Putting on a late summer sky show along Florida's Space Coast, a Falcon 9 rocket climbed into space after midnight Sunday with a commercial communications satellite to connect growing markets in China and Southeast Asia.

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AsiaSat 6 separation! The AsiaSat 6 spacecraft has deployed from the Falcon 9 upper stage to begin a 15-year service life broadcasting television, broadband data and other services across China and Southeast Asia.

At this point in the flight, the second stage should have re-ignited its engine for a brief burn lasting just over a minute. The stage would have then re-oriented for deployment of the AsiaSat 6 satellite about now.

SpaceX officials have made no announcement yet.

The webcast has concluded now that the Falcon 9 is in a parking orbit. Re-ignition of the upper stage should occur at about 1:26 a.m. EDT (0526 GMT) for a burn of just over one minute.

Separation of the AsiaSat 8 satellite will come at 1:32 a.m. EDT (0532 GMT).

We expect an update from SpaceX soon after those milestones are achieved.

Second stage shutdown! Falcon 9 has achieved a preliminary parking orbit with a high point of 202 kilometers and a low point of 175 kilometers, with an orbital inclination of 27.7 degrees to the equator. SpaceX officials say that is close to prelaunch predictions.

T+plus 8 minutes. About 40 seconds until the second stage Merlin engine is supposed to shut down as the vehicle reaches orbit. The rocket is aiming for an initial parking orbit with AsiaSat 6, and it will re-ignite later to boost the satellite into a geosynchronous transfer orbit reaching 35,786 kilometers (22,236 miles) above Earth.

T+plus 7 minutes, 30 seconds. The kerosene-fueled Merlin 1D upper stage engine generates about 161,000 pounds of thrust in vacuum.

T+plus 6 minutes, 30 seconds. Everything reported to be going well with this second stage engine firing. The Merlin vacuum engine uses an ultra-thin niobium nozzle extension for greater efficiency in the upper atmosphere.

Altitude is 172 km, velocity is 4.5 km/second and downrange distance is 815 km.

T+plus 5 minutes, 30 seconds. Downrange distance is 575 km as the upper stage Merlin 1D engine continues its burn.

T+plus 4 minutes, 45 seconds. The downrange tracking stage in Bermuda has acquired communications signals from the Falcon 9 rocket.

T+plus 3 minutes, 50 seconds. The SpaceX-built 5.2-meter diameter payload fairing has separated.

T+plus 3 minutes. The Falcon 9 first stage engines have cut off, the stages have separated, and the rocket's second stage Merlin vacuum engine has ignited for its approximately 5-minute, 33-second firing to reach orbital velocity.

T+plus 2 minutes. Now soaring at an altitude of more than 20 miles, the Falcon 9 rocket's first stage will shut down and jettison in about one minute. Two engines will be turned off first, followed a few moments later by the remaining seven engines.

And chilldown of the second stage's vacuum-rated Merlin 1D engine should be starting in preparation for its ignition.

T+plus 1 minute. The Falcon 9 rocket is approaching the speed of sound and the phase of maximum aerodynamic pressure.

T+plus 30 seconds. The Falcon 9 rocket's pitch program has initiated to put the 224-foot-tall rocket on an easterly trajectory from Cape Canaveral.

LIFTOFF of the Falcon 9 rocket with AsiaSat 6, launching a satellite to beam television and data services to growing markets in China and Southeast Asia.

T-minus 60 seconds. In the final minute of the countdown, the flight computer will command checks of the first stage Merlin engine steering system and the Falcon 9 propellant tanks will be pressurized for flight. Thousands of gallons of water from the ground facility's Niagara system will also be dumped onto the launch pad deck to suppress the sound and acoustics of liftoff.

The command to start the ignition sequence for the first stage will be issued at T-minus 3 seconds, triggering the Merlin engines' ignitor moments before the powerplants actually ramp up to full power.

T-minus 90 seconds and counting. The SpaceX launch director and the Air Force Eastern Range have given their final approvals for liftoff of the Falcon 9 rocket at 1 a.m. EDT (0500 GMT).

T-minus 2 minutes and counting. The rocket's Merlin 1D engines have been chilled down for ignition.

T-minus 2 minutes, 30 seconds. The strongback has been locked in to launch position.

