Rocket Launch Delayed: Sky Light Show Rescheduled For Saturday

LOS ANGELES, CA — Southlanders hoping to catch a glimpse of a satellite launching from Vandenberg Air Force Base Friday will have to wait one more day thanks to a last minute delay.

United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Lockheed Martin and Boeing, announced the last minute change Friday due to an issue with a communication link between the control center and the launch site. Instead, officials told people to look out for the rocket launch at 8:06 p.m. on Saturday. Southlanders could be in store for another spectacular light show in the night sky above Southern California . Against a backdrop of storm clouds, the lights from the rocket launch carrying a reconnaissance satellite are likely to dazzle.

The launch, a Delta IV Heavy rocket, will be carrying a secretive satellite for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. If all goes according to plan Saturday, the launch will be the second from Vandenberg this week. Private launches from the West Coast are becoming increasingly frequent. On Monday, Hawthorne-based SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket from the base Monday, carrying 64 satellites into orbit.

"We are proud to launch this critical payload in support of our nation's national security mission," Gary Wentz, ULA vice president of government and commercial programs, said in a statement. "As the nation's premiere launch provider, the teams have worked diligently to ensure continued mission success, delivering our customer's payloads to the precise orbits requested."

The Delta IV Heavy rocket will include three Rocketdyne liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen engine that can produce a combined 2.1 million pounds of thrust, the company announced.

The weather forecast for the region includes a "40 percent chance of favorable conditions for the liftoff."

"The only concern for a launch weather rule violation will be winds," the company stated.

ULA has carried out 27 launches for the National Reconnaissance Office over the past 12 years.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report. Photo by Paige Austin