Delta IV Heavy Launches NROL-91 Sept. 24, 2022
A Delta 4-Heavy with a top secret U.S. government spy satellite into orbit Saturday from California’s Central Coast, closing out a chapter in the tangled history of a launch pad originally built to support military astronaut missions on Titan rockets and space shuttles.
The spy satellite on-board the Delta 4-Heavy is owned by the National Reconnaissance Office, which discloses few details about its spacecraft. The circumstances of the launch Saturday — its launch site, rocket configuration, and flight track after liftoff — led independent analysts to conclude the Delta 4 likely carried a high-resolution electro-optical surveillance satellite into orbit. SLC-6 Vandenberg Space Force Base. Sept. 24, 2022
Read MoreThe spy satellite on-board the Delta 4-Heavy is owned by the National Reconnaissance Office, which discloses few details about its spacecraft. The circumstances of the launch Saturday — its launch site, rocket configuration, and flight track after liftoff — led independent analysts to conclude the Delta 4 likely carried a high-resolution electro-optical surveillance satellite into orbit. SLC-6 Vandenberg Space Force Base. Sept. 24, 2022
The last Delta IV Heavy launched at 3:25:30pm PDT with NROL-91 from VSFB. CA. 09-24-2022
The last Delta 4-Heavy rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 3:25 p.m. PDT (2225 GMT) Saturday with NROL-91 a classified spacecraft for the National Reconnaissance Office, the U.S. government’s spy satellite agency. A Composite of 23 images
