
Vandenberg Air Force Base


SpaceX sets Dec. 16 for first flight since launch pad explosion
The first 10 satellites in Iridium’s next-generation mobile voice and data network could head into orbit from California as soon as Dec. 16 on SpaceX’s first Falcon 9 flight since a booster exploded on its launch pad at Cape Canaveral in September, grounding the commercial launcher more than three months.



Video: Liftoff of WorldView 4 aboard Atlas 5 rocket
The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, standing 189 feet tall and and weighing 720,000 pounds, unleashes 860,000 pounds of thrust from its main engine at 10:30 a.m. local time (1:30 p.m. EST; 1830 GMT) today to launch the commercial WorldView 4 Earth-imaging satellite for DigitalGlobe from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.



Live coverage: Atlas 5 countdown and launch journal
The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket lifted off from California at 10:30 a.m. local time (1:30 p.m. EST; 1830 GMT) today to deliver the sharp-eyed WorldView 4 satellite into space to collect best-in-the-industry, 31-centimeter-resolution commercial imagery for retail. Follow the mission in our live journal.

