NASA`s sun-observing satellite launch delayed

Zee Media Bureau

Vandenberg Air Force Base: The launched of NASA’s sun-observing satellite has been delayed by 24 hours due to power outage in California. The satellite IRIS (Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph satellite) was supposed to be carried aloft from Vandenberg Air Force Base on Wednesday. But the launch range lost electricity after an equipment failure at a utility substation darkened much of the central coast. The problem is expected to be fixed by Thursday evening. IRIS will ride into Earth orbit aboard Pegasus XL rocket, which will be dropped from an airplane flying over the Pacific. Once in place, it will point its ultraviolet telescope at the sun. It`s the latest satellite designed to gaze at the sun in an effort to better predict space weather, which can affect communication systems on Earth. (With Agency inputs)