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NASA’s ICON Launch Delayed, New Launch Date to Come

Northrop Grumman's L-1011 Stargazer soars upward after takeoff from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Oct. 19, 2018.
NASAs ICON Launch Delayed, New Launch Date to Come

NASA and Northrop Grumman have delayed the launch of the agency’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer, or ICON, to conduct further pre-launch testing on the rocket. Upon completion of the testing, a new launch date will be established.

The spacecraft is launching aboard a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS) in Florida. The L-1011 Stargazer carrying the Pegasus rocket arrived at CCAFS last Friday and will remain in Florida to conduct the testing. The spacecraft remains in good health.

The pre-launch mission briefing originally scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 24, also has been postponed and will be rescheduled at a later date.

Photo: Northrop Grumman’s L-1011 Stargazer soars upward after takeoff from the hot pad at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Oct. 19, 2018. The company’s Pegasus XL rocket, containing NASA’s Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON), is attached beneath the aircraft. The Pegasus XL rocket will launch from the Skid Strip at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. ICON will study the frontier of space – the dynamic zone high in Earth’s atmosphere where terrestrial weather from below meets space weather above. The explorer will help determine the physics of Earth’s space environment and pave the way for mitigating its effects on our technology and communications systems. Photo credit: USAF 30th Space Wing/Rod Speed