Atlas 5 rocket rolled out to launch pad

BY JUSTIN RAY
SPACEFLIGHT NOW

Posted: February 15, 2012


The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket is hauled out to the pad this morning, riding the rails from its assembly building to Cape Canaveral's Complex 41 for the final day-and-a-half of preparations to fly the massive new communications satellite into orbit for the Defense Department.

Tomorrow's ascent with the U.S. Navy's Mobile User Objective System 1 satellite will begin constructing a new space-based constellation for global mobile communications and replacing the military's aging Ultra High Frequency (UHF) spacecraft fleet.

See our Mission Status Center for the latest news on the launch.

Photo credit: Justin Ray/Spaceflight Now

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