Photos: Atlas 5 launches EchoStar 19 broadband satellite

A modified version of Russia’s Soyuz rocket launched Friday from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome, a spaceport on the edge of the Russian Arctic, with a military satellite whose mission is shrouded in mystery.

NASA wants to fly an astronaut on Russia’s next Soyuz mission to the International Space Station in April, a measure the agency says would ensure a continued U.S. presence on the research outpost in case of delays in the launch of SpaceX’s next Crew Dragon flight.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is set for launch from Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday with a mobile broadband communications satellite for Inmarsat.