Skip Navigation
menu close modal
Gallery

GRACE-FO Launches, Wide Shot

The rocket carrying GRACE-FO blasts off from the launch pad.

The NASA/German Research Centre for Geosciences GRACE Follow-On spacecraft launches onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, Tuesday, May 22, 2018, from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The mission will measure changes in how mass is redistributed within and among Earth's atmosphere, oceans, land and ice sheets, as well as within Earth itself. GRACE-FO is sharing its ride to orbit with five Iridium NEXT communications satellites as part of a commercial rideshare agreement.

Credit

NASA/Bill Ingalls

ENLARGE

Related

GRACE-FO, a collaboration between NASA and German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ), launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base on on May 22, 2018.
More
A vertical image of the rocket launching in front of a blue sky.
GRACE-FO Launches
The two GRACE-FO satellites are seen from GFZ’s Satellite Laser Ranging Station in Potsdam, Germany, on May 23, 2018 at 22:16 UTC and 22:17 UTC, respectively.
More
The bright lights of the spacecraft are seen against the dark black of space.
GRACE-FO Satellites From Potsdam
Illustration of GRACE-FO in orbit (view 4)
More
Illustration of GRACE-FO in orbit
Illustration of GRACE-FO (View 4)
The NASA/German Research Centre for Geosciences GRACE Follow-On spacecraft launches onboard a SpaceX Falcon 9,  May 22, 2018, from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
More
The rocket carrying GRACE-FO blasts off from the launch pad, with the ocean in the foreground.
GRACE-FO Launches, Ocean View
The GRACE-FO satellites were assembled by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany. The photo shows one of the satellites in the testing facility of IABG, an Airbus subcontractor, in Munich (view 2). 
More
The GRACE-FO satellites were assembled by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany. The photo shows one of the satellites in the testing facility of IABG, an Airbus subcontractor, in Munich (view 2).
GRACE-FO Satellites During Testing (View 2)
3-2-1 liftoff of Falcon 9 with GRACE-FO! The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-on, or GRACE-FO, a collaboration between NASA and German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) launched f...
More
GRACE-FO launches aboard a Falcon 9.
GRACE-FO Launches Aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9
The GRACE-FO satellites were assembled by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany. The photo shows one of the satellites in the testing facility of IABG, an Airbus subcontractor, in Munich (view 3). 
More
The GRACE-FO satellites were assembled by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany. The photo shows one of the satellites in the testing facility of IABG, an Airbus subcontractor, in Munich (view 3).
GRACE-FO Satellites in Testing
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is seen with the NASA/German Research Centre for Geosciences GRACE Follow-On spacecraft onboard at Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. 
More
The SpaceX Falcon 9 that will carry GRACE-FO to orbit sits on the launchpad.
GRACE-FO in Falcon 9 on Launchpad
The Laser Ranging Interferometer instrument.
More
The Laser Ranging Interferometer instrument.
Laser Ranging Interferometer
The GRACE-FO satellites, attached to turntable fixtures, at the Astrotech Space Operations processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California (view 1).  
More
The GRACE-FO satellites, attached to turntable fixtures, at the Astrotech Space Operations processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California
GRACE-FO Satellites, Attached to Turntable Fixtures
Gravity anomaly map using GRACE data.
More
Gravity anomaly map using GRACE data.
Gravity Anomaly Map Using GRACE Data
Between 2002 and 2016, Antarctica shed approximately 125 gigatons of ice per year, causing global sea level to rise by 0.35 millimeters per year.
More
Between 2002 and 2016, Antarctica shed approximately 125 gigatons of ice per year, causing global sea level to rise by 0.35 millimeters per year.
Antarctic Ice Loss 2002-2016
A GRACE-FO satellite and its turntable fixture at the Astrotech Space Operations processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
More
A GRACE-FO satellite and its turntable fixture at the Astrotech Space Operations processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
GRACE-FO Satellite on a Turntable Before Launch
Many of today’s most pressing climate science challenges hinge on knowing how and where water is moving on Earth. GRACE-FO will continue the successful partnership between NASA and the German Resea...
More
Image of the spacecraft in orbit over Earth, with the black of space.
GRACE-FO Launch Press Kit
GRACE-FO mission logo 
More
GRACE FO logo
GRACE-FO Logo
This animation shows the annual water storage changes over the U.S. from GRACE from 2003 - 2013.
More
This animation shows the annual water storage changes over the U.S. from GRACE from 2003 - 2013.
Annual Water Storage Changes over the U.S. from GRACE
The GRACE Intermediate Field 48 (GIF48 from UT-CSR) field model is an improved mean gravity field that combines GRACE observations and terrestrial gravity information.
More
The GRACE Intermediate Field 48 (GIF48 from UT-CSR) field model is an improved mean gravity field that combines GRACE observations and terrestrial gravity information The terrestrial gravity information was taken from the DTU10 global gravity field. Shown here are the so-called free air gravity deviations from an ideal ellipsoidal Earth model, in units of milli-gal. Areas colored yellow, orange, or red are areas where the actual gravity field is larger than the featureless-Earth model predicts, while the progressively darker shades of blue indicate places where the gravity field is less.
Static Gravity Field Anomalies
A map of groundwater storage trends for Earth's 37 largest aquifers using GRACE data, showing depletion and replenishment in millimeters of water per year. 
More
A map of groundwater storage trends for Earth's 37 largest aquifers using GRACE data, showing depletion and replenishment in millimeters of water per year.
Map of Groundwater Storage Trends for Earth's 37 Largest Aquifers
The GRACE-FO satellites were assembled by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany. The photo shows the satellites in the testing facility of IABG, an Airbus subcontractor, in Munich (view 1).
More
The GRACE-FO satellites were assembled by Airbus Defence and Space in Germany.
GRACE-FO Satellites During Testing
Illustration of GRACE-FO in orbit (view 5).
More
Illustration of GRACE-FO in orbit over Earth.
GRACE-FO in Orbit (View 5)
An artist's rendering of the twin GRACE-FO spacecraft.
More
An artist's rendering of the twin GRACE-FO spacecraft in orbit around Earth.
GRACE-FO Rendering
Illustration of GRACE-FO separating from Falcon 9 rocket after launch.
More
Illustration of GRACE-FO separating from Falcon 9 rocket after launch.
GRACE-FO Separating from Rocket After Launch
The rocket carrying GRACE-FO lifts off into a blue sky, with the Pacific Ocean beneath it.
More
The rocket carrying GRACE-FO lifts off into a blue sky, with the Pacific Ocean beneath it.
GRACE-FO Launch, Sky and Sea
GRACE-FO in a protective shipping container arriving at a new facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.  
More
GRACE-FO in a protective shipping container arriving at a new facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
GRACE-FO Arrives at Vandenberg
The GRACE-FO satellites, attached to turntable fixtures, at the Astrotech Space Operations processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. 
More
The GRACE-FO satellites, attached to turntable fixtures, at the Astrotech Space Operations processing facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California (view 2).
GRACE-FO Satellites at Vandenberg

