VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- On Launch Complex 576-E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, NASA's Orbiting Carbon Observatory, OCO, upper stack is lowered onto the Stage 0 motor of Orbital Sciences' Taurus XL vehicle. The upper stack consists of Stages 1, 2 and 3 of the Taurus, as well as the encapsulated OCO spacecraft. OCO is scheduled for launch the Taurus rocket Feb. 24 from Vandenberg. The spacecraft will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the Earth's atmosphere. Scientists will analyze OCO data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important greenhouse gas. Photo credit: NASA/Richard Nielsen, VAFB
Location Vandenberg AFB, CA
Date February 18, 2009