Q&A with Keith Gendreau, principal investigator of the first X-ray space communications experiment (members only)

Concern about a possible ammonia coolant leak Wednesday prompted astronauts on the International Space Station to evacuate the U.S. segment of the complex and shelter in the Russian portion of the outpost while flight controllers scrambled to untangle initially confusing telemetry.

Launch companies and U.S. Space Force range officials at Cape Canaveral are reassessing long-standing weather rules, looking at beefing up rocket defenses against lightning, and considering strategies to prepare for two different launch windows on a given day to guard against weather delays, something SpaceX may demonstrate with a Falcon 9 launch early Thursday.

The launch came following several stormy days across Florida’s Space Coast. Liftoff of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket from pad 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force happened at 9:58 p.m. EDT (0158 UTC).