SpaceX scrubs Falcon Heavy launch due to upper level winds [Updated]
On Wednesday, SpaceX rolled the Falcon Heavy rocket to the launch pad. [credit: Trevor Mahlmann for Ars ]
7:25pm ET Update: SpaceX scrubbed its first attempt to launch the Falcon Heavy rocket on Wednesday evening due to unfavorable upper-level winds. The winds were bad enough that, earlier in the afternoon, SpaceX put off its launch to the end of the window, at 8:32pm ET (00:32 UTC). As the forecast failed to improve during the approximately two hour window, SpaceX made the decision to scrub the attempt before beginning to load propellants onto the rocket.
Fortunately, there is a backup launch opportunity on Thursday, with a similar launch window opening at 6:35pm ET (10:35 UTC) and closing at 8:31pm ET (00:31 UTC).
Original post: The Falcon Heavy made a rousing debut a little more than a year ago, launching from Florida and sending a cherry-red Tesla Roadster beyond the orbit of Mars. At the time, no one was quite sure how SpaceX would market the world's most powerful rocket, which did not seem to fit particularly well into any niche, especially after the company's own Falcon 9 rocket saw significant performance increases.
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