Wallops Island rocket launch rescheduled for Friday

Posted to: Business Eastern Shore

By Diane Tennant
The Virginian-Pilot
© August 21, 2008

A launch planned for this morning from Wallops Island has been delayed by one day.

The launch is scheduled for tomorrow morning between 5:10 and 6:10 a.m.

Tomorrow’s event will test a new rocket carrying instruments to study hypersonic flight and a new design for spaceships entering the atmosphere.

The ALV X-1 rocket will carry HYBOLT, a NASA experiment testing temperature and pressure during hypersonic flight, which is anything over Mach 5, or five times the speed of sound. It also will carry SOAREX, a new design for more efficiently delivering astronauts or equipment through the atmosphere on Earth or Mars.

In addition, the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory will have aboard a test of a receiver and transmitter intended to help with ocean recovery.

ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here and for following agreed-upon rules. Comments do not reflect the views or approval of The Virginian-Pilot or its Web sites. Comments are automatically checked for inappropriate language. Due to high volume, comments might not appear immediately on the site. We reserve the right to reject any comment for any reason. Readers might find some comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules, click the "Report Violation" link below the comment to alert an editor. Repeat offenders will be denied automatic posting privileges.