NASA will provide coverage of the upcoming prelaunch and launch activities for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) Joint Polar Satellite System-2 (JPSS-2) mission. JPSS-2 is the third satellite in the polar satellite series and is expected to capture data to improve weather forecasts, helping scientists predict and prepare for extreme weather events and climate change.
JPSS-2 is scheduled to launch at 5:25 a.m. EDT (2:25 a.m. PDT) Tuesday, Nov. 1, on a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V 401 rocket from Space Launch Complex 3 at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Live launch coverage will begin at 4:45 a.m. EDT (1:45 a.m. PDT) on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the agencys website, with prelaunch and science briefings beginning Friday, Oct. 28. Watch coverage on the agencys website at:
JPSS represents significant technological and scientific advancements in observations used for severe weather prediction and environmental monitoring. These data are critical to the timeliness and accuracy of forecasts three to seven days in advance of a severe weather event. It will scan Earth as it orbits from the North Pole to the South Pole, crossing the equator 14 times a day to provide full global coverage twice a day.
NASA and NOAA partner in the development, launch, testing, and operation of all satellites in the JPSS series.
Launching with JPSS-2 is NASAs Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) technology demonstration. After JPSS-2 safely reaches orbit, LOFTID will follow a re-entry trajectory from low-Earth orbit to demonstrate the inflatable heat shields ability to slow down and survive re-entry. LOFTID is a partnership with ULA and is dedicated to the memory of Bernard Kutter, one of the companys engineers who played a key role in developing the technology. LOFTID will demonstrate how the inflatable aeroshell, or heat shield, can slow down and survive re-entry in conditions relevant to many potential applications, whether landing humans on Mars, new missions to Venus and Titan, or returning heavier payloads and samples from low-Earth orbit.
Full mission coverage is as follows:
Friday, Oct. 28
6 p.m. EDT (3 p.m. PDT) JPSS-2 Prelaunch News Conference on NASA TV with the following participants:
- Tim Walsh, director, NOAAs JPSS Program Office, NOAA
- John Gagosian, director, NASAs Joint Agency Satellite Division
- Irene Parker, deputy assistant administrator, NOAA Systems, National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Services
- Omar Baez, launch director, NASAs Launch Services Program
- Gary Wentz, vice president, Government and Commercial Programs, ULA
- Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASAs Space Technology Mission Directorate
- Capt. Zack Zounes, launch weather officer, U.S. Space Force
