Rain, winds scrub launch of ULA Atlas V with OA-4 Cygnus

The Cygnus spacecraft set to launch is dubbed the S.S. Deke Slayton II, after the original Project Mercury astronaut and pioneer of the first privately funded rocket.

An Orbital ATK Inc. rocket launch to resupply the International Space Station was delayed because of bad weather Thursday.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket stands ready for a second launch attempt at launch complex 41at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station as photographers adjust their remote cameras, Friday, Dec. 4, 2015, in Cape Canaveral, Fla. However, this Cygnus spacecraft was modified to carry a larger payload and will ferry approximately 7,700 pounds of equipment and experiments to the ISS.

Orbital ATK now holds a contract with NASA to fly 62,000 lbs. of cargo to the station over the course of 10 mission through 2018. Orbital ATK bought another company’s rocket, the veteran Atlas V, for this supply mission.

“The forecast tomorrow calls for a 30 percent chance of acceptable conditions at launch time”, NASA said on Thursday, informing of the rescheduling.

You can watch coverage of the Cygnus launch starting at 4:30 p.m. ET directly through NASA TV or in the window embedded below.

Orbital plans another shipment via an Atlas in March, followed by the return of Antares in May with a new type of Russian-built engine. The last time Orbital launched, its rocket exploded seconds after liftoff from Wallops Island, Virginia, destroying the Cygnus cargo carrier and damaging the pad.

NASA’s other space station supply launcher, SpaceX, has been grounded since its Falcon 9 rocket broke apart several minutes after a launch this summer.

Shireman added that NASA now expects the first Dragon flight since the June failure no earlier than January 8.

The Atlas V rocket has proved consistently reliable since its maiden launch in 2002, suffering only one significant issue in 2007 when a valve leak in the upper stage caused it to shut down early. The last successful US supply run was in April.