The Dawn spacecraft is intended to give humanity
its first up-close look at a pair of compelling asteroids.
It takes a dedicated and highly skilled team of scientists, technicians,
and engineers to make sure the spacecraft and the rocket will do their jobs right.
I'm Armando Piloto, mission manager for Dawn. As part of NASA's Launch Services Program,
I lead a dedicated team of professionals whose goal is to boost spacecraft of scientific planetary
importance into space in the best and most efficient way possible.
The Dawn mission calls for a Delta II rocket to lift the spacecraft off the ground and literally throw it out of
Earth's gravitational field. That's a complex task that requires a lot of power, and a lot of thought.
That's why these missions really start years before launch day,
with careful planning and precise coordination needed during the entire process.
For missions such as Dawn that are to leave Earth orbit,
it is common to use the most robust Delta II available.
That means three stages with nine supersized, solid-fueled boosters helping the first stage.