Kepler Launch

Astronomy & Space Headlines - Kepler Launch, Next Shuttle Launch, Costs Increase

The Kepler spacecraft and its Delta II rocket have been cleared to launch into space late Friday night following a thorough review by launch managers Monday.

Liftoff is scheduled for 10:49 p.m. EST. The Launch Services Program was joined by officials and engineers from the United Launch Alliance, the Kepler program and others to examine all aspects of the observatory and the launcher.

Kepler is a spaceborne telescope designed to search the nearby region of our galaxy for Earth-size planets orbiting in the habitable zone of stars like our sun. The habitable zone is the region around a star where temperatures permit water to be liquid on a planet's surface.

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