A Delta rocket launched the small Earth Resources Technology Satellite in July 1972 with a simple mission: to capture multi-spectral imagery of the planet and assess changes over time.

Data from the polar-orbiting satellite proved so useful that NASA and the US Geological Survey renamed the vehicle Landsat 1 in 1975, and the organizations have since launched a succession of increasingly sophisticated "Landsat" satellites to continue observations.

Now, NASA seeks to advance the legacy of the Landsat program with the launch of the Landsat 9 mission on Monday.

In many ways, the satellite is a clone of Landsat 8, which launched in 2013.

The Landsat 9 mission is scheduled to launch on Monday at 11:12 am PT (18:11 UTC) from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

An Atlas V rocket, built by United Launch Alliance, will boost Landsat into a near-polar orbit.

This will be the 88th launch of an Atlas V rocket, which also previously launched the Landsat 8 mission.