Photos: Atlas 5 launches new weather observer

Astronauts on the International Space Station and a fleet of Earth-watching satellites caught views of Hurricane Patricia, the most powerful cyclone on record in the Western Hemisphere, after the storm exploded in strength to become a monster Category 5 hurricane Friday.

A highly sophisticated U.S. Air Force satellite to sound the alarm when an enemy missile launches has shipped to its Florida launch site for liftoff in October aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket.

A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket and Cygnus cargo carrier climbed into orbit Saturday from Wallops Island, Virginia, in pursuit of the International Space Station with more than 7,200 pounds of research hardware and provisions, the second supply ship launch to the space station in less than 24 hours.