LIVE IMAGE: Refresh this page to see the latest pictures of the Delta 4 on the pad at Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
A Delta IV rocket is being readied at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station for a Thursday evening launch on a mission to deliver a new national weather satellite to orbit.
The 238-foot-tall rocket and its payload -- a Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite -- are scheduled to blast off during an hour-long window that will open at 6:17 p.m. Thursday.
The weather forecast for launch is nearly perfect. Meteorologists say there is a 90 percent chance conditions will be acceptable for launch. The only concern is a chance of strong ground-level winds.
Check out the official forecast from the U.S. Air Force 45th Space Wing Weather Squadron HERE.
The launch had been slated for Tuesday, but technicians ran into a couple of problems during routine testing. A faulty steering thruster valve was replaced and retested over the past weekend and then engineers discovered a faulty fuel-line quick disconnect valve. The fuel-line valve is being replaced and a spare retested today.
An eight-hour countdown is scheduled to begin at 9:17 a.m. Thursday.Check out the details on the countdown and the flight in this United Launch Alliance Mission Booklet HERE.
Check out the Official NASA Press Kit HERE.
6 comments:
I know the technicians are fast workers but I'm interested to see how they'll fit an 8 day countdown into 8 hours.
204 feet tall. The Heavy is 238.
Hmmm. 238 is the height that ULA gave us. I'll double check....
Oops. Nice catch on the length of the countdown. Brain fart on my part. Sorry....
OK, here's the word from ULA: The rocket on the pad is 224 feet tall (with the fairing). The Delta IV Heavy is 238.
Keep those cards and letters coming. It helps us get things right.
ULA spokesperson is wrong. Delta IV medium is 204 feet, medium with five-meter fairing is 217 and Heavy is 235-38 depending on which fairing they yse.
Post a Comment