The latest Mars rover is scheduled to be launched this morning at 10:02 EST on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. The lanch vehicle was rolled out to Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station around 8 a.m. yesterday. It is reported that there is only a 30 percent chance of weather conditions that would prohibit liftoff.
The Mars Science Laboratory, as the rover is officially known, is scheduled to arrive at Mars in August 2012. The rover is the size of a Mini Cooper, much larger than previous Mars rovers, and is powered by a nuclear battery enabling the rover to operate further from the equator than would have been possible with only solar power. The goal of the rover is to assess whether Mars ever had an environment capable of supporting microbial life.
You can watch the launch on NASA TV.
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