NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) roared into space at 1:02 p.m. EST (10:02 a.m. PST) Monday aboard an Atlas V rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The LDCM spacecraft separated from the rocket 79 minutes after launch and the first signal was received 3 minutes later at a ground station in Svalbard, Norway. The solar arrays deployed 86 minutes after launch, and the spacecraft is generating power from them. LDCM is on course to reach its operational, sun-synchronous, polar orbit 438 miles (705 kilometers) above Earth within two months.

"Landsat is a centerpiece of NASA's Earth Science program, and today's successful launch will extend the longest continuous data record of Earth's surface as seen from space," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said. "This data is a key tool for monitoring climate change and has led to the improvement of human and biodiversity health, energy and water management, urban planning, disaster recovery and agriculture monitoring -- all resulting in incalculable benefits to the U.S. and world economy."

LDCM will go through a check-out phase for the next three months. Afterward, operational control will be transferred to NASA's mission partner, the Department of the Interior's U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), and the satellite will be renamed Landsat 8. Data will be archived and distributed free over the Internet from the Earth Resources and Science (EROS) center in Sioux Falls, S.D. Distribution of Landsat 8 data from the USGS archive is expected to begin within 100 days of launch.

LDCM is the eighth in the Landsat series of satellites that have been continuously observing Earth's land surfaces since 1972.

"Landsat has been delivering invaluable scientific information about our planet for more than forty years," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said. "It's an honor to be a part of today's launch to ensure this critical data will continue to help us better understand our natural resources and help people like water managers, farmers, and resource managers make informed decisions."

The use of Landsat data been transformed in recent years by advancements in computing power and the decision by USGS to allow free online access to the information. This revolution has allowed scientists to detect changes over time to our planet and has enabled a host of applications based on Landsat measurements to be developed by researchers, the private sector, and state, local, and tribal governments.

LDCM continues that legacy with more and better observations. The spacecraft carries two instruments, the Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS). The measurements will be compatible with data from past Landsat satellites, but the LDCM instruments use advanced technology to improve reliability, sensitivity, and data quality.

"LDCM is the best Landsat satellite ever built," said Jim Irons, a LDCM project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "The technology will advance and improve the array of scientific investigations and resource management applications supported by Landsat images. I anticipate new knowledge and applications to emerge with an increasing demand for the data."

OLI will continue observations currently made by Landsat 7 in the visible, near infrared, and shortwave infrared portions of the electromagnetic spectrum. It also will take measurements in two new bands, one to observe high-altitude cirrus clouds and another to observe atmospheric aerosols as well as water quality in lakes and shallow coastal waters. OLI's new design has fewer moving parts than instruments on previous Landsat satellites.

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NASA Launches New Earth Observation Satellite to Continue 40-Year Legacy

Life is good for NASA's "Mohawk Guy." He became world famous after helping NASA's huge Curiosity rover make a dramatic landing on Mars, and now he'll sit with first lady Michelle Obama during Tuesday's State of the Union address.

The Iranian-American Mohawk Guy whose name is Bobak Ferdowsi will sit in the first lady's box to highlight President Barack Obama's call for more visas for skilled immigrants in the fields of math, science and engineering, Southern California Public Radio reportedMonday (Feb. 11).

A White House official confirmed the news to SPACE.com.

Ferdowsi will be joined in the box by a number of other people from various walks of life, whose presence may help the president drive home points about some of his policy proposals. The speech begins Tuesday at 9 p.m. EST (Feb. 12; 0200 GMT Wednesday).[Gallery: President Obama and NASA]

Ferdowsi's American flag-inspired hairstyle a red- and blue-streaked mohawk set off by white stars on the side of his head rocketed the mission flight director to international fame during Curiosity's nail-biting landingon the night of Aug. 5.

In a complex maneuver that had never been tried before on another planet, the 1-ton rover was lowered to the Martian surface on cables by a rocket-powered sky crane, which then flew off and crash-landed intentionally a safe distance away.

