SpaceX launches 1 rocket, delays 2nd

ORLANDO, Fla. — SpaceX aimed to send up two of its rockets from the Space Coast within three hours of one another Saturday morning.

The company stood down from the second launch attempt, though, and won’t try to fly until at least Sunday. But the first one lifted off without a hitch.

A Falcon 9 carrying 21 of the company’s Starlink internet satellites took off at 7:50 a.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Space Launch Complex 40.

SpaceX had scrubbed a Friday attempt for this mission because of booster recovery weather conditions downrange in the Atlantic.

The first-stage booster made a recovery landing downrange in the Atlantic on the droneship Just Read the Instructions.

Now pushed to Sunday, SpaceX has a second Starlink launch scheduled from the Kennedy Space Center.

That Falcon 9 is now set to lift off with 23 Starlink satellites from the center’s Launch Pad 39-A for 6:21 a.m. Sunday during a four-hour window that runs from 5:59-9:59 a.m.

Space Launch Delta 45’s first-stage booster will attempt a landing on the droneship A Shortfall of Gravitas in the Atlantic.

Trump plane diverted by malfunction

A mechanical problem caused former President Donald Trump’s plane to be diverted Friday as he headed to Montana for a rally, according to airport staff at Billings Logan International Airport.

The plane was scheduled to land in Bozeman, Mont., where his rally was to take place, but instead landed in Billings. Trump took another plane to Bozeman. The two cities are more than 100 miles apart.

At 6:30 p.m., Trump released a video from inside a plane where he said he “just landed” in Montana but did not address the situation. Trump’s campaign didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Trump’s rally Friday was his only scheduled campaign event last week, as Vice President Kamala Harris toured several battleground states with her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

California prison worker’s death probed

WASHINGTON — A worker at a federal prison in California has died and investigators are examining whether he was exposed to fentanyl shortly before his death, three people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.

Marc Fischer, a mailroom supervisor at the U.S. penitentiary in Atwater, Calif., died Friday after he reported feeling ill earlier, the people said. They said he was taken to a local hospital and was pronounced dead later in the evening.

Investigators are examining whether he was exposed to a substance authorities believe was fentanyl while he was screening mail at the prison, the people said. The people could not publicly discuss details of the ongoing investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity.

Fischer’s cause of death remained unknown Saturday, and it was unclear whether the potential exposure may have contributed. Briefly touching fentanyl cannot cause an overdose, and researchers have found that the risk of fatal overdose from accidental exposure is low.

In a statement, the Bureau of Prisons said an employee at the prison “began feeling unwell following an exposure to mail saturated in an unknown substance” and was pronounced dead after being rushed to the hospital. A second worker was taken to the hospital for observation after coming in contact with the mail and was later released, the agency said.

“Our hearts are heavy as we extend our deepest condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of our fallen Bureau employee,” the statement said.

Legislation was introduced by a bipartisan group of congressional lawmakers in 2023 to require the Bureau of Prisons’ director to develop a strategy to interdict fentanyl and other synthetic drugs sent through the mail to federal prisons nationwide. The bill has stalled in the House.

Erosion suspected in ‘Double Arch’ fall

PAGE, Ariz. — A large geological feature in southern Utah known as the “Double Arch,” the “Hole in the Roof” and sometimes the “Toilet Bowl” has collapsed, National Park Service officials said Friday. No injuries were reported.

The popular arch in the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area fell Thursday, and park rangers suspect changing water levels and erosion from waves in Lake Powell contributed to its demise.

Michelle Kerns, superintendent of the recreation area that spans the border of Utah and Arizona, said the collapse serves as a reminder to protect the mineral resources that surround the lake.

“These features have a life span that can be influenced or damaged by manmade interventions,” she said in a statement.

The arch was formed from 190 million-year-old Navajo sandstone originating in the late Triassic to early Jurassic periods. The fine-grained sandstone has endured erosion from weather, wind and rain, the statement said.

The recreation area encompasses nearly 2,000 square miles and is popular among boaters and hikers.