Vera Hirschberg
Headquarters, Washington, D.C.                  February 20, 1990
(Phone:  202/453-8400)

George H. Diller
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
(Phone:  407/867-2468)

RELEASE:  90-27

ROSAT SPACECRAFT ARRIVES AT FLORIDA LAUNCH SITE

     The ROSAT spacecraft, a German scientific satellite to be 
launched by NASA in early summer, arrived today at Cape Canaveral 
Air Force Station, Fla., after a flight from the Federal Republic 
of Germany (FRG) aboard a German 747 cargo plane.

     ROSAT, which stands for Roentgen Satellite, will be launched 
using a Delta II rocket in late May or early June.  Built by 
Dornier Systems of the FRG, ROSAT will perform the first all-sky 
survey with an imaging x-ray telescope.  The survey will be 
followed by individual observations of x-ray sources.  ROSAT is a 
cooperative project between NASA and the FRG's Federal Ministry 
for Research and Technology.  The United Kingdom is cooperating 
on ROSAT through an agreement with the FRG.

     The spacecraft is equipped with two imaging telescopes - a 
German Large X-Ray Telescope and a smaller extreme ultraviolet 
telescope known as the Wide Field Camera, contributed by the 
United Kingdom.  A High Resolution Imager (HRI) on the Large 
X-Ray Telescope, was contributed by the United States.  The HRI 
was built by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and is 
managed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.

     After the initial 6-month all-sky survey, ROSAT will be 
devoted to detailed observations of x-ray sources with observing 
time divided among investigators from the United States, the FRG 
and the United Kingdom.

     The 5,000-pound satellite will be deployed into a 53-degree 
inclined, circular orbit 360 miles from Earth.  ROSAT will be 
launched from Complex 17 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station by 
the U.S. Air Force and a McDonnell Douglas launch team.
                            - more -
                             - 2 -

     Final assembly and pre-launch testing of ROSAT's science 
instruments will be performed in the clean room at NASA's Hangar 
AE, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. 

     Within NASA, the ROSAT program is managed by the 
Astrophysics Division of the Office of Space Science and 
Applications.  NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center is responsible 
for detailed implementation of the ROSAT program.

                            - end -

TO:  MDS/PRA Group
     1615 L Street, N.W. - Suite 100
     Washington, D.C. 20036

DATE & TIME:  FEBRUARY 21, 1990  2:35pm

ORDERED BY:  Edward Campion
NASA Headquarters/LMD
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20546             PHONE:  202/453-8400

PROJECT TITLE:  Release No:  90-027

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