spacetoday.net: Technical problem scrubs Antares launch

Updated: Thu, Apr 18, 2013, 9:39 PM ET (0139 GMT)
Originally Posted: Thu, Apr 18, 2013, 10:08 AM ET (1408 GMT)
Antares rocket prior to A-ONE launch (NASA)

A prematurely-disconnected cable scrubbed the first launch of Orbital Sciences Corporation's Antares rocket from Virginia on Wednesday. The company had planned to launch Antares at 5 pm EDT (2100 GMT) Wednesday, but controllers stopped the launch 12 minutes before liftoff when a data cable prematurely disconnected from the rocket's second stage. Orbital officials said late Thursday that the next launch attempt would be in Saturday, due to poor weather forecast for Friday. The launch, designated A-ONE, will demonstrate the Antares vehicle by placing a simulated Cygnus spacecraft into orbit. The rocket is also carrying several NASA CubeSats as secondary payloads.