HOUSTON — NASA will hold a series of news media briefings May 1 to discuss the upcoming space shuttle Discovery mission, STS-124. NASA Television and the agency’s Web site will provide live coverage of the briefings from the Johnson Space Center, beginning at 8 a.m. CDT. Questions also will be taken from participating NASA locations.
Discovery’s 13-day mission is targeted for launch to the International Space Station on May 31. It is the second of three flights to launch components of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Kibo laboratory. The shuttle also will deliver the lab’s robotic arm system that will support operations outside of Kibo.
Following the briefings, members of the STS-124 crew will be available for a series of round-robin interviews. Media planning to attend the interviews or participate by phone must contact the Johnson newsroom at 281-483-5111 by noon April 29. All reporters who are foreign nationals must contact Johnson to arrange credentials no later than April 9.
Mark Kelly will command the seven-member crew of STS-124, which includes Pilot Ken Ham, Mission Specialists Karen Nyberg, Ron Garan, Jr., Mike Fossum, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency astronaut Akihiko Hoshide and Greg Chamitoff. Chamitoff will replace Expedition 16/17 Flight Engineer Garrett Reisman and remain aboard the station as a member of the Expedition 17 crew. Reisman will return to Earth with the STS-124 crew.
The schedule of briefings includes (all times CDT):
- 8 a.m. Space Shuttle and International Space Station Program overview
- 9:30 a.m. STS-124 mission overview
- 11 a.m. NASA TV video file
- 11:30 a.m. STS-124 spacewalk overview
- 1 p.m. STS-124 crew news conference
For NASA TV streaming video, schedules, and downlink information, visit:
For the latest information about the STS-124 mission and its crew, visit:
