NASA Daily News Summary

For Release: Oct. 6, 1999

Media Advisory m99-206

Summary:

ANNUAL DEPLETION OF ANTARCTIC OZONE RESULTS ARE IN: 'OZONE

HOLE'
SMALLER THAN LAST YEAR

STARRY BULGES YIELD SECRETS TO GALAXY GROWTH

Video File for Oct. 6, 1999

ITEM 1 - HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE SPACE SCIENCE UPDATE VIDEO

FILE:
HUBBLE FINDS SECRETS OF GALAXY GROWTH

ITEM 2 - 1999 ANTARCTIC "HOLE" SMALLER THAN LAST YEAR

ITEM 3 - SECOND-EVER ASTEROID MOON SPOTTED

ITEM 4 - RAIN SLOWS AS FIRES FLARE--BIOMASS BURNING AND THE

WEATHER (TRMM SATELLITE) (replay)

**********

ANNUAL DEPLETION OF ANTARCTIC OZONE RESULTS ARE IN:

'OZONE HOLE' SMALLER THAN LAST YEAR

A NASA satellite has shown that the area of ozone depletion over
the Antarctic--the well-known ozone "hole"--is a bit less in 1999
than it was last year. This year's study found that an ozone
"low" had formed between New Zealand and Antarctica on Sept. 17.
This sort of ozone low, commonly referred to as a "mini-hole," is
a result of the redistribution of ozone by a large weather system.
The slightly decreased size of the ozone "hole" from last year is
not an indication of the recovery of Antarctic ozone levels. The
current year-to-year variations of size and depth of the ozone
"hole" depend primarily on the variations in meteorological
conditions. These measurements were obtained between mid-August
and early October using the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer
(TOMS) instrument aboard NASA's Earth Probe (TOMS-EP) satellite.
NASA instruments have been measuring Antarctic ozone levels since
the early 1970s. Since the discovery of the ozone "hole" in 1985,
TOMS has been a key instrument for monitoring ozone levels over
the Earth.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: David E. Steitz

202/358-1730.
Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD:
Cynthia O'Carroll 301/614-5563.

Digital Media: http://toms.gsfc.nasa.gov

For full text, see:

ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/1999/99-116.txt

----------

STARRY BULGES YIELD SECRETS TO GALAXY GROWTH

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is uncovering important new clues to

a galaxy's birth and growth by peering into its heart--a bulge of
millions of stars that resemble a bulbous center yolk in the
middle of a disk of egg white. Hubble astronomers are trying to
solve the mystery of which came first: the stellar disk or the
central bulge? Two complementary surveys by independent teams of
astronomers using Hubble show that the hubs of some galaxies
formed early in the Universe, while others formed more slowly,
across a long stretch of time.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Donald Savage

202/358-1547.
Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Nancy
Neal 301/286-0039.
Contact at Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD: Ray
Villard 410/338-4514.

Digital Media: http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/latest.html

and
http://oposite.stsci.edu/pubinfo/pr/1999/34/pr-photos.html

For full text, see:

ftp://ftp.hq.nasa.gov/pub/pao/pressrel/1999/99-107.txt
----------

If NASA issues additional news releases later today, we will e-

mail summaries and Internet URLs to this list.

Index of 1999 NASA News Releases:

http://www.nasa.gov/releases/1999/index.html

********

Video File for Oct. 6, 1999

ITEM 1 - HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE SPACE SCIENCE UPDATE TRT

:40
HUBBLE FINDS SECRETS OF GALAXY GROWTH

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope is uncovering important new clues to

a galaxy's birth and growth by peering into its heart--a bulge of
millions of stars that resemble a bulbous center yolk in the
middle of a disk of egg white. Hubble astronomers are trying to
solve the mystery of which came first: the stellar disk or the
central bulge? Two complementary surveys by independent teams of
astronomers using Hubble show that the hubs of some galaxies
formed early in the Universe, while others formed more slowly,
across a long stretch of time.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Donald Savage

202/358-1547.
Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Nancy
Neal 301/286-0039.
Contact at Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD: Ray
Villard 410/338-4514.

