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Hard-luck NOAA-NASA satellite launch delayed again
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The long-overdue NOAA-N Prime weather satellite was hit by bad luck again last night. Launch pad problems delayed the NASA launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.
The 2 a.m. PST scrub occurred, NASA, said, when
....a launch pad gaseous nitrogen pressurization system failed.
This system maintains pressurization and purges to various systems of the Delta II rocket prior to launch. Immediate repair to this system is being undertaken
On Oct. 6, 2003, the NOAA satellite plummeted to the floor during pre-flight work at the Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company factory in Sunnyvale, Calif. The accident led to a full-scale safety investigation by NASA, more than $217 million in repairs, and a launch date delayed by years.
The NASA launch team will meet today to evaluate the health of the satellite, Delta rocket, the supporting launch pad systems, and the weather. The launch could be rescheduled for Thursday, Feb. 5 at 2:22 a.m. PST
Image credit: Carleton Bailie/United Launch Alliance
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