United Launch Alliance Successfully
Launches 50th Atlas V Rocket
Oct. 29, 2014
A United Launch Alliance (ULA)
Atlas V rocket successfully launched the eighth Global
Positioning System (GPS) IIF-8 satellite for the U.S. Air
Force at 1:21 p.m. EDT today
from Space Launch Complex-41. This is ULA's 12th
launch in 2014, and the 89th successful launch
since the company was formed in
December 2006.
"ULA is honored to work with this
world-class U.S. government and contractor mission team, and
we are very proud to have delivered the GPS IIF-8 satellite
to orbit today on the 50th Atlas V mission," said
Jim Sponnick, ULA vice
president, Atlas and Delta Programs. "Achieving 50 Atlas
missions with 100 percent mission success is a tribute to
this team's sustained focus on one mission at a time and
dedication to reliably meeting our customer's launch needs."
This mission was launched aboard
an Atlas V Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle (EELV) 401
configuration vehicle, which includes a 4-meter-diameter
payload fairing. The Atlas booster for this mission was
powered by the RD AMROSS RD-180 engine, and the Centaur
upper stage was powered by a single Aerojet Rocketdyne RL10A
engine.
ULA's next launch is the Delta IV
Heavy Exploration Flight Test (EFT-1) mission of NASA's
Orion spacecraft for Lockheed Martin scheduled for
Dec. 4 from Space Launch
Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station,
Florida.
GPS IIF-8 is the eighth in a
series of next generation GPS satellites and will join a
worldwide timing and navigation system utilizing 24
satellites in six different planes, with a minimum of four
satellites per plane positioned in orbit approximately
11,000 miles above the Earth's surface. The GPS IIF series
provides improved accuracy and enhanced performance for GPS
users.
The EELV program was established
by the United States Air Force to provide assured access to
space for Department of Defense and other government
payloads. The commercially developed EELV program supports
the full range of government mission requirements, while
delivering on schedule and providing significant cost
savings over the heritage launch systems.
With more than a century of
combined heritage, United Launch Alliance is the nation's
most experienced and reliable launch service provider. ULA
has successfully delivered more than 85 satellites to orbit
that provide critical capabilities for troops in the field,
aid meteorologists in tracking severe weather, enable
personal device-based GPS navigation and unlock the
mysteries of our solar system.
