Launch of the Curiosity Mars rover

China launched a Long March 2D rocket Wednesday carrying a Yunhai environmental monitoring satellite into an orbit some 470 miles above Earth.

The Atlas rocket to launch four formation-flying spacecraft for NASA in March began to take shape Wednesday at the assembly building adjacent to the Complex 41 pad.

Japan’s eighth resupply mission to the International Space Station is set for liftoff Sept. 10 with another batch of upgraded batteries, crew provisions and experiments for the orbiting research lab, the country’s space agency announced Monday.