Photos: Delta 4 rocket fires off the pad before sunset

The U.S. Air Force has released the first-ever photos of the Super Strypi launch vehicle, a souped-up version of a Cold War-era sounding rocket about to be shot into orbit on a unique demonstration flight with 13 small satellites.

SpaceX fired up nine Merlin main engines at the bottom of a previously-flown Falcon 9 booster Saturday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, running the rocket through a practice countdown before a scheduled liftoff Jan. 18 with a Crew Dragon capsule to test the human-rated ship’s high-altitude abort capability.

NASA said the next launch of the Boeing crew vehicle is now targeting no earlier than early 2026. However, that hinges on testing campaign set to take place at the White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico.