L-72 Hour Forecast: 80% Favorable Weather for Sun. Launch

A large, white rocket with the words “ANTARES” in black letters stands vertical on its launch pad, surrounded by four poles used for lightning protection. To the right of the rocket, a water tower with long, spindly white legs has a white dome on top, with a dark logo that’s not fully visible. To the left of the rocket, is a large, open metal structure with a smaller circular structure on its side. There are several tall, gray light poles placed around the road. All of this is framed against a light blue sky with fluffy white clouds.
A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket carrying a Cygnus spacecraft loaded with cargo bound for the International Space Station stands vertical on Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport’s Pad-0A, Thursday, Nov. 3, 2022, at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Northrop Grumman’s 18th contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver more than 8,000 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. The CRS-18 Cygnus spacecraft is named after the first American woman in space, Sally Ride, and is scheduled to launch at 5:50 a.m., Sunday, Oct. 6, 2022, EST. Photo Credit: (NASA/Jamie Adkins)

The Wallops Range weather office forecast issued today for the Nov. 6 launch of Northrop Grumman’s 18th resupply mission to the International Space Station puts weather at 80% favorable, with the main concern being a slight chance of low-level clouds that may potentially violate cloud ceiling requirements. 

Unseasonably warm conditions and tranquil weather are expected through this weekend. A cold front will be located over the Appalachian Mountains Sunday morning, providing light southerly surface flow and upper-level cirrus cloudiness over the Wallops Region. An increase of low-level moisture over the Wallops region due to the light winds may provide some low-level clouds over the Wallops region near launch time. At this time, the primary concern for launch would be a slight chance of low-level clouds.

NASA commercial cargo provider Northrop Grumman is targeting 5:50 a.m. EST Sunday, Nov. 6, for the launch.