For some space exploration companies, the week didn’t start off with a bang.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX had to abort from its scheduled Tuesday launch of the United States Air Force’s first Global Positioning System III space vehicle from Space Launch Complex 40 (SLC-40) at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida.
The rocket takeoff was postponed until Wednesday, when a 26-minute backup launch window opens at 9:07 a.m. EST, the company said.
SpaceX’s launch of the satellite will be the first of many under a competitive contract with the US Air Force.
Tuesday’s 9:11 a.m. launch window was initially delayed before it was aborted altogether. The satellite was meant to be deployed to medium Earth orbit – about 12,000 miles above sea level – approximately 1 hour and 56 minutes after liftoff.
The space transportation company said this is its first designated national security mission for the United States.
The company said that due to mission requirements, they will not attempt to land Falcon 9’s rocket after launch. Instead, it will be sent into the atmosphere to prevent space junk from accumulating in orbit.
This initiative gained full support from the White House under President Bill Clinton’s administration in 1998. The GPS III program was authorized in 2000 in conjunction with the U.S. Congress.
The satellite is the first of 32 planned GPS satellites that will be launched into space to replace old equipment currently in orbit. Officials say the new satellites are designed to be more accurate, secure and versatile. Lockheed Martin is building the new satellites outside Denver.
The launch was canceled as another company was forced to abort a similar mission.
Blue Origin, one of America’s other top private space companies, had also planned to send a rocket but delayed its flight due to issues with the rocket’s ground infrastructure.
They said the rocket remains ready and they will look at moving the launch to Wednesday. Blue Origin will fly the New Shepard spacecraft out of the company’s launch facility in Van Horn, Texas.
But a third rocket Arianespace’s Soyuz was still slated to send up a military satellite for France. The CSO-1 satellite is the first of three identical satellites that country will use for surveillance and imaging the Earth for national security.
The satellite will also be accessible to multiple European nations, including Germany, Sweden, and Belgium. Italy may even join in the near future. Liftoff was scheduled for 11:37 a.m. EST from Arianespace’s South American launch facility in French Guiana.
Finally, the United Launch Alliance is planning to launch its most powerful vehicle, the Delta IV Heavy. On the rocket is a classified satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office called NROL-71.
