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Launch of Space Station Crew Postponed

by VOA News

   NASA and SpaceX postponed a planned Monday launch of a four-member crew
   to the International Space Station due to a ground systems issue.

   The decision came less than three minutes before the spacecraft was due
   to lift off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral,
   Florida.

   A backup launch date had been set for Tuesday, but NASA said due to
   expected unfavorable weather conditions the next launch attempt will be
   March 2.

   The four-person crew includes two Americans, one Russian and one
   astronaut from the United Arab Emirates.

   NASA said their planned six-month mission includes a range of
   scientific experiments including studying how materials burn in
   microgravity, collecting microbial samples from outside the space
   station and "tissue chip research on heart, brain, and cartilage
   functions."