The latest status on NASA’s newest space telescope, the Chandra X-ray Observatory, along with comprehensive background information, is now available to news media on the Internet at:

http://www.msfc.nasa.gov/chandra/chandra.html

Chandra is scheduled for launch aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia no earlier than July 20. An official launch date will be announced at the STS-93 Flight Readiness Review scheduled for July 8.

With the click of a mouse, media can gain instant access to status updates; news releases; fact sheets; high-resolution photo and image archives; video and audio clips; as well as live Web cam images of launch preparations at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Fla., and the Operations Control Center in Cambridge, Mass. Media can access mission timelines; live video streaming of NASA television coverage of the Chandra mission; tracking programs; biographies of key Chandra program participants and links to additional Chandra resources. Media may also subscribe to e-mail distribution lists for Chandra news releases, status reports and Web update advisories.

Maintained as part of NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center electronic News Center, the Chandra Newsroom page will serve as the media’s front door to comprehensive Chandra information through launch and orbital activation and checkout.

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Note to Editors/News Directors: For interviews or more information, please contact Jerry Berg with Marshall’s Media Relations Office at (256) 544-0034. For an electronic version of this release, visit Marshall’s News Center Website at:

http://www.msfc.nasa.gov/news

If you would like to start receiving our releases by e-mail instead of fax, please e-mail [email protected] with your address and we’ll put you/your organization on our e-mail distribution list.

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