ITEM 2 - 1999 ANTARCTIC "HOLE" SMALLER THAN LAST YEAR TRT

7:25

The latest images from NASA show the depleted region of ozone
commonly known as the ozone "hole--is a bit smaller in 1999 than
it was last year. Scientists are closely monitoring ozone levels
in Antarctica after observing record low levels of ozone in 1998.
The Antarctic "ozone hole" develops each year between late August
and early October.

Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD:

Cynthia O'Carroll 301/614-5563.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: David E. Steitz
202/358-1730.

ITEM 2a - 1999 ANTARCTIC OZONE "HOLE"

Time lapse images show evolution of the 1999 Antarctic ozone hole
which covered 9.8 million square miles on Sept. 15. The record
area of Antarctic ozone depletion of 10.5 million square miles was
set on Oct. 3, 1998. The Antarctic "ozone hole" develops each year
between late August and early October

ITEM 2b - A UNUSUAL SIDEKICK

This year's study found that an ozone "low" had formed between New
Zealand and Antarctica on Sept. 17. This sort of ozone low,
commonly referred to as a "mini-hole," is a result of the
redistribution of ozone by a large weather system. The "mini-
hole" moved eastward along the rim of the Antarctic ozone "hole"
for a number of days after Sept. 17.

ITEM 2c - 1998 OZONE "HOLE" LARGEST EVER

The 1998 Antarctic ozone "hole" was the largest ever observed.
Data from the satellites show that ozone depletion reached a
record size of 10.5 million square miles on Sept. 19, 1998.
Scientists believed the unusually cold stratospheric temperatures
contributed to the record size of the "hole".

ITEM 2d - OZONE TRENDS

Yearly comparison of ozone levels in Antarctic. NASA and NOAA

instruments have been measuring Antarctic ozone levels since the
early 1970s. Large regions of depleted ozone began to develop
over Antarctica in the early 1980s. Though ozone "holes" of
substantial size and depth are likely to continue to form during
the next few years, scientists expect to see a reduction in ozone
losses as levels of ozone destroying CFCs are gradually reduced.

ITEM 2e - HOW OZONE PROTECTS

Ozone protects the Earth by absorbing harmful ultraviolet

radiation. The ozone molecule is split into one free oxygen atom
and one molecule of ordinary oxygen. The free oxygen usually
reacts with another oxygen molecule to reform the ozone molecule.

ITEM 2f - OZONE DESTRUCTION

Scientists say this year's abnormally cold Antarctic winter

contributed to the ozone "hole" by activating more destructive
chlorine. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) lead to destruction of the
protective ozone molecules located in the stratosphere. Chlorine
atoms liberated from CFCs steal oxygen atoms, thus destroying the
protective ozone molecule. One chlorine atom can destroy many
thousands of ozone molecules over its lifetime in the
stratosphere. The ozone "hole" appears because of the normally
very cold Antarctic winter conditions.

ITEM 2g - STRATOSPHERE ANIMATION

Most atmospheric ozone is found in the stratosphere--in a thin

layer 6 to 18 miles above the Earth's surface. The term "ozone
hole" is used to describe a large area of intense ozone depletion
that occurs over Antarctica during late August through early
October and typically breaks up in late November. Ozone is a
molecule that shields life on Earth from the harmful effects of
the Sun's ultraviolet radiation.

ITEM 2h - TOMS SATELLITE

The measurements were obtained this year using the Total Ozone
Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) instrument aboard NASA's Earth Probe
(TOMS-EP) satellite.

ITEM 2i - OZONE SCIENTISTS - B-ROLL

Scientists and others have a keen interest in ozone depletion,

given that the increased amounts of ultraviolet radiation that
reach the Earth's surface because of ozone loss have the potential
to increase the incidence of skin cancer and cataracts in humans,
harm some crops, and interfere with marine life.

Digital Images at: http://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/~gshirah/toms/

ITEM 3 - SECOND-EVER ASTEROID MOON SPOTTED TRT :36

An international team of astronomers led by William Merline of the

Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, CO, has discovered the
second small moon of asteroid ever seen, circling around asteroid
45 Eugenia. Supported by funding from the National Science
Foundation and NASA, the team used the Canada-France-Hawaii
telescope on Mauna Kea, HI, to spot the rocky object. The first
asteroid moon was discovered in 1993, in an image of asteroid Ida
sent by NASA's Galileo spacecraft.

