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

Technicians inched the two halves of the Atlas 5’s aluminum nose cone around NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to package the asteroid sample return probe, then moved the satellite to the rocket’s assembly building and hoisted it aboard the two-stage booster during the final days of August for the Sept. 8 launch.

China launched a Long March 2C rocket Friday with three Yaogan 30 military satellites, and tested new grid fins on the Long March’s first stage to help guide the spent booster away from populated areas.

Spaceflight Industries said this week it is selling its rideshare launch business — known as Spaceflight — to a joint venture formed by two Japanese companies.