Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. (Sept. 10, 2011)

A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta II rocket carrying the Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) spacecraft for NASA lifted off from Space Launch Complex (SLC)-17B here at 9:08 a.m. EDT today. This launch marks the 9th flight for ULA in 2011, the 49th Delta II mission for NASA and the last currently-planned flight from this launch complex. The GRAIL mission will place two spacecraft into the same orbit around the Moon. GRAIL's primary science objectives are to determine the structure of the lunar interior, from crust to core, and to advance understanding of the thermal evolution of the moon.

Photo by Thom Baur, United Launch Alliance