Falcon 9 launch with Telstar 18 VANTAGE postponed 24 hours
A file photo of a Block 5 Falcon 9 at Space Launch Complex 40. SpaceX is preparing to send the Telstar 18 VANTAGE satellite into space on Sept. 9, 2018. Photo Credit: Scott Schilke / SpaceFlight Insider
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — The weekend flight of a Falcon 9 with Telstar 18 VANTAGE has slipped 24 hours. The commercial communications satellite is ultimately bound for a geostationary orbit to serve markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
“Now targeting September 9 launch of Telstar 18 VANTAGE from Pad 40 in Florida,” SpaceX announced via its official Twitter account. “Rocket and payload are healthy; additional time will be used to complete pre-flight checkouts.”
SpaceX will have four hours to get the Block 5 Falcon 9 and its 15,500-pound (7,000-kilogram) payload off the ground at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40 when the launch window opens at 11:28 p.m. EDT (03:28 GMT Sept. 10).
As of Sept. 7, the weather for the Sunday-night attempt is expected to have a 40 percent chance of violating launch constraints. The 45th Weather Squadron said the primary concerns will be thick and cumulus clouds. Should a 24-hour scrub occur, weather concerns are expected to remain the same on Monday night.
Derek Richardson
Derek Richardson has a degree in mass media, with an emphasis in contemporary journalism, from Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas. While at Washburn, he was the managing editor of the student run newspaper, the Washburn Review. He also has a website about human spaceflight called Orbital Velocity. You can find him on twitter @TheSpaceWriter.
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