Live coverage: Ariane 5 rocket deploys satellites for Australia, India

The sixth satellite in a series of seven orbiting navigation aids lifted off from India on Thursday, streaking into orbit aboard a 145-foot-tall Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.

A Russian military communications satellite rode a Soyuz rocket and Fregat upper stage Thursday into an orbit stretching nearly 25,000 miles (40,000 kilometers) above Earth, successfully launching after a one-month delay to replace a suspect third stage on the Soyuz booster.

Demonstrating a quick turnaround launch capability, China launched a light-class, solid-fueled Kuaizhou 1A rocket Sunday, four days after the same type of satellite booster fired into orbit from the same launch pad.