SpaceX Dragon Thruster Failures Means The Capsule Won't Rendezvous With The ISS Tomorrow

After thruster malfunctions following launch this morning, the SpaceX Dragon Capsule, meant to deliver important cargo to the International Space Station, though the problem has been fixed, the NASA and SpaceX crew has been forced to cancel tomorrow's planned rendezvous with the ISS.

It could happen on Sunday, they said.

This was confirmed by NASA during a press conference today. They don't have a confirmed day and time for the next opportunity, but they said there are lots of options. "We have a number of days for the Dragon to berth."

"We aren't going to rush it and we want to make sure first and foremost that things are safe before proceeding," Musk said. "We've only just brought things back on line so it's difficult to say with certainty," when they will be able to dock.

The earliest time they could dock would probably be Sunday, ISS Program Manager Mike Suffredini said in a press conference.

That's according to several people on Twitter, including Dan Leone from Space News, and the official twitter account of SpaceflightNow, who were listening to the feed from mission control:

An issue with a propellant valve caused the malfunction, NASA says. The thrusters are what move the capsule when it's docking with the ISS, so while the rocket successfully got the cargo to space, the Dragon can't maneuver into position to dock with the space station.

The capsule is SpaceX's second mission, funded by NASA, to deliver cargo to the International Space Station.

The first launch, in October, was a success.

NASA is holding a press conference at 3:00 p.m. to discuss the issues.