Photos: Atlas 5 rocket soars from West Coast

A Chinese Long March 2D rocket launched Venezuela’s second Earth-observing surveillance satellite Monday, adding a new space-based reconnaissance asset the country’s government says it will use to aid security forces, emergency responders, farmers, and health professionals.

Some of America’s most critical surveillance satellites, final members of other spacecraft series and a probe that will touch an asteroid are among 15 rocket flights planned by United Launch Alliance in 2016.

NASA has selected SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy rocket to launch a robotic mission in July 2022 to explore Psyche, a metal-rich asteroid located between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. The Psyche probe is NASA’s first mission assigned to fly on SpaceX’s heavy-lift launcher.