The launch is targeted for 1:02 p.m. on the East Coast.

The first Landsat satellite launched in 1972. The joint program between NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey is the longest-running data record of Earth observations from space. The latest launch continues that legacy.

Landsat 8 will circle Earth about 14 times each day from 438 miles above our planet, beaming back images of Earth's landscape and polar regions. It will image the entire Earth every 16 days.