Photos: Atlas 5 on the pad for X-37B launch

A Falcon 9 rocket blasted off into a brilliant morning sky over the Sunshine State on Wednesday, and these photos show the kerosene-fueled launcher climbing away from Cape Canaveral’s Complex 40 launch pad.

Video highlights of the 50th Atlas 5 flight. The United Launch Alliance rocket carried the eighth Global Positioning System (GPS 2F-8) satellite for the U.S. Air Force.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket put on a display of power, sound and light Friday evening at Vandenberg Air Force Base in launching a clandestine national security payload, then successfully debuted a new upper stage engine as it flew over the horizon.