Tag: Atlas 5
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Atlas 5 powers covert reconnaissance payload to orbit on its 70th mission
Performing a successful spacelift mission for the U.S. spy satellite agency, an Atlas 5 rocket delivered a surveillance package into orbit today believed by analysts to be another pair of tandem sleuths to scoop up radio signals from adversarial ships at sea. Liftoff came at 9:49:51 a.m. local time (12:49:51 p.m. EST; 1749:51 GMT) from…
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Video: NROL-79 launch aboard Atlas 5
The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket, standing 191 feet tall and and weighing 720,000 pounds, unleashes 860,000 pounds of thrust from its main engine at 9:49:51 a.m. local time (12:49:51 p.m. EST; 1749:51 GMT) today to launch the secret NROL-79 payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. See…
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Photos: Pad gantry rolled back to reveal Atlas 5 for launch
The mobile service tower retracts from the Atlas 5 rocket, revealing the 191-foot-tall vehicle for liftoff from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, carrying the classified NROL-79 national security payload for the U.S. government. Credit: United Launch Alliance See earlier NROL-79 coverage. Our Atlas archive.
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Photos: Atlas 5 rocket ready to fly with NROL-79 payload
The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket stands atop Space Launch Complex 3-East at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on the eve of Wednesday’s NROL-79 satellite-deployment mission for the National Reconnaissance Office. Rocky, the ULA mascot, even paid a visit to the pad Tuesday morning while photographers were setting up sound-activated cameras to capture…
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Timeline: Atlas 5/NROL-79 launch events
Follow the unclassified portion of the Atlas 5 rocket’s ascent to space from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base launch site with the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office’s NROL-79 satellite payload. Launch is scheduled for Wednesday at 9:50 a.m. local time (12:50 p.m. EST; 1750 GMT). T+00:01.1: Liftoff The United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 vehicle, designated AV-068,…
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Preview: Atlas 5 to provide spacelift for U.S. National Reconnaissance Office
The NROL-79 commemorative poster. Credit: United Launch Alliance Taking a U.S. national security satellite payload into space is the primary objective of the 70th Atlas 5 booster that will be launched Wednesday. The United Launch Alliance rocket, flying for the 35th time in its basic two-stage version with no solids, is scheduled for liftoff around…
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Commercial space cargo ship’s ride to orbit assembled for March 19 launch
The OA-7 Cygnus launch poster. Credit: United Launch Alliance CAPE CANAVERAL — An Atlas 5 booster core and Centaur upper stage have been stacked to launch another commercial freighter with supplies and scientific research gear to the International Space Station next month. The United Launch Alliance rocket is scheduled to fly March 19 to deploy…
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Reconnaissance payload mounted atop Atlas 5 for California launch
File photo of Atlas 5 payload lift and mate at Space Launch Complex 3-East pad. Credit: United launch Alliance Rising from the ground and into the launch pad gantry, a clandestine U.S. national security payload was fitted atop its Atlas 5 booster rocket in California today for the ride into space on March 1. The…
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No imminent X-37B landing planned
An artist’s concept of X-37B in orbit. Credit: Boeing CAPE CANAVERAL — The enigmatic X-37B spaceplane, launched into low-Earth orbit on an experimental military mission in 2015, continues to circle the planet despite a flurry of landing rumors. “The X-37 is still on-orbit. The program is conducting a regularly scheduled exercise this week,” said Capt.…
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ULA’s navy delivers rocket that will launch supplies to the space station
A recent Mariner arrival at Port Canaveral for Atlas 5. Credit: Justin Ray/Spaceflight Now PORT CANAVERAL — The ocean-sailing ship that transports rocket stages from United Launch Alliance’s factory to U.S. launch sites completed its latest voyage overnight, pulling into port to deliver the Atlas 5 that will send a cargo freighter to the International…