OCO 2

10-day predictions
OCO 2 is classified as:

Space & Earth Science

NORAD ID: 40059

Int'l Code: 2014-035A

Launch date: July 2, 2014
Source: United States (US)
Launch site: AIR FORCE WESTERN TEST RANGE (AFWTR)

OCO-2 (Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2) is an American environmental science satellite, a replacement for the Orbiting Carbon Observatory which was lost in a launch failure in 2009. The OCO-2 satellite was built by Orbital Sciences Corporation, based around the LEOStar-2 bus. The spacecraft will be used to study carbon dioxide concentrations and distributions in the atmosphere. OCO-2 was ordered after the original OCO spacecraft failed to achieve orbit. During the first satellite's launch atop a Taurus-XL in February 2009, the payload fairing failed to separate from around the spacecraft and the rocket did not have sufficient power to enter orbit with its additional mass. Although a Taurus launch was initially contracted for the reflight, the launch contract was cancelled after the same malfunction occurred on the launch of the Glory satellite two years later. OCO-2 joined the A-train satellite constellation, becoming the sixth satellite in the group. Members of the A-train fly very close together in sun-synchronous orbit, to make nearly simultaneous measurements of Earth. A particularly short launch window of 30 seconds was necessary to achieve a proper position in the train.