Antares Countdown Begins

Orbital ATK’s Antares rocket and Cygnus cargo spacecraft teams have reported to their stations, and the formal countdown has begun. Antares is on schedule for launch tonight, Oct. 17, at 7:40 p.m. EDT, and Orbital ATK reports conditions are nominal. The Wallops Weather Office forecast (issued at L-minus 24 hours) is 95 percent go: “As our weather continues to be influenced by high pressure, we will see a great weather setup once again for the launch attempt on Monday, with only a very slight chance of thick clouds expected.”

The Orbital ATK Antares rocket, with the Cygnus spacecraft onboard, is seen on launch Pad-0A during sunrise, Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016 at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Orbital ATK’s sixth contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver over 5,100 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls
The Orbital ATK Antares rocket, with the Cygnus spacecraft on board, is seen on launch Pad-0A during sunrise, Sunday, Oct. 16, 2016, at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia. Orbital ATK’s sixth contracted cargo resupply mission with NASA to the International Space Station will deliver more than 5,100 pounds of science and research, crew supplies and vehicle hardware to the orbital laboratory and its crew. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls

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