Atlas 5 launches NROL-61 as seen from the NASA Press Site

Signs that a launch to the International Space Station is approaching are obvious this week at Cape Canaveral, with the Atlas 5 booster rocket beginning to take shape and the commercial resupply ship heading to its propellant depot.

NASA’s Mars 2020 Perseverance mission resumed normal operations Friday after cold temperatures forced the spacecraft into space mode soon after a successful launch from Cape Canaveral.

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket topped by the Air Force’s X-37B miniature space shuttle blasted off from Cape Canaveral’s Complex 41 today to deliver the spaceplane into orbit.