VANDENBERG SPACE FORCE BASE, Calif. — A Euro-Japanese climate research satellite designed to study the Earth’s temperature balance was launched into orbit from California on Tuesday.
The EarthCARE satellite lifted off from Vandenberg Coastal Base atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 3:20 p.m. The satellite was successfully deployed about 10 minutes later, SpaceX said during the launch webcast.
The name EarthCARE is short for Earth Cloud Aerosol and Radiation Explorer.
The satellite is equipped with four instruments to study the role of clouds and aerosols (particles suspended in the atmosphere) in reflecting solar radiation back to space and trapping infrared radiation emitted by the Earth’s surface .
The research is a cooperative project between the European Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.
After stage separation, the reusable Falcon 9 first stage booster landed at Vandenberg, making its seventh flight.
ABC News
