Video: Time-lapse of Atlas 5’s rollout for launch of GOES-S (members only)

The European Space Agency’s Aeolus winds observatory is set for liftoff aboard a Vega rocket to kick off a three-year mission to measure global wind profiles from an orbit nearly 200 miles (320 kilometers) above Earth.

An Atlas 5 rocket carrying a classified national security satellite was rolled to the launch pad this morning for Thursday’s flight to bolster the U.S. intelligence-gathering space architecture.

Rocket-builder United Launch Alliance unveiled a first-of-a-kind website Wednesday that shows potential customers exactly what it will cost to buy an Atlas 5 booster, along with expected savings based on the rocket’s demonstrated reliability, ULA’s on-time launch record and the company’s sophisticated guidance system.