On its third try, SpaceX delivers a heavy satellite to high orbit

Enlarge / Will the third time be a charm for SpaceX and its Intelsat 35e payload? (credit: SpaceX)

Update, 8:10pm ET (01:10am UK): Finally, SpaceX did it. During its third launch attempt from Florida's Kennedy Space Center, the rocket company successfully delivered the 6.7-ton Intelsat 35e communications satellite to geostationary transfer orbit. The mission went off nearly flawlessly. Remarkably, it was the company's third flight in 12 days, and fourth in 32 days.

Original post: After a full review of its launchpad systems and the Falcon 9 rocket, SpaceX has declared that it is ready to make a third attempt to launch a heavy communications satellite. The launch window for the Intelsat 35e mission opens at 7:38pm ET on Wednesday (00:38am UK), and it will remain so for about an hour. The launch-time weather at Kennedy Space Center is forecast to be excellent-with a 90 percent chance of favorable conditions.

SpaceX tried on Sunday and Monday to launch the satellite, but both times an unspecified technical issue with the rocket's guidance, navigation, and control system led the rocket's flight computer to stop the countdown within 10 seconds of launch time. The rocket company then stood down an attempt on July 4 so it could investigate the problem and has apparently resolved the issue. But we won't know for sure until the countdown this evening.

Read 4 remaining paragraphs | Comments