The president even gave Ferdowsi apublic shout-out shortly after the landing.

"I understand there's a specialmohawk guythat's working on the mission," President Obama said in a congratulatory call to Curiosity's handlers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Aug. 13. "He's been one of the many stars of the show last Sunday night. I in the past thought about getting a mohawk myself."

Ferdowsi is not a mohawk loyalist, however. He said he has tried out various hairstyles over the years to mark major milestones in the development of Curiosity's $2.5 billion mission, which seeks to determine if the Red Planet can, or ever could, support microbial life.

Curiosity carries 10 science instruments, 17 cameras and several other tools to aid in this quest. Over the weekend, it completed a major milestone, drilling a 2.5-inch-deep (6.35 centimeters) hole in a Martian rock and collecting samples. No robot had ever done this on Mars or any other planet before.

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NASA's 'Mohawk Guy' Will Sit with First Lady at State of the Union

NASA on Monday successfully launched its new Landsat satellite from California's Vandendberg Air Force Base, the space agency said.

The Landsat Data Continuity Mission (LDCM) spacecraft, part of NASA's ongoing mission to capture images and data from the Earth's surface, "roared into space" atop an Atlas V rocket at 1:02 p.m. Eastern, space agency officials said. Satellites operated by NASA have monitored Earth from space continuously for the past four decades.

"Landsat is a centerpiece of NASA's Earth Science program, and today's successful launch will extend the longest continuous data record of Earth's surface as seen from space," NASA administrator Charles Bolden said in a statement.

"This data is a key tool for monitoring climate change and has led to the improvement of human and biodiversity health, energy and water management, urban planning, disaster recovery and agriculture monitoringall resulting in incalculable benefits to the U.S. and world economy," he added.

The satellite separated from its booster rocket 79 minutes after launch, a signal was received at a Svalbard, Norway station from the spacecraft at about 82 minutes into its flight, and the LCDM deployed its solar arrays just a few minutes later, NASA said. In about two months, the Landsat spacecraft is expected to reach its "operational, sun-synchronous, polar orbit" about 440 miles above the Earth.

Control of the LDCM, the eighth in a series of NASA Landsat satellites first launched in 1972, will be transferred to the Department of the Interior's U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in about three months when it goes fully operational, NASA said. At that point, the satellite will be renamed Landsat 8.

Data gathered by the satellite will be made available to the public through an online archive.

"Landsat has been delivering invaluable scientific information about our planet for more than forty years. It's an honor to be a part of today's launch to ensure this critical data will continue to help us better understand our natural resources and help people like water managers, farmers, and resource managers make informed decisions," Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said.

NASA scientists stressed advances made to the latest Landsat spacecraft, including the addition of improved instruments like the LDCM's Operational Land Imager (OLI) and Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS).

"LDCM is the best Landsat satellite ever built. The technology will advance and improve the array of scientific investigations and resource management applications supported by Landsat images," said LDCM project scientist Jim Irons of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

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NASA Launches Next-Gen Landsat Spacecraft

By Matt Smith, CNN

updated 7:21 PM EST, Mon February 11, 2013

An Atlas-V rocket carrying a Landsat satellite lifts off Monday at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

(CNN) -- NASA put its newest Landsat satellite into orbit on Monday, extending a long-running program that has been beaming back dramatic images of Earth for more than 40 years.

The Landsat Data Continuity Mission -- to be designated Landsat 8, once it's up and running -- lifted off from California's Vandenberg Air Force Base atop an Atlas V booster.

The $855 million platform, about the size of a sport-utility vehicle, has been in the works for years amid concerns about maintaining the U.S. suite of geoscience satellites.

The first Landsat mission went into orbit in 1972; the last working mission, Landsat 7, was launched in 1999. It's still sending back images long after its five-year life expectancy, but suffers from a scanner problem that leaves black diagonal streaks across them.

Landsat 5 sent back its last images in January after nearly 29 years; it had been designed to last three.

