Science

NASA has postponed the launch of its next flagship mission to Jupiter by at least another day as the agency and SpaceX conduct additional checks to ensure the spacecraft is ready to fly after Hurricane Milton battered its Florida launch site.

The mission, called Europa Clipper, is now targeted to launch to Jupiter's icy moon Europa no earlier than Monday (Oct. 14) atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Pad 39A of NASA's Kennedy Space Center. The launch has been delayed since Oct. 10, first to Oct. 13 as Hurricane Milton approached Florida on Wednesday, and now another day due to additional checks in the storm's wake.

"Following Hurricane Milton, teams are continuing to do checkouts to ensure flight readiness," NASA wrote in an update late Friday (Oct. 11). The storm hammered Florida on Wednesday and Thursday. NASA and SpaceX have until Nov. 2 to launch Europa Clipper in the current planetary window, mission managers have said.
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"The Damage Assessment and Recovery Team has completed their assessment of the center and its facilities, and determined that employees can safely return on-site to resume working," KSC officials wrote Friday evening on X (formerly Twitter). "The damage identified is manageable and in-line with the items the Ride Out Teams previously identified, including minor impacts such as ripped awning, and damage to doors and traffic lights."

https://www.space.com/nasa-spacex-europa-clipper-launch-date-october-14