Originally posted by the Voice of America.
Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America,
a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in
the public domain.


'No Decision' on Next Launch Attempt for SpaceX-NASA Mission

Agence France-Presse

   A final decision on a launch attempt for SpaceX's milestone mission to
   the International Space Station on Saturday afternoon will take place
   after assessing the weather that morning, NASA chief Jim Bridenstine
   said Friday.

   Fears of a lightning strike postponed the initial takeoff attempt
   Wednesday of what would have been the first crewed rocket launch from
   U.S. soil in almost a decade, and the first time a commercial company
   had achieved the feat.

   "No decision on weather right now for Saturday's test flight of @
   SpaceX's #CrewDragon spacecraft. Will reassess in the morning," tweeted
   Bridenstine.

   Earlier in the day, NASA said the chances of a Saturday launch at 3:22
   p.m. EDT (1922 GMT) were 50 percent. A chance of afternoon and evening
   thunderstorms was in the forecast for the area.

   Next chance: Sunday

   The next window, which is determined by the relative positions of the
   launch site to the space station, would be Sunday at 3:00 pm EDT (1900
   GMT). Storms were again in the forecast.

   NASA astronauts Robert Behnken, 49, and Douglas Hurley, 53, former
   military test pilots who joined the space agency in 2000, are to blast
   off from historic Launch Pad 39A on a two-stage SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

   The same launch pad was used by Neil Armstrong and his Apollo 11
   crewmates on their historic journey to the moon, as NASA seeks to
   revive excitement around human space exploration ahead of a planned
   return to Earth's natural satellite and then Mars.

   The mission comes despite shutdowns caused by the coronavirus pandemic,
   with the crew in quarantine for more than two weeks. NASA has urged
   crowds to stay away from Cocoa Beach, the traditional viewing spot, but
   that did not deter many space fans on Wednesday.

   President Donald Trump, who flew in for the previous launch attempt, is
   expected to attend again.