VIDEO COURTESY: NASA TV
NASA's newest robotic explorer, the LADEE spacecraft, rocketed into space late on Friday (local time) in an unprecedented launch from Virginia on a mission to study the lunar atmosphere and dust. Moon's atmosphere is so thin and delicate, in fact, that spacecraft landings can disturb it. So, according to NASA scientists, now is the time to go, as there are concerns that other countries and even private companies will soon start bombarding the moon with flights and fouling up the atmosphere. The 844-pound spacecraft has three science instruments as well as laser communication test equipment that could revolutionize data relay.