SpaceX delays launch of daring Polaris Dawn excursion into Earth's radiation belts - adverse weather [View all]

[Eugene]

SpaceX delays launch of daring Polaris Dawn excursion into Earth’s radiation belts (CNN)

(CNN) — SpaceX has once again delayed the kickoff of its latest mission: a bold and risky trek into Earth’s Van Allen radiation belts by a four-person crew of civilians who will also aim to conduct the first commercial spacewalk.

The mission, dubbed Polaris Dawn, was set to take off as soon as 3:38 a.m. ET Wednesday — but the company opted to delay takeoff because of unfavorable weather conditions for the crew’s return to Earth. This latest delay comes after a planned Tuesday morning launch attempt from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida was waived off because of issues with ground equipment at the launchpad.

Jared Isaacman, the billionaire founder of payments platform Shift4 who is both funding this mission alongside SpaceX and part of the crew, said on social media Wednesday night that the ground system issues were resolved, and the weather for launch looked great.

However, when the crew returns, they’ll also need calm waters and skies as they splash down in the ocean. And the current forecast for the five-day mission prompted SpaceX to forgo launch attempts on Wednesday and Thursday.

https://edition.cnn.com/2024/08/27/science/polaris-dawn-launch-delay-spacex/index.html