-354-0246 and 818-
354-2113.

     Dr. Firouz Naderi is the Program Manager for Origins and the
Project Manager for the Terrestrial Planet Finder. With JPL for
the past 20 years, Dr. Naderi has also served as Program Manager
for the Space Science Flight Experiments Program and Project
Manager for the NASA Scatterometer and SeaWinds missions, among
others.  He received his B.S. from Iowa State in 1969 and a
Masters and Ph.D. from USC in 1972 and 1976, all in electrical
engineering.

POSSIBLE QUESTIONS:

- How likely is it that life exists elsewhere in the Universe?
- How will Terrestrial Planet Finder look for Earth-like planets?
- How hard is it to detect life-bearing planets around other
  stars?
- Would a planet have to be like Earth to support life?
- What is the lasting value of Terrestrial Planet Finder to our
  civilization?


To book time for this interview call, Jack Dawson at 818-354-0040
or e-mail Jack at jack.b.dawson@jpl.nasa.gov

For more information on this subject, see:
http://tpf.jpl.nasa.gov/



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Unless otherwise noted, ALL TIMES ARE EASTERN.

ANY CHANGES TO THE VIDEO LINE-UP WILL APPEAR ON THE NASA VIDEO
FILE ADVISORY ON THE WEB AT
ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/tv-advisory/nasa-tv.txt
WE UPDATE THE ADVISORY THROUGHOUT THE DAY.

The NASA Video File normally airs at noon, 3 p.m., 6 p.m., 9 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.

Refer general questions about the video file to NASA Headquarters,
Washington, DC: Ray Castillo, 202/358-4555, or Fred Brown,
202/358-0713, fred.brown@hq.nasa.gov

During Space Shuttle missions, the full NASA TV schedule will
continue to be posted at:
http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/nasatv/schedule.html

For general information about NASA TV see:
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv/



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Contract Awards

Contract awards are posted to the NASA Acquisition information
Service Web site: http://procurement.nasa.gov/EPS/award.html



*****************************


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end of daily news summary