Photos: First ULA mission of the year blasts off

Passing a major pre-flight milestone ahead of a launch and landing planned early Sunday, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket ignited its main engines Wednesday for a hold-down firing at Cape Canaveral.

The Falcon Heavy is lifted upright at launch pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center on April 10, 2019, in this time-lapse video.

A 12,000-pound Mexican mobile communications satellite was hoisted atop its Atlas 5 rocket today as crews finished assembling the vehicle for United Launch Alliance’s 100th liftoff next week.