LAUNCH OF INSIGHT MISSION TO MARS, May 5, 2018, VAFB, 7:05 am ET (NASA TV)

NASA will launch its next robotic mission to Mars on May 5, 2018 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA at 7:05 am Eastern Daylight Time (4:05 am PDT, local time at the launch site).  The Atlas V launch has a 2 hour launch window.

NASA TV coverage begins at 6:30 am EDT (3:30 am Pacific).

The Interior Exploration using Seismic  Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) spacecraft will land on Mars and use its instruments to study the planet’s crust, mantle and core (the interior of the planet).  NASA describes it as giving the planet a “checkup” by “measuring the planet’s “vital signs”: its “pulse” (seismology), “temperature” (heat flow), and “reflexes” (precision tracking).”

Landing on Mars will take place approximately 6 months after launch.

InSight was supposed to launch in 2016, but was delayed because of problems with one of its instruments that is being provided by the French space agency CNES.