The satellite was originally launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on a dedicated Taurus XL rocket.
However, the payload fairing — a clam shell-shaped covering that protects the satellite during launch — apparently failed to separate from the spacecraft. "
We have not had a successful launch tonight and will not be able to have a successful OCO mission", NASA commentator George Diller said.

Date: 24 February 2009, 09:55:31 UTC
Launch Vehicle: Orbital Sciences, Taurus-XL
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Launch Complex 576-E
The OCO launch failed because the Taurus-XL launcher payload fairing failed to separate.
A payload fairing is a clamshell-shaped cover that encloses and protects a payload on the pad and during early flight.
Fairings are a standard component of expendable launch vehicles, and they are always jettisoned as soon as possible after a rocket has climbed high enough for heating from air friction to no longer risk damaging the payload.
On this flight, the fairing should have been jettisoned several seconds after Stage 2 ignition.
The extra mass of the fairing was not a significant factor during the flight of the larger lower stages, but it kept the relatively small Stage 3 from adding enough velocity to reach orbit, so the resulting sub-orbital ballistic path took the payload into the ocean near Antarctica, 17 minutes after liftoff.
NASA investigators later determined the cause for the launch failure to be faulty materials provided by aluminum manufacturer Sapa Profiles.
The satellite was originally launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on a dedicated Taurus XL rocket. However, the payload fairing — a clam shell-shaped covering that protects the satellite during launch — apparently failed to separate from the spacecraft. "We have not had a successful launch tonight and will not be able to have a successful OCO mission", NASA commentator George Diller said.
Date: 24 February 2009, 09:55:31 UTC
Launch Vehicle: Orbital Sciences, Taurus-XL
Launch Site: Vandenberg Air Force Base, Launch Complex 576-E
The OCO launch failed because the Taurus-XL launcher payload fairing failed to separate. A payload fairing is a clamshell-shaped cover that encloses and protects a payload on the pad and during early flight. Fairings are a standard component of expendable launch vehicles, and they are always jettisoned as soon as possible after a rocket has climbed high enough for heating from air friction to no longer risk damaging the payload. On this flight, the fairing should have been jettisoned several seconds after Stage 2 ignition. The extra mass of the fairing was not a significant factor during the flight of the larger lower stages, but it kept the relatively small Stage 3 from adding enough velocity to reach orbit, so the resulting sub-orbital ballistic path took the payload into the ocean near Antarctica, 17 minutes after liftoff. NASA investigators later determined the cause for the launch failure to be faulty materials provided by aluminum manufacturer Sapa Profiles.
Orbiting Carbon Observatory