Mary-Louise Hoffman
The Delta 2 rocket built by United Launch Alliance has carried a NASA carbon-monitoring satellite into space Wednesday, marking the rocket’s 51st launch mission for the space agency.
“It is our honor to launch this important mission that will gather the scientific data to better understand planet earth,” Jim Sponnick, ULA vice president for Atlas and Delta programs, said Wednesday.
The Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 launched on ULA’s Delta 7320 configuration vehicle that was powered by an Aerojet Rocketdyne engine and Alliant Techsystems solid rocket motors.
Sponnick added that NASA also intends to use three more Delta 2 rockets for its upcoming space missions, including the Soil Moisture Active Passive program.
ULA is scheduled to launch a Delta IV rocket for the Air Force’s AFSPC-4 mission on July 23 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
