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ESA postpones launch of Earth gravity probe satellite

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-03-17 09:06

MOSCOW -- The European Space Agency (ESA) on Monday postponed the launch of an Earth observation satellite from a Russian cosmodrome for a technical glitch.

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Just several seconds before the scheduled time of lifting off, 17:21 local time (1421 GMT), ESA called off the operation at the Plesetsk cosmodrome in northwestern Russia.

The ESA said it is because the doors of the launch service tower did not open. Local TV reports showed the massive service tower was still embracing the rocket.

The launch was postponed to Tuesday, ESA announced.

The Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE), ESA's most sophisticated Earth observation satellites to date, is going to map Earth's gravity field.

It has suffered several delays since its original launch date of September 10 from the Plesetsk cosmodrome, 800 kilometers (500 miles) north of Moscow.

It is going to be lift off on top of the Rokot, a converted version of the Soviet RS-18 missile.