Atlas V GPS IIF-4 Launch

A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket successfully launched the fourth Global Positioning System (GPS) IIF-4 satellite for the U.S. Air Force at 5:38 p.m. EDT, May 15, 2013, from Space Launch Complex-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Photo: ULA

Atlas V GPS IIF-4 Launch

A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Atlas V rocket successfully launched the fourth Global Positioning System (GPS) IIF-4 satellite for the U.S. Air Force at 5:38 p.m. EDT, May 15, 2013, from Space Launch Complex-41, Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. Photo: ULA

Atlas V RBSP LDA

Col. Robert Pavelko, 45th Space Wing vice commander, served as the Launch Decision Authority for the first time Aug. 30. “It’s exhilarating to join so many gifted, hard-working teammates – military, government civilians, and contractors – all integral to demonstrating the 45th Space Wing is “The World’s Premier Gateway to Space,” he said. (Photo by Matthew Jurgens)

Atlas V RBSP

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket blasts off from Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 4:05 a.m. EDT Aug. 30 with NASA’s twin Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission. (Photo by Pat Corkery, ULA)

Poised for Red Planet

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. -- NASA's Mars Science Laboratory with is centerpiece Curiosity rover, depicted here, is scheduled to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket Saturday from Launch Complex 41. The launch window is 10:02-11:45 a.m. The rover will assess whether Mars was, or is still today, an environment able to support microbial life and determine the planet's habitability. (Graphic courtesy of NASA)

Poised for Launch

CAPE CANAVERAL AIR FORCE STATION, Fla. - A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket with NASA’s Mars Science Lab (MSL) rover Curiosity rolls out to its Space Launch Complex-41 launch pad, arriving at 8:40 a.m. EST today. After landing on Mars in August 2012, MSL’s prime mission will last one Martian year (nearly two Earth years). Researchers will use the rover’s tools to study whether the landing region has environmental conditions favorable for supporting microbial life. The launch of the MSL mission is set for Saturday, Nov. 26, with the launch window opening at 10:02 a.m. EST. (United Launch Alliance photo/Pat Corkery)