T-minus 3 minutes and counting. The rocket's destruct system is on internal power and being armed, and liquid oxygen topping is being terminated.

The strongback has retracted into the launch position more than 20 degrees from the rocket.

The second stage thrust vector steering system has checked out and is ready for flight.

T-minus 5 minutes and counting. The cradles connecting the strongback to the Falcon 9 rocket have opened.

T-minus 6 minutes and counting. The Falcon 9 rocket is now operating on internal power.

The strongback umbilical tower will soon be lowered a few degrees to clear the rocket for launch. The procedure begins with opening of cradles gripping the rocket at attach points, then hydraulics lower the tower into launch position.

T-minus 6 minutes, 30 seconds. The Falcon 9's heaters are being deactivated, and the rocket will be transitioned to internal power in a few seconds.

T-minus 7 minutes and counting. Within the next minute, the Falcon 9's flight computer will be commanded to its alignment state. The Merlin engine pumps are continuing to chill down.

The launch danger area around Cape Canaveral is clear for launch.

T-minus 8 minutes and counting. Good chilldown continues on the first stage engines, and closeouts of the upper stage's gaseous nitrogen attitude control system are underway.

T-minus 9 minutes and counting. Prevalves leading to the Falcon 9's Merlin 1D first stage engines are opening, permitting super-cold liquid oxygen to flow into the engines to condition the turbopumps for ignition.

T-minus 10 minutes and counting. The terminal countdown autosequence has started. Any hold after this point will result in an automatic abort and recycle to T-minus 13 minutes.

T-minus 12 minutes. The launch team has verified all consoles are go for liftoff at 1 a.m. EDT (0500 GMT).

All systems on the rocket and the AsiaSat 6 satellite, along with weather, are GO for launch. The AsiaSat 6 satellite was placed on internal battery power for liftoff a few minutes ago.

T-minus 15 minutes and counting. Here are some statistics on today's launch:

• 12th launch of a Falcon 9 rocket since 2010
• 17th launch of Falcon rocket family since 2006
• 11th Falcon 9 launch from Cape Canaveral
• 7th launch of a Falcon 9 v1.1 rocket
• 6th Falcon 9 v1.1 launch from Cape Canaveral
• 5th Falcon 9 night launch
• 5th Falcon 9 launch of 2014
• 12th launch from Cape Canaveral in 2014

T-minus 17 minutes and counting. The Falcon 9 rocket stands 224 feet tall and measures 12 feet in diameter. At liftoff, its nine Merlin 1D first stage engines will generate about 1.3 million pounds of thrust.

Keep up with the launch sequence with this timeline of key events during the Falcon 9's ascent to orbit.

Launch has been reset for 1 a.m. EDT (0500 GMT) to allow weather to clear, according to SpaceX. The launch webcast now begins at 12:40 a.m. EDT.

T-minus 20 minutes and counting. All weather rules are now observed GO for launch.

The SpaceX webcast will begin in a few minutes.

The final poll of the launch team stationed in a control center will begin at T-minus 13 minutes before the countdown enters the final phase.

Officials continue to watch thick clouds over Cape Canaveral that could prevent an on-time launch.

T-minus 30 minutes. Today's launch is heading for a geosynchronous transfer orbit with an apogee, or high point, of 35,786 kilometers (22,236 miles) and a perigee, or low point, of 185 kilometers (114 miles). The target inclination is 25.3 degrees.

Built by Space Systems/Loral of Palo Alto, Calif., the AsiaSat 6 satellite is destined for a slot 22,300 miles above the equator in geostationary orbit at 120 degrees east longitude, where its 28 C-band transponders will beam video and data network services to China and Southeast Asia for 15 years for AsiaSat and Thaicom.

Today's mission marks the fourth SpaceX Falcon 9 launch with a satellite heading for a geostationary transfer orbit after the Dec. 3 launch with the SES 8 communications satellite, the Jan. 6 liftoff of Thaicom 6 and last month's Aug. 5 launch of AsiaSat 8. Such an orbit requires two burns of the Falcon 9's upper stage Merlin 1D engine, first to place the satellite into a low-altitude parking orbit, then to raise its apogee to geostationary altitude or higher.

