HOUSTON -- It will be Earth vs. space in a unique chess match, and you
can help Earth win. NASA and the U.S. Chess Federation (USCF) are
teaming up to host the first public chess match between International
Space Station astronaut Greg Chamitoff and the inhabitants of the
Earth, beginning Monday, Sept. 29.

Key players in the game will be the kindergarten through third grade
U.S. Chess Championship Team and its chess club teammates from
Stevenson Elementary School in Bellevue, Wash. The K-3 champions will
select up to four possible moves on Earth's turn. The public then
will vote on the move transmitted to orbit. The USCF will facilitate
the match on its Web site at:



http://www.uschess.org/nasa2008


"For the past 10 years, the International Space Station has been an
important platform to learn about living in space. We're excited to
have the opportunity to engage not only young students, but the
public at large in this unique chess match," said Heather Rarick,
lead flight director for the current space station mission at NASA's
Johnson Space Center in Houston.

"We hope the excitement and interest this game generates will inspire
students to become interested in chess," said USCF Executive Director
Bill Hall. "Chess is a valuable tool to lead students to become
interested in math and to develop critical thinking skills,
objectives we focus on in our work with schools nationwide."

Chamitoff, a space station flight engineer speeding about 210 miles
above the Earth at five miles a second, is a chess aficionado. He
brought a chess set with him when he arrived at the complex on the
STS-124 space shuttle mission in June. Chamitoff has added Velcro to
the chess pieces to keep them from floating away in weightlessness.
He has been playing long-distance chess during his mission in his off
time with station control centers around the world. So far, he is
undefeated.

The game against the public will move at a pace of one move per day on
weekdays only. Play may be slower, however, because Chamitoff only
makes moves when his workload permits.

For more information about the USCF, visit:

http://www.uschess.org

For more about Chamitoff and the space station, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/station