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KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, FLA. -- Wrapped in a protective covering, the Mars Climate Orbiter with its upper stage booster is lowered in preparation for mating to the second stage of a Boeing Delta II (7425) rocket at Launch Complex 17, Pad A, Cape Canaveral Air Station. Targeted for liftoff on Dec. 10, 1998, the orbiter will be the first spacecraft to be launched in the pair of Mars ’98 missions. After its arrival at the red planet, the Mars Climate Orbiter will be used primarily to support its companion Mars Polar Lander spacecraft, scheduled for launch on Jan. 3, 1999. The orbiter will then monitor the Martian atmosphere and image the planet’s surface on a daily basis for one Martian year, the equivalent of about two Earth years. The spacecraft will observe the appearance and movement of atmospheric dust and water vapor, and characterize seasonal changes on the planet’s surface