NASA Rocket Launch: How To See It In PA Skies Tuesday Night

PENNSYLVANIA — You may see a bright light in the Pennsylvania skies on Tuesday night, as NASA conducts a rocket launch from a facility in eastern Virginia.

If skies are clear, residents will be able to see the Electron, made by Rocket Lab USA, on its way to space from Virginia's Wallops Flight Facility. The launch had been rescheduled several times in December and seems set to go forward Tuesday evening, Jan. 24, with the launch window from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m.

Much of the east coast will see the 59-foot-tall rocket as it lifts off from Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport on Wallops Island on its way to deploy satellites in space, NASA said.

"From a distance, Electron will appear like a bright, fast-moving star climbing upward through the night sky," the Wallops Flight Facility said.

Residents close to Philly and the southeastern portion of Pennsylvania should be able to see the Electron in the first 60-90 seconds after launch. Those in central PA and on the eastern side of the state would see the rocket between 90 and 120 seconds after it takes off.

Western PA residents closer to Pittsburgh, as well as in the far north and northeast of the Keystone State, might see Electron rising 120-150 seconds after launch.

NASA said the Electron will deploy radio frequency monitoring satellites for HawkEye 360.

"With this mission, NASA is helping foster a growing low-Earth space economy and continues Wallops' 35-year history of support to the commercial launch industry," NASA said.

A live webcast will stream at www.rocketlabusa.com/live-stream about 40 minutes before launch.