T-minus 60 minutes. Skies are mostly cloudy over Cape Canaveral as the countdown continues for liftoff at 12:50 a.m. EDT (0450 GMT) at the opening of a 3-hour, 14-minute launch window.

Weather balloons are being launched throughout the countdown to monitor winds aloft.

Today's flight is from Space Launch Complex 40, which was formerly used by the Air Force's Titan 4 rocket until its last flight from Florida in April 2005. SpaceX took over the pad and launched the first Falcon 9 rocket from there on June 4, 2010.

The second Falcon 9 launch on Dec. 8, 2010, sent SpaceX's first Dragon capsule into space on a two-orbit test flight for SpaceX's commercial cargo services to the space station. The December 2010 flight did not go to the space station, but it demonstrated Dragon's avionics and heat shield, culminating with splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.

SpaceX's next launch on May 22, 2012, launched the Dragon spacecraft on a NASA-sponsored test flight to the International Space Station. The 9-day Dragon mission delivered cargo to the space station and returned hardware from orbit with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on May 31.

On Oct. 7, 2012, SpaceX launched its fourth Falcon 9 rocket on the first operational Dragon resupply flight to the space station. The three-week mission delivered 882 pounds of cargo to the complex and returned to Earth on Oct. 28 with 1,673 pounds of equipment.

A Falcon 9 launch on March 1, 2013, put up another automated Dragon cargo craft en route to the space station with 1,869 pounds of supplies. It arrived at the outpost March 3 and stayed for 23 days before coming back to Earth with 2,668 pounds of return cargo.

The Falcon 9's first launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California occurred Sept. 29, 2013, and deployed Canada's Cassiope space weather research and communications demonstration satellite into polar orbit. The launch also marked the first flight of SpaceX's upgraded Falcon 9 v1.1 vehicle, which includes more powerful first stage engines, stretched fuel tanks and other changes.

SpaceX's first launch into geostationary transfer orbit occurred Dec. 3, 2013, with the SES 8 Ku-band and Ka-band direct-to-home broadcasting and network services to cover the Asia-Pacific region for SES of Luxembourg.

The Falcon 9 rocket launched again Jan. 6 with the Thaicom 6 telecom satellite to provide C-band and Ku-band communications services across Southeast Asia and Africa.

SpaceX's third operational cargo resupply flight to the space station lifted off April 18 on a Falcon 9 rocket, marking the first time the launcher flew with first stage landing legs in a bid to make the vehicle reusable. The Dragon spacecraft delivered supplies to the space station and returned to Earth a month later.

The Falcon 9's 10th flight July 14 placed six small washing machine-sized delay relay communications satellites into low Earth orbit for Orbcomm Inc.

A month ago, on Aug. 5, SpaceX launched the AsiaSat 6 spacecraft on the most recent Falcon 9 rocket flight.

Kerosene and liquid oxygen are being pumped aboard the two-stage Falcon 9 rocket. Both stages burn the mix of liquid propellants to fuel 10 Merlin 1D engines.

SpaceX says the webcast of today's launch will begin at 12:35 a.m. EDT (0435 GMT), about 20 minutes prior to liftoff, and continue through the first cutoff of the second stage engine about 10 minutes into the mission.

We will have the live webcast on this page.

If you are heading out to the beach or Port Canaveral to watch the launch, sign up for our Twitter feed to get occasional countdown updates on your cellphone. U.S. readers can also sign up from their phone by texting "follow spaceflightnow" to 40404. (Standard text messaging charges apply.)

And if you are need tips on picking a good viewing spot, check out this authoritative guide on where to go.

The latest weather briefing given to the SpaceX launch team indicates the thick cloud rule is currently observed "no go" for launch, but conditions are improving as afternoon thunderstorms die out after sunset.

Scattered clouds and muggy conditions are expected by the time the launch window opens at 12:50 a.m. EDT (0450 GMT), with just a 30 percent chance weather will violate launch weather rules.

Check out photos of the Falcon 9 rocket on the launch pad this evening.

Expect some frustrations from bureaucratic red tape if you're a commercial company looking to launch from Cape Canaveral, says the head of AsiaSat as it prepared to send up a satellite Sunday.

