February 26, 2026
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Breaking News
  • [ February 25, 2026 ] SLS rocket hauled back to VAB for repairs Artemis
  • [ February 25, 2026 ] SpaceX launches 500th Starlink satellite in 2026 during Wednesday Falcon 9 flight Falcon 9
  • [ February 24, 2026 ] SpaceX’s Tuesday twilight Falcon 9 rocket launch sends 29 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit Falcon 9
  • [ February 21, 2026 ] SpaceX’s most-flown Falcon booster launches on record 33rd flight Falcon 9
  • [ February 21, 2026 ] NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket hit by new problem expected to bump moonshot into early April Artemis

Photos: More shots of Thursday’s Atlas 5 rocket launch

July 28, 2016 Justin Ray

Departing Cape Canaveral at 8:37 a.m. EDT Thursday, the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket lifted a classified national security satellite into orbit for deployment.

Photos by Alex Polimeni/Spaceflight Now

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See earlier NROL-61 coverage.

Our Atlas archive.

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Related Articles

Atlas 5

Photos: OSIRIS-REx on pad to begin voyage to Bennu and back

September 7, 2016 Justin Ray

Headed to a relic from the solar system’s formation over four billion years ago, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx sample return craft was moved to Cape Canaveral’s Complex 41 launch pad today in preparation for liftoff Thursday aboard an Atlas 5 rocket en route to Asteroid Bennu hoping to find the seeds of life.

Mission Reports

Amid bankruptcy reports, OneWeb plans launch of 34 more satellites

March 20, 2020 Stephen Clark

OneWeb is gearing up for launch of 34 more satellites for its broadband Internet network Saturday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, despite reports that the company might seek bankruptcy protection and stringent restrictions on travel stemming from the coronavirus pandemic.

Members

Q&A with Dan Hart, president and CEO of Virgin Orbit (members only)

August 31, 2018 Stephen Clark

Dan Hart leads a staff of hundreds of engineers and technicians developing LauncherOne, a commercial air-launched booster intended to hurl small satellites weighing up to 1,100 pounds (500 kilograms) into orbit.

News Headlines

  • SLS rocket hauled back to VAB for repairs
    February 25, 2026
  • SpaceX launches 500th Starlink satellite in 2026 during Wednesday Falcon 9 flight
    February 25, 2026
  • SpaceX’s Tuesday twilight Falcon 9 rocket launch sends 29 Starlink satellites into low Earth orbit
    February 24, 2026
  • SpaceX’s most-flown Falcon booster launches on record 33rd flight
    February 21, 2026
  • NASA’s Artemis 2 rocket hit by new problem expected to bump moonshot into early April
    February 21, 2026
  • Falcon 9 launches 25 Starlink satellites after weather delays
    February 20, 2026
  • Moon mission fueling test concludes with no major problems
    February 20, 2026
  • Independent report sharply criticizes NASA management, Boeing for troubled Starliner flight
    February 19, 2026
  • SpaceX launches second Falcon 9 rocket to return to a landing in The Bahamas
    February 19, 2026
  • NASA to attempt second full fueling test of its Space Launch System rocket
    February 17, 2026
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