SpaceX cancels Starlink launch due to Tropical Storm Arthur

By Georgina Torbet May 18, 2020

SpaceX has announced that it is canceling its planned eighth Starlink launch due to Tropical Storm Arthur, the first named storm of the year which has formed in the Atlantic.

SpaceX already had to delay its planned launch from Sunday, May 17, until Monday, May 18, due to a scheduling conflict, then chose to delay again until Tuesday 19 due to weather conditions. But with Arthur moving in from the ocean, the company has decided to scrap the launch for now.

Weather conditions including heavy rain and high winds are expected along the North Carolina coast this week.

Standing down from the Starlink mission, due to tropical storm Arthur, until after launch of Crew Demo-2

— SpaceX (@SpaceX) May 18, 2020

Instead, SpaceX will focus on its upcoming Demo-2 mission on May 27, which is the first manned test flight of its new crew capsule which will ferry NASA astronauts to the International Space Station and back.

As the planned first launch of American astronauts from American soil since the ending of the Space Shuttle program in 2011, this mission has attracted considerable attention both from the space industry and from the public.

SpaceX will continue launching its Starlink satellites after the Demo-2 mission.

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Georgina Torbet

Space Writer

Georgina is the Digital Trends space writer, covering human space exploration, planetary science, and cosmology. She…

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