A flatbed truck arrives at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, carrying the payload fairing for the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II rocket that will launch NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2). ICESat-2 will measure the height of a changing Earth, one laser pulse at a time, 10,000 laser pulses a second. The satellite will carry a single instrument, the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System. ICESat-2 will help scientists investigate why, and how much our planet's frozen and icy areas, called the cryosphere, is changing in a warming climate. ICESat-2 is scheduled to launch on the final ULA Delta II rocket later this year.
A flatbed truck, carrying the payload fairing for the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II rocket, arrives at Building 836 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. NASA's Ice, Cloud and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) is scheduled to launch on the final ULA Delta II rocket later this year. ICESat-2 will measure the height of a changing Earth, one laser pulse at a time, 10,000 laser pulses a second. The satellite will carry a single instrument, the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System. ICESat-2 will help scientists investigate why, and how much our planet's frozen and icy areas, called the cryosphere, is changing in a warming climate.
The payload fairing for Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket arrives by flatbed truck Aug. 4, 2017, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Pegasus rocket is being prepared for NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission. The explorer will launch on June 15, 2018, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands (June 14 in the continental United States) on Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket, which is attached to the company's L-1011 Stargazer aircraft. ICON will study the frontier of space - the dynamic zone high in Earth's atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth's space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology, communications systems and society.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing for NASA's upcoming Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, mission to land on Mars arrives at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff atop a ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled for May 5, 2018.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing for NASA's upcoming Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, mission to land on Mars has just arrived at the Astrotech facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff atop a ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled for May 5, 2018.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing for NASA's upcoming Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, mission to land on Mars has just arrived at the Astrotech facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff atop a ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled for May 5, 2018.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing for NASA's upcoming Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, mission to land on Mars has just arrived at the Astrotech facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff atop a ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled for May 5, 2018.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers unload the cargo carrier that holds one half of the fairing that will envelop NASA's Glory satellite. Both halves of the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft to protect it from the weather on the ground as well as from the atmosphere during flight. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the payload cone for NASA's Glory mission is pictures secured inside its cargo carrier. The payload cone is an adapter that interfaces the Taurus XL rocket with the spacecraft. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers are preparing to unload one half of the fairing that will envelop NASA's Glory satellite. Both halves of the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft to protect it from the weather on the ground as well as from the atmosphere during flight. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers are preparing to unload a payload cone for NASA's Glory mission. The payload cone is an adapter that interfaces the Taurus XL rocket with the spacecraft. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers cautiously roll one half of the fairing that will envelop NASA's Glory satellite out of its cargo container. Both halves of the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft to protect it from the weather on the ground as well as from the atmosphere during flight. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a worker user a Hyster lift moves the payload cone for NASA's Glory mission into VAFB's payload processing facility. The payload cone is an adapter that interfaces the Taurus XL rocket with the spacecraft. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, one half of the fairing that will envelop NASA's Glory satellite is surrounded by protective sheathing in VAFB's payload processing facility. Both halves of the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft to protect it from the weather on the ground as well as from the atmosphere during flight. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, one half of the fairing that will envelop NASA's Glory satellite is moved into a protected environment of VAFB's payload processing facility. Both halves of the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft to protect it from the weather on the ground as well as from the atmosphere during flight. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the payload cone is lowered onto the floor of VAFB's payload processing facility for NASA's Glory mission. The payload cone is an adapter that interfaces the Taurus XL rocket with the spacecraft. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers are preparing to unload a payload cone for NASA's Glory mission. The payload cone is an adapter that interfaces the Taurus XL rocket with the spacecraft. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, workers cautiously roll one half of the fairing that will envelop NASA's Glory satellite into VAFB's payload processing facility. Both halves of the fairing will be installed around the spacecraft to protect it from the weather on the ground as well as from the atmosphere during flight. A four-stage Taurus XL rocket will carry Glory into low Earth orbit. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 2:09 a.m. PST Nov. 22. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB
The first half of the payload fairing for the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket is inside Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Aug. 4, 2018. The Pegasus rocket is being prepared for NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission. The explorer will launch on June 15, 2018, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands (June 14 in the continental United States) on Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket, which is attached to the company's L-1011 Stargazer aircraft. ICON will study the frontier of space - the dynamic zone high in Earth's atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth's space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology, communications systems and society.
