The launch was originally set for 2:30, but was pushed back at 2:50 and then at 3:05. The following is a Press release from Nasa.

Launch is go for 3:23 p.m. EST — the very end of today’s window. The upper level and ground winds, which have been cause for concern during today’s countdown, are expected to stay within limits through the end of the window. The countdown has proceeded fairly smoothly, with otherwise favorable weather and no technical issues in work with either the Atlas V launch vehicle or the spacecraft.

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 aboard an Atlas V, 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.

January 17th, 2006 | General Science