Update: Vandenberg rocket launch delayed after moisture found in engines
.jpeg "Part of the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite’s science instrument payload sits in a clean room at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory during assembly.")
Update, 8:50 p.m.:
Thursday’s launch has been delayed after an issue was identified with the rocket’s booster, NASA tweeted Wednesday evening.
The rocket is now set to launch no earlier than 6:46 a.m. on Friday.
“The satellite is healthy and the forecast remains favorable for liftoff on Friday morning,” NASA tweeted.
According to the agency, teams identified moisture in two engines in the rocket’s first stage booster after the rocket went vertical on the launch pad.
Teams completed re-inspections of the engines on Wednesday, but “will use the additional time to complete data reviews and analysis before a launch attempt,” according to NASA.
Original story:
A SpaceX rocket will launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base early Thursday morning, carrying a state-of-the-art satellite meant to measure the Earth’s water.
A Falcon 9 rocket is expected to take off from the Central Coast military base at 3:56 a.m., and will likely be viewable from around the state depending on weather conditions.
The rocket will carry the U.S.-European Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite (SWOT), which according to NASA, “will observe nearly all water on Earth’s surface.”
“Its measurements of fresh water and the ocean will help researchers address some of the most pressing climate questions of our time and help communities prepare for a warming world,” the agency said in a news release Monday.
The satellite includes a special scientific instrument, the Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn), that is able to measure the height of water in the planet’s oceans and freshwater bodies, according to the release.
KaRIn can detect currents and eddies in the ocean that are less than 13 miles across, and can collect data on lakes and reservoirs larger than 15 acres and rivers wider than 330 feet across, according to the release.
SWOT is jointly developed by NASA and the French space agency, Centre National D’Etudes Spatiales (CNES), with contributions from the Canadian and the United Kingdom space agencies.
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is managed for NASA by Cal Tech in Pasadena, leads the U.S. component of the project, according to the release.
How to watch Vandenberg rocket launch
The SpaceX launch will likely be viewable from around the Central Coast, depending on the weather conditions and whether Vandenberg’s infamous fog makes an appearance.
There are several viewing areas around the Lompoc area for those interested in watching the spectacle live.
Cars often line up along Ocean Avenue, also known as Highway 246, with hundreds of spectators sitting on top of their vehicles or on the side of the road waiting for the rocket to come shooting up over the hills.
Other popular viewing sites include spots along Firefighter, Harris Grade and Santa Lucia roads.
SpaceX usually broadcasts its launches live on its website starting about five minutes prior to liftoff, but as of Wednesday morning, the company has not released a link for a webcast.
This story was originally published December 14, 2022 at 1:43 PM with the headline "Update: Vandenberg rocket launch delayed after moisture found in engines."
%20Cropped.jpg)