Posted: Wed, Mar 19, 2014, 7:14 AM ET (1114 GMT)
An Atlas V rocket will launch a joint European-American solar orbiter mission in 2017, NASA announced Tuesday. The Atlas V 411 rocket is scheduled to launch the Solar Orbiter Collaboration mission in July 2017 from Cape Canaveral, in a launch services contract valued at $172.7 million, the agency announced. The spacecraft, built by Airbus Defence and Space (formerly Astrium) in the UK, will study the Sun and its coupling with the heliosphere. NASA's contribution to the mission includes the launch as well as part of the spacecraft's scientific payload.

Related Links:

•  NASASpaceFlight.com article
•  Spaceflight Now article
•  NASA press release