Orbital ATK technicians remove the second half of the payload fairing for the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket from its shipping container Aug. 4, 2017, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Pegasus rocket is being prepared for NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission. The explorer will launch on June 15, 2018, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands (June 14 in the continental United States) on Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket, which is attached to the company's L-1011 Stargazer aircraft. ICON will study the frontier of space - the dynamic zone high in Earth's atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth's space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology, communications systems and society.
Technicians move the first half of the payload fairing for the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket inside Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Aug. 4, 2018. The Pegasus rocket is being prepared for NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission. The explorer will launch on June 15, 2018, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands (June 14 in the continental United States) on Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket, which is attached to the company's L-1011 Stargazer aircraft. ICON will study the frontier of space - the dynamic zone high in Earth's atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth's space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology, communications systems and society.
Orbital ATK technicians remove the first half of the payload fairing for the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket from its shipping container Aug. 4, 2017, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Pegasus rocket is being prepared for NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission. The explorer will launch on June 15, 2018, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands (June 14 in the continental United States) on Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket, which is attached to the company's L-1011 Stargazer aircraft. ICON will study the frontier of space - the dynamic zone high in Earth's atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth's space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology, communications systems and society.
Orbital ATK technicians remove the first half of the payload fairing for the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket from its shipping container Aug. 4, 2017, at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Pegasus rocket is being prepared for NASA's Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, mission. The explorer will launch on June 15, 2018, from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands (June 14 in the continental United States) on Orbital ATK's Pegasus XL rocket, which is attached to the company's L-1011 Stargazer aircraft. ICON will study the frontier of space - the dynamic zone high in Earth's atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth's space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology, communications systems and society.
TAURUS - GLORY - FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY - FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY - FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY - FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY - FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY - FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY 90 DEGREE FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY 90 DEGREE FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY 90 DEGREE FAIRING ARRIVAL
TAURUS - GLORY 90 DEGREE FAIRING ARRIVAL
Technicians with Orbital ATK remove the first half of the Pegasus payload fairing for NASA’s Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) from its shipping container near Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. CYGNSS is being prepared at Vandenberg, and then will be transported to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket which will be attached to the Orbital ATK L-1011 carrier aircraft. CYGNSS will launch on the Pegasus XL rocket from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. CYGNSS will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes. The data that CYGNSS provides will enable scientists to probe key air-sea interaction processes that take place near the core of storms, which are rapidly changing and play a critical role in the beginning and intensification of hurricanes.
Technicians with Orbital ATK remove the first half of the Pegasus payload fairing for NASA’s Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) from its shipping container and prepare it for the move to nearby Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. CYGNSS is being prepared at Vandenberg, and then will be transported to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket which will be attached to the Orbital ATK L-1011 carrier aircraft. CYGNSS will launch on the Pegasus XL rocket from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. CYGNSS will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes. The data that CYGNSS provides will enable scientists to probe key air-sea interaction processes that take place near the core of storms, which are rapidly changing and play a critical role in the beginning and intensification of hurricanes.
Technicians with Orbital ATK move the first half of the Pegasus payload fairing for NASA’s Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) from into Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. CYGNSS is being prepared at Vandenberg, and then will be transported to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket which will be attached to the Orbital ATK L-1011 carrier aircraft. CYGNSS will launch on the Pegasus XL rocket from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. CYGNSS will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes. The data that CYGNSS provides will enable scientists to probe key air-sea interaction processes that take place near the core of storms, which are rapidly changing and play a critical role in the beginning and intensification of hurricanes.
