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SpaceX Delays Falcon 9 Launch To Tuesday
An anonymous reader writes "SpaceX has cancelled the launch of a Falcon 9 rocket after identifying a potential concern during preflight testing. This is the third straight day technical issues or weather have caused a delay. "Today's Orbcomm launch attempt has been scrubbed to address a potential concern identified during pre-flight checks," a SpaceX spokesperson said in a statement. "The vehicle and payload are in good condition, and engineering teams will take the extra time to ensure the highest possible level of mission assurance prior to flight," the statement said. The rocket is now scheduled for a Tuesday launch."
No, it would be news if a thunderstorm were striped in Florida today.
Ezekiel 23:20
This isn't all that uncommon. Technical delays happen for everybody doing a launch. The only difference here is that SpaceX is open about each launch attempt and has a ravenous band of fans following each bolt and syllable being uttered by the launch control team.
I used to watch Shuttle launches, and trust me when I say that the stuff SpaceX is going through here is very routine and normal. ULA faces the same problems with its launches, including multiple scrubs even for long standing vehicles that have been launched hundreds of times.
It even happens for the Chinese, but they don't announce a launch until after it happens. That makes them look awesome instead of bumbling fools.
BTW, SpaceX does check the vehicle for technical glitches before launch. Why do you think it was scrubbed in the first place rather than blowing up spectacularly about 40 feet above the launch pad?