A thunderstorm passing to the west of Cape Canaveral has today's Atlas V countdown in a "red" condition, as expected.It's still possible the rocket and two NASA satellites could lift off on time at 5:12 p.m.
If not, one-second windows are also available at 5:22 p.m. and 5:32 p.m.
After being filled with liquid oxygen, the Centaur upper stage is being loaded with liquid hydrogen which will complete the fueling process.
Interesting note about the Centaur: its foam has been painted white to keep it from getting too hot or too cold during its planned four-month cruise to the moon.
The cruise ends with a crash into a permanently shadowed, when the color won't matter much anymore.
NASA hopes the impact from the 41.5-foot stage kicks up a plume of regolith that shows evidence of water ice on the moon.
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