Technicians with Orbital ATK remove the first half of the Pegasus payload fairing for NASA’s Cyclone Global Navigation Satellite System (CYGNSS) from its shipping container near Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. CYGNSS is being prepared at Vandenberg, and then will be transported to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the Orbital ATK Pegasus XL rocket which will be attached to the Orbital ATK L-1011 carrier aircraft. CYGNSS will launch on the Pegasus XL rocket from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. CYGNSS will make frequent and accurate measurements of ocean surface winds throughout the life cycle of tropical storms and hurricanes. The data that CYGNSS provides will enable scientists to probe key air-sea interaction processes that take place near the core of storms, which are rapidly changing and play a critical role in the beginning and intensification of hurricanes.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - After arriving at Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the second half of the fairing for the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2/MER-A) is lifted off its transporter. The fairing will be installed around the payload for protection during launch. The MER Mission consists of two identical rovers designed to cover roughly 110 yards each Martian day over various terrain. Each rover will carry five scientific instruments that will allow it to search for evidence of liquid water that may have been present in the planet's past. Identical to each other, the rovers will land at different regions of Mars. Launch date for MER-A is scheduled for June 5.
In the Astrotech facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, technicians remove protective wrapping from the United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing for NASA's upcoming Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft designed to land on Mars. InSight is the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff atop a ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled for May 5, 2018.
The payload fairing containing NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S), secured on a transporter, arrives at the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The payload fairing will be lifted and mated to the ULA Atlas V rocket. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites. GOES-S is slated to launch aboard the ULA Atlas V on March 1.
The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, enclosed in a payload fairing, arrives at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket that is to lift OSIRIS-REx into space was stacked at SLC-41 so the spacecraft and fairing could be hoisted and bolted to the rocket promptly. The spacecraft will be sent to rendezvous with, survey and take a sample from an asteroid called Bennu.
The payload fairing containing NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S), secured on a transporter, arrives at the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The payload fairing will be lifted and mated to the ULA Atlas V rocket. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites. GOES-S is slated to launch aboard the ULA Atlas V on March 1.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft arrive at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station inside their payload fairing. The twin spacecraft were moved on the payload transporter from the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. The fairing with the spacecraft inside will be lifted to the top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for launch later in August. The two spacecraft are designed to study the Van Allen radiation belts in unprecedented detail. Photo credit: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis
The payload fairing containing NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S), secured on a transporter, arrives at the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The payload fairing will be lifted and mated to the ULA Atlas V rocket. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites. GOES-S is slated to launch aboard the ULA Atlas V on March 1.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft arrive at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station inside their payload fairing. The twin spacecraft were moved on the payload transporter from the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. The fairing with the spacecraft inside will be lifted to the top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for launch later in August. The two spacecraft are designed to study the Van Allen radiation belts in unprecedented detail. Photo credit: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The fairing arrives at the top of the mobile service tower on pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The fairing will encapsulate the Swift spacecraft and protect it while on the launch pad and during ascent. The Boeing Delta rocket is the launch vehicle for Swift and its Gamma-Ray Burst Mission. Swift is a medium-class Explorer mission managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The fairing for the Swift-Delta launch arrives at pad 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The fairing encloses and protects the payload while on the launch pad and during ascent. The Boeing Delta rocket is the launch vehicle for the Swift spacecraft and its Gamma-Ray Burst Mission. Swift is a medium-class Explorer mission managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.
