NASA’s new spacecraft Orion will launch Friday, after technical and weather delays this morning.
It was a problem with the Delta Four Heavy rocket, which will blast Orion into deep space, that finally ended the mission after a morning of repeated delays
As NASA launch commentator Mike Curie explained, technicians worked to resolve an issue with the rocket's fuel valves:
"The team has been trouble shooting by commanding the six valves- one each for liquid oxygen and one each for hydrogen on each of the boosters- in order to ensure when they're commanded open they show open and when they show closed they show closed."
Anticipation intensified as the launch was stopped and restarted because of weather, technical problems and a boat that motored into the restricted water surrounding Cape Canaveral.
90.7's Brendan Byrne spent the morning at Space View Park in Titusville where spectators gathered from the early hours
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Orion is NASA's first new human spacecraft since the shuttle. It's designed for deep space exploration. The space agency is billing this mission as humankind's first step toward Mars.
Friday's launch window is set for 7:05 am and extends until 9:44 am.
