Orbital Scrubs Today's Antares Launch – UPDATED WITH NEW LAUNCH INFO
UPDATE, January 8, 2014, 9:55 pm ET: Orbital now plans to launch tomorrow, Thursday, January 9, at 1:07 pm ET. NASA TV coverage will begin at 12:45 pm ET and a post-launch press conference is schedule for approximately 2:30 pm ET.
ORIGINAL STORY, January 8, 2014, 8:24 am ET: Orbital Sciences Corporation has scrubbed today’s planned launch of its Antares rocket and Cygnus spacecraft to the International Space Station because of solar radiation.
The company said in a statement the scrub was “due to an unusually high level of space radiation that exceeded by a considerable margin the constraints imposed on the mission to ensure the rocket’s electronic systems are not impacted by a harsh radiation environment.”
The radiation levels will continue to be monitored and if the launch occurs tomorrow, January 9, it will be at 1:10 pm ET.
The launch from Wallops Island, VA had been expected at 1:32 pm ET today.
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