Early image of Ultima Thule revealed, providing hints on its shape

Trouble with a hydraulic pump needed to release Orbital ATK’s air-launched Pegasus XL rocket from its carrier jet Monday has delayed the deployment of eight NASA hurricane research satellites until at least Wednesday.

Crew Dragon commander Mike Hopkins, pilot Victor Glover, and mission specialists Shannon Walker and Soichi Noguchi flew to the Kennedy Space Center on a NASA-chartered private jet Sunday, ready for a final week of training, refresher courses, and some time off before their launch to the International Space Station.

A refurbished SpaceX Crew Dragon spaceship linked up with the International Space Station early Saturday more than 260 miles above Earth, delivering four veteran astronauts to the orbiting research complex and temporarily raising the lab’s crew complement to 11.