Launch of Mission to Study Earth's Atmosphere and Oceans (Official NASA Broadcast)

NASA

Our Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission will study what makes Earth so different from every other planet we study: life itself.   Three-quarters of our home planet is covered by water, and PACE’s advanced instruments will provide new ways to measure the distributions of microscopic algae known as phytoplankton near the ocean’s surface. Those observations will enhance our understanding of the crucial exchange of CO2 between the ocean and atmosphere.   At the same time, PACE will help reveal how aerosols – microscopic particles in the atmosphere – and clouds control the amount of the Sun’s energy that is absorbed by Earth. Novel uses of PACE data will benefit our economy and society, and it will extend and expand NASA’s long-term observations of our living planet.     PACE is scheduled to lift off at 1:33 a.m. EST (0633 UTC) Thursday, Feb. 8, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. NASA's live launch coverage begins at 12:45 a.m. EST (0545 UTC).   Discover more about PACE: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/pace/

Transcript

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00:00:47 You are looking live at Space Launch Complex 40

00:00:54 on Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

00:00:57 In about 47 minutes, the SpaceX Falcon 9

00:00:59 will launch PACE, NASA's newest Earth-observing satellite

00:01:03 to help monitor our planet and its changing climate.

00:01:07 Hello, and thank you for joining us

00:01:09 on this early morning from Kennedy Space Center

00:01:11 in Florida.

00:01:12 I'm NASA's Jasmine Hopkins, and we

00:01:14 are counting down to launch PACE.

00:01:16 That's the Plankton Aerosol Cloud Ocean Ecosystem.

00:01:19 And joining us today to talk about this mission

00:01:21 is Laura Lorenzoni, NASA's program scientist

00:01:24 for the Ocean Biology and Biogeochemistry Program.

00:01:27 That is a mouthful.

00:01:29 Welcome, Laura.

00:01:30 Thank you so much, Jasmine.

00:01:31 It is such an honor to be here with all of you,

00:01:33 near and far, and witness history in the making.

00:01:36 And third time is the charm.

00:01:38 Yes, third time is the charm.

00:01:39 That's right, Laura.

00:01:40 This is the third launch attempt for PACE

00:01:42 after the first two attempts were

00:01:44 postponed due to weather conditions earlier this week.

00:01:46 But weather is looking much better today.

00:01:49 We are about 95% go, and we are back and ready to try again.

00:01:54 Launch is set for 133 and 36 seconds Eastern time.

00:01:58 So how does it feel to finally be here for launch, Laura?

00:02:01 It feels unbelievable.

00:02:03 We've been waiting anxiously all week for PACE to launch.

00:02:07 And it is really--

00:02:09 it's going to be an amazing launch.

00:02:10 Night launches are just incredible.

00:02:13 But this one is going to be just unbelievable because it's PACE.

00:02:15 And it's going to be great on TV,

00:02:18 but feeling the excitement here and just living this together

00:02:22 is just amazing.

00:02:23 Right, we'll get to feel the rumble on the ground,

00:02:25 all that good stuff.

00:02:26 But Laura, you've been waiting for this for a long time.

00:02:28 You've been working the mission three years,

00:02:29 and some people have been working it for decades, right?

00:02:32 That is correct.

00:02:33 So PACE has been around for about a couple of decades,

00:02:36 the concept of PACE and building PACE.

00:02:39 And it's really going to revolutionize

00:02:41 the way that we look at our ocean and our atmosphere

00:02:43 together.

00:02:43 It's going to help us understand how these systems are changing.

00:02:47 And this is really important.

00:02:48 This is one of the reasons why NASA

00:02:49 has such a strong commitment with Earth observations.

00:02:52 Right, and I really want to ask, what are you most looking

00:02:55 forward to seeing from PACE?

00:02:57 I am most excited about what I don't know

00:03:00 is going to come out of PACE.

00:03:01 It's such a revolutionary satellite

00:03:04 with groundbreaking instruments.

00:03:06 And these data are really going to help us understand

00:03:09 how the system--

00:03:10 how the Earth system is interconnected.

00:03:12 And all of you out there that are

00:03:13 going to be using those PACE data

00:03:14 are going to give us some pretty amazing applications that we

00:03:17 haven't even thought about.

00:03:19 So it's extremely exciting to be living this with all of you.

00:03:22 Right, there is a lot of excitement in the unknown.

00:03:23 And we can't wait to see what the public will

00:03:25 do with this data as well.

00:03:26 So thank you so much for answering my questions, Laura.

00:03:28 And for those of you watching online,

00:03:31 you can also ask Laura your questions.

00:03:32 Send them in using #AskNASA across our social media

00:03:36 platforms to be answered live during today's program.

00:03:39 So we are now about T-minus 45 minutes until liftoff of PACE.

00:03:44 So let's take a closer look at the satellite.

00:03:47 The PACE satellite has a maximum weight of 3,748 pounds.

00:03:52 And at 5 feet long, 5 feet wide, and 10 feet high,

00:03:55 it's about the size of a large SUV.

00:03:57 It will take about 12 and 1/2 minutes

00:03:59 to enter its orbit of 420 miles above the Earth's surface.

00:04:03 And it will orbit the Earth every 98.3 minutes,

00:04:07 so about the same time it takes you to watch a movie.

00:04:10 PACE will travel at 16,800 miles per hour

00:04:13 using monopropellant hydrazine for its eight thruster

00:04:16 propulsion system.

00:04:17 And the PACE satellite has been on the space coast

00:04:20 for a few months now.

00:04:21 It arrived back in November at the Astrotech Space Operations

00:04:24 Facility here in Florida.

00:04:26 And it was unboxed, processed, and then

00:04:28 attached to the payload adapter and the payload adapter

00:04:30 fitting.

00:04:31 Last week, it was encapsulated in the payload fairings

00:04:34 before being transported to Space Launch Complex 40.

00:04:38 The PACE satellite is now poised and ready for launch.

00:04:42 Now, let's take a closer look at the mission

00:04:44 with some social questions for our ocean expert, Laura

00:04:48 Lorenzoni.

00:04:48 We appreciate you for sending those in using #AskNASA.

00:04:52 And we ask you to continue sending them

00:04:53 in during today's broadcast.

00:04:55 Our first question comes from someone called HiQ.

00:05:01 And they ask, NASA has studied Earth's atmosphere

00:05:04 in the past.

00:05:05 What is it that you hope to learn

00:05:07 that you didn't already know?

00:05:09 That is an excellent question.

00:05:11 And one of the things that we're really

00:05:12 looking to better understand is that relationship

00:05:15 between the atmosphere and the ocean,

00:05:17 and in particular, aerosols.

00:05:19 And so we know that the ocean produces aerosols.

00:05:21 And these are also very important for cloud formation.

00:05:24 And there are different types of aerosols.

00:05:26 And so PACE is going to have two polarimeters looking

00:05:29 at our atmosphere.

00:05:30 And these aerosols are really critical for climate

00:05:32 regulation.

00:05:33 And it is one of the biggest uncertainties

00:05:35 we have when we look at climate models.

00:05:37 And these models are really, really essential for us

00:05:39 to be able to understand where we are now

00:05:41 and where we're going into the future.

00:05:42 So PACE is really going to be able to help us better

00:05:45 constrain our climate and understand

00:05:47 what we should expect.

00:05:49 Right.

00:05:49 Thank you so much for answering that question, Laura.

00:05:51 We have another one coming to us from Instagram.

00:05:54 Armando_305 on Instagram asks, will these studies

00:05:59 help us learn more about red tides?

00:06:01 Excellent question, Armando.

00:06:03 And absolutely.

00:06:04 So PACE has one or the other.

00:06:07 And it's the key instrument that PACE has

00:06:09 is the ocean color instrument.

00:06:11 And as the name indicate, it looks

00:06:12 at the color of the ocean.

00:06:14 But it looks at it in a way that is hyperspectral.

00:06:16 And every phytoplankton-- and these

00:06:18 are the small algae that live in the ocean that

00:06:20 are the base of the food web.

00:06:21 They have different size and shapes.

00:06:24 And they each absorb light differently.

00:06:27 And this is like a fingerprint.

00:06:29 And so by knowing what kind of species are there,

00:06:32 because this is what PACE is going to enable,

00:06:34 we're going to be able to know which is a good phytoplankton,

00:06:37 which one is a misbehaving phytoplankton.

00:06:40 And this is going to help us then better understand

00:06:42 the distribution of harmful algae blooms

00:06:44 and also predict where they might occur.

00:06:46 Right.

00:06:47 So people online really want to know

00:06:49 a lot about these tiny particles, these phytoplankton.

00:06:51 So Khan_Sadi on YouTube also sent us a question.

00:06:54 He says, what kind of data does the phytoplankton

00:06:56 on the surface give?

00:06:59 So basically, it's light what we're looking at.

00:07:01 And so this, again, this very particular light signal,

00:07:04 so color, is what we're going to be looking for.

00:07:06 And we're going to learn more about that as we

00:07:09 share this morning with you.

00:07:10 Exactly.

00:07:10 Yeah, a lot more to learn about these tiny phytoplankton

00:07:13 microorganisms that live in the ocean.

00:07:15 So clearly, there is a lot to unpack.

00:07:18 There's a lot to know about this PACE mission.

00:07:20 We ask that you please continue to send us your questions

00:07:22 using #AskNASA.

00:07:25 But because there is so much to learn about PACE,

00:07:27 Laura and I won't be the only ones that you hear from today.

00:07:31 We also have NASA's Megan Cruz standing by at a nearby launch

00:07:34 viewing location to introduce you

00:07:36 to some of the key people behind this mission.

00:07:38 But first, let's check in with our launch commentators

00:07:40 Daryl Nail and Mick Woltman over at Hangar AE.

00:07:43 Thank you very much, Jasmine and Laura.

00:07:45 And welcome into Hangar AE.

00:07:47 I'm Daryl Nail, joined by Mick Woltman,

00:07:49 a guy who has 30 years plus of experience in the rocket

00:07:53 industry.

00:07:53 So we're glad to have your expertise here.

00:07:55 Let's talk first about the weather.

00:07:57 It was a big deal the past few days.

00:07:59 In fact, it canceled a couple of launch attempts

00:08:01 for the first two calendar dates that we had.

00:08:04 Low pressure system came over the state.

00:08:06 Lots of wind, too high to go.

00:08:09 But in the end, on the third day,

00:08:13 well, we had nearly perfect conditions.

00:08:15 We are more than 95%--

00:08:17 Yeah, more than 95%.

00:08:18 Absolutely, the last couple of days,

00:08:20 it's been a 60-plus percent possibility violation

00:08:24 due to the weather.

00:08:25 But as you said, it is clear tonight.

00:08:26 The weather looks really great.

00:08:28 Launch weather officer briefed us just a few minutes ago.

00:08:30 And everything is absolutely perfect for a launch

00:08:33 early this morning.

00:08:34 And there's a look at the rocket and the spacecraft

00:08:37 on Space Launch Complex 40 out there at the Space Launch

00:08:43 Complex 40, Slick 40 as they like to call it.

00:08:46 And you'll see the spacecraft at the top of the rocket.

00:08:49 The booster is reused.

00:08:51 We'll get a little bit more into that later on.

00:08:53 But we are getting ready to flow propellants into the rocket.

00:08:57 You can see some of the condensation

00:08:59 from the tank farm for the liquid oxygen kind of blowing

00:09:03 around there.

00:09:04 We don't have any propellants in there yet,

00:09:05 but we're about to go.

00:09:07 You mentioned the weather.

00:09:08 In fact, they dropped the weather brief

00:09:10 that they do shortly before going with the propellants.

00:09:14 So it's that good out there, folks.

00:09:17 Let's talk a little bit about the trajectory.

00:09:19 This is the first time in 60 years

00:09:21 that we're getting a Cape polar trajectory going out

00:09:26 of a mission with NASA.

00:09:29 Yeah, absolutely.

00:09:30 We're going to be taking this Cape polar

00:09:32 trajectory, which is unique.

00:09:33 We're going to hear about that a little bit later

00:09:35 from one of our analysts.

00:09:36 But looking forward to this.

00:09:38 Normally, we would launch out of Vandenberg,

00:09:40 but tonight it's going to be the Cape.

00:09:42 Let's listen to that pole.

00:09:44 [AUDIO OUT]

00:09:47 Well, we did hear the pole by the NLM given at T minus 44

00:10:01 minutes, and so that was good to go.

00:10:03 We expect that these poles will get a go,

00:10:08 as weather is green across the board.

