U.S. LAUNCHES WEATHER SATELLITE
An unmanned Delta rocket
carrying a 57 mln dlr weather observation satellite blasted off
here today in the first U.S. Space launch of the year.
    The 116-foot rocket lifted off at 1805 local time (2305
GMT) and placed in orbit a 1,850 pound Geostationary
Operational Environmental Satellite (GOES) to replace an
identical one that was destroyed last May when a Delta rocket
exploded after liftoff.
    Weather forecasters have had only a single satellite to
cover the entire U.S. Since another GOES failed in orbit in
August 1984.
    "We'll have both our weather eyes open again," said Thomas
Pyke, a spokesman for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, which owns and operates the satellite.
    The smooth launching came after two delays in as many days.
The first was caused by a fuel leak and the second by powerful
crosswinds.
    The Delta was the first of six rockets scheduled for launch
by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration this year.
The launch marked the third straight success for the space
program which was battered by a series of failures in 1986,
including the loss of the Challenger shuttle.
 REUTER
