[phileysmiley]

SCROLL DOWN FOR UPDATE
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Weather satellite set for launch
Friday, May 13, 2005 Posted: 3:19 PM EDT (1919 GMT)

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- A new weather satellite is scheduled to launch this weekend in an effort to improve forecasting and the monitoring of global climate changes, officials said. The NOAA-N satellite will lift off from Vandenberg Air Force Base on Saturday aboard a Boeing Delta II rocket.

The launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday but was delayed due to upper level winds. It was rescheduled for Friday launch but moved to Saturday because of ground support equipment problems. The fourth in a series of five polar-orbiting weather satellites, the 3,100-pound NOAA-N will collect meteorological data and transmit the information to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

NOAA-N will replace the aging NOAA-16, which has been operating since 2000. As it orbits, the satellite will collect data about the Earth's atmosphere and build long-term databases on climate changes and seasonal outlooks. It also contains sensors that will be used in search-and-rescue missions around the world.

Three weeks after the satellite is launched, NASA will transfer operational control of the $341 million mission over to NOAA. The last satellite in the series, dubbed NOAA-N Prime, is scheduled for launch in 2007.



CNN

[moonwolf]

UPDATE
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SATURDAY, MAY 14, 2005
0420 GMT (12:20 a.m. EDT)

Managers have ordered inspections of the NOAA-N weather satellite before it is launched into polar orbit by a Boeing Delta 2 booster after a hose inside the rocket broke loose Friday.

The $341 million mission's Saturday launch shot has been postponed as a result, delaying the liftoff to late next week. It is the mission's fourth consecutive launch date to be cancelled after high winds on Tuesday and Wednesday nights and electrical problems at the pad Friday morning.

The vent hose somehow became disconnected when technicians were draining kerosene propellant from the rocket's first stage following Friday morning's launch scrub, NASA announced. The incident potentially allowed hydrocarbons to enter the payload fairing nose cone that encapsulates NOAA-N atop the 12-story rocket.

Samples will be taken to verify that the satellite hasn't been harmed. It is a precautionary measure to ensure NOAA-N is healthy before it rockets into space. "They can't prove that we don't have a problem," NASA spokesman George Diller said. "So we've got to do witness samples to make sure."

Space.com
complete article

[moonwolf]

UPDATE
If at first you don't succeed try try again.....
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THURSDAY, MAY 19, 2005
0405 GMT (12:05 a.m. EDT)

Liftoff of the NOAA-N weather probe is scheduled for Friday morning at 1022 GMT (6:22 a.m. EDT; 3:22 a.m. PDT).

This will be the fifth attempt to launch the Delta rocket and NOAA-N weather observatory from California's Central Coast. The first two tries were thwarted by high winds, electrical problems at the pad scrubbed the third countdown and a fourth opportunity was cancelled after a broken fuel vent hose prompted contamination checks of the satellite.

Countdown activities are progressing for liftoff just over six hours from now. The mobile service tower is retracted to its launch spot, revealing the Delta 2 rocket. But Vandenberg has been blanketed by dense fog tonight, significantly hampering visibility at the launch site.

Space.com
Live Launch Coverage

[moonwolf]

LIFTOFF

After 4 delays the NOAA-N satellite launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. at 6:22a.m. EDT Friday, May 20 after a perfect countdown.