SpaceX’s return to spaceflight pushed back to January 14th

[Buster's Uncle]

SpaceX’s return to spaceflight pushed back to January 14th
The delay is due to high winds and rain near the launch site
The Verge
by Loren Grush@lorengrush   Jan 8, 2017, 11:44am EST   



SpaceX’s Falcon 9 at Vandenberg Air Force Base |Photo by Bill Ingalls/NASA via Getty Images



SpaceX’s first rocket launch since August has been pushed back to January 14th, due to rain and heavy winds that are expected near the launch site in California over the next week. Prior to the delay, SpaceX had been aiming to launch on January 9th, after receiving a launch license from the Federal Aviation Administration. On Friday, the FAA announced it had accepted SpaceX’s explanation for what caused one of the company’s Falcon 9 rockets to explode on a Florida launch pad.

SpaceX has been grounded since the accident, which occurred on the morning of September 1st. The Falcon 9 was being fueled in preparation for a pre-flight test, when it exploded in a fireball, destroying both the rocket and the Amos 6 satellite it was supposed to carry into space. The company has spent the past four months trying to figure out what caused the incident, coming to the conclusion that the failure began with helium pressure vessels located in the rocket’s upper oxygen tank. Liquid oxygen propellent is thought to have ignited after getting trapped in materials surrounding the helium vessels.

“The FAA accepted the investigation report on the Amos 6 mishap and has closed the investigation,” the FAA said in an email statement to The Verge on Friday. “SpaceX applied for a license to launch the Iridium NEXT satellites from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The FAA has granted a license for that purpose.”

Now, SpaceX is looking to return to flight by launching 10 satellites for communications company Iridium, as part of the Iridium NEXT mission. The launch is slated to take place from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on January 14th, at 12:54PM ET. Following the flight, SpaceX will try to land the majority of its rocket on one of its drone ships in the Pacific Ocean.


http://www.theverge.com/2017/1/8/14204198/spacex-iridium-next-launch-delay-january-14th-accident