Centaur – Spaceflight Now

Photos: ULA’s Atlas 5 rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral

May 19, 2021

Carrying a sophisticated billion-dollar missile detection satellite for the U.S. military, a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral on Tuesday with 1.6 million pounds of thrust from a Russian RD-180 main engine and twin solid rocket boosters.

Atlas 5 rocket launches infrared missile detection satellite for U.S. Space Force

May 18, 2021

An upgraded, cyber-hardened $1 billion satellite to support the U.S. military’s missile defense systems rode into orbit from Cape Canaveral Tuesday at the tip of a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket.

Problem during fueling preps forces Atlas 5 launch delay

May 17, 2021

United Launch Alliance called off a launch attempt Monday after hitting a snag during preparations to fill an Atlas 5 rocket with cryogenic propellants at Cape Canaveral, delaying the liftoff of a new U.S. Space Force infrared surveillance satellite until no earlier than Tuesday.

Live coverage: Atlas 5 launches with missile warning satellite for U.S. military

May 17, 2021

United Launch Alliance launched the U.S. military’s SBIRS GEO 5 early warning satellite into orbit aboard an Atlas 5 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. A launch attempt Monday was scrubbed during fueling preps due to a faulty temperature sensor. Liftoff of ULA’s workhorse rocket, fitted with two strap-on solid-fueled boosters, occurred at 1:37 p.m. EDT (1737 GMT).

Atlas 5/SBIRS GEO 5 launch timeline

May 17, 2021

This is the launch timeline to be followed by the Atlas 5 rocket’s ascent into orbit from Cape Canaveral with the SBIRS GEO 5 satellite for U.S. military infrared reconnaissance.

Photos: Atlas 5 ready for liftoff with SBIRS GEO 5

May 16, 2021

These photos show a 194-foot-tall United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket standing on pad 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in advance of a planned launch with the U.S. Space Force’s fifth SBIRS missile warning satellite.

Billion-dollar missile defense satellite ready for launch Monday in Florida

May 15, 2021

A sophisticated combat-ready U.S. military missile warning satellite moved to its launch pad at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station Saturday on top of a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, ready for liftoff Monday afternoon.

U.S. military warning sentinel attached to Atlas 5 rocket at Cape Canaveral

May 12, 2021

United Launch Alliance crews at Cape Canaveral have topped off an Atlas 5 rocket for liftoff Monday with the U.S. military’s next infrared sentinel to join a satellite fleet designed detect missile launches around the world.

NASA selects proposals to demonstrate in-space refueling and propellant depot tech

October 16, 2020

NASA has selected 14 companies for contracts of more than $370 million to advance technology for human missions to the moon and Mars. Most of the money will support flight demonstrations by SpaceX, United Launch Alliance, and other companies that could lead to in-space refueling and propellant depots for reusable lunar landers and deep space transportation vehicles.

ULA, SpaceX win landmark multibillion-dollar launch agreements with Pentagon

August 7, 2020

United Launch Alliance and SpaceX beat out Northrop Grumman and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin for billions of dollars in U.S. military rocket contracts, and will share the load in launching the Pentagon’s highest-priority national security space missions through 2027, officials announced Friday.