Weather looks excellent for Saturday's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station SpaceX launch

Jamie Groh, Florida Today
·1 min read
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SpaceX is set for a Falcon 9 liftoff between 11:06 a.m. and 1:07 p.m. EST on Saturday, Nov. 12. Pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station will host this year's 49th rocket to take flight from the Space Coast.

Rescheduled from Tuesday morning due to Hurricane Nicole, the mission for Luxembourg-based operator, Intelsat, will loft a pair of near-identical communications satellites called Galaxy 31 & 32.

Space Force forecasters expect the weather for a Saturday launch attempt to be excellent with a 90% chance of "go" conditions.

"On Saturday, Nicole is forecast to be over New England, while the frontal boundary works its way into the Florida Panhandle, leaving favorable weather conditions across the Spaceport," forecasters with Space Launch Delta 45 said on Friday.

The only concern for liftoff is the possibility of a few puffy clouds.

The weather looks much less favorable for a backup launch opportunity on Sunday around the same time. Should SpaceX need the backup cloudiness, wind, and possible showers are expected on Sunday.

The weather is predicted to be 60% "go" at the opening of the launch window but improve to 80% "go" by the end.

For the latest, visit floridatoday.com/launchschedule.

Visit floridatoday.com/space 60 minutes before liftoff for real-time updates and video.

Jamie Groh is a space reporter for Florida Today. You can contact her at JGroh@floridatoday.com. Follow her on Twitter at @AlteredJamie.

Launch Saturday, November 12

  • Company / Agency: SpaceX for Intelsat

  • Rocket: Falcon 9

  • Location: Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

  • Launch Time: 11:06 a.m.

  • Landing: None

  • Trajectory: Northeast

  • Weather: 90% "go"

  • Live coverage: Starts 60 minutes before liftoff at floridatoday.com/space

  • About: SpaceX will launch the Galaxy 31 & 32 communications satellites for Luxembourg-based operator Intelsat.

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Expect great weather for SpaceX's Saturday Space Force Station launch