Video: Preparing Delta 2 and SMAP for flight

The mobile service tower is retracted from the United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket at Vandenberg Air Force Base in preparation for the first launch attempt of NASA’s SMAP spacecraft.

Deploying its marquee element in space Tuesday, NASA’s new Soil Moisture Active Passive spacecraft took a major step towards realizing its science potential.

The weather outlook is 80 percent favorable for launch of the Delta 2 rocket early Thursday morning from California, with cloud thickness posing the only worry, meteorologists report.