Friday, 5 December 2014

Stage Is Reset for Orion Spaceship's First Test in a Mars Marathon 



America's most powerful rocket was fueled up once more on Friday to launch a robotic test version of NASA's Orion deep-space capsule on its first flight, a day after a series of snags forced a scrub of the first attempt.

The United Launch Alliance Delta 4 Heavy rocket's liftoff from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station had to be postponed on Thursday — at first due to gusty winds, and later due to a balky fuel valve.


The good news is that ULA resolved the fuel valve issue: "We're proceeding toward launch," the company said in a Twitter update. The bad news is that forecasters set the prospects for launch-worthy weather at only 40 percent, due to winds as well as the potential for rain and cumulus clouds.

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