SpaceX delays launch of space weather satellite
Following the failure of a radar-tracking system, SpaceX postponed Sunday's launch of the Deep Space Climate Observatory (DSCOVR).
The countdown was stopped at the two-and-a-half-minute mark after the Air Force radar system that would track the rocket in flight didn't work, The Associated Press reports. CEO Elon Musk said on Twitter that SpaceX would try again on Monday, and the postponement gave the company time to replace the first stage video transmitter. SpaceX also planned to attempt a landing of a leftover booster onto an ocean platform; the goal is to reuse rockets in order to save money and get flights up and running faster.
The spacecraft will make its way to a spot 1 million miles from Earth and 92 million miles from the sun in order to monitor solar outbursts and provide notification of intense activity that could interfere with communications and air travel back on Earth.
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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