phoenix to launch saturday
After weather led to fueling delays on Tuesday, which caused Wednesday's launch to slip, NASA's Phoenix spacecraft is set to launch in the early morning hours on Saturday. The two launch windows are 5:26 a.m. EDT and 6:03 a.m. EDT.
The Phoenix mission, jointly managed by the University of Arizona, JPL, and LMSS, was conceived and designed to answer three basic questions: 1) can the Martian arctic support life, 2) what is the history of water at the landing site, and 3) how is the Martian climate affected by polar dynamics? I'll have more on the science payload in upcoming posts.
So, if you're up early on Saturday, tune into NASA TV and the Phoenix Launch Blog to see the Phoenix spacecraft, atop a Boeing Delta II 7925, as it begins its 10 month journey to the red planet. And stay tuned here for continuing coverage as we try once again to beat the odds and put another one of these amazing machines in a position to reveal even more of Mars' secrets.
reactions, thoughts, comments, etc.
Correction: Due to trademark issues, the Phoenix spacecraft has been renamed Firebird. Hopefully this is the last name change the spacecraft will require.
(Sorry, it was so obvious I had to bite...)
Posted by: Toby Johnson | August 2, 2007 10:02 PM
Aww, I thought you were going to tell us our favorite browser had been renamed, again. Or maybe un-named?
:-)
(Sorry, I just could not resist.)
Posted by: Alex Vincent | August 6, 2007 11:49 PM