NASA scheduled to launch Dawn spacecraft from Cape Canaveral July 6
June 14th, 2007
The Dawn spacecraft will employ ion propulsion to explore two of the asteroid belt’s most intriguing and dissimilar occupants: asteroid Vesta and the dwarf planet Ceres.
The rocket that will launch Dawn is a Delta II 7925-H manufactured by the United Launch Alliance; it is a heavier-lift model of the standard Delta II that uses larger solid rocket boosters. The first stage was erected on Pad 17-B in late May. Then the nine strap-on solid rocket boosters were raised and attached. The second stage, which burns hypergolic propellants, was hoisted atop the first stage in the first week of June. The fairing which surrounds the spacecraft will then be hoisted into the clean room of the mobile service tower. More information from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
