Stormy Weather Delays First NASA PREFIRE Launch

NASA and Rocket Lab are now targeting no earlier than Saturday, May 25, for the launch of NASA’s PREFIRE (Polar Radiant Energy in the Far-InfraRed Experiment) mission from Launch Complex 1 in Mahia, New Zealand. The team is standing down while a severe weather system moves across the launch site over the coming days.

The mission will send two CubeSats, small research satellites, to asynchronous, near-polar orbits to study how much of Earth’s heat is lost to space from the Arctic and Antarctica. A second launch will be scheduled after the completion of the first CubeSat launch.

Watch for updates on NASA’s Small Satellite Missions blog and stay connected with the mission on social media.

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