Twin GRAIL Spacecraft Shipped To Launch Site | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-04.22.24

Airborne-Unlimited-04.16.24

Airborne-FlightTraining-04.17.24 Airborne-AffordableFlyers-04.18.24

Airborne-Unlimited-04.19.24

Join Us At 0900ET, Friday, 4/10, for the LIVE Morning Brief.
Watch It LIVE at
www.airborne-live.net

Wed, May 25, 2011

Twin GRAIL Spacecraft Shipped To Launch Site

Lunar Orbiters Set For September Launch

NASA's twin GRAIL spacecraft were delivered to Kennedy Space Center in Florida on May 20. The two Lockheed Martin vehicles will undergo four months of final testing and processing in preparation for launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on a United Launch Alliance Delta II Heavy launch vehicle in early September.


NASA Artist's Rendering GRAIL Satellites On Orbit

The lunar orbiters will fly 30 miles above the surface of the moon in precision formation to determine the structure of the lunar interior from crust to core and to advance understanding of the thermal evolution of the moon. 

"It has taken a great deal of dedication and hard work from the entire team to bring us to this moment," said John Henk, GRAIL program manager at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company. "Building two spacecraft simultaneously brought some challenges, but I'm proud that we are delivering them to the launch site on schedule and under budget."


Satellites Prepped For Transport

"It has taken a great deal of dedication and hard work from the entire team to build two spacecraft simultaneously and achieve this delivery milestone on schedule and under budget," said John Henk, GRAIL program manager at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company. "We look forward to preparing for launch and achieving total mission success on this important program."

Both of the 440-pound spacecraft were transported on an Air Force C-17 transport plane in an environmentally controlled container. The plane departed from Buckley Air Force Base near Denver and touched down at 1940 EDT at Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility. The spacecraft were then transported to Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, FL, for final launch processing.

The Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) mission will fly nearly-identical spacecraft in tandem orbits around the moon for several months to measure its gravity field in unprecedented detail. The mission will also answer longstanding questions about Earth's moon, and provide scientists a better understanding of how Earth and other rocky planets in the solar system formed.

FMI: http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/grail

Advertisement

More News

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (04.25.24): Airport Rotating Beacon

Airport Rotating Beacon A visual NAVAID operated at many airports. At civil airports, alternating white and green flashes indicate the location of the airport. At military airports>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (04.25.24)

Aero Linx: Fly for the Culture Fly For the Culture, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that serves young people interested in pursuing professions in the aviation industry>[...]

Klyde Morris (04.22.24)

Klyde Is Having Some Issues Comprehending The Fed's Priorities FMI: www.klydemorris.com>[...]

Airborne 04.24.24: INTEGRAL E, Elixir USA, M700 RVSM

Also: Viasat-uAvionix, UL94 Fuel Investigation, AF Materiel Command, NTSB Safety Alert Norges Luftsportforbund chose Aura Aero's little 2-seater in electric trim for their next gli>[...]

Airborne 04.22.24: Rotor X Worsens, Airport Fees 4 FNB?, USMC Drone Pilot

Also: EP Systems' Battery, Boeing SAF, Repeat TBM 960 Order, Japan Coast Guard H225 Buy Despite nearly 100 complaints totaling millions of dollars of potential fraud, combined with>[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2024 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC