
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- At Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, a pond reflects the 197-foot-tall United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket and Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) against a blue sky flecked with white clouds. Atop the rocket is NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), enclosed in its payload fairing. The rocket began its move from the VIF to the launch pad at 8 a.m. EST, reaching the pad at 8:40 a.m. Liftoff is planned during a launch window which extends from 10:02 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. EST on Nov. 26. MSL's components include a 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. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin
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NASA ID
KSC-2011-7908
Date Created
November 25, 2011
Center
KSC
Media Type
image
Location
Cape Canaveral, FL
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