Tag: Lift and mate
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Atlas 5 rocket gains approval to launch again after issue on last flight diagnosed
The Atlas 5 rocket streaks to space on March 22. Credit: Alex Polimeni/Spaceflight Now CAPE CANAVERAL — United Launch Alliance has granted “flight clearance” for its workhorse Atlas 5 rocket to resume satellite deployments after linking an errant valve with the fuel usage crunch on its most recent mission and tweaking subsequent vehicles. The next…
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Photos: Navy satellite encapsulated, mated to Atlas 5
The U.S. Navy’s Mobile User Objective System communications satellite No. 5 was encapsulated in the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket’s payload fairing on June 4 at the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida. The 18-foot-diamter shroud covers the satellite during the initial minutes of flight as the 206-foot-tall rocket climbs through the atmosphere. On…
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Video: NROL-37 payload and Delta 4-Heavy rocket prepped for launch
Narrated video packages show the shrouded NROL-37 payload being hoisted atop the United Launch Alliance Delta 4-Heavy rocket and the retraction of the mobile service gantry. Video courtesy United Launch Alliance See earlier Delta 374 coverage. Our Delta archive.
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Photos and video: Payload mated to Delta 4-Heavy rocket for upcoming launch
CAPE CANAVERAL — Shielded from view within the protective rocket nose cone, a covert surveillance satellite has been mounted atop a Delta 4-Heavy rocket for launch June 4. The United Launch Alliance triple-barrel booster will heave the National Reconnaissance Office satellite into orbit for a classified mission. No details about the spacecraft, its purpose or…
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Atlas 5 rocket and Cygnus freighter mated for next week’s cargo launch
File photo of Cygnus lift atop an Atlas 5. Credit: NASA-KSC CAPE CANAVERAL — Bound for the International Space Station with a max load of fresh supplies, a commercially-operated cargo ship was mounted atop its booster rocket today for liftoff from Cape Canaveral on March 22. The Cygnus, produced by Orbital ATK, is filled with…
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GPS satellite moves to Atlas 5 facility for launch next Friday
File photo of GPS satellite lift atop Atlas 5. Credit: ULA CAPE CANAVERAL — After a quarter-century readying Global Positioning System satellites for launch at a Cape Canaveral Air Force Station processing hub, the final bird rolled out today as the navigation program transitions to a new era. “This GPS 2F-12 satellite represents the end…
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Photos: GPS 2F-11 readied for launch
This collection of photographs shows the Air Force’s Global Positioning System 2F-11 navigation satellite being encapsulated in the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 nose cone and hoisted atop the rocket for flight on Friday. Encapsulation occurred at Cape Canaveral’s Area 59 processing facility for the GPS satellites on Oct. 16. Stacking atop the Atlas occurred…
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Atlas 5 receives payload for third launch this month
File photo. Credit: ULA CAPE CANAVERAL — Heading to space next week to replace a 12-year-old satellite in the Global Positioning System navigation network, a modernized spacecraft was placed atop its Atlas 5 launcher yesterday. That completes assembly of the 189-foot-tall United Launch Alliance rocket at Cape Canaveral for liftoff of the GPS 2F-11 craft.…
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Photos: Assembling Atlas 5 rocket to launch Mexican satellite
Relive all of the steps to stack the United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket at Cape Canaveral’s Vertical Integration Facility for the Morelos 3 satellite deployment mission. The first stage was erected initially, followed by a pair of strap-on solid-fuel boosters, the combined interstage and Centaur upper stage, then the encapsulated satellite payload. Photos: United…
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Mexican communications satellite put aboard Atlas 5 rocket for launch
Credit: ULA CAPE CANAVERAL — A 12,000-pound Mexican mobile communications satellite was hoisted atop its Atlas 5 rocket today as crews finished assembling the vehicle for United Launch Alliance’s 100th liftoff next week. The Friday, Oct. 2 launch will deliver into a high-perigee geosynchronous transfer orbit the Morelos 3 spacecraft on its way to a…