Polaris Dawn Delayed Until At Least Friday Due To Abort Zone Weather

SpaceX has called off the Polaris Dawn launch of Falcon 9 until at least Friday, August 29th. The company announced shortly after 10 PM EDT that it was standing down for the night, and stated on its website that the next launch attempt would be no earlier than the end of the week.

The splashdown areas, also known as abort zones, would be of vital importance in the unlikely event of an in-flight abort that forced Crew Dragon and the Polaris Dawn crew to land downrange in the seas off of the Florida coast. With unacceptable conditions there, the launch was scrubbed roughly 5.5 hours before L-0.

The launch vehicle and crew remain healthy and safe, and a new launch date will likely be announced soon.

Repairs on Helium Quick-Disconnect Completed Earlier Tuesday

Earlier in the day, SpaceX completed repairs on the faulty quick-disconnect Helium supply line with alacrity, as repairs were completed by early afternoon. Shortly afterwards, around 2 PM, Falcon was raised to a standing launch condition. Unfortunately, weather conditions offshore in the abort zone necessitated the two day delay of the Polaris Dawn launch just hours later.