At 1:28 PM Eastern Monday, NASA's MAVEN spacecraft blasted off on a mission to explore Mars' atmosphere.<br/> <br />The new robotic orbiter launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on a trip of more than 440 million miles .<br/> <br />MAVEN - or the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission - is set to reach Mars in September 2014.<br/> <br />Once it gets there, the orbiter will spend a year's Earth time looking for clues to better understand the planet's radical climate change from warm and wet to cold and dry.<br/> <br />NASA astronaut Mike Hopkins spoke from the International Space Station - before the launch.<br/> <br />(SOUNDBITE) NASA flight engineer Mike Hopkins SAYING:<br/> <br />"Like a lot of the research we are conducting on the International Space Station, understanding the Red Planet's atmosphere is essential to NASA's goal of safely sending humans there one day."<br/> <br />NASA says the mission has a pricetag of $671 million.
