The earlier technical problem with the rocket, which Air Force press releases said was a telemetry system glitch, actually involved the vehicle's automatic safety destruct system, Col. Mike Dunn, the mission director, told reporters at a news conference today. The problem was traced to suspect equipment and fixed over the weekend. The Titan 4B rocket has been cleared for liftoff Tuesday with the Milstar communications satellite cargo, the Air Force announced today after isolating and correcting a problem with the vehicle's first stage telemetry relay system. Meteorologists are now calling for an 80 percent chance of meeting the launch weather rules. The concerns are precipitation and layered clouds.
Guidance suggests greater threat of showers and cloudiness during latter part of week.
Should the launch be delayed, the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday calls for a 70 percent chance of acceptable conditions both days with the same concerns of precipitation and layered clouds. Officials have decided to slip the Titan 4B rocket launch of the Milstar 2-F2 military communications satellite to Tuesday at the earliest. The extra time is needed so technicians can further study and fix a problem with the rocket's airborne telemetry system on the first stage, which relays to the ground information on the vehicle's performance during flight. Forecasters give a 70 percent chance of acceptable weather conditions. The concern with a telemetry system was found Thursday night during routine pre-launch processing at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Complex 40.