US to launch next Mars mission

Washington: US to launch its next mission to Mars in November and the spacecraft has already arrived at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, space agency NASA said.
In the next week, the team will re-assemble components previously removed for transport. Further checks prior to launch will include software tests, spin balance tests, and test deployments of the spacecraft’s solar panels and booms, NASA said.

According to NASA, the mission will be dedicated to surveying the upper atmosphere of Mars in an effort to understand the role that the loss of atmospheric gas to space played in changing the climate of Mars.

MAVEN is scheduled to lift off in November to begin a 10-month voyage to Mars. It has a 20-day launch period that opens on November 18.