ATLANTA, Sept. 7, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- EMS Technologies, Inc. (Nasdaq:ELMG) today announced the successful use of its CALTRAC(R) Star Tracker system aboard the NASA Discovery mission, Genesis. The three-year mission concludes tomorrow when a capsule carrying samples of solar wind will be jettisoned from the spacecraft and "snagged" by a helicopter over the skies of the Utah Test and Training Range in central Utah. The Genesis capsule will enter Earth's atmosphere at 9:55 a.m. Mountain time. The collected samples of the solar wind will help scientists better understand the origins of our solar system.
Throughout Genesis' multi-million-kilometer-long trajectory, which took the spacecraft from Earth into a 30-month-long orbit located between the Earth and Sun, the spacecraft relied on EMS-designed and manufactured Star Trackers to guide it along its way.
Star Trackers are highly precise opto-electronic instruments that accurately establish a spacecraft's position. Images of the stars are used to "triangulate" the spacecraft position through the use of complex mathematical algorithms and advanced optics and electronics.
"The pair of EMS Star Trackers performed flawlessly throughout Genesis' three-year mission. Ours was the only star tracker commercially available for the Genesis mission that could meet its performance and speed requirements," noted Martin Lihou, program director, Optical Products Group in Ottawa, a part of EMS's Space & Technology/Montreal division.
For more information about the Genesis mission and its return to Earth, please visit http://genesismission.jpl.nasa.gov.
About EMS Technologies, Inc.
EMS Technologies, Inc. is a leading innovator in the design and manufacture of space, airborne and terrestrial wireless solutions, and focuses its unique range of advanced technologies on the needs of broadband and mobile information users. The company is headquartered in Atlanta, employs approximately 1,700 people worldwide, and has manufacturing facilities in Atlanta, Ottawa, Montreal, and Brazil.
For more information, visit the company on the World Wide Web at www.ems-t.com.
For more information, please contact: Anne Wainscott Graeme Maag Public Relations Public Affairs EMS Technologies Inc. Space & Technology Group / Montreal 770-263-9200, ext. 4326 514-425-3079 pr@ems-t.com maag.g@ems-t.ca