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Launch of the NROL-101, seen from the press site
Time lapse view of the launch of the NROL-101, followed by a raw launch video with sound.
CAP CANAVERAL, Florida – A classified spy satellite launch lit up the evening skies along Florida’s space coast on Friday, the first of two possible launches this weekend.
Mission NROL-101, carrying a secret payload for the National Reconnaissance Office, took off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Base at 5:32 p.m., just minutes after the sun sank below the horizon. The Atlas V rocket rose in the rays of the sun, its exhaust plume leaving a colorful arc across the pastel twilight sky.
As usual for classified missions, the launch contractor United Launch Alliance did not comment on the nature of the mission except to confirm that the launch was a success. A spokesman for the US Space Force described the satellite only as “designed, built and operated by the NRO in support of its aerial reconnaissance mission.”
The state’s east coast beaches were packed with tourists to watch the sunset launch, but not as crowded as they likely will be on Sunday when SpaceX plans to launch its second crewed mission.
Hundreds of thousands of tourists are expected to watch four astronauts fly into space aboard a Dragon capsule, which is due to take off from Kennedy Space Center at 7:27 p.m.
The launch of Crew-1 was delayed to Saturday night due to persistent weather from Tropical Storm Eta, which soaked the state this week.
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