Following the ‘Launch Readiness Review, liftoff is set for 29 May at 00:20 CEST (28 May, 15:20 local time) and the team at the Vandenberg Space Force Base in California has almost completed the launch campaign.
The satellite has been encapsulated within the half shells of the Falcon 9 fairing, which bears the mission patch and taken to the SpaceX launch facility.
EarthCARE heads to SpaceX launch facility. (ESA)
The six-week campaign to ready the EarthCARE satellite for liftoff has included a very long list of tasks including testing that that it was in good health after its journey from Germany, the hazardous task of fuelling, countdown rehearsals together with satellite operators at ESA’s European Space Operations Centre in Germany, and encapsulating the satellite in the Falcon 9 rocket fairing, which protects the satellite during the first stages of launch.
EarthCARE being encapsulated. (SpaceX)
Needless to say, that all the teams that have been involved in this extraordinary mission in California, Europe and in Japan is now eagerly awaiting liftoff in just a few hours from now.
See details on how to watch EarthCARE launch live streaming.
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