September 29, 2007
On the day you were born, the universe was already ancient beyond measure — and yet, in all those billions of years, it had never once...
Dawn Launch Mosaic
Birthday · September 29, 2007
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APOD published September 29, 2007. Credit: Randy Pollock. A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
Shortly after sunrise on Thursday at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, the Dawn spacecraft began its journey to the asteroid belt, arcing eastward into a blue and cloudy sky. Dawn's voyage began on a conventional, chemically fueled Delta II rocket, but will continue with an innovative ion propulsion system. The spacecraft's extremely efficient ion engines will use electricity derived from solar power to ionize xenon atoms and generate a gentle but continuous thrust. After a four year interplanetary cruise, Dawn will orbit two small worlds, first Vesta and then Ceres. Vesta is one of the largest main belt asteroids, while nomenclature introduced by the International Astronomical Union in 2006 classifies nearly spherical Ceres as a dwarf planet.
Image credit: Randy Pollock