The new mission's solar panels deployed successfully after Monday's launch, and the satellite should be fully operational after about three months of trials, NASA said.

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NASA cheers new Landsat launch

NASA's latest Earth-observation satellite blasted off today (Feb. 11), continuing a storied four-decade effort to track environmental change and resource use across the planet.

The Landsat Data Continuity Missionlaunched today at 1:02 p.m. EST (1802 GMT) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, riding a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket into space without any apparent hitches.

The $855 million LDCM spacecraft is the eighth satellite in the history of the Landsat program, a joint NASA/United States Geological Survey (USGS) project that has been monitoring forest loss, glacial retreat, urban sprawl and other phenomena continuously since Landsat 1 lifted off in July 1972. [Photos: The Next Landsat Earth-Observing Spacecraft]

LDCM is the most capable and advanced Landsat spacecraftyet, and its successful launch could extend the program's legacy another decade or so into the future, researchers said.

"LDCM will continue to describe the human impact on Earth and the impact of Earth on humanity, which is vital for accommodating seven billion people on our planet," LDCM project manager Ken Schwer, of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., told reporters Feb. 8 during a prelaunch press briefing.

Eagle eyes from orbit

The SUV-size LDCM satellite will eventually settle into a polar orbit with an altitude of 438 miles (705 kilometers). NASA will conduct key checkouts of the spacecraft over the next three months, after which it will be turned over to the USGS for operations and renamed Landsat 8.

Landsat 8 will peer down at Earth with two sensitive instruments. The Operational Land Imager (OLI) will collect data in visible, near infrared and shortwave infrared wavelengths, while the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) will measure surface temperatures around the planet.

Like its predecessors, Landsat 8 will acquire images with a spatial resolution of 98 feet (30 meters). It will send about 400 pictures per day to ground stations in South Dakota, Alaska and Norway.

By tracking urban expansion, natural resource use, global ice loss and other phenomena, Landsat 8 will help scientists and policymakers better understand how the growing human population is affecting the planet, researchers said.

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NASA Launches Advanced Landsat Earth-Watching Satellite Into Orbit

ALIEN BODY DISCOVERED IN NASA CURIOSITY ROVER PHOTO!
ALIEN BODY DISCOVERED IN NASA CURIOSITY ROVER PHOTO...BEFORE ITS NEWS.COM

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ALIEN BODY DISCOVERED IN NASA CURIOSITY ROVER PHOTO! - Video

Curiosity Rover Drills Into Martian Bedrock - Simulation | NASA JPL Space Science Mars HD
Visit my website at http://www.junglejoel.com - animation showing Mars Rover Curiosity drilling into Martian bedrock at the area known as "John Klein." Rock powder was collected for sample analysis after drilling was completed, on February 8, 2013. Please rate and comment, thanks! Credits NASA JPL CalTech

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Curiosity Rover Drills Into Martian Bedrock - Simulation | NASA JPL Space Science Mars HD - Video

NASA "blue marlble" clouds texture VS perlin noise generated
Cloud texture based on perlin noise. Generated in blender/cycles with OpenShaderLanguage.

By: #1052; #1072; #1082; #1089; #1080; #1084; #1042; #1072; #1089; #1080; #1083; #1100; #1077; #1074;

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NASA "blue marlble" clouds texture VS perlin noise generated - Video

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. A recently declassified NASA report suggests the Air Force could have more effectively investigated problems with the F-22 Raptor and responded to pilots who experienced symptoms of oxygen deprivation or hypoxia.

The report also "concurs with much of what the Air Force has done" to determine why the expensive, stealthy jet has caused some pilots to feel dizzy or disoriented.

However, it cited a lack of information sharing and approaches to treating pilots that varied from base to base. It also took a critical look at how the Air Force examined the problem early on in their attempt to find the elusive "smoking gun."

NASA completed the 120-page report in August 2012. The Daily Press recently obtained a redacted copy through a Freedom of Information of Act request.

Among the highlights:

NASA recommends adjusting oxygen levels in relation to altitudes. However, the Air Force says it wants to seek more data before making those changes.