Contact at Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, CO: Maria

Martinez, 210/522-3305.
Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: Doug Isbell
202/358-1753.

Credit: NASA/NSF/Southwest Research Institute

ITEM 3a - MOVIE

Time-lapse movie of five frames of the small moon orbiting the

asteroid.

ITEM 3b - GRAPHIC

Graphic of the asteroid and its moon.

ITEM 3c - RAW IMAGE

Non-processed image of the asteroid (center) and its moon (at

about 10-11 o'clock position).
ITEM 4 - RAIN SLOWS AS FIRES FLARE--BIOMASS BURNING TRT 6:24
AND THE WEATHER (TRMM SATELLITE) (replay)

Using data collected from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission

(TRMM) satellite, scientists now have conclusive proof that forest
fire smoke inhibits rainfall. Research conducted over parts of
Indonesia during some of that country¹s most severe forest fires
showed strong signs of rainfall inhibition in areas that were
blanketed with smoke. Areas comparatively free of smoke particles
produced rain normally.

This research is vital in understanding how global precipitation

affects the weather; tropical rainfall accounts for nearly two
thirds of energy necessary to power atmospheric circulation. This
study helps researchers quantify the phenomena, helping to better
assess human impacts on the weather, both for discrete regions of
the planet as well as globally.

Contact at NASA Headquarters, Washington, DC: David E. Steitz

202/358-1730.
Contact at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD: Allen
Kenitzer 301/286-2806.

ITEM 4a - HOW SMOKE INHIBITS RAINFALL: NORMAL CONDITIONS

TRT :10

Under normal conditions, tropical clouds swell with water

droplets. Those droplets have a tendency to clump together, thus
increasing their weight relative to the surrounding cloud. As
they coalesce, they fall out of the cloud as rain.

ITEM 4b - HOW SMOKE INHIBITS RAINFALL: SMOKY CONDITIONS TRT

:08

In areas of concentrated biomass burning, water condenses around

tiny particles of smoke, called nuclei. These nucleated drops
tend not to clump together, remaining trapped in the clouds,
inhibiting rainfall. From space, heavily nucleated clouds appear
brighter due to the fact that there are more free floating,
smaller water particles available to reflect and scatter light.
ITEM 4c - HOW SMOKE INHIBITS RAINFALL: COMPARISON OF TRT
:18
CONDITIONS

In this animation, compare the two systems side by side. You can
see how the rain-producing cloud on the left is composed of larger
water droplets, making it easier for them to coalesce and fall out
as precipitation. On the right, notice how the smaller, nucleated
particles tend to remain apart, without forming larger drops. This
smoke-affected cloud will not produce rain.

ITEM 4d - INHIBITED RAIN IN BORNEO: SATELLITE DATA CONFIRMS

OBSERVATIONS

The Indonesian island of Borneo falls directly in the

observational path of the research instruments. By measuring the
amount of smoke and other aerosols above a given region, and
matching that data with measurements regarding specific amounts of
rainfall, researchers have concluded a distinct cause and effect
relationship between aerosols and rainfall.

ITEM 4e - SATELLITE DATA DISSOLVE SEQUENCE TRT 1:08

Readings from the TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer)

satellite measured aerosol levels above Borneo throughout February
1998. Immediately following, a sequence of color-coded images
appears over the Borneo map. Red represents fires and hot spots.
Clouds and smoke appear next, overlaid on the entire image. Note
the heavy stripes of smoke toward the right and upper right of the
image. Light blue notes concentrations of water droplets, while
dark blue marks areas with precipitation. Notice how there are no
indications of rain near the island hot spots and smoky regions.
Finally, we show the map as a composite image of the various data
sets.

ITEM 4f - TRMM SATELLITE ANIMATION TRT :24

The TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) satellite measures

tropical rainfall in a band around the Earth stretching 35 degrees
north and south of the equator. The instrument uses several
instruments to detect rainfall, including radar, microwave
imaging, and lightning sensors. TRMM data is available to
researchers around the world; it is managed by a team at NASA¹s
Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.

ITEM 4g - INTERVIEW/SOUNDBITES TRT 1:37

Dr. Christian Kummerow, TRMM Project Scientist

**********

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ANY CHANGES TO THE LINE-UP WILL APPEAR ON THE NASA VIDEO

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**********

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end of daily news summary