Tag: NRO
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Launch Roundup: SpaceX launches 400th orbital flight; Blue Origin, China launch missions
Blue Origin tested its second human-rated New Shepard capsule this week, which had been delayed twice since the start of the month. The week has also seen two launches from China while a fourth flight of the Japanese H3 rocket carrying a communications satellite for the Japanese military has now been delayed until next week.…
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SpaceX launches Falcon 9 rocket on national security mission for the NRO
A Falcon 9 lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force Station in California on the NROL-113 mission. Image: SpaceX. SpaceX launched a Falcon 9 rocket with an undisclosed number of satellites on behalf of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). The spacecraft, which are believed to be Starshield satellites, make up the third batch of what the…
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SpaceX launches multiple satellites for the NRO from Vandenberg Space Force Base
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from Vandenberg Space Force Base on the NROL-186 mission on June 28, 2024. Image: SpaceX SpaceX launched a national security mission on behalf of the United States’ National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) from Vandenberg Space Force Base Friday night. The spy agency described the classified mission as “the second…
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SpaceX launches first batch of satellites for the NRO’s reconnaissance satellite constellation
A Falcon 9 heads to orbit with a payload for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. Image: SpaceX. Update 11:09 p.m. EDT: Adding additional information from the NRO. The National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) began building a constellation of unknown size with a middle-of-the-night launch from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. The mission, dubbed NROL-146, featured…
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Launch Roundup: 100th launch of the year, Starliner delays, NASA’s PREFIRE-1 mission
There are two launches from China to start this week, the first of which will be the 95th launch attempt of the year worldwide. If all goes to plan, this week should see the 100th launch of 2024, although the schedule is rather fluid at present. SpaceX has already passed 50 launches this year and…
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Launch Roundup: Starliner delayed further; 21st flight for Falcon 9 booster; New Shepard returns to crewed missions
SpaceX reached another milestone when booster B1062 became the first in its fleet to fly for the 21st time on Friday night, exceeding the previously set limit of 20 flights per booster. Blue Origin also launched its first crewed mission for over 18 months on Sunday, taking six more humans briefly above the Karman line.…
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ULA concludes six decades of Delta rocket flights with final Delta 4 Heavy mission
A ULA Delta 4 Heavy rocket lifts off from Space Launch Complex 37 on Tuesday, April 9, 2024. This was the 16th and final launch of a Delta 4 Heavy rocket. Image: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now The second time was the charm for the finale of the Delta family of rockets. Following an issue with a…
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Delta IV Heavy launches on final mission
United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV rocket has successfully launched Tuesday on its final flight, the NROL-70 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office. Liftoff from SLC-37B at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station has happened at 12:53 PM EDT (17:53 UTC) following a scrub on the initial attempt over a week ago. The launch marks the…
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High winds, gaseous nitrogen pump failure force scrub of the final launch of Delta 4 Heavy minutes before liftoff
The final Delta 4 Heavy pictured on the eve of its final mission inside the Mobile Service Tower at Cape Canaveral’s pad 37. Photo: Adam Bernstein/Spaceflight Now. Update 3:10 p.m. ET: ULA flight teams called a scrub of the mission at about T-00:03:58. United Launch Alliance will have to wait a bit longer before it…
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ULA conducts NROL-107 launch, last Atlas NRO mission
United Launch Alliance (ULA) launched its Atlas V with the classified NROL-107 Silent Barker mission set on Sunday, following several days, including a rollback due to a hurricane threat. For this demanding mission, sending the payload to a near-geosynchronous orbit, Atlas V flew in its most powerful active configuration: Atlas V 551. NROL-107 Silent Barker…