The Air Force developed guidelines to treat pilots with unexplained cases of hypoxia. However, different bases tried specific approaches that, while beneficial, were not shared throughout the service. The Air Force said what NASA deems as inconsistency could be seen as being flexible.

The report describes pilots with ear blockages that clear in the middle of the night, "waking them up to the sound of a loud explosion." Other pilots describe how it takes "a couple of days" to recover from the fatigue of a flight. In response, the Air Force says pilots in many aircraft complain of delayed ear blocks, and the condition is not unique to the F-22. As for fatigue, the Air Force says NASA's observations were made before improvements reduced breathing stress among pilots.

The investigative process generated much information, but didn't necessarily lend itself to the challenge posed by the Raptor, which not only examined individual systems, but now those systems interacted.

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NASA cites concerns in Air Force Raptor probe

(Phys.org)NASA has demonstrated robotic fluid transfer in space, an objective that will help inform the development of robotic technology to refuel satellites. The first-of-its-kind demonstration was performed during the Robotic Refueling Mission (RRM) aboard the International Space Station.

"This achievement is a major step forward in servicing satellites," said Frank Cepollina, associate director of the Satellite Servicing Capabilities Office at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "RRM gives NASA and the emerging commercial satellite servicing industry the confidence to robotically refuel, repair and maintain satellites in both near and distant orbitswell beyond the reach of where humans can go today."

A joint effort with the Canadian Space Agency, RRM uses the International Space Station as test bed for the research and development of robotic satellite-servicing capabilities. During six days of activity last month, controllers on the ground at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston used the space station's remotely operated Dextre, a robotic space handyman, to cut wires, remove and stow caps and perform tasks necessary to refuel satellites not designed to be refueled.

The cutting-edge technologies that RRM is demonstrating could extend the lives of many of the hundreds of satellites currently in geosynchronous Earth orbit. These are satellites that deliver essential services such as weather reports, cell phone communications, television broadcasts, government communications and air traffic management.

RRM tasks scheduled to be performed later this year include thermal blanket cutting and fastener and electronic termination cap removals. NASA anticipates RRM technologies may help boost the commercial satellite-servicing industry in the future. Such servicing capabilities could greatly expand options for government and commercial fleet operators.

More information: For information, updates and videos about RRM and NASA's satellite servicing activities, visit: ssco.gsfc.nasa.gov

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NASA's refueling demonstration proves viability of satellite-servicing technologies

Feb. 10, 2013 NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft is assembled and is undergoing environmental testing at Lockheed Martin Space Systems facilities, near Denver, Colo. MAVEN is the next mission to Mars and will be the first mission devoted to understanding the Martian upper atmosphere.

During the environmental testing phase, the orbiter will undergo a variety of rigorous tests that simulate the extreme temperatures, vacuum and vibration the spacecraft will experience during the course of its mission. Currently, the spacecraft is in the company's Reverberant Acoustic Laboratory being prepared to undergo acoustics testing that simulates the maximum sound and vibration levels the spacecraft will experience during launch.

Following the acoustics test, MAVEN will be subjected to a barrage of additional tests, including: separation/deployment shock, vibration, electromagnetic interference/electromagnetic compatibility and magnetics testing. The phase concludes with a thermal vacuum test where the spacecraft and its instruments are exposed to the vacuum and extreme hot and cold temperatures it will face in space.

"The assembly and integration of MAVEN has gone very smoothly and we're excited to test our work over the next six months," said Guy Beutelschies, MAVEN program manager at Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company. "Environmental testing is a crucial set of activities designed to ensure the spacecraft can operate in the extreme conditions of space."

"I'm very pleased with how our team has designed and built the spacecraft and science instruments that will make our measurements," said Bruce Jakosky, MAVEN principal investigator from the University of Colorado at Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. "We've got an exciting science mission planned, and the environmental testing now is what will ensure that we are ready for launch and for the mission."

MAVEN is scheduled to ship from Lockheed Martin's facility to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in early August, where it will undergo final preparations for launch.

MAVEN, scheduled to launch in November 2013, is a robotic exploration mission to understand the role that loss of atmospheric gas to space played in changing the Martian climate through time. It will investigate how much of the Martian atmosphere has been lost over time by measuring the current rate of escape to space and gathering enough information about the relevant processes to extrapolate backward in time.

"This phase of the program is particularly important in that it will provide us with a good assessment of the MAVEN system's capabilities under the simulated extremes of the space environment," said David Mitchell, MAVEN project manager at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "Of significance, the spacecraft is entering system level test right on schedule, while maintaining robust cost and schedule reserves to deal with the technical or programmatic surprises that could occur during test or in the run to launch. Tracking on plan is critically important to being ready for launch later this year and the science that MAVEN will deliver one year later."

MAVEN's principal investigator is based at the University of Colorado at Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. The university will provide science operations, science instruments and lead Education/Public Outreach. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center manages the project and provides two of the science instruments for the mission. Lockheed Martin of Littleton, Colo., built the spacecraft and is responsible for mission operations. The University of California at Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory provides science instruments for the mission. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., provides navigation support, the Deep Space Network and the Electra telecommunications relay hardware and operations.

For more information on MAVEN, visit: http://lasp.colorado.edu/home/maven/

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NASA's MAVEN mission completes assembly, begins environmental testing

Feb. 9, 2013 NASA's Curiosity rover has, for the first time, used a drill carried at the end of its robotic arm to bore into a flat, veiny rock on Mars and collect a sample from its interior. This is the first time any robot has drilled into a rock to collect a sample on Mars.

The fresh hole, about 0.63 inch (1.6 centimeters) wide and 2.5 inches (6.4 centimeters) deep in a patch of fine-grained sedimentary bedrock, can be seen in images and other data Curiosity beamed to Earth Saturday. The rock is believed to hold evidence about long-gone wet environments. In pursuit of that evidence, the rover will use its laboratory instruments to analyze rock powder collected by the drill.

"The most advanced planetary robot ever designed is now a fully operating analytical laboratory on Mars," said John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate. "This is the biggest milestone accomplishment for the Curiosity team since the sky-crane landing last August, another proud day for America."

For the next several days, ground controllers will command the rover's arm to carry out a series of steps to process the sample, ultimately delivering portions to the instruments inside.

"We commanded the first full-depth drilling, and we believe we have collected sufficient material from the rock to meet our objectives of hardware cleaning and sample drop-off," said Avi Okon, drill cognizant engineer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.

Rock powder generated during drilling travels up flutes on the bit. The bit assembly has chambers to hold the powder until it can be transferred to the sample-handling mechanisms of the rover's Collection and Handling for In-Situ Martian Rock Analysis (CHIMRA) device.

Before the rock powder is analyzed, some will be used to scour traces of material that may have been deposited onto the hardware while the rover was still on Earth, despite thorough cleaning before launch.

"We'll take the powder we acquired and swish it around to scrub the internal surfaces of the drill bit assembly," said JPL's Scott McCloskey, drill systems engineer. "Then we'll use the arm to transfer the powder out of the drill into the scoop, which will be our first chance to see the acquired sample."

"Building a tool to interact forcefully with unpredictable rocks on Mars required an ambitious development and testing program," said JPL's Louise Jandura, chief engineer for Curiosity's sample system. "To get to the point of making this hole in a rock on Mars, we made eight drills and bored more than 1,200 holes in 20 types of rock on Earth."

Inside the sample-handling device, the powder will be vibrated once or twice over a sieve that screens out any particles larger than six-thousandths of an inch (150 microns) across. Small portions of the sieved sample will fall through ports on the rover deck into the Chemistry and Mineralogy (CheMin) instrument and the Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument. These instruments then will begin the much-anticipated detailed analysis.

