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Photos: NASA’s Perseverance rover buttoned up for launch
NASA's Perseverance rover has been closed up inside its protective aeroshell, the structure that will protect the spacecraft when it plunges into the Martian atmosphere, in preparation for launch no earlier than July 20 from Cape Canaveral.
Fitted with super-clean sample tubes, NASA’s next Mars rover nears launch date
The Perseverance rover’s sterilized sample tubes — designed to seal Martian rock and sediment for eventual return to Earth — are installed on the spacecraft as teams at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center prepare to enclose the rover inside the payload shroud of its Atlas 5 launcher for liftoff July 20.
After crane problem, ULA caps build-up of Atlas 5 rocket for Mars rover launch
United Launch Alliance has completed stacking of the major elements of the Atlas 5 rocket assigned to power NASA's Perseverance rover toward Mars, but the mission's launch date has been pushed back three days to July 20 after teams repaired an issue with a crane in the Atlas 5's assembly building.
Assembly of Mars rover’s rocket to begin this week
Two key pieces of hardware needed for NASA's next Mars rover -- an Atlas rocket booster and sterile components of the rover's sample collection system -- recently arrived at Cape Canaveral ahead of the mission's scheduled launch July 17.
VideoPhotos: Atlas 5 rocket lifts off with U.S. military’s X-37B spaceplane
Launching the sixth mission of the U.S. military's super-secret X-37B spaceplane program, a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket lifted off Sunday morning from Cape Canaveral and successfully delivered its clandestine cargo to orbit.
Upgraded X-37B spaceplane rockets into orbit aboard Atlas 5 launcher
Darting through low clouds, the US Air Force’s reusable X-37B spaceplane rode a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket into orbit Sunday, debuting upgrades to accommodate additional scientific experiments, a dishwasher-sized tech demo satellite, and classified military objectives.
Blustery weather keeps Atlas 5 rocket grounded, SpaceX launch slips to Tuesday
Gusty winds associated with a subtropical low pressure system prevented United Launch Alliance from sending an Atlas 5 rocket into orbit Saturday from Cape Canaveral with the U.S. Air Force's clandestine X-37B spaceplane. ULA plans to try again Sunday, and a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from a nearby pad has been delayed to Tuesday.
Atlas 5 dedicated to health care workers, coronavirus victims
U.S. military officials and United Launch Alliance have dedicated the planned launch Saturday of an Atlas 5 rocket with the military's winged mini-space shuttle to coronavirus first responders, front-line workers and all who have been affected by the pandemic.
VideoLive coverage: Atlas 5 launches with X-37B spaceplane
United Launch Alliance fired an Atlas 5 rocket into space from Cape Canaveral at 9:14 a.m. EDT (1314 GMT) Sunday with the U.S. Air Force's X-37B spaceplane, an automated reusable mini-space shuttle designed to host experiments for years in orbit, then return to Earth and land on a runway. A launch attempt Saturday was scrubbed by bad weather.
Back-to-back launches scheduled from Cape Canaveral this weekend
Working under physical distancing requirements and other precautions against the coronavirus pandemic, range teams at Cape Canaveral are preparing for launches of Atlas 5 and Falcon 9 rockets from neighboring pads this weekend.