Donald Savage
Headquarters, Washington, DC               September 23, 1999
(Phone:  202/358-1547)

Tim Tyson
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL
(Phone:  256/544-0994)

Dr. Wallace Tucker
Chandra X-ray Center, Harvard-Smithsonian Observatory, Cambridge,
MA
(Phone:  617/496-7998)

NOTE TO EDITORS: N99-52

BRIEFING SEPT. 28 PRESENTS CHANDRA DISCOVERY
OF RING AROUND COSMIC POWERHOUSE IN CRAB NEBULA

     A new image from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, to be
presented at a Space Science Update at 1 p.m. EDT, Tuesday, Sept.
28, reveals a brilliant ring around a cosmic powerhouse at the
heart of the Crab Nebula, the spectacular remains of a stellar
explosion. The briefing will be held in the James E. Webb
Auditorium at NASA Headquarters, 300 E St. SW, Washington, DC.

     The ring is the first such structure ever discovered, and,
along with observations from the Hubble Space Telescope, provides
important clues to the puzzle of how the neutron star powerhouse
energizes the Crab Nebula.

     Panelists will be:

 -  Dr. Alan Bunner, Science Director, NASA Headquarters,
Washington, DC;
 -  Dr. Martin Weisskopf, Chandra Project Scientist, NASA's
Marshall Space Flight Center,
      Huntsville, AL;
-  Prof. Jeff Hester, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ
-  Prof. Malvin Ruderman, Columbia University, NY, NY

     The briefing will be carried live on NASA Television with
question-and-answer capability for reporters covering the briefing
from participating NASA centers and from the Chandra Operations
Control Center in Cambridge, MA.  NASA Television is available on
transponder 9C, satellite GE-2 at 85 degrees West longitude,
vertical polarization, frequency 3880 MHz, audio of 6.8 MHz.

     Chandra images and additional information will be available
following the briefing on the Internet at:

                 http://chandra.nasa.gov

                          and

               http://chandra.harvard.edu

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