SPACEHAB LAUNCHES ONLINE SPACE EDUCATION INITIATIVE IN CHINA
Chinese Students to Conduct Experiment on Shuttle Mission STS-107

Washington, D.C., January 28, 2000 - SPACEHAB, Inc. (Nasdaq: SPAB) and China Time Network (CTN) today unveiled a joint space education program, China S*T*A*R*S, and named the winner of a competition to design a student experiment that will fly in space.

At a ceremony in Beijing's Great Hall of the People, SPACEHAB Chairman Dr. Shelley Harrison and CTN Chairman Liu Ji announced that Jingshan School of Beijing is the winning "Super Nova" school. Jingshan students will design and launch a space science experiment to be launched on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Space Shuttle.

SPACEHAB's S*T*A*R*S (Space Technology And Research Students) Program is a commercial education initiative designed to engage students in science and technology and enable them to share in the excitement of space research and exploration. The Program also promotes cross-cultural cooperation. China S*T*A*R*S will enable U.S. and Chinese students to collaborate on science studies and space research, via the Internet.

The S*T*A*R*S program is the first offering of SPACEHAB's new space media unit, which will provide a unique blend of space-originated news, information, education and entertainment content. SPACEHAB's commercial space habitat, Enterprise, to be attached to the International Space Station, will accommodate future S*T*A*R*S programs.

"The China S*T*A*R*S Program is a great opportunity for Chinese students to participate in the excitement of space research and a great opportunity for corporate and other sponsors to get involved in space education as well," said Dr. Harrison.

CTN solicited China S*T*A*R*S experiment proposals from schools in China (including Hong Kong and Macao) last year, receiving nearly 900 responses. The Organization Committee of China S*T*A*R*S selected a winning proposal. Selection criteria included educational and scientific value and technical feasibility. The winning experiment -- a study of the silk-spinning and cocoon-knitting of the silkworm -- will fly on Space Shuttle mission STS-107, now scheduled for launching in 2001. At least 1,000 "Pulsar" schools in China will be able to follow the Super Nova school's flight experiment by means of the Internet and live video links.

China Time Network Co., Ltd., of Beijing, is registered with the China Industrial and Commercial Administration Bureau as an administrative company in charge of the development and operation of China Scientific Time Network, a national Internet network launched by the China National Committee for Caring for Next Generation and authorized by the State Council. The Chinese government has chartered CTN to improve science education nationwide; China Scientific Time Network is intended to distribute information about science by means of Internet and television broadcasting, publications, and large-scale activities. The Ministry of Information Industry has licensed CTN as an Internet service provider (ISP).

SPACEHAB is the world's leading provider of commercial payload processing services for manned and unmanned payloads, has flown its modules on 13 Space Shuttle missions. SPACEHAB flew its first S*T*A*R*S experiments on Space Shuttle mission STS-93 in 1999. With its Johnson Engineering and Astrotech subsidiaries, SPACEHAB is a global leader in space commerce and the first company to commercially develop, own and operate habitable modules for research and logistics resupply aboard NASA's space shuttles.

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Ms. Linda Billings
Director of Communications
SPACEHAB, Inc.
Tel: (202) 488-3500, x. 201
Fax: (202) 488-3100
Email: billings@hqspacehab.com

Mr. Xu Jianwu
Deputy General Manager
China Time Network
Tel: +8610-62184381
Fax: +8610-62180119
Email: xujw@chinatimenet.com

• S*T*A*R*S stands for Space Technology And Research Students.
• S*T*A*R*S is a commercial education initiative designed to engage students in science and technology and enable them to share in the excitement of space research and exploration. The program also promotes cross-cultural cooperation.
• The S*T*A*R*S Program is a product of SPACEHAB, Inc.
• Outside sponsors - private companies, government agencies, universities, nonprofit organizations -fund a majority of program costs.
• Sponsors can provide two levels of student participation:
• Super Nova sponsorship gives a school the opportunity to design and fly an experiment on the Space Shuttle. Students work with space scientists and astronauts to develop their experiment. A Super Nova school also may send a delegation to attend the launch of its experiment.
• Pulsar sponsorship gives students the opportunity to participate in ground- and space-based activities related to a S*T*A*R*S Super Nova experiment. Pulsar members receive an Experimenter''s Handbook and laboratory experiment hardware.
• SPACEHAB flew its first two S*T*A*R*S experiments on NASA's Space Shuttle mission STS-93 in July 1999:
• An experiment designed by Georgia high school students to study the effects of microgravity on the metamorphosis of caterpillars to butterflies.
• An experiment designed by students of an all-girls' high school in Chile to study the effects of microgravity on the prey-predator relationship between aphids and ladybugs.
• In December 1999, Georgia students received a United Nations International Day of Disabilities for their accomplishments on the S*T*A*R*S mission.
• S*T*A*R*S projects are in the works in Australia, China, Israel, Japan, Singapore, and the United States. The next S*T*A*R*S launch will be on NASA's Space Shuttle mission STS-107 in 2001.
• SPACEHAB's Enterprise project - the world's first commercial real estate in space - will accommodate an expanded S*T*A*R*S Program.

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