WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - NASA and SpaceX have announced that the planned launch attempt of Europa Clipper mission wil not take place as scheduled for Thursday due to anticipated hurricane conditions in Florida.
Hurricane Milton is expected to move east from the Gulf of Mexico this week to the Space Coast. High winds and heavy rain are expected in the Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island regions on Florida's east coast.
Europa Clipper was scheduled to take off from Complex 39A at the U.S. space agency's Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Launch teams have secured the spacecraft in SpaceX's hangar ahead of the severe weather, and the center began hurricane preparations Sunday.
Workers transported Europa Clipper last week from the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at Kennedy Space Center to the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket in the hangar as part of final launch preparations ahead of its journey to Jupiter's icy moon.
While Europa Clipper's launch period opens Thursday, the window provides launch opportunities until November 6, NASA said.
Once the storm passes, recovery teams will assess the safety of the spaceport before personnel return to work. Then launch teams will assess the launch processing facilities for damage from the storm.
'Once we have the 'all-clear' followed by facility assessment and any recovery actions, we will determine the next launch opportunity for this NASA flagship mission,' said Dunn.
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