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NASA Curiosity rover collects first Martian bedrock sample

The extremely close flyby of Earth of a 150-foot asteroid on Friday (Feb. 15) has cast a spotlight on the danger of asteroid impacts to our planet, a threat that an upcoming NASA mission aims to investigate.

This week's asteroid close encounter will occur on Friday at 2:24 p.m. EST (1924 GMT), when the asteroid 2012 DA14 has a close encounter with Earth. The asteroid will NOT hit the Earth, but it will fly within 17,200 miles (27,700 kilometers) closer than the ring of communications and navigation satellites high above the planet.

NASA and scientists around the world will track asteroid 2012 DA14 closely with radar and other instruments to learn more about its composition, spin and other details. But to truly understand asteroids enough to develop effective countermeasures to avoid future impacts, NASA needs actual pieces of the space rocks, and that's where NASA's new OSIRIS-REx mission comes in.

Set to launch in 2016, OSIRIS-REx is an unmanned mission to collect samples of the potentially dangerous near-Earth asteroid 1999 RQ36, which is nearly 1,500 feet (457 meters) wide, and return them to Earth. Not only will this effortcollect samples of the space rock, but it will also gather the best measurements to date of the small forces that act on asteroids and make them tricky to track.

There are more than 1,300 space rocks that NASA classifies as "potentially hazardous asteroids." These objects measure at least 150 yards (about 140 meters) across and have orbital paths that bring them close to Earth's orbit. [Can Killer Asteroids Be Steered Away? (Video)]

"Asteroids move at an average of 12 to 15 kilometers per second (about 27,000 to 33,000 miles per hour) relative to Earth, so fast that they carry enormous energy by virtue of their velocity," OSIRIS-REx mission deputy principal investigator Edward Beshore of the University of Arizona, Tucson, said in a statement. "Anything over a few hundred yards across that appears to be on a collision course with Earth is very worrisome."

While its thought that chances of an impact are slim, it is difficult to predict the orbits of these objects with a comforting amount of certainty. That is in part because Earth's gravitational pull changes an asteroid's path as it approaches the planet. There are also other small forces continuously altering its orbit, scientists say.

"The most significant of these smaller forces is the Yarkovsky effect a minute push on an asteroid that happens when it is warmed up by the sun and then later re-radiates this heat in a different direction as infrared radiation," Beshore said.OSIRIS-REx stands for Origins-Spectral Interpretation-Resource Identification-Security-Regolith Explorer.

The asteroid 1999 RQ36, or RQ36 for short, has one of the highest known probabilities of slamming into Earth, a 1-in-2,400 chance of impact late in the 22nd century. Even more unsettling,a study released last yearfound that the space rock's path around the sun had been altered by about 100 miles (160 km) over the previous 12 years due to the Yarkovsky effect.

"We expect OSIRIS-REx will enable us to make an estimate of the Yarkovsky force on RQ36 at least twice as precise as what's available now," said Jason Dworkin, OSIRIS-REx project scientist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.

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NASA Asteroid-Sampling Mission to Help Gauge Impact Threat

NASA's latest Earth-observation satellite is set to blast off today (Feb. 11), continuing a venerable program that has been monitoring environmental change and resource use for more than four decades.

TheLandsat Data Continuity Missionis scheduled to launch today at 1:02 p.m. EST (1802 GMT/10:02 a.m. PST) atop an Atlas 5 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The LDCM spacecraft will track changes in forest cover, agricultural output and urban sprawl, among other things, adding to a Earth-observation record that has been growing continuously since Landsat 1 lifted off in July 1972.

"LDCM will be the bestLandsat spacecraftyet, in terms of improved capabilities and the amount of data returned," mission program executive David Jarrett, of NASA headquarters in Washington, D.C., told reporters Friday (Feb. 8) in a prelaunch press briefing. "LDCM will continue the Landsat legacy well into the future."

