Tag: NRO
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Systima’s pyrovalves make their debut with Atlas 5 launch of NROL-52 spy satellite
United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket lofts a payload into space for the NROL-52 mission. (ULA Photo) After more than a week of delays, the National Reconnaissance Office was glad to see its latest spy satellite go into orbit on Sunday — and so was Kirkland, Wash.-based Systima Technologies. When a United Launch Alliance Atlas…
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SpaceX realign near-term manifest ahead of double launch salvo
SpaceX is deep into pre-launch preparations for two upcoming missions that are set to lift off within a couple of days of each other. Both target launch dates have moved to the right by a matter of days, with the SES-11 mission from KSC’s 39A now tracking an October 7 departure, while on the West…
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SpaceX reaches milestone with Falcon 9 launch of secret NROL-76 spy satellite – and booster landing
SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket rises from its Florida launch pad. (NRO via Twitter) SpaceX launched a top-secret satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office today, then brought its Falcon 9 booster back for a spectacular touchdown at its Florida landing zone. The NROL-76 launch marks a milestone as the first SpaceX launch fully dedicated to a classified mission, and the…
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Photos: Gantry retracted from Atlas 5 rocket
The 8-million-pound mobile service tower is retracted from around the Atlas 5 rocket, revealing the 19-story-tall vehicle for liftoff from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California, on NROL-55. Photos: United Launch Alliance Rollback of NROL-55 Vandenberg AFB Rollback of NROL-55 Vandenberg AFB Rollback of NROL-55 Vandenberg AFB Rollback of NROL-55 Vandenberg AFB Rollback of NROL-55 Vandenberg…
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Video: Liftoff of Atlas 5 on NROL-55
A replay of the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket launching the classified NROL-55 payload for the National Reconnaissance Office from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. See earlier NROL-55 coverage. Our Atlas archive.
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Second Atlas 5 rocket launched in span of six days
CAPE CANAVERAL — Churning out the launches at a rapid pace, the Atlas 5 program sent another rocket soaring like clockwork today for deployment of a national security satellite duo from California. Blasting off precisely on-time at 5:49:30 a.m. local (8:49:30 a.m. EDT; 1249:30 GMT) from Vandenberg Air Force Base, it was the seventh Atlas…
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Photos: California’s predawn liftoff of Atlas 5 rocket
Making its second launch in just six days, a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket flight blasted off Thursday from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Photo Credit: Gene Blevins/LA Daily News See earlier NROL-55 coverage. Our Atlas archive.
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Photos: Atlas 5 rocket soars from West Coast
A collection of pad photos from the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket flight carrying the NROL-55 cargo for the National Reconnaissance Office. Photo Credit: United Launch Alliance See earlier NROL-55 coverage. Our Atlas archive.
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Intel-gathering spacecraft launch on Atlas 5 scheduled for Thursday
Mission poster. Credit: ULA CAPE CANAVERAL — Poised for its one and only satellite launch of the year, the National Reconnaissance Office will conduct a hush-hush flight Thursday, Oct. 8 using a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket from California. Liftoff from Space Launch Complex 3-East at Vandenberg Air Force Base is targeted for 5:49…
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Photos: NROL-55 payload joins Atlas booster rocket for launch
This photo gallery shows the classified National Reconnaissance Office payload, already encapsulated in the 14-foot-diameter nose cone, being lifted atop the United Launch Alliance Atlas-Centaur rocket at Vandenberg Air Force Base’s Space Launch Complex 3-East pad. Launch of NROL-55 is planned for the morning of Oct. 8. Photo credit: United Launch Alliance Our Atlas archive.