NASA Television will air pre- and post-launch news conferences and provide live launch coverage of Orbital Sciences Corporation's cargo resupply demonstration mission to the International Space Station.

The company's Cygnus cargo carrier will be the first spacecraft launched to the orbiting laboratory from Virginia. It will be launched aboard Orbital's Antares rocket at 11:16 a.m. EDT Tuesday, Sept. 17, from the Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport Pad-0A at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in eastern Virginia.

NASA TV launch commentary coverage will begin at 10:45 a.m. Video b-roll of launch preparations will air at 10:30 a.m. A post-launch news briefing will begin at approximately 1 p.m. at the Wallops Visitors Center. NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston will operate a phone bridge for the pre- and post-launch briefings. To participate in any briefing by phone, reporters must call the Johnson newsroom at 281-483-5111 at least 15 minutes before the start of the briefing.

Cygnus will deliver about 1,300 pounds (589 kilograms) of cargo, including food and clothing, to the Expedition 37 crew aboard the space station. Future flights of Cygnus will significantly increase NASA's ability to deliver new science investigations to the nation's only laboratory in microgravity.

NASA will preview the launch and mission in a news conference at 2 p.m. Monday, Sept. 16, at the Wallops Visitors Center. NASA TV and the agency's website will air the briefing live with question and answer capability available from participating NASA centers or on the telephone. Questions also can be asked during the briefings via Twitter by using the hashtag #askNASA.

The briefing participants are:

-- Alan Lindenmoyer, program manager, NASA's Commercial Crew and Cargo Program -- Frank Culbertson, executive vice president, Orbital Sciences Corp. -- Mike Pinkston, Antares program manager, Orbital Sciences Corp. -- Sarah Daugherty, test director, NASA's Wallops Flight Facility

The deadline to apply for accreditation to attend the launch is 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 12 for media who are U.S. citizens. The deadline has passed for non-U.S. citizens. For additional information regarding accreditation contact Keith Koehler at keith.a.koehler@nasa.gov.

Rendezvous with the space station is scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 22. NASA Television coverage will begin at 4:30 a.m. and will continue through the capture and installation of the Cygnus spacecraft. Capture is scheduled for about 7:17 a.m. with installation of the craft beginning about 9 a.m.

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NASA TV Coverage Set for Orbital Sciences Demonstration Mission