Media, Public Invited to Visit NASA's James Webb Space Telescope Exhibit at South by Southwest

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Mar 05, 2014, 05:22 ET

AUSTIN, Texas, March 5, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA is partnering with the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) and the Northrop Grumman Corporation to bring the James Webb Space Telescope back to the South by Southwest (SXSW) Gaming Expo at the Palmer Events Center March 7-9, 2014, in Austin, Texas. Free to the public, the Webb telescope exhibit will demonstrate the sheer size of the observatory that will be 100 times more powerful than Hubble. Visitors can talk with scientists and engineers who will share how Webb will inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers to push the boundaries of science and technology. The exhibit will also feature an 82-inch touchscreen display provided by Microsoft that will show science visualizations and other videos, tablets with Webb apps and handouts.

The Webb telescope is NASA's top science program in development that will allow scientists to peer ever farther into the cosmos, seeing things no previous telescope can see and explore the formation of the first stars and galaxies.

What: The James Webb Space Telescope exhibit at SXSW is open to the general public on Friday, March 7, through Sunday, March 9. Media are invited to interview scientists and engineers from NASA, STScI and Northrop Grumman about the tennis-court sized space telescope that will change our understanding of the universe.

For more information, including a full list of events, visit the SXSW event website at http://go.nasa.gov/JWSTlive

When: Visit the JWST exhibit inside the Palmer Events Center during the following dates/times:

Friday, March 7 from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. CT
Saturday, March 8 from noon to 8 p.m. CT
Sunday, March 9 from noon to 8 p.m. CT

Also, on Sunday, March 9, from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. CT, check out the SXSW Interactive panel, "First Signs: Finding Life on Other Planets." A panel of experts from NASA and Northrop Grumman will examine the important contributions telescopes like Kepler and Webb will make in the search for life in the universe, and set the stage for how Webb could find the first signs of life on another planet. For more information, go to: http://schedule.sxsw.com/2014/events/event_IAP17180.

Where: Palmer Events Center
900 Barton Springs Road
Austin, TX 78704
Click here for a map.

For more information about South by Southwest, visit: http://sxsw.com/

For more information about the James Webb Space Telescope, visit: jwst.gfsc.nasa.gov or www.nasa.gov/webb

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SOURCE NASA