Atlas 5 – Spaceflight Now

Third time’s the charm for the Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test

June 5, 2024 Will Robinson-Smith

The launch of two NASA astronauts dealt with two previous scrubs due to a valve issue on the Atlas 5 rocket and then a ground system issue at the launchpad. Liftoff happened at 10:52 a.m. EDT (1452 UTC) on Wednesday, June 5.

NASA astronauts arrive at Kennedy Space Center ahead of Boeing Starliner Crew Flight Test

April 25, 2024 Will Robinson-Smith

Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams arrived at the Cape in T-38 jets, the first such arrival since the space shuttle era. The mission is aiming to launch on Monday, May 6, at 10:34 p.m. EDT (0234 UTC).

Aerojet Rocketdyne, ULA mark 60th anniversary of RL10 rocket engine

November 28, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

A rocket engine with a long pedigree marked a big milestone on Monday. It’s 60 years since the hydrogen-fueled RL10 engine debuted onboard a Centaur upper stage launched from Cape Canaveral on Nov. 27, 1963.

Atlas 5 rocket launches Amazon’s first Kuiper satellites from Cape Canaveral

October 6, 2023 Spaceflight Now

A ULA Atlas 5 rocket is set to launch no earlier than 2 p.m. EDT (1800 UTC) on Friday, Oct. 6. It will sent up two prototype satellites for Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellite internet constellation.

Atlas 5 delivers first Amazon internet satellites to orbit on Friday

October 5, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

Amazon is getting its own delivery fulfilled this Friday, adding to an extensive portfolio that includes its online marketplace, streaming video, grocery and cloud services, with the launch of two prototype relay stations for a space-based internet service it calls Project Kuiper.

Atlas 5 rocket returns to pad for spy satellite agency launch from Cape Canaveral

September 8, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

United Launch Alliance’s Atlas 5 rocket made its way back to the pad at Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Thursday morning for a mission carrying national security mission payloads, collectively codenamed Silentbarker. Liftoff has been rescheduled for at 8:47 a.m. EDT (1247 UTC).

Tropical Storm Idalia delays national security Atlas 5 launch from Cape Canaveral

August 29, 2023 Will Robinson-Smith

A tropical storm barreling towards the Florida peninsula caused United Launch Alliance (ULA) to stand down from an Atlas 5 launch planned for Tuesday on a mission for the National Reconnaissance Office.

Technical snags force another delay for Boeing’s Starliner crew capsule

June 1, 2023 Stephen Clark

Boeing and NASA officials said Thursday the first launch of astronauts on Boeing’s delay-prone Starliner crew capsule won’t happen in July after engineers recently discovered a problem with the spacecraft’s parachute system and identified flammable tape around wiring harnesses inside the vehicle.

United Launch Alliance nears first fueling test on Vulcan rocket

May 21, 2021 Stephen Clark

United Launch Alliance could load cryogenic methane and liquid oxygen propellants into a Vulcan rocket test article at Cape Canaveral for the first time in the coming weeks, timing key tests for the next-generation rocket in between flights of Atlas 5 rockets that will share the same launch complex for the next few years.

Photos: ULA’s Atlas 5 rocket lifts off from Cape Canaveral

May 19, 2021 Stephen Clark

Carrying a sophisticated billion-dollar missile detection satellite for the U.S. military, a United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral on Tuesday with 1.6 million pounds of thrust from a Russian RD-180 main engine and twin solid rocket boosters.