https://qz.com/1270690/nasa-is-going-back-to-mars-and-its-going-deep/

NASA expects to launch the Mars InSight lander today, on a mission more than eight years in the making. The expedition will give scientists a new understanding of the geology and history of Mars—and perhaps the earth as well.

Launching on an Atlas V rocket from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base shortly after 4:00 am PT (7 am ET), the spacecraft will endure a 6.5-month flight to the fourth planet. There, it is expected to touchdown on November 26, using a combination of heat shields, parachutes and thrusters to slow from 13,200 miles per hour to 5.5 mph in seven minutes, according to Stu Spath, the Lockheed Martin manager who led the team that built the space probe.