The payload fairing containing NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite-S (GOES-S), secured on a transporter, arrives at the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The payload fairing will be lifted and mated to the ULA Atlas V rocket. GOES-S is the second in a series of four advanced geostationary weather satellites. GOES-S is slated to launch aboard the ULA Atlas V on March 1.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft arrive at Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station inside their payload fairing. The twin spacecraft were moved on the payload transporter from the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. The fairing with the spacecraft inside will be lifted to the top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket for launch later in August. The two spacecraft are designed to study the Van Allen radiation belts in unprecedented detail. Photo credit: NASA/Dmitri Gerondidakis
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2, or OCO-2, mission arrives at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. OCO-2 will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. Photo credit: NASA_Randy Beaudoin
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the second part of the fairing for the Genesis spacecraft arrives at the top of the gantry. The fairing will encapsulate the spacecraft to protect it during launch aboard a Delta II rocket. Genesis will be on a journey to capture samples of the ions and elements in the solar wind and return them to Earth for scientists to use to determine the exact composition of the Sun and the solar system’s origin. NASA’s Genesis project in managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Lockheed Martin Astronautics built the Genesis spacecraft for NASA in Denver, Colo. The launch is scheduled for July 30 at 12:36 p.m. EDT
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the second part of the fairing for the Genesis spacecraft arrives at the top of the gantry. The fairing will encapsulate the spacecraft to protect it during launch aboard a Delta II rocket. Genesis will be on a journey to capture samples of the ions and elements in the solar wind and return them to Earth for scientists to use to determine the exact composition of the Sun and the solar system’s origin. NASA’s Genesis project in managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Lockheed Martin Astronautics built the Genesis spacecraft for NASA in Denver, Colo. The launch is scheduled for July 30 at 12:36 p.m. EDT
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - On Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, one of the two fairing sections for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA-N) spacecraft arrives at the launch service tower where it will be lifted to an upper level. The fairing will be placed around the spacecraft to protect it during launch. NOAA-N is the fourth in the series of support dedicated microwave instruments for the generation of temperature, moisture, surface, and hydrological products in cloudy regions where visible and infrared (IR) instruments have decreased capability. Launch aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket is currently scheduled for no earlier than May 11, 2005.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. -- At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, one part of the fairing for the Genesis spacecraft arrives at the top of the gantry. The fairing will encapsulate the spacecraft to protect it during launch aboard a Delta II rocket. Genesis will be on a journey to capture samples of the ions and elements in the solar wind and return them to Earth for scientists to use to determine the exact composition of the Sun and the solar system’s origin. NASA’s Genesis project in managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. Lockheed Martin Astronautics built the Genesis spacecraft for NASA in Denver, Colo. The launch is scheduled for July 30 at 12:36 p.m. EDT
At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a boattail fairing arrives at Space Launch Complex 3. The boattail is an adaptor providing an interface between the United Launch Alliance (ULA) Centaur upper stage and the payload fairing encapsulating NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, spacecraft. A ULA Atlas V rocket is scheduled to liftoff on May 5, 2018, launching InSight the first mission to explore the deep interior of Mars. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2, or OCO-2, mission arrives at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. OCO-2 will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. Photo credit: NASA_Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Workers remove the protective wrap from half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, newly arrived at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Operations are underway to hoist this section of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the tower. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Both halves of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, arrive at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Operations have begun to hoist the sections of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the pad's tower. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - After arriving at the Payload Hazardous Service Facility airlock, the protective cover is removed from one of the fairing halves for the Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket. The Atlas V is the launch vehicle for the New Horizons spacecraft. The fairing will encapsulate the spacecraft to protect it during launch and flight through the atmosphere. Once out of the atmosphere, the fairing is jettisoned. New Horizons is designed to make the first reconnaissance of Pluto and Charon - a "double planet" and the last planet in our solar system to be visited by spacecraft. The mission will then visit one or more objects in the Kuiper Belt region beyond Neptune. New Horizons is scheduled to launch in January 2006, swing past Jupiter for a gravity boost and scientific studies in February or March 2007, and reach Pluto and its moon, Charon, in July 2015.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, arrives at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Operations are underway to hoist this section of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the tower. