VANDENBERG AFB, Calif. — The launch of NASA’s Glory spacecraft aboard an Orbital Sciences Taurus XL rocket is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 23. Liftoff will be from Space Launch Complex 576-E at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB), Calif. Liftoff is targeted for 2:09:43 a.m. PST (5:09:43 a.m. EST) in the middle of a 48-second launch window. The spacecraft’s final polar orbit will be 438 nautical miles (508 miles) at an inclination of 98.2 degrees.
Data from the Glory mission will allow scientists to better understand how the sun and tiny atmospheric particles called aerosols affect Earth’s climate. Both aerosols and solar energy influence the planet’s energy budget, which is the amount of energy entering and exiting Earth’s atmosphere. An accurate measurement of these impacts is important in order to anticipate future changes to our climate and how they may affect human life.
The first of NASA’s Educational Launch of Nanosatellite, or ELaNa, missions also will be launched on the Taurus XL. These auxiliary payloads are small satellites called CubeSats. Each is designed and created by university and college students. Three satellites will be deployed on ELaNa-1.
ACCREDITATION
News media desiring accreditation for the prelaunch and launch activities of Glory should fax their requests on news organization letterhead to:
1st Lt. Ann K. Blodzinski
30th Space Wing Public Affairs Office
Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif.
FAX: 805-606-8303
Telephone: 805-606-3595
E-mail: ann.blodzinski@vandenberg.af.mil
Information required for U.S. media is full legal name, date of birth and media affiliation.
PRELAUNCH NEWS CONFERENCE
Monday, Feb. 21: The prelaunch news conference will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. PST (4 to 6 p.m. EST) in the second floor conference room of the NASA Vandenberg Resident Office, Building 840, at Vandenberg Air Force Base. The briefing will be carried live on NASA Television with question-and-answer capability available from other NASA field centers.
Media desiring to cover the event should meet at the south gate of VAFB on California State Road 246 at 12:30 p.m. to be escorted by 30th Space Wing Public Affairs to the news conference.
Participants in the prelaunch news conference will be:
Joy Bretthauer, Glory program executive NASA Headquarters
Omar Baez, NASA launch director Kennedy Space Center
John Brunschwyler, Taurus program director Orbital Sciences Corporation
Bryan Fafaul, Glory project manager Goddard Space Flight Center
1st Lt. Benjamin J. Wauer, Launch Weather Officer, 30th Weather Squadron Vandenberg Air Force Base
GLORY/ELaNa MISSON SCIENCE BRIEFINGS
Immediately following the prelaunch news conference will be a Glory Mission Science Briefing. Presenting the mission science objectives will be:
Hal Maring, Glory program scientist NASA Headquarters
Michael Mishchenko, Glory project scientist NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies
Greg Kopp, Total Irradiance Monitor instrument scientist University of Colorado – Boulder, Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics
Brian Cairns, Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor instrument scientist NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies
Immediately following the Glory Mission Science Briefing will be an ELaNa briefing. Participating will be:
Jason Crusan, ELaNa program executive Chief technologist for Space Operations, NASA Headquarters
Garrett Skrobot, ELaNa mission manager NASA Launch Services Program, Kennedy Space Center
David Klumpar, director, Space Science and Engineering Laboratory Explorer-1 (Prime) principal investigator, Montana State University
James Lumpp, director, Space Systems Laboratory KySat-1 principal investigator Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Kentucky
Brian Sanders, research coordinator, Colorado Space Grant Consortium Hermes principal investigator, University of Colorado – Boulder
GLORY/TAURUS XL NEWS MEDIA PHOTO OPPORTUNITY
Tuesday, Feb. 22: There will be an opportunity for the media to see and photograph the Taurus XL at the launch pad with Glory encapsulated in the payload fairing atop the rocket. Media should meet at the pass and identification building at the Vandenberg main gate on California State Road 1 at 9:45 a.m. to be escorted to the launch pad.
REMOTE CAMERAS
Tuesday, Feb. 22: Media desiring to establish sound-activated remote cameras at the launch pad should meet at the pass and identification building located at the Vandenberg main gate on California State Road 1 at 9:45 a.m. to be escorted to the launch pad.
LAUNCH DAY MEDIA COVERAGE
Wednesday, Feb. 23: Media covering the Glory/Taurus XL launch should meet at 1:15 a.m. at the Vandenberg main gate located on California State Road 1 to be escorted to the press viewing site. Press credentials and identification from a bona fide news organization will be required for access. A driver’s license alone will not be sufficient.
After launch, media will be escorted back to the gate. Media interested in speaking with launch officials will be escorted to the NASA Mission Director’s Center for an interview opportunity after spacecraft separation occurs.
NASA TELEVISION COVERAGE
NASA Television will carry the prelaunch news conference starting at 1 p.m. PST (4 p.m. EST) on Monday, Feb. 21. The prelaunch news conference also will be webcast at:
On launch day, Feb. 23, NASA TV commentary coverage of the countdown will begin at 12:30 a.m. PST (3:30 a.m. EST). Liftoff is targeted for 2:09:43 a.m. PST (5:09:43 a.m. EST). Spacecraft separation from the Taurus occurs 13 minutes after launch.
For information on receiving NASA TV, go to:
http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/nasatv/digital.html
VOICE CIRCUIT COVERAGE
To monitor audio of the prelaunch news conference and the launch coverage, dial the NASA “V” circuits, which may be accessed directly at 321-867-1220….1240….1260. This system is not two-way interactive. “Mission Audio” of countdown activities without NASA launch commentary will be carried on 321-867-7135 beginning at 12:30 a.m. PST (3:30 a.m. EST).
WEB COVERAGE
Launch coverage of Glory/Taurus XL countdown activities will be available on the NASA website by going to the home page at:
Live countdown coverage on NASA’s launch blog begins at 12:30 a.m. PST (3:30 a.m. EST). Coverage features real-time updates of countdown milestones, as well as streaming video clips highlighting launch preparations and liftoff.
To access these features, go to NASA’s Glory mission website at:
NASA GLORY/TAURUS XL NEWS CENTER
The Glory/Taurus News Center at the NASA Vandenberg Resident Office will be staffed beginning Feb. 15. To speak with a NASA Public Affairs Officer, call 805-605-3051. A recorded status report will also be available starting at that time by dialing 805-734-2693.
Project management for Glory is the responsibility of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. The launch management for the mission is the responsibility of NASA’s Launch Services Program at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Orbital Sciences Corporation of Dulles, Va., is the launch service provider of the four-stage Taurus XL rocket and is also builder of the Glory satellite for Goddard.
