Third Time WAS The Charm!

ANN REALTIME UPDATE: 01.19.06 1400 EST: It's away! Right on time... kind of... the Atlas V rocket carrying the New Horizons probe lifted off from Cape Canaveral, FL, in a dazzling plume of orange flame.

The probe is now en route to the moon, which it should reach at approximately 3 am EST Friday morning. After that the next waypoint is Jupiter, about a year from now (February 2007)... and then it's on to Pluto, the farthest planet in our solar system, with an expected rendezvous date of July 2015.

Kind of puts it all into perspective, doesn't it?

ANN REALTIME UPDATE 01.19.06 1350 EST: Lazy, hazy cloud cover extending up to about 3,000 ft MSL continues to hang over Titusville, FL... and NASA has once again moved off the countdown to give it a chance to clear. The launch team has added at least another 10 minutes to the T-4 minute built-in hold. The earliest possible launch time under this scenario is 2 pm -- however, that is not necessarily the targeted time. Stay tuned.

ANN REALTIME REPORTING 01.19.06 1300 EST: The Atlas V and its Centaur upper stage carrying the New Horizons Pluto probe are now fully loaded with supercold propellants in preparation for launch, set for 1:08 p.m. EST. In marked contrast to the last couple of days, the countdown is proceeding smoothly, and no issues are in work. The weather is cooperating nicely, and the Atlas V rocket and New Horizons spacecraft are in good shape.

As the first spacecraft to visit Pluto and its moon Charon, New Horizons looks to unlock one of the solar system's last, great planetary secrets. After launch, the New Horizons spacecraft will cross the entire span of the solar system and conduct flyby studies of Pluto and Charon in 2015. The seven science instruments on the piano-sized probe will shed light on the bodies' surface properties, geology, interior makeup and atmospheres.

Stay with ANN for Real Time coverage of what we hope will be the successful launch of the New Horizons probe... eight minutes from now.

FMI: www.nasa.gov