GRAIL: the story
GRAIL · Chapter 1 of 8
10 September 2011
Launch
GRAIL left Earth on a Delta II 7920H from Space Launch Complex 17B.
GRAIL · Chapter 2 of 8
August 2011
Final checks
Lockheed Martin technicians prepared GRAIL-A at Astrotech in Titusville, Florida.
GRAIL · Chapter 3 of 8
August 2011
Stacked
The twins were lowered onto the second stage of their Delta II.
GRAIL · Chapter 4 of 8
10 September 2011
Liftoff
A Delta II launched both spacecraft from Space Launch Complex 17B.
GRAIL · Chapter 5 of 8
2012
Named by children
Fourth-graders at Emily Dickinson Elementary School in Bozeman, Montana named them Ebb and Flow. Students also chose targets for their MoonKAM cameras.
GRAIL · Chapter 6 of 8
2012
Mapping gravity
They produced the highest-resolution gravity map of any celestial body to date and pinpointed mascons under the surface.
GRAIL · Chapter 7 of 8
17 December 2012
Final flight
Both spacecraft were flown into a mountain near the north pole at about 1.7 km per second.
GRAIL · Chapter 8 of 8
17 December 2012
Impact
Low on fuel, Ebb and Flow were flown into a mountain near the north pole. The site was named after Sally K. Ride.
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