spacetoday.net: Atlas launches NRO satellite

Atlas launches NRO satellite

Posted: Fri, Apr 15, 2011, 8:01 AM ET (1201 GMT)
Atlas 5 launch of NROL-34 (ULA)

An Atlas 5 rocket successfully launched a classified satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) late Thursday night. The Atlas 5 411 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 3 at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California at 12:24 am EDT (0424 GMT) Friday on a mission designated NROL-34. The launch was scheduled for Tuesday but postponed to replace a faulty component on the rocket. As is traditional with NRO launches, no details were released about the rocket's payload. The launch was the fourth mission of the year for United Launch Alliance, which operates the Atlas and Delta rockets; it was also the 25th Atlas 5 launch since the rocket's introduction in 2002.