As the second resupply ship this week prepares to leave the International Space Station another spacecraft is being readied for its launch. Meanwhile, the six-member Expedition 42 crew was working a variety of maintenance and science tasks Thursday. › Read more about spacecraft departure and arrival activities Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicle-5 (ATV-5) is being packed …
Take a look at our launch photos this evening from today’s liftoff of NOAA’s DSCOVR spacecraft that was sent aloft to observe the sun and the Earth from a million miles away. The DSCOVR gallery on Flickr can be found here. One of the gems:
Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin
DSCOVR’s twin solar wings have opened to provide power to the spacecraft’s systems and instruments as it observes the sun and our home planet to show the changing conditions on Earth. The mission is a partnership of NOAA, NASA and the U.S. Air Force.
The Falcon 9 sprung the DSCOVR spacecraft free on schedule to coast toward the L1 point on its own. Data shows that the spacecraft is healthy and getting ready to deploy its solar panels.
Confirmation of a second burn as planned. DSCOVR will separate from the second stage shortly.
The Falcon 9 and DSCOVR spacecraft telemetry is telling ground controllers that everything is OK as the second stage engine re-ignites and DSCOVR is pushed out toward deep space and the L1 point about a million miles form Earth. This burn will last 58 seconds.
The second stage of the Falcon 9 is still in its parking orbit with DSCOVR attached, but in a couple minutes the single engine of the second stage will re-ignite to propel the NOAA observatory on a course to deep space. Re-igntion scheduled for 6:33:41 p.m.
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