A NASA spokesman on Thursday said that the launch of its GLAST space telescope, which will allow scientists to look deep into the universe, has been delayed until Wednesday June 11 at the earliest.
It is the third time the GLAST launch had been delayed, this time due to a battery in the system that would destroy the rocket in case it deviates from its course, said NASA spokesman George Diller.
The launch window extends to August 7 and there could be further delays, Diller said.
The GLAST — the Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope — will be blasted into orbit aboard a Delta II rocket scheduled to be launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida on June 11 starting at 1515 GMT.
The telescope will be placed into a relatively low orbit around the Earth, around 565 kilometers (350 miles) in altitude.
By giving ground-based scientists a better look at the smallest particles of the cosmos, GLAST will be used in a project lasting between five and 10 years aimed at examining black holes, pulsars and cosmic rays in closer detail than before.
The project brings together governments and academic researchers in the US, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and Sweden.
The cost of the mission, including the launch, is 690 million dollars, of which 600 million comes from US funds.
The GLAST launch was initially scheduled for June 5, then postponed to June 7 and again to June 8.
