SpaceX launches next-gen US spy satellites -VIDEO

On September 5, SpaceX successfully launched its Falcon 9 rocket, sending a batch of next-gen spy satellites aloft for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office (NRO).

The rocket lifted off from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base tonight, News.Az reports citing foreign media.

It was SpaceX's second launch of the day; another Falcon 9 delivered 21 of the company's Starlink internet satellites to orbit from Florida's Space Coast this morning.

It was the 20th launch and landing for this particular booster, according to a SpaceX mission description. Fourteen of those flights have been Starlink missions.

NROL-113 was the third launch servicing the NRO's "proliferated architecture," a new network consisting of "numerous, smaller satellites designed for capability and resilience," the agency wrote in a mission description. SpaceX also launched the first two missions in the series — NROL-146 in May and NROL-186 in June.

#SpaceX launches next-gen #US #sp satellites pic.twitter.com/Oov8Ahazyr

— News.Az (@news_az) September 6, 2024

News.Az