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Aug. 25 (UPI) — United Launch Alliance completed the rollout of an Atlas V rocket on Friday, in preparation for the launch of a classified space surveillance mission from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida next week.
Friday’s activities were carried out by ULA in collaboration with the U.S. Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office. In 2019, the NRO awarded a contract to ULA for the production of the Atlas V rocket and the execution of mission integration, launch operations, and other related activities.
The launch is scheduled for Tuesday at 8:34 a.m. EDT.
“Our Atlas V rocket has arrived at its Cape Canaveral pad for Tuesday’s launch of a new national security capability, called SILENTBARKER/NROL-107, that will advance our Space Domain Awareness against threats in orbit,” ULA stated on its website.
“Surveillance from space augments and overcomes existing ground sensor limitations with timely 24-hour above-the-weather collection of satellite metric data only possible with a space-based sensor and then communicates its findings to satellite operators, analysts, and other mission users.”
Due to the classified nature of the mission, the government has not disclosed many details about the payload’s contents or its capabilities.
The NRO describes Silentbarker/NROL-107 as “a joint NRO and U.S. Space Force space domain awareness mission to meet Department of Defense and intelligence community space protection needs.”
According to the NRO, this will be the 18th and final launch from Cape Canaveral utilizing the powerful Atlas V rocket, following the successful launch of 17 Atlas V rockets for NRO missions. The mission will also feature the Centaur upper stage, a liquid hydrogen/liquid oxygen-fueled vehicle that generates 106 kilo-Newtons of thrust.
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