NASA Rocket Launch Set For Thursday, Best VA Viewing Spots

WALLOPS ISLAND, VA — Residents across Virginia should be able to watch a 59-foot-tall Electron rocket streak through the sky after it lifts off from a NASA facility Thursday night, officials said. The Wallops Flight Facility will support a launch of Rocket Lab’s Electron rocket, which was first set for Saturday but delayed because of strong winds over the weekend.

The two-hour launch window is set to open at 6 p.m. EST on March 16, according to NASA.

Lift-off time for Thursday's launch is set for 6:38 p.m. ET, tweeted the NASA Wallops account.

According to the National Weather Service, Wallops Island should have clear skies during the day with a northwest wind of 9 to 11 mph becoming southwest in the afternoon. On Thursday night, the forecast calls for partly cloudy skies, with a low around 44, and a southwest wind of 13 to 15 mph.

The rocket will take off from Launch Complex 2 at Virginia Space’s Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport. NASA said this mission, named “Stronger Together,” will be the second Rocket Lab launch from Wallops, with the first occurring in January 2023. The mission is a dedicated launch for satellite manufacturer and Earth observation company Capella Space.

For those interested in viewing the launch in person, viewing locations on Chincoteague Island include Robert Reed Park, Curtis Merritt Harbor, and the Beach Road causeway between Chincoteague and Assateague islands are good spots.

The Virginia, Maryland and Delaware Atlantic beaches also provide good viewing locations.

The launch may be visible, weather permitting, to residents throughout much of the East Coast.

Or you can view the launch online through Rocket Lab’s livestream of the event, which will begin about 40 minutes before the opening of the launch window.