Patrick Mellody                                   July 24, 1998
Headquarters, Washington, DC
(Phone:  202/358-0773)

MEDIA ADVISORY:  M98-4

IOWA ASTRONAUT RETURNS HOME SATURDAY

     Astronaut James M. Kelly (Major, USAF) will return to his 
native Iowa on Saturday July 25, 1998.  Kelly will be a key 
participant in the Cedar Rapids Senior Citizen Conference to be 
held in Iowa Hall on the campus of Kirkwood Community College.  
Major Kelly will be available to answer questions from the media 
starting at 10 a.m.CDT in Iowa Hall.  Astronaut Kelly's schedule 
for the day is as follows:

     July 25, 1998

     10:00-10:50am    Media Availability
          
     11:00-11:50am    Lunch with senior citizens

     12:00-12:50pm    "Senior Prom"

     1:00-2:00pm      Workshop Presentation: "My Life as an 
Astronaut"

All events will be held at: Iowa Hall
                            6301 Kirkwood Boulevard, SW
                            Cedar Rapids, IA 52404

     Kelly will discuss NASA's research concerning aging, 
including the upcoming flight of U.S. Senator John Glenn aboard 
the Space Shuttle Discovery.  Glenn will be 77 years of age when 
STS-95 launches in October of this year.  He will also talk about 
the International Space Station (ISS), the largest international 
aerospace project ever undertaken.  When the American-led ISS is 
complete,  it will house the most sophisticated orbiting 
laboratory ever made.  The laboratory will study the long term 
effects of space on human beings, effects which in some cases 
mirror the effects of aging.

     Kelly was born in Burlington, Iowa where his parents still 
reside. He was selected by NASA for Astronaut training in 1996.  
Currently Kelly is assigned to the Astronaut Office Flight Support 
Branch where he serves as a member of the team responsible for 
mission preparation.
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