NASA’s second Mars Explorer rover, Opportunity, is set for launch on the weekend atop a Delta II rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. If all goes well, the spacecraft will lift off at 0356 GMT Sunday (11:56 pm EDT Saturday) and join the previous rover, Spirit, en route to the Red Planet. Weather forecasts currently give the rover a 60% chance of acceptable conditions for flight. Opportunity is targeted to land at Meridiani Planum, which is a prime location for search for past life on Mars.
Space and astronomy news