SpaceX Launches Fifth Mission For NRO’s Proliferated Architecture

WASHINGTON — A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on Nov. 30 launched the NROL-126 mission for the National Reconnaissance Office.

The rocket lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California at 3:10 a.m. Eastern, the NRO said in a statement. Although the launch was scheduled and announced, there was no live broadcast of the liftoff and a live feed only became available shortly before the main engine cutoff during the flight. It’s unclear if this was due to operational decisions or specific requests from the NRO.�

NROL-126 was the fifth launch of the NRO’s proliferated architecture of imaging satellites built by SpaceX and Northrop Grumman. SpaceX launched the first four batches of NRO satellites to low Earth orbit in May, June, September and October.�

Unlike previous launches of NRO satellites, the NROL-126 mission included an unspecified number of government satellites and 20 of SpaceX’s Starlink internet satellites.�

Approximately eight minutes after liftoff, the Falcon 9’s first stage booster successfully landed on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean. This was the first flight for this particular booster.

The NRO designs and operates classified U.S. government surveillance and intelligence satellites. The agency seeks to rapidly deploy a new network of satellites designed to track ground targets in near real time.

Sandra Erwin writes about military space programs, policy, technology and the industry that supports this sector. She has covered the military, the Pentagon, Congress and the defense industry for nearly two decades as editor of NDIA’s National Defense…
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