KSC-2014-1411

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – The second stage for NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 mission, or OCO-2, is suspended from the ceiling of the high bay of the Building 836 hangar on Vandenberg Air Force Base in California following its removal from the transportation trailer in which it arrived. OCO-2 is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket from Space Launch Complex 2 in July. The rocket's second stage will insert OCO-2 into a polar Earth orbit. 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. To learn more about OCO-2, visit http:__oco.jpl.nasa.gov. Photo credit: NASA_Randy Beaudoin