July 28, 1997 Donald Savage Headquarters, Washington, DC July
23, 1997 (Phone: 202/358-1547) Lynn Jenner Goddard Space Flight
Center, Greenbelt, MD (Phone: 301/286-0454) ADVANCED COMPOSITION
EXPLORER SET TO STUDY MATTER FROM SUN, MILKY WAY AND BEYOND The
Earth is constantly being bombarded by a stream of accelerated
particles arriving not only from the Sun, but also from
interstellar and galactic sources. The study of these energetic
particles by NASA's Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE)
observatory will contribute to the understanding of the
formation and evolution of the solar system as well as the
astrophysical processes involved. The space science observatory
is scheduled for launch on a Delta II rocket at 10:39 a.m. EDT
August 25, from Launch Complex 17 at the Cape Canaveral Air
Station, FL. "The Advanced Composition Explorer observatory is
designed to sample the matter that comes near the Earth from the
Sun, from the apparently, but not actually, empty space between
the planets, and from the Milky Way