You Might Also Like

GRACE and GRACE-FO observations are now addressing the crucial need for sustainable groundwater management practices to ensure water resiliency amidst ongoing climate challenges in California.
More
Data in Action: GRACE and GRACE-FO are used by California's Department of Water Resources for Groundwater Management Information
Data in Action: GRACE and GRACE-FO are used by California's Department of Water Resources for Groundwater Management Information
The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment-Continuity mission will extend a decades-long record of following shifting water masses using gravity measurements.
More
US, Germany Partnering on Mission to Track Earth's Water Movement
US, Germany Partnering on Mission to Track Earth's Water Movement
This immersive experience leverages satellite data to illustrate how climate change is impacting Earth’s water cycle.
More
Google's ‘A Passage of Water' Brings NASA's Water Data to Life
Google's ‘A Passage of Water' Brings NASA's Water Data to Life
Early data shows the greatest net gain of water over the winter in nearly 22 years, but the state’s groundwater levels still suffer from the effects of years of drought.
More
US-German Satellites Show California Water Gains After Record Winter
US-German Satellites Show California Water Gains After Record Winter
Scientists have predicted that droughts and floods will become more frequent and severe as our planet warms and climate changes, but detecting this on regional and continental scales has proven difficult. Now a new NASA-led study confirms that major droughts and pluvials – periods of excessive precipitation and water storage on land – have indeed been occurring more often.
More
Warming Makes Droughts, Extreme Wet Events More Frequent, Intense
Warming Makes Droughts, Extreme Wet Events More Frequent, Intense
In a recent study, scientists found that a previously unmeasured source – water percolating through soil and fractured rock below California’s Sierra Nevada mountains – delivers an average of 4 million acre feet (5 cubic kilometers) of water to the state’s Central Valley each year. This underground source accounts for about 10% of all the water that enters this highly productive farmland each year from every source (including river inflows and precipitation).
More
NASA Measures Underground Water Flowing From Sierra to Central Valley
NASA Measures Underground Water Flowing From Sierra to Central Valley