NASA to Hold Media Briefing About Mars Rover Launch

This artist concept features NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rove

This artist concept features NASA’s Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover, a mobile robot for investigating Mars’ past or present ability to sustain microbial life. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech


PASADENA, Calif. -- NASA will hold a news conference at 10 a.m. PST (1 p.m. EST), Thursday, Nov. 10, to discuss the upcoming launch of the Mars Science Laboratory, with the largest and most capable rover going to another planet. The televised event will take place at NASA Headquarters in Washington and will be carried live on NASA TV and Ustream.

The Mars Science Laboratory mission is scheduled to launch at 7:25 a.m. PST (10:25 a.m. EST), on Nov. 25. The launch period extends to Dec. 18. The spacecraft will deliver a car-size rover named Curiosity to the surface of Mars in August 2012.

News conference participants are:

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-- Doug McCuistion, director, Mars Program, NASA Headquarters, Washington
-- Ashwin Vasavada, Mars Science Laboratory deputy project scientist, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
-- Pete Theisinger, Mars Science Laboratory project manager, JPL

NASA TV streaming video, scheduling and downlink information is at: http://www.nasa.gov/ntv. The news conference will also be carried on JPL’s Ustream channel, with a moderated chat, at http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl.