NuSTAR Mated to its Rocket
Sunday, February 19, 2012 - 19:30
in Astronomy & Space
NASA's Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) was mated, or attached, to its Pegasus XL rocket Feb. 17, 2012 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in central California. The mission's launch is now scheduled for no earlier than March 21 to allow the launch vehicle team an additional week to complete necessary engineering reviews. NuSTAR will probe the hottest, densest and most energetic objects in space, including black holes and the remnants of exploded stars. It will be the first space telescope to capture sharp images in high-energy X-rays, giving astronomers a new tool for understanding the extreme side of our universe.