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The second half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, arrives at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Operations are underway to hoist this section of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the tower where the other half already is in position. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Shrouded with a protective cover, half of the payload fairing for the STEREO spacecraft arrives on Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The payload fairing will be lifted into the clean room in the mobile service tower and later installed around the spacecraft for protection during launch. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. STEREO, which stands for Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory, comprises two spacecraft. The STEREO mission is the first to take measurements of the sun and solar wind in 3-dimension. This new view will improve our understanding of space weather and its impact on the Earth. STEREO is expected to lift off aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket in August 2006. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - One of the fairing halves for the Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket arrives at the Payload Hazardous Service Facility airlock. The Atlas V is the launch vehicle for the New Horizons spacecraft. The fairing will encapsulate the spacecraft to protect it during launch and flight through the atmosphere. Once out of the atmosphere, the fairing is jettisoned. New Horizons is designed to make the first reconnaissance of Pluto and Charon - a "double planet" and the last planet in our solar system to be visited by spacecraft. The mission will then visit one or more objects in the Kuiper Belt region beyond Neptune. New Horizons is scheduled to launch in January 2006, swing past Jupiter for a gravity boost and scientific studies in February or March 2007, and reach Pluto and its moon, Charon, in July 2015.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The fairing for the Mars Exploration Rover 2 (MER-2/MER-A) arrives at Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. It will be installed around the payload for protection during launch. The MER Mission consists of two identical rovers designed to cover roughly 110 yards each Martian day over various terrain. Each rover will carry five scientific instruments that will allow it to search for evidence of liquid water that may have been present in the planet's past. Identical to each other, the rovers will land at different regions of Mars. Launch date for MER-A is scheduled for June 5.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - The SciSat-1 payload, with fairing installed and attached to its Pegasus launch vehicle, arrives at the pad for mating to the L-1011 carrier aircraft. The SciSat-1 weighs approximately 330 pounds and after launch will be placed in a 400-mile-high polar orbit to investigate processes that control the distribution of ozone in the upper atmosphere. The data from the satellite will provide Canadian and international scientists with improved measurements relating to global ozone processes and help policymakers assess existing environmental policy and develop protective measures for improving the health of our atmosphere, preventing further ozone depletion. The mission is designed to last two years.
At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the boattail adaptor interface that will connect the Centaur upper stage to the payload fairing arrives for NASA's upcoming Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, mission to land on Mars. InSight will liftoff atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket to send the spacecraft on the first mission to explore the Red Planet's deep interior. It will investigate processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system including Earth. Liftoff from Vandenberg is scheduled for May 5, 2018.
Enclosed in its payload fairing, NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R) arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. GOES-R will be stacked atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas V Centaur upper stage. The satellite will launch atop the Atlas V rocket in November. GOES-R is the first satellite in a series of next-generation NOAA GOES Satellites.
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket arrives at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. In view is the upper stage and payload fairing containing the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R). The launch vehicle will send GOES-R to a geostationary position over the U.S. GOES-R is the first satellite in a series of next-generation NOAA GOES satellites.
Encapsulated inside its payload fairing, the Cygnus spacecraft for the upcoming Orbital ATK Commercial Resupply Services-6 mission arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station where it will be mounted atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The Cygnus is scheduled to lift off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on March 22 to deliver hardware and supplies to the International Space Station.
Bi-sector halves of the payload fairing for a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket arrive at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Preparations are underway for launch of the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS-1) spacecraft in 2017. JPSS-1 is part of the next-generation environmental satellite system, a collaborative program between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA. To learn more about JPSS-1, visit http://www.jpss.noaa.gov.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, one part of the fairing that will encapsulate the Comet Nucleus Tour (CONTOUR) spacecraft on a Delta II rocket arrives at the top of the launch tower. CONTOUR will provide the first detailed look into the heart of a comet -- the nucleus. Flying as close as 60 miles (100 kilometers) to at least two comets, the spacecraft will take the sharpest pictures yet of a nucleus while analyzing the gas and dust that surround them. Launch of CONTOUR is scheduled for July 1, 2002
Bi-sector halves of the payload fairing for a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket arrive at the mobile service tower on Space Launch Complex 2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Preparations are underway for launch of the Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS-1) spacecraft in 2017. JPSS-1 is part of the next-generation environmental satellite system, a collaborative program between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and NASA. To learn more about JPSS-1, visit http://www.jpss.noaa.gov.
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At Launch Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the fairing of the Delta II rocket arrives for encapsulation of the Comet Nucleus Tour (CONTOUR) spacecraft. CONTOUR will provide the first detailed look into the heart of a comet -- the nucleus. Flying as close as 60 miles (100 kilometers) to at least two comets, the spacecraft will take the sharpest pictures yet of a nucleus while analyzing the gas and dust that surround them. Launch of CONTOUR is scheduled for July 1, 2002
Encapsulated inside its payload fairing, the Cygnus spacecraft for the upcoming Orbital ATK Commercial Resupply Services-6 mission arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility at Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station where it will be mounted atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The Cygnus is scheduled to lift off atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket on March 22 to deliver hardware and supplies to the International Space Station.
On Monday, July 30, 2018 NASA's Parker Solar Probe, encapsulated in its payload fairing, arrives at Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station where it will be mated atop a United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket. The mission will perform the closest-ever observations of a star when it travels through the Sun's atmosphere, called the corona. The probe will rely on measurements and imaging to revolutionize our understanding of the corona and the Sun-Earth connection.
Enclosed in its payload fairing, NOAA's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES-R) arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. GOES-R will be stacked atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas V Centaur upper stage. The satellite will launch atop the Atlas V rocket in November. GOES-R is the first satellite in a series of next-generation NOAA GOES Satellites.
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing with NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover secured inside arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on July 7, 2020. The payload fairing will be lifted up by crane and moved into the VIF where it will be secured on the ULA Atlas V rocket. The Mars Perseverance rover is scheduled to launch atop the Atlas V 541 rocket from Pad 41 on July 30. The rover is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the Red Planet. The rover’s seven instruments will search for habitable conditions in the ancient past and signs of past microbial life on Mars. The Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The Juno spacecraft, enclosed in an Atlas payload fairing, arrives at Space Launch Complex 41. The spacecraft was prepared for launch in the Astrotech Space Operations' payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. The fairing will protect the spacecraft from the impact of aerodynamic pressure and heating during ascent and will be jettisoned once the spacecraft is outside the Earth's atmosphere. Juno is scheduled to launch Aug. 5 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The solar-powered spacecraft will orbit Jupiter's poles 33 times to find out more about the gas giant's origins, structure, atmosphere and magnetosphere and investigate the existence of a solid planetary core. For more information, visit www.nasa.gov/juno. Photo credit: NASA/Cory Huston
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The nose fairing arrives at Pad 36-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., with the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I (TDRS-I) inside. The fairing will be attached to the Lockheed Martin Atlas IIA rocket for launch. The second in a new series of telemetry satellites, TDRS-I replenishes the existing on-orbit fleet of six spacecraft. The TDRS System is the primary source of space-to-ground voice, data and telemetry for the Space Shuttle. It also provides communications with the International Space Station and scientific spacecraft in low-Earth orbit such as the Hubble Space Telescope. This new advanced series of satellites will extend the availability of TDRS communications services until about 2017. Launch of TDRS-I is scheduled for March 8 between 5:39 - 6:19 p.m. EST
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - The fairing lifting fixture is lowered toward the nose of the fairing enclosing New Horizons upon its arrival at the Vertical Integration Facility at Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. A Lockheed Martin Atlas V launch vehicle stands ready to receive it in the background. New Horizons carries seven scientific instruments that will characterize the global geology and geomorphology of Pluto and its moon Charon, map their surface compositions and temperatures, and examine Pluto's complex atmosphere. After that, flybys of Kuiper Belt objects from even farther in the solar system may be undertaken in an extended mission. New Horizons is the first mission in NASA's New Frontiers program of medium-class planetary missions. The spacecraft, designed for NASA by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md., will launch aboard a Lockheed Martin Atlas V rocket and fly by Pluto and Charon as early as summer 2015.