Snapshots from Atlas 5 launch

Good weather for launching a rocket is forecast for Cape Canaveral and the Space Coast on Thursday morning when a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 is scheduled to take flight.

Catching observers off guard, President Trump, in remarks before a National Space Council Meeting at the White House Monday, officially directed to Pentagon to establish a sixth branch of the military, a “space force,” to ensure American dominance on the high frontier.

Launching for the 50th time, an Atlas 5 rocket flew a milestone mission Wednesday in deploying a Global Positioning System satellite for the worldwide utility.