In the pre-dawn hours of January 31, 2015, NASA’s Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite rocketed to orbit atop a Delta II that lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Instruments on the satellite will make global measurements of soil moisture—an important component of Earth's water, carbon, and energy cycles.
The images above were acquired after liftoff at 6:22 a.m. PST. The top photograph shows the Delta II rocket blasting away from Vandenberg's Space Launch Complex 2, where it was visible for a few seconds before disappearing into a bank of low clouds. NASA photographer Bill Ingalls captured the second image, a long exposure photograph that shows the arc traveled by the rocket after emerging from the clouds.
"We had a terrific ride into space this morning aboard the Delta II rocket," said SMAP project manager Kent Kellogg, who spoke at a post-launch press briefing. "This is a fantastic start to the Soil Moisture Active Passive system."
After launch, the satellite will be "booking it to Antarctica" to achieve a sun-synchronous polar orbit, explained payload system engineer Mike Spenser at a SMAP science forum on January 28. The orbit is a common choice for missions that provide global maps of the planet.
The global maps from SMAP, collected every 2-3 days, will show moisture in the top few inches of the soil at a resolution of 5.9 kilometers (3.7 miles). The information is expected to improve weather forecasts and seasonal climate projections, and to provide data for a wide range of applications already in development.
"SMAP is going to make a big difference in the way people around the world make decisions," said Susan Moran who chairs the SMAP applications working group.
SMAP is NASA's fifth of five Earth science missions to launch within the span of 12 months.
References and Further Reading
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory Soil Moisture Active Passive. Accessed January 31, 2015.
- NASA Blogs Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP). Accessed January 31, 2015.
- NASA News and Features Overview: A Big Year for NASA Earth Science. Accessed January 31, 2015.
Time-lapse photograph (bottom image) by Bill Ingalls. Top image and caption by Kathryn Hansen.
- Instrument(s):
- Photograph - NASA
