Poor weather forecast delays Japanese spy satellite launch

Japanese officials have delayed the launch of a government-owned reconnaissance satellite until at least Friday, local time, because of bad weather predicted over the Tanegashima Space Center in southern Japan. Liftoff of an H-2A rocket with Japan’s sixth radar intelligence-gathering satellite, officially designated IGS Radar 5, is now scheduled for no earlier than Friday at 0120 GMT (9:20 p.m. EDT on Thursday), the Japanese space agency announced Tuesday. The launch window extends for nearly 14 minutes, officials said. It opens at 10:20 a.m. Friday Japan Standard Time. More

(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Mar 16)