SpaceX aims for Thursday launch of new Falcon 9 Block 5
SpaceX is now aiming for a new launch window opening at 4:12 p.m. Thursday for the first launch of a new generation Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket, the company said Monday afternoon.
The 45th Weather Squadron has forecast the probability of good launch weather at the Cape as 80 percent. The primary weather concern is thick cloud layers.
The rocket, whenever it launches, is intended to carry a communication satellite for Bangladesh called the Bangabandhu 1, from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy Space Center.
The launch window previously was set to open at 4 p.m. Monday, through 6:25 p.m.
The new Block 5 rocket is designed to be sturdier, so that it can be flown up to 10 times with minimal mechanical refurbishment — a big leap forward in efficiency and cost reduction.
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