For its 70th launch in 14 years, the Atlas 5 rocket carried the NROL-79 payload into space for the National Reconnaissance Office.
Credit: United Launch Alliance
See earlier NROL-79 coverage.
Our Atlas archive.
Falcon 9
SpaceX sets Dec. 16 for first flight since launch pad explosion
The first 10 satellites in Iridium’s next-generation mobile voice and data network could head into orbit from California as soon as Dec. 16 on SpaceX’s first Falcon 9 flight since a booster exploded on its launch pad at Cape Canaveral in September, grounding the commercial launcher more than three months.
Atlas 5
Photos: NROL-42 payload joins Atlas 5 booster for launch
This photo gallery shows the classified National Reconnaissance Office payload, already encapsulated in the 18-foot-diameter nose cone, being lifted atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas-Centaur rocket at Vandenberg Air Force Base’s Space Launch Complex 3-East pad. This milestone was achieved on Aug. 27.