The Atlas 5 rocket with spy satellite on board starts with a spectacular launch at sunset

A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket thundered to life and swept away from Cape Canaveral with a dramatic sunset launch, resulting in a spectacular Friday 13th sky show visible over Florida’s Space Coast.

Running nine days late due to problems with ground equipment, the rocket’s Russian-built RD-180 main engine ignited with a flame discharge at 5:32 PM EST., Followed by the firing of three boosters at strapped solid fuel, instantly pushing the 20-story high rocket away from Pad 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.

Just two miles away, was a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket ready for launch Sunday from the Kennedy Space Center to put four astronauts in orbit for a flight to the International Space Station, the first commercial mission ever certified by NASA and the FAA.

The astronaut launch was scheduled for Saturday, but the flight was delayed due to strong winds expected at the launch site and offshore weather conditions where SpaceX plans to land the first stage of the rocket on a company drone.

Either way, with a crowd of reporters on hand to witness the launch of the Atlas, the rocket accelerated smoothly as it consumed propellants and lost weight, fueling the speed of sound and the region of maximum aerodynamic stress as it climbed from the thick lower atmosphere. and went north-east.

The three strap-on boosters burned out and fell as expected after about two minutes of flight and the ascent continued with the power of the RD-180 engine.

The 66-foot long GEM 63 solid rocket engines, built by Northrop Grumman, were making their maiden flight, replacing the Aerojet Rocketdyne-built SRM AJ-60As that flew with all previous booster-equipped Atlas 5s. ULA says the new boosters are cheaper and easier to handle when working on the ground.

The boosters appeared to be functioning normally on Friday, and just over a minute after being unloaded, the two halves of the Atlas 5’s clamshell fairing broke off, exposing the satellite to the space environment.

At that point, as usual with classified NRO missions, United Launch Alliance concluded its mission commentary, leaving the Air Force with confirmation of a successful flight in a post-launch update sometime after the satellite’s deployment.

No details about the rocket’s classified payload or its intended orbit have been released, but graphs published by ULA prior to launch showed a northeastern trajectory parallel to the east coast of the United States, indicating a tilted, or tilted, orbit. 50 to 60 degrees or more relative to the equator.

Ted Molczan, a respected independent satellite analyst, speculated that the payload was a Satellite Data System spacecraft, used to collect and transmit signals from spy satellites in lower orbits, or a signal intelligence satellite used to intercept targeted communications.

Both types of satellites have in the past used highly elliptical, highly inclined “Molniya” orbits to monitor Russia and other areas of interest in the Northern Hemisphere. But no details about the satellite’s final orbit launched Wednesday were immediately available.