VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – In the mobile service tower on Space Launch Complex 2, workers secure the fairing around the Ocean Surface Topography Mission, or OSTM/Jason 2, spacecraft to complete encapsulation. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. The launch of the OSTM/Jason-2 is scheduled for June 20 from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The launch window extends from 12:46 a.m. to 12:55 a.m. PDT. The satellite will be placed in an 830-mile-high orbit at an inclination of 66 degrees after separating from the Delta II 55 minutes after liftoff. The five primary science instruments of the Ocean Surface Topography Mission aboard the Jason 2 spacecraft are dedicated to measuring the height of the ocean surface. These measurements will be used to evaluate and forecast climate changes and improve weather forecasting. The results also are expected to help forecasters better predict hurricane intensity. KSC-08pd1793

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – In the Space Station Processing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a payload technician dressed in clean room attire, known as a bunny suit, secures the hatch on the International Space Station's Node 3, named Tranquility. Hatch closure follows the completion of preparations for the node's transport to the pad and is a significant milestone in launch processing activities. The primary payload for the STS-130 mission, Tranquility is a pressurized module that will provide room for many of the space station's life support systems. Attached to one end of Tranquility is a cupola, a unique work area with six windows on its sides and one on top. The cupola resembles a circular bay window and will provide a vastly improved view of the station's exterior. The multi-directional view will allow the crew to monitor spacewalks and docking operations, as well as provide a spectacular view of Earth and other celestial objects. The module was built in Turin, Italy, by Thales Alenia Space for the European Space Agency. Space shuttle Endeavour's STS-130 mission is targeted for launch in early February 2010. For information on the STS-130 mission and crew, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/shuttle/shuttlemissions/sts130/index.html. Photo credit: NASA/Amanda Diller KSC-2009-6841

KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. - Boeing workers at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., prepare to lift the upper canister (at left) and move it over to the MESSENGER (Mercury Surface, Space Environment, Geochemistry and Ranging) spacecraft. The canister will be attached to the lower protective panels around the Delta II upper stage booster for the transportation of MESSENGER to Launch Pad 17-B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Liftoff of MESSENGER aboard a Boeing Delta II Heavy rocket is scheduled for Aug. 2. The spacecraft is expected to reach orbit around the planet in March 2011. MESSENGER was built for NASA by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Md. KSC-04pd1490

Transformer at TVA's Chickamauga Dam near Chattanooga, Tenn. LCCN2017878441

S129E007934 - STS-129 - Interior view of the MRM2

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- The multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG) for NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission is position behind mobile plexiglass radiation shields in the high bay of the RTG storage facility (RTGF) at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The MMRTG was returned to the RTGF following a fit check on MSL's Curiosity rover in the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility (PHSF). The generator will remain in the RTGF until is moved to the pad for integration on the rover. The MMRTG will generate the power needed for the mission from the natural decay of plutonium-238, a non-weapons-grade form of the radioisotope. Heat given off by this natural decay will provide constant power through the day and night during all seasons. MSL's components include a compact car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. Waste heat from the MMRTG will be circulated throughout the rover system to keep instruments, computers, mechanical devices and communications systems within their operating temperature ranges. Launch of MSL aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket is targeted for Nov. 25 from Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Troy Cryder KSC-2011-6745

STS106-390-012 - STS-106 - Morukov & Burbank install the Elektron equipment in Zvezda

Jason-2 is scheduled for June 20 from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The launch window extends from 12:46 a.m. to 12:55 a.m. PDT. The satellite will be placed in an 830-mile-high orbit at an inclination of 66 degrees after separating from the Delta II 55 minutes after liftoff. The five primary science instruments of the Ocean Surface Topography Mission aboard the Jason 2 spacecraft are dedicated to measuring the height of the ocean surface. These measurements will be used to evaluate and forecast climate changes and improve weather forecasting. The results also are expected to help forecasters better predict hurricane intensity. KSC-08pd1793

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Summary

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. – In the mobile service tower on Space Launch Complex 2, workers secure the fairing around the Ocean Surface Topography Mission, or OSTM/Jason 2, spacecraft to complete encapsulation. The fairing is a molded structure that fits flush with the outside surface of the Delta II upper stage booster and forms an aerodynamically smooth nose cone, protecting the spacecraft during launch and ascent. The launch of the OSTM/Jason-2 is scheduled for June 20 from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The launch window extends from 12:46 a.m. to 12:55 a.m. PDT. The satellite will be placed in an 830-mile-high orbit at an inclination of 66 degrees after separating from the Delta II 55 minutes after liftoff. The five primary science instruments of the Ocean Surface Topography Mission aboard the Jason 2 spacecraft are dedicated to measuring the height of the ocean surface. These measurements will be used to evaluate and forecast climate changes and improve weather forecasting. The results also are expected to help forecasters better predict hurricane intensity.

date_range

Date

16/06/2008

place

Location

34.75086, -120.52053

create

Source

NASA

link

Link

https://images.nasa.gov/

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