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The planned launch of a US spy satellite this afternoon (November 13) could kick off a binge of four takeoffs in four days, if we’re lucky.
The launch of the National Reconnaissance Office’s classified NROL-101 probe is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket at 5:13 PM EST (2213 GMT) today from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida . You can watch that mission live here on Space.com, courtesy of ULA or directly through the company.
Many more rockets will take off in relatively rapid succession if all goes to plan. For example, SpaceX is expected to launch its Crew-1 mission on Saturday (Nov 14) at 7:49 PM EST (0049 GMT Nov 15). Crew-1, the company’s first contract manned operational mission for NASA, will send four astronauts to the International Space Station for a six-month stay.
Next up is Rocket Lab, which on Sunday (Nov 15) will perform its “Return to Sender” mission from New Zealand during a nearly three-hour window opening at 8:44 PM EST (0144 GMT Nov 16). “Return to Sender” will transport 30 satellites into Earth orbit and will feature a soft splashdown and the restoration of the first stage of Rocket Lab’s Electron booster.
Rounding out the spaceflight quartet will be Arianespace, whose Vega rocket will launch two Earth-study satellites from French Guiana on Monday (November 16) at 20:52 EST (0152 GMT on November 17).
And there’s more action just beyond this four-day period: SpaceX’s launch of the NROL-108 classified mission for the National Reconnaissance Office could happen as early as November 18, according to Spaceflight Now. Elon Musk’s company also plans to launch the Sentinel 6-Michael Freilich Earth observation satellite, a joint effort of NASA and several European partners, on November 21.
So excited, but also be prepared for a possible disappointment: there is no guarantee that none of these rockets will take off in time, as the sinking of a similar “launchapalooza” proved last August.
Mike Wall is the author of “Out There” (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book about the search for alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or Facebook.
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