00:10:10 And we've already checked with the spacecraft team

00:10:13 they're good to go as well.

00:10:14 Yes, absolutely.

00:10:16 NASA's Launch Manager Tim Dunn polled the NASA team

00:10:18 and the spacecraft team just before T minus 44 minutes,

00:10:23 and things looked really great there.

00:10:25 Team reporting go across the board,

00:10:27 getting ready to load propellants

00:10:28 as we get ready to start.

00:10:30 So about T minus 35 in about three minutes,

00:10:33 we'll get ready to start LOX and RP-1 loading.

00:10:38 SpaceX has a number of poles that they do as well.

00:10:42 All of this counting down to propellant load,

00:10:52 which happens at T minus 35 minutes and counting.

00:10:57 Yeah, correct, Darrell.

00:10:59 As we get ready to go, the team is definitely

00:11:01 looking at everything, making sure there's--

00:11:03 checking things through the procedure,

00:11:05 making sure the vehicle is ready.

00:11:07 And these poles that we have through the evening,

00:11:10 or early this morning, verify that all the systems

00:11:14 are ready.

00:11:14 And as we said, we heard that poll from NASA earlier,

00:11:17 and SpaceX will continue moving forward,

00:11:19 getting ready for propellant load.

00:11:21 This is a unique trajectory.

00:11:23 As we mentioned, Pace is flying today,

00:11:26 the first time in over 60 years NASA

00:11:28 is flying in a polar orbit from the space coast of Florida.

00:11:34 I'm joined by flight design analyst

00:11:36 Jimmy Smith with Launch Services Program.

00:11:39 You did the flight trajectory for the Pace mission.

00:11:42 Tell me, it's kind of unique.

00:11:43 We're launching initially east, but then heading south.

00:11:46 Why is that?

00:11:47 Yeah, so Pace is going to a sun synchronous orbit, which

00:11:51 means it's going to be a near polar orbit at about 98.1

00:11:54 degree inclination.

00:11:55 So we have to launch east and then dogleg to the right

00:12:01 to make it to our inclination target.

00:12:03 Now, we get into this orbit pretty fast, only 12 minutes.

00:12:06 And you're separating off the rocket.

00:12:08 Yes, we are direct inject to the target orbit, which

00:12:11 means we just have one long burn, about a seven

00:12:13 minute burn of the upper stage, to get us to the desired orbit.

00:12:17 And it's a steep climb on the way out.

00:12:19 Yes, so by the time the upper stage of the vehicle

00:12:22 gets to around the West Palm area,

00:12:24 we're already at 180 miles up.

00:12:26 And then by the time it crosses over the homestead to Cuba area,

00:12:30 it's already beyond the altitude of the International Space

00:12:33 Station.

00:12:33 Most launchers know as the rocket takes off east,

00:12:36 you kind of lose sight of it as it disappears on the horizon.

00:12:39 But this is going south.

00:12:40 Will people along the coast of Florida be able to see it?

00:12:43 Yes, so especially people along the Space Coast

00:12:46 will have a really tremendous view of the rocket's ascent

00:12:49 and pitch over to start heading south, and then also

00:12:53 the return to launch site of the booster.

00:12:57 People as far south as West Palm should

00:12:59 get a pretty good view.

00:13:00 If you haven't seen a booster come back,

00:13:02 it's always a pretty cool show.

00:13:04 Jimmy Smith, thank you very much for explaining that for us.

00:13:06 Thank you.

00:13:07 Back out to the pad there, the Falcon 9 rocket,

00:13:13 standing ready for propellant load in just about 30 seconds

00:13:17 from now.

00:13:17 Yeah, while you were talking to Jimmy,

00:13:24 we heard SpaceX Launch Director Charlie Meyer

00:13:27 give instructions to the team getting ready for propellant

00:13:29 load, Darrell.

00:13:30 And as he gave those instructions,

00:13:32 everybody looked like they were ready to go.

00:13:34 So we'll start RP-1 and LOX load here in about 10 seconds.

00:13:37 Launch auto sequence has started.

00:13:48 And there is the call.

00:13:50 They're now flowing RP-1, which is a refined type of kerosene

00:13:55 rocket fuel, into the first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket.

00:14:00 So it begins.

00:14:00 We'll be tracking the propellant load as we go.

00:14:03 Let's take a quick look at the weather graphic

00:14:05 for the conditions right now.

00:14:08 I want to show you that before we peel out of here.

00:14:10 You can see the winds 15 to 20 miles per hour out

00:14:13 of the north, temperature a cool 59 degrees,

00:14:16 and our percent go greater than 95%.

00:14:20 The only concern is a possible cumulus cloud

00:14:23 that could come over top.

00:14:24 But it doesn't look like that's in the offing today.

00:14:27 A fantastic forecast for launch.

00:14:30 And with that, we'll send it back to Jasmine and Laura

00:14:33 in the studio.

00:14:35 Thank you, Darrell and Mick.

00:14:36 Wow, more than 95% go.

00:14:38 That is great to see.

00:14:39 So as we just heard, those callouts

00:14:41 for loading liquid oxygen will pause

00:14:43 throughout today's broadcast for those operational updates

00:14:46 so you can follow along with the action.

00:14:48 Now let's check back in with NASA's Megan Cruz, who's

00:14:50 standing by with the PACE project scientist.

00:14:53 Megan?

00:14:57 The space center with me right now is Jeremy Werdel.

00:15:00 He is, as Jasmine said, the PACE project scientist.

00:15:03 Good morning to you.

00:15:05 Good morning to you.

00:15:06 How are you feeling being here?

00:15:07 Exhausted and exhilarated.

00:15:09 Do you know what time it is?

00:15:10 I do know what time it is, yes.

00:15:11 We are very close to launch.

00:15:13 That's why we're here.

00:15:14 So yeah, talk to me about how important

00:15:15 are oceans, which are beautifully

00:15:17 depicted on your shirt, actually.

00:15:18 Thank you for appreciating that.

00:15:20 Oceans are incredibly important.

00:15:21 They produce much of the food that we eat and the oxygen

00:15:24 that we breathe.

00:15:25 But they also regulate climate and weather.

00:15:27 They provide compounds used in medicines.

00:15:29 They provide for our economy through jobs and recreation.

00:15:32 And we know they're changing with Earth's warming climate.

00:15:35 But there's so much left we have to discover and to study.

00:15:40 And there are things that are happening

00:15:42 on daily scales that affect our everyday lives

00:15:44 to generational scales that affect the quality

00:15:46 of the lives of our children.

00:15:48 Right.

00:15:48 So then what will PACE reveal to us about the oceans

00:15:51 that we don't already know?

00:15:53 Its reason for being primarily is

00:15:55 the study of this amazing, microscopic, mostly invisible

00:15:59 living ocean, Target or phytoplankton.

00:16:01 They operate just like land plants,

00:16:03 but they're these beautiful, teeny, tiny algae.

00:16:06 Convert carbon dioxide into cellular material

00:16:08 that provides the base of the food chain.

00:16:10 Sometimes that carbon gets sequestered or stored

00:16:13 in the ocean for millennia.

00:16:16 Reason we really care about them is we

00:16:18 know that they're changing.

00:16:19 And there are beneficial ones that feed fisheries.

00:16:21 There are harmful ones that close beaches,

00:16:23 contaminate drinking water.

00:16:25 But the ocean is big, right?

00:16:26 So we need the vantage point of space to study them.

00:16:29 Perfect.

00:16:30 So today we are really great at saying, I see phytoplankton.

00:16:33 In an hour, we'll have tools in the toolbox

00:16:35 to tell you what communities are there.

00:16:37 I love that.

00:16:37 And we're not only focusing on the ocean.

00:16:39 PACE is also looking at the Earth's atmosphere.

00:16:41 Exactly.

00:16:41 The ocean and the atmosphere are super interconnected.

00:16:44 And you can't understand one without understanding

00:16:46 the other.

00:16:46 So PACE will provide these beautiful, direct measurements

00:16:49 of clouds and atmospheric aerosols, which

00:16:51 are anything that range from pollen to sea spray

00:16:53 to volcanic ash.

00:16:54 You care about this because they inform on air quality,

00:16:58 on short scales, and on long scales.

00:17:00 You want to understand how clouds

00:17:01 and these teeny tiny aerosols are warming and cooling

00:17:04 our atmosphere.

00:17:05 Yeah, I love that.

00:17:05 That we're going so far up the vantage point of space,

00:17:08 like you said, to see this ee, see teen, see bit of things

00:17:11 that really help us understand our Earth.

00:17:13 That's right.

00:17:14 You heard me right.

00:17:15 From 400 miles above Earth, we're

00:17:16 going to see the microscopic ocean and atmosphere.

00:17:18 Great.

00:17:19 Jeremy, thank you so much.

00:17:19 I do know that you're tired.

00:17:21 But I think it'll be worth the wait to stay up and see

00:17:23 the launch today.

00:17:23 It was worth it.

00:17:24 So everybody could see the shirt.

00:17:25 Awesome.

00:17:25 Thank you so much.

00:17:26 Thank you.

00:17:27 I really appreciate you being here.

00:17:28 Appreciate it, too.

00:17:29 Back to you, Jasmine.

00:17:31 Thank you so much, Jeremy and Megan.

00:17:33 So as you just heard, once space is in orbit above the Earth,

00:17:36 it will help us observe plankton,

00:17:38 which are tiny organisms that live in the ocean.

00:17:40 So let's take a closer look at how these small life forms are

00:17:43 having a big impact on the planet.

00:17:45 Plankton generally doesn't really

00:17:51 mean like a taxonomic group of things.

00:17:55 We think about mammals and then plants.

00:17:57 And plankton are not that.

00:17:59 Plankton are really defined by the way they live.

00:18:02 Plankton means a wanderer in Greek.

00:18:05 And these are just oceanic organisms

00:18:07 that really just don't swim that fast that they

00:18:09 can fight the ocean currents.

00:18:11 It's a really non-traditional way

00:18:13 of thinking about biology, in a sense.

00:18:17 Plankton, we can define traditionally in zooplankton,

00:18:22 so something that is kind of more animal-like,

00:18:24 and phytoplankton, something that is more plant-like.

00:18:27 All phytoplankton does is what we call photosynthesis.

00:18:30 They take carbon dioxide and carbon in organic form,

00:18:34 capture some of the sunlight, and then

00:18:36 produce carbohydrates, or just simply said sugars.

00:18:40 They now are carrying that sun energy

00:18:43 and push it into the food system of the ocean.

00:18:45 And while they're doing all that stuff,

00:18:46 they also produce the oxygen. So opposite from us.

00:18:49 We inhale oxygen, exhale carbon dioxide.

00:18:51 So that's why they're really important.

00:18:53 That's why we love them so much.

00:18:54 And that's why they're really crucial for the whole life

00:18:57 on the Earth.

00:19:01 Phytoplankton itself, its diversity is gigantic.

00:19:05 I think there's like 10,000 species, and each of them

00:19:07 has a specific role.

00:19:09 Why is there so much diversity in something

00:19:11 that is so teeny tiny?

00:19:12 It's fantasy, science fiction, and horror comes together.

00:19:15 I mean, it's just so beautiful.

00:19:17 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:19:22 So the changes of the color of the ocean

00:19:25 due to the presence of this phytoplankton

00:19:27 are just so miniature.

00:19:29 We cannot see it with our eyes.

00:19:31 But if we have sensitive instruments,

00:19:33 such as ocean color instrument on pace,

00:19:36 we're going to be able to differentiate, not only because

00:19:38 it's sensitive to the intensity, but it's also

00:19:40 sensitive to the colors.

00:19:42 Having this hyper spectral view, with really

00:19:45 high sensitivity, is going to allow

00:19:47 me to differentiate much, much more of the phytoplankton.

00:19:50 Because each of them, or at least each group,

00:19:52 has its own optical patterns.

00:19:55 It's an optical fingerprint.

00:19:57 We're hoping that space, due to its capabilities,

00:20:00 is going to be able to really focus

00:20:03 on specific species of interest, such as the harmful algal bloom

00:20:06 species, or species that are very

00:20:08 beneficial for the growth of certain organisms.

00:20:12 The speciation is a function of the technical abilities

00:20:16 that PACE has.

00:20:17 But it's also a function of our capabilities

00:20:20 to understand the local ecosystem.

00:20:22 [MUSIC PLAYING]

00:20:28 Joining us now live in person to talk more about phytoplankton

00:20:31 is NASA oceanographer Ivana Cetinic.

00:20:34 Thank you for being here.

00:20:35 Thank you for having me.

00:20:36 Of course.

00:20:36 We're really excited to have you.

00:20:38 So as you know, the space coast of Florida

00:20:40 sits on the Atlantic Ocean.

00:20:41 So you took a field trip down to the water

00:20:43 to get a phytoplankton sample.

00:20:45 Can you walk us through what you did?

00:20:47 Definitely.

00:20:47 So together with my colleague, Bridget Seegers,

00:20:50 we went on just really close by here,

00:20:53 on the dock on Kennedy's side.

00:20:55 And we deployed a plankton net.

00:20:57 And plankton net is something that we use in oceanography

00:21:00 to actually see what is in the ocean,

00:21:02 like see with a microscope.

00:21:04 So imagine this plankton net being something

00:21:06 of a butterfly net for plankton.

00:21:09 But the pore size, these holes in that net

00:21:11 are so teeny tiny that your hair cannot pass through it.

00:21:13 And therefore, that allows us to capture everything

00:21:15 that is in the water.

00:21:16 Phytoplankton, zooplankton, all these planktons,

00:21:19 and sometimes some other things that just

00:21:21 fall from the atmosphere.

00:21:22 So we have collected a lot that day,

00:21:24 because this area is really, really thick with phytoplankton.

00:21:28 So yeah, that's just something that we

00:21:31 do to kind of like see what is in the ocean.

00:21:33 And sometimes we look at it from the sky.

00:21:35 Right.

00:21:35 Awesome.

00:21:36 So you went and collected this sample of phytoplankton

00:21:38 here for us?

00:21:39 Yes.

00:21:40 OK.

00:21:40 Here it is.

00:21:41 This can't be seen, of course, with the naked eye.

00:21:43 So you also have a microscope.

00:21:45 And you are going to teach Laura and I how

00:21:47 to observe phytoplankton, right?

00:21:48 Yes.

00:21:49 So once we collect the sample, we're

00:21:51 going to use these really traditional tools

00:21:53 to observe them.

00:21:54 I'm just going to take a little droplet of this water

00:21:56 that we have collected and show you the beauty

00:21:58 in this droplet of water.

00:22:01 Pretty simple.

00:22:01 You go there.

00:22:02 You pick up some water.

00:22:04 You put it in a microscope slide.

00:22:06 Put this inside.

00:22:07 We don't need this anymore.

00:22:09 And I'm going to slide it under.

00:22:10 And we're going to see what we're going to see.

00:22:12 I don't know.

00:22:13 Some magic, maybe.

00:22:14 Some party people.

00:22:15 Yeah.

00:22:16 Oh, wow.

00:22:17 OK.

00:22:17 Very nice.

00:22:18 OK.

00:22:19 Oh, wow.

00:22:19 Yeah.

00:22:20 OK.

00:22:20 So what you're seeing here in the middle of this line,

00:22:23 it's called a diatom.

00:22:26 There's actually four or five different little cells

00:22:28 together.

00:22:29 And the little dots inside are these chloroplasts

00:22:31 that they have, which is the green color that

00:22:34 allows us to see it from space.

00:22:37 Usually, I would expect some runners running around here,

00:22:40 which are little flagellates, which are sometimes animals,

00:22:43 sometimes plants.

00:22:43 They can do both things.

00:22:44 But these guys in the center are really fascinating

00:22:47 because these are the type of phytoplankton

00:22:48 that lives in a glass shell.

00:22:50 And they're really, really good for carbon export.

00:22:52 Right.

00:22:52 Yeah.

00:22:53 Really fascinating.

00:22:54 Yeah.

00:22:54 That really is fascinating.

00:22:55 Our audience out there, they have a great view on screen.

00:22:57 We have a beautiful view right behind you, too, Ivana.

00:22:59 So as we're kind of looking in this jar,

00:23:02 we see this kind of dirt or something at the bottom there.

00:23:05 It actually has color, right?

00:23:06 So where does that color for the phytoplankton come from, Laura?

00:23:11 It's within the different phytoplankton species.

00:23:13 And so each phytoplankton has a different size,

00:23:16 different shape, and different pigments.

00:23:17 And so that is what sets them aside from one another.

00:23:20 And that's just like a fingerprint.

00:23:22 And this is where PACE is so critical,

00:23:24 because being able to see the entire spectrum from the UV

00:23:27 to the near-infrared at such a fine resolution,

00:23:30 it's going to be able to help us pick out

00:23:32 what kind of species are in different types of water,

00:23:35 and what is the community composition, which

00:23:37 is really critical for a number of functions

00:23:39 that our ocean performs for us.

00:23:41 Right, so before in the past, we could kind of

00:23:43 see there was something there.

00:23:44 Now we can identify what is really in the water.

00:23:46 So what does ocean color really tell us about ocean health,

00:23:49 Ivana?

00:23:50 That's a great question.

00:23:51 By the way, there's like one little swimmer.

00:23:53 Oh, yeah, wow, look at him.

00:23:54 He's swimming around.

00:23:56 So again, ocean color is highly dependent on phytoplankton

00:23:59 that lives in there.

00:24:00 And phytoplankton is based on marine food web.

00:24:03 So it's really directly connected to everything

00:24:05 that we care about in the ocean, even

00:24:07 like charismatic megafauna, but fisheries that we depend on.

00:24:10 But the biggest, biggest, in my perspective,

00:24:13 service that ocean does and phytoplankton does

00:24:15 is this carbon control, control of the carbon flux in the ocean.

00:24:19 These little guys that I'm showing here,

00:24:21 these diatoms, are really, really crucial

00:24:23 because they're very good in taking this carbon

00:24:25 from the surface and taking it down deep into the ocean,

00:24:27 removing it from the contact with the atmosphere,

00:24:30 and therefore allowing this carbon to flow,

00:24:32 and in a sense, controlling our climate.

00:24:33 Right, we're really kind of seeing the Earth ecosystem

00:24:35 come together for the first time with PACE.

00:24:37 Awesome.

00:24:38 Thank you so much, Ivana, for that explainer.

00:24:39 We really appreciate it.

00:24:40 Now let's check back in with Megan Cruz, who's

00:24:42 standing by with one of our key scientists from Goddard.

00:24:45 Megan?

00:24:46 Yeah, welcome back here to OSB2, which is a viewing location

00:24:49 here at Kennedy Space Center.

00:24:51 And I'm with Krista Peters-Ledard.

00:24:53 She's the director of sciences and exploration

00:24:55 at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

00:24:57 Great to have you here.

00:24:58 What a great night for a launch.

00:25:00 Yes, thank you.

00:25:01 We're all excited.

00:25:02 So talk to us about how PACE fits

00:25:04 into NASA's broader goal of Earth science research.

00:25:08 Yeah, so PACE is going to be part of our amazing Earth

00:25:12 science fleet.

00:25:13 And it is going to revolutionize our understanding of the ocean.

00:25:17 So we are going to use our recently launched satellite,

00:25:20 the Surface Water and Ocean Topography Mission, SWOT,

00:25:23 which tells us about the height of the ocean.

00:25:25 And then PACE will tell us about the biology of the ocean.

00:25:28 So combining the two together will

00:25:30 give us an unprecedented understanding

00:25:33 of how our oceans work.

00:25:34 And that's really important for understanding climate change

00:25:38 and how the Earth as a system will

00:25:40 respond through the carbon cycle,

00:25:43 as well as the water cycle, to changes.

00:25:45 Yeah, really great science that's

00:25:47 being done on this mission.

00:25:48 But then how do people, everyday people,

00:25:50 how are they affected by what we learn through PACE?

00:25:52 Yeah, so PACE really will impact three key applications areas.

00:25:57 So the first is fisheries.

00:26:00 The second is water quality.

00:26:01 And the third is air quality.

00:26:03 Fisheries are so important because we eat fish

00:26:07 and we enjoy it.

00:26:08 And the base of the food chain comes

00:26:11 from the phytoplankton and algae that PACE

00:26:13 will help us to understand.

00:26:15 In addition, though, there are harmful algae

00:26:18 that can affect the water quality.

00:26:20 We are in Florida, where beachgoers might not

00:26:22 be able to go to a beach because it's closed.

00:26:25 And so understanding those types of not so good algae

00:26:28 will help us impact our ability to predict that.

00:26:32 And then finally, air quality.

00:26:33 So when wildfires happen, the dust and the smoke

00:26:38 transports downwind.

00:26:40 And so the aerosol measurements from PACE

00:26:42 will help us to know where it is, how much is there,

00:26:45 and then how much might impact downstream people.

00:26:48 Crystal, really quick, what's next after PACE?

00:26:51 PACE really sets us up for some really great science

00:26:53 in the future.

00:26:54 Oh, yes.

00:26:54 So the technology and science from PACE

00:26:57 will feed into our next initiative, which

00:26:59 is the Earth System Observatory.

00:27:01 And being able to use those technologies from aerosol

00:27:05 and clouds, understanding our Earth as a system,

00:27:08 will help us to predict the future

00:27:11 and how climate and the Earth system will react.

00:27:14 So it's great.

00:27:15 Crystal, thank you so much.

00:27:16 I can feel your excitement.

00:27:17 I really appreciate you being here.

00:27:19 Yeah, thank you so much.

00:27:20 And go PACE.

00:27:20 Jazmin, back to you.

00:27:22 Thank you so much, Megan.

00:27:23 So now Laura and I have some pictures

00:27:25 to show you, one with only eight crayons

00:27:27 to demonstrate our current view of ocean color with satellites,

00:27:30 but one with 128 crayons to show you

00:27:34 where we are going to go with PACE and its instruments.

00:27:37 So let's talk about this, Laura.

00:27:38 How are we going from this to this?

00:27:40 We've come a long way, Jazmin.

00:27:42 And our heritage ocean color started back in 1978

00:27:45 with the Coastal Zone Color Scanner,

00:27:47 a totally revolutionary instrument

00:27:49 that allowed us to actually see how dynamic our ocean is.

00:27:53 And the Coastal Zone Color Scanner

00:27:55 was what we call a multispectral instrument.

00:27:57 So basically, it only had a few colors

00:28:00 that you could see what was in the water.

00:28:02 So it didn't really help us differentiate

00:28:04 all the wonderful species of phytoplankton

00:28:06 that we've talked about and what is contained in the water.

00:28:08 And while our technology has advanced

00:28:10 and we've been adding bands to our multispectral instruments,

00:28:13 we haven't had anything like PACE,

00:28:15 which is truly hyperspectral and allows us to see

00:28:18 the true color of our ocean.

00:28:20 And PACE is not just wonderful because of this,

00:28:22 but it also continues that long heritage

00:28:25 of over 25 years of uninterrupted measurements

00:28:29 that we've had, which is critical to really unravel

00:28:32 the trends in climate and ocean change that we have.

00:28:34 Right, and there's a lot of data going on here.

00:28:36 We also are hearing the call-outs as well.

00:28:38 We just heard that stage two RP1 load was complete.

00:28:41 But there is a lot to unpack here with the PACE mission.

00:28:45 So, you know, we're going from these eight crayons,

00:28:47 128 crayons, but really what's important

00:28:49 is that the ocean connects us all.

00:28:51 So it's only fitting that the PACE team

00:28:54 has members from around the globe.

00:28:56 Some of the children of those PACE team members

00:28:57 sent in well wishes for today's launch.

00:28:59 Let's take a look.

00:29:00 (upbeat music)

00:29:05 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:14 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:18 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:22 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:27 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:31 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:35 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:39 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:43 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:46 (speaking in foreign language)

00:29:55 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:00 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:07 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:10 - It'll be awesome to see the ocean

00:30:12 in so many different colors.

00:30:14 - Good luck, PACE!

00:30:15 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:17 - Good luck, PACE!

00:30:19 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:23 - Good luck, PACE!

00:30:25 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:29 (speaking in foreign language)

00:30:33 - Good luck on the PACE.

00:30:35 - That video was just precious.

00:30:39 It really warms our hearts here.

00:30:40 And I know that that was a project

00:30:42 very near and dear to your heart, especially, Laura, right?

00:30:44 - It was.

00:30:45 And we received over 40 entries from 32 countries.

00:30:50 And the one thing that I heard every parent tell me

00:30:54 when they were doing this is how much fun they had

00:30:56 with their kids putting these videos together.

00:30:58 And that means a lot to us

00:30:59 because oftentimes our work at NASA

00:31:01 is very time-consuming.

00:31:03 It can be a lot.

