A NASA satellite that aimed to study the impact of aerosols on the climate has plunged into the Pacific Ocean, delivering a $ 424 million blow to the US space agency. The satellite ‘Glory’ could not reach orbit after its protective clamshell-like nose cone cover failed to detach after launch. It weighed 528 kilograms and carried two main instruments, the Aerosol Polarimetry Sensor and the Total Irradiance Monitor which was to be directed at the Sun. It was supposed to chart an orbital course 630 kilometres above the Earth, before employing an on-board propulsion system to raise its orbit to 4811 kilometres. It was then supposed to join what is known as the “A-Train” of Earth-observing satellites sent up by NASA. The five already there – Aqua, Cloudsat, Calipso, Parasol and Aura – fly in formation, crossing the equator every afternoon.