(WIESBADEN, Germany--January 9, 2008) When the first Portuguese space explorer launches into orbit some time in 2008, a Panasonic P2 digital camcorder will chronicle the event. Portuguese tourism magnate Mario Ferreira is among the first to have booked passage with the Virgin Galactic company, which plans to fly paying passengers into space from its Mojave Desert launch facility.
Portugal's top commercial broadcaster, SIC, is relying on Panasonic's AG-HVX200 digital camcorder to report on Ferreira's historic endeavor.
"Portugal has no astronauts and no space agency, so the Portuguese people are very excited about this project," said Lucia Goncalves, the SIC deputy executive editor who is covering Ferreira's flight for SIC. "They see Ferreira as a modern-day Vasco de Gama, one of the great figures of the Age of Exploration."
Currently, Ferreira is dedicated to a strenuous physical training program developed by Virgin Galactic to prepare him for his journey. He has already experienced weightlessness at a NASA facility in Florida, an event recorded by SIC on the Panasonic AG-HVX200 camcorder. In January, Ferreira will go to New York City for the unveiling of the Virgin Galactic spacecraft, an occasion that also will be reported by SIC using Panasonic equipment.
In carrying out a rigorous assignment, whether in space or on Earth, P2 technology from Panasonic has a number of advantages. P2 cameras record video as digital files, using solid-state design with no moving parts. This means the AG-HVX200 delivers reliable performance in spite of shock, vibration, or temperature change. Likewise, digital files are great for producing news stories on location and on the fly because the images can be integrated into a production workflow so quickly and easily.
Ferreira started his travels as a teenager, leaving Portugal for London, where he earned a job with Cunard Lines as a bartender. After working his way up and saving some money, he returned to Portugal and started a cruise company operating on the Douro River in Oporto. He also owned several hotels in the Douro region, which is famous for producing port wine. Today Ferreira's cruise company is one of Portugal's largest.
More information about Panasonic P2 technology is available at http://www.panasonic-broadcast.com or by calling +49 611 235 459.
About SIC
Based in Lisbon and launched in 1992, SIC is Portugal's leading commercial television broadcaster with a 24-hour signal that blankets the country and also reaches the Azores and Madeira islands by cable. SIC International broadcasts via satellite to France, Luxembourg, Switzerland, and the United States, and SIC programmes are distributed to Portuguese-language stations in Angola, Canada, Cape Verde, Macau, Mozambique, and South Africa. SIC also operates a news channel and channels focused on women and youth.
About Panasonic
Panasonic is a brand name for Matsushita Electric Industrial Co Ltd. of Japan (MEI), one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer electronics and ranked third on the Fortune 500 Electronics and Electrical Equipment Index. The company was founded in 1918 in Osaka, Japan, by Konosuke Matsushita and has grown from just three employees to more than 328,645 people worldwide. Panasonic has been operating in Europe since 1962, when it established its first sales office in Hamburg, Germany. The company's presence has increased throughout Europe following major investment programmes in manufacturing and sales operations.
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