00:31:04 And we wouldn't be able to do this

00:31:06 if it wasn't because we had the support of our families.

00:31:09 And the work that we do,

00:31:10 so for example, the PACE mission,

00:31:12 really is done so that we can have a better planet

00:31:14 for our children and their children.

00:31:16 So this really meant a lot to all of us

00:31:19 on the PACE project.

00:31:20 - It really did.

00:31:21 And Laura, thank you so much

00:31:22 for just having all those parents and those.

00:31:23 And it was really sweet.

00:31:24 I know that you're here, your son is here

00:31:26 watching the launch as well, somewhere nearby.

00:31:28 And so this really is a family affair.

00:31:29 - It is.

00:31:30 And you can watch the entire video

00:31:32 with all the entries on the PACE website.

00:31:34 - Awesome.

00:31:35 That is so nice to see.

00:31:35 Thank you so much for that, Laura.

00:31:36 So obviously keeping the planet healthy

00:31:38 is important for the next generation.

00:31:40 And thanks to NASA's Office of STEM Engagement,

00:31:43 we now have a new way to teach them

00:31:44 about Earth and climate science.

00:31:47 It's called Earthrise,

00:31:48 a monthly newsletter that provides K through 12 educators

00:31:51 and learners with a focused collection

00:31:53 of Earth science resources.

00:31:55 You can scan the QR code on your screen now

00:31:57 to register and learn more.

00:32:00 All right, we are now about 16 minutes

00:32:02 and counting from launch.

00:32:03 So let's get a closer look at PACE

00:32:05 and those three science instruments it will use

00:32:07 to uncover a sea of data.

00:32:09 - Where we are today, think of as the box of eight crayons.

00:32:16 And you can do a lot of amazing things with that.

00:32:19 So the information content for any singular instrument

00:32:23 on PACE is way more than we're used to.

00:32:26 OCI is gonna be the box of 96 or 128 crayons.

00:32:30 And so suddenly the tools you have at your fingertips

00:32:34 will fill in all the gaps of color

00:32:35 that we could possibly want.

00:32:36 This observatory is going to provide

00:32:39 global coverage every day.

00:32:42 That is another scale of this total volume

00:32:45 that is really, really increasing

00:32:47 the amount of information we're gonna have to work with.

00:32:50 We know the atmosphere is changing.

00:32:56 We know carbon dioxide levels have increased.

00:32:59 We know that has warmed our atmosphere.

00:33:02 Circulation patterns are changing.

00:33:04 Places are warmer than they used to be.

00:33:08 The deeper dive we take into the relationships

00:33:11 between land, ocean, and atmosphere,

00:33:14 the more we realize we don't know and we need to learn.

00:33:18 - NASA is preparing to take that deeper dive

00:33:20 with the Plankton Aerosol Cloud Ocean Ecosystem Mission

00:33:24 or PACE.

00:33:25 The exchange of carbon between the oceans,

00:33:27 land, and atmosphere,

00:33:29 the impacts of atmospheric particles

00:33:31 on marine communities of phytoplankton,

00:33:33 the changes these communities are experiencing

00:33:36 in a warmer Earth,

00:33:37 reducing the uncertainty of aerosols

00:33:39 in scientific climate models.

00:33:42 PACE will improve our understanding

00:33:43 of these complex connections

00:33:45 and how these systems are affected in a changing climate.

00:33:48 The color of the oceans can tell us a lot

00:33:53 about our changing Earth systems.

00:33:56 And so PACE carries the Ocean Color Instrument or OCI

00:33:59 to continuously measure the interaction of sunlight

00:34:02 with substances in seawater,

00:34:03 such as the green photosynthetic pigment chlorophyll A.

00:34:07 - We're very good today at saying there's a lot of green,

00:34:11 meaning there are a lot of plants.

00:34:12 Where we wanna go with OCI

00:34:14 is what kind of plant is actually there?

00:34:17 And so by looking at more color,

00:34:18 you can actually start getting the subtleties

00:34:21 of this green versus the slightly different shade of green

00:34:24 and then relate that to the composition

00:34:26 of what you're looking at.

00:34:28 - PACE's other two instruments

00:34:30 are multi-angle polarimeters,

00:34:32 one hyperspectral and the other hyperangular.

00:34:35 Together, they'll take on aerosols,

00:34:37 tiny airborne particles, and clouds,

00:34:40 both of which change how sunlight interacts

00:34:42 with the atmosphere.

00:34:44 The data from PACE will help scientists

00:34:46 reveal complex relationships that connect the atmosphere,

00:34:49 ocean, and land in ways that help explain changes

00:34:52 we see in our own lives

00:34:53 and in ways that impact generations to come.

00:34:56 - The data from PACE could be used

00:35:00 to inform industry and policymakers.

00:35:02 To learn more about that,

00:35:03 let's bring back NASA's Megan Cruz,

00:35:05 who's standing by with one of NASA's lead scientists.

00:35:08 Megan?

00:35:09 - So I'm here now with Nikki Fox.

00:35:11 She's the Associate Administrator

00:35:12 for NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

00:35:14 She's very cold.

00:35:15 She just came from upstairs

00:35:16 and it's pretty windy out there, huh?

00:35:17 - It is pretty cold still, yes.

00:35:19 - The weather is still good for launch,

00:35:20 so that's really good.

00:35:21 Tell me how PACE is another important asset for NASA.

00:35:25 - So PACE is just yet another jewel

00:35:27 in the Earth science fleet.

00:35:29 So we have 20 Earth science missions

00:35:31 that are working together

00:35:32 to study all different elements of climate.

00:35:35 And PACE is joining that amazing fleet

00:35:37 with this kind of unique capability

00:35:39 of looking not just at the health of our oceans

00:35:42 and all of that,

00:35:43 but also at the health of the air that we breathe.

00:35:45 - Yeah, how is it that these small little things

00:35:48 in the ocean and the atmosphere,

00:35:49 the phytoplankton and also the aerosols,

00:35:51 how are those key for us to understand climate change?

00:35:54 - So actually, because phytoplankton

00:35:56 are just these amazing little beasties.

00:35:58 They're about half the size of a human hair.

00:36:01 They're tiny.

00:36:02 And yet they actually, they take about 50%,

00:36:05 actually they produce about 50% of our oxygen.

00:36:08 They take carbon dioxide out of the air,

00:36:11 like a plant, carbon dioxide, sunlight, some nutrients.

00:36:14 They grow.

00:36:15 They actually take the carbon dioxide

00:36:16 and they produce oxygen.

00:36:18 So, and they also are the bottom of the food chain,

00:36:20 so they're like a little superfood in the ocean as well.

00:36:23 All different types of phytoplankton,

00:36:25 all shapes, all sizes,

00:36:26 all playing their part in ocean health.

00:36:28 - And then aerosols,

00:36:29 why is that so key in the science

00:36:31 that we're doing right now?

00:36:32 - Actually, because aerosols is one of the least

00:36:34 kind of understood in the climate puzzle.

00:36:37 And so with, again, with PACE,

00:36:39 we're looking not just at the ocean,

00:36:41 but also at the air that we breathe.

00:36:44 You know, if you think about the wildfires

00:36:47 that we had in Canada,

00:36:48 and it came all over the US,

00:36:50 down to Washington, even further,

00:36:52 all through the Midwest,

00:36:53 smoke and pollution don't follow boundaries.

00:36:55 They don't follow borders.

00:36:56 We all breathe the same air.

00:36:58 And so it's really about understanding

00:37:00 each of the elements of climate all together

00:37:03 and go PACE.

00:37:04 Isn't it wonderful?

00:37:05 - It is wonderful.

00:37:06 And what's wonderful too,

00:37:07 is that data from PACE will be shared with the public.

00:37:09 - Yep, that's actually one of my favorite parts,

00:37:11 actually about earth science, to be honest,

00:37:13 because every single piece of data

00:37:14 that they take is so important.

00:37:16 And it is about getting this critical data

00:37:19 and this sort of cutting edge science

00:37:21 with these first of a kind observations

00:37:23 that we make with our NASA spacecraft,

00:37:25 getting it into the hands of people that need it.

00:37:28 People that make decisions,

00:37:29 our stakeholders that look after us as a community,

00:37:32 make sure the drinking water is safe,

00:37:35 make sure that the air we breathe is safe.

00:37:38 And then, you know, also to our friends,

00:37:41 our farmers, our fishers,

00:37:43 everybody that really needs this critical data.

00:37:45 And so, you know, getting it out,

00:37:48 making it usable, accessible,

00:37:50 making it easy to understand.

00:37:53 And also, you know,

00:37:54 getting it into our Earth Information Center,

00:37:57 which you can see at earth.gov.

00:37:59 - Wow.

00:38:00 To sum up everything you said,

00:38:01 I mean, go PACE.

00:38:02 (laughs)

00:38:03 - Go Falcon, go PACE.

00:38:04 Go PACE, please go PACE.

00:38:06 (laughs)

00:38:07 - Thank you so much, Nikki.

00:38:07 I'm so glad that you can come down here

00:38:09 and warm up with us for a little bit.

00:38:10 And now we're gonna go back outside and see a launch.

00:38:12 - That sounds great.

00:38:13 - Great.

00:38:13 Back to you, Jasmine.

00:38:15 - Thank you so much, Megan and Nikki.

00:38:17 NASA's Artemis missions to the moon

00:38:19 could help inform our understanding of Earth's oceans.

00:38:23 To learn how, here's your Artemis Moon Minute.

00:38:25 - Observing and monitoring the world's ocean from space

00:38:33 requires very accurate measurements.

00:38:36 And in the harshness of space,

00:38:38 measurements from instruments in orbit

00:38:40 can drift in accuracy,

00:38:42 impacting the quality of satellite observations of Earth.

00:38:45 So we turn to the moon for help.

00:38:48 During NASA's Apollo era,

00:38:50 scientists at the US Geological Survey used lunar samples

00:38:54 to develop the concept of lunar calibration,

00:38:57 which uses the moon as a benchmark

00:38:59 for fine-tuning the accuracy of satellites observing Earth.

00:39:02 And NASA's Artemis missions could provide new data

00:39:05 to further improve the accuracy

00:39:07 of lunar calibration for satellites.

00:39:10 NASA's PACE mission will take regular measurements

00:39:12 of the moon to make sure its instruments

00:39:14 continue to provide accurate data needed to understand

00:39:17 how the Earth's atmosphere and ocean are changing.

00:39:21 That's a look at your Artemis Moon Minute.

00:39:23 - So Laura, let's talk about that lunar calibration

00:39:28 we just mentioned.

00:39:29 How often will PACE take those measurements of the moon?

00:39:32 - PACE is gonna be looking at the moon twice every month.

00:39:35 And it's important to realize

00:39:37 that we've been using lunar calibration for a long time.

00:39:39 SeaWiFS, MODIS, and VIIRS,

00:39:41 all of these top-of-the-art sensors

00:39:43 that we've used to look at the ocean so far,

00:39:45 all have looked at the moon,

00:39:46 and the moon is really important to make sure

00:39:48 that we continue to have that high-quality data

00:39:51 that is coming from our sensors.

00:39:53 - Now, that's really neat to see

00:39:54 that we're actually using the moon

00:39:56 to get a better view of Earth.

00:39:57 So thank you so much for that, Laura.

00:39:59 All right, so now we are only about eight minutes

00:40:01 and counting from liftoff,

00:40:03 so let's take a look back at Daryl and Nick

00:40:05 to walk us through the final moments

00:40:07 of the countdown and liftoff.

00:40:09 Take it away.

00:40:10 - All right, thank you very much, Jasmine and Laura.

00:40:12 And we are back in hangar EAE,

00:40:15 where we've been monitoring

00:40:17 the propellant tanks getting filled.

00:40:18 We got one out of four down, three to go,

00:40:21 and that's the one RP-1 tank on the--

00:40:24 - Stage two. - On the stage two.

00:40:25 And then, of course, we've got the locks,

00:40:28 both stage one and stage two, still filling up right now.

00:40:31 - Yeah, stage one RP-1 is almost complete.

00:40:33 Team is continuing to fill the commodities in there

00:40:36 and get ready for engine chill

00:40:38 and preparations for launch this morning.

00:40:39 But so far, things are going really well.

00:40:42 - And there you see the Falcon 9 out at the pad, slick 40,

00:40:45 as the propellants are flowing in.

00:40:48 That's super chilled liquid oxygen

00:40:49 condensing the warm Florida air,

00:40:52 which is not as warm as it's normally been at 59 degrees,

00:40:55 but it's still humid,

00:40:56 so you're gonna see it condensing the air.

