Contractor Jells Juno To Jupiter Jump

NASA’s Launch Services Program Office has selected Lockheed Martin Commercial Launch Services for the Juno mission to Jupiter. This is a US$190M contract award. The work includes the launch service for an Atlas V model 551 rocket as well as the payload processing, launch vehicle integration, and all necessary tracking, data and telemetry support. The lift off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida is scheduled for August of 2011. The solar-powered spacecraft will arrive at Jupiter in August of 2016 to uncover what may be hidden beneath the planet’s thick and colorful clouds. Juno’s remote sensing and gravity science measurements will map Jupiter’s interior, atmosphere and polar magnetosphere. The primary science goal is to understand the planet’s origin and evolution—Cape Canaveral, Florida & Littleton, Colorado