MOSCOW, July 30 The launch of an Electron launch vehicle carrying an Earth remote sensing satellite from a spaceport in New Zealand was canceled just before launch, a private US company said on its Twitter account. Rocket Lab, which owns the rocket.
«Today's launch was aborted during the ignition phase,» the company said.
According to the company, the automatic launch cancellation worked. CEO and founder Peter Beck suggested on social media that a faulty pressure sensor could be the reason for the canceled launch, but the exact reason is still unknown.
Rocket Lab clarified on Twitter that the company has a back-up window to launch soon during the week, however due to bad weather, the date may change.
The ultra-light rocket Electron was created by the New Zealand subsidiary of the American company Rocket Lab. The details of the Rutherford engines used in the rocket are printed on a 3D printer. Electron launches are conducted from the North Island of New Zealand.