Beginning in late 1999, NASA will launch the Terra satellite (formerly EOS AM-1), the flagship of the Earth Observing System (EOS)—a series of spacecraft that represent the next landmark steps in NASA's leadership role to observe the Earth from the unique vantage point of space. Focused on key measurements identified by a consensus of U.S. and international scientists, Terra will enable new research into the ways that Earth's lands, oceans, air, ice, and life function as a total environmental system. Terra is scheduled to launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.