NASA Selects United Launch Alliance's Workhorse Delta II Rocket for Three Future Missions

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Jul 16, 2012, 08:59 ET

CENTENNIAL, Colo., July 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA's Launch Services Program announced today that it selected United Launch Alliance's (ULA) proven Delta II launch vehicle for three future missions.

The newly contracted missions include Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) scheduled to launch in July 2014, Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) scheduled to launch in October 2014, and the Joint Polar Satellite System-1 (JPSS) scheduled to launch in 2016.

All three missions will launch from Space Launch Complex-2 at Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB) in California.

"ULA is honored NASA has selected the Delta II launch vehicle to launch these critical science payloads," said Michael Gass, ULA president and CEO. "While we count success one mission at a time, we have been able to count on the Delta II's success 97 times in a row over the last decade. This is a tribute to our dedicated ULA employees, our supplier teammates and our NASA Launch Services Program customer who ensure mission success is the focus of each and every launch."

ULA's Delta II has launched the majority of NASA's critical science missions over the last decade including the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity, Genesis, Phoenix Mars Lander, Stardust, the twin GRAIL spacecraft and most recently the NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California October 2011.

"The Delta II vehicle continues to offer excellent reliability and best value to our customers," said Gass. "We look forward to working with NASA for these future Delta II launch campaigns."

ULA's next launch is the Atlas V NROL-36 mission for the NRO scheduled Aug. 2 from Space Launch Complex-3 at VAFB, followed by the Atlas V Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission for NASA on Aug. 23 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

ULA program management, engineering, test, and mission support functions are headquartered in Denver, Colo. Manufacturing, assembly and integration operations are located at Decatur, Ala., and Harlingen, Texas. Launch operations are located at Cape Canaveral AFS, Fla., and Vandenberg AFB, Calif.

For more information on ULA, visit the ULA Web site at www.ulalaunch.com, or call the ULA Launch Hotline at 1-877-ULA-4321 (852-4321). Join the conversation at www.facebook.com/ulalaunch and twitter.com/ulalaunch.

SOURCE United Launch Alliance