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GPS III SV02 (Delta IV) 22 August 2019 |
Space Launch Complex 37 Cape Canaveral Air Force Station |
| A United Launch Alliance (ULA) Delta IV Medium+ (4,2) rocket launched the second Global Positioning System (GPS) III spacecraft, “Magellan,” to a medium earth orbit (MEO) for the U.S. Air Force Space & Missile Systems Center from Space Launch Complex-37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station at 9:06 a.m. on 22 August 2019. The GPS III series will modernize the entire system, from the ground system to the satellite constellation, with new technology to make way for advanced capabilities and to build in flexibility to address future mission needs. It is estimated that more than four billion military, commercial, and civil users worldwide connect with the Global Positioning System. Today this advanced technology, developed for and operated by the U.S. Air Force, is an essential part of daily life. This mission also marked the last launch of the single-core Delta IV rocket, which is being phased out to make way for ULA’s new Vulcan rocket. | |
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Note the two helicopters watching at left. |
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Solid Rocket Booster separation. |
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Smoke from a grass fire reported near the pad after the launch created a hazy view of SLC-37. |
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