Photos: Atlas 5 on the pad at sunset

The United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket roars off the pad with the Global Positioning System 2F-9 satellite. Photos by ULA.

The enigmatic X-37B spaceplane, launched into low-Earth orbit on an experimental military mission in 2015, continues to circle the planet despite a flurry of landing rumors.

This is the ascent timeline to be followed by the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket in launching NASA’s MMS mission on March 12 at 10:44 p.m. EDT.