NEWS

By STEPHANIE GUNTER
UNC News Services

CHAPEL HILL -- The future of space exploration will be the subject of the annual Phi Beta Kappa symposium Tuesday (April 13) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The symposium will begin at 7 p.m. in the North Gallery of the Morehead Building. Kate Harris, founder and president of SpaceTalk, will moderate the discussion. The UNC student organization advocates for the human exploration of Mars and space.

Panelists include Dr. Alex Roland, Jeff Krukin and Dr. Fred DeJarnette, all space exploration experts. The event is free to the public.

"Recent developments such as the Columbia tragedy, Mars exploration and the Hubble telescope situation have caused many to reevaluate their stances with respect to the United States space program," said Craig Baden, vice president of the organization and symposium organizer. "The Phi Beta Kappa space symposium is an excellent opportunity to learn more about the costs and benefits of continued space exploration and about the arguments both for and against this exploration."

Roland is a history professor at Duke University and a former NASA historian. Krukin is a former computer systems engineer at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. DeJarnette is a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at N.C. State University. He also is the director of the N.C. Space Grant Consortium and a former researcher at NASA Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va.

The symposium will begin with each panelist presenting his thoughts on the future of space exploration. Topics for discussion include: determining the agenda for the national space program, whether or not Mars exploration should be pursued, the return of humans to the moon and whether or not the space program should send humans or robots to its destinations.

Those attending can ask questions of the panelists.

For more information, contact Baden at (919) 914-5322 or baden@email.unc.edu.

- 30 -

(Gunter, of Raleigh, is a senior majoring in journalism and mass communication.)

Contact: Craig Baden, (919) 914-5322 or cbaden@email.unc.edu

News Services contact: Deb Saine, (919) 962-8415 or deborah_saine@unc.edu