Atlas V Lucy Launch, Photo Courtesy Carleton Bailie, Spaceline
Atlas V Launches Lucy Mission To Trojan Asteroids
A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket successfully launched the Lucy spacecraft for NASA at 5:34 a.m. EDT today from Launch Pad 41 on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Launch was on time with no delays. The Atlas V was launched in the 401 configuration, featuring a 4-meter payload fairing, no solid rocket boosters and a single-engine Centaur upper stage. Lucy is the first spacecraft to visit and study the Trojan Asteroids, a group of asteroids that orbit the Sun in two loose groups, one group leading ahead of Jupiter and the other group trailing behind Jupiter. Lucy's complex path will take it to both clusters of Trojans and is the first spacecraft to visit so many objects positioned in independent orbits around the sun. The mission is set to last about 12 years and is intended to shed light on the origin of the solar system.
Atlas V Lucy Streak Shot, Photo Courtesy United Launch Alliance