P3D 3-D Earth mapping mission

["Franklin Londin" <swan@xxxxxx>]

for those interested:

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MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIF. 91109. TELEPHONE (818) 354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov

Contact: Diane Ainsworth

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                            July 12, 1999

TALK TO FEATURE NEXT 3-D EARTH MAPPING MISSION

     Revealing three-dimensional images of Earth's surface to be
taken by a Space Shuttle-borne imaging radar this fall will be
the topic of two free public lectures on July 15 at NASA's Jet
Propulsion Laboratory and July 16 at Pasadena City College.

     Dr. Michael Kobrick, project scientist of  the Shuttle Radar
Topography Mission, will present "Mapping Earth in 3-D" as part
of JPL's monthly von Karman Lecture Series.  Kobrick will discuss
the heritage of and plans for the 11-day flight of the imaging
radar, set for launch aboard Space Shuttle Endeavour in mid-
September. The evening lectures, both at 7 p.m., will be held at
the JPL von Karman Auditorium on July 15 and at the Pasadena City
College Forum on July 16.  Seating is limited and is available on
a first-come, first-served basis.

     In September, Space Shuttle Endeavour will carry the
specially modified imaging radar system into space to map 80
percent of Earth's surface and obtain the most complete, high-
resolution topographic maps ever assembled. Data will benefit a
wide variety of scientific disciplines such as archaeology,
geology and urban planning, and will contribute significantly to
community disaster preparedness services, navigational safety,
weather and climate forecasting, water drainage modeling, the
cellular telephone industry and cartography.

     The mission, a partnership between NASA and the U.S.
Department of Defense's National Imagery and Mapping Agency, will
build on technology used during two 1994 imaging radar shuttle
flights which improved scientists' understanding of Earth's
surface and how it is changing. In addition to the JPL-built
antenna, the German and Italian space agencies are contributing
an experimental, high-resolution imaging radar system.

     More information about JPL's von Karman Lecture Series is
available on the Internet at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/lecture/, or
by calling (818) 354-5011. JPL is a division of the California
Institute of Technology.

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     What beckons is the creative power of the unknown - The Blank Rune
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     * Franklin Londin * DIGITAL DOMAIN * (310)314-2948 * swan@xxxxxx *
  


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