The payload fairing protecting NASA's Mars Science Laboratory MSL stands atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket.

On Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, the payload fairing protecting NASA's Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) stands atop the 197-foot-tall United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, which is ready to roll from the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) to the launch pad at Space Launch Complex 41. The rocket began its move from the VIF at 8 a.m. EST and arrived at the pad at 8:40 a.m.

Liftoff is planned during a launch window which extends from 10:02 a.m. to 11:45 a.m. EST on Nov. 26. MSL's components include a car-sized rover, Curiosity, which has 10 science instruments designed to search for signs of life, including methane, and help determine if the gas is from a biological or geological source. For more information, visit http://www.nasa.gov/msl. Photo credit: NASA/Frankie Martin