Aerojet Rocketdyne is pressing ahead with development of a powerful new rocket engine that company officials believe will be an attractive alternative to the Russian-built RD-180 engine that now powers the first stage of United Launch Alliance’s workhorse Atlas 5 booster.
Rocketing through gloomy skies with a payload clouded in a veil of secrecy, a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket fired away from Cape Canaveral on Tuesday to deploy a satellite thousands of miles above Earth.
This video captures the final portion of the launch countdown and follows the Atlas 5 rocket’s flight through arrival in the preliminary orbit carrying the Curiosity rover headed for Mars. (Membership Required)