Douglas Isbell
Headquarters, Washington, DC                   August 14, 1996
(Phone: 202/358-1753)

George Diller
Kennedy Space Center, FL
(Phone: 407/867-2468)

Diane Ainsworth
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, CA
(Phone: 818/354-5011)

RELEASE: 96-167

TWO 1996 MARS SPACECRAFT ARRIVE AT LAUNCH SITE

     The Mars Global Surveyor and the Mars Pathfinder, a pair
of NASA spacecraft scheduled to be launched toward the red
planet on McDonnell Douglas Delta II rockets late this year,
have arrived at the Kennedy Space Center (KSC), FL, to begin
their preparations for launch.

     The Mars Global Surveyor will be placed into orbit around
the planet.  It carries a set of six science instruments
designed to study the planet's surface, atmosphere, and
gravitational and magnetic fields.  The Mars Pathfinder will
be deployed through the Martian atmosphere to land on the
planet's surface, where it will deploy a small instrumented
rover to investigate the terrain surrounding the spacecraft.
Together, the Mars Pathfinder and rover will investigate the
geology and elemental composition of the Martian rocks and
soil, as well as the Martian atmosphere and surface weather.

     "The arrival of the two Mars spacecraft at the launch
site is a wonderful milestone of which the whole Mars missions
team can be very proud," said Dr. Jurgen Rahe, director of
Solar System Exploration at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC.
"It reminds us just how close we are to returning important
new scientific knowledge about the red planet back to Earth."

     Mars Global Surveyor,  weighing 2,315 pounds and built by
Lockheed Martin, arrived at Cape Canaveral, FL, from Denver,
CO. aboard an Air Force C-17 cargo plane this morning at 3:25
a.m. EDT.  It was off-loaded and taken to the Payload
Hazardous Servicing Facility (PHSF) located in the KSC
Industrial Area to begin launch preparations.

     The Mars Pathfinder, built for NASA by the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, Pasadena, CA, arrived at the Spacecraft Assembly
and Encapsulation Facility (SAEF-2) at KSC at 3 p.m. EDT
yesterday afternoon having traveled across the United States
in a special van.  Presently three of four separate components
have arrived at KSC: the cruise stage, the aeroshell and the
lander.  The fourth element, the small rover known as
Sojourner, is scheduled to arrive on Aug. 23 and will be
shipped from California by air.

     During the time Mars Global Surveyor will be at the PHSF,
it will undergo final instrument functional tests and
electrical system testing, its batteries and thermal insulation
will be installed, the spacecraft will be fueled with its
control propellants, and it will be mated to its solid propellant
upper stage, which is the Delta third stage booster.

     Mars Global Surveyor is scheduled to be transported from
the PHSF to Launch Complex 17 on Oct. 23 to be hoisted atop a
Delta.  After integrated testing is complete, a nine-and-a-
half foot diameter nose fairing will be placed around the spacecraft.

     Launch of Mars Global Surveyor is scheduled for Nov. 6 at
12:11 p.m. EST at the beginning of a 20-day launch period
which ends on Nov. 25.  The spacecraft will arrive at the
planet in September 1997 to begin a mission which is planned
to last at least one Martian year, or 687 Earth days.

     The integration of the four Mars Pathfinder elements will
begin with installation of the rover on one of the four petals
of the lander.  After the petals  are closed, the aeroshell
which surrounds and protects the lander will be installed and
the parachutes will be attached.  The assembled entry vehicle
will then be mated to the cruise stage that will carry the
spacecraft on its interplanetary trajectory.  Finally, before
going to the launch pad, the completed Mars Pathfinder will be
mated to the upper stage booster.  The entire integration
process will take approximately three months.

     The Mars Pathfinder/Delta third stage combination will
then be transported to Pad 17-B for erection atop the Delta on
Nov. 21  After integrated testing, a fairing will be placed
around the spacecraft.  Launch is scheduled to occur on Dec. 2
at 2:09 a.m. EST at the beginning of a 24-day launch period
that ends on Dec. 25.  Landing on Mars is planned to occur on
July 4, 1997.  Once on the planet's surface, the mission is
planned to last approximately one month.

                    -end-

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