NASA ran into too many snags Thursday to proceed with the launch of a test flight for the Orion spacecraft that will one day attempt to take astronauts to Mars.
According to ABC News, the 7:05 launch was delayed 24 hours after the attempt was delayed three times Thursday morning. Weather was not ideal in Cape Canaveral, Fla., but NASA meteorologists said there was a 60 percent chance the weather would be favorable for a launch.
The first delay came when a boat found its way into the launch zone and the next launch time was scheduled for 8:26 a.m. After a couple valves did not close, NASA delayed the launch once more and was ultimately scrapped for the day due to winds and the closing window of favorable weather at 9:44 a.m.
"Today's launch attempt has been scrubbed. The launch team is resetting for a launch tomorrow morning," NASA wrote on its Orion blog. "The launch team has tentatively set a liftoff time of 7:05 a.m. EST, the opening of a 2-hour, 39 minute window just as today. We will begin our launch coverage at 6 a.m. tomorrow on NASA TV and on the Orion blog. Tune into the blog and NASA.gov for continuing updates throughout the day."
When NASA does get its test flight off the ground, a Delta IV rocket will carry the Orion spacecraft will orbit the Earth at an altitude of 3,600 miles. It will re-enter the atmosphere at approximately 20,000 mph, heating up to 4,000 degrees Fahrenheit as it simulates a landing in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego.
Further tests are scheduled for 2018, when Orion would orbit the moon and 2020 when astronauts would board Orion to land on the moon.
"We're now on the way to Mars," NASA Administrator Charles Bolden told NBC News ahead of the planned Thursday launch, "and that's what's most important."