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Technicians rolled the Falcon 9 rocket to the launch pad Saturday, using hydraulics to lift the 224-foot-tall booster on its launch mount at Cape Canaveral's Complex 40.

Workers then began plugging into electrical and propellant lines ahead of the start of the countdown this evening.

No problems are reported at this stage in the launch preparations. Fueling of the two-stage rocket with RP-1 fuel -- a highly-refined kerosene -- and liquid oxygen should begin shortly after 9:30 p.m. EDT (0130 GMT).

The rocket is one of the tallest in the world. The Falcon 9's first and second stages measure 12 feet in diameter, and the SpaceX-built payload fairing housing the Thaicom 6 communications satellite is 17 feet in diameter (5.2 meters) and 43 feet tall.

Check out photos of the AsiaSat 6 communications satellite as it was prepared for launch.

A commercial communications satellite is folded up inside the nose of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for liftoff from Cape Canaveral after midnight Sunday, ready to launch on a 15-year mission to beam broadcast video and data services to China and Southeast Asia.

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The launch of SpaceX's next Falcon 9 rocket is now set for Sunday, at the earliest.

The launch window is unchanged, opening at 12:50 a.m. EDT (0450 GMT) and running until 4:04 a.m. EDT (0804 GMT).

The weather outlook still calls for a 60 percent chance of acceptable conditions during Sunday's early morning launch opportunity, improving to a 70 percent chance of good weather Monday.

The main weather worry for Sunday is thick clouds associated with remnants of a tropical wave passing over Florida's Space Coast.

SpaceX is planning a launch attempt as soon as Saturday morning to deliver the AsiaSat 6 telecommunications satellite to orbit.

The Falcon 9 is reserved on the U.S. Air Force's Eastern Range for a launch opportunity Saturday, a week-and-a-half after SpaceX postponed the mission for a comprehensive data review.

Elon Musk, SpaceX's founder and CEO, said last week the review was a mission assurance exercise focusing on ensuring the Falcon 9's ability to detect and recover from in-flight anomalies.

SpaceX's prototype Falcon 9R rocket -- used to test reusable launcher technologies -- self-destructed in a test flight over Central Texas on Aug. 22. SpaceX said the Falcon 9 would not be susceptible to the same problem that caused the loss of the Falcon 9R, but Musk said officials wanted to make sure.

Saturday's launch window opens at 12:50 a.m. EDT (0450 GMT) and runs until 4:04 a.m. EDT (0804 GMT).

The 224-foot rocket will blast off from Cape Canaveral's Complex 40 launch pad on a 32-minute flight to put AsiaSat 6 into an egg-shaped geostationary transfer orbit.

Owned by AsiaSat of Hong Kong, the spacecraft will beam video broadcasts across China and service data networks in Southeast Asia under a leasing arrangement with Thaicom.

The flight will mark SpaceX's fifth launch of the year.

The weather forecast calls for mostly cloudy skies with isolated showers during Saturday's launch window, with a 60 percent chance of acceptable conditions for liftoff.

A tropical wave will move toward Central Florida on Thursday, bringing moisture, clouds and rain chances, according to the official Air Force launch weather forecast.

"On Friday, rain showers persist over the Space Coast, but should begin to diminish by Saturday morning as the wave's influence wanes," forecasters wrote. "The primary launch day weather concerns are the cumulus and thick cloud rules."

Meteorologists predict scattered clouds at 3,000 feet and broken clouds at 15,000 feet, with southeast winds of 8 to 12 mph and a temperature of 78 degrees Fahrenheit.

There is also a 60 percent chance of good weather if launch is delayed 24 hours to Sunday morning.

DELAY. A SpaceX spokesperson says tonight's launch of a Falcon 9 rocket has been delayed indefinitely.

The launch was scheduled for 12:50 a.m. EDT (0450 GMT) from Cape Canaveral with the AsiaSat 6 telecommunications satellite. It was to be the second Falcon 9 launch in three weeks with a payload for AsiaSat of Hong Kong.

There are no details on the reason for the delay or a new launch date at this time.

SpaceX says it has delayed liftoff of the next Falcon 9 rocket until Wednesday to ensure the problem that caused a prototype rocket to self-destruct in a test flight Friday will not pose a risk to the launch of a telecommunications satellite for AsiaSat.

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