It’s make or break for Astra today in the government’s launch challenge

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  Astra will launch from a spaceport in Kodiak, Alaska. [credit: Astra ]

Time is running out for rocket company Astra to successfully launch its first orbital rocket and claim the first part of a prize offered by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA. A three-hour launch window opens today at 3:30pm ET (20:30 UTC) for liftoff of Astra's "One of Three" rocket from a spaceport in Kodiak, Alaska.

Astra, which is based in Alameda, California, has been trying to launch the rocket for several days. On Friday, the company completed a successful wet dress rehearsal and on Saturday morning conducted a Launch Readiness Review with the Federal Aviation Administration. However, due to poor weather conditions, Saturday's launch attempt had to be scrubbed. Conditions were forecast to be worse on Sunday, so the Astra launch team pushed the attempt to Monday.

Weather has improved considerably for Monday's attempt. But certainly some technical issues are still possible. To try to set expectations for the launch attempt, the company says it has a "reasonable" chance to launch Monday, but with a new rocket, with a new launch system, and a new spaceport, there remains "some probability" of an issue that prevents launch today.

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