spacetoday.net: NASA delays STS-129 launch

NASA delays STS-129 launch

Posted: Tue, Oct 20, 2009, 6:41 AM ET (1041 GMT)

NASA has pushed back the launch of the space shuttle Atlantis four days because of range conflicts and to allow more time for the planned launch of the Ares 1-X rocket. Atlantis is now planned to launch on the STS-129 mission on NOvember 16, four days later than previously planned, although no official launch date has been set with range officials. The delayed launch, the agency said, would allow for more opportunities to launch the Ares 1-X, the suborbital prototype of the planned Ares 1 launch vehicle, now planned for October 27. NASA was facing a range conflict for the November 12 launch already because of an already-scheduled Atlas 5 launch from Cape Canaveral on November 14.