JPSS-2 Mated To The LOFTID Payload

Technicians assist as a crane lowers the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Joint Polar Satellite System-2 (JPSS-2) onto the Low-Earth Orbit Flight Test of an Inflatable Decelerator (LOFTID) payload inside the Astrotech Space Operations facility at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB) in California on Oct. 5, 2022.

JPSS-2 is the third satellite in the Joint Polar Satellite System series. It is scheduled to lift off from VSFB on Nov. 1 from Space Launch Complex-3. JPSS-2, which will be renamed NOAA-21 after reaching orbit, will join a constellation of JPSS satellites that orbit from the North to the South pole, circling Earth 14 times a day and providing a full view of the entire globe twice daily.

NASA ID: KSC-20221005-PH-AMT01_0033 Date Created: 2022-10-05 Larger image