REDONDO BEACH, Calif., July 10, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Northrop Grumman Corporation's (NYSE:NOC) full-scale model of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) resumes its world tour with a stop in Montreal. The model will be on display July 13-20 in conjunction with the 37th Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) Scientific Assembly.

The model's last public appearance was in Dublin, Ireland, where scientists, school children, media and the general public had the rare opportunity to view this tennis court-sized space observatory model up-close and learn about its mission. Over the last three years, the model has been displayed at similar events in Washington, D.C.; Rochester, N.Y.; Greenbelt, Md.; Paris; and Colorado Springs, Colo.

The tennis-court sized model will be on display at the Place DesVestiges, courtesy of the Canadian Space Agency, the Old Port of Montreal, the Montreal Science Center and COM DEV International Ltd. (COM DEV), a Canadian manufacturer and designer of space hardware subsystems. The COSPAR conference nearby at le Palais des Congres de Montreal will be attended by thousands of space science researchers from around the world, and experts will be on hand to answer questions.

The JWST is a successor to the Hubble Space Telescope and will be NASA's premier space observatory following its launch in 2013. It will orbit 940,000 miles from the Earth at the second Sun-Earth Lagrange point, capturing infrared images of every phase of our cosmic history -- from the first luminous objects to the assembly of galaxies and formation of planetary systems.

Northrop Grumman is NASA Goddard Space Flight Center's prime contractor for the James Webb Telescope and is leading an industrial team in the design and development of this next-generation space observatory using cutting-edge technology. The Canadian Space Agency and European Space Agency are international partners.

COM DEV is providing the JWST's fine guidance sensor and the tunable filter camera. The FGS cameras will measure the position of guide stars with great accuracy, pinpointing stars to one millionth of a degree. The tunable filter, adjoining the FGS, will have unique capabilities for detecting the first stars and will search for planets around stars outside our solar system. Canada is also providing functional support of the science operations for JWST.

Northrop Grumman Corporation is a global defense and technology company whose 120,000 employees provide innovative systems, products, and solutions in information and services, electronics, aerospace and shipbuilding to government and commercial customers worldwide. 

  CONTACT: Sally Koris
         Northrop Grumman Space Technology
         310.812.4721
         sally.koris@ngc.com