Snapshots from Atlas 5 launch

Engineers plan to test small modifications to a payload shroud on a European Ariane 5 rocket launch Friday from French Guiana, gathering data on changes introduced to meet stringent criteria for the launch of the $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope in late 2021.

Signaling strength in the international cooperation between the U.S. military and allied nations, a satellite funded by five countries will be launched by the Air Force on Saturday to codify a global communications deal.

A state-of-the-art satellite to provide high-speed Internet connectivity across North America, specializing in areas where terrestrial networks are not available, will be mounted atop its booster rocket Saturday in preparation for launch next weekend.