April 16, 2008 Dwayne Brown Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1726 dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-103 NASA STATEMENT ON STUDENT ASTEROID CALCULATIONS WASHINGTON -- The Near-Earth Object Program Office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., has not changed its current estimates for the very low probability (1 in 45,000) of an Earth impact by the asteroid Apophis in 2036. Contrary to recent press reports, NASA offices involved in near-Earth object research were not contacted and have had no ...Continue Reading

April 16, 2008 Grey Hautaluoma Headquarters, Washington 202-358-0668 grey.hautaluoma-1@nasa.gov Nancy Neal Jones Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. 301-286-0039 nancy.n.jones@nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-102 NEW NASA MOON MISSION BEGINS INTEGRATION OF SCIENCE INSTRUMENTS GREENBELT, Md. -- Several instruments that will help NASA characterize the moon's surface have been installed on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, or LRO. The powerful equipment will bring the moon into sharper focus and reveal new insights ...Continue Reading

The following sections were updated since 15 April 2008. -- DUST AND SMOKE (1 updated events, 1 new images) -- HAZE OVER THE CASPIAN SEA A hazy plume drifted over the northern end of the Caspian Sea in early April 2008. * http://naturalhazards.nasa.gov/shownh.php3?img_id=14782 *** MODIS(Terra) image from Apr 12 2008 (Posted on Apr 14 2008 4:10PM) -- FLOOD (1 updated events, 1 new images) -- FLOODS IN NORTHEAST BRAZIL Extensive floods swept over the normally dry northeastern corner of Brazil in the wake of heavy rain ...Continue Reading

April 15, 2008 Grey Hautaluoma Headquarters, Washington 202-358-0668 grey.hautaluoma-1@nasa.gov Emily Outen Langley Research Center, Hampton, Va. 757-864-7022 emily.s.outen@nasa.gov Jennifer Morcone Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala. 256 544-7199 Jennifer.J.Morcone@nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-101 NASA COMPLETES FIRST FULL-SCALE MOTOR TEST FOR ORION SPACECRAFT WASHINGTON -- NASA has completed the first full-scale rocket motor test for the Constellation Program's Orion spacecraft, a test of a solid rocket ...Continue Reading

April 15, 2008 Michael Curie Headquarters, Washington 202-358-4715 michael.curie@nasa.gov CONTRACT RELEASE: C08-020 NASA AWARDS SPACE STATION WATER CONTRACT TO HAMILTON SUNDSTRAND WASHINGTON -- NASA has awarded a sole-source contract to Hamilton Sundstrand Space Systems International Inc., Windsor Locks, Conn., for water production services aboard the International Space Station. The firm fixed-price contract has a potential value of $65 million and extends through Sept. 30, 2014. Hamilton Sundstrand will prov ...Continue Reading

April 15, 2008 Sonja Alexander Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1761 sonja.r.alexander@nasa.gov Joan B. Underwood Lockheed Martin, Denver 303-971-7398 joan.b.underwood@lmco.com MEDIA ADVISORY: M08-079 STEPHEN HAWKING SPEAKS AT NASA 50TH ANNIVERSARY EVENT WASHINGTON -- On Monday, April 21, Professor Stephen Hawking of the University of Cambridge will be the featured speaker at a lecture that is part of a series honoring NASA's 50th anniversary. The title of Hawking's lecture is "Why we should go into space. ...Continue Reading

The following sections were updated since 14 April 2008. -- VOLCANO (1 updated events, 1 new images) -- NEW ACTIVITY ON KILAUEA On March 19, 2008, a small explosion erupted from Kilauea's summit crater. The volcano remained active in April 2008. * http://naturalhazards.nasa.gov/shownh.php3?img_id=14781 *** MODIS(Aqua) image from Apr 09 2008 (Posted on Apr 14 2008 7:46AM) --------------------------------------------------------------------- Natural Hazards is a service of NASA's Earth Observatory. http://naturalhaza ...Continue Reading

April 15, 2008 Dwayne Brown Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1726 dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov Carolina Martinez Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 818-354-9382 carolina.martinez@jpl.nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-098 NASA EXTENDS CASSINI'S GRAND TOUR OF SATURN PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA is extending the international Cassini-Huygens mission by two years. The historic spacecraft's stunning discoveries and images have revolutionized our knowledge of Saturn and its moons. Cassini's mission originally had been scheduled ...Continue Reading

April 11, 2008 Allard Beutel Kennedy Space Center, Fla 321-867-2468 allard.beutel@nasa.gov Marie Guma-Diaz University of Miami, Fla. 305-284-1601 m.gumadiaz@umiami.edu MEDIA ADVISORY: M08-078 NASA DEPUTY ADMINISTRATOR VISITS MIAMI FOR FUTURE FORUM WASHINGTON - On Friday, April 18, NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale will present the keynote address to launch a daylong event at the University of Miami's BankUnited Center celebrating the space agency's 50th birthday. NASA's Miami Future Forum focuses on how s ...Continue Reading

The following sections were updated since 10 April 2008. -- DUST AND SMOKE (1 updated events, 1 new images) -- DUST IN THE CENTRAL MEDITERRANEAN In early April 2008, numerous dust plumes blew off the Libyan coast and over the Mediterranean Sea. * http://naturalhazards.nasa.gov/shownh.php3?img_id=14780 *** MODIS(Terra) image from Apr 09 2008 (Posted on Apr 10 2008 10:10AM) --------------------------------------------------------------------- Natural Hazards is a service of NASA's Earth Observatory. http://naturalha ...Continue Reading