Don’t miss SpaceX’s second attempt to land Falcon 9 rocket on a floating platform

Don’t miss SpaceX’s second attempt to land Falcon 9 rocket on a floating platform

Don't miss the launch tonight.

For those that don’t have any big plans this Sunday night, NASA TV will be broadcasting the launch of SpaceX’s Falcon 9. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 will be launched two minutes after sunset (approximately 6:10 p.m. EST) into space from a floating platform in the Atlantic Ocean.

This launch is not the first attempt for SpaceX. A few weeks back, the rocket’s mission was incomplete, as the rocket burst, causing a blast fit for most news stations to cover. While it was a failed attempt, that didn’t stop NASA engineers from making sure the launch tonight was still a possibility.

The satellite that accompanies SpaceX’s Falcon 9 is a “Deep Space Climate Observatory”. This satellite is the size of a refrigerator and will be deployed from the rocket about 30 minutes after takeoff. The satellite will observe not only the Earth, but also the Sun’s solar storms and their impact on Earth’s atmosphere. While observations are key in this mission, the satellite will assist in providing researchers with real time warnings for solar storms headed Earth’s way.

The satellite’s observation location will be about 1.5 million km from Earth, a location directly between the Earth and the Sun, for optimal measurements. Along with solar storm observations, the satellite, dubbed DSCOVR, will also capture high definition pictures of Earth, from a position that is rarely seen.

The weather for tonight’s launch is said to be “near-ideal” for the mission. While there is a chance of cumulus clouds in the forecast, NASA does not believe they would impact the launch enough for a delay. Viewers can live-stream the launch from NASA TV or their UStream channel tonight.

Be social, please share!

Facebooktwittergoogle_plusredditpinterestlinkedintumblrmail

Comments

  1. says

    You really make it seem really easy with your presentation but I find this matter to
    be actually something which I believe I’d never understand.
    It sort of feels too complicated and very extensive for me.
    I am taking a look ahead on your subsequent put up, I’ll
    try to get the hold of it!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *