KSC-2011-6513

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Technicians lower NASA's twin Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory (GRAIL) spacecraft into place atop a United Launch Alliance Delta II rocket on Space Launch Complex 17B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. The lunar probes are attached to a spacecraft adapter ring in their side-by-side launch configuration and wrapped in plastic to prevent contamination outside the clean room. The spacecraft will fly in tandem orbits around the moon for several months to measure its gravity field. 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. Launch is scheduled for Sept. 8. For more information, visit www.nasa.gov/grail. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett