For release: 06/06/02
Release #: N02-006
Public and news media invited to Space Station sighting in Huntsville Friday evening
On Friday, July 26, the public and news media will have the opportunity to view, celebrate and learn about the International Space Station as it flies over Huntsville, Ala. The event features an audio message from Space Station crew member Peggy Whitson, tours of the night sky by NASA speakers, and observation of the Station as it glides overhead at approximately 8:50 p.m. CDT. The event is from 8 to 9:30 p.m. at the National Space Science and Technology Center at 320 Sparkman Drive in Huntsville.

What: Huntsville, Ala., residents will have the opportunity to view, celebrate and learn about the International Space Station as it flies over Huntsville, by participating in a free event featuring a special audio message to Huntsville from NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, living and working aboard the Space Station.
At the event, NASA and other speakers will give onlookers a tour of the night sky, discuss the Space Station, and point out the Station as it glides overhead. Literature, handouts and other NASA, Space Station and science-related items will be available.
The third brightest object in the nighttime sky, the International Space Station orbits the Earth 16 times a day and passes over the same area two-to-three-times a month. The majority of these passes occur when the Station is difficult to see -- daytime or when many people are asleep.
When: Friday, July 26, 2002, 8–9:30 p.m. CDT, with the Space Station sighting expected at approximately 8:50 p.m.
Where: The National Space Science and Technology Center
320 Sparkman Drive in Huntsville, located in Cummings Research Park, on Sparkman Drive between Bradford Drive and Lakeside Drive. Attendees should enter the event from Lakeside Drive.
To attend: News media interested in covering the event should contact Steve Roy at (256) 544-0034. No reservations are needed for the public, and attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets. Although the Space Station is visible to the unaided eye, attendees are welcome to bring binoculars or telescopes to enhance their viewing.
Sponsors: The event is sponsored by the National Space Science and Technology Center, NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, the University of Alabama in Huntsville, and the Von Braun Astronomical Society in Huntsville.