Posted: Thu, Dec 20, 2007, 10:17 PM ET (0317 GMT)
A Delta 2 rocket placed a new Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite into orbit Thursday afternoon. The United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta 2 7925-9.5 lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida at 3:04 pm EST (2004 GMT), carrying the GPS 2R-18(M) satellite; the spacecraft deployed from the rocket's upper stage 68 minutes after liftoff. The spacecraft is the fifth in a series of eight modernized Block 2R GPS satellites built by Lockheed Martin for the US Air Force. The launch was the eighth this year for the Delta 2 and the 13th and final overall for the ULA, which is completing its first full calendar year of operations.

Related Links:

•  NASA SpaceFlight.com article
•  Space News article (subscription required)
•  Florida Today article
•  Spaceflight Now launch status center
•  Lockheed Martin press release