"VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., Feb. 6 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A United Launch Alliance Delta II successfully launched the NASA NOAA-N Prime spacecraft at 2:22 a.m. PST, today. Rocketing from Space Launch Complex-2, the launch took place during the 20th year anniversary month of the first Delta II launch. The program's first launch took place Feb. 14, 1989, from Space Launch Complex-17, Cape Canaveral AFS, Fla., carrying a Global Positioning System satellite.
NOAA-N Prime, following a 65 minute flight, was deployed on its mission to improve weather forecasting and monitor environmental events around the world. It's the last in the current series of five polar-orbiting satellites with improved imaging and sounding capabilities. Additionally, NOAA-N Prime carries instruments that support the Search and Rescue Satellite Aided Tracking System (SARSAT), which relays emergency distress beacon information from mariners and aviators to rescue teams. Since SARSAT was established in 1982, more than 24,500 lives have been saved."
-- from PRNewswire
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