NASA, Newseum Invite Media To Discover And Encounter Comets

WASHINGTON -- NASA will commemorate a quarter-century of comet
discoveries and discuss upcoming comet encounters during a symposium
at 9 a.m. EDT on Friday, Sept. 10, in the Knight Studio of the Newseum.

The Newseum is located at 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW in Washington. The
event will be covered live by NASA Television and streamed on the
agency's website.

Comets are remainders of material formed in the coldest part of our
solar system. Impacts from comets played a major role in the Earth's
evolution, primarily during its early history billions of years ago.
Some believe comets brought water and a variety of organic molecules to Earth.

The symposium participants are:
-- James Green, director, Planetary Science Division, NASA
Headquarters, Washington
-- Anita Cochran, assistant director, McDonald Observatory, University
of Texas
-- Robert Farquhar, executive for space exploration, KinetX, Inc.,
Tempe, Ariz.
-- Mike A'Hearn, principal investigator for an upcoming NASA comet
encounter mission, University of Maryland
-- Joe Veverka, principal investigator for upcoming NASA comet
encounter mission, Cornell University

For more information about NASA TV downlinks and streaming video, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

Source: NASA