Another Delay In SpaceX Vandenberg Launch For NASA
Monday March 10, 2025
(Photo and story courtesy SpaceX)
Updated-There has been yet another delay in SpaceX Falcon 9’s launch of NASA’s SPHEREx Observatory and PUNCH satellites from Vandenberg Space Force Base in northjwestern Santa Barbara County.
Liftoff had been targeted for Monday 8:10 p.m. PT but it's been postpone until the same time on Tuesday.
SpaceX says this latest of what has been several delays has to do with the weather at the launch site and an issue with one of the satellites.
A live webcast of this mission will begin about one hour prior to liftoff, which you can watch here and on X @SpaceX. You can also watch the webcast on the new X TV app.
This is the third flight for the first stage booster supporting this mission, which previously launched NROL-126 and Transporter-12.
Following stage separation, the first stage will land on Landing Zone 4 (LZ-4) at Vandenberg Space Force Base.
There is the possibility that residents of and visitors to Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura counties may hear one or more sonic booms during the launch, but what residents experience will depend on weather and other conditions.
During its two-year mission, the SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer) Observatory will collect data on more than 450 million galaxies and more than 100 million stars to improve our understanding of how the universe evolved while also searching for water and oxygen molecules.
The PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) satellites will observe the Sun and its environment to help scientists better understand the effect of solar winds on our solar system.