By Jason Davis | Digital Editor
The Planetary Society’s LightSail 2 spacecraft will spend three and a half more months waiting to solar sail, due to a launch date slip for SpaceX’s second Falcon Heavy flight.
The launch, which was previously scheduled for June, will now take place no earlier than October 30, 2018, according to the U.S. Air Force.
LightSail 2 is currently at the Air Force Research Laboratory in Albuquerque, New Mexico. In our last report, we told about LightSail 2 being integrated into Prox-1. The two spacecraft will soon undergo final environmental testing and acceptance before shipping to Cape Canaveral for launch.
Prox-1 and LightSail 2 are among 25 different spacecraft launching on STP-2, an Air Force-sponsored mission that will help certify the Falcon Heavy for Department of Defense missions. The triple-core rocket will use three Block 5 boosters—the new, upgraded variant of the company's Falcon 9 vehicle.
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