WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:11.000
Music.

00:00:11.000 --> 00:00:18.000
For thousands of years, shimmering auroras like the Northern Lights have dazzled our eyes and remained a curious phenomenon.

00:00:18.000 --> 00:00:23.000
While we know how they form, the reasons for their unpredictable behavior are still a mystery.

00:00:23.000 --> 00:00:29.000
NASA's THEMIS mission is about to change that.

00:00:29.000 --> 00:00:35.000
I'm Garrett Skrobot, mission manager for the THEMIS mission and NASA's Launch Services Program.

00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:41.000
THEMIS is a tricky mission involving the deployment of five small satellites with just one rocket.

00:00:41.000 --> 00:00:45.000
It's my job to ensure that the quintet of satellites and their vehicle work

00:00:45.000 --> 00:00:50.000
together flawlessly as they race into space aboard a Delta II rocket.

00:00:50.000 --> 00:00:57.000
The goal of THEMIS is to explain why auroras rapidly shift from glowing curtains of color to frantic streaks of light.

00:00:57.000 --> 00:01:02.000
The mission is a joint effort between NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland

00:01:02.000 --> 00:01:06.000
and universities such as the University of California at Berkeley.

00:01:06.000 --> 00:01:09.000
Getting missions like THEMIS off the ground begins years before launch and needs

00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:14.000
thoughtful cooperation between the engineers who build the spacecraft and rockets.

00:01:14.000 --> 00:01:18.000
The Launch Services Program fosters this team approach by serving as an advisor and

00:01:18.000 --> 00:01:33.000
project manager to ensure that everyone is working together for a picture-perfect flight.

00:01:33.000 --> 00:01:38.000