Science and Health

NASA's earth-orbiting satellite ready for launch

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-03-04 15:40

LOS ANGELES  - After a series of delays, NASA's earth-orbiting satellite Glory is ready for launch from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) announced on Thursday.

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The launch is currently planned for Friday, March 4, at 2:09:43 am PST (5:09:43 am EST), said JPL, Pasadena, Los Angeles.

The weather forecast is 100 percent "go," with the possibility of some fog and a low ceiling not expected to be an issue, according to JPL.

NASA originally planned to launch the satellite on Feb 23, but during the final 15 minutes before the scheduled launch, the vehicle interface control console, a ground interface with Orbital Sciences' Taurus XL rocket, gave an unexpected reading, prompting NASA to scrub the first launch attempt.

Then NASA postponed the rescheduled launch for two times due to failure to resolve the technical problems.

Glory will send back data to help scientists improve their ability to predict Earth's future environment and to distinguish human-induced climate change from natural climate variability, NASA scientists said.

The 434-million-US-dollar mission is managed by the NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland.