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Three trucks, one plane, one boat,

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two countries, one mission.

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The Global Precipitation Measurement mission's Core Observatory racked up

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7300 flight miles before it even left the planet.

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The Core Observatory in its shipping container took off for Japan on an Air Force

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Super Galaxy C-5 cargo plane on November 21,

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2013. A two-hour refueling stopover in Anchorage,

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Alaska, turned into two days when a snowstorm swept in.

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But sunny skies greeted the GPM Core Observatory

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when it landed at Kitakyushu Airport, Japan, on November 24th.

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Moving the 57,000 pound combined

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weight of the shipping container and the satellite took all hands on deck

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from plane to truck to barge.

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Rough seas kept the boat at anchor

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for 24 hours in Saiki before it hit the open water.

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Arrival by sea is the only way to get heavy space equipment to Tanegashima Island.

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The tiny island has narrow, windy

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roads, so it wasn't until midnight when the streets were empty that the Core Observatory

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traveled the last nine miles to space center.

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Next, the GPM team unpacked the spacecraft in JAXA's

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Satellite Preparation Building for post-travel inspections and a

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Comprehensive Performance Test. These two tasks ensured that

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the Core Observatory was ready for launch. After a long,

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slow and careful journey to Tanegashima, GPM arrived safely

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and began its countdown to launch.