NASA Dawn Spacecraft Launches

Ft. Lauderdale (dbTechno) - After many delays the NASA Dawn spacecraft has launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The deputy director of NASA’s Planetary Science Division Jim Adams stated “It was a very nearly perfect launch. The spacecraft is safe, it is healthy, there is not a significant issue on board, they’re all minor.”

NASA is running tests to make sure everything onboard is fully functional. The launch was delayed right before the launch countdown hit zero when a civilian ship sailed into the drop zone where the rocket’s solid motors were supposed to land from the Delta II.

NASA called to delay the lift-off just minutes before it was supposed to take place. The Dawn is powered by the cool blue jet of an ion propulsion system. IT is on the way past Mars on a 3 billion mile journey. IT is heading into the heart of the asteroid belt.

It is expected to pass Mars in 2009 and will end its mission in July 2015 after it orbits the asteroid Vesta and dwarf planet Ceres.

Researchers are very hopeful that information will be revealed into the beginnings of the solar system as there could be clues out there in regards to this information.

Either way, NASA’s Dawn has launched.