Contact:

Donald Savage
Headquarters,Washington
(Phone: 202/358-1547)

Jim Sahli
Goddard Space Flight Center,
Greenbelt, Md.
(Phone: 301/286-8141)

July 6, 2004 - NOTE TO EDITORS: N04-101

NASA VIRTUAL NEWS BRIEFING: SCIENTISTS TRACK BLAST WAVE TO THE EDGE OF THE SOLAR SYSTEM

On Thursday, July 8, at 1 p.m. EDT, during a listen-and- log-on news briefing, scientists will discuss what was learned from last fall's record-shattering solar storms that are just now reaching the outer limits of the solar system, eight billion miles away.

An unprecedented fleet of explorers including solar and Earth-orbiting craft, as well as Mars Odyssey, Ulysses, Cassini and the Voyagers, tracked the largest solar storms in recent years from the sun's surface to the edge of interplanetary space, for the first time ever.

Briefing participants will be:

-- Dr. Eric Christian, Solar Physics Division, NASA Headquarters, Washington
-- Dr. Thomas Zurbuchen, Associate Professor at University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich.
-- Dr. Ed Stone, David Morrisroe Professor of Physics, Jet Propulsion Laboratory/Caltech
-- Carl Walz, Program Executive for Advanced Concepts, Project Prometheus, NASA Headquarters

This virtual news briefing is only for reporters, who can participate by using the information below to listen to the scientists and log on to the Web site established for the briefing, which will have graphics and images supporting the presentations. At the end of the briefing, questions will be taken from participating reporters.

TELECON DIAL-IN NUMBERS: 888-913-9967
PASSCODE: JULY 8TH SOLAR EVENT BRIEFING
WEB SITE: http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/topstory/2004/0708flare1.html

A video file supporting this press conference will be uplinked on NASA TV at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. EDT on July 8.