Tuesday, December 01, 2009

Weather iffy for Wednesday Delta launch


Weather prospects don't look good for Wednesday night's scheduled launch of a Delta IV rocket.

There is an 80 percent chance that weather conditions will be no-go for the launch scheduled for 7:21 p.m. from Launch Pad 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The weather forecast improves to only a 20 percent chance that weather will force a scrub if the launch delays 24 hours.

Check out our story on the potentially bad weather coming our way.

The rocket will be carrying an Air Force communications satellite: the Wideband Global SATCOM-3 satellite. The communications satellite will help boost the communications capabilities of U.S. troops.

The Delta IV liftoff would mark the 36th mission launched in 36 months since United Launch Alliance was formed in 2006. ULA is a joint venture between Lockheed Martin and The Boeing Company.

This is third WGS satellite ULA will launch for the Air Force. The previous two WGS satellites were launched on an Atlas V in October 2007 and April 2009. The WGS program is the first AF program to launch on both an Atlas V and Delta IV since ULA's inception.

ABOUT THE IMAGE: The WGS-3 encapsulated spacecraft prior to mating to the Delta IV rocket at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Source: ULA

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