The $855 million LDCM spacecraft is the eighth satellite in the history of the Landsat program, which is jointly run by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey. USGS will take over operation of the craft after launch and some on-orbit checkouts, at which point it will be renamed Landsat 8. [Photos: The Next Landsat Earth-Observing Spacecraft]

Landsat 8 will double the number of functional Landsat spacecraft, joining Landsat 7, which launched in April 1999. (Landsat 5 recently retiredafter scrutinizing Earth's surface for nearly 29 years.)

The SUV-size Landsat 8 will zip around Earth at an altitude of 438 miles (705 kilometers), staring down from a polar orbit with two sensitive instruments. The Operational Land Imager (OLI) will collect data in visible, near infrared and shortwave infrared wavelengths, while the Thermal Infrared Sensor (TIRS) will measure surface temperatures.

By tracking forest destruction, water use, urban expansion, glacial retreat and other fast-accelerating phenomena, Landsat 8 will help scientists and policymakers better understand how Earth's seven billion people are affecting the planet, researchers said.

"All of these changes are currently occurring at rates unprecedented in human history, due to an increasing population, advancing technology and climate change," said mission project scientist Jim Irons, of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. "We will be able to monitor these changes to continue to observe these changes from LDCM, from the best Landsat satellite ever launched."

Landsat 7 has enough fuel to stay in an operational orbit through 2016, Irons said. The Landsat 8 spacecraft and the OLI instrument have design lives of five years, and the TIRS sensor was built to last at least three years, he added. The satellite has enough fuel to stay in its desired orbit for at least a decade.

"We hope that the spacecraft and the instruments will last well beyond their design lives, and we can continue to collect data for at least 10 years," Irons said.

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NASA Launching Powerful Landsat Earth-Observation Satellite Today

NASA says Mars rover succeeds in 1st drilling

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CURIOSITY : MARTIAN BEDROCK DRILLING : NASA VIDEO ANIMATION
This animation depicts NASA #39;s Mars rover Curiosity drilling a hole to collect a rock-powder sample at a target site called "John Klein." . Nasa Video animation Music: Darkest Child Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 creativecommons.org

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CURIOSITY : MARTIAN BEDROCK DRILLING : NASA VIDEO ANIMATION - Video

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity drilled into Mars for a rock sample, to look for geological evidence and microbial life forms (Reuters)

NASA's Curiosity rover has, for the first time, used a drill carried at the end of its robotic arm to bore into the surface of Mars and collected a sample from its interior.

This is the first time any robot has drilled into a rock to collect a sample from the red planet.

The fresh hole, about 1.6 centimetres wide and 6.4 centimetres deep, can be seen in images and other data Curiosity beamed back to Earth on Saturday.

The rock is believed to hold evidence about the history of the planet, which once had a wet environment. The rover will use its laboratory instruments to analyse rock powder collected by the drill.

Curiosity's first drill target was a rock laced with veins of what appeared to be water-deposited minerals. The car-sized rover, which landed on Mars on 6 August for a two-year mission, is searching for the geological and chemical conditions needed to support and preserve microbial life.

"First drilling on Mars to collect a sample for science is a success," NASA posted on Twitter.

"The most advanced planetary robot ever designed is now a fully operating analytical laboratory on Mars," said John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate.

"This is the biggest milestone accomplishment for the Curiosity team since the sky-crane landing last August, another proud day for America," he added.

For the next few days, ground controllers will command the rover's arm to process the sample, ultimately delivering portions to the instruments inside.

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NASA's Curiosity Rover Drills into Surface of Mars

NASA'sCuriosity rover has bored a hole in a Martian rock for the first time to collect a sample of bedrock that might offer evidence of a long-gone wet environment, the US space agency has reported.

Drilling down 6.4cm into a patch of sedimentary bedrock, Curiosity collected the rock powder left by the drill and will analyze it using its own laboratory instruments, NASA said in a statement on Saturday.

This is the first time a robot has drilled to collect a Martian sample.

Images of the hole, along with a shallower test hole nearby, can be seen at NASA website.

"The most advanced planetary robot ever designed is now a fully operating analytical laboratory on Mars," John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate, said.

