launch business - pull off the feat of three launches this weekend, it will set a record for the shortest period in history with three orbital missions departing from Florida’s Space Coast. There’s just a 40 percent chance of acceptable weather predicted for launch of the SAOCOM 1B satellite Sunday evening, due to the “threat of evening thunderstorms and associated cloudiness over the launch area,” according to the 45th Weather Squadron. The prime weather concern for the Falcon 9/Starlink mission is the potential of violating the thick cloud rule. The official launch weather forecast for Sunday morning’s Falcon 9 launch predicts a 50 percent chance of favorable weather, with “considerable” mid-level and high-level clouds expected over Florida’s Space Coast, forecasters wrote Friday. The company is not expected to conduct a test-firing of the rocket for the SAOCOM 1B mission.Īs of Friday morning, both SpaceX launches remained on track for Sunday, but the weather forecast is iffy. SpaceX plans to perform a test-firing of the Falcon 9 rocket for the Starlink mission Saturday on pad 39A. The first stage from the SAOCOM 1B mission is due to return to Cape Canaveral Air Force Station for an onshore landing less than 10 minutes after liftoff.īoth launches will employ previously-flown Falcon 9 rocket boosters. SpaceX plans to land the first stage booster from the Starlink mission on a drone ship positioned in the Atlantic Ocean northeast of Cape Canaveral. EDT (2318 GMT) with Argentina’s SAOCOM 1B radar observation satellite. EDT (1412 GMT) with the next batch of approximately 60 Starlink satellites for SpaceX’s planned network to beam worldwide broadband Internet signals from space.Īround nine hours later, a different Falcon 9 rocket could launch from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at around 7:18 p.m. Other sources also indicated the possibility of two SpaceX launches Sunday, but a company spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.įirst, a Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to take off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center at 10:12 a.m. Credit: SpaceXĪssuming ULA gets the Delta 4 off the ground Saturday, SpaceX is gearing up for two launches as soon as Sunday, according to weather forecasts and hazard area information released by the Eastern Range. File photo of a Falcon 9 rocket emerging from its hangar at pad 40. Most commercial launches get two days at a time reserved on the range. The Delta 4-Heavy has three days reserved on the range, including Saturday and backup opportunities Sunday and Monday. military’s Eastern Range, which oversees safety, security and support functions for all launches originating from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and the neighboring Kennedy Space Center. The Delta 4-Heavy was scheduled to blast off early Thursday, but ULA scrubbed the launch to evaluate an issue with a ground pneumatics system at the pad.ĭue to the nature of its national security payload, the Delta 4-Heavy has priority on the U.S. EDT (1025 GMT), although the public period envelopes the actual launch window, which likely ends some time before then. The publicly-released launch period extends until 6:25 a.m. Space Force’s 45th Weather Squadron at Cape Canaveral. There is an 80 percent chance of good weather for launch of the Delta 4-Heavy Saturday, according to the U.S. government’s fleet of clandestine spy satellites. EDT (0604 GMT) Saturday from pad 37B at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station with a classified payload for the National Reconnaissance Office, which owns the U.S. The first in line is United Launch Alliance’s powerful Delta 4-Heavy rocket, which is scheduled to take off at 2:04 a.m. Credit: SpaceXĭelays have set up the possibility of up to three rocket launches this weekend from different pads along Florida’s Space Coast, including two SpaceX missions on Sunday that could set a company record for the shortest span between two Falcon 9 rocket launches.īut in the world of ever-changing launch schedules, numerous factors such as weather and technical issues could thwart launch plans this weekend. In this long exposure file photo from May 2019, a Falcon 9 rocket is seen streaking into space from Cape Canaveral, with its first stage booster returning to landing minutes later on a drone ship just offshore.
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