FILE PHOTO: A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stands on the launch pad behind the pictures of crew members on the countdown clock, as final preparations are made for the Crew 3 mission to the International Space Station at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral. Florida, U.S. October 29, 2021. Launch is scheduled for October 31. REUTERS/Joe Skipper
CAPE CANAVERAL — NASA announced on Monday a rare, health-related delay in its SpaceX rocket launch of four astronauts to the International Space Station, the second postponement of the mission in a week, citing an unspecified medical issue with one of the crew.
NASA said the issue was “not a medical emergency and not related to COVID-19,” but the space agency declined to elaborate on the nature of the problem or say which astronaut was involved.
The launch, originally set for Sunday but then postponed until this Wednesday because of unsuitable weather conditions, has now been rescheduled for Saturday night, NASA said.
The last time NASA delayed a scheduled launch over a medical issue involving the crew was for a Space Shuttle Atlantis flight in 1990, when mission commander John Creighton fell ill. The countdown was halted for three days until he was cleared to fly, according to NASA.
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That delay was followed by two additional weather-related postponements.
The SpaceX-built vehicle set to fly this weekend, consisting of a Crew Dragon capsule perched atop a two-stage Falcon 9 rocket, is now set for liftoff at 11:36 p.m. on Saturday (0336 GMT Sunday) from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
