FEATURE/Globalstar Launches National Science and Technology Week Into Orbit With Satellite Fast Facts; Global Satellite Communications Provider Offers Background on Technology.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE FEATURES)--April 26, 1999--

Globalstar, a provider of mobile satellite personal communications services, is contributing to the education of America's youth during National Science and Technology Week from April 25 to May 1.

National Science and Technology Week is a nationally recognized effort to build students' knowledge in the areas of science, technology and engineering as well as generate future career interest. As a Loral Space and Communications-created company, Globalstar has a rich history of satellite knowledge -- which it shares on the following pages with a definition, history and use of satellites and how they are built, tested and launched.

During the past 40 years, satellites have progressed a long way -- and so have their functions. Prior to 1990, they were used primarily by governments and the military. Today, commercial ventures are utilizing satellites to help meet the world's demand for total global access to phone service, including remote locations. Although phone technologies have advanced, the International Telecommunications Union reports that three billion people around the world still lack basic phone service or access to community phone booths. Satellite technology, in conjunction with ground stations that receive voice signals from space, will allow people globally to converse by phone -- many for the first time in their lives. Globalstar will begin offering global phone service in the third quarter of 1999.

"It's estimated that during the next eight to ten years, more than 1,000 additional communications satellites will be launched," said Megan Fitzgerald, Vice President of Satellite Operations, Globalstar. "As the demand for satellites increases, so too will the need for experts in this field. America's youth today can start preparing for a satellite communications career by learning about the technology." -0-

                              GLOBALSTAR
                        FACTS ABOUT SATELLITES
               FOR NATIONAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY WEEK

What is a Satellite?

     By definition, a satellite is any celestial body orbiting around
a planet or star. Thus, the moon is a satellite of the Earth and the
Earth is a satellite of the sun. But most people think of satellites
as the man-made objects put in place by rockets that are used to
transmit phone calls, take pictures of the Earth and other planets,
map weather patterns and send programs to TV sets around the world.

A Brief History of Satellites

1957  The first satellite, Sputnik, was successfully launched by the
      Soviet Union. Sputnik circled the globe in little more than an
      hour and sent radio signals back to Earth. These early radio
      signals were so strong that they could be picked up by amateurs.
1958  The United States successfully launched its first satellite,
      Explorer 1. This satellite helped scientists discover the Van
      Allen radiation belts, which are rings of charged particles
      trapped in the Earth's magnetic field. These charged particles
      can sometimes be seen from Earth -- far in the north or far in
      the south -- and look like light shows.
1999  According to the United States Space Command, today there are
      nearly 2,600 active satellites in space, with 20 launched by
      Globalstar. These 2,600 satellites are used in many different
      fields -- agriculture, meteorology, defense, astronomy,
      navigation, oceanography and telecommunications.

Flying Stars?

--   GEOs: Geosynchronous earth-orbiting, or GEO, satellites move
     around the Earth at the same speed that the Earth rotates around
     its own axis. They always hover over the same spot.
--   LEOs: Other satellites, like the ones used by Globalstar for
     phone communications, make a trip around the globe every couple
     of hours. These are called low-earth-orbiting satellites, LEOs.
     If you look up into the sky on a clear night, you can sometimes
     see one or two "flying" by as if they were moving stars.

A Road Trip to a LEO?

--   GEOs orbit the Earth 22,000 miles out in space. If there were a
     freeway to this location and no traffic, it would take about 15
     days to drive there if you didn't stop for breaks.
--   LEOs orbit the Earth 900 miles out in space. If there were a
     freeway to this location and no traffic, it would take about 15
     hours to drive there if you didn't stop for breaks.

Faster Than the Fastest Plane

--   Globalstar satellites travel approximately 16,000 mph. By
     comparison, the world's fastest and only supersonic passenger
     airplane, the British/French Concorde, travels at 1,300 mph.

The Life of a Globalstar Satellite

--   Before Globalstar can launch a satellite, it has to submit each
     satellite to 30 days of rigorous testing. Part of this testing
     includes placing the satellite in a vacuum capsule that simulates
     the environment and temperatures of outer space.
--   Over the course of testing, each satellite will undergo more than
     50 labor-intensive inspections.
--   Once the inspections are complete, the satellites must be
     transported five at a time in a boxcar or truck to one of the
     world's few rocket launch pads.
--   The entire process of building, testing and transporting the
     satellites takes about two years.
--   During their average seven-and-a-half-year lifetime, the
     Globalstar satellites will use the sun's rays to recharge their
     batteries and they will send phone calls to and from different
     points on Earth.
--   Once the satellites exhaust their usage, they are moved into what
     is called their "graveyard" orbit; this is where the satellites
     will reside indefinitely.

-0-

About Globalstar

Globalstar, led by founding partner Loral Space & Communications, is a partnership of the world's leading telecommunications service providers and equipment manufacturers, including Qualcomm Incorporated, AirTouch Communications, Alcatel, Alenia, China Telecom (HK), DACOM, DaimlerChrysler Aerospace, Elsacom (a Finmeccanica company), France Telecom, Hyundai, Space Systems/Loral and Vodafone. For more information, visit Globalstar's web site at www.globalstar.com.