NASA will hold a series of media events Monday, Jan. 27, in advance of the February launch of the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory from Japan. The events will be held at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

GPM is an international satellite mission led by NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) that will provide next-generation observations of rain and snow worldwide. GPM data also will contribute to climate research and the forecasting of extreme weather events such as floods and hurricanes.

The GPM Core Observatory is scheduled to lift off Feb. 27, between 1:07 and 3:07 p.m. EST, from JAXA's Tanegashima Space Center in Japan.

Media events include briefings on the GPM mission and science. Briefing panelists are:

-- Steven Neeck, deputy associate director, flight program, Earth Science, NASA Headquarters, Washington

-- Masahiro Kojima, GPM Dual-frequency Precipitation Radar project manager, JAXA, Tsukuba

-- Art Azarbarzin, GPM project manager, Goddard

-- Ramesh Kakar, GPM program scientist, Headquarters

-- Gail Skofronick-Jackson, GPM deputy project scientist, Goddard

-- Riko Oki, GPM project scientist, JAXA

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NASA Hosts Prelaunch Media Events for Global Precipitation Mission