00:40:58 And, Nick, this booster, though,

00:41:00 this is a pretty young booster overall for SpaceX,

00:41:03 only three previous flights.

00:41:05 We have a graphic to illustrate the launches

00:41:08 that this rocket has accomplished.

00:41:11 And there you see it all began with Crew 7

00:41:13 back in August of 2023,

00:41:15 followed by another trip to the International Space Station

00:41:18 with CRS-29, and then finally, Starlink 634.

00:41:22 So it had a human spaceflight mission.

00:41:25 It went to the International Space Station.

00:41:27 It also did a Starlink.

00:41:29 And here is number four with pace.

00:41:30 - Yeah, Darrell, we're very excited

00:41:32 to be the fourth flight on this booster.

00:41:34 Launch Services Program actually supported

00:41:36 our Commercial Crew Program, our sister program,

00:41:40 on that Crew 7 mission.

00:41:41 We looked at this booster

00:41:42 and did some hardware reviews for them.

00:41:45 And so we got a lot-- - Engine chill has started.

00:41:48 - So we know a lot of history about this booster

00:41:50 and as things move forward.

00:41:52 There, we just heard the call out for engine chill starting

00:41:55 for getting things ready for launch this morning,

00:41:58 as we have the RP-1 and LOX filling up the tanks.

00:42:02 - Yeah, those tanks are mostly full

00:42:04 as we're looking at the rocket here from a distance,

00:42:08 getting ready to complete that.

00:42:09 In fact, we should hear a call out in just about 30 seconds

00:42:12 that the Stage 1 RP load is complete.

00:42:15 And then we'll start moving through a number of milestones

00:42:18 where we get that rocket ready to be on its own.

00:42:21 - Yeah, absolutely.

00:42:22 The team will finish that up

00:42:24 and then they'll start their sequencing

00:42:26 to get ready for the flight computer.

00:42:27 - Stage 1 RP-1 load is complete.

00:42:30 - There, we heard the call out

00:42:30 for Stage 1 RP-1 load complete.

00:42:32 And as I was saying, the flight computer

00:42:34 then will take over as sequencing the vehicle

00:42:37 to get ready for launch as it sends on its way

00:42:41 on that 98 degree inclination

00:42:44 that you and Jimmy talked about.

00:42:45 - It's a steep inclination.

00:42:46 It's gonna get up into space in a hurry,

00:42:49 a Cape polar orbit, which hasn't happened for NASA

00:42:53 from this location in 60 years.

00:42:57 It's an exciting time to see a rocket flying to the South,

00:43:01 going over Florida and Cuba.

00:43:03 - Yes, heading South and then making a dogleg

00:43:06 to get into that polar orbit.

00:43:08 Normally we would do these from Vandenberg Air Force Base

00:43:11 out in California, but due to the performance

00:43:16 and things that we have here on the Eastern range

00:43:20 with this Falcon 9,

00:43:21 we can do this Cape polar orbit out of here.

00:43:24 And so very excited to see that happen after 60 years.

00:43:27 - A number of milestones coming up here shortly

00:43:30 in just a few seconds.

00:43:31 We're gonna retract the strong back

00:43:33 that's holding the rocket in place

00:43:36 that you see out there on the pad.

00:43:37 And we're also gonna get the spacecraft on internal power.

00:43:41 Test director Nusha Haghani and her team getting ready.

00:43:50 - Falcon 9 tanks are pressurizing for strong back retract.

00:43:53 - So there we heard strong back retract,

00:44:04 as you mentioned, Darrell,

00:44:05 and also heard from the launch manager

00:44:09 and the SMD for the spacecraft

00:44:11 that they are on internal power and configured for launch.

00:44:14 So things are moving along here very quickly

00:44:17 as we get ready to get down to T zero.

00:44:18 - Strong back retract has started.

00:44:20 - And lift off pace this morning.

00:44:22 - And now the strong back will retract

00:44:26 just about two degrees prior to launch.

00:44:29 It'll go further once the rocket lifts off,

00:44:32 clearing the way to allow the rocket to go.

00:44:37 (breathing heavily)

00:44:40 - And we're waiting to check out for the NLM.

00:45:01 - This is NLM on countdown net.

00:45:03 - LD.

00:45:06 - Pace is go for launch.

00:45:08 - Copy.

00:45:10 - All right, NLM Tim Dunn giving the go for launch

00:45:17 for the NASA team, the spacecraft team,

00:45:20 and launch services program.

00:45:22 SpaceX now proceeding forward.

00:45:25 - Yeah, things are progressing.

00:45:27 That's good to hear that the spacecraft's

00:45:28 on internal power and everybody's ready to go.

00:45:30 We should be coming up on LOX load complete here

00:45:33 in about 15 seconds for stage one.

00:45:36 In about another minute for stage two.

00:45:38 But as we're looking at the data here in front of us,

00:45:41 Jarrell here in hangar AE, things are progressing very well.

00:45:44 And the team is performing admirably this morning,

00:45:48 getting this vehicle ready for lift off at 133.36.

00:45:52 - The final field. - Stage one LOX load

00:45:55 is complete.

00:45:56 - There you go.

00:45:57 - So stage one ready.

00:46:01 We're just waiting to finalize LOX load on stage two.

00:46:05 And continue moving forward.

00:46:07 And then we will get into some of that flight sequencing

00:46:12 and getting the autonomous flight termination system

00:46:14 ready to go.

00:46:15 And then the final go at 45 seconds from SpaceX

00:46:18 before they turn the vehicle over to the flight computer.

00:46:22 - And once they get down to 45 seconds,

00:46:24 there's no more holding the launch

00:46:26 on the count of the spacecraft.

00:46:28 They'll be committed at that point.

00:46:30 - Yes, absolutely.

00:46:33 Having all this cold LOX in on the first stage

00:46:36 and second stage commits us to this time.

00:46:39 And things are looking good.

00:46:41 - There was a slight adjustment to the T-0, Mick.

00:46:45 It was 133 and 32 seconds, but it slipped four seconds

00:46:49 due to a COLA real quickly.

00:46:51 Why is that?

00:46:52 - Yeah, stage two LOX load is complete.

00:46:54 - Over here, stage two complete.

00:46:56 So that's a good sign.

00:46:58 But the COLA is our collision avoidance analysis

00:47:01 that we need to do to make sure we don't hit something

00:47:03 that's in space already as we lift off

00:47:05 and ascend this morning.

00:47:07 And the original time, as you said, was 133, 32.

00:47:10 And we had four COLA conjunctions this morning

00:47:13 for those seconds.

00:47:14 So we went to the next-

00:47:15 - Ground gas closeout.

00:47:17 - Next second that we could.

00:47:18 And that put us at that 133, 36.

00:47:21 So things were able to adjust very quickly

00:47:24 for the four seconds and get ready for launch this morning.

00:47:27 - And you see the large plume,

00:47:28 the large cloud coming around the Falcon 9 rocket.

00:47:32 And that's the venting off of the liquid oxygen

00:47:36 in the line that runs up to the second stage.

00:47:39 Proceeding now T-minus one minute and counting

00:47:41 until liftoff of PACE and the Falcon 9 rocket.

00:47:44 - Falcon 9 is in startup.

00:47:46 - So there we hear Falcon 9 is startup,

00:47:53 configuring all the systems.

00:47:55 Autonomous FTS is being configured.

00:47:57 Systems are being configured.

00:47:58 - PACEX launch director, go for launch.

00:48:00 - And there's the big moment.

00:48:03 T-minus 40 seconds and counting.

00:48:05 Many on the PACE spacecraft team now going outside

00:48:09 to watch this launch.

00:48:11 It should be a beauty.

00:48:12 - T-minus 30 seconds.

00:48:15 - All systems are go.

00:48:26 Getting down to the final seconds.

00:48:29 - 15 seconds.

00:48:29 - T-minus 10, nine, eight, seven, six, five,

00:48:39 four, three, two, one.

00:48:44 Booster ignition.

00:48:45 Full power engines and liftoff of the Falcon 9 and PACE.

00:48:52 Helping keep pace with our ever-changing ocean

00:48:55 and atmosphere.

00:48:57 (engine roaring)

00:49:00 - All nine early engines lit up and roaring.

00:49:10 1.7 million pounds of thrust.

00:49:12 - Chamber pressures on the telemetry.

00:49:23 - Good, good, good.

00:49:24 - All nine engines performing very well.

00:49:27 - Three new rockets.

00:49:31 - Power and telemetry nominal.

00:49:32 - Makes it steep climb into its orbit.

00:49:34 Ride about two minutes on the first stage.

00:49:38 A view from the rocket camera.

00:49:42 - Here we hear Falcon 9 supersonic coming up on maximum,

00:49:48 max Q, maximum dynamic pressure on the launch vehicle.

00:49:51 - Max Q.

00:49:53 (engine roaring)

00:49:55 - Pass through max Q.

00:49:56 The vehicle continues to perform nominally.

00:49:59 All nine engines firing.

00:50:01 - MVAC engine chill has started.

00:50:18 - Starting to chill the second stage engine

00:50:22 to get that ready.

00:50:23 It bleed a little bit of locks in there

00:50:25 so it doesn't get thermal shock once they light it up.

00:50:29 A view there looking down the first stage booster.

00:50:34 Getting ready to cut off the engine and separate.

00:50:40 We'll have a number of milestones all happening quickly

00:50:45 in rapid succession.

00:50:51 We're about 10 seconds from main engine cutoff

00:50:53 and then we'll have stage one two sep

00:50:55 and then stage two ignition.

00:50:57 - Echo.

00:51:08 Stage separation confirmed.

00:51:12 - There it goes, the first stage of the rocket.

00:51:15 Second stage now lighting up.

00:51:18 - MVAC ignition.

00:51:20 Stage one boost back startup.

00:51:22 - You see the glow of the first stage as it falls away.

00:51:27 - Excited to see that first stage come back here

00:51:31 to landing zone one this morning.

00:51:33 That will be great as stage two continues to perform.

00:51:38 Getting that stage back here will be exciting.

00:51:41 - If you're here on the space coast and you're watching,

00:51:44 get ready for a double thunderclap

00:51:47 at just about T plus seven minutes, seven to eight minutes.

00:51:51 The double sonic booms of the first stage booster

00:51:56 breaking the sound barrier as it returns to Earth.

00:52:00 - Stage one boost back shutdown.

00:52:02 - So now the first stage has positioned itself

00:52:06 on a return trajectory back here to landing zone one,

00:52:14 which is only a mile or so from our location

00:52:16 at hangar AE.

00:52:18 We get quite the thunderclap.

00:52:20 - Yeah, always love to hear the landing zone back here

00:52:24 when we're in the hangar.

00:52:25 We're about 10 seconds away from jettison fairing

00:52:29 of the payload fairing, exposing pace to the atmosphere.

00:52:34 - This is a big moment for the spacecraft team.

00:52:36 - Fairing separation confirmed.

00:52:44 Looking inside, there go the fairings,

00:52:47 revealing the PACE spacecraft to the elements.

00:52:51 Now PACE will seek to get a signal on the TDRS satellite

00:52:58 for our first acquisition of signal.

00:53:01 - Yeah, this will be a downlink of a low level signal

00:53:06 on the TDRS network, utilizing the telemetry network

00:53:10 to verify that PACE is, the transmitter is on,

00:53:15 and then they will continue monitoring the spacecraft

00:53:18 until separation, and then be able to get their data

00:53:22 once they get power positive that we'll see later.

00:53:25 - And in that moment you just described,

00:53:27 that time period that you just described,

00:53:30 they'll only be monitoring data coming

00:53:32 from the PACE satellite.

00:53:34 They will not be sending any commands in.

00:53:37 - Absolutely, nothing until the spacecraft separates

00:53:40 from the stage two.

00:53:43 The spacecraft team will just continue to monitor

00:53:45 the health of the spacecraft using the TDRS network.

00:53:48 And looking at the telemetry, everything so far

00:53:51 on second stage is performing very well.

00:53:54 Looks good on our trajectory.

00:54:07 They just made a call, somebody called ASO,

00:54:10 but nobody's answered.

00:54:11 - And there's a shot from the first stage booster

00:54:21 as we're coming back down to the Cape.

00:54:23 You can see the lights of the Space Coast.

00:54:26 It's a pretty shot.

00:54:28 - I love that shot, seeing the coast of Florida

00:54:33 come back into view.

00:54:37 - Two more burns left.

00:54:38 - Stage one entry burn startup.

00:54:40 - That's the first one, the entry burn,

00:54:42 for about 30 seconds.

00:54:44 See it lighting up now.

00:54:45 Grid fins are out to help give it a precision landing,

00:54:50 guiding the first stage booster back to landing zone one.

00:54:54 Split screen now.

00:54:57 Well, we did have it.

00:54:58 There's a shot. - Stage two FTS is saved.

00:55:00 - There's a shot of the booster coming back down

00:55:03 from the ground.

00:55:03 - Stage one entry burn shutdown.

00:55:06 - Stage one FTS is saved.

00:55:08 - All right, and in comes the first stage booster.

00:55:14 Second stage continuing on a nominal trajectory.

00:55:19 You can probably see us in there somewhere.

00:55:28 - I love that view at night too, to see the,

00:55:33 it'll be really nice to see that as it gets closer,

00:55:35 the coast of Florida as we come up on landing zone one.

00:55:39 Stage two continues to perform nominally on a great--

00:55:41 - Stage one transonic.

00:55:42 - Great trajectory for stage two,

00:55:45 as spacecraft continues to look very well during this flight.

00:55:50 - Stage one landing burn.

00:55:52 - All right, there goes the landing burn.

00:55:56 In just a few seconds, we'll have a booster on the ground.

00:56:00 (rocket whirring)

00:56:03 A look from the ground.

00:56:09 We hear the thunder here at--

00:56:12 - And we hear those double claps.

00:56:13 - Landing leg deploy.

00:56:16 - There she comes.

00:56:19 - Stage one landing confirmed.

00:56:27 Another pinpoint landing by the first stage booster.

00:56:32 Flight number four for the first stage in the books.

00:56:35 Second stage continuing to burn

00:56:38 on a seven and a half minute direct inject into orbit.

00:56:41 This will be a quick ride, Mick.

00:56:43 - Very quick as it continues to perform very well.

00:56:48 We're looking for this to continue firing

00:56:51 and we'll get the second stage cut off

00:56:53 at around T plus 10 minutes,

00:56:55 but things look very well on the telemetry.

00:56:57 Vehicle's performing very well and impact is nominal.

00:57:01 - The second stage on a Cape polar trajectory

00:57:09 hasn't been done by NASA in the past 60 years.

00:57:13 SpaceX, though, has done it 11 times.

00:57:18 This would be the 12th.

00:57:19 (air whooshing)

00:57:22 T plus nine minutes on the count.

00:57:43 Just about three minutes left.

00:57:49 (air whooshing)

00:57:51 Actually, check that, just about a minute left

00:57:54 on the stage two burn.

00:57:57 There will only be one stage two burn.

00:58:00 - Yeah, as Jimmy explained to us in the trajectory,

00:58:04 this is a direct inject sun synchronous orbit.

00:58:07 So just a single burn for the stage two this morning

00:58:11 and things continue to look well.

00:58:14 Chamber pressure on impact and trajectory look nominal.

00:58:18 And then we'll coast for just a few minutes

00:58:20 and separate the pace observatory.

00:58:24 Standing by for stage two cutoff, known as SECO one.

00:58:46 We'll have that in just a few seconds.

00:58:48 - All right, I'm back shut down.

00:59:16 - All right, there you have it.

00:59:18 Now we're gonna coast for a few minutes

00:59:21 and take a look at the forward facing camera.

00:59:25 So we can see the pace spacecraft,

00:59:28 which is being monitored by the spacecraft team.

00:59:33 (air whooshing)

00:59:36 The engine nozzle on stage two,

00:59:55 still glowing just a bit from a seven and a half minute burn.

00:59:59 (air whooshing)

01:00:02 - Yeah, all telemetry on stage two looks nominal

01:00:09 for the flight.

01:00:10 Looks like a very good stage two performance so far.

01:00:15 So we'll see how things go

01:00:17 as we get ready for spacecraft separation.

01:00:20 - Now just about one minute away.

01:00:21 This is a big moment for the pace spacecraft team.

01:00:29 One in which they're holding their breath a bit.

01:00:32 There you see pace now.

01:00:35 - I love that camera view from the front of the stage two,

01:00:42 looking at the pace spacecraft out there

01:00:46 in that dark space right now.

01:00:48 Things are looking really well.

01:00:50 I love to see that camera view.

01:00:52 - Dark indeed as they launched into an orbital eclipse.

01:00:58 So pace has no sunlight on it, as you can see.

01:01:02 But the hope is once they get those solar arrays deployed,

01:01:08 a critical moment,

01:01:10 they're gonna be looking to get power on it.

01:01:12 There goes pace.

01:01:14 - Payload separation confirmed.

01:01:16 - Off into space on its own, flying free.

01:01:19 We've got applause here

01:01:23 at the Mission Director's Center at Hangar AE.

01:01:28 Looks like a good separation.

01:01:29 Vehicle pretty stable.

01:01:32 - Yeah, launch vehicle performed very well today

01:01:37 and glad to see pace separated.

01:01:39 We've got a few more milestones

01:01:41 that the team will be working on

01:01:43 to get pace to power positive.

01:01:45 - Hopefully we can have this view for a bit longer.

01:01:48 You see stacked to the right side of the screen,

01:01:51 the three lines, those are the solar arrays.

01:01:54 It's a three panel array.

01:01:58 And once the guidance and navigation control system

01:02:01 senses that it's got basically nulled the rates,

01:02:05 the spacecraft is stable,

01:02:07 it'll start to deploy those solar arrays.

01:02:10 And it will be done autonomously.

01:02:12 It's dark out there, so starting to lose our view.

01:02:20 (air whooshing)

01:02:23 We are now passing the milestone

01:02:39 in which we expect the solar arrays to be deployed.

01:02:44 Again, this is the expected milestone.

01:02:48 (air whooshing)

01:02:51 It's dark out there again, no sunlight.

01:02:56 (air whooshing)

01:03:00 Now you're looking at a view

01:03:15 of inside the Mission Director's Center.

01:03:18 That front row there,

01:03:21 staffed by the team from the Goddard Space Flight Center.

01:03:24 As they look anxiously at their monitors.

01:03:27 The solar arrays are expected

01:03:37 to take a few minutes to deploy.

01:03:39 If it holds to the milestone,

01:03:45 (indistinct)

01:03:47 So we just got word that they have confirmation.

01:04:01 The solar array deploy has begun.

01:04:04 Again, solar array deploy has begun for the spacecraft.

01:04:13 It's a three panel array.

01:04:15 It's a critical milestone.

01:04:18 And what goes hand in hand with that, Mick,

01:04:24 is for the GNC, the Guidance Navigation Control,

01:04:27 to get that spacecraft and that solar array sun pointing.

01:04:31 Can't do it yet,

01:04:32 because there is no sun in its current state.

01:04:35 (air whooshing)

01:04:38 But we got a good ride into space.

01:04:46 We will continue to monitor the nets here

01:04:50 and the space, the spacecraft team.

01:04:54 But in the meantime,

01:04:56 we're gonna send it back to Jasmine and Laura.

01:04:58 Thank you so much, Daryl and Mick.

01:05:02 A beautiful launch followed by a smooth ride into space

01:05:05 so far for PACE.

01:05:06 Laura, what do you think?

01:05:07 It was absolutely stunning and we are so relieved.

01:05:10 Everybody in the PACE team has been cheering.

01:05:13 All of our NASA colleagues have been cheering,

01:05:14 as have all of you been cheering.

01:05:16 So it is a great dawn for PACE

01:05:19 and ocean and atmospheric sciences.

01:05:21 It really is.

01:05:22 That was a great way to put it, Laura.

01:05:24 So if you are just joining us,

01:05:25 you are watching NASA's official coverage

01:05:27 of the PACE launch.

01:05:29 That's the Plankton Aerosol Cloud Ocean Ecosystem.

01:05:32 It lifted off about 16 minutes ago

01:05:35 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket

01:05:37 from right here on Florida Space Coast.

01:05:39 So now PACE is on its way to orbit 420 miles above earth.

01:05:44 We're able to collect data on both particles in the ocean

01:05:47 as well as the air.

01:05:48 Let's take a closer look at how those are connected.

01:05:51 Between September 2019 and March 2020,

01:05:56 wildfires killed billions of animals

01:05:58 and decimated more than 200,000 square kilometers

01:06:01 of Australian forest.

01:06:03 Some thousands of kilometers away in the Southern Ocean,

01:06:06 massive algae blooms covered a surface

01:06:08 larger than the area of Australia itself.

01:06:11 Just how are these wildfires and ocean blooms connected?

01:06:15 To untangle that, we look to the carbon cycle.

01:06:19 The carbon cycle is the flow of carbon

01:06:21 between reservoirs in the atmosphere,

01:06:23 plants and animals, land and ocean.

01:06:25 If we look to the ocean reservoir,

01:06:29 carbon dioxide is also absorbed by phytoplankton,

01:06:32 microscopic organisms that convert carbon dioxide,

01:06:35 water and sunlight into carbohydrates like sugar

01:06:38 and oxygen through photosynthesis.

01:06:40 Carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere

01:06:44 eventually becomes available for aquatic photosynthesis.

01:06:48 But photosynthesis also requires nutrients

01:06:50 such as nitrogen, phosphorus and iron.

01:06:53 Without the right proportions of these nutrients,

01:06:56 photosynthesis doesn't happen,

01:06:58 which can be seen in the iron limited parts of the ocean,

01:07:01 such as far offshore of Australia.

01:07:03 Atmospheric aerosols released by fires, however,

01:07:06 contain carbon as well as other nutrients

01:07:09 essential for plant growth, like iron.

01:07:11 When these aerosols are deposited on the ocean surface,

01:07:15 these nutrients become available for photosynthesis.

01:07:18 This iron from the Australian wildfires

01:07:20 is now thought to have stimulated

01:07:21 the massive Southern Ocean phytoplankton blooms,

01:07:24 blooms of such magnitude that they converted

01:07:27 an almost equivalent volume of carbon dioxide

01:07:30 released by the fires into carbohydrates

01:07:32 and cellular material.

01:07:34 - With an instrument like OCI,

01:07:36 where you're measuring this full spectrum of color,

01:07:38 all the colors of the rainbow you can imagine,

01:07:40 we can start teasing apart the species

01:07:43 and the different functional groups

01:07:45 and different communities that exist.

01:07:47 - The data from PACE will help define those communities,

01:07:50 allowing for clearer connections

01:07:51 within the reservoirs of the carbon cycle.

01:07:54 These fires emitted a huge amount of carbon

01:07:56 and other aerosols into the atmosphere.

01:07:59 Those aerosols contained essential nutrients

01:08:01 that are thought to have stimulated the rapid growth

01:08:04 of phytoplankton in the Southern Ocean.

01:08:06 And these kinds of connections can have big impacts.

01:08:10 - It's really important to know where the carbon is going

01:08:12 and where your food source is going.

01:08:13 This is important for not just climate studies,

01:08:15 but food security.

01:08:18 - With data from PACE, we'll get a clearer picture of carbon

01:08:21 as it links land use and fires,

01:08:23 atmospheric aerosols and marine communities,

01:08:26 and ultimately improves the data

01:08:28 that we put into climate models.

01:08:30 - NASA scientists are hard at work using data

01:08:37 like what they'll get from PACE

01:08:38 to better understand climate change.

01:08:41 Megan Cruz is standing by with one of NASA's experts

01:08:43 on climate science right now.

01:08:45 Megan.

01:08:46 - I am. This is Kate Calvin.

01:08:47 She's NASA's chief scientist

01:08:48 and also the senior climate advisor for the agency.

01:08:52 What a beautiful launch we just saw.

01:08:53 - It was beautiful.

01:08:54 And it's so exciting to see this mission go

01:08:56 and start to send us data soon.

01:08:57 - Yeah. So let's talk about that.

01:08:59 You know, PACE is gonna advance our understanding

01:09:00 of the Earth's climate

01:09:02 and how it's changing so drastically, right?

01:09:04 - Yeah, absolutely.

01:09:05 So we're seeing, you know, an increase in warming.

01:09:07 The last 10 years have been the warmest

01:09:08 since modern record keeping began.

01:09:10 And that warming trend is driven by greenhouse gases,

01:09:12 including carbon dioxide.

01:09:14 And PACE is gonna give us a better understanding

01:09:16 of how the oceans absorb carbon

01:09:17 and that exchange of carbon

01:09:18 between the ocean and the atmosphere.

