WALLOPS ISLAND, Va. — After weather scrubbed an early launch attempt, Rocket Lab USA is expected to launch its first Electron rocket from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on Tuesday.
The 59-foot-tall Electron rocket will lift off from Launch Complex 2 at Virginia Space's Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island. The mission, dubbed "Virginia is for Launch Lovers," will deploy radio frequency monitoring satellites for Herndon-based company HawkEye 360.
NASA said in a press statement that the mission will help foster "a growing low-Earth space economy" and continues Wallops' 35-year history of support to the commercial launch industry.
Tuesday's weather is 90% favorable for the launch window between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. The forecast also means sky watchers may be able to see the launch from our area.
Viewing locations on Chincoteague Island include Robert Reed Park on Main Street or Beach Road spanning the area between Chincoteague and Assateague Islands. The Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Atlantic beaches also provide good viewing locations. The NASA Visitor Center at Wallops will be open for this launch, and will open at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.
>Watch the launch in the video below: