David E. Steitz
Headquarters, Washington                   March 15, 2002
(Phone: 202/358-1730)

Alan Buis
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
(Phone: 818/354-0474)

NOTE TO EDITORS: N02-18

NASA'S AMAZING GRACE TWINS SET TO SING PRAISES OF GRAVITY

     The launch of two spacecraft that make up the Gravity 
Recovery and Climate Experiment, or "Grace," mission aboard a 
Russian launch vehicle is scheduled for Saturday, March 16, 
from Russia's Plesetsk Cosmodrome. The 10-minute launch 
window extends from 4:23 a.m. to 4:33 a.m. EST.  

Grace is a joint NASA/German Center for Air and Space Flight 
(Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft und Rumfahrt, or DLR) mission 
that will track how water is transported and stored within 
Earth's environment. The mission will precisely measure 
Earth's shifting water masses and map their effects on 
Earth's gravity field.

NASA Television coverage of the launch will begin at 3 a.m. 
EST and conclude at 6:30 a.m. EST. Coverage is expected to be 
audio only from 5 a.m. to 6 a.m. EST, during rocket ascent. 
Live televised coverage will resume from Germany at 6 a.m. 
EST and run until 6:30 a.m. EST to confirm successful 
spacecraft separation. 

NASA TV is carried on GE-2, transponder 9C located at 85 
degrees West longitude, with vertical polarization. Frequency 
is on 3880.0 megahertz with audio on 6.8 megahertz.  

The Grace mission is managed by the NASA Jet Propulsion 
Laboratory (JPL), Pasadena, Calif. A webcast of the launch 
will be available on the Internet through JPL at: 

http://www-onlab.jpl.nasa.gov/webcast/gracelaunch.html

Webcasting also will be available from the German Space 
Program (DLR) site at:

http://www.dlr.de/DLR-Homepage

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