Delta IV Rocket Being Fueled For 7:22 PM Launch

A Delta IV rocket is being fueled at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station this afternoon as United Launch Alliance gears up for the planned launch tonight of a military communications satellite.

With four solid rocket boosters strapped to its core stage, the Delta IV Medium rocket is scheduled to blast off from Launch Complex 37 at 7:22 p.m. The launch window tonight will extend through 8:43 p.m. There is a 60 percent chance conditions will be acceptable for launch. See the post below for the detailed forecast from the Air Force 45th Space Wing Weather Squadron.

Engineers kicked off the terminal phase of the launch countdown just before 2 p.m. and then made final preparations for propellant loading operations. The Delta IV's core booster is being filled with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, propellants that will power its first and second stage engines.

The propellant-loading operation is expected to take about two hours to complete.

Check out all the details on the satellite-delivery mission in this United Launch Alliance Mission Book.