A team of launch managers for NASA’s SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer) and PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) missions authorized approval to proceed to launch countdown at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California ahead of a scheduled launch on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Saturday, March 8 at 10:09 p.m. EST (7:09 p.m. PST) from Space Launch Complex 4 East.
During the Launch Readiness Review on March 7, launch managers from NASA’s Launch Services Program, SpaceX, and the SPHEREx and PUNCH mission teams received an update on the missions’ status and any close-out actions from the previously held Flight Readiness Review.
NASA will host a prelaunch news conference today at 3:30 p.m. EST (12:30 p.m. PST) to discuss the agency’s SPHEREx and PUNCH missions. Coverage of the prelaunch news conference will stream live on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.
Participants include:
- Dr. Mark Clampin, acting deputy associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
- James Fanson, SPHEREx project manager, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
- David Cheney, PUNCH program executive, NASA
- Dr. Denton Gibson, launch director, NASA’s Launch Services Program
- Julianna Scheiman, director, NASA Science Missions, SpaceX
- 1st Lt. Ina Park, launch weather officer, 30th Operations Support Squadron, U.S. Air Force
Launch day will kick off March 8, with the NASA Launch Preview Show at 12 p.m. EST (9 a.m. PST), streaming on NASA+. NASA’s launch broadcast is set to begin at 9:15 p.m. EST (6:15 p.m. PST) on NASA+, YouTube, the NASA app, and other digital channels.
Visit the NASA website for more information about SPHEREx and PUNCH.