Photos: Atlas 5 rocket aims for International Space Station

Eight of Iridium’s first ten upgraded communications satellites launched in January started providing voice and data relay service ahead of schedule, and SpaceX says it can launch up to 40 more Iridium spacecraft by the end of the year, Iridium officials reported Thursday.

In the span of two weeks, United Launch Alliance technicians performed the basic buildup of the Atlas 5 rocket and then mated the advanced GOES-R weather satellite that will be hauled into space on Saturday.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is set for launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday with a mobile broadband communications satellite for Inmarsat.