From: yee@trident.arc.nasa.gov (Peter E. Yee)
Subject: NASA Daily News for 07/27/92 (Forwarded)
Apparently-To: sci-space-news@ames.arc.nasa.gov
Followup-To: sci.space
Organization: NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA
Date: Wed, 29 Jul 1992 18:55:52 GMT

	Daily                News
Monday, July 27, 1992  24-hour audio service at 202/755-1788

 % STS-40 life scientists report on findings from last year's mission;
 % Preparations for launch of Atlantis this Friday continue on schedule;
 % Marshall Center selects Cray Grumman for major new computation system;
 % Kennedy Center to dedicate new Shuttle Processing Control Center.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Life science researchers associated with last year's STS- 40 Space Life
Sciences-1 mission reported Friday on new results of their analyses and
said the lack of gravity on spaceflight suggests alterations in
cellular metabolism, cell division and cell attachment and in human
immune cell function.  These changes showed up within only a few days
of space-flight exposure.

Dr. Gerald Sonnenfeld, Univ. of Louisville, reported that human immune
cells failed to turn into mature cells and that this may lead to health
problems such as impaired healing abilities or increased risk of
infection.  Dr.  Emily Morey-Holton, Ames Research Center, reported
that rodent bone cells appeared to die because of a failure to attach
to something, suggesting that gravity is required to show the cells
where to attach.  Both of these particular experiments used a novel
piece of equipment designed by Dr. William Weismann, Walter Reed Army
Institute of Research, which kept the cell cultures alive in the
microgravity conditions of the Spacelab laboratory.

Dr. Abraham Krikorian, State Univ. of New York-Stony Brook, reported
that one-third of the chromosomes of the plants flown on the mission
had been altered, some in as little as four days.  Human researchers
reported that the astronauts on the STS-40 mission had faster resting
heart rates with a smaller range of heart rate responses.  These
findings validate previous findings obtained during human bed-rest
studies.

Another important finding reported by Dr. Muriel Ross, Ames Research
Center, was the discovery that the number of synapses used to
communicate between the cells of the inner ear's gravity sensing organ
and the central nervous system increased 40 percent with no attendant
increase in the size of the nerve cells.  This finding suggests these
nervous systems could easily adapt to changing gravity conditions.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

At the Kennedy Space Center, preparations for the launch Friday, July
31, of Atlantis for the STS-46 Tethered Satellite System and European
Retrievable Carrier mission continue, with the countdown process
scheduled to begin tomorrow at 4:00 pm.  The flight crew is expected to
arrive from Houston tomorrow at 7:00 pm.  On Wednesday and Thursday,
July 29 and 30, briefings on the mission and Tethered Satellite and
Eureca systems are scheduled for early morning at the KSC press
briefing area.  The launch for the 7-day mission is set for 9:56 am EDT
Friday.  The briefings will be shown live on NASA Select television.
Continuous NASA Select television mission coverage for Atlantis' 12th
flight will begin at 6:00 am EDT on Friday.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Officials at the Marshall Space Flight Center Friday selected Cray
Grumman Systems, Huntsville, for negotiations leading to award of a
contract to install and maintain a new computational system at the
Center.  Cray Grumman will provide all personnel, equipment, and
software to develop the Engineering Analysis and Data Systems II system
which the Center will use for scientific and engineering computations
of flight vehicle and payload performance in the areas of thermal,
electrical, structural and mechanical load and design.  The contract
has a value of $129 million and includes seven one-year options for a
total eight year support period.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Kennedy Space Center officials will dedicate the recently-constructed
Space Shuttle Processing Control Center (PCC) Wednesday, July 29, at
9:00 am EDT.  The PCC is a three-story, 99,000-square-foot facility
which is designed to test space shuttle orbiters, train launch team
members and maintain the launch processing system.  The $8.9 million
facility is located between the Orbiter Processing Facility and the
Operations Support Building in the industrial area of Launch Complex
39.  Construction began in May last year.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

  
Here's the broadcast schedule for Public Affairs events on NASA Select
TV.  Note that all events and times may change without notice, and that
all times listed are Eastern.  Live indicates a program is transmitted
live.

Monday, July 27, 1992
Live   12:00 pm  NASA Today news program, today 
                 featuring a review of the successful launch this 
                 past Friday of the Geotail satellite and an 
                 interview with the project scientist, Dr. Mario 
                 Acuna; a video of JPL's Rocky IV battling the 
                 desert terrain in California; a look at some 
                 additional medical findings from last year's 
                 dedicated Space Life Sciences 1 mission and 
                 interviews with some of the projects medical 
                 researchers.
       12:15 pm  Aeronautics & Space Report.
       12:30 pm  One Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words.
        1:00 pm  Mountains of the Moon.
        1:30 pm  Life in the Universe program #1.
        2:00 pm  Launch Box program #1.
        2:30 pm  Shuttle Preparations and Planets.
        3:00 pm  Total Quality Management program #13, U. of New Mexico series.
        4:00 pm  8:00 pm & 12:00 midnight programming repeats.

Tuesday, July 28, 1992
Live    9:00 am  STS-46 launch minus 3 day countdown status briefing from
                 Kennedy Space Center.
Live   12:00 pm  NASA Today news program.
       12:15 pm  Aeronautics & Space Report.
       12:30 pm  Designing with Plaid.
        1:00 pm  Apollo 16PNothing So Hidden.
        1:30 pm  Life in the Universe program #2.
        2:00 pm  Launch Box program #2.
        2:30 pm  Sail on Voyager.
        3:00 pm  Total Quality Management program #14, U. of New Mexico series.
        4:00 pm  8:00 pm & 12:00 midnight programming repeats.

Wednesday, July 29, 1992
Live    9:00 am  STS-46 launch minus 2 day countdown status briefing from
                 Kennedy Space Center.
Live    1:00 pm  Pre-mission briefing on the Topex/Poseidon mission from NASA
                 Headquarters.

Thursday, July 30, 1992
Live    8:30 am  L-1 briefing on STS-46 mission from Kennedy Space Center.
Live    9:00 am  European Retrievable Carrier briefing from Kennedy Space
                 Center.
Live    9:30 am  Commercial payloads overview briefing from Kennedy Space
                 Center.
Live   10:15 am  Tethered Satellite System overview briefing from Kennedy Space
                 Center.
Live   11:00 am  Tethered Satellite System science briefing from Kennedy Space
                 Center.
Live   12:00 pm  Tethered Satellite System flight operations briefing from
                 Kennedy Space Center.
Live    1:00 pm  Pre-launch briefing for STS-46 mission from Kennedy Space
                 Center.

Friday, July 31, 1992
Live    6:00 am  Launch coverage of Atlantis for STS-46 Tethered Satellite and
                 Eureca deploy mission begins from KSC.
Live    9:56 am  Scheduled launch of Atlantis for STS-46 mission. 

  
This report is filed daily at noon, Monday through Friday.  It is a
service of NASA's Office of Public Affairs.  The editor is Charles
Redmond, 202/453-8425 or CREDMOND on NASAmail.  NASA Select TV is
carried on GE Satcom F2R, transponder 13, C-Band, 72 degrees West
Longitude, transponder frequency is 3960 MegaHertz, audio subcarrier is
6.8 MHz, polarization is vertical.