Monday, December 31, 2018

Next Vandenberg Rocket Launch, From ULA, Pushed Into January

The next rocket launch out of Vandenberg Air Force Base--the launch of the United Launch Alliance's Delta IV Heavy--has been delayed again, and will launch no earlier than Sunday, January 6th, the ULA said over the holidays. The launch has been attempted four times since December 7th, but has been scrubbed due to a combination of technical problems and weather. The launch is a spy satellite for the National Reconnasissance Office, the NROL-71. ULA, like its competitor SpaceX, regularly launches rocket missions from Vandenberg Air Force Base, which is north of Santa Barbara. Although ULA and others regularly launch rockets from Vandenberg, more attention has been drawn to the launch site since the huge number of launches by Los Angeles-based SpaceX, the rocket and spacecraft developer led by tech mogul Elon Musk; Musk's evening launch of a rocket carrying satellites for Iridium in December of 2017 drew attention to the launch site, stopping traffic and dropping jaws due to a stunning light show.