01:09:20 It's also gonna tell us a lot more

01:09:21 about these tiny particles in the atmosphere

01:09:23 called aerosols that can reflect or absorb sunlight.

01:09:26 They can affect cloud formation,

01:09:27 all of which is really important for climate.

01:09:29 - So we're obviously gonna learn a lot,

01:09:31 but how can we use that data

01:09:33 and turn it into how we address climate change?

01:09:35 - So one of the important things,

01:09:36 the more we understand about climate,

01:09:38 the better we can predict it in the future.

01:09:40 And we can take that and use that to help better plan.

01:09:43 And that's something we're working on throughout NASA

01:09:44 is helping people understand

01:09:46 what's happening where they live,

01:09:47 what we know about what might happen in the future,

01:09:49 and make sure they have that information

01:09:51 ready at their fingertips.

01:09:52 And PACE is gonna help contribute to that.

01:09:54 - And what I love about this

01:09:55 is PACE is not the only Earth-observing satellite out there.

01:09:58 And in particular, it's gonna work with one

01:10:00 that launched just last year,

01:10:02 or a little bit over a year ago,

01:10:03 that's really gonna help us get

01:10:05 a better understanding of our oceans.

01:10:06 - Yeah, absolutely.

01:10:07 So NASA has more than two dozen satellites

01:10:09 and instruments in orbit.

01:10:10 They're each designed to measure something different.

01:10:12 So we can see things like vegetation,

01:10:14 carbs and dioxide, clouds and precipitation, or oceans.

01:10:17 And so you mentioned the satellite

01:10:19 from a little over a year ago called SWAT,

01:10:21 or Surface Water and Ocean Topography.

01:10:23 So what SWAT's looking at is physics of the ocean,

01:10:26 so how the water moves, the height of the seas,

01:10:28 how it mixes.

01:10:29 What PACE is gonna do is tell us

01:10:31 what's living in that water.

01:10:32 And they're both really important

01:10:33 'cause the oceans absorb a lot of heat and carbon,

01:10:36 and understanding how the water moves

01:10:37 and what's living in it will help us better understand that.

01:10:40 - And really quick, what would you say to the team right now

01:10:42 as they're about to embark on a wonderful opportunity

01:10:45 to learn so much for the Earth?

01:10:46 - Oh, this is just such an exciting time.

01:10:48 It's such a great mission,

01:10:49 and it's taken a while to get here,

01:10:50 but we've launched, and in no later than 60 days from now,

01:10:53 we'll start to have data,

01:10:54 and it's gonna give us information not just about climate,

01:10:57 but about air quality, water quality, fisheries,

01:10:59 harmful algal blooms,

01:11:00 and it's just really exciting to be here.

01:11:02 - And that's data we're gonna share with the public,

01:11:03 so that's exciting as well.

01:11:04 - Absolutely, all the data will be publicly available.

01:11:06 - Great, Kate, thank you so much.

01:11:07 I really appreciate your time.

01:11:09 - Thank you.

01:11:09 - All right, so you guys have been hearing

01:11:11 Daryl and Mick talk about waiting for power positive,

01:11:13 so let's turn it back to them

01:11:14 so they can walk us through that next milestone.

01:11:17 - Thank you very much, Megan.

01:11:18 Back here at Hangar AE, we heard some brief applause

01:11:21 when we had the spacecraft separate,

01:11:23 but now comes the big moment,

01:11:24 getting that confirmation that the solar arrays

01:11:27 have deployed and they're catching sun.

01:11:29 We got a little ways to get there.

01:11:31 - Yeah, absolutely.

01:11:32 The team was very happy to see deployment

01:11:34 off the second stage,

01:11:35 and I know that the next big milestone for them

01:11:37 is that power positive, so.

01:11:40 - All right, there you see a look

01:11:45 inside the Mission Director's Center.

01:11:50 As the teams wait for that telemetry

01:11:55 to come in from the PACE Observatory,

01:11:59 which is flying free now, T+23 minutes and counting.

01:12:04 PACE launched into an orbital eclipse,

01:12:15 and so once the solar arrays are presumably deployed

01:12:20 and it comes out of the eclipse,

01:12:24 the spacecraft will automatically

01:12:29 orient itself towards the sun,

01:12:32 and that's when the team will be able to see

01:12:37 that power flowing through the solar panels

01:12:40 at a rate that would tell them that it's sun pointing

01:12:44 and it's in the right place.

01:12:45 - Sun pointing and charging that battery back up.

01:12:48 You know, they've been on internal power,

01:12:50 using that battery power for flight,

01:12:52 and so that solar panel will help them

01:12:54 get the vehicle charged back up and continue their mission.

01:12:58 - That's right, those batteries are key, Mick.

01:13:02 As we learned throughout the program,

01:13:05 this PACE spacecraft orbits the Earth every 98 minutes,

01:13:11 and as it does so, when it goes in from the sunny side

01:13:16 to the eclipse side, those batteries help power it

01:13:21 through the dark phase.

01:13:22 And so charging those batteries are key

01:13:28 to PACE carrying out its mission.

01:13:33 If you're just joining us, we had a successful liftoff

01:13:40 at 1.33 and 36 seconds a.m. Eastern time

01:13:45 from Launch Complex 40

01:13:48 here at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.

01:13:51 We rode the first stage of a Falcon 9 rocket

01:13:56 for several minutes before it separated,

01:13:59 came back down to LZ-1 after about seven minutes.

01:14:03 Stage two of the rocket then flew PACE

01:14:07 for about seven and a half minutes.

01:14:10 Ultimately separating around 12 and a half minutes

01:14:15 after liftoff, and we watched as PACE

01:14:21 went on its own into space

01:14:25 and separated from that stage two.

01:14:28 It was in the midst of an eclipse,

01:14:34 so it was a quick goodbye.

01:14:37 We saw it go off into the darkness of space.

01:14:40 Yeah, I'll tell you, the pictures from stage two

01:14:43 were incredible, not only watching PACE separate

01:14:46 from stage two, but just continuing on its way

01:14:50 to perform this exciting mission

01:14:52 that we've heard all about this morning.

01:14:54 But that video, it was exciting to watch that

01:14:58 and be a part of this, and I know the PACE team

01:15:02 is anxiously awaiting that power positive information.

01:15:07 But we've got PACE where it needs to be and on its way,

01:15:11 so this is a great start to the launch this morning.

01:15:13 - Jim Free, NASA's Associate Administrator,

01:15:18 is here on hand.

01:15:19 He is there in the control room.

01:15:21 You can see him in the second row in the middle,

01:15:23 the fourth from the right.

01:15:25 All along the first row.

01:15:37 The teams from the Goddard Space Flight Center.

01:15:39 They have a team back at Goddard that is online as well,

01:15:51 the Mission Operations Center,

01:15:54 and that's where the spacecraft will be commissioned.

01:15:57 And it is also where they are sending commands

01:16:02 and receiving telemetry at this very moment.

01:16:04 (computer mouse clicking)

01:16:08 I spoke to PACE Test Director Nusha Haghani

01:16:29 and she relayed to me that this is,

01:16:34 these are some tense moments, you know,

01:16:36 as the team watches and waits to get that confirmation

01:16:41 that the sun is shining on the solar arrays

01:16:45 and it's oriented in the correct direction.

01:16:47 Once they get that confirmation,

01:16:54 I'm sure we'll see a reaction from the team.

01:17:00 (computer mouse clicking)

01:17:04 According to the milestones,

01:17:17 we are at the point in which the Goddard Space Flight Team

01:17:20 can command the spacecraft.

01:17:23 After waiting for a period of time

01:17:27 as it came off of the second stage,

01:17:30 and so they don't get anything mixed up

01:17:32 with the second stage of the rocket

01:17:34 as it's going into a disposal burn

01:17:36 and the spacecraft is going on into its orbit.

01:17:39 T-plus 29 minutes and counting.

01:17:48 (computer mouse clicking)

01:17:52 We are now into the moment where we would expect

01:18:06 the milestone of power positive to happen,

01:18:10 but we also know, and have been told by the Goddard team,

01:18:15 that it could take a little longer.

01:18:19 (computer mouse clicking)

01:18:22 Yeah, Darrell, I know as the spacecraft team

01:18:31 is waiting for this information,

01:18:33 the launch vehicle team has been doing a quick look

01:18:37 on how stage one and stage two performed today,

01:18:40 and so far everything is reporting in

01:18:42 as perfectly performed launch vehicle today

01:18:46 as we saw in the video spacecraft step.

01:18:48 Falcon 9 delivered Pace where it needed to be,

01:18:52 so that's good news on the quick look of the launch vehicle,

01:18:55 and I know that the Pace team is excited to be where they are

01:19:00 just waiting for that power positive confirmation.

01:19:04 - Great report out there, Mick,

01:19:05 and as Pace was delivered to an orbit 674 kilometers,

01:19:10 about 400 miles above the Earth's surface,

01:19:15 (computer mouse clicking)

01:19:19 Pace has 10 years of fuel on board

01:19:35 to do its observations and report back its scientific data,

01:19:43 but you never know with these satellites,

01:19:46 they can go a lot longer.

01:19:48 Just depends on how they use their fuel

01:19:53 in the course of the next 10 years.

01:19:55 Scientists, of course, always want more data,

01:19:57 and many times they're rewarded with that

01:20:00 when a spacecraft exceeds expectations as often they do.

01:20:05 (computer mouse clicking)

01:20:11 Again, if you're just joining us,

01:20:12 we are awaiting confirmation

01:20:14 of a milestone called Power Positive.

01:20:19 That milestone means that the Pace spacecraft

01:20:25 has oriented itself into the sun

01:20:29 and deployed its solar arrays fully

01:20:32 so that it's getting power on all three panels

01:20:36 so that it can do its observations.

01:20:40 So that it can charge its batteries

01:20:42 and begin turning on the scientific instruments.

01:20:46 T-plus 32 minutes and counting.

01:20:51 (computer mouse clicking)

01:20:58 (computer mouse clicking)

01:21:01 (computer mouse clicking)

01:21:05 (computer mouse clicking)

01:21:08 (computer mouse clicking)

01:21:15 (computer mouse clicking)

01:21:32 The Pace spacecraft dimensions

01:21:35 are three meters by three and a half meters.

01:21:38 It weighs 1,439 kilograms,

01:21:41 has a three panel canted solar array.

01:21:45 And that solar array is

01:21:50 the critical final milestone

01:21:56 that will allow the team to take a deep breath

01:22:00 and of course continue to monitor the telemetry trend.

01:22:05 All right, you can see the applause there

01:22:22 in the Mission Director's Center.

01:22:29 The spacecraft team,

01:22:30 happy to report that they have power positive

01:22:36 on the Pace spacecraft.

01:22:38 Again, the final milestone,

01:22:41 power positive on the solar arrays on the Pace spacecraft.

01:22:46 That's great news.

01:22:47 Congratulations to the Pace team.

01:22:51 - Absolutely. - This is a big moment.

01:22:52 - Successful mission.

01:22:54 (breathing heavily)

01:22:57 - There we go, excellent news.

01:23:05 Spacecraft's happy, we saw some clapping.

01:23:07 Things are going great.

01:23:09 Pace is on its way, power positive.

01:23:11 That is a successful mission for Pace.

01:23:15 - And just to recap, we launched at 1.33

01:23:19 and 36 seconds a.m. Eastern time

01:23:21 from the Space Coast here, Space Launch Complex 40.

01:23:26 We rode the Falcon 9 for about seven and a half minutes

01:23:34 and then got into space.

01:23:35 We watched Pace separate about 12 minutes after that, Mick.

01:23:40 And then at T plus 33 minutes, roughly,

01:23:44 we got confirmation that not only the solar arrays

01:23:47 had deployed, but also Pace had aimed itself

01:23:51 towards the sun once the spacecraft came out

01:23:54 of a orbital eclipse, which was a big moment.

01:23:57 - Very big moment and very exciting to, you know,

01:24:00 not only get Pace on its way,

01:24:02 have the launch vehicle perform the way it did,

01:24:04 bring the booster back to landing zone one.

01:24:06 Darrell, I've told you this many times before,

01:24:08 but this never gets old for me.

01:24:10 I love this and I'm just so excited

01:24:12 for not only the launch vehicle team,

01:24:14 but for the Pace spacecraft team.

01:24:16 Very excited to see them on their way

01:24:18 and get ready for this exciting mission.

01:24:20 - A job well done by all today.

01:24:22 And certainly now the Pace team can rest easy,

01:24:26 but they're still working.

01:24:27 The power team is gonna stay on for another couple

01:24:30 of orbits, which is another three hours,

01:24:33 to make sure that they see that power data

01:24:35 is trending in the right direction.

01:24:37 And of course, commissioning of the Pace satellite

01:24:40 will take another 60 days before they can start getting

01:24:43 in some of that scientific data.

01:24:47 But this launch, of course, the first launch

01:24:50 for NASA's Launch Services Program,

01:24:53 but it is, as I understand it, the last launch

01:24:55 for a very special member of your team.

01:24:57 - Yeah, absolutely, Darrell.

01:24:58 It's a first for 2024, but this is the last launch

01:25:01 for our program manager, Amanda Mitskevich.

01:25:04 This marks an end of an era.

01:25:06 It's a conclusion of a remarkable journey.

01:25:09 Amanda, I just wanna say you're amazing.

01:25:10 Your leadership transcends the boundaries

01:25:12 of Launch Services Program and the Kennedy Space Center,

01:25:15 resonating across the entire aerospace community.

01:25:19 Even with your extraordinary achievements,

01:25:21 you remain remarkably humble in your role.

01:25:23 You always challenge us to strive for success.

01:25:26 Over the past 14 years, you have steered

01:25:28 the Launch Services Program with unwavering dedication,

01:25:32 maximizing mission success and contributing significantly

01:25:35 to the evolution of the space industry.

01:25:37 Your mentorship, your friendship,

01:25:39 and your compassionate leadership style

01:25:40 have been the driving force behind our team's pursuit

01:25:43 of excellence.

01:25:44 It is no surprise that you stand as a Debus Award winner,

01:25:47 and your absence will be deeply felt.

01:25:50 As your LSP family, we gather this morning

01:25:52 on this, your final mission to say, see you later.

01:25:56 While we will miss you dearly,

01:25:57 we hope you realize the profound impact

01:25:59 you've had on each of us.

01:26:01 The collective achievements, the shared memories,

01:26:04 and the spirit of excellence you instilled within us

01:26:06 are the testament to your remarkable leadership.

01:26:09 As you embark on this new chapter of your life,

01:26:11 know that your influence extends far beyond the boundaries

01:26:14 of the launch pad.

01:26:16 You are not just retiring, you're passing the torch

01:26:19 to the next generation of dreamers, innovators,

01:26:21 and explorers.

01:26:23 The legacy you leave behind is not merely

01:26:25 in the missions accomplished,

01:26:27 but in the lives you have touched

01:26:29 and the inspiration you've ignited.

01:26:31 Godspeed, Amanda, and thank you

01:26:34 for this extraordinary journey.

01:26:35 - Great words there, Mick, and certainly well-deserved.

01:26:41 Amanda Mickiewicz, a Debus Award winner.

01:26:43 - Yes.

01:26:44 - One of the highest honors here at NASA.

01:26:47 So from all of us at NASA,

01:26:49 we wish Amanda well in her retirement.

01:26:51 Well, that's gonna do it for us here at Hangar AE,

01:26:54 a successful launch of the PACE spacecraft

01:26:58 and solar array deployment.

01:27:00 Great success by all involved today.

01:27:03 And now we'll send it back to Jasmine and Laura

01:27:05 to wrap up the show.

01:27:06 - Go PACE.

01:27:07 - All right, go PACE for sure.

01:27:11 Thank you so much for taking us all the way

01:27:12 through solar array deployment, Mick and Daryl.

01:27:15 So now we are back with yet another member

01:27:17 of the Launch Services Team, Denton Gibson.

01:27:20 You are the Assistant Launch Manager from LSP.

01:27:22 Thanks so much for being here.

01:27:24 - Thank you for having me.

01:27:25 - Of course, we're happy to have you.

01:27:26 So today, this was your first launch in your new role

01:27:29 as Assistant or Backup Launch Director.

01:27:31 How did things go from your perspective?

01:27:33 - Oh, the launch went well.

01:27:35 This is one of the cleanest launch counts that I've seen.

01:27:37 The launch vehicle performed phenomenally.

01:27:40 And we separated the spacecraft on time as predicted.

01:27:43 And as you just saw, we got power positive.

01:27:45 So the mission went flawless.

01:27:47 - Great.

01:27:48 And that makes me very happy, of course.

01:27:50 But tell us, what other launches

01:27:51 does LSP have planned for this year?

01:27:53 - So the other things we have planned for this year

01:27:55 is the GOES-U, which will be coming up

01:27:58 towards the end of April.

01:27:59 And that'll be on a Falcon Heavy.

01:28:01 And then later on this year, we have Europa Clipper,

01:28:04 which we're going to one of the moons of Jupiter,

01:28:07 which will also be another Falcon Heavy.

01:28:08 So we have two Falcon Heavies lined up this year.

01:28:10 - Great.

01:28:11 So a lot of nice things to see from LSP this year.

01:28:13 We did just also see that beautiful tribute

01:28:15 to Program Manager Amanda Mitskevich.

01:28:17 So Denton, is there anything you want to say to Amanda

01:28:19 and the rest of the team that worked on PACE?

01:28:21 - Yes.

01:28:22 Oh, first of all, I want to say thank you to the SpaceX

01:28:26 for giving us an excellent ride to space.

01:28:29 And all the hard work and dedication that went into this

01:28:33 from the LSP team as well as the Garda teams.

01:28:35 Did an amazing job to make sure

01:28:37 that this mission was successful.

01:28:38 And also our colleagues at the Space Force

01:28:42 who helped us out when we had some challenges

01:28:45 with weather early on, they gave us a lot of good support

01:28:47 from that and helped us out on day of launch.

01:28:52 And to Amanda, I would like to say, you will be missed.

01:28:57 She's been a very good mentor to a lot of us

01:29:00 and to me personally, and she's been an amazing leader

01:29:03 for the Launch Services Program.

01:29:04 So thank you to the combined LSP, Garda, SpaceX,

01:29:09 Space Force team, and I know everybody will miss Amanda.

01:29:14 - For sure, you know, it really is a collaborative effort

01:29:16 between all of you.

01:29:17 Very well said, Denton, thank you so much.

01:29:19 And it was a beautiful, like you said,

01:29:20 almost flawless launch campaign today.

01:29:22 So great job for the LSP team.

01:29:24 And for our viewers, if you missed that launch earlier

01:29:27 in this morning, you are welcome to watch that again.

01:29:29 We actually have a replay for you right now.

01:29:31 (rocket engine roaring)

01:29:35 - My 10, 10, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three,

01:29:42 two, one, booster ignition.

01:29:48 Full power engines and lift off of the Falcon 9 and Pace.

01:29:55 Helping keep pace with our ever changing ocean

01:29:58 and atmosphere.

01:30:00 (rocket engine roaring)

01:30:02 - Stage one propulsion is nominal.

01:30:04 - All nine Merlin engines lit up and roaring.

01:30:13 1.7 billion pounds of thrust.

01:30:16 - Chamber pressures on the telemetry are feeling good

01:30:27 here, Darrell.

01:30:27 Nine engines performing very well.

01:30:29 (rocket engine roaring)

01:30:33 - It's great news.

01:30:34 - Power and telemetry nominal.

01:30:35 - Makes it steep climb into its orbit.

01:30:37 Ride about two minutes on the first stage.

01:30:42 A few from the rocket camera.

01:30:46 - Vehicle supersonic.

01:30:47 - Here we hear Falcon 9 supersonic coming up on maximum,

01:30:51 max Q, maximum dynamic pressure on the launch vehicle.

01:30:55 - Max Q.

01:30:58 - Pass through max Q.

01:30:59 The vehicle continues to perform nominally,

01:31:02 all nine engines.

01:31:03 - Now that Pace is on its way,

01:31:06 let's take one final look at this mission

01:31:08 with some social questions for our ocean expert,

01:31:11 Laura Lorenzoni.

01:31:12 Thank you again to those of you

01:31:13 that have been sending those in.

01:31:15 So our first question comes from HugeXO on X.

01:31:20 They ask, what is NASA going to do

01:31:22 with the information gathered by Pace?

01:31:25 - Great question.

01:31:27 And NASA receives the data

01:31:30 and it is our job to distribute those data

01:31:33 and make it freely available.

01:31:34 And NASA has a very, very robust open science policy,

01:31:39 meaning that we want to make sure

01:31:40 that everything that we collect through our satellites

01:31:43 or our field campaigns is open and available to the public.

01:31:47 And so we're going to have first light for Pace

01:31:50 in the middle of March.

01:31:52 And this means that this is when the data

01:31:54 is going to be available.

01:31:55 But truly Pace and Pace's data is meant to help the public,

01:32:00 to help anyone, any citizen, decision makers alike,

01:32:05 make really smart decisions

01:32:07 about anything that is important to them.

01:32:09 - Right, it is nice to see that the data from Pace

01:32:11 really is going to help the public.

01:32:13 So our next question comes from Mondo305 on X.

01:32:17 They ask, how will these studies help with coral reefs?

01:32:21 - And that is an excellent question.

01:32:23 The data from Pace, as we've been talking about,

01:32:27 it really, one of the biggest instrument

01:32:28 is the ocean color instrument.

01:32:30 That tells you what color is the ocean.

01:32:32 And we've talked about phytoplankton,

01:32:33 we haven't talked so much about sediment

01:32:35 or about other things that are suspended in the ocean.

01:32:37 And so coral reefs really depend on clear water

01:32:41 and understanding what kind of variations we have

01:32:44 with respect to water quality or that color of the water

01:32:48 is going to be really important for us to understand

01:32:50 what conditions are really impacting

01:32:53 negatively coral reefs

01:32:54 and which ones are actually benefiting reefs.

01:32:56 - Great, thank you so much, Laura.

01:32:58 We do have one final question.

01:33:00 It comes from MangoAllyElly on Twitch.

01:33:03 And they ask, how long is this mission

01:33:06 and how long before the results are shared?

01:33:08 - That is also an excellent question.

01:33:11 Pace's mission, original mission, is three years.

01:33:13 That is the primary mission.

01:33:15 However, as you heard through the broadcast,

01:33:17 Pace has 10 years of fuel,

01:33:18 which hopefully means that Pace

01:33:20 is gonna have a really long life.

01:33:22 And NASA does have a lot of success with its missions

01:33:25 and they go into extended operations

01:33:26 and last for a really long time,

01:33:28 which is, it's absolutely fundamental,

01:33:30 as we've talked about,

01:33:31 to really understand that climate trend

01:33:32 and that climate record.

01:33:34 And you can expect Pace data hitting our data repositories

01:33:38 and being available to all of you by mid-March.

01:33:41 - Okay, great, you heard it here.

01:33:44 Mid-March is when we are going to be looking

01:33:45 for that Pace data.

01:33:47 We also have a QR code here to give you,

01:33:49 so that way you can look for

01:33:50 where you can find that information from Pace.

01:33:53 So thank you so much, Laura, for answering those questions.

01:33:55 And thank you to the public for sending them in

01:33:58 using #AskNASA.

01:34:00 We really appreciate that.

01:34:01 So that's going to wrap up our coverage

01:34:03 for the launch of Pace.

01:34:05 I want to personally thank you, Laura, for being here,

01:34:07 our ocean expert, to answer all of our questions.

01:34:09 It's been a pleasure having you.

01:34:10 - Jasmine, you've made this absolutely wonderful,

01:34:13 so thank you so much.

01:34:14 And thanks to all of you that tuned in.

01:34:16 It has been a real privilege to be able to share

01:34:18 this historic moment with you.

01:34:20 And we really are standing in the shoulder of giants.

01:34:22 If it wasn't because of the legacy

01:34:24 that we've had on Ocean Color,

01:34:25 and all the people that have worked generation

01:34:28 after generation on these kinds of technology,

01:34:31 of instruments, we wouldn't be here.

01:34:33 So thank you to all of you that have made Pace possible

01:34:36 and go Pace.

01:34:37 - Yes, go Pace.

01:34:37 It really is a collaborative effort.

01:34:39 Thank you so much for all the teams

01:34:40 that came together for this.

01:34:41 You can follow Pace online at nasa.gov/pace,

01:34:46 and by using #KeepingPace across social media.

01:34:50 Thank you again so much for joining us.

01:34:51 And until next time, go NASA, go SpaceX, and go Pace.

01:34:56 (beeping)

01:35:03 (dramatic music)

01:35:13 (dramatic music)

01:35:17 (dramatic music)

01:35:20 (upbeat music)

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