May 20, 2008 Steve Cole Headquarters, Washington 202-358-0918 stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-132 JOINT NASA-FRENCH SATELLITE TO TRACK TRENDS IN SEA LEVEL, CLIMATE WASHINGTON -- A satellite that will help scientists better monitor and understand rises in global sea level, study the world's ocean circulation and its links to Earth's climate, and improve weather and climate forecasts, is undergoing final preparations for a June 15 launch from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base. The Ocean Surface Topogra ...Continue Reading

May 19, 2008 Katherine Trinidad Headquarters, Washington 202-358-3749 katherine.trinidad@nasa.gov Candrea Thomas Kennedy Space Center, Fla. 321-867-2468 candrea.k.thomas@nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-130 NASA GIVES 'GO' FOR SPACE SHUTTLE LAUNCH ON MAY 31 CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA senior managers completed a review Monday of space shuttle Discovery's readiness for flight and selected May 31 as the official launch date for the STS-124 mission. Commander Mark Kelly and his six crewmates are scheduled to lift off to th ...Continue Reading

The following sections were updated since 16 May 2008. -- FIRE (2 updated events, 2 new images) -- FIRES AROUND LAKE BAIKAL Strong winds fanned the flames of dozens of forest fires in southern Russia around Lake Baikal in the third week of May 2008. * http://naturalhazards.nasa.gov/shownh.php3?img_id=14842 *** MODIS(Aqua) image from May 16 2008 (Posted on May 16 2008 4:45PM) FIRES IN MEXICO AND NORTHERN CENTRAL AMERICA Fires are common in southern Mexico and northern Central America during the February-May dry seaso ...Continue Reading

May 19, 2008 Katherine Trinidad Headquarters, Washington 202-358-3749 katherine.trinidad@nasa.gov James Hartsfield Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 james.a.hartsfield@nasa.gov MEDIA ADVISORY: M08-100 NASA TV AIRS HIGH-DEF DAY IN THE LIFE OF A SPACE STATION ASTRONAUT HOUSTON -- NASA Television will provide a high-definition glimpse of life in space with a special Video File to be broadcast beginning May 22. During his final weeks aboard the International Space Station, astronaut Garrett Reisman has f ...Continue Reading

May 19, 2008 David E. Steitz Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1730 david.steitz@nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-129 NASA SEEKS INDUSTRY PARTNERS FOR INNOVATION TRANSFUSION PROGRAM WASHINGTON -- NASA is seeking companies and organizations across America involved in cutting-edge innovation to partner with the agency in the Innovation Transfusion Program. The program allows NASA employees to spend up to a year working in high-tech environments outside the agency where they can share their expertise while gaining valuable e ...Continue Reading

May 16, 2008 Michael Curie Headquarters, Washington 202-358-4715 michael.curie@nasa.gov Nicole Cloutier-Lemasters Johnson Space Center, Houston 281-483-5111 nicole.cloutier-1@nasa.gov CONTRACT RELEASE: C08-027 NASA EXTENDS SPACE STATION CONTRACT WITH ARES CORP. HOUSTON -- NASA Wednesday awarded ARES Corp. in Houston a one-year contract extension valued at $25.7 million for services required to continue the development and operation of the International Space Station. ARES Corp. has held the station's program i ...Continue Reading

May 16, 2008 Steve Cole Headquarters, Washington 202-358-0918 stephen.e.cole@nasa.gov Cynthia M. O'Carroll Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. 301-286-4647 cynthia.m.ocarroll@nasa.gov CONTRACT RELEASE: C08-026 NASA SELECTS GODDARD PROGRAM ANALYSIS AND CONTROL CONTRACTOR GREENBELT, Md. -- NASA has selected SP Systems Inc. of Greenbelt, Md., to provide mission support services under the Program Analysis and Control (PAAC III) contract. The work will support NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center's Flight Proj ...Continue Reading

The following sections were updated since 15 May 2008. -- FLOOD (1 updated events, 1 new images) -- CYCLONE NARGIS FLOODS BURMA (MYANMAR) The first cyclone of the season in the northern Indian Ocean was a devastating one for Burma (Myanmar). At least 20,000 people were killed, and thousands more were missing as of May 9,2008. * http://naturalhazards.nasa.gov/shownh.php3?img_id=14839 *** MODIS(Terra) image from May 05 2008 (Posted on May 16 2008 10:44AM) ---------------------------------------------------------------- ...Continue Reading

May 15, 2008 Dwayne Brown Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1726 dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov Guy Webster/Jane Platt Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 818-354-5011 guy.webster@jpl.nasa.gov; jane.platt@jpl.nasa.gov Sara Hammond University of Arizona, Tucson 520-626-1974 shammond@lpl.arizona.edu MEDIA ADVISORY: M08-099 NASA BRIEFINGS AND TV COVERAGE SCHEDULE FOR PHOENIX MARS LANDING WASHINGTON -- NASA news briefings, live commentary and updates before and after the scheduled Sunday, May 25 arrival of the agen ...Continue Reading

May 15, 2008 Dwayne Brown Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1726 dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov Whitney Clavin Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 818-354-4673 whitney.clavin@jpl.nasa.gov RELEASE: 08-128 NASA SATELLITE FINDS INTERIOR OF MARS IS COLDER WASHINGTON -- New observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter indicate that the crust and upper mantle of Mars are stiffer and colder than previously thought. The findings suggest any liquid water that might exist below the planet's surface and any pos ...Continue Reading