David E. Steitz Headquarters, Washington, DC (Phone: 202/358-1730) Cynthia M. O'Carroll Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD (Phone: 301/614-5563)

March 27, 2001

NOTE TO EDITORS: N01-14

NASA'S FIRST EARTH SCIENCE UPDATE: NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE BIOLOGICAL RECORD OF EARTH

NASA's first Earth Science Update features the first continuous global observations of the biological engine that drives life on our planet. The research is part of a study published in this week's issue of Science.

Scientists looked at the first three years of daily observations of ocean and land plants from the Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWiFS) mission. The data being gathered addresses issues such as where carbon goes and how much carbon is fixed by Earth's plants. Researchers will discuss how carbon is distributed between the land and the ocean and how carbon distribution has changed over time.

The update will be held at 2 p.m. EST, Thursday, March 29, in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters, 300 E St. SW, Washington, DC. It will be moderated by Dr. Mary Cleave, Deputy Associate Administrator for Earth Science, NASA Headquarters. Other participants include:

• Dr. Michael Behrenfeld, Oceanographer, Goddard Space Flight Center

• Dr. Gene Carl Feldman, Oceanographer and SeaWiFS Project Manager, Goddard Space Flight Center
• Paul Falkowski, Professor II, the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences and the Institute of Geological Sciences at Rutgers University
• Jorge L. Sarmiento, Professor of Geosciences at Princeton University

The briefing will be carried live on NASA Television with two-way question-and-answer capability for reporters covering the briefing from participating NASA centers. NASA TV is broadcast on satellite GE-2, transponder 9C, at 85 degrees West longitude, vertical polarization, frequency 3880 MHz, audio of 6.8 MHz. More information about SeaWiFS is available on the Internet at:

http://seawifs.gsfc.nasa.gov:80/SEAWIFS.html