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, arrives at the portal of the environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the Delta II launcher at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Both halves of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, have arrived in the environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the Delta II launcher at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, arrives at the portal to the environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the Delta II launcher at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing with NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover secured inside arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on July 7, 2020. The payload fairing will be lifted up by crane and moved into the VIF where it will be secured on the ULA Atlas V rocket. The Mars Perseverance rover is scheduled to launch atop the Atlas V 541 rocket from Pad 41 on July 30. The rover is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the Red Planet. The rover’s seven instruments will search for habitable conditions in the ancient past and signs of past microbial life on Mars. The Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, CALIF. - One half of the fairing to cover CALIPSO_CloudSat arrives at NASA Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing encloses and protects the spacecraft during launch and flight through the atmosphere. Once in space, it is jettisoned. CALIPSO stands for Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observation. CALIPSO and CloudSat are highly complementary satellites and together will provide never-before-seen 3-D perspectives of how clouds and aerosols form, evolve, and affect weather and climate. CALIPSO and CloudSat will fly in formation with three other satellites in the A-train constellation to enhance understanding of our climate system. Launch of CALIPSO_CloudSat aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket is scheduled for 3:01 a.m. Sept. 29.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The half sections of the 10-foot-diameter fairing for NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive mission, or SMAP, arrive at the mobile service tower at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect the SMAP spacecraft from the heat and aerodynamic pressure generated during its ascent to orbit aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket. SMAP will provide global measurements of soil moisture and its freeze/thaw state. These measurements will be used to enhance understanding of processes that link the water, energy and carbon cycles, and to extend the capabilities of weather and climate prediction models. SMAP data will also be used to quantify net carbon flux in boreal landscapes and to develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring capabilities. Launch is scheduled for no earlier than November 2014. To learn more about SMAP, visit http://smap.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The transportation trailer containing the fairing for NASA's Soil Moisture Active Passive mission, or SMAP, arrives in the Building 836 high bay on south Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The fairing will protect the SMAP spacecraft from the heat and aerodynamic pressure generated during its ascent to orbit aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2. SMAP will provide global measurements of soil moisture and its freeze/thaw state. These measurements will be used to enhance understanding of processes that link the water, energy and carbon cycles, and to extend the capabilities of weather and climate prediction models. SMAP data will also be used to quantify net carbon flux in boreal landscapes and to develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring capabilities. Launch is scheduled for November 2014. To learn more about SMAP, visit http://smap.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- The nose fairing arrives at Pad 36-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., with the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite-I (TDRS-I) inside. The fairing will be attached to the Lockheed Martin Atlas IIA rocket for launch. The second in a new series of telemetry satellites, TDRS-I replenishes the existing on-orbit fleet of six spacecraft. The TDRS System is the primary source of space-to-ground voice, data and telemetry for the Space Shuttle. It also provides communications with the International Space Station and scientific spacecraft in low-Earth orbit such as the Hubble Space Telescope. This new advanced series of satellites will extend the availability of TDRS communications services until about 2017. Launch of TDRS-I is scheduled for March 8 between 5:39 - 6:19 p.m. EST
The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing with NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover secured inside arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on July 7, 2020. The payload fairing will be lifted up by crane and moved into the VIF where it will be secured on the ULA Atlas V rocket. The Mars Perseverance rover is scheduled to launch atop the Atlas V 541 rocket from Pad 41 on July 30. The rover is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the Red Planet. The rover’s seven instruments will search for habitable conditions in the ancient past and signs of past microbial life on Mars. The Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management.The United Launch Alliance (ULA) payload fairing with NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance rover secured inside arrives at the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on July 7, 2020. The payload fairing will be lifted up by crane and moved into the VIF where it will be secured on the ULA Atlas V rocket. The Mars Perseverance rover is scheduled to launch atop the Atlas V 541 rocket from Pad 41 on July 30. The rover is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program, a long-term effort of robotic exploration of the Red Planet. The rover’s seven instruments will search for habitable conditions in the ancient past and signs of past microbial life on Mars. The Launch Services Program at Kennedy is responsible for launch management.
