Opening the forum back up to guests as we seem pretty good with the demand.
So waiting for a new date. Wasn't the vehicle, was lightning and other factors per L2's coverage.
Clearly the only possible decision with the weather stacking up. As it is , SpaceX went right to the wire ( 13 minutes before window closure= 13 minutes from polling!. Disappointing- but had they launched and been struck by lightning/storms/or lost it due to poor visibility, they would have had no rational explanation and their reputation would have been wrecked.
Equally, the lack of a webcast was perfectly reasonable as they were half expecting this result, and the SpaceX Team who usually figure in such webcasts were doubtless highly stressed, and fully pre-occupied with the job in hand. Mr Insprucker, in particular, I imagine, had his hands full....
As a Commercial operation they have a perfect right to use publicity as they see fit, as long as it is not mendacious. Any sensible cardplayer plays the game as best he can, and webcasts are only one card in a pack.
With a public /NASA launch the situation is different, but NASA themselves do not always offer
live webcasts, nor does Arianespace- although near real time updates are now standard practice...
As has been pointed out, every SpaceX launch carries more innovation and "envelope stretching" than any other launch service so that their 9 launches- especially the Falcon 9v1.1 is virtually a new beast, evloving rapidly.
As for the idea that SpaceX is on the breadline this seems odd in view of Mr Musk's known personal wealth of c $3 Billions , stated commitments to go to Mars, and his prospects with Tesla and Solarcity.
Some estimates ( eg Forbes) have put his total wealth and assets into the order of $100billions +
Meanwhile Grasshopper and F9R Dev1 are moving towards recoverability within 6-12 months and it is still possible that he will refly a rocket with minimal refurbishment by autumn 2015- 3 years after the first Grasshopper "hopped", as he hoped at the time( Sep 2012)
Remember, if he simply wanted to make a profit by running a space trucking business, he would not be bothering with Grasshopper, Dragon or Mars.
He is playing for the longterm, and , if re-usability does take a decade- he is still a young man...
SpaceX is known for rapid uptake of new ideas; that which usual channels do in 5 years, Musk does in weeks.
At this stage, Elon wins unless he suffers a launch disaster. So far, so good.
The only thing that could really damage him would be a launch disaster caused by proven recklessness. If tonight proves one thing, he is far more cautious than his longterm aspirations so boldly stated would suggest.
We really should wish him well, if we want to see radical change in spaceflight.
As Gorbachev once said of Perestroika: "If not me, who? If not now, when?
From the SpaceX website
"Launch Update
Today's ORBCOMM launch attempt has been scrubbed due to weather. Currently reviewing next available launch opportunities."
From Orbcomm web site (
http://www.orbcomm.com/networks/og2-launch):
OG2 Mission 1 Update: June 21, 2014
Today's OG2 Mission 1 launch attempt has been scrubbed due to weather concerns. Both Falcon 9 and the ORBCOMM satellites are safe. We are targeting launch for tomorrow, Sunday, June 22 at 5:30 pm ET.
From Orbcomm web site (http://www.orbcomm.com/networks/og2-launch):
OG2 Mission 1 Update: June 21, 2014
Today's OG2 Mission 1 launch attempt has been scrubbed due to weather concerns. Both Falcon 9 and the ORBCOMM satellites are safe. We are targeting launch for tomorrow, Sunday, June 22 at 5:30 pm ET.
What's weather like tomorrow there?
It'd be good to get a list of local public webcams which point in the right direction, but it really needs feet on the ground. I really have no idea of what's looking in which direction, but a local might know. We may only get a bright dot crossing the field of view, but that's better than nowt.
Per L2 it's a FOUR hour launch window tomorrow. Window opens at 5:24 pm Eastern.
Tomorrow's weather should be identical if not a little worse, but as you can see currently things quiet down a lot in the evening. That 9pm window end should be good.