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Direct Lines 01908 653343/ 653256 Fax 01908 652247 Press-office@open.ac.uk News site: www.open.ac.uk/media/ |
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Media Relations Office The Open University Walton Hall Milton Keynes MK7 6AA |
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Media notice |
For the attention of: news and science editors PR4791
Thursday, January 222004
FIRST DATA FROM MARS EXPRESS:
AVAILABILITY OF UK-BASED ACADEMIC TO PROVIDE EXPERT COMMENT
The first data and preliminary results from instruments on boardthe European Space Agencys Mars Express will be presented to the media at anews conference at ESAs Space Operations Centre in Germany during the morningof Friday, January 23.
Dr John Murray,of the Department of Earth Sciences at the OpenUniversity, is a member of an international team responsible for the highresolution stereo camera on board Mars Express. It is this camera that isresponsible for the 3D images of the Martian surface issued earlier this week.
Dr Murray isavailable for interviews about the camera and its images and about the MarsExpress mission more generally at any time on Friday, January 23. He isavailable for interview in London.
TO ARRANGE ANINTERVIEW WITH DR JOHN MURRAY:
Journalists who wish to arrange an interview for print, broadcast orelectronic media are asked to contactthe media relations team at the Open University Neil Coaten on 01908652580 or at n.d.coaten@open.ac.ukor Eulina Clairmont on 01908 653248 or at e.clairmont@open.ac.uk
EDITORS NOTES: Dr Murray is working with Prof Jan-Peter Muller ofUniversity College London; the projects principal investigator is Dr GerhardNeukum of the Free University of Berlin.
The 3D image informationmeans that, for the first time, scientists will be able to make geologicalmeasurements of such quantities as dip, strike and thickness of sedimentarylayers on another planet, just as geologists do on Earth. For more information,visit the Open Universitys media relations website at http://www.open.ac.uk/media
For more information aboutthe ESA press conference, contact the ESA media relations office on +33 (0) 153 69 7155. Ends