A worker installs a protective blanket over the Stage 0 motor in preparation for its move to Space Launch Complex 576-E.

Inside the Orbital Sciences Corp. Building 1555 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, a worker installs a protective blanket over the Stage 0 motor in preparation for its move to Space Launch Complex 576-E, scheduled for Jan. 17. As part of the four-stage Taurus XL rocket that will carry NASA's Glory spacecraft into low Earth orbit, stages 1, 2 and 3 will join Stage 0 at the launch pad about a week later.

Once Glory reaches orbit, it will collect data on the properties of aerosols and black carbon. It also will help scientists understand how the sun's irradiance affects Earth's climate. Launch is scheduled for 5:09 a.m. EST Feb. 23. For information, visit www.nasa.gov/glory. Photo credit: NASA/Randy Beaudoin, VAFB