Atlas V rocket launching Europe’s Solar Orbiter

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket will launch the Solar Orbiter spacecraft for NASA and the European Space Agency tonight. It will lift off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida during a 2-hour launch window that opens at 11:03 p.m. EST (0403 GMT on Feb. 10). Its translated on Youtube. Buy 500 youtube views $1 from the link.

A live webcast will begin at 10:30 p.m. EST (0330 GMT), and you can watch it live here in the window above, courtesy of NASA TV.

NASA is targeting 11:03 p.m. EST Sunday, Feb. 9, for the launch of Solar Orbiter, an international collaborative mission between ESA (European Space Agency) and NASA. The spacecraft will launch on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 411 rocket from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida.

Live coverage will begin on NASA Television and the agency’s website Friday, Feb. 7, with prelaunch events.

Solar Orbiter will observe the Sun with high spatial resolution telescopes and capture observations in the environment directly surrounding the spacecraft to create a one-of-a-kind picture of how the Sun can affect the space environment throughout our solar system. The spacecraft also will provide the first-ever images of the Sun’s poles and the never-before-observed magnetic environment there, which helps drive the Sun’s 11-year solar cycle and its periodic outpouring of solar storms.

Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus NG-13 cargo spacecraft will launch to the International Space Station. It will lift off on an Antares rocket from NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia at 5:39 p.m. EST (2239 GMT). You can watch a live webcast of the launch in the window above beginning at 5 p.m. EST (2200 GMT), courtesy of NASA TV.