spacetoday.net: Pad glitch scrubs Delta 2 launch

Posted: Tue, Jul 1, 2014, 8:43 AM ET (1243 GMT)
OCO-2 satellite illustration (NASA/JPL)

An issue with a sound suppression system on the launch pad postponed an early Tuesday morning launch of a NASA climate satellite by at least 24 hours. The Delta 2 was scheduled to lift off from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at 5:56 am EDT (2:56 am local time, 0956 GMT) and place the Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 (OCO-2) satellite into orbit. However, controllers stopped the countdown 46 seconds before launch when a water flow system designed to suppress sound during liftoff malfunctioned. Launch controllers are planning for a 24-hour delay, but will need to inspect the faulty equipment on the launch pad before making a decision on the next launch date. OCO-2, a replacement for the original OCO lost in a 2009 launch failure, will study carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere.