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UPDATE: Firefly standing down from Tuesday night launch attempt

Monday night's launch was delayed due to issues with the ground-release equipment
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Posted at 8:15 AM, Jul 01, 2024

UPDATE (Tuesday 3:45 p.m.) - Firefly Aerospace is standing down from its second launch attempt this week from Vandenberg Space Force Base.

The Aerospace company says this will allow the team "more time to evaluate data and test systems from the first attempt."

A new launch date has not yet been set.

Firefly has decided to stand down on today’s Alpha #FLTA005 launch to give the team more time to evaluate data and test systems from the first attempt. We will work closely with the range and our @NASA customer to determine the next launch window. Stay tuned for more. https://fireflyspace.com/missions/noise-of-summer/

UPDATE (10:38 p.m.) - The Monday night launch was scrubbed due to an issue with the ground-release equipment, Firefly Aerospace announced.

The company is now targeting a Tuesday night launch beginning at 9:03 p.m.

The launch window will last 30 minutes.

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UPDATE (9:20 p.m.) - Firefly Aerospace is now targeting a 9:33 p.m. liftoff.
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Firefly Aerospace is targeting Monday night for liftoff of its Alpha 5 (FLTA005) mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base.

Called "Noise of Summer," the mission for NASA will deploy eight payloads.

The launch is currently scheduled for 9:03 p.m. from SLC-2 at Vandenberg, according to the aerospace company.

“The Firefly team has rapidly matured our Alpha rocket and our responsive launch operations to deliver the dependable one-metric-ton rocket the market is demanding,” said Firefly Aerospace CEO Bill Weber on the company's website. “We’re proud to support this NASA mission that will not only prove out the capabilities of Alpha as a repeatable, reliable launch vehicle, but also advance our mission of making space for everyone by supporting some incredible student-led CubeSat initiatives.”

Firefly reports the mission is another “rapid launch operation,” with crews transporting the payload fairing to the pad and mating it to the rocket within 14 hours of the scheduled liftoff time. The process for a typical operation is usually done in weeks, according to Firefly.

A livestream of the launch will begin about 30 minutes before liftoff.