DSCOVR Update

From NOAA Satellite and Information Service:

DSCOVR Update: In just 12 days after it launched, NOAA's DSCOVR satellite has reached the halfway mark to the L1 position. The satellite has traveled approximately 0.8M kilometers (about 500,000 miles). However, just as a ball loses speed at the top of its arc, DSCOVR is losing speed.

As DSCOVR moves further away from the earth, the sun's gravity comes into play and bends the trajectory. This results in curved trajectory versus a "straight-line" approach. It will take DSCOVR another 100 days to travel the remaining distance to L1. This will put the expected arrival time of DSCOVR at L1 around the beginning of June. (http://www.nesdis.noaa.gov/DSCOVR/)