Photos: More Atlas 5 launch shots

The United Launch Alliance Delta 4 rocket roars off the pad with the Global Positioning System 2F-9 satellite. Photos by ULA.

Playalinda Beach is an ideal public viewing spot for Friday morning’s Atlas 5 rocket launch of the Navy’s MUOS 5 communications satellite. The location puts you less than five miles from the launch pad to feel the 2.5 million pounds of liftoff thrust!

A commercial mission developed by the Japanese company Astroscale rocketed into space on a Russian Soyuz launcher Monday with 37 other payloads, ready to kick off an orbital “dance” with two small spacecraft demonstrating how satellite sweepers might one day drag junk out of orbit.