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Atlas V to Launch InSight

  • Rocket: Atlas V 401

  • Launch Date: Saturday, May 5, 2018

  • Launch Time: 4:05 a.m. PDT

  • Launch Broadcast: Live coverage begins at 3:30 a.m. PDT

  • Launch Location: Space Launch Complex-3, Vandenberg Air Force Base, California

Mission Information: NASA’s InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission will place a single geophysical lander on Mars to study its deep interior. The two-year InSight mission seeks to understand the evolutionary formation of rocky planets, including Earth, by investigating the interior structure and processes of Mars. InSight will also investigate the dynamics of Martian tectonic activity and meteorite impacts, which could offer clues about such phenomena on Earth.

Launch Notes: InSight will be the first interplanetary mission launched from the West Coast, thanks to the performance of the Atlas V rocket, which also will launch two CubeSats. InSight will be the 38th Atlas V rocket to launch in the 401 configuration and the 78th Atlas V to launch since the inaugural flight in 2002. ULA and its heritage rockets have launched every U.S.-led mission to Mars, including the Spirit, Opportunity and Curiosity rovers as well as the MAVEN satellite.

Launch Updates: To keep up to speed with updates to the launch countdown, dial the ULA launch hotline at 1-877-852-4321 or join the conversation at www.facebook.com/ulalaunch, twitter.com/ulalaunch and instagram.com/ulalaunch; hashtag #AtlasV.

Go Atlas! Go Centaur! InSight!

Atlas V 401

The Atlas V 401 is the workhorse of the Atlas V fleet, delivering about half of all Atlas V missions to date. In its more than 15 years of service, the 401 has launched a diverse set of missions including national security, science and exploration, commercial and International Space Station resupply.

 


NASA’s InSight (Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) mission will place a single geophysical lander on Mars to study its deep interior.

Download the Mission Overview

Space Launch Complex-3

Space Launch Complex-3 (SLC-3) is ULA's West Coast launch pad for the Atlas V rocket. In contrast to Atlas V operations at Cape Canaveral, at SLC-3 launch vehicle integration and testing, spacecraft mate and integrated operations happen in the Mobile Service Tower (MST). A few hours before launch, we roll the MST to its park position approximately 250 feet southeast of the rocket.