Posted: Thu, Apr 17, 2008, 6:41 AM ET (1041 GMT)
A Pegasus rocket successfully launched a long-delayed US military satellite designed to predict outages in satellite communications and navigation systems. The Pegasus was deployed from its L-1011 carrier aircraft at the Reagan Test Site in the central Pacific Ocean at approximately 1 pm EDT (1700 GMT) Wednesday, and placed the Communication/Navigation Outage Forecasting System (C/NOFS) satellite into low Earth orbit eight minutes later. The satellite, built by General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, will be used by the Air Force to monitor ionospheric conditions, including disturbances that can disrupt signals from communications and navigation satellites. The satellite's launch had been delayed for several years by technical and other issues.

Related Links:

•  Spaceflight Now article
•  Space News article (subscription required)
•  Satellite Today article
•  Orbital Sciences Corp. press release
•  General Dynamics press release