A ULA Atlas V 421 rocket has carried the SBIRS GEO-6 missile early warning satellite into Geostationary Transfer Orbit (GTO) following its launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida. In addition to using the new RL10C-1-1 engine on the Centaur stage, this uprated version of the 421 variant of the Atlas used a pair of GEM-63 solid rockets. The mission took place at 1029 GMT on 4 August and lasted for over three hours.
Originally ordered in 2014, SBIRS GEO-6 is the final satellite in the US Space Force’s Space Based Infrared System of GEO early warning satellites. The latest mission marks the fifth launch of an Atlas V rocket this year.
Matthew Wilson contributed to this story.