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- [Source: NASA Home Page]
NASA’s Orbiting Carbon Observatory satellite failed to reach orbit after its 4:55 a.m. EST liftoff Feb. 24 (2009) from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base. Preliminary indications are that the fairing on the Taurus XL launch vehicle failed to separate. The fairing is a clamshell structure that encapsulates the satellite as it travels through the atmosphere. The spacecraft did not reach orbit and likely landed in the Pacific Ocean near Antarctica, said John Brunschwyler, the program manager for the Taurus XL. A Mishap Investigation Board is to determine the cause of the launch failure.
[Source: NASA OCO Project Home Page, http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov/ ]
The Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) is a new Earth orbiting mission sponsored by NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder Project (ESSP) Program. The ESSP Program funds competitively selected, low to moderate cost Earth Science missions. These highly focused missions acquire exploratory measurements of the atmosphere, the oceans, the land surface and the solid Earth. These missions share a common goal of improving the capability of Earth scientists to predict changes in weather, climate and natural hazards. After launch in 2009, the OCO mission will collect precise global measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the Earth's atmosphere. Scientists will analyze OCO data to improve our understanding of the natural processes and human activities that regulate the abundance and distribution of this important greenhouse gas. This improved understanding will enable more reliable forecasts of future changes in the abundance and distribution of CO2 in the atmosphere and the effect that these changes may have on the Earth's climate. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory will lead the OCO effort. Orbital Sciences Corporation and Hamilton Sundstrand Sensor Systems will partner with JPL to realize this vital mission. Group: Platform_Details Entry_ID: OCO Group: Platform_Identification Platform_Category: Earth Observation Satellites Short_Name: OCO Long_Name: Orbiting Carbon Observatory End_Group Group: Platform_Associated_Instruments Short_Name: OCO SPECTROMETERS Short_Name: NEAR-INFRARED SPECTROMETER End_Group Group: Orbit Orbit_Altitude: 705 km Orbit_Inclination: 98.2 degrees Orbit_Type: LEO > Low Earth Orbit > Polar Sun-Synchronous End_Group Creation_Date: 2007-05-21 Online_Resource: http://oco.jpl.nasa.gov/ Online_Resource: http://www.nasa.gov/oco Online_Resource: http://science.jpl.nasa.gov/projects/OCO/ Online_Resource: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/oco/launch/launch_blog.html Group: Platform_Logistics Design_Life: 2 years Primary_Sponsor: USA/NASA End_Group End_Group
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