Curiosity drilled into a rock called "John Klein," named for a Mars Science Laboratory deputy project manager who died in 2011.

In the next few days, ground controllers will command the rover's arm to process the sample by delivering bits of it to the instruments inside Curiosity.

Before the rock powder is analyzed, some will be used to scour traces of material that may have been deposited onto the hardware while the rover was still on Earth, despite thorough cleaning before launch, NASA said.

The drilling and analysis is part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory Project, which is using the Curiosity rover to figure out whether an area in Mars' Gale Crater ever offered a hospitable environment for life.

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NASA Curiosity rover drills into Martian rock

WASHINGTON John E. Naugle, 89, a NASA aerospace researcher and administrator who held the title of chief scientist when he retired from the space agency in 1981, died Jan. 23 at his home in North Falmouth, Mass. He had colon cancer.

A daughter, Leta Serafim, confirmed the death.

Dr. Naugle worked for a space lab at General Dynamics on early missile programs in San Diego and White Sands, N.M., before joining NASA at its inception in 1958.

He spent almost his entire career at NASA headquarters. At various times, he was director of the Physics and Astronomy Program and associate administrator for the Office of Space Science.

After his NASA retirement, he was chairman of Fairchild Industries Fairchild Space Co. The company was working with NASA to develop a privately owned space platform for industrial and government customers. Fairchild shelved the program by the mid-1980s, and Dr. Naugle became a consultant to the NASA administrator until 1991.

Dr. Naugle, who helped participate in drafting an international treaty on the peaceful uses of outer space, twice received the NASA Distinguished Service Medal. He was also a recipient of an American Astronautical Society award for outstanding contributions to space science and technology.

John Earl Naugle was born in Belle Fourche, S.D., where his parents were homesteaders. He served in the US Army in Europe during World War II and was held as a prisoner of war by the Germans after being captured during the Battle of the Bulge, his daughter said.

Leta Serafim added that her father was subsequently released and was involved with the cleanup after the Allied firebombing of Dresden, Germany. The experience of witnessing so much destruction on earth led him to a career in space, she said.

At the University of Minnesota, he received three degrees in physics, including a doctorate in 1953.

Two of his books were published: Unmanned Space Flight (1965) and First Among Equals: The Selection of NASA Space Science Experiments (1991). At the time of his death, he was writing a book titled Pioneers of the Cosmic Frontier, about the origins of particle physics and the development of the US space program.

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John Naugle, former NASA chief scientist, dies at 89

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - The Mars rover Curiosity drilled into the Martian surface for the first time as part of an effort to learn if the planet most like Earth in the solar system ever had conditions to support microbial life, NASA said on Saturday.

Pictures beamed back to Earth on Saturday showed a hole about 0.63 inches wide and 2.5 inches deep in a patch of fine-grained sedimentary bedrock that appears to have been in contact with water.

The drilling, which took place on Friday, produced a small pile of powder that will be fed into two onboard laboratory instruments to determine the rock's chemical makeup.

"First drilling on Mars to collect a sample for science is a success," NASA posted on Twitter.

Engineers spent days preparing to use Curiosity's drill, including boring practice holes earlier in the week. Previous Mars probes have had tools to scrape and grind into rock, but never a drill to collect interior samples.

Curiosity's first drill target was a rock laced with veins of what appear to be water-deposited minerals. The rover, which landed on Mars on August 6 for a two-year mission, is looking for geologic and chemical conditions needed to support and preserve microbial life.

Engineers do not yet know exactly how much powder was produced, but are confident there is enough for a planned instrument cleaning and lab analysis, Avi Okon, a drill engineer with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said in a statement.

NASA's lead scientist, John Grunsfeld, said using the drill was "the biggest milestone accomplishment for the Curiosity team since the sky-crane landing last August."

Curiosity's ultimate target is a 3-mile- (5-km) high mound of layered sediment rising from the floor of the Gale Crater landing site.

The drill is the last of the rover's 10 science instruments to be tested.

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NASA rover drills into its first Martian rock