SpaceX has had to delay the launch of an Italian Earth observation satellite once again, but this time Mother Nature was not to blame.
In SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was ready to launch the Cosmo-SkyMed Second Generation FM2 (CSG-2) satellite from Florida’s Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Sunday (January 30) at 18.11 EST (2311 GMT). But a cruise ship wandered into the “no-go zone” downrange of Cape Canaveral, and the ship could not be moved in time for the Falcon 9 to hit its window.
“The vehicle is still healthy; the payload is healthy,” SpaceX said Production Manager Jessie Anderson during a webcast of today’s launch attempt. “Everything looked good for a timely boost today, except for the reach.”
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Standing from today’s launch of COSMO-SkyMed Second Generation FM2 due to ship in danger zone; the team is ready for the next opportunity tomorrow, January 31 at. 18:11 ESTJanuary 30, 2022
The next launch opportunity comes on Monday (January 31), also at 18.11 EST (2311 GMT). You can watch the experiment, which will include a landing of the Falcon 9’s first stage at Cape Canaveral shortly after departure, here on Space.com, with permission from SpaceX, or directly through the company.
Today was the fourth day in a row that SpaceX had to stand back from a CSG-2 launch attempt. The first three scrubs were caused by bad weather, but Mother Nature cooperated today. The weather also looks favorable for tomorrow’s trial, Anderson said.
The Cosmo-SkyMed Second Generation program is a collaboration between the Italian Space Agency, the Italian Ministry of Defense and the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Scientific Research. The network consists of two satellites that study our planet using synthetic aperture radar (SAR).
The first CSG vessel was launched in December 2019 and ran in orbit from French Guiana on top of an Arianespace Soyuz rocket. That satellite orbits the Earth over the poles at an altitude of 385 miles (620 kilometers), the same orbit that CSG-2 will look for when it finally comes from Earth.
Mike Wall is the author of “Out there“(Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book about the pursuit of alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or on Facebook.