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Workers maneuver half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, newly arrived at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, into position underneath the crane. Operations are underway to hoist this section of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the tower where the other half already is in position. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
The NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite was encapsulated in its payload fairing at ISRO's Satish Dhawan Space Centre on July 18 in preparation for launch on the Geosynchronous Launch Vehicle no earlier than July 30. The fairing protects the satellite from pressure and heat during ascent. After the rocket escapes the Earth's atmosphere, the fairing splits into two halves that are jettisoned back to Earth. The NISAR satellite arrived at the Indian launch facility in May after having been at the ISRO Satellite Integration and Test Establishment (ISITE) in Bengaluru. In orbit, NISAR will collect an unprecedented amount of information about change on our home planet. It will scan nearly all of Earth's land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days, providing insights into the growth and retreat of ice sheets, sea ice, and glaciers, the deformation of the planet's crust due to natural hazards, as well as natural and human-caused changes to its terrestrial ecosystems, including forests and wetlands. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26611
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Workers maneuver half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, newly arrived at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, into position underneath the crane. Operations are underway to hoist this section of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the tower where the other half already is in position. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – Workers attach a crane onto half of the fairing for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, newly arrived at Space Launch Complex 2 on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Operations are underway to hoist this section of the fairing into the Delta II launcher's environmental enclosure, or clean room, at the top of the tower where the other half already is in position. The fairing will protect OCO-2 during launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The observatory will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere and provide scientists with a better idea of the chemical compound's impacts on climate change. Scientists will analyze this data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important atmospheric gas. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The 197-foot-tall United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket seems surrounded by lightning masts as it arrives at the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Atop the rocket is NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), enclosed in its payload fairing. The rocket began its move from the Vertical Integration Facility at 8 a.m. EST and arrived at the pad at 8:40 a.m. Liftoff is planned during a launch window which extends from 10:02 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. EST on Nov. 26. MSL's components include a car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Surrounded by four towering lightning masts, the 197-foot-tall United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket arrives at the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. Atop the rocket is NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), enclosed in its payload fairing. The rocket began its move from the Vertical Integration Facility at 8 a.m. EST and arrived at the pad at 8:40 a.m. Liftoff is planned during a launch window which extends from 10:02 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. EST on Nov. 26. MSL's components include a car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin
KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- At the gantry on Complex 17-A, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the fairing for the Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP) spacecraft arrives in the White Room. There it will wait for the arrival of the spacecraft. MAP is scheduled for launch on June 30 aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket. The launch will place MAP into a lunar-assisted trajectory to the Sun-Earth for a 27-month mission. The probe will measure small fluctuations in the temperature of the cosmic microwave background radiation to an accuracy of one millionth of a degree. These measurements should reveal the size, matter content, age, geometry and fate of the universe. They will also reveal the primordial structure that grew to form galaxies and will test ideas about the origins of these primordial structures. The MAP instrument will be continuously shaded from the Sun, Earth, and Moon by the spacecraft. The probe is a product of Goddard Space Flight Center in partnership with Princeton University
VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- At Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, the protective payload fairing that will surround NASA's Glory spacecraft arrives at the Astrotech payload processing facility. Once encapsulated, the spacecraft will be transported to Space Launch Complex 576-E and joined with the Taurus XL rocket's third stage. Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 5:09 a.m. EST Feb. 23. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Ed Henry, VAFB
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The payload fairing for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft arrives at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – The payload fairing for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft arrives at the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
Encapsulated in its payload fairing NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport, or InSight, Mars lander arrives at Space Launch Complex 3 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. InSight will be the first mission to look deep beneath the Martian surface. It will study the planet's interior by measuring its heat output and listen for marsquakes. The spacecraft will use the seismic waves generated by marsquakes to develop a map of the planet’s deep interior. The resulting insight into Mars’ formation will provide a better understanding of how other rocky planets, including Earth, were created. InSight is scheduled for liftoff May 5, 2018.