A Delta Heavy IV rocket will lift off Thursday evening from the Space Launch Complex in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
The Delta Heavy IV, which first lifted off in 2004, will launch a classified payload commissioned by the US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) into orbit on Tuesday night. The NRO rarely discloses the nature or capabilities of its spy satellites, and this mission is no exception Space.com.
While the payload is secret, the launch itself is not. You can watch it live online. The launch of the rocket is scheduled for around 20:45 Lithuanian time.
You can watch the broadcast here:
Delta Heavy IV rocket liftoffs differ from most others in that when the engines are ignited, the underside of the rocket is engulfed in flames. This does not mean that something is wrong – the fire coming from the engine also ignites the hot hydrogen gas rising up for a few moments.
The Delta Heavy IV missile is part of the Delta family of missiles. The first Delta rocket (Thor-Delta) took off in 1960. As liftoff technology developed, the models changed and have served the space industry faithfully to this day.
So it can be said that tonight’s flight ends the 64-year history of Delta rockets.
The Delta IV Heavy rocket has completed 15 flights, 14 of which went as planned. The very first rocket flight in 2004. in December was only partially successful – although the rocket took off, it reached a lower orbit than intended.
The Delta IV Heavy is more than 53 meters tall (first and second stages combined), and the main rocket is just over 5 meters in diameter.
In addition to the Delta IV Heavy, United Launch Alliance plans to retire another of its active rockets, the Atlas V, in the near future.
It is the only rocket of the US space companies using Russian-made RD-180 first-stage engines. The rocket is to be retired, and with it, these engines are to be retired by 2029. after fulfilling all booked flights. There are currently 17 Atlas V rocket flights left.
This is to make way for the company’s new Vulcan Centaur rocket, which is set to launch its first mission in 2024. on January 8, when it sent Astrobotic’s Peregrine satellite to the Moon.
