NASA delays launch of space telescope

CAPE CAÑAVERAL, Florida, USA (AP) – Strong winds will force NASA’s new space telescope to stay on Earth for at least one day, since its launch was rescheduled for Saturday, Christmas Day.

NASA announced its latest delay on Tuesday. Strong winds at high altitudes may derail the missile or even damage or destroy it.

The James Webb Space Telescope will be launched from French Guiana, off the northeastern coast of South America, aboard a European Ariane rocket. The launch pads will meet again on Wednesday to assess the weather.

The $10 billion infrared observatory is the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, which has been in orbit since 1990.

At a press conference Tuesday, NASA officials said the rocket and telescope are in good condition and that the only persistent, but tolerable problem is the intermittent transmission of communication between the two. The problem previously forced the launch to be delayed by two days. In addition, the clip, which was inadvertently disconnected from the telescope on the launch pad, delayed its take-off by four days.

The last-minute problems come after years of delays and huge costs on the Webb mission, the largest and most capable space-use scientific observatory ever built.

NASA has partnered with the European and Canadian space agencies for this project.