NASA To Broadcast Soyuz Events And Launch In High Definition

HOUSTON -- For the first time, NASA Television will provide high
definition footage of the pre-launch events and liftoff of an
International Space Station crew aboard a Soyuz spacecraft.

NASA astronaut and Expedition 27 Flight Engineer Ron Garan and Russian
cosmonauts Alexander Samokutyaev and Andrey Borisenko will launch
from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on April 4 at 5:18 p.m.
CDT (6:18 a.m. Baikonur time on April 5).

The HD video from Baikonur will air on NASA TV's HD channel and
standard definition channels. The schedule includes (all times Central):

Friday, April 1
2 p.m. - Video File of the Soyuz TMA-21 rocket mating and crew
activities in Baikonur

Saturday, April 2
11 a.m. - Video File of the rocket rollout to the launch pad in
Baikonur

Sunday, April 3
4 p.m. - Video File of the Russian State Commission meeting and final
pre-launch crew news conference in Baikonur

Monday, April 4
3:45 p.m. - Video File of the crew pre-launch activities in Baikonur
4:30 p.m. - Launch coverage (launch scheduled at 5:18 p.m.) from Baikonur
8 p.m. - Video File of pre-launch, launch and post-launch interviews

In continental North America, Alaska and Hawaii, NASA TV's high
definition and standard definition channels are MPEG-2 digital C-band
signals carried by QPSK/DVB-S modulation on satellite AMC-3,
transponder 15C, at 87 degrees west longitude. Downlink frequency is
4000 MHz, horizontal polarization, with a data rate of 38.86 Mhz,
symbol rate of 28.1115 Ms/s, and 3/4 FEC. A Digital Video Broadcast
(DVB) compliant Integrated Receiver Decoder (IRD) is needed for reception.

For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming
video, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

For more information about the International Space Station and the
Expedition 27 crew, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station

Source: NASA

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