Photos: Launch boosts satellite for U.S. allies

Loaded with supplies to keep the International Space Station’s crew fed, clothed and busy with new science projects, a Cygnus cargo vessel sped into orbit today atop an Atlas 5 rocket.

Ground crews at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California retracted a mobile gantry away from the Delta 2 rocket Monday afternoon, revealing the 128-foot-tall (39-meter) booster on its launch pad awaiting liftoff with a new polar-orbiting weather observatory.

An Indian Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle lifted off at 0000 GMT Wednesday (8 p.m. EDT Tuesday) carrying a radar observation satellite to collect imagery in support of military, intelligence and environmental agencies.