2 in 2021 from Vandenberg Air Force Base. The Atlas 5 beat out the Falcon 9 in a competition to win the rights to launch the Joint Polar Satellite System spacecraft No. civilian weather observatories will be launched atop an Atlas 5-401 rocket. In other government-launch news, NASA said last month that the second satellite in the next-generation era of U.S. The missions exceed the lift performance of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets that has been certified by the Air Force for national security payloads, making ULA the only provider available to execute these heavy launches.
The mission assignments were announced Friday by the Pentagon. The identity of that craft is not publicly known, nor is its target orbit.īoth rockets are part of the existing EELV Block Buy between the Air Force and United Launch Alliance.
It will launch the NROL-101 payload from Cape Canaveral. The other newly-ordered launch is just a month later in August 2020 using an Atlas 5-551 with five side-mounded solid rocket boosters for maximum liftoff power.
This craft is likely the second of two upcoming exquisite-class, electro-optical surveillance spy satellites needed to replenish the NRO’s overhead imaging constellation in polar orbit. The first mission is planned for July 2020 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California using a Delta 4-Heavy rocket to launch the NROL-82 payload for the National Reconnaissance Office. government, and NASA has bought an Atlas 5 to deploy a critical polar-orbiting weather satellite. Photos by United Launch AllianceĬAPE CANAVERAL - The most powerful variants of the Atlas 5 and Delta 4 rockets have been purchased by the Air Force to launch intelligence-gathering spacecraft for the U.S. We deliver value unmatched by any launch services company in the industry, a tireless drive to improve, and commitment to the extraordinary.įor more information on ULA, visit the ULA website at or call the ULA Launch Hotline at 1-87 (852-4321).Delta 4-Heavy, Atlas 5-551 and Atlas 5-401 have each booked new U.S. Leveraging a legacy of 100 percent mission success launching more than 150 missions to explore, protect and enhance our world, ULA is the nation's most experienced and reliable launch service provider with world-leading reliability, schedule confidence, and mission optimization. Our customer's missions are vital to ensuring the safety of our women and men in harm's way serving our country." "As the Air Force is gearing up to celebrate its 75 th anniversary, we are honored to have been entrusted to deliver the vast majority of our nation's critical assets to orbit. National Space Security launch," added Wentz. military's situational awareness on the battlefield and beyond." "We are proud of our role in supporting the warfighter by launching the entire SBIRS satellite constellation, a critical constellation of missile warning satellites that expands the U.S. Space Force and industry partners for their outstanding teamwork in successfully delivering the sixth and final SBIRS satellite to orbit," said Gary Wentz, ULA vice president of Government and Commercial Programs.
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