United Launch Alliance’s Delta IV Heavy thundered off the pad from Vandenberg Space Force Base, California, carrying the classified NROL-71 mission for the U.S. National Reconnaissance Office. This powerful rocket—one of the world’s heaviest-lifting launch vehicles—used three Common Booster Cores firing together, lighting up the California coast as it climbed into a polar orbit. Missions like NROL-71 support national security, intelligence, and global monitoring, even though the details stay sec

Watch the United Launch Alliance's Delta IV Heavy-lift rocket launch the classified NROL-70 mission from Cape Canaveral Space Launch Complex-37 on April 9 at 12:53 p.m. EDT. Standing at 233 feet tall and generating 2.1 million pounds of thrust, this powerful rocket, consisting of three Common Booster Cores, undergoes a dramatic stage separation. As the central core and side boosters detach, the rocket continues its journey, showcasing the precision and reliability that make Delta IV Heavy a key

As @ulalaunch prepares to launch the Delta IV Heavy for the final time, a look back at the last West Coast launch as we bid farewell to one of the most unique of rockets 🎥